"We know that how people are playing games and the way games are delivered are changing," he says. "So this is a way to deliver a customizable experience for the player in a brand new pricing model. It's all about what the gamer wants and how THQ can deliver a great gaming experience that suits each individual player through a highly modular content set."

Games like MX vs. ATV are an ideal fit for this kind of pricing model. The game structure is based around different modes and classes of vehicle, and so it is simple enough to add additional content to particular sections or modes, or even to create new parts of the game. Both player and publisher win in this instance: the publisher can develop a larger install base with the lower initial price point, while the player can "build" the game they want over time by picking which DLC suits their play style.

Buying DLC piecemeal, however, makes it hard to keep track of how much your game really "costs," particularly if there's a lot of it available. How much will it actually cost to get the "full" experience? Farrell's answer doesn't quite satisfy us.

"To be clear," he says, "the $39.99 price point does not mean that the boxed product will be a less than robust game. MX vs. ATV Alive will be an engaging, satisfying experience for any gamer and the best title in the franchise to date. Additionally, the total content to be offered well surpasses what would have been included in a $59.99 game."

Note that "total content offered" is not "content you have a right to being that you bought the boxed product." Sure, the total amount of DLC available for the new game may well be considerably more than what a developer can squeeze onto a disc, but how much will each piece cost? How much of the game will be included on the disc at launch? The questions build to the point where we ask ourselves if we even want DLC if it's just going to mean we're not getting a complete game with a $39.99 purchase.