Since developer Creative Assembly unveiled its Shadows of Change DLC for Total War: Warhammer 3, the studio has come under criticism from the game’s playerbase because of high pricing for the upcoming DLC. For context, Shadows of Change is priced at $24.99, which puts it at around 40% of the price of the full game.
Players have taken two the game’s Steam reviews and discussions forums to complain about the pricing, with some calling the new pricing policy for the DLC a “complete rip-off”
Responding to these criticisms, chief product officer at Creative Assembly, Rob Bartholomew, has stated that DLC prices are increasing because the studio’s costs have risen.
“To get right into it: our costs are up,” Bartholomew said in a post on the Total War website. “Unfortunately, that means that prices have to rise. We know any increase is going to be tough, which is why our prices have remained fairly stable over the past few years. The downside is that any increase today is going to be more noticeable.”
Bartholomew goes on to call for the game’s playerbase to stop harassing developers working at Creative Assembly, acknowledging that some players might wait for deep discounts before buying the more expensive DLC releases.
“Finally, we need to ask you again to stop directing abuse at individual team members,” said Bartholomew. “Frustrated as you may get, these are human beings who spend many hours representing you and your voices within the studio. All of our work gets easier when they are treated with respect.”
The Shadows of Change DLC for Total War: Warhammer 3 is slated for release on August 31.
