It’s increasingly common for DLC to be expected for many games, and some even release as day one DLC alongside the initial launch of the game. DLC varies greatly in what you can expect from it. Some might only give you some additional cosmetic options or items that are fun, but don’t actually impact gameplay. Then, you have DLC that impacts the game in smaller ways, such as adding extra missions, but they do so in a way where you can enjoy the game without them. Finally, you have the gold standard DLCs, where they give you so much content — or content with so much depth — that the entire feeling of the game changes.
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DLC can be hit or miss for a lot of games, but there are some outliers that have changed the game by releasing DLC that sets a new standard for what additional content should be. While quite a few DLCs in recent years have shown that DLC can be revolutionary, there are also older DLCs that deserve a mention for being truly special additions to the base content.
These are the video game expansions and DLC that we think took things to another level.
1) Mass Effect 3: Citadel
Mass Effect 3: Citadel is an embodiment of everything great about the trilogy. This DLC is often called a love letter to players, since it lets you take a break from the missions in the game that have a heavy tone and spend time with your squadmates. There’s a bit of a story in the DLC, as you have to deal with the appearance of a Shepard clone before you get to relax at Anderson’s apartment, which he’s given to Shepard.
Once you’re done with the clone issue, you get to explore the Citadel before having a party at your apartment with your squadmates. You also get the chance to spend time with each squadmate through various activities, where their individual relationships with Shepard are talked about at that time. It’s no wonder that this bittersweet DLC is seen as a highlight of the trilogy.
2) The Witcher 3: Blood and Wine
The scale of Blood and Wine is massive, and it feels like you’re adding on another entire game to The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt. Toussaint is a beautiful area to explore just to appreciate the design, and while it doesn’t have the same number of quests as the base game, Blood and Wine improves on the base game across the board and includes some of the most fun boss fights in the game.
Additionally, Blood and Wine might have some of the best cutscene moments in the game, especially if you like the kind of bizarre humor that The Witcher is able to pull off while making it believable in the in-game world. To be specific, you get to experience a wild fever dream with Geralt as he believes that Roach is talking to him.
3) Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
FromSoftware consistently produces DLC that’s of a higher standard when the company decides to add more content to one of its games, and Shadow of the Erdtree is no different. The new zone where the DLC is set is massive, beautiful, and filled with the subtle environmental storytelling that’s become iconic in Soulsborne games. You get to explore the ways that divinity can be acquired, and the horrors that were committed by Marika and her allies as she chased godhood, only to seal off the evidence and create her Golden Order.
Of course, the bosses tend to be a highlight for FromSoftware games, and Shadow of the Erdtree certainly doesn’t disappoint on that front. There’s a total of 83 new bosses in this DLC, 12 of which are main bosses and 3 of which need to be defeated in order to beat the DLC. The last boss, Promised Consort Radahn, even manages to provide a new level of challenge for players who are already used to the brutal mechanics of Elden Ring.
4) Resident Evil Village: Shadows of Rose
Shadows of Rose is set years after the events of Resident Evil Village, following an older Rose Winters as she tries to find a way to get rid of the powers she has from her mom being infected with Mold and her dad being basically a Mold clone, which have made her into a more powerful and stable version of Eveline. Naturally, this leaves Rose feeling ostracized when she’s surrounded by people who are just regular humans, and she wants to fit in.
When you play the DLC, you get to experience a warped version of Ethan’s journey in RE Village, as Rose explores her own mind, where there are memories of the events Ethan lived through for the sake of saving her when she was a baby. In the middle of the horrors Rose faces, she learns how to accept herself and embrace the abilities that make her unique, which add mechanics to the DLC that you don’t get to use in the base game.
5) Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Cyberpunk 2077 had a rough launch. It took multiple patches to bring the game to a place where it felt worth playing, and Phantom Liberty felt like a redemption arc for CD Projekt Red. It wasn’t perfect at launch either, but it was playable, and now it might be the highlight of the entire game rather than an expansion to it. Phantom Liberty should be considered a must-play part of Cyberpunk 2077.
Phantom Liberty feels like it took the elements of Cyberpunk 2077’s base game and improved on them across the board. You get about 20 extra hours of story content, and the story from the DLC might be even better than the story of the base game. It’s separate from the main story in most ways, but your decisions in the main story impact the DLC options you have, depending on when you decide to do the DLC during the story.
6) Bloodborne: The Old Hunters
Bloodborne: The Old Hunters is a rather short DLC compared to the rest of the options on this list, and compared to FromSoftware’s DLCs for other Soulsborne games. Just like the rest of Bloodborne, the new areas you get to explore in The Old Hunters are atmospheric and eerie, and they give you some new equipment and weapons to use.
Despite being shorter, you might spend a fair amount of time completing The Old Hunters simply because of how unforgiving some of its bosses are. However, this DLC has what might be the best boss fights in the entire game, especially since Lady Maria is included in it with a beautiful and brutal battle.
7) Outer Wilds: Echo of the Eye
Outer Wilds alone is already a great game, but Echoes of the Eye makes it feel more whole. If you play just the base game, then play the game with the DLC included, you get an experience that seems more complete with both pieces of content. The way that it’s implemented gives you control over when you decide to play the DLC, but there are optimal times to play it to get the most out of the entire story of the game overall.
Echoes of the Eye gives you more secrets about the solar system to explore, allowing you to access it through a new exhibit in the museum. You get about 15 hours of additional content that tells its own story, but in a way that’s still connected to the main story. It feels like a must-have for Outer Wilds, even if you can get a full experience without the DLC.
8) Xenoblade 2: Torna ~ The Golden Country
Torna ~ The Golden Country takes a unique approach to DLC by placing its events 500 years before the events of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. This means that you aren’t going to access it during the base game, as you have to select it on the menu to start playing it, which makes sense with the time gap, making it difficult to bridge these stories as easily as some DLC, like Bloodborne: The Old Hunters.
While such a large time gap can make the DLC feel disconnected from the main story, that’s not the case with Torna. Instead, the main story and DLC add to each other’s emotional impact. When you know what happens to Torna, seeing it in its prime is heartbreaking, and that’s what the DLC lets you experience.
DLC can be an entire story on its own or a minor addition, but some go above and beyond to show the potential of extra content. A DLC doesn’t have to be a direct part of the main story, and many of the best DLC instead work with the main story to give extra context that ties into it without making you lose important information if you don’t play the DLC.
Hopefully, these DLC that raised the bar will set a new standard for the industry.
What are your favorite DLC upgrades? Let us know in the comments below!
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