Hot Wheels Unleashed has been out for a little while now, and I think it’s a pretty great game overall. Something that I’ve not been able to comment on until now is that, at the time of writing all of my coverage, I haven’t been able to see the DLC for the game. I knew it was going to be getting a couple of expansions, and the inevitable DLC tirade that comes with all games that have collectibles. However, now that I’ve seen the Volume 1 Expansion pass, I feel a bit uneasy about the whole thing. It’s way more than I expected to be paying for a DLC for a game like this, which makes me think that someone is trying to take advantage of the players.
As I’ve mentioned before, the best thing about Hot Wheels Unleashed is that you don’t have to pay for the Blind Boxes. These are loot boxes in the game that award you with a random car. You can only buy them with in-game currency that you earn from races. It’s perfect, mainly because this is a game that’s aimed at a younger audience, and gearing a system to exploit them for money isn’t cool in any way. This DLC though, it feels like it’s taking advantage.
So the Volume 1 Expansion costs £24.99, which is roughly half as much as the game costs to purchase. You can get it with. special deluxe edition or the collector’s edition, but the game is enjoyable without it. I’m buying it because I love the game and I have that disposable income, but I think that the younger players will feel like they have to pay for it. A key reason for this is that the Bone Shaker car is locked behind the Volume 1 Expansion. You can also buy the car separately for under £1. That car is linked to a secret in the game, making it feel like some of the content has been sliced off of the finished product.
I haven’t felt this way about a game for years, but now I’m really starting to wonder if Milestone built a bigger game and then chopped it up to maximise profit.