Ok, so you probably have heard that the Xbox 360 update to GRAW was available for download as of yesterday afternoon. You probably also heard that it cost 1200 Microsoft Points. After removing the fuzziness of referring to Microsoft Points instead of Dollars, you come to realize that it costs $15 (US). Like many of you, I gasped. I even yelled at my Xbox (don’t worry, I apologized afterward). It seems a steep price to pay for an update, but is it really?

Well, let’s look at previous versions of Ghost Recon. When an update was released for the original Xbox, it was done via retail stores in the form a Island Thunder (the update to Ghost Recon) or Summit Strike (the update to Ghost Recon 2). This update cost $30-40 if memory serves me. So, $15 doesn’t look so bad. However, are the updates comparable in content? Probably not. With the Chapter 2 update, you are receiving some new camo, some new weapons, some new faces, as well as 12 multiplayer maps (4 new, and 8 relit maps). With the Ghost Recon updates for Xbox you received a whole new single player mission as well as new multiplayer maps. Considering that it comes with less, $15 seems like it could be spot on.

But, the original game for the 360 cost $60, whereas the original for the Xbox cost significantly less. Should GRAW be considered a $75 game now? I am not sure that’s how it should be judged, but I certainly see why some are raising this point. Granted, GRAW is probably my single favorite game on the 360. It brings, in my opinion, a true next-gen gaming experience and it is just a whole shitload of fun. But, looking at it as a $75 makes me a bit nauseous.

In the end, it comes down to how much the content is worth to you. Are you willing to fork over $15 to extend this particular game? I was able to justify the expense just so I could have something to write about. Unfortunately, it seems alot of you were able to justify the expense as well since the download crawled. I had to leave the 360 on overnight to finish the download. I should have the time to take a look at the new content and bring my thoughts on it (in more detail) on the next podcast.