Salutations fellow Otaku & Metalheads!
Back in 2020, I did a list of what I considered were the 10 best DLC & Expansion Packs. By the time I was done with that original list, I had a funny feeling that I’d make one of these again at some point. In comparison to the 2020 list, this one was a little quicker to get together, although it’s a bit more eclectic at the same time. One in particular I haven’t actually played, but it got here due to my sheer respect for it (More on that in a moment). This list is definitely on the weird side, but I hope you’ll all like it. With that said, here are 10 more of the best DLC & Expansion Packs that have ever been released. Let’s begin!
10) Bloodborne: The Old Hunters (Video)
And here’s the lone DLC I’ve never played. Tragically, SONY in their infinite wisdom haven’t ported the iconic Bloodborne to the PC, and believe me when I say that there are many among the PC Master Race that would love to get their hands on it & buy it without fail. That being said, I respect the hell out of this game, as well as it’s lone but equally awesome expansion pack. The Old Hunters filled the gaps that the main game’s story may have left in it’s wake, and reveals some of the most disturbing facts about Yharnam & it’s past. There are a host of new weapons & armor sets, plenty of genuinely messed up enemies, and 3 zones that could only have come a Lovecraftian dimension. The Old Hunters is a dark & treacherous adventure, but one that wraps up an equally dark & treacherous tale quite nicely!
9) Shadow Warrior: Twin Dragon (Video)
Another black sheep in the world of Shadow Warrior, this fan-made expansion was released in July of 1998, but it wasn’t until the Classic Redux release back in 2013 that I actually heard of Twin Dragon, much less play it. Kinda like Sunstorm Interactive with their own expansion, Wylde Productions and
Level Infinity (With custom music made by Castles Music Productions) crafted a custom episode that’s actually kind of a blast to play! While there are no new lines from Lo Wang, nor are there any new enemies (Save for the final boss, but that’s essentially a reskin), there’s still plenty of explosive action in each level! From Lo Wang’s house, to a hospital, then a surprisingly relaxing fishing village, and finally the fortress of his evil twin brother (Named Hung Lo....I’ll wait until your laughter subsides), there’s a large variety of locales to go through. If you liked Wanton Destruction but never gave this expansion a go, then I suggest you do so!
8) Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands: Molten Mirrors (Video)
I think anyone who is a fan of this quirky Borderlands spinoff will agree that it’s DLC is nothing short of abysmal. Each one that was released feels like cut content from the Chaos Chambers mode, and used as a cheap way to generate downloadable content. Molten Mirrors is no exception, and yet......this one is the best of them. It still feels like it was cut from the main game, but there seems to be a little more variety with what’s going on. It’s definitely a lot more player involved, as you’re given a few tasks to do before entering the fight with the final boss. Even with the last encounter, there’s a few bullet-hell like elements throughout the fight, and it definitely shakes things up. Molten Mirrors still isn’t all that great, but compared to all of the others.....it’s the one that plays the best.
7) Shadow Warrior 2: Bounty Hunt 1 & 2 (Video For BH 1)
It is definitely annoying when we pay for an expansion pack or DLC, and when we get it......it turns out to be garbage. Sometimes, it’s nice when it’s given to us for free, and the Bounty Hunt DLCs were great. While the missions they gave were nothing out of the ordinary for Shadow Warrior 2 (Fetch & Kill quests if I recall correctly), it was nice to see the game lengthened out in some way. Not only that, but many of the missions either gave you a new gun or a new class skill, and that’s nice. Again, I can’t complain too much about Bounty Hunt 1 & 2 since they were free, but I do wish that there was more to them. Still, I loved what I got, and they were fun!
6) Call Of Duty - Vanguard: Last Stand (Video)
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I’ll talk about this next month, so I’ll save most of my opinions for that. Suffice it to say, COD’s second trip back to World War 2 wasn’t the best. Not god awful, but not one of the best. That said, the special events during 2022 were interesting. While I was considering adding the season where Godzilla was fighting King Kong (Yes.....that happened), I had to talk about the last one instead. By this point Vanguard was very clearly off the rails, and the WW2 content was seemingly minimal towards the end of this year, but the idea of a bunch of villains from COD’s past getting together to raise hell was actually kind of entertaining. Sure, it doesn’t make a lick of sense timeline wise, but the idea of it just makes me smile somehow. Again, Vanguard isn’t the best, but it’s stuff like this that makes sure I don’t completely forget it.
5) Diablo 2: Lord Of Destruction (Video)
Now we're getting to the really good stuff!
I don’t think I need to say how phenomenal Diablo 2 was, and how it’s still considered a classic from the now disgraced Blizzard. I played through the base game so many time, I know how to go about things in an almost religious manner. When it came to it’s official expansion pack, it just made everything so much better. New items, new classes & their skills, new skill interactions, and a new episode with it’s own host of enemies and bosses, Lord Of Destruction still shows off what a phenomenal company they once were. In recent memory we got a return of D2 & LOD thanks to the remaster, so a new generation of gamers can enjoy this wonderful glimpse into the past!
4) Duke It Out In D.C. (Video)
It’s so weird that I put this expansion pack so high on the list. Despite being the first of the three big official expansions for Duke Nukem 3d, it’s in the middle in terms of quality. The levels could be better, but they’re not awful. There’s no new enemies, but the original crew comes back to be used in all the right ways, and there’s no new Duke lines (Save for 1 at the very end), but it’s still funny to hear the classics. What really gets Duke It Out In D.C. so high on this list is the goofy premise. Aliens invade our nation’s capital, kidnap Bill Clinton, and plot to try & take over the country. Going through each surprisingly realistic level (Which honestly aren’t as bad as I said a moment ago) is a blast, and without spoiling the ending too much, let’s just say that Duke rock hard ego.....get’s shrunken down a notch. For anyone looking for a real dose of patriotism, this is the expansion for you!
3) Quake: 25th Anniversary (Video)
I placed this as my no. 2 game of 2021, and for good reason. Quake’s 25th anniversary occurred last year, and with it came a newly revamped game. A brand new episode composed of 6 mini-episodes (2 levels each), updated graphics, tweaked options & displays, map packs from all over that are free to download into the 25th anniversary, but the gameplay is still the key focus, and it’s just as good here in 2022 as it was all the way back in 1996. It’s rare for Bethesda to do something right, but this 25th anniversary is one of the few times in recent years that they did get a game release correct. With small updates & patches since it came out, Quake’s 25th anniversary edition continues to be relevant to old-schoolers like me, and modern gamers who’ve never played this classic back in the day. Give it a try when you have the chance!
2) Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina’s Assault On Dragon Keep (Video)
This DLC right here. This was what planted the seed in the heads of the developers to make a D&D themed spinoff game with Wonderlands, and nearly a decade after the release of this expansion it still continues to be a giant source of entertainment. At first it seemed goofy to put further RPG elements into a shooter that already had said elements, but then you stop & realize that something like this works perfectly in the realm of Borderlands. Not only is it a tribute to tabletop roleplaying games, but it also shows love to so many elements of geek culture, and presents the fact that games of all kinds can heal someone’s heart after they’ve gone through some rough times. A friend of my Mom (And myself by extent) passed away just days before Dragon Keep came out, so it’s healing energy was quite real. This DLC is still something wonderful to play almost 10 years later, So for all of the geeks, nerds, otaku, and weebs that read my blog.....give this baby a try.
1) Diablo: Hellfire (Video)
We all know of Reaper Of Souls, and we have definitely played Lord Of Destruction.....but a lot of you probably don’t know about Hellfire. Created by the now defunct Synergistic Software, it’s one of an incredibly small handful of titles developed for Blizzard, rather than being developed by Blizzard. In the years since it’s release, Blizzard declared everything within it to be non-canon, and the original creator of Diablo does not particularly enjoy it. That being said, Hellfire might actually be one of the most important pieces of gaming ever made, as while the core gameplay remained the same, it was what was added that makes it so significant to many. The two new zones would go on to influence Blizzard when it came to parts of Diablo 2's world & development, the Monk class would come back in Diablo 3 (Though it’s lore & background would be heavily altered), many of the new items & spells would influence future titles, and the newly introduced difficulty selection would also be put into later games. Hell, even some of the cut content that can still be found in Hellfire’s code would actually get used eventually! Despite this expansion practically getting buried by Blizzard (As well as the original Diablo for some god forsaken reason), Hellfire is an expansion pack that has to be played to be believed. Sure, some aspects may not have ages very well, but for what it would later influence, it deserves our respect.
And those were 10 more of the best DLC & Expansion packs that have ever been released. Some of these have been around for quite some time, while some of the others have been around fairly recently. If you have the time & the money, I would say give any of these a go! So, with all of this completed, I got a review for my other no. 1 album of 2021, and it’s a colossus to be sure. See you all next week!
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If you’d like to take a look at my first list of top 10 DLC & Expansion Packs, then click on the link below:
The Top 10 Best DLC/Expansion Packs
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