Here's a topic that will divide the room...downloadable content (DLC) is a waste of money. Discuss.

I must admit that I can't help but feel a little hard done by with DLC. Aside from the obvious fact that those canny developers are making me fork out yet more of my hard-earned cash just to extend the life of my game for a few hours, I kind of object to the fact that I've not really got anything physical to show for my outlay.

Call me old fashioned but when I'm done playing I like the idea of being able to put the shiny disc safely back in its box and bung it on my shelf alongside all my other software. I'm not just a gamer but a collector. Having some DLC floating about somewhere on my already crammed hard drive just doesn't seem to cut the mustard with me.

And there's another thing... what if I ever decide to sell my beloved console? The DLC that I've purchased is as good a useless as it's not transferable to the new owner (unless I hand over my gamertag details too!). What's more I can't take it it to my local computer store and swap it for something else when I'm done either. To me, it just feels a little bit like I'm being swindled.

I do believe that the GTA and Fallout offerings are appearing in box form in the High Street sometime soon but as this option isn't available until months after the launch, it's more than likely that many of us would have succumbed and bought the add-ons online anyhow.

Then there's the quality issue. To be honest, most of the DLC I've come across flatters to deceive and is massively overpriced! Granted, there are the epic updates out there that have been lovingly crafted by developers to really accentuate a game - I'm thinking GTA IV's Lost and the Damned or one of the many Fable II or Fallout 3 offerings - but these are sadly few and far between. Some of the map packs (Call of Duty 4 & 5) are also superb.

Most of the time, however, you're left with some overhyped and ridiculously small new levels, additional characters, colourful costumes or ultimately useless weaponry. Horse armour in Oblivion, anybody?

I guess it's just something I'm going to have to get used to. Xbox Live and the Playstation Network both seem to be growing incredibly fast, and Microsoft recently announced plans to make entire games downloadable.

Looks like I'm destined to have a very full hard drive and bare shelves from now on!

(Photo credit: Matt Brett)