‘Final Fantasy XV’ DLC Season Pass To Include Six DLC Packs, Three New Episodes, ‘Completely New’ Expansion

Final Fantasy XV still has over a month to go until release — the official date is set for September 30, 2016 (although GamingBolt says that rumors have the game being delayed until November 29) – but Square Enix is already putting out a lot of details on the game’s DLC; so many that, according to PlayStation Lifestyle, they’ve had to refute rumors that the DLC is just content cut from the initial release.

The latest Final Fantasy XV DLC details to hit the streets indicate that the Season Pass will consist of six DLC packs in total — including three new episodes and one “completely new” expansion to the game. And considering that the Season Pass is going for $24.99 (compare the vaguely-revealed Star Wars Battlefront Season Pass which includes four DLC packs for $69.99) that’s a pretty good deal, if you’re into paying for your DLC up front. If you want to get it bundled with the game itself (the Final Fantasy XV Digital Premium Edition) you’ll be paying $84.99.

Not the worst price tag for a AAA game these days.

So, on to the DLC. According to Engadget, the six Final Fantasy XV DLC packs will be called the Booster Pack, Episode Gladio, Holiday Pack, Episode Ignis, Episode Prompto, and the simply-named Expansion Pack – although as Square Enix notes, these are simply working titles. Hopefully they work on that Expansion Pack name. Gamespot has some basic details on each pack; the Booster Pack will help the player acquire more powerful weapons, Episode Gladiolus is an original episode featuring Gladiolus, best friend of protagonist Noctis, making him a playable character for the duration of the episode.

The Holiday Pack apparently includes visual content to enhance the game’s appearance; presumably, given the name, it will include some sort of Christmas-themed decorations although we could be completely off-base there.

The fourth DLC is Episode Ignis, another original episode focusing on another friend of Noctis. Again, this will make Ignis a playable character.

DLC five is Episode Prompto – can you guess where this is going yet? Yes, Prompto is a friend of Noctis. Yes, the episode will focus on him. And, yes, it will make him a playable character.

All in all, as IGN notes, the episodes combine to make each party member a playable character – at least for the duration of their own adventure.

As previously noted, if you’re wondering if this content was originally intended to be included in the main game, you’re not alone. After the DLC details were released, Community Manager Dan Seto was compelled to take to his official blog and issue a statement reassuring everyone that Final Fantasy XV‘s DLC wasn’t just stripped content.

“The FFXV DLC is not content that has been cut from the main game just to sell to you later. This is really important because we want everyone who buys and plays the FFXV base game to know they are getting the full FFXV experience. The FFXV DLC will add new and unique experiences to the FFXV Universe with each piece of DLC designed to offer something brand new. So I’ll say it again because it’s important – the FFXV DLC is not content that has been cut from the main game!”

What then of DLC pack six?

Well, almost nothing is known about it yet, beyond that it is going to be a “completely new” expansion to the game. But Square Enix is saying that it will add a completely new way to play the game. And if we’re placing bets, ours are on a multiplayer mode.

There has been a hint here or there that Final Fantasy XV might have multiplayer, but nothing even remotely concrete has surfaced in spite of the fast-approaching release date. Combine those with a “new way” to play the game after the final expansion, and… well. It’s suggestive.

Let’s just hope it’s not another card game.

Either way, Final Fantasy XV is provisionally set to release September 30. The base game will cost $59.99 on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and the DLC Season Pass will run another $24.99.

[Image via Square Enix]