14 DAY TRIAL // BioWare has officially announced that Zaeed, a dangerous gun for hire and potential party member in Mass Effect 2, is currently unavailable for those players who have picked up the Xbox 360 version of the science fiction role playing game.
BioWare is saying that it will take a day or two for the character to be delivered, via the in-game Cerberus Network, but it expects all trouble to be over before the European release date of January 29. The developers have not elaborated on what caused the problems with the Zaeed character, especially given that the other launch day for downloadable content is available to those who are now playing the game.
It seems that BioWare is having some trouble with its DLC content lately. Return to Ostagar, which is the first piece of new content for Dragon Age: Origins after its release, was set to arrive on January 5.
The package briefly appeared on Xbox Live and was then pulled down as BioWare said that installing it could break some of the character progression central to the fantasy role playing experience. Dragon Age did not have an equivalent to the Cerberus Network.
BioWare has ambitious plans related to downloadable content and such delays and problems do not bode well for the future. The Cerberus Network is a pipeline available for free to those who pick up Mass Effect 2 new and will cost 15 dollars for those who pick it up used.
But if players are not confident that BioWare can safely deliver content through it, then they might be more interested in getting the game used and only playing the basic single player element without any new paid content. It will be very nice to see whether the Zaeed issue can be solved quickly or whether BioWare will need the same amount of time as for Return to Ostagar.