Xbox 360 Getting Timed Exclusivity For Skyrim DLC

The first two packs of downloadable content for Bethesda's highly anticipated The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim will be available exclusively on the Xbox 360 for at least 30 days after their release, Microsoft announced today. No additional details were given regarding timing or content for the packs, which will hit sometime after the game's launch on November 11. This is not the first time Bethesda and Microsoft have inked such a deal -- three DLC packs for Fallout 3 were available on the PS3 and PC starting in June 2009, after hitting the Xbox 360 in January. Similarly, the "Dead Money" DLC for Bethesda's Fallout: New Vegas was also available as a timed exclusive for the Xbox 360, hitting the system in December 2010 before a PC and PS3 release in February 2011. Microsoft has actively courted such timed exclusives to attract interest in the Xbox 360 versions of many multiplatform titles, ranging from Call of Duty: Black Ops to Grand Theft Auto IV. Other titles, such as Tomb Raider: Underworld, have seen DLC go exclusively to the Xbox 360 without a time limit, leaving players on other platforms without access. In a recent interview, Microsoft European head of marketing Chris Lewis told Gamasutra such exclusive content is "critical for us for differentiation" and that "you'll see more of that over time."