We kick off with I Am The Manta's excellent piece on why downloadable games are not the only future. Arguing that the tangibility of physical media is an important part of a player's relationship with a game, I Am The Manta says, "There will always be an audience who want to hold a game in their hands as much a pad."
Continuing the DLC theme, Verbal_Oz smartly points out that restricting the console games marketplace to just a few digital vendors is a big problem. Their 'walled garden' approach restricts the natural competition that takes place on the wilds of the high street. But though there's an absurd difference between the cost of a 360 Games On Demand title on Xbox Live and in a shop, Verbal_Oz notes the vibrant, customer-centred market that's developed on Apple's App Store, in which all prices are continually driven down. Quite what the effect is for developers and publishers in either example, though, is another matter.
And StealthBadger questions the EA's recently announced promotion with Dr Pepper in the US, suggesting that giving away exclusive DLC for the likes of special weapons in Battlefield: Bad Company 2 under random ring pulls might give non-soda drinkers the disadvantage in multiplayer. EA would be shooting itself in the foot, if you'll forgive the metaphor, to open itself to such potential imbalances, no?
Away from DLC, look out, too, for another piece by I Am The Manta on the uncanny valley and how Nathan Drake demonstrates the importance of caricature in charting its depths.
And finally, game journalist Douglass Perry presents the first part of an insider's breakdown of the stories which made the decade, from Sega's transformation from console maker to game publisher, to the effects of 9/11 on the industry.
To join the debate and write your own blogs, sign up to the Edge community here.