Why is it that some DLC makes you wonder just what the developers were thinking?  Should I really need to buy more armor or weapons to enjoy a game ?  While some DLC hits their target dead on, others leave me wondering WTF.

I’ll start with some obvious examples of what I consider top-drawer spot-on DLC.

• Guitar Hero / Rock Band Music Tracks
• First Person Shooter Map Packs
• Racing Game Car Packs and Track Packs

These are perfect examples because they follow the rules.  Not my rules, and there are no universal rules for DLC, but they follow the rules of the game they are made for.  Music tracks expand Guitar Hero and RockBand without changing the rules of the game.  Map Packs for Halo are just new environments to play the same game with the same rules.  Car and Track Packs… you see where this is going.  DLC should stick to the rules of the original game while expanding the experience in some way.

Here are a few that I feel just didn’t hit the mark.

Find my complete article on DLC that breaks the rules at Platform Nation.  Covered is DLC for the following games:

• Fallout 3
• Dead Space
• Burnout Paradise
• Borderlands
• Metro 2033

Did you know that Microsoft gives away free Games, DLC, Avatar Items, Themes, Beta Keys and more each and every Friday?  The two main sources for these freebies are the Xbox Live Staff and, believe it or not, Xbox 360 Tech Support.  Right now the hottest items in town are Halo Reach Beta Keys and everyone seems to have a few to give away.

Here is how it works.  First you need an account on Twitter, even if you never post anything.  It’s easy and it’s free, plus many of you can monitor Twitter on your phone.

Next, follow  Majornelson on your twitter account.  This is Larry Hryb from Xbox Live.  You have probably seen him on the Major’s Minute reports on Xbox Live.  Free Code Friday seems to be his baby and he usually makes a little game of it.  Some days he will post a TAG image to be read by a TAG reader on a phone.  Other days he might ask a simple question like “What was your favorite childhood toy?” and pick 5 random winners from the replies.  He has also been known to toss out some download codes during the week also – but always on Friday.

Other people at Xbox live have been know to pass out free download codes also.  Be sure to follow these people on Twitter also:

Stepto – Stephen Toulouse, Director of Policy and Enforcement for Xbox LIVE.

lauralollipop – Laura Massey, Software Engineer on the Xbox 360.

dennya – Denny Atkin, Xbox.com Games Guy (That’s what his bio says.)

XboxSupport – The Elite Tweet Fleet support team.  (Also great for immediate support!)

And of course you will want to follow Platform_Nation on Twitter.  We’ve been known to hand out codes on occasion also, such as the Blur Beta Codes when Bizarre Creations fired up their closed Beta.

That’s a good start.  If you follow Twitter for free codes and win – let me know with a reply, and make sure to post here who you follow for your free code giveaways.