[andrewas]

Putting a free update CD in the box sounds like a good idea, but the problem is that its a small production run (higher cost per unit), and then you have to keep track of the different versions and make sure that only recent ones are shipped, and what do you do with the V1.30 boxes when 1.40 with the HotU addons is out and weighs in at 40Mb?

Its a fair amount of cost, and given Atari's (mis)handling of their products, be thankful for what you are getting. Look at ToEE. No official patches because Atari wont pay for them, and the game was rushed out in an unfinished state.

I wont even mention what they did to the XCOM series because I'm not 100% sure how much of it I can blame directly on them, but it wasn't good.

At least with NWN you get patches, new content, and a hell of a lot of support from Bioware.

And a 30Mb download isnt that bad, just leave the comp downloading while you go to the pub. Or most offices/schools/libraries have broadband these days. Use the manual downloads, the autoupdater dosent have download resuming and on a 30Mb patch that can cause severe damage to your hand as you thump the monitor in frustration.