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Best Buy and Target to start selling used games
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Corporate News, Culture, PlayStation 3, THQ, Wii, Xbox 360,
Taking a controversial page from Gamestop’s book, Best Buy and Target both are in the beginning stages of implementing a trade-in program for used videos games in exchange for store credit. Best Buy has revealed that it will start offering a trade-in program this week in 600 locations, and will begin selling used games “soon”.
Target’s Electronic Trade-In department is currently open in North Carolina, and will increase to 850 stores by December 2010. Unlike Gamestop where you can only trade in video games and their accessories to buy more video games and the like; Target comprises a much larger trade-in spectrum, allowing customers to trade in cell phones, iPods, and video games to receive store credit. This store credit can net you the many different items sold in Target, and is not just limited to digital devices.
This all comes much to the dismay of video game publishers, namely THQ CEO Cory Ledesma who recently discussed how used games “cheat” the video game industry. Despite this, it seems that Best Buy and Target intend to get away with some heavy duty cheating this holiday season.
Look for the Best Buy on Columbia Heights 3100 14th St NW to start accepting trade-ins by December.
Read More 
| Target
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Microsoft prepares ban hammer for Halo: Reach pirates
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Bungie, First Person Shooters, Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,
Though the temptation may be great to jump online early, perpetrators of downloading early copies of Halo: Reach better think twice before firing up their illegally attained games online. Microsoft is no stranger to banning as many users as they see fit suspected of playing pirated copies of their games. A representative for Microsoft had this to say:
“We are aware that an unauthorized copy of “Halo: Reach” has leaked. We are aggressively investigating the matter. We have no further details to share at this time.”
Sounds like Microsoft is pretty pissed at the whole situation, and we all know what happens when Microsoft feels slighted. Last fall, gamers playing pirated copies of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 prompted Microsoft to ban up to a million players to get their message across. And that message is that pirating will not be tolerated.
“We are aggressively pursuing the violators. Microsoft’s commitment to combat piracy and support safer and more secure gameplay for the 25 million members of the Xbox LIVE community remains a top priority. All consumers should know that piracy is illegal and modifying their Xbox 360 console violates the Xbox LIVE terms of use, will void their warranty and result in a ban from Xbox LIVE.”
Read More | Kotaku
Xbox 360 Final Fantasy Ad Banned in the UK
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Microsoft, Role Playing Games, Trailers, Xbox 360,
An ad for the Xbox 360 version of Final Fantasy XIII has been removed from UK screens after being accused of using PS3 footage. Sqaure Enix admitted to the ruse, but added that the ad was made entirely from pre-rendered cut scenes that look no different from the Xbox 360 version. The PS3 version of FF13 does indeed look a bit sharper, but not enough to really be noticeable, especially when viewing it in standard definition broadcasted over the air. However, Square states that the ad, comprised of FMV cut scenes, “could have been captured on any device”. Though, apparently the UK doesn’t take too kindly to duping viewers with interchangeable video game footage, as the ad has since been banned from the air. See the ad and judge for yourself above.
Read More | Gamespot via Engadget
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Halo: Reach leaks out…via Xbox Live
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Bungie, Corporate News, First Person Shooters, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,
Keeping in tradition with Halo 3 and Halo 2 before it, the Halo series has managed to fall into unsavory pirate hands yet again with Halo: Reach. How did the leak occur, you ask? Directly from Microsoft’s own servers on Xbox Live. This is because Bungie provided authorized reviewers with the codes to download the game which is currently on display in the Xbox Live Marketplace. However, having Reach hiding in plain site wasn’t clever enough to keep the modders from getting their greedy little hands on Reach a full month early.
With Reach already floating around on some torrents out there and in the hard drives of a climbing number of peoples computers, you can expect details from the games story to begin surfacing online. Futhermore, I can safely predict that there will be another epidemic of eager gamers playing Reach online and subsequently being caught and banned from Xbox Live. Microsoft claims that they are “aggressively investigating” the leak, as I’m sure they are furious, but expecting, of the incident. While Halo has been plagued with early downloads, video games don’t suffer from the same stigma of illegal Internet downloads as music, and the sales don’t seem to decline any. Anticipate Halo: Reach to do big numbers on its release date regardless of the incident.
Xbox 360 S 250GB Hard Drive available for $129.99
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Accessories, Hardware, Microsoft, Xbox 360,
If you’re like me and were really looking forward to purchasing the cheaper, less hard drive-y Xbox 360 S for $200, then you may want to think twice. While the price tag is very attractive, purchasing one with a hard drive from the get go will cost you $30 less than buying the low end model and then upgrading to hard drive space later. Having a lot of hard drive space is essential for those looking to purchase many of their games and movies through games on demand and the Zune marketplace. Things can get messy quickly when you have to think out of the box to fit all your favorite downloads onto your memory impaired console. But if your’re content with only having 4GB of internal memory, and constantly switching out flash drives, then by all means don’t pass up the $200 console. The 250GB hard drive is currently on the Gamestop website, and is popping up in Gamestop stores around the country.
Read More | Gamestop
Bioshock Infinite Takes the Battle to the Skies
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Editorial, First Person Shooters, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,
Watching the Bioshock Infinite trailer for the first time you would think that another underwater outing is in store for the next serious installment of Bioshock. And that’s exactly the effect desired by Irrational Games. While in the midst of this underwater backdrop, the size scale is disrupted when a seemingly enormous fish encircles the perimeter, prompting a very warranted “huh?” from the viewer. Instantly the carpet is pulled from underneath the audience as the scene is revealed to be from the perspective of an unknown victim who just went face diving in a fish tank. This, courtesy of a menacing giant with a visible beating heart sporting a very Bioshock look. The antagonist then tosses our unlucky friend head first out of the window. As the glass shatters we get our first real glimpse at the setting of Bioshock Infinite - above the clouds. Ladies and gentlemen, we’re not in Kansas anymore.
“The time for silence is over,” said Ken Levine of Irrational Games, finally unsealing his lips on the game they’ve been developing for the past three years. The last Bioshock released was heralded not by the original team behind the groundbreaking Bioshock, but by several different sister companies. However, this time Irrational Games is back behind the wheel, and is striking with a vengeance. However, no word on whether or not Infinite has a connection with the first Bioshock world, and Levine is remaining mum on the subject. “I don’t want to think about that…I don’t think it’s particularly constructive to have that conversation,” said Levine in reference to the narrative connection in Infinite. He did, however, nod that the Infinite part of the title “[has] meaning”.
Click to continue reading Bioshock Infinite Takes the Battle to the Skies
Blockbuster Now Including Games Through Mail
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Corporate News, Nintendo, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,
In a last ditch effort to keep up with their online counterpart Netflix, and those oh so convenient Redbox machines found at nearly every grocery store, Blockbuster started slanging their rentals via snail mail. However, with the video game market growing ever larger thanks to blockbusters of their own, such as Halo and Call of Duty, Blockbuster needed another ace in the hole in order to compete.
Enter Blockbuster’s new plan to counter the Gamefly epidemic. As of now, you will be able to order not just movies through the mail, but video games as well. This allows Playstation, Xbox 360, and Wii fanboys to get their fix without so much as leaving the couch. With this maneuver Blockbuster hopes to counter lackluster game sales they’ve been battling with, thanks to more relevant gaming outlets in the form of Gamestop and Gamefly. Of which the former offers an awesome trade-in system, and the latter specializes in mailing games directly to your house.
What do you think of Blockbuster’s “new” way to rent video games? Will you make Blockbuster your new priority for video game rentals, or will you stick to your old routine? If you wanna see how it all works, you can get a two-week Blockbuster Online free trial.
Read More | Blockbuster Online
Guillermo del Toro teams up with THQ
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: PlayStation 3, THQ, Xbox 360,
Last week we reported on Guillermo del Toro’s intent to work with a “big game publisher” to create several new titles. Without mentioning more than that, we were left to speculate on who this mysterious company was, and what games the mastermind of Pan’s Labyrinth and Hellboy had up his sleeve. Now, the former question has been revealed to The LA Times to be THQ.
THQ is primarily known as a developer of kiddie games and wrestling titles, but have recently began focusing on their mature audiences with both the Red Faction and Saints Row franchises. The former of which is set to broadcast on SyFy as a live-action film in 2011. Now with del Toro lending his hand to the THQ drawing board, we can expect to see more “games that are going to be technically and narratively very interesting”.
Read More | LA Times
Halo 2600 Takes Master Chief Back In Time
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Bungie, Internet, Microsoft, Retro, Xbox 360,
While the original Halo: Combat Evolved may look as ancient as they come to some of today’s gamers, the former VP of Microsoft’s game publishing division was curious to how Halo would fare in the retro days of Atari 2600. The result? Halo: 2600! Halo 2600 began as a way for Ed to get his hands dirty in some 2600 code work, but the resulting experience transformed into a complete retro classic showcased at the Classic Gaming Expo. To solidify the retro experience, Halo 2600 even sports a cartridge modeled in true 2600 fashion. Below, Ed discusses his experience making Halo 2600, and a bug that seems to fit into the Halo experience:
“It’s around this time that I discovered the existence of what I call “Magic Land”. I was working on a bug with the boss encounter and accidentally found myself completely outside the 64 room map. I was wandering through memory that was never intended to be interpreted as part of the map but the code was doing the best it could to interpret what was being thrown at it. Strange, misshapen monsters attacked me in even stranger ways as I wandered through this bizarre land that I had unintentionally created. I left a bug or two in the final game to allow others to find and explore this strange landscape as I did.”
While waiting for Halo: Reach to hit stores, get your Master Chief fix here.
Read More | Halo 2600
Guillermo del Toro Announces Several Video Game Projects
Posted by John Kilhefner Categories: Culture, Editorial, PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360,
Film director Guillermo del Toro, of Pan’s Labyrinth and Hellboy fame, is currently set to lend his artistic vision to a field that has long fought for its place in the artistic realm. The debate as to whether or not video games can be considered art was recently set ablaze when acclaimed film critic Roger Ebert blogged that “no video gamer now living will survive long enough to experience [video games] as an art form”. While Ebert admits to having no desire to ever play a video game, hardly the same sentiment applies to del Toro, who previously stated that Flower is “like haiku poetry.” Almost a year later Ebert referred to the same game as “decorative interest on the level of a greeting card”. The two are definitely polar opposites when it comes to video games and art. However, with del Toro’s unique artistic direction poised to influence the gaming industry, can the opinionated Ebert change his anti-gaming ways? Or will del Toro’s gaming projects miss the mainstream mark like other filmmakers’ ventures into the gaming world?
Click to continue reading Guillermo del Toro Announces Several Video Game Projects
Read More | MTV
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