GameStop wants to make sure you’re taken care of if you buy a PC game from its site, then lose it and need to re-download it. The seller is kind enough to add download insurance to your cart automatically, just in case you forget to pick it up yourself before you check out. Sarcasm aside, the pushy salesmanship is no doubt overlooked by those who just want to click buttons until their game starts to download. [More]
video games
GameStop Will Honor Ancient Pre-Orders For Long-Gestating Video Game
By 5.30.11
Pre-order-pushing GameStop takes down payments and reservations on video games while developers are still working on them, so sometimes customers — who are free to cancel reservations and apply their credit to other purchases — end up putting $5 or more down on games that never come out. Some true believers hold out hope that their pre-ordered vaporware will someday see the light of day, as is the case with Duke Nukem Forever, which has been in off-and-on development for 14 years. The game will finally hit shelves June 14. [More]
Video Game Emulators Vanish From Android Market
By 5.30.11
A number of hot-selling paid apps that let gamers play modified versions of old-school video games were yanked from the Android Marketplace. The vanished apps, which were presumably pulled due to intellectual property violations, allowed gamers to turn their phones into sketchy conduits to relive the magic of the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis and other ancient consoles. [More]
Chinese Prisoners Forced To Farm Warcraft Gold Or Get Beatings
By 5.26.11
To get ahead in online games like the popular World of Warcraft, sometimes people will turn to the black market and purchase in-game gold from other gamers using real world dollars. It sounds relatively harmless, except the person you’re buying it from could be a prisoner in a Chinese labor camp under threat of cruel physical punishment. [More]
Microsoft Reaching Out To Xbox 360 Owners Whose Systems Won't Play Games
By 5.19.11
Responding to news that some Xbox 360s might not be able to play game discs, Microsoft’s PR firm sent us a message to clarify the issue: [More]
New PS3 Problems: Network Login Exploit, Overheating Consoles
By 5.19.11
Sony’s run of bad luck continues. Following the three-weeks-and-change PlayStation Network outage and accompanying data breach, Sony dealt with potentially compromised PSN website logins and reports of systems overheating when playing a popular new game. [More]
Report: Some Older Xbox 360s Might Not Read Upcoming Game Discs (Updated)
By 5.18.11
Update: Microsoft released this clarification through its PR firm: [More]
Don't Hold Your Breath For A Timely PlayStation Network Restoration
By 5.11.11
Remember when Sony said its downed PlayStation Network would be back up in some form sometime last week? That didn’t happen, and now that the outage nears the start of its fourth week, Sony is astutely getting more vague in its promises. [More]
Sony: Our Security Was Up To Date
By 5.9.11
Contradicting a security expert’s statement that Sony’s PlayStation Network security software was obsolete months before it was shredded by hackers, the electronics giant says its defenses were indeed up to snuff. [More]
Sony Offers Year Of Identity Theft Prevention Service As Hackers Allegedly Plot Another Attack
By 5.6.11
To regain the confidence of customers burned by its infamous PlayStation Network outage and data breach, Sony is offering U.S. users a year’s subscription to an identity theft prevention service. [More]
Wii Price Cut To $150
By 5.4.11
As rumored, Nintendo has officially cut the suggested retail price of the Wii, down to $150 from $200. In addition, they are launching a budget-conscious line of titles for the system dubbed “Nintendo Selects,” which will retail for $19.99. [More]
Microsoft Makes It Easier For Military Members To Play Xbox Online
By 5.4.11
Until now, Microsoft made it difficult for those living on military bases to game online, refusing to accept Military State codes such as AE (Armed Forces Europe), AA (Armed Forces of the Americas) or AP (Armed Forces Pacific) as options for Xbox Live members to list their credit card billing addresses. [More]
Words You're Not Allowed To Type While Playing Mortal Kombat
By 5.2.11
Gamers who play Mortal Kombat can communicate online via text chat, but the game prevents you from using certain words and phrases. While it’s common for developers to restrict certain vulgarities, what’s unusual about this case is hackers have apparently exposed what exactly these words are. [More]
Sony Apologizes For PlayStation Network Outage, Says 10 Million Credit Cards May Be At Risk
By 5.2.11
At a press conference in Tokyo over the weekend, executives for Sony issued a public apology for the ongoing PlayStation Network outage and admitted that upwards of 10 million users’ credit card information could possibly have been breached. [More]
Redbox Will Launch $2 Game Rentals In June
By 4.29.11
Finalizing a program it’s been testing for months, Redbox announced it’s making $2-per-night video game rentals available at more than 21,000 kiosks nationwide starting June 17. [More]
Sony: We Waited A Day, Not A Week, To Tell Gamers Hacker May Have Swiped Their Info
By 4.27.11
Sony ignited a firestorm Tuesday when it revealed that its week-long-and-counting PlayStation Network outage was caused by one or more hackers who may have swiped users’ personal information, including credit card numbers. [More]
Facebook Games Could Be Responsible For Demise Of Soap Operas
By 4.26.11
Soap operas continue to wash out, and demographic analysis suggests audiences may be shifting away from the programming to spend more time on Facebook games. [More]
