Gadgets and Video Games

Retailers have started listing a Limited Collector’s Edition of Alan Wake , possibly in advance of an official announcement later today at Microsoft’s X10 event. Both Best Buy and Wal-Mart have listings for the item, with an $80 price tag and a May 25 release date. Wal-Mart’s listing actually includes the image seen here, and details the contents of the set: a linen case “designed to resemble a hardcover book” (is this game a book or a TV show?), a 144-page book with a story written by Alan Wake and FBI dossiers included, a soundtrack disc, a token for the first DLC pack, and a disc with an Xbox Live theme and avatar

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Alan Wake Limited Collector’s Edition spotted on retailer sites with May 25 date [update]

Red Dead Redemption’s many, many pre-order bonuses are now detailed on the game’s official website , and we can’t imagine anyone will be prepared for the barrage of options listed when you click that link. No less than eight different pre-order bonuses, split between ten different US and UK retailers have been dreamed up by marketing. In typical Rockstar fashion, the practice of “exclusive” bonus content has become excessive bonus content. Among the options listed are the “Golden Guns Weapon Pack” (more “Fame” per kill), from Amazon, which also comes with a $10 Amazon gift card; the “War Horse,” a steed that Rockstar claims can’t be bested by any other horse in the game, only available from Best Buy and HMV; and the “Deadly Assassin Outfit” from UK retailer Game (and maybe GameStop, if the getup wins the vote — uh-huh, there’s a pre-order vote ).

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Red Dead Redemption pre-order bonuses announced

Ah, what’s a Halo game release without midnight launch events? Unsurprisingly, both Best Buy and GameStop will be hosting midnight launches for Halo 3: ODST . While Best Buy will simply be selling the game at midnight, Monday, September 21, GameStop has some festivities planned. According to Team Xbox , activities planned include RC Warthog and “pedal-powered go-cart” races, Halo trivia contests as well as a Halo cosplay contest.

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Drop in for ODST midnight launch events

What you see above is the third circular image we’ve spotted in just five days advertising a Nintendo Wii price cut to $199.99. At this point, though the image that a Kotaku tipster sent in could very well be made of fancy pixel work by someone with too few extracurriculars on their schedule, we’re fairly confident in a forthcoming price cut reveal. Considering the impending holiday season and those other consoles getting recent price drops, it seems likely something will occur with the big N in the upcoming months. If Miss Cleo’s Michael Pachter’s predictions based on slowing sales are any indication though, we’ll know soon enough. Rumor: Best Buy ad fuels the $50 Wii price drop fire originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 18 Sep 2009 20:00:00 EST

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Rumor: Best Buy ad fuels the $50 Wii price drop fire

Last week, Canadians were privy to a fantastic deal, netting them Batman’s latest adventure for $40 . This week, American gamers are being treated to a buy-one-get-one-half-off promotion at Best Buy on a laundry list of Xbox 360 software. The deal is pretty simple: Purchase one qualifying Xbox 360 title and get a second game (of equal or lesser value) for 50% off

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Best Buy offering buy-one-get-one-half-off for 360 games

In order to dissuade recent PS3 buyers from returning their systems in exchange for newer, slimmer ones , Best Buy is reportedly offering a free game to customers who come in for such an exchange. According to our tipster, who snapped the picture above ( Kotaku also claims to have verified the story), Best Buy sent out an internal memo instructing employees to try to convince customers not to return their recent purchases for Slims with the offer of a free copy of either inFamous , Killzone 2 , or MLB 09 . The memo also states that there is no official “street date” for the system, so it could be out on the shelf already

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Rumor: Best Buy offering new PS3 buyers a free game to discourage Slim trade-ins

“We’re never not interacting with our community,” Peter Moore recently claimed at the Edinburgh Interactive Festival, MCV UK reports. Apparently the EA Sports prez was advocating the need for more community engagement and developer transparency in the gaming industry, saying, “We needed to get away from the ‘dark science’ days of making games, when we’d just lob the consumer a screenshot on the odd afternoon.” It’s reported that he also argued for early and frequent marketing for games, adding that some publishers still don’t understand the necessity for sustained engagement. He posits that community interaction and openness is key, though Moore admits he’s had to develop a “thick skin” due to some forumgoers on the EA Sports blogs calling him “ugly.” Aww, sorry Peter. We still love ya, buddy! Peter Moore asks for transparency in marketing, doesn’t mind being called ugly originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 26 Aug 2009 06:00:00 EST

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Peter Moore asks for transparency in marketing, doesn’t mind being called ugly

Sure, you could sit on your butt today, thinking about how The Beatles: Rock Band won’t be available until September 9 . Instead, why not head to a participating Best Buy store today between noon and 3:30PM (EST) to check out the game early?

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Get your hands on The Beatles: Rock Band today at Best Buy

Do you like Rock Band Unplugged ? Do you like … buying a new PSP

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Rumor: PSP Go to include voucher for Rock Band Unplugged

Activision has announced the pre-order bonuses for Blur , which include different extras for three different retailers. Don’t worry too much about being forced to choose — it’s just digital stuff, and not, like, a hat or anything. Pre-ordering Bizarre Creations’ latest racer from GameStop ( Xbox 360 , PS3 , PC ) will net you an “Exclusive Multiplayer Advantage Booster Kit” which unlocks a Ford Bronco and an exclusive “Last Man Standing” multiplayer survival mode, as well as a “Double Fans” bonus for the first ten multiplayer races, which increases your ability to earn money. Those who pre-order from Game Crazy will receive double cash for the first three single-player races. And purchasing the game on the release date from Best Buy gets a code to unlock a Dodge Hennessey Viper.

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Blur pre-order bonuses make decision about where to buy less clear