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Specialty retailer hoping gamers are as willing to wait in line for downloadable add-ons as they are for blockbuster retail releases.
Yesterday, GameStop detailed plans to sell PlayStation Network downloadable content in its brick-and-mortar retail stores. The specialty retailer has bigger plans in store, as it will soon expand its add-on sales to its own website and begin to carry digitally distributed Xbox 360 content as well.
In a presentation at the BMO Capital Markets 18th Annual Digital Entertainment Conference today, GameStop CEO J. Paul Raines said it won’t stop there. Raines told analysts to look for the chain to eventually have midnight launch events surrounding DLC, much like it does for anticipated new releases.
The addition of DLC offerings won’t just change the company’s approach to midnight events. In a question-and-answer session after GameStop’s presentation, executive chairman Daniel DeMatteo said the specialty retailer will push DLC sales for both new and used releases. Additionally, he noted that GameStop employees ringing up a used game sale will be prompted by the computer system to up-sell any map packs and other such content related to the game being purchased.
Although the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 have their own online storefronts through which all game add-ons can be purchased, traditional retailers have done their best to establish a foothold. GameStop has been talking about its plan to crack the online sales market for months, while Amazon.com sells game codes for downloadable PS3 games, and previously did the same for Xbox Live Arcade titles.
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“GameStop planning midnight launches for DLC” was posted by Brendan Sinclair on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 13:07:05 -0800 -
Latest trailer reveals window for film noir-inspired crime game’s debut on the Xbox 360 and PS3; new trailer inside.
L.A. Noire has been quite a while in the making. First teased at the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo as a PlayStation 3 exclusive, the game was picked up by Rockstar Games a year later. After being announced for the Xbox 360 as well, the game largely disappeared from headlines until August of this year, when Rockstar parent Take-Two Interactive revealed it would miss its projected 2010 release date.
Today, Rockstar released a new trailer for the game (below), which contained a nugget of information at its end. Namely, the open-world game would launch in spring 2011, generally accepted as being the second quarter of the year.
Other than the date, the new trailer shed little light on the film noir-inspired game, which is the debut effort from Australia-based Team Bondi. The snippet did give a taste of the game’s main storyline, which follows a detective entangled in a violent web of vice, corruption, and crime in 1940’s Los Angeles. Players jump into the seedy underworld of the metropolis and are tasked with solving a series of murders in what Rockstar describes as an “open-ended challenge.”
For more on L.A. Noire, check out GameSpot’s previous coverage.
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“L.A. Noire due spring 2011” was posted by Tor Thorsen on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 12:58:37 -0800 -
Facebook Credits are an attractive proposition, says executive vice president of publishing Dennis Ryan.
Speaking at the Social Gaming Summit in London today, Ryan said that Facebook Credits’ ease of transactions makes up for the 30 per cent cut Facebook makes on them. “Easy payment is more important than margin,” he said.
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Knotty iPhone puzzler out this month.
Acclaimed iOS puzzler Zen Bound 2 is making the jump to the PC this month, with a 16th November Steam release date lined up.
Developer Secret Exit doesn’t appear to be adding any additional content over and above the iOS version, but the PC version will feature enhanced visuals.
The Mac version will support multi-touch controls for those with trackpads.
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Plans to lower prices then sell DLC later.
Publisher THQ believes the current retail model for games is all wrong and reckons it has the answer: keep prices low at the outset then sell in additional content later.
Gamasutra reports that CEO Brian Farrell told the BMO Capital Markets conference in New York, “What we’re thinking about the business is we’re turning it on its head a little bit. It’s not, ‘how high a price can we get’, but ‘how many users’.”
Farrell believes current launch prices in the vicinity of $60 are “keeping people out”.
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Sega to release Creative Assembly’s latest Sengoku-era action strategy title on PC early next year.
Sega cashed in on the 2010 Electronic Entertainment Expo hype to announce the latest installment in Creative Assembly’s long-running Total War franchise, Shogun 2, for the PC. A return to its roots, Shogun 2 will revisit the era that launched the franchise in 2000, and Sega announced today just when gamers can begin brandishing their bushido blades: March 15, 2011.
For Shogun 2, Creative Assembly will be returning to 16th-century Japan, during the tumultuous Sengoku period. Players assume the role of a Daimyo, or clan leader, who must engage with fellow warlords, be it through conflict or diplomacy, to reunite the sundered island nation.
As for changes under the hood, Creative Assembly noted that it has made substantial refinements to the game’s artificial intelligence, “developed according to Sun Tzu’s principles in the Art of War.” Those who prefer matching their battle acumen against living, breathing opponents will also have a number of new multiplayer modes, which support up to eight in competitive and cooperative engagements.
The studio has also introduced a new character progression system with Shogun 2, allowing gamers to assume leadership of one of nine clans and level up their own warlords and emissaries through battle. Other features played up by the studio include deformable terrain based on weather conditions, as well as coastal battles in naval combat.
For more information, check out GameSpot’s previous coverage of Shogun 2: Total War.
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“Shogun 2: Total War marching out March 15” was posted by Tom Magrino on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 11:07:17 -0800 -
Prepare for Moogle/Yoshi face-off.
Square Enix is all set to break Nintendo characters’ monopoly on Mario’s sporting spin-offs with the announcement that a number of Final Fantasy favourites are limbering up for Mario Sports Mix.
The game’s official site confirms that you’ll be able to play as a ninja, white mage, black mage, Moogle or Cactaur when the title, developed by Square Enix, hits the Wii next year.
There may be more surprises to come too a Dragon Quest copyright line is displayed at the bottom of the page.
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Plus, Halo: Reach, Crackdown 2 DLC dated.
Alien Breed 3: Descent launches on Xbox Live Arcade on 17th November, Microsoft has confirmed.
The final part of Team 17’s retro-inspired bug shooter trilogy will set you back 800 Points.
This follows Alien Breed: Evolution and Alien Breed 2: Assault, both of which scored 7/10 when released earlier this year.
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Plus, EA responds to buy-out rumours.
Viacom’s decision to sell Harmonix will have no knock-on effect on support for Rock Band 3 and Dance Central, the games’ developer has insisted.
Harmonix spokesman John Drake posted on the official Rock Band forums, “This morning’s announcement does not affect the ongoing work at the studio as we continue to support our existing franchises, Rock Band and Dance Central.
“As stated earlier, Viacom is in discussions with several potential buyers and will continue to fully support the business until a sale is completed.”
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Xbox 360 version confirmed.
Rockstar’s new open world detective game L.A. Noire will be released in the spring of 2011.
That’s according to the game’s first proper trailer (“made entirely from in-game footage”), which you can see below. Rockstar also confirmed the game will be released on both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
L.A. Noire, announced years ago in 2005, is a 1940s crime thriller based around you rising through the ranks of the Los Angeles Police Department.
