copa

@Space Cobra

I still haven't seen the new comment system. How do you access it?

God help me, I'm going to have to agree with Capcom on this one.

Any DLC that is put on the disc could just as easily be held off of the disc, and then released at a later time according to a marketing plan.

I think there are important criteria by which you can determine whether DLC is a money-grab ripoff that should have been included with the game, but the issue of whether it is on or off the disc is not the key distinction.

I'm really glad that we are willing to pay for high-quality, original experiences.

@LOKIOLR

I despise what EA has done with online passes and DLC. With destroying the NBA Live Brand. And with reducing proud franchises like Dragon Age and Mass Effect into bland, focus-tested messes.

But there's still no way in Hell I don't vote for Comcast.

@KinseySS

Activision's not eligible because they were already inducted into the Hall of Fame.

@serialsleeper

It's not theft, it's bankruptcy protection. The customers who put down cash for preorders are now creditors, and GAME doesn't have to pay their creditors a thing until a reorganization plan is approved, and then the creditors will get pennies on the dollar. If they're lucky.

This is why all of the publishers stopped supplying GAME with product last month. EA knew they might send GAME 1 million copies of Mass Effect 3, then the retailer could file for administration and never pay EA a penny for the games.

"But at the time, when it was announced, everyone was like, 'Wasn't it just paintings and people with frilly sleeves. How could this be a setting for a video game? How could it be a cool story?''"

Yeah, I don't remember anyone saying that.

"So they are either skipping the largest PC digital market, or they are guessing."

They are guessing. For digital sales data. NPD is a very expensive VG Chartz.

@Aceofwilds

1) It is not "obvious" that they will fix this. Many users with missing Catwoman codes from Arkham City had not received replacements months after they bought the game (probably well after they had finished playing it). One forum user reported that Bethesda would not replace a missing Rage code because they did not have the original store receipt for it (they had received it as a gift).

2) It is extremely disrespectful to their customers that purchase new. These screw-ups have happened in the past, happen now, and will continue to happen. Yet they continue to foist these paygate codes on customers who purchase new because they do not care as long as they get the customer's 60 dollars up front.

@Johnnynumber5 is powered by cell

I agree. Ethical arguments aside, this is just terrible business.

Defenders of the online pass claim that we are in a new age, and that the economic reality is that games need these anti-consumer passes in order to succeed financially.

Of course, this is bullshit. The top 3 selling games of last year were Modern Warfare 3, Skyrim, and Just Dance 3. None of these games used an online pass. Online Pass is not used to sustain high sales for titles that consumers want. It is used in an awkward, desperate attempt to trick consumers into paying extra for underperforming titles.

The thing that is so infuriating about Online Passes is that it is an ineffective, overcomplicated solution to an extremely simple problem. The problem is that Gamestop is creating a huge revenue stream through systematic secondhand sales, and is cutting the publisher out of this stream. The publisher's response is to punish the consumers for Gamestop's actions.

The Gamestop problem could easily be solved by any publisher in ten seconds. Get the Gamestop CEO on the phone, and let them know that in all future supply contracts, Gamestop can continue to get supply of new product on credit as long as they sign an agreement that says they will not resell the same SKU's used through their retail outlet.

Done. Problem solved. They've ended the gray-market economy that undermines their revenue stream. They still allow their customers to swap and loan games to each other (which is very good for business). And they've stopped creating this us vs. them mentality with the customer base, making it difficult and sometimes impossible to use the product they paid for.