Gamestop defends Xenoblade price tag, Metroid Prime Trilogy being restocked

by Jessica Conditt on Aug 13th 2013 5:01PM

Gamestop's inventory of pre-owned Xenoblade Chronicles copies seemed to inflate overnight on August 10, when the game showed up at previously dry retail locations and online for $90 a pop. Xenoblade is a famously hard-to-find Wii role-playing game that was sold only via Nintendo and Gamestop on first printing, and until now it seemed retail stock teetered on nonexistence.

We contacted Gamestop when Xenoblade was resurrected last week, and today the company issued a response:

"Gamestop regularly receives feedback from our PowerUp members regarding old titles they would like us to bring back, such as vintage games like Xenoblade Chronicles. We were recently able to source a limited number of copies of this title to carry in our stores and online.

"In fact, we have sourced several more vintage titles that will be hitting stores in the coming months, including Metroid Prime Trilogy.

"As always, our pricing for these games is competitive and is based on current market value driven by supply and demand. PowerUp Pro members always receive a 10 percent discount and earn PUR points on pre-owned purchases."

There's no word on the source of Gamestop's fresh copies. Nintendo has yet to respond to our requests for clarification, regarding whether this is a reprint or simply a surprising windfall of pre-owned games. Really, all of this comes down to one, simple question: How much is five stars worth to you?

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Rovio's Vesterbacka defends mobile games, calls out Nintendo's '$49 pieces of plastic'

by Ben Gilbert on Mar 30th 2011 1:55PM

"A lot of people in the games industry, they think the 'real' games are on consoles. You're only a 'real' games company if you do a big budget game. But we don't have that inferiority complex," Rovio head Peter Vesterbacka told MCV in a recent interview. Vesterbacka was defending against Nintendo's latest criticisms of the mobile market -- both Nintendo of Japan head Satoru Iwata and Nintendo of America head Reggie Fils-Aime have argued that low-priced smartphone apps are degrading the value of games.

"If I was trying to sell a $49 piece of plastic to people then yes, I'd be worried too," Vesterbacka added, with a tinge of vitriol, alluding to the standard retail price of a Wii game disc. "But I think it's a good sign that people are concerned -- because from my point of view we're doing something right." Rovio's Angry Birds and its spin-offs are just a $1 each for iPhone and are offered as free, ad-supported apps on the Android Market.

Still, the company has plans for more console development, having already released Angry Birds as a PlayStation Mini, with additional console ports in the pipeline -- even Nintendo's 3DS is getting an Angry Birds port. "Games consoles for us are just like launching on a new smartphone platform," Vesterbacka said nonchalantly. After all, he's probably more concerned with the movie tie-in, the planned US IPO, and, uh, having an Angry Bird etched into the Moon.

Okay, that last one probably isn't happening. Yet.

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PEGI defends We Dare rating, Ubisoft adding parental warning sticker

by Alexander Sliwinski on Mar 7th 2011 1:10PM

The Pan-European Game Information (PEGI) rating board is defending its "PEGI 12" rating for the controversial We Dare, stating that the board considers the content of the game for a rating, not the context. Cubed3 has the organization's statement, which notes the game was rated PEGI 12 because "it contains mild swearing, minor assault on a human-like character and words/activities that amount to obvious sexual innuendo, explicit sexual descriptions or images and sexual posturing."

Ubisoft reiterated that the game is "intended for mature audiences," as evidenced by the game's ad campaign. The company also plans to add a "Parental Discretion Advised" sticker to the box, advising parents of the "potential sensitive nature of the game content." If you've got kids, best to keep this game in the locked nightstand drawer with the other... unmentionables.

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