Ben-DutkaUnsurprisingly, the news of paying $10 extra for Catwoman after buying a used copy of Batman: Arkham City incited a firestorm of negative feedback .
But your friendly neighborhood GameStop retailer has taken strides to douse the flames. According to an anonymous tipster , the retailer will hand out a Catwoman code to anyone who picks up a used copy of the new Batman .
This doesn't mean Warner Bros. is backing down; new copies will include the code for the extra Catwoman content but pre-owned copies won't. GameStop will just toss in the code (obviously with the permission of the publisher), so you won't have to pay $10 to play as the leather-clad vixen. If you remember, GameStop and Warner Bros. did something similar for Mortal Kombat ; the retailer printed out online passes for used copies.
Okay, feel better now? Where else would you buy used games, anyway?
Related Game(s): Batman: Arkham City
I am getting this game D1. So glad there are still developers that don't feel the need to throw in MP just because everyone is doing it. Here's hoping more developers use all their resources for SP.
I don't understand all the negativity surrounding these 'online pass' decisions. Either you buy the game new or you don't buy it at all. If you do decide to buy it later, wait for a price drop and you can still get it new(with the online pass).
but you still can't get it as cheap
The issue isn't price. It's sticking up for our consumer's rights, both in principle and in practicality. What happens if you lose the code, or it's not included in the package (Driver San Francisco)? What happens if you need to make a new account ($10 per game for a new user name?)? What happens when they get really crazy with always-online DRM and their servers go down? What happens if you want to play it at a friend's house or loan it to them? What happens in 10 years when the servers no longer exist and you want to replay a golden classic? In every case, the customers–you–lose.
I've said it before, the way to encourage new purchases is with REWARDS, not restrictions–see: Alice Madness Returns. All you accomplish by holding features hostage is to create consumer animosity toward your company, loss of sales, and, in the long run, a broken product. It's bad for everyone.
KabutoHunter: Excellent post. It's not about price, it's about consumer rights. That's exactly what it is.
Last edited by Beamboom on 10/15/2011 5:55:58 PM
It's amazing how violently people protect consumer rights in lieu of justice.
Makes you wonder how many more people in the world could have a home or be fed if we weren't so inwardly focused on "me".
Change is indeed necessary in the industry for both consumer and developer best interests. But you guys don't seem to get how to best go about it because you can't see the bigger picture. You're too busy focusing on yourselves. I agree the current system is not ideal. Don't think for a second I disagree that consumers aren't getting the best deal, here.
But you don't solve youth homelessness by taking another kid's home and food and giving it one that has nothing while paying the administration cost of that sort of distribution…
Right now, the developer and the consumer are the two kids. Gamestop is that administrator.
Wait, if Gamestop can get permission to give out the codes, then what's the point of the code in the first place?
They are paying Warner Bros for the codes.
i think that the deal is gamestop exclusive so best buy and other used game stores wont have the code.
So does the developer see any money from those sales? I'm thinking they would have to or there would be no poin.
I'm sure it isn't just a question of permission. The publishers wouldn't just let gamestop hand out these codes for free, you can bet gamestop is paying for it in some form or another. they probably don't even care though considering their profit margin on used games is so ridiculous.
Does anyone remember when buying a used game actually saved you more than just a few dollars? I remember when it used to actually be a deal. But now? When I go to my local EB and see the same game sitting on the shelf for 59.99 new, or 54.99 used… it makes me sick.
usually when gamestop buys a game from a customer, they'll sell it for about 300% profit. at least thats what the gamestop register biscuit told me.
My problem with the online pass milarky, is that is doesn't just penalise used game buyers, but those that haven't got their PS3's connected to the Internet.
I know the US and Europe have a high connection rate but here in Australia connectivity rates are around 50%. That means there are a hell of a lot of gamers (ok, 73 including me) that are not getting the whole game just because they are playing offline.
I missed out on the comic in Mass Effect 2, dlc is a no no, even GOTY editions like Borderlands had all the extra stuff as download only, and now I'm missing out on playable characters and chapters from the game just because I can't download it!!!
So, online codes… F*ck you and the horse you rode in on (no offence to Red Dead Redemption).
It's just the slippery slope to full digital distribution.
Back I go to Dark Souls to try and get through it all offline. Good luck!
Weak. Don't think they deserve a code that other people are playing full price for in the first place 😉 But whatever, guess that's why I approve of Online Pass's and others don't.
Dude. Not cool. Think about people like Gordo above, with no internet.
If you're retarded enough to buy it used from GS for $55 then you deserve the damn Catwoman cuz you're already overpaying for a used game.
Hey World I got a question,at Gamestop, it doesn't matter how long the previous owner was holding onto the game, as long as it's an used game, Gamestop will still sell it $5 below standard retail price?
No but it takes quite a long time for the price to go down and that depends on the popularity of the game. You still won't get a used Call of Duty for less than your first born child even years later.
the funny part is that gamestop would put the new game on sale so that the sale price is way lower than the used price.
Surprising, that gamestop will give code even for a used game.
if left to their own devices, gamestop wont do anything like this. so it is very surprising that they would go out of their way to strike a deal with the publishers to give out dlc codes with every used game.
I guess they are trying make up for the Deus Ex fiasco.
YAY now everyone can play Catwoman. This is pretty cool. 🙂
Gamestop's been living large off of developers hard work for years. I say bravo to any publishers who figure out how to fleece that retarded store.
I have no problem with Gamestop getting screwed, but I buy my used games from nice people like myself who are on ebay and also like gaming but aren't rich enough to buy them all new.
i screw over gamestop all the time. i use their 7 day used game policy to rent games and take their preorder items then return the game.
Funny thing is that Gamestop seem to be able to turn this to their favour. Now they got one more advantage over other channels of used sales. If they market this well enough the mass market will start thinking that Gamestop is the only place to trade used games and get the full games.
However, this whole pass issue is an obstacle if my son want to borrow a game from me, or if a buddy and I want to trade some games. In my opinion that's the *real* consequence here. And not a person in this world can convince me that the gaming industry lose a lot from those kind of activities.
Last edited by Beamboom on 10/15/2011 3:44:51 AM
@ WorldEnds – There are nice people on eBay? The only nice people I know of all work at Amazon. I'd much rather wait out Amazon's incredible pricing over spinning the mystery wheel that is buying used games.
World,
No offense to you, & I'm sure you're not anything like that, but as a collector, I've been burned for the last time by a few liars selling used games on ebay.
Just last week I bought a used 360 version, 4-disc "Lost Odyssey" which the seller stated that everything was in mint shape, complete, in the original perfect case.
But when I got it, 3 discs were scratched up, & the 3 were floundering around loosely(think while in transit), inside a regular 1-disc case.
As a collector, never mind the damned scratches, the game just being inside the wrong case throws the whole frigging collect-ablity of it right out the window.
So now I'll buff those 3 discs out & re-sell or trade it in, & then just go buy it from GameStop………only because at GS, I can actually put it in my hand & examine every square inch of detail on it even more closely than L.A. Noire's top rated detective……plus …..my own eyeballs WON'T BS me).
So from now on, I'll only buy any "USED" game if I can fondle it in my own hands first.
Last edited by BikerSaint on 10/16/2011 3:38:12 PM
I guess God must have hated you at that time BikerSaint.
God must love me more than you, cuz your situation has happened to me, like, never.
Anyways I hope you gave that guy one HARSHLY worded negative feedback.
i find it funny that peoples complaint is that the catwoman dlc is a big part of the game and not an extra feature. they say theyre removing content from the game by offering it for free for new game users. what they're forgetting is that the game is called BATMAN. the whole story is there for you to play as batman. catwoman, like the robin preorder incentive from best buy is an add on.
But Catwoman's part in the campaign was advertised as being a feature from the first mention of her inclusion just about, so it IS taking something out of the game.
I could be mistaken, but didn't they originally advertise this as part of the full game? Way before they mentioned it was only available through a pass. I'm buying the collectors edition new so no skin off my back, but it seems like they thought of this after the fact.
edit: Damn Lawless you beat me to it
Last edited by mk ultra on 10/15/2011 4:28:41 AM
All I've got to say is
"If it's on the disc, it's part of the game"!
"NO, IF'S, AND'S, or BUT'S……PERIOD"!!!!
And just like that, Gamestop is giving back a portion of their sales back to the publisher/developer.
The change I've been speaking of… it is a-brewin'. Hopefully in the future, they'll drop the online pass voucher altogether and just give some money back to the devs. I don't think that will happen though. As is, Gamestop can have an edge on people selling used on ebay, amazon, etc.
we are already getting unfinished games at FULL price only to be hit with DLC which means more money for what should have been on the game in the first place sure there are some exceptions but majority are unfinished games trying to milk every penny and on top of all that going on we now have online passes which im guessing EVERY game for the ps4 and new xbox will all require this online pass crap
I just don't like why every single pre-order has to have a special code so I have to get it there to get that code.
man when I bought socom 4 the guy forgot to give me the code and I had to ask, LOL
Well people could stop complaining about the developers "screwing us over" and stop screwing them over by buying a game you know you want used.
If a game has an online pass that I care about I buy it new.
Only games I normally buy used are ones I've bought previously, 360 games (since I care nothing for MS) and ones I'm really skeptical about.
And to those saying they abuse Gamestop policies by repeatedly returning stuff…way to ruining a good thing for everyone else.
Well thats ok for you boys in the USA but what about the rest of the world like me for one in the UK ;-(
Still i'll be getting it from D1 too but i often buy secondhand games and i'd be well pissed if i had to buy an online pass,most all developers will be doing it soon you watch and yes i know this isn't the first game to do it 😉