PopSci.com.au writes: "NBA general managers want to see if their basketball players have game–inside the video game series NBA Live. About half of NBA teams use the video game in their evaluation of rookies and possible trades, according to the Los Angeles Times. They say that the game allows them to assess new players based on early season statistics, as well as get a sense of how adding a player might change a team's dynamic. Sounds goofy, but consider the fact that NBA Live 09 boasts stats based on real-world player data. This latest version of the video game updates team rosters and player performance on a daily basis as the season progresses."
Techtorial: Amazon has updated its warehouse giving away big discounts to used games with prices starting from 22 cents going up.
Publishers insist on devaluing used games at their own peril; a strong secondary market supports a healthy primary market, and packing games with one-time-use codes for certain content erodes that relationship.
I'm not convinced that there's a major problem with this policy. Do you think this will dissuade people from buying games at all? People who buy used still get the core game; new buyers simply get an added bonus. If the used buyers end up loving the game and want to pay for the extra content, they can. If they bought the game used for $40 and end up paying $10 for the extra content, they're still saving money.
And if the policy does in fact drive people to buy more games new, couldn't one argue that including codes in new games is important to new game sales?
Personally, I prefer this option to other measures to curb second-hand sales, like excessive DRM or increased prices.
That's my only real issue with this policy; the fact that they claim it's for "server maintenance" or whatever BS excuse they are coming up with. As it was said in the article, when the first guy trades it in and the second guy picks it up it all balances out. I wouldn't really have any issues with it if they weren't lying to us. Just tell the truth, you are charging because you are tired of getting hosed out of money on used game sales.
The video game market is so huge that it shocks me that some Publishers are complaining about lost profits, and going so far as to try and discourage people from buying a game used.
Stephen King has more used books circulating around than almost any other author, and I have never heard him complain. If people are making games as an art form, then isn't the point for people to play them any way they can?
Amazon.com has bundled "NBA Live 09", "The Bigs" and "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian" Playstation 3 video games into 1 $20 package. That's around $7 per game and approximately $30 discount if you would buy these games separately.
