60°

META Publishing’s Pancake Week festival 2021 edition is now live via Steam

"The indie games publisher META Publishing are today very happy and excited to announce that they have just kicked-off their 2021 edition of the Pancake Week festival via Steam." - Jonas Ek, TGG.

70°

CFPB Report Identifies Financial and Privacy Risks to Consumers in Video Gaming Marketplaces

The CFPB issued a report examining the growth of digital commerce in online video games and virtual worlds.

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consumerfinance.gov
rlow14h ago

Anyone defending their company of choice is smoking something. I’ll provide just a small part of the article. If you really care about the future of gaming you have to recognize all of these companies are just using you to make money by selling off that info. They literally have a profile on you.

“Gaming companies are assembling gamers’ personal and behavioral data: Publishers are collecting large amounts of data on players, including behavioral details such as financial data, purchasing history and spending thresholds. Gaming platforms can also track players’ location data, which can generate an accurate portrait of a player’s daily routines, such as their home address, places of employment or worship, and health and medical status. And with the advent of virtual- and mixed-reality gaming, the information gathered by headsets may include biometric data such as iris scans, eye movement, pupil response, and gait analysis, which may pose medical privacy risks.”

Want to still go with the narrative that your company cares???

thorstein3h ago

And they use that data to sell influence over us. That's not a conspiracy theory. That's literally how Google and Facebook, Pinterest, etc make money.*

It's not from selling your data per se. It's from selling influence. AI is the next influencer. No accounts needed.

*source: The Social Dilemma

150°

Paying Extra For Early Access Cannot Be The Industry Norm

Charging for early access has started to become a regular practice in several AAA games, and the gaming community should not tolerate this.

CrimsonWing6911h ago

Don’t uh… don’t pay for it then? 🤷‍♂️ It’s 3 days early, let people who can’t wait pony up to pay for early access. I’d hope people have more control over themselves if they don’t want to pay extra. I personally, do not see an issue with the option. If I’m hyped for a game and they give you early access, I’ll pay. If it’s something I can wait to play on “actual release” I won’t pay extra. It’s as simple as that.

Crows9011h ago

Except your entirely mistaken if you think it's "early access"

Theyre just charging you extra to play it on release. So gullible.

Obscure_Observer10h ago

"Theyre just charging you extra to play it on release. So gullible."

Not really.

In some cases, paying for early access will grant you access to play those games at the same time media outlets and reviewers are playing their copies.

Besides, it´s a single player game. It´s not like early access to MP competitive games like Battlefield which EA would grant a full week early access to those willing to pay; which gives a unfair advantage to those gamers and breaks the game´s balance.

CrimsonWing699h ago

are you playing it earlier than retail release?

If that’s the correct answer, how is it not early access?

Crows9011h ago

It's not early access...it's playing on release...early access is when the game isn't finished and needs a little more time...you also get it months in advance.

Let's not get confused here..

Andrew3368h ago

You get access to the game before it goes live for people who purchased the standard version of the game... thus you are getting early access.

Crows907h ago

Nope...you get access to the game the day it goes live. Those who didn't pay extra are blocked from accessing it as a punishment for not paying full price

VersusDMC11h ago

Microsoft has been doing premium edition early access for awhile(Forza and Starfield recently) ...so why is it an issue now when Ubisoft does it?

It can't be the gamepass excuse as Ubisoft has day one subscriptions as well.

Obscure_Observer10h ago

I´ve paid for Starfield´s Premium Edition to get early access to the game, plus Shattered Space expansion.

I don´t regret my decision and I mighty pay for it again to get early access to Fable and TESVI.

Andrew3368h ago

@VincentVanBro yea like the kind of idiots who worry about how adults spend their money.

Crows907h ago

@andrew

Just like the kind of idiots who get scammed and don't realize it.

Andrew3364h ago

@crows do you understand what the word scam means? Choosing to pay more money to play a game before other people is not being scammed.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4h ago
gold_drake9h ago

as long as people are paying for it, it will be a thing unfortunately.

the fear of missing out is ... huge. especially online.

CrimsonWing699h ago

I don’t think it’s about missing out. Think of it like a movie you’re hyped for. You can see it early if you pay extra or just wait until Friday when it officially releases.

It’s nothing more than that.

Crows907h ago(Edited 7h ago)

Nope. You're not seeing it early. Everyone else is seeing it late.

When a product releases to the public...that's the release date. If they company then chooses to block access to the product unless you pay extra...that's not early access...that's day 1 access.

CrimsonWing695h ago(Edited 5h ago)

@Crows90

No, there’s a public release date and an early release date. Just like with movies having early screenings and then public screenings.

They let the public know the release date and then give people an option to play early by paying more.

Show all comments (38)
70°

Exclusive Monster Hunter 20th Anniversary Event with Themed Stays

Toyohashi, Japan is set to host a large-scale Monster Hunter event to celebrate the franchise's 20th anniversary, complete with themed hotel accommodations.

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retronews.com