Everyday Gamers will be at E3 this year and we’ve been invited to the Sony and Nintendo Press Conferences. Our very own Eric Bouchard will be live-blogging those two conferences as they happen, so feel free to watch a live stream of the conferences on a website such as IGN, but keep our live blogs open for some great discussion while the conferences are happening. We will be using CoverItLive for the coverage of the Press Conferences, including Microsoft’s, even though we will not be in attendance of that one.

Microsoft Press Conference Live Blog – Goes live Monday, June 14th at 10:30 AM PST (1:30 PM EST)

Nintendo Press Conference Live Blog – Goes live Tuesday, June 15th at 9:00 AM PST (12:00 PM EST)

Sony Press Conference Live Blog – Goes live Tuesday, June 15th at 12:00 PM PST (3:00 PM EST)

Our coverage of E3 will not end there, keep an eye on the site for podcast updates from each day of the expo, impression articles of each of the press conferences, breaking news and much more. Eric will present his own unique view of the Electronic Entertainment Expo and this post will act as our ‘hub’ to help you easily navigate our coverage of E3 and we will be updating it constantly so keep checking back.

Everyday Gamers E3 Feed – This is your one-stop-shop for all things E3. Here you will find a list of all the latest news, features, and podcasts from the entire E3 Expo all in one place.

Also remember to follow all of the EDG Crew via Twitter as well. Our Twitter names are as follows: Eric Bouchard – @AZRockSlide, Patrick Adams – @CrownOfThornz, Chris Maeurer – @HolyHeadshot, Jordan de Bouer – @AbraCadaverD0g, Kevin Clark – @SLYRIV, Everyday Gamers – @EverydayGamers

To access all of our Twitter accounts at once just visit this link http://twitter.com/CrownOfThornz/everydaygamers

Lastly, don’t forget to catch our post E3 podcast. We are shooting to get that posted not long after Eric gets back from E3, and it will contain our views on the conferences and many of the stories and impressions Eric gained from attending. You will not want to miss it.

EDG @ E3 Podcast Player:

This early in the iPad’s life it’s hard to find any apps worth your while. I’ve come up with a list of ten iPad apps that I find to be real winners and I thought it would be a good idea to share them you with you. You know the best thing about it? They are all free.

10. Goby – Goby is a great app to find things going on locally. It takes your current location and shows you activities and places you can go while you are there. This app is very useful for people who are not familiar with the area and want to do something with their time.

9. Twitterrific – At the time of writing, this app is currently the best Twitter app out there. It does what it needs to do and it looks good doing it. Until Twitter drops their official app this one is the one I’ve chosen to get the job done.

8.  ABC Player – Basically this app lets you watch all of ABC’s TV shows right on your iPad. Me being such a huge fan of LOST this is a good thing.

7. Pandora – If you are reading this article then I probably don’t need to tell you what Pandora is. This is Pandora on your iPad just like Pandora on your iPhone or computer.

6. USA Today – This app is my favorite app for getting my news for the day, they update it constantly with all the latest news from across the world. USA Today also has a great layout that makes it fun to read.

5. Bible – This is YouVersions.com’s Bible application in HD for the iPad. It has all the features of the iPhone version which means you can start a reading plan, choose any translation you want, bookmark verses, etc. It’s the best Bible application out there.

4. IMDB – This is the Internet Movie Database on your iPad. You can search any movie ever made and you will get all of the information you need about that movie. You can even search by actor, actress, producer, director, etc. It’s all here.

3. 1000 Experiences – When this app was released it jumped right to the top of the most downloaded applications, then it kind of disappeared. It’s out there so go and download it. It gives you the top places to…well, everything. Just download it and you’ll see what I mean.

2. Movies – This app gives you information about movies that are currently in the box office as well as upcoming movies. You can also get info about nearby theaters. This app is just like the iPhone version but better looking.

1. Beatwave – This application is available on the iPhone but is best used on the iPad. It’s an amazing app that lets you create music with no effort at all. I am totally addicted to it. The application is free but you can buy different sounds and an option to record your creations and save them as mp4′s. My daughter could even make a sweet beat with this and she’s only a year and a half.

Check back for my Top 10 iPad Launch Games feature coming soon.

Check out the gallery below to see screenshots of each application mentioned above.

The official Everyday Gamers iPhone application is now available in the app store for free. Here is the official iTunes description:

This is the official iPhone app for Everyday Gamers, a gaming website created by everyday people who share a strong passion for videos games. Use this app to access all the latest site content on your iPhone or iPad.

*Features – Check out all of our unique original features written by the staff at Everyday Gamers.

*Reviews – Check out all the latest video game reviews for all current-generation consoles including Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PC, and iPhone.

*News – Check out our daily news round-ups titled ‘Daily Bits’ gathering all of the interesting gaming news for the day and also our Weekly Bytes specializing in all of the week’s PC news with a hint of console news.

*Videos – Check our video reviews and gameplay footage videos for all of the recent Xbox 360 and PS3 demos and games, as well as our original video podcast titled “The Fishbowl” where we discuss a specific game and give you the rundown of what we think of it.

Podcasts – Check out all of the recent episodes of The Everyday Gamers Podcast hosted by Eric Bouchard and Patrick Adams.

This app is the best way to view EverydayGamers.com on your iPhone. To experience Everyday Gamers in all it’s glory visit our website at http://everydaygamers.com where we have forums, HD videos, and more.

Like I mentioned before, the app is free and it’s the best way to view EverydayGamers.com on your iPhone/iPod Touch. If you like the application then please leave us a review in iTunes. To download the application just visit this link http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/everyday-gamers/id372014113?mt=8

Check out the screenshots of the app below:

There is a debate raging in the gaming community right now. Everywhere you look, gamers and those who do not play are arguing over whether or not there is such a thing as gaming addiction. The studies are inconclusive; every time you hear about a study backing the existence of video game addiction, you find numerous stories debunking it. Even gamers seem to be split on the issue; while many want to argue it does not exist, others say they have experienced symptoms similar to that of other addictions.

So in the middle of all of the turmoil, the question remains: can someone get addicted to video games?

The Basics of Addiction

So what do we mean when we use the phrase “addiction?” I mean, we all have our own ideas of what an addiction is, but if we are going to get the the bottom of this, we need to have an agreed upon definition of the term itself. Dictionary.com defines addiction as:

the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.

The state of being enslaved to a habit. That is a good place to begin. Addiction is a form of enslavement. This is something I would argue most of us have probably seen throughout our lives. Ever known someone who was addicted? Serious addicts ruin their lives as they chase after their fix. If you have ever known anyone who was addicted to serious drugs, you have probably witnessed this first hand.

Still, it does not have to be something like heroin or meth. I have known many smokers throughout my life who are enslaved to their cigarettes. They know smoking is killing them, they know the packs are costing more and more money, and yet they just cannot stop. Just as a slave must obey its master, an addict must obey his or her cravings. They are not impossible to beat, but you just cannot walk away from them either.

Addictions are not just limited to things that give you a physical sensation, however. Look back at the definition; addictions can include things that are psychologically habit forming. People can become addicted to porn, gambling, companionship or any number of other things. Anything you use as an escape from reality can become an addiction, even work.

So, if we are taking this view of addiction, you could argue that someone could become addicted to video games. Believe it or not, however, that is not the point of this article. We here at Everyday Gamers are not looking to prove or disprove to anyone the existence of video game addictions.

So what is the purpose of this article? Well, I want to tell you all a story. In order for you to fully understand this story, I needed you to understand what my stance on addiction is. I want you all to know what I mean when I say I consider myself to have been a video game addict.

The Story Begins

It was my sophomore year in high school. I was trying to figure out who the heck I was in the midst of the changing world around me. My mom and dad were divorced; my mother was actually just working on her second divorce, while my dad had just recently remarried. I was living with my dad, and at the time, my relationship with my step-mom was not the best. One of my best friends had just moved to Alaska, which was a heck of a long ways away from Albuquerque, NM, and I was trying to find a way to deal with all of the changes around me and the usually issues of just being a teenager. It was not a good time in my life, and many times I found myself needing some form of escape.

Around this time, I was really getting into running. Nothing seriously competitive; I just enjoyed going for runs, especially the occasional event style 5K run. Well, my dad and step-mom insisted that if I was going to do this, I needed to practice, which makes sense. There was a great bicycle/walking path not far from my house, so I would often head there and run a mile or two.

Well, this was 1990-1991, which if you remember from reading the Retro Active article on the arcades was just when they were seeing their resurgence. Not far from my house was a local arcade, and it just happened to be the same direction as this path I ran. As things got harder at home, I found myself going to this arcade instead of doing the running I was supposed to do. After all, this arcade had my favorite game: Street Fighter II.

That was how it started. I used the local arcade and that game in particular to escape the world around me. In the arcade, I was a decent player; not the best, but far from the worst. I was fairly respected among those who came there, and while I lost many battles, I put up a good fight. More than anything, I felt like I was among people who understood me. I felt safe.

The Plot Thickens

The summer after my sophomore year, everything changed. I had always spent the summers with my mom, but I had modified that agreement so I could stay in Albuquerque to get a job. I was hoping to get some spending money to get myself a stereo among other things, and the job would give me a reason to get out of the house, where relations were getting rough. It did not take me too long to find my first real job: working as a buss boy at the Steaksmith, a local restaurant attached to Coronado Mall. I made less than minimum wage with a cut of the tips of the servers making up the difference, something not uncommon in the restaurant trade.

Now image this, if you will: a teenager who is already using video games as an escape getting a job at a restaurant where he was paid at least partially in cash every day and that happens to be attached to a mall with a thriving arcade. If you are thinking this was a recipe for disaster, you’re right.

Video games began to consume me.

My shift at the Steaksmith did not start will 10:30 AM  and ended around 2:30m PM. this allowed me 30 minutes before my shift to game, and often just a little time afterward to get some time in before I would be too late getting home to be able to hide what I was doing. That was all it was at first. In time, however, I was finding it harder to pry myself away from the games. While I was never quite late for work because of gaming, I came close on several occasions, and I started getting home later than I could really explain. On top of that, I started to take money from my checks to support my gaming habit.

Needless to say, I hit a point where I could no longer hide what I was doing. To say my dad and step-mom were ticked off when they found out what I was doing is an understatement. They started demanding to see my deposit slips to make sure I was actually putting my checks in the bank. They also tried to limit my ex[osure to games, but that was tough to do when I worked at a mall.

I remember when everything really came to a head. My dad and step-mom had just about had it with me, and they threatened to send me to live with my mom if I screwed up one more time. They were headed for vacation, and my grandmother was coming into town to watch me, since I had to stay for work. That first day they were gone, I stayed at the arcade till around 6 PM, finally calling my grandmother who was worried sick. I knew I had blown my last chance, and in pretty short order, I was packing to move to Phoenix.

So how bad did things get? Well, I cannot remember for certain, but in about 2 months time, I spent over $200 on coin-op video games, and this was back when the majority of the games I was playing were still 25 cents a piece. I was out of control. I was addicted.

Breaking the Cycle

You’ll notice that I used the past tense there. I am no longer addicted to gaming, though when I am not careful, I can get lost in them once more.

So how did I get past the addiction? There is no magic formula; all I did was what you would normally do when dealing with an addiction.

1. Admit you have a problem: While I may not have been ready to step out at the time and state I was addicted, I knew something was wrong. After all, I had just blown and inordinate amount of money on arcade games, and though gaming was something I truly enjoyed, I knew there had to be a limit somewhere. When I moved to Phoenix, I think a part of me thought it would just go away, but it didn’t. I had to admit I had a problem, and I had to deal with it.
2. Remove the temptation: So this part was relatively easy for me. When I moved to Phoenix, I was no longer working at a mall, and though I could get to one relatively easy, I did not have the money to spend. So, as you can probably see, removing the temptation was rather easy for me. Still, it was a necessary step, even if it was not one I took voluntarily.
3. Deal with the issues that drove you to game: I’m not going to bore you with all the details of how I dealt with the pressures that were leading me to lose myself in video games. The fact of the matter is I did deal with them. I had been using the games as an escape, and the addiction was not broken until I dealt with what I was using them to escape.

Now I am probably making this sound much easier that it actually was. Though I was beyond the worst of it rather quickly, it took years to be completely over the addiction. I still remember spending $3o some odd dollars at the arcade at Disneyland on one of our church choir trips. Think about it: I was at Disneyland, and I was spending my time and money in the arcade. There was still something wrong with me for quite a while afterward.

In the end, I can point to one thing that really pulled me out of the addiction: my faith. I truly believe God was able to help me get past the addiction itself, allowing me not only to eventually return to playing the games I enjoy, but opening the door for me to write for  Everyday Gamers, something for which I am very grateful.

So that is my story. I am not trying to convince anyone of the dangers of video game addiction here. I am just relaying my experiences with it in hopes that anyone else who might be struggling with it to see there is a way out. There are others who have struggled through it, and it can be beaten.

Violence is something that is all around us. We here at Everyday Gamers wanted to address the issue of Media Violence. In particularity, in this first article, we want to address how Video Games are misunderstood and how video games compare to other forms of media violence.

In 2005, the Kaiser Family Foundation surveyed 2032 children from grades 3 through 12. This survey is just a minuet part of the on going research trying to find a link between media violence and more aggressive behavior.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a problem here. For years, there has been much debate over whether a direct correlation between forms of media violence, I.E. video games, and more aggressive behavior. So, where does the problem lie? In order to find the problem, we have to dig deeper through the research. First off, what is media violence. Well it is simply the violence found in Television shows, Movies, Video Games, etc. Politicians, parents and even some Psychologists will argue that playing such games as Grand Theft Auto, will lead to more aggressive behavior in the player.

The first part of the problem comes from the fact that much of the research is inconsistent and therefore inconclusive.  In previous surveys that have been conducted, one survey showed that teens reported more self involvements in physical fights after routine play of “M” or Mature rated games. However, another survey showed that players showed less aggression of gameplay of Mature rated games. So, what is the deciding factor? Well, the people in the first survey also admitted to having an aggressive nature to begin with. As you can see, the research

so far does not see, to support each other. Then why is it, that video games get such a bad rap? Well, video games are probably one of the most misunderstood forms of media out there.

Another piece of the problem is the fact that we focus too much on violence in video games. In fact, over sixty percent of television shown in primetime contain some form of violence. The fact is, there are far more violent choices then there are non-violent. Many people will argue that by playing violent video games, you become more violent. However, I believe these games are helping not hurting. The Virtual Psychology Classroom Journal talked about something known as the Catharsis Theory. The Catharsis Theory disputes the link between media violence and more aggressive behavior. The Catharsis Theory essentially states that the player takes out their aggression on a video game, something which is virtual and causes no harm to anyone. This seems like a positive, so why are the “side-effects” still such a controversial issue?

There are many aspects about video games that many people still do not

understand, we will address these in a later article. Many people make a one-sided argument about media violence. The media has constantly attacked video games, well it seems to me that the media attacks what it does not understand. Dr. Douglas A. Gentile argued that if all you research is the negative, that is all you will find. He argued how we always hear this conflicting reports about video games. He argued that instead, media violence has both positive and negative effects. Our goal here at Everyday Gamers, is to show by the end of what will be a  total of three articles, that :

1. There are many aspects of video games that are not understood.
2. Video Games are just like any other form of media
3. Video Games can affect you in positive ways and correlate back to real-life.

As Gamers, we use these labels all the time. First we divide people into two camps: the gamer and the non-gamer. Then we take the gamers and start to segment that group even more: RPG fans, JRPG fans, First Person Shooter players, MMO fans, strategy gamers, puzzle gamers…. The labels just keep coming. There are two labels that get thrown around a lot, however: Casual and Core.

If you read gaming blogs, you may notice a growing rift between these two groups. Core gamers have started  to see Casual gamers as the enemy, taking valuable attention and money from the major game publishers. Casual gamers cannot understand the amount of time, energy and money Core players put into this fun but ultimately meaningless hobby.

What both sides seem to miss is that the differences between them may not be as great as they think…

And the war between them hurts gamers as a whole.

So just what is the difference between a Casual gamer and a Core gamer. Well, since you are reading a blog on a gaming website, there is a decent chance you fall into the latter category, so let’s take a look at what defines them first.

Core Gamers, not Hardcore Gamers

Dragone Age is definitely for core gamers.

Let me explain why I am not using a certain term for this label. Many people like to consider themselves Hardcore Gamers. While I respect the right of anyone to take that label, I wonder if they understand what the implications of it are. Think about it; what would a truly hardcore player look like?

Well, a truly hardcore player would be one who gets lost in games. We’ve probably all done that from time to time; the allure of one more chapter has kept many a gamer up later than he intended to be. There is a point, however, where it goes beyond the innocent losing of oneself. When you hear of  people  whose lives revolve around gaming and little else, you begin to wonder if their priorities are in the right place. After all, gaming plays a big part in my life, but it is not my life.

That is why I stopped identifying myself as a hardcore gamer a while back. It would be different if I made my living through gaming; there is nothing wrong with that. I do not, however, so if I really start to develop a “hardcore” devotion to gaming, I will more than likely skew my priorities in ways I would really rather not. Still, it is evident by the fact I write and record for a gaming website that I have more than a casual interest in gaming, which is why I call myself a Core gamer.

So how would I define Core Gamers? To us, games are a major part of our lives. We like to game, whether at home, on trips or at friends’ houses. Games are a part of our social circles, as are other gamers; in fact, we often connect with new friends through the games we have in common. We are the ones who adopt consoles, many times multiple consoles, and we are the ones who truly support the industry as a whole. Many of us have been playing for years, and there are many older games we still hold in high regard and maybe even still play.

So if that is the Core gamer, what is the casual?

Casual Gamers, not Casual games

Tetris: a casual game done right.

Casual gamers have little more than a passing interest in games. Sure, they will play from time to time, but do not expect them to really take an interest in gaming culture. Most of them will not own a console unless it was the in thing to own at the time or is a previous generation they were able to get for less money. They do not understand how those of us who identify ourselves as core gamers can spend the time or resources we do on this hobby of ours.

You will notice one thing I am intentionally avoiding in defining casual gamers: casual games. One mistake I think we as gamers have made is to automatically identify casual game players as casual gamers. While this is tempting to do, I think we need to be very careful about not making that assumption. To me, being a casual gamer is more about the attitude with which you approach gaming than the games you play. This is an argument I will come back to later, but I think it is something we really need to keep in mind if we are going to use these labels.

So we have these two groups. One considers games an important part of its life and is willing to part with both time and money to keep it that way. The other finds games a welcome diversion, but it does not really make it a priority over other hobbies or interests. So which one do you belong to? The answer may not be as cut and dry as you think.

The Gray Line In Between

What happens when casual gamers get into core games?

For arguments sake, let me present you with a scenario. Let’s say you have two gamers. One spends ten or more hours a week gaming, even planning part of her life around gaming. The other spends maybe a couple of hours a week using games as a distraction from his normal life, but not really dedicating himself to the games. Which would you say is the casual gamer and which the core?

I would think most of us would choose to label the former a core gamer and the latter a casual one. It seems like a reasonable assessment of the scenario. Would your assessment change if I told you the first gamer played games on Facebook while the later played Halo 3?

Some people would immediately re-evaluate their stance based on that fact. Even though the first gamer spent a whole lot more time actually playing games, many would label her casual because  she does not play on a traditional console or what would normally be considered core games. The latter would immediately be labeled a core gamer just because he owns a 360 and plays a core game, especially since it was a First Person Shooter.

Are you one of those who changed your labels? Why? Is it mot more accurate to label the one who spends much more time actually gaming the core player?

As I mentioned before, I do not think it is right to label gamers by the games they play. I have known many a casual game player who has spent much more time perfecting his or her ability to play the casual game than I have ever spent playing my core games. My mom, for example, is truly dedicated to Spider Solitaire on her computer. She has become very good at it, much better than I will ever be, and she has been known to spend much longer that she should playing it, especially late at night. Likewise, my step father has spent more time playing and replaying the Fallout games than anyone I have ever known. Though neither of them would probably label themselves as core gamers, I would say they both show more traits of that kind of gamer than they do the casual, and it has nothing to do with the games they play.

So maybe there is not as well defined a line as we all like to think between casual and core. The question is, what does that mean to us?

The lines are drawn….

Just because Rogue Warrior is a game aimed at core players does not mean it is worth playing.

It never ceases to amaze when a gamer gets up in arms because a favorite gaming company is making a casual game. It’s almost as if the gamer sees it as some form of betrayal, thinking the term casual is a synonym for horrible.

Now I am not saying there are not examples of bad casual games out there. The Wii and DS are full of them, and you can find them all over the internet. There are plenty of examples, however, of good casual games as well. Bejeweled comes to mind, as does well as Peggle. Then there is Tetris, a casual game that has developed a serious calling among core gamers. Then there are the games that took casual elements and introduced them into  core gameplay, such as puzzle game turned first person shooter Portal or RPG/puzzle game Puzzle Quest. At the same time, we have seen plenty of examples of bad core games, ranging from the awful reimagined Alone in the Dark to Patrick’s personal favorite whipping boy, Rogue Warrior.

So why do core gamers get so upset when game companies make casual games? It has to do with the labels we discussed earlier. Core gamers see casual games as a form of a cop out. They also do not like the idea of casual gamers getting connected with this pastime they have come to love so much.

In other words, core fans are threatened by casual gamers and games.

You know, just typing that seems silly, but it’s true. Why else would core gamers get so up in arms about what is really a trivial matter? They are scared that the inclusion of casual gamers and games will mean the end of the core, which is ridiculous. While gaming companies can tend to get a little wrapped up in the idea of trying to reach the casual market, many have learned you cannot exclude the core audience. Even Nintendo is starting to learn that, though for them it may be a little too late.

In the end, this fear the core gamer has of the casual is silly at best. At worst, it could hurt gamers as a whole.

Time to call a truce

It is well beyond time to call a truce between casual and core gamers. After all, what is the harm in more people getting to share in this pastime we have all come to love over the years? As long as the games are good and the gamers are having fun, what does it matter whether they rank themselves as casual or core players?

The lines between casual and core are blurring more and more each day. The way I look at it, it’s time we stop looking at what divides the two groups and unite around our common interest: gaming.

2009 graced us with many great titles, but 2009 is gone. Let’s take a look at what 2010 has in store for us. The writers of Everyday Gamers have each made a list of their top 6 most anticipated titles of 2010.

Laren Hawkins:

MGS: Peace Walker – Being the proud new owner of a PSP Go, I am really looking forward to Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. I have played the demo and while it is challenging, it is very good. I have to admit though, this is the first time I have played anything MGS. The graphics are amazing controls work very well. I like how you can choose to use stealth or just run-in and gun. The current release date is set to 3/18/10!

Pokemon: Heart Gold and Soul Silver – This is the most anticipated DS game I have for this year so far. Yes, I am a pokeaddict and I can not wait for these games. The graphics seem improved, and I like how your partner Pokemon can walk around with you. I may be about to turn 16 but, I can not help but, love these games. The current release date is set to 3/14/10

Lead and Gold:  Gangs of The Wild West – This game looks absolutely amazing. I do not many details about this game however, I do know its from Paradox and they have a pretty good track record.

Lost Planet 2 – I really liked the first Lost Planet and found it original and refreshing. The graphics were pretty good and it had a solid story. I am greatly looking forward to see what Capcom has up their sleeves with this one!

Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep – I heard about this release recently and am excited for two reasons. 1: it is on the PSP. 2: I have NEVER played a Kingdom Hearts game before. It is also an action-RPG.  I have seen some screenshots and it looks amazing! The release dates are as follows: Japan: January 9th, 2010 US: TBA 2010

Mod Nation Racers – We first got a glimpse of this game back at E3’09 and I have to say , I was very impressed. It is the product of taking LittleBigPlanet and merging it with Mario Kart. Not only is is coming to the PS3 but, it is supposed to be released for the PSP ( as per a Gamestop listing).

Chris Maeurer

Mass Effect 2 – After finally finishing the first game, I can’t wait for the sequel, it’s easily my most looked forward to game of 2010.  The conversations, the combat, the universe created stands out as one of the best new IP’s of late, and with Bioware pushing the limits for the sequel, anticipation couldn’t be higher!

Assassin’s Creed 2 – No, Ladies and Gents, that’s not a typo.  While the console release has picked up quite a bit of steam, the PC iteration of this hopeful title will not hit until March 16th, and once again anticipations are high.  From all accounts, it would seem Ubisoft took gamer’s criticisms of the first game into consideration and made this second installment a better, more evolved game, and I can’t wait to take it for a spin on the PC!

Alpha Protocol – Mix Mass Effect and Modern Warfare, and you will have gamer’s chomping at the bit!   This game gets more amazing the more I see about it, and I worry if it will live up to the hype, but I am still on for the ride.  Take a solid shooter, and infuse the story-telling and conversations from Mass Effect and I am so sold on this game.  Not to mention the three ‘classes’ offered to the player sound intriguing, and may just be the icing on the cake if this title delivers.  Who says revenge is a dish best served cold?  I want it piping hot, and that’s what Alpha Protocol is shaping up to be!

Aliens Vs. Predator – What’s not to love about this franchise?  The two previous PC iterations garnered lots of praise, and the Jaguar game was easily a system seller, so there’s a lot to love about the universe and characters if Sega and Rebellion can pull this off.  Solid Single and Multiplayer with next-gen graphics and this is a must win for 2010.

Tron : Evolution – I know, I of all people should know how licensed games turn out, but I can’t help holding out hope for Tron.  The first movie was beloved, the second is anything but rushed, and I am praying this game gets the attention it deserves to cater to the fans.  Set between the upcoming film and the original, this game has me intrigued to see if it can break away from the monotonous junk pile of licensed games.  It has amazing potential, so I will hope against hope that Disney Interactive can make this game better than a light cycle ride!

Metro 2033 – Everything I’ve seen from THQ’s new IP has me waiting with baited breath for a game I never knew existed.  With elements of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and Fallout, with maybe a sprinkle of Hellgate, it is really going to be interesting to see if this game can turn out to be great or if it will jsut be a bad knock-off of any of the titiles I’ve just mentioned.  So far the screenshots and previews are looking good, and the game is set to ship in March, so we won’t have to wait long to see how the apocalypse looks in Russia.

Eric Bouchard

Mass Effect 2 – This has been on my list since I finished the first Mass Effect. I cannot wait to continue the adventures of Commander Sheapard and his team. New characters new environments and a storyline that appears to be shaping up to be even better than the first have made this the fist game I have pre-ordered in a long time. Add a revised combat system, smarter teammate AI and controls, new weapons and the intereupt feature…. Well, I could go one forever listing why I am looking forward to this game, but you are all probably tired of hearing about it buy now.

Alpha Protocol – First read about this game in Game Informer, and it is one I have looked forward to ever since. A spy RPG that lets you take the main character along 3 unique training paths, shaping your spy in the mold of Bond, Bourne or Bauer. This shooter meshed with an RPG is one that hopefully hasn;t fallen off too many people’s radars. Oh, and don’t let issues you may have had with Knights of the Old Republic II scare you off this game. Obsidian was never given the opportunity to finish the sequal to Bioware’s RPG. Given a chance to take the time to build its own game, Obsidian has all the makings of a hit.

Alan Wake – I am generally not much of one for survival horror games, but this thriller from Remedy, the makers of Max Payne, has really caught my eye. The game follows Alan wake, a horror novelist who is facing writer’s block. His wife takes him to a small town to help get the creative juices flowing, but everything starts to fall apart as he losses his manuscript, and his story starts to come to life. Alan’s only real weapon against these “creatures” is light, and from what Remedy has shown, the studio intends to use that rather creatively. The story is being told in mini series style, with the chapters being broken up with flashbacks of what happened on the “last episode.” What was shown at E3 really piqued my interest, and I cannot wait to play it.

Puzzle Quest 2 – Puzzle Quest is one of my top 10 games of all time, but D3 Publishers has not done a good job with the games following it. Galactrix was a disapointment, and Puzzle Kingdoms came and went without much fanfare. With that in mind, you may be wondering why I so looking forward to Puzzle Quest 2. It’s because D3 is returning to the franchise and formula it just about perfected with the first one. As long as the company does that, I can see myself once again spending a lot of time with this puzzle based RPG.

Just Cause 2  – I have to admit, this one snuck up on me. It was not until I saw the video of the demo of the game done at E3 that I developed any kind of interest. Even if the storyline ends up being completely forgetable, there is just something about the gameplay combinations of the grappling hook and parachute that will make this a game worth playing. Imagine using the two in combination to rise above enemies, grapling them to exploding barrels and finding other creative ways to take on entire armies. Just watch some gameplay footage; you will want to play it as well.

Star Craft 2 – Many of you may be thinking my listing of this game in my 2010 most anticipated is wishful thinking, and maybe it is. Still, Blizzard has said it intends to get the Terran campaign for Star Craft 2 out by the end of 2010, and if that happens, I will probably be forced to buy a new computer just to play it. Star Craft is hands down the best Real Time Strategy game I have ever played, and the sequel looks to be ever bit better than its predecessor. New units, improvements to an already top-notch multiplayer and the continuation of Star Craft’s incredible story makes this game and absolute must own.

Patrick Adams

Crackdown 2 – This is easily my most anticipated game of 2010. I was a major fan of the first one and I am totally siked that Microsoft decided to keep this franchise alive. I know that this game will  be pure fun.

BioShock 2 – Whether you are skeptical about this one or not you can’t hide the fact that the first one was one of the best games you ever played (well at least it is in my book). My fingers are crossed that the second one is just as great but it has a lot to live up to. None-the-less it’s still going to be a day one purchase.

Red Steel 2 – Why not? I am one of the few people out in the world that thought the first Red Steel was fun. I’m not sure what it was exactly about the game but I liked it. With WiiMotion Plus out now I think that the developer will be able to fix all the problems the first one had and they will finally be able to achieve the quality first person shooter that they’ve wanted to since the beginning.

Splinter Cell: Conviction - The first look at this game that we got a while back had everyone worried but now it looks to be the best yet. I think as long as it sticks with the core gameplay that made the Splinter Cell series so awesome I’m sure it won’t dissapoint.

Halo: Reach – I’m not the biggest Halo fan but I appreciate a good shooter, especially after playing crap like Rogue Warrior. Halo Reach has huge potential. I expect Microsoft will milk this one as much as they can with a lot of commercials, themes, controllers, limited edition consoles, etc.

Fallout: New Vegas – If New Vegas is Fallout 3 with a new setting them I’m sure to love it. The only problem is that we don’t really know what New Vegas will be. Either way it’s still one of my most anticipated games of 2010. I absolutely loved the first and I trust Obsidian’s ability to make a great game.

Honorable Mentions: Fable III, EyePet, HL2: Episode 3 (maybe?), ModNation Racers, and DeathSpank.

Jordan de Boer

Mass Effect 2 – I don’t know what is harder, counting down the days to the release of Mass Effect 2…or trying to avoid the spoilers while doing so. The internet is absolutely bursting at the seams with hype and excitement for this game, and for good reason. I don’t question whether or not I will be playing this game through to completion; I just question how many times and in how short a period of time.

Heavy Rain – I can confirm that my jaw is still firmly in place on the floor from the original 2006 teaser video for this game. The visuals, the voice acting and the facial animation..even back then they were amazing. The grand promises of arching story paths and heavy in-game consequences in reaction the players choices has me at full attention.

Splinter Cell : Conviction – Yes, the last Splinter Cell game was a mess, I’ll be the first to admit that. They stepped in it big time. I don’t, however, want to let that cloud my judgment of what has been shown so far of Conviction. Ubisoft Montreal is behind the wheel now and things are looking up in a major way. Just watching this new (less emo) version of Sam Fisher flawlessly combining stealth and action has many people drooling, including myself.

Ghost Recon 4 – We don’t exactly know what this game is going to be, but if it’s anything like the previous Ghost Recon games, it’s going to be awesome. The title “Ghost Recon : Future Soldier” was recently trademarked by Ubisoft and 2010 is floating around as the release date. I’m all ears.

I Am Alive – My dark horse of the bunch. The preposed post-disaster survival story set in Chicago originally got me interested and what little we have seen of the game visually also has had a funny way of drawing me in. Some troubling news about development issues has contributed to an overall lack of excitement for this game, but the year is young.

Honorable Mentions: Mirror’s Edge 2. Make it happen!

It’s that time of year. The time where everyone gets together and starts to put together their year in review articles and podcasts. If you caught podcast 41, you heard what we at Everyday Gamers feel were some fo the biggest news stories of the year. We have at least one more year in review podcast coming, but when it comes to these kind of lists, there is one that is expected from every video game website: Game of the year.

So, we here at Everyday Gamers decided we would come together and give you and idea of what each of us feel are the five best games we each played this year.

Eric Bouchard:

5. Tie: Scribblenauts/Henry Hatsworth and the Puzzling Adventure (DS) – Yes, I know starting out with a tie seems like a bit of a cop out, but I cannot help it. In what seemed overall like a down year for the DS, Scribblenauts and Henry Hatsworth were 2 absolutely can’t miss games. Scibblenauts adds a whole new twist to puzzle solving with no set way to beat each level, while Hatsworth combines platforming with puzzle gameplay in a way that is just astounding. The games stand out as the best on the handheld, and I dare anyone to play either one and not enjoy them.

4. Torchlight (PC) – In a world of big releases, it is rare to see an indie game catch on the way Torchlight has. Made by many of the creators of Diablo, Torchlight manages to be both a deep dungeon crawler and yet an accessible game for those not used to that type. You can pop in and play for just a bit or get lost for hours, something most games cannot balance. Excellent gameplay, an inventive inventory system with the ability to have you pet sell you items and 3 truly unique classes to play set Torchlight apart from other Diablo clones, and that’s not counting the mods people are already making available for the game. Heck, it deserves to be on the list if for nothing else than it has gotten me back into PC gaming.

3. Left 4 Dead 2 (Xbox 360, PC) – When Left 4 Dead 2 was announced at E3, there were many people, including some 0n this site, who thought it was too soon after Left 4 Dead. Many were afraid the game would just be Left 4 Dead 1.5, but it did not take long for that to be proven wrong. The sequel has surpassed its predecessor in every way, from tighter controls to longer, more involved campaigns. Add to that plenty of new weapons including melee based, new special infected, the uncommon common and more multiplayer modes, and Left 4 Dead 2 ends up feeling like much much more of a complete game than the original. This version is worth the $60.oo price point.

2. Dragon Age Origins (PC, PS3, Xbox 360) – This game was in the running for Game of the Year when I was first started playing. Bioware set out yo make Dragon Age Origins to be the spiritual successor to Balder’s Gate, and the company has achieved that. A deep storyline, excellent character interaction and a rich combat system make this an RPG to make hardcore RPG fans proud. In the end, however, that is part of why it did not make number 1 on my list, as the one the made it there was much more accessible and has the best Co-op I think I have ever played.

1. Game of the Year: Borderlands (PC, PS3, Xbox 360) - There is something magical about this game. Gearbox has managed to do the best job so far of combining an FPS with an RPG, and the cell-shaded look to Borderlands just helps add to the joy you get while playing it. Though the single player campaign is strong, you are really doing this game and yourself a disservice if you do not play it Co-op, and as such the 360 version may be the best because of Live. Random weapons, 4 unique character classes that can be leveled up in many different ways, enemies who level up based on the number of people playing and a wry humor that just permeates the game make Borderlands the clear choice for GOTY.

Honorable Mentions: Uncharted 2 (PS3), Street Fighter IV (PC, PS3, Xbox 360), Batman Arkham Asylum (PC, PS3, Xbox 360), Assassin’s Creed II (PS3, Xbox 360)

Patrick Adams

5. InFamous (PS3) – I was a little skeptical about the game until the demo released, once I got my hands on it I instantly knew it would be a day-one purchase. I’m not one to pay attention to the story in a game but InFamous made it hard not to with it’s sweet comic book art-style. The platforming elements in InFamous were very refined and overall the game is one of the best on the PS3.

4. Shadow Complex (XBLA) – Shadow Complex was so good that I almost added it to my top 10 favorite games of all time list. Yes it pays homage to Metroid but for someone like me who has never played Metroid it was still an amazing game. The game was very polished and overall just plain fun. Once I completed the game I only wanted to play more. I hope we’ll see a sequel sometime in the near future.

3. Uncharted 2 (PS3) – Everyone knew U2 looked beautiful and the hype for it was pretty high. Naughty Dog delivered and the game lived up to the expectations. Like the first one, U2 is like an adventure movie that you play and that’s awesome. With a thin line between the cutscenes and the actual gameplay U2 is right next to Killzone 2 as the best looking game to grace the PS3.

2. Red Faction: Guerrilla (Xbox 360) – I think the main reason RFG is #2 on my list is because it really caught me by surprise. I had heard nothing about the game until I played the demo and that demo was enough to make me go out and buy RFG on day-one. RFG is about destroying everything and destroying everything is as fun as a game can get.

1. Game of the Year:  Borderlands (Xbox 360) – I went out on a limb and bought this game purely because of reading good things about it on Twitter and here it is my #1 one pick, my game of the year. The funny thing about my experience with Borderlands was that I played the entire game by myself. It was exactly what I needed, a blend of the action in an FPS and the addiction of collecting loot and leveling up in an RPG. Borderlands also has an art-style that hits the spot for me. With the announcement of plans to make it a franchise I am excited to see more of Borderlands in the future.

Honorable Mentions: Killzone 2 (PS3), GTA: Chinatown Wars (DS), Left 4 Dead 2 (Xbox 360), and N.O.V.A. (iPhone).

Yuoma

This is the third in our series of articles about GameStop. In the Case Against Gamestop articles, we explained from both a Customer and Employee perspective just why we at Everyday Gamers have taken such a strong stand against the company. The biggest video game retailer in North America has not exactly helped its case since then by breaking street dates on major holiday titles. If it was possible, we would tell our readers to flat out refuse to deal with them.

Unfortunately, we realize for many of you this just is not a realistic ideal. Being the largest video game retailer in North America and one of the few that deals in used games, GameStops are everywhere, and for many of you there just really is no good competition in your area. On top of that, the company uses its market share to negotiate special deals with game makers, allowing it to offer exclusives the competition just cannot match. In the end, even those of us who are the most hardened against the company find ourselves having to deal with it from time to time.

In light of this, we at EDG thought it would be a good idea to share some of the insights we have gained on how to get the most out of your dealings with the game retailer. These insights come from years of being GameStop customers and, for at lest one of us, from being an employee. Hopefully these tips will help you even the odds a bit the next time you go to purchase or trade games with the company.

Tip Number 1: Not all GameStops are alike

I know it can be easy to lump all the stores together because GameStop is a retail giant, but not all stores are alike. While the prices and corporate strategies will be the same no matter where you go, the employees working for the store can make all the difference. If there are multiple stores in your area, which seems likely since GameStop loves to over saturate the market, check more than one out before deciding which one you will frequent.

Need help determining which GameStops employ friendlier, knowledgeable and helpful staff? Here are some tell-tale signs:

1. The state of the store: Look to see just what state the store is in when you enter. Does it look like the employees make an attempt to keep it looking nice? Are the games alphabetized, or are they just strewn all over the place. Do you see employees walking the store, seeing if games are out of place? The state of the store will give you a clue about just how much the employees care about their job and the customers.

2. How customers are treated: Are the employees sensitive to the customer’s needs, or are they too busy trying to force preorders and Game Informer subscriptions down their throat. Are they listening to the questions customers are asking and providing thoughtful answers, or are they just schilling the latest game corporate is choosing to push. Look for signs of a staff that actually cares about the customer.

3. Test their knowledge: Ask the employees about a few games or gaming related issues you are familiar with. Check their answers. Do they know of what they speak. If they don’t know, are they willing to admit that, or do they make things up to hide their ignorance. Personally, I would much rather have someone tell me they are not familiar with a game then try to make up an answer to hide lack of knowledge.

Once you have found a good store or two, you will find dealing with the company a much more relaxing experience.

Tip Number 2: Watch the Sales

Though GameStop’s general prices are no better than anyone else’s (in fact, they can often be worse), it does tend to have good sales. These can range from just good prices on new games to the popular “Buy 2 Used games, Get 1 Free” sales the stores have on a regular basis. Every summer GameStop runs its Gamer Days sale, and the prices during that sale can make dealing with the company worthwhile even to its most hardened critics.

If you really want to know what sales are coming up for GameStop or any retailer for that matter, there is only one website to check: Cheap Ass Gamer. As much as I am not a fan of the the name of the website, the site itself is packed with info on how to get games for great deals, and it is the place to go to find out what sales all retailers are running, including GameStop.

Want to know just how good the sales can get? Earlier this year, I picked up a copy of Street Fighter IV for $19.99 when it was selling new for $39.99. During last year’s Gamer Days sale, certain Guitar Hero controllers were being sold for $9.99; and it is not unusual to see games on sale for 50% off during that sale.

Tip Number 3: Trade to your advantage

We all know GameStop almost never gives fair value for trading in games, but there are ways you can make sure to get more for your trade:

1. Trade early: If you know you are going to trade in a game after you beat it, beat it as soon as possible so you can trade it in as early as possible. GameStop is always looking for trade ins of the hottest releases, and the company will generally give you better trade credit for them. This is becoming even more important with the recent trend of games to drop in price a couple of months after coming out, and it is a must if you are going to trade sports titles. One thing I do is look at my games and evaluate whether or not I am really going to play them anytime soon, If the answer is no, I will trade them in, knowing that is I really want to come back to them, I can pick them up later for a good price or GameFly them. Granted, I take my trades to Play N Trade, but the principle is the same.

2. Trade for New Releases: GameStop almost always has trade in deals when you put the money toward a preorder or new release. If there is a big game you are looking at preordering and you have some games to trade in, take advantage of these deals. A game that would normally only trade in for $10 will give you $12 if you get an extra 20% for preordering a qulifying game. That is how I was able to afford Rock Band; after trades, I paid about $40 for it, including all the instruments.

3. Know when to trade: After the holidays, GameStop almost always needs trade ins. As a result, the company will often offer trade deals right then. Also keep an eye out for major deals where it offers up to 40% trade credit. Those are rare, but they do happen.

4. NEVER trade for Cash: GameStop will never give you anything close to what games or consoles are worth if you trade for cash. If you need the money, look at selling on Amazon, Craig’s List or even your local pawn shop. They will generally give you a better deal.

Tip Number 4: Remember the alternatives

No matter where you live, there will be alternatives to GameStop, at least in terms of new games. Best Buy has been in the midst of a price war with the company, offering “Buy 2 Get 1 Free” deals on all games and even at one time offering to sell some new games and GameStop’s used price. Toys R Us, Target and (I hate to say it) Walmart have all been offering deals on new games as well. See if you can find local stores that offer trade credit for games, such as Play N Trade. Also, never forget the online alternatives, such as Amazon, Ebay and Craig’s List.

It’s up to you

While these tips can help you deal with the company, in the end there is only one way to make sure you are not going to be fleeced by GameStop: determine before entering the store what you are willing to deal with. If you are trading in games, think about what the lowest amount you are willing to get in return is, and if the store will not meet that, walk away. When buying, know before you go what would be a good price to pay for the games you want, and if you find GameStop’s price is higher, go elsewhere. Never forget that GameStop is not the only video game retailer in the US. If you keep that in mind, you can make sure you deal with the company on your own terms.

Digital Distribution is definitely starting to be a new trend in gaming. However, unlike motion controls, I am more apt as a gamer to move with this trend. Digital distribution is not something new to the consumers however. The 360 uses it with movies, even Xbox originals. while there are very successful forms of digital distribution i.e. Steam, it can also be a gamble i.e. PSP Go. So what are our thoughts?

Eric Bouchard: The Two Edged Sword

Whether we like it or not, Digital Distribution is here to stay. It’s the direction things are headed. The 360, PSN, Steam…everyone is coming up with ways to deliver their product directly to the consumer. Some people really like the idea of being able to directly download games, music or movies. Personally, I have never been a big fan.

Some of the people who know me may find that hard to believe. After all, I own an iPod with my entire music collection on it, I have ripped several of my movies onto my hard drive and I have digital copies of more than a few of my games. The main difference there is I own physical copies of almost everything. I like having the actual copies in case something ever went wrong. As I have gone through 2 different MP3 players before getting my current iPod, having physical copies of the CDs has been very important to me.

And that brings me to one of my biggest issues with Digital Distribution: you do not really own the product. Anyone who has had to change 360′s knows that. Though Microsoft allows you to redownload any of the arcade games you have bought, you have to go through a rather extensive process to have them relicensed to your new machine. Otherwise you cannot play the games while not connected to XBox Live.

So is Digital Distribution all bad? Not by a long shot. One of the advantages it has is it has allowed smaller developers a channel to release their games. Without it, games like Flower, Groov and Audiosurf would never have been released to the general public. Even larger companies can take advantage of the freedom allowed by Digital Distribution as well. After all, do you really think Epic would have created Shadow Complex if the only way to distribute it had been standard game discs?

Then there are groups like Good Old Games. For those of you who do not know, GOG takes older games, gets them working on current machines and operating systems and then sells them over the net. GOG has two major things going for it. First, many of the games you can download off GOG are not available in a format that is playable on anything current. The other is the company does not believe in attaching DRM to any of its files. In other words, when you buy a game from GOG, you can install it on as many computers as you like and redownload an unlimited number of times if you have the need. Instead of just buying the right to download a playable version of the game, you are buying the rights to the game itself, just as you would if you owned the physical copy. Steam doesn’t even give you that.

Whether we like it or not, Digital Distribution is here to stay. While we can all hope more companies will take the approach Good Old Games has when it comes to DRM, most will not out of fear of piracy. What that will mean for the consumer as far as the question of ownership and usage rights still remains to be seen.

Laren Hawkins: The Future of Gaming

I have to agree with Eric, Digital Distribution is definitely a growing trend in gaming. So much so that Sony recently released an all Digital Distribution hand held. The PSP Go is a big step in the growing strength of Digital Distribution. I was very skeptical of the PSP Go at first. I have always liked owning a physical copy of a game. There are many problems that can come with Digital Distribution. 1: Many people will make the argument that you will never truly own that game and I have to say that is a pretty good argument to make. 2: Many gamers like to trade their games after they are done with it, me included. With something like the PSP Go, you can’t do that, once you drop that money, that’s it. 3: Many consumers may not be comfortable with only buying content online and owning no physical copy of that game. I know I had many concerns about the PSP Go and many questions. So, I hopped on to the information super highway and did some research.

1. What if a friend wants to borrow a game? (There is a feature on the PSP Go that is similar to that on the DS’s download play. I am not sure however how many games are compatible with this feature.)
2. What if your little brother some how manages to delete a game? Like in iTunes, there is a history of your purchases and you have to do is re download it
3. What about the slow internet speed on the Go? That was one of my biggest concerns however, after doing some digging I found a solution. Sony released a software that comes with the Go in which you can transfer music, movies, photos and download games. You can use your computer to download the games and have a faster download speed depending on your internet.

So, are there any positives to Digital Distribution?

Well, yes. For one, you don’t have to make a trip to Gamestop. ( That is enough to make me cry tears of joy and break into a chorus of Hallelujah) With systems like the go all the games are right there on the system you don’t have to carry UMDs. You may still have a question, why am I so wrapped up in the Go? Well lets just say that was the only thong on my Christmas list. Albeit, I am taking a bit of a risk but, what better to understand Digital Distribution then to fully experience it? Like with many things in life, Digital Distribution has both positives and negatives. For now, we can only sit back and watch what Digital Distribution brings to the table in the future.

By now, you are probably aware of the controversy over street dates for games. Certain GameStops were ordered by their corporate office to break the November 10th street date for Modern Warfare 2, sighting retailers in the area who had already broken the sale date on what is expected to be the biggest game this year. Then last week, a few stores in Jersey City broke street date on Assassin’s Creed 2 and Left 4 Dead 2, citing a “rogue independent” in the area that had sold them early first.

In light of these stories, many are starting to question whether or not street dates for games really matter. Many gamers find themselves wondering why a company cannot just sell the game if it happens to have the game on hand. Others are just happy to get the game early if they can, regardless of whether it should have been available.

So we at Everyday gamers thought this would be a good time to look at this issue and see if street dates are really that important.

Street Date vs. Ship Date

There tends to be some confusion on when games can be sold at retail. Part of the reason for this confusion is there are two different types of dates associated with games: “Ship Date” and “Street Date.”

“Ship Date” is the date at which a game ships. Games that have ship dates can be sold the day they are received. Out here on the west coast, that can be a little annoying, since games often arrive at retailers a day later here than they do back east. We tend to see some of our friends playing games before they have arrived at stores here.

“Street Date” is another issue entirely. A street date is a hard and fast date before which retailers are not supposed to sell the game. Street dates are usually reserved for the big titles. The idea behind a street date is it levels the playing field on the heavy hitters. It does not matter is a certain retail chain can get the game out to its stores faster than another, neither is allowed to sell the game until the date, allowing all retailers a chance to get the game on their shelves. This is also why you see retailers having midnight release parties on big games; the minute the clock hit 12:01 AM on the day of the street date, the store can sell the product.

So what happens if a retailer breaks street date? That is entirely up to the distributor. Some distributors will actually blackball retailers who break street dates. Others will just not give the retailer as large a shipment of next big title. Sometimes fines can be levied against the retailer, and some retail chains will actually fire employees who break street date.

So what can a store do if a competitor violates street date? Most retail chains have a street date hotline they can call if a competing store breaks the date. Usually they have to purchase the game at the competitor’s store to prove it, and after the call is made, the decision on whether the reporting store can likewise break street date is made, Most of the time, the answer is no.

The Controversy Begins

So just what are the facts of the two street date violations? My thanks to Kotaku for the following information:

Modern Warfare 2 : GameStop stores in Northeastern states such as New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio started selling copies of the game the weekend before the release. The claim was some mom and pop stores were selling the game ahead of time, so GameStop corporate gave the go ahead to break the street date. Some stores were claiming a special dispensation from Activision to sell the game early, but Activision has denied that claim. Activision has also shown some dismay over GameStop’s decision, though Capcom had the most to say about it, stating they had never heard of a decision from a retailer’s corporate headquarters to knowingly violate street date. GameStop had this to say:

“This past weekend, GameStop made the decision to break street date and sell reserved copies of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 in select markets where other retailers had broken street date. Our decision followed many conversations with Activision and was an effort to protect our customer base.”

Two problems with the statement: as stated earlier, Activision did not tell GameStop it could sell the game early, and several stores were not just selling preorders.

Assassin’s Creed 2 and Left 4 Dead 2: Three stores in Jersey City broke street date on these titles, once again claiming a local store had done so and “higher ups” at GameStop gave the go ahead for the early sale. There has been no response as of this article from GameStop, Ubisoft or Valve/EA about this incident.

So Now the Questions Remain

Street dates are broken on a regular basis. These two stories are gaining national attention, however, because in them the largest video game retailer in the US chose on a corporate level to break the street dates. The questions remain: is this really that big of a deal? Do Street Dates really matter anymore, or are they just an outmoded business model that needs to be changed?

Eric Bouchard: The Disturbing Trend

Having been involved in retail for years, I have worked in more than a few places where Street Dates were important. Borders, the Christian bookstore I used to manage and EB Games/GameStop had to pay attention to the dates on many of the items sold. At each store, street dates were taken very seriously; knowingly breaking them could get you in serious trouble.

Now you have the single largest video game retailer in the US choosing to ignore the street dates. Sure, GameStop is claiming there were independent stores violating street date that forced their hand, but let’s take a closer look at these stories and see what we can find.

1. No stores have been named: Street dates are broken on many different occasions, but on most the stores who break the date are named and usually chastised by the corporation. Remember a while back when Target and Walmart were breaking street dates all the time? It was not a corporate decision; it was individual stores, and once word got out, it was stopped. So why have stores not been named in either of these stories?
2. GameStop claims it was protecting its client base from sales from Mom and Pop stores. I highly doubt this. First, the people who frequent these Mom and Pop stores are not going to be shopping much at GameStop. I have stopped dealing with them almost entirely since my friend opened Play N Trade. Second, these smaller stores are more likely to get in trouble if they break street dates. They do not have the clout of GameStop to force retailers to still work with them. Third, even if some small independent store was selling the 10 copies of the game it got in early, are you really going to expect me to believe that poses a serious threat to the juggernaut that is GameStop? I don’t think so.

I have a real hard time believing the story GameStop is sticking to in regards to Modern Warfare 2. To knowingly break street date in the sheer number of stores they did over some Mom and Pop stores just does not make any sense. I spoke with my friend, the manager of the local Play N trade, about what would happen if he chose to break street date. He said he would get fined, receive no more product prior to street date and likely have action taken against his store as a franchisee for damaging the name of Play N trade. Why would an independent store risk that?

The other story is a little more believable, though the stores breaking street date before GameStop may have been reacting to the chain’s decision to break it on Modern Warfare 2.

The problem here is competition. Street Dates help level the playing field for the big games. They give independent stores the chance to make sure they actually have copies on hand ready to sell the day it comes out. What worries me is GameStop has already tried to hinder the competition through exclusive demos and preorder bonuses. Now they are breaking street dates, and unfortunately, the likelihood that Activision will do anything to actually punish the retailer is slim at best, even though the manager of Play N trade said Activision claimed everyone would be treated the same in regards to street date violations. Though I do not generally subscribe to conspiracy theories, a part of me wonders if GameStop isn’t just trying to test the waters to see if they can get away with this in the future.

I personally will not buy anything before street date, even if I find a store that has broken it. To me, it violates everything I believe, and I will not support a retailer who will knowingly break the rules for their own personal gain. I am really hoping these decisions by GameStop do not indicate a fundamental change in position by the retailer in regards to street dates. If GameStop is allowed to keep doing this without some form of punishment, it could mean then end of many independent video game retailers.

Laren Hawkins: It Just Ain’t Right

While I have not yet had experience in retail, I do have experience as a gamer and consumer. First off, breaking street date is breaking policy. A company sets a street date for a reason. As Eric mentioned earlier in the article, street dates are set so retailers have a chance to get the game at the same time.  So, no one gets the EDG ( Ok, bad joke). Personally, I have many issues with GameStop, but why in the world would they think its ok to break a date that is set by the developer of the game? That’s what I have a problem with. Let’s do some math real quick, shall we? If GameStop breaks street date, then gamers get their game early. Therefore, more gamers are more likeyy to buy from GameStop, which equals more revenue.

To me, its a question of corporate ethics. At the end of the day, you are breaking a trust a developer has with you.  That developer trusts your company to comply with its requirements. So, if you are breaking street date, then what are you saying about your company?

It is not a good idea to break street date. You are taking away the experience from other gamers, consumers and retailers.

I am proud to announce that we have officially released our brand new HD video podcast titled “The Fishbowl”. The Fishbowl will be a bite-sized podcast showcasing one video game per episode. We are willing to take requests if you have any. The Fishbowl is available on our YouTube page at: http://www.youtube.com/everydaygamers or via iTunes at this link http://bit.ly/4JJYhN so that you can view it on your iPhone or iPod while you are away from your computer.

We hope you guys enjoy watching it as much as we enjoy making it. Please feel free to send us any feedback on what you guys would like to see us do in the future.

Check out the first episode of “The Fishbowl” below:

There have been many reviews that we have intended to get up on the website. I personally have been needing to get several up, including the long overdue review of Street Fighter IV. It just seems like so many things come up. and the next thing we know, it’s so late that getting the reviews up just seems…cheapened somehow.

So I started thinking about a way to make it all work. To get the various reviews of games, both big and indie, up on the site. That’s when this idea came to fruition. 30 Reviews in 30 days: a challenge to review a game every day for 30 days straight. A chance to review not only some of the major games we missed, but also some retro reviews of older games and maybe a surprise or two.

And so it begins with the review of the DS game I have been talking about on the last several podcasts:

Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure

Puzzle games. Platformers. You don’t normally think of these two game types being combined. Then again, you would not normally think of combining a puzzle game with an RPG, and yet Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords proved it can be done. Add to that the fact the Nintendo DS has everyone looking at gaming in a new light. Companies are getting creative, finding new ways for gamers to play.

Enter Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure, a new game by EA.

The premise is simple: take a challenging platformer, cross it with a match 3 puzzle game, add in a little bit of British sensibility, throw in a robot….

Okay, maybe the concept isn’t so simple. Let me see if I can explain a little better.

You are legendary British explorer Henry Hatsworth. Now in your older years, you set out on one last adventure and end up stumbling upon the Golden Suit, a legendary gentleman’s outfit that allows the wearer to rule the world. Each piece the suit gives the wearer different abilities, including the Hat you find in the beginning, which acts as a fountain of youth.

There are two problems with the suit, however:

Problem #1: The Puzzle World

In the game, there are two worlds: the real world and the puzzle world. The real world takes place on the top screen, which is where the platforming begins. This is where the platforming takes place, and believe me, this game is no slouch when it comes to platforming. You will find yourself trying to find that tiny piece of land where you can stand to make the next jump, trying to time it with the enemies you are trying to avoid.

Yes, there are enemies in this game, and they range from the typical canon fodder you see in games like this to much more intriguing ones, like tall ones that if attacked improperly break into four separate ones, or the ones with shields that are harder to take down. Combine these enemies with traps and other platforming pitfalls, and you have a much more difficult game on your hands.

You don’t go into this world unarmed, however. You have your trusty weapons, which include your cane/sword (depending which version of Henry you are, we will come back to that later) , a gun, bombs, boomerangs and more. You’ll use these weapons both the to solve puzzles and deal with enemies.

Balancing your time between the platforming and puzzle play can be a challenge.

These enemies are not normal, however. There is a hole open between the real world and the puzzle one, and these enemies have come through that hole. When you defeat them in the real world, they are sent back to the puzzle on the lower DS screen. This is the puzzle world: a variation of the match three gameplay of bejeweled, with enemies appearing as special blocks in the puzzle. You need to deal with these blocks before they reach the top (puzzle is slowly advancing upward) or they will re-enter the real world and attack you.

This is not as easy as it may sound, however. Remember those more difficult enemies I was talking about earlier?  They become difficult puzzle pieces. The one that breaks into four enemies becomes a huge block that, once matched, breaks into four smaller pieces. The ones with shields you have to match twice, and the first block cannot be moved. To top that off, you can only spend a little time in the puzzle world. You gain time you can spend there by spending time in the real world and by making multiple matches rapidly.

Puzzle matches also give you energy, which is used to power your weapons, and health, allowing you to revert back to young Henry when you have taken too much damage in the real platforming world.

These are not the only enemies you have to face, however.

Problem #2: The Bosses

A treasure worth as much as the Golden Suit had to have more than one person trying to find it. Enter Leopold Charles Anthony Weasleby the Third, Henry’s chief rival in the Pompous Adventurer’s Club. And he did not come alone; he has hired people to try and stop you, including a former actress with a booby trapped wedding cake that throws vines into the puzzle and a singing “pirate” who drops anchors into the puzzle to try and advance it faster.

These boss battles and another unique element to the gameplay, both on the platforming and puzzle. In fact, the bosses combined with the enemies and the puzzle world could make you feel outnumbered.

That is, if you didn’t have upgrades.

The Help: Upgrades and “Tea Time”

Fortunately you have help. Henry’s assistant offers different upgrades you can buy with the jewels and coins you find in the real world. These upgrades include more health, more damage inflicted to enemies, more energy for weapons and more time to spend in the puzzle world. These upgrades are essential for making it through the platforming levels in the game.

There is one other thing that truly helps turn the tide in combat, especially during the boss battles. Build up enough energy in the puzzle, you get to declare Tea Time. Yes, that is right, in the midst of everything that is going on, you can call upon your British sensibility and have tea. This isn’t just about pausing the game for a quick cut scene. Tea Time also calls a robot suit up to the real world: powerful, invincible and able to help even score. You can keep this robot suit as long as you have energy, which drains slowly as you battle (faster as you get hit or use the special weapons) and which you can replenish within the puzzle level.

I told you there was a robot.

The boss battles can be a little crazy, but the upgrades and Teat Time help settle the score.

The Bad

As much as I enjoy this game, there is one thing that makes it frustrating: the spiking difficulty. This game can turn frustratingly difficult at the drop of a hat (no pun intended). The platforming can be insane, sometimes bordering on sadistic. Not to mention the special puzzle pieces that can really be a pain to deal with. Fortunately you can gain extra lives by finding hats that become hat puzzle pieces. You are going to need them.

The Verdict

This game is truly something special. It’s a little hard to put into word just how much fun it is. Just trust me on this one: If you have a DS, you need to get this game. Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure gets a 5 out of 5.

Welcome to our second Case Against GameStop article. If the first one, we looked at how GameStop as a whole does not really focus on helping the customers. Whether it is giving next to nothing for trade or selling preorders to people who did not pre-order them, the company has a history of not considering its customers first.

Still, that is only half the case against the company. The other half comes from those who have worked for the company. As anyone who has worked for GameStop can tell you, it is not the kind of fun atmosphere you would expect to have working at a video game retailer.

The Second Witness: The Employee

So you think working for GameStop would be fun. After all, you are surrounded by games, you get to talk to other gamers and you get to stay on top of the latest gaming news. Add to that a discount on games and the ability to check out games to play, and it sounds like the perfect job for the game enthusiast. It does not take most employees long to find out this is far from the truth.

1. The Pay (or lack thereof):

Okay, it’s easy to write this one off as working in retail, but you are lucky to make much over minimum wage. In fact, the only raise I ever received is when the minimum wage for Arizona was moved higher than what I was making. The company also does not come anywhere close to paying managers what they deserve for the work they are expected to do. It’s like GameStop just figures we will work for less money because we are getting the privilege to work around video games.

Then there is the way the company actually pays its employees. Sure, they offer direct deposit; who doesn’t anymore? You had better have an account you can have your pay deposited into, however. If not, you have to deal with the companies “cash card.” That’s right, the only alternative to direct deposit GameStop offers is a Comdata Comcheck eCash card. Want to know what’s so wrong about that? Take a look at what an anonymous employee had to say about trying to use the cards:

Now I only had to deal with this thing for one paycheck (the time it took to activate direct deposit), but I confirm much of what was mentioned by this employee. All these cards are is a way for GameStop to save money, and the company really does not care if it inconveniences the workers.

2. The weak discount on games:

Did you realize that GameStop employees only get 15% discount on games? It’s sad but true. Now I can understand getting a small discount on new games; GameStop really does not make much on them. 15% on used games, which are pretty much pure profit, is a joke.

Now some will argue that you actually get 25% off used games thanks to the Edge card. While this is mostly true (the actual discount, since it is 10% off the already discounted game, ends up being 23.5%), employees still have to pay the yearly fee for the Edge card to get something approaching a halfway reasonable discount on used games. In other words, you have to pay the company to get a better discount. While I was grateful the company gave me the extra 10% off, would it really have hurt GameStop to give as better discount to its employees on something it was not paying anything near market value to obtain?

3. Answering the Phone:

Okay, you are probably wondering what can be so bad about answering the phone. After all, you just have to thank them for calling GameStop, give your name and ask how you can help the perons on the other end, right?

If you have called many GameStops, you know that is not all there is to answering the phone for this company. They expect you to rattle off a litany of information about the latest sales, preorders and game releases before you can give the caller a chance to talk. If you have ever wondered why someone would take the time to say something like “Thank you for calling GameStop where you can buy and sell new games and you can get an additional 20% when you trade in games towards a pre-order of Modern Warfare 2,” it’s because it was expected of us. We had a script we were supposed to follow when answering the phone, and if the District Manager called and we were not following the script, our manager would hear about it.

Now I’m all for adding the part about buying and selling used games. It is amazing how many people still do not know GameStop does that, and really that does not add too much to the call intro. The rest…well, it was just stupid, and the customers did not want to hear it anymore than we wanted to say it. Once again, my manager refused to follow this or get upset at us if we did not, but just the fact the company expects you to say it is ridiculous.

And yet, during the height if the we craze, we were not allowed to answer the phone with “…where we are unfortunately sold out of the Nintendo Wii.” That at least would have saved us some time on what was easily 75% of our calls.

4. Employees are treated like thieves:

I understand that much of retail theft is committed by employees. I can even understand the idea of bag checks; many retailers now ask their employees to submit to those. While I was working at Borders, I was asked to have a manager put a property sticker on anything I brought in that was sold at the store so I could prove it was mine. In my mind, those are all legitimate steps for an employer to take to prevent employee theft. I just happen to draw the line at emptying out my pockets.

That’s right. According the the GameStop employee handbook, all employees are expected to empty their pockets to prove they are not taking GameStop product anytime they leave the store. We are not just talking at the beginning and end of your shift. If you decide to leave the store for lunch, you have to empty your pockets. If your store does not have a bathroom and you have to leave it to relieve yourself, you have to empty your pockets. If you are just going over to the neighboring store to see if you can borrow something, you have to empty your products.

Now I understand that you can smuggle a DS or PSP game out in your pockets, but it seems like there are better ways to track this than forcing me to remove my keys, MP3 player, pen, Leatherman, wallet and change from my pockets (there is a reason I wear cargo pants). What’s next, asking me to prove I have nothing stuffed in my socks?  EDIT: A friend of mine who used to work there reminded me that sock checks were actually a part of that policy as well. Since my manager never enforced it, I had completely forgotten it was policy. There is no excuse for that.

Now while the manager I worked for never enforced this policy, it was in the books.

The Third and Final Witness: The Manager

While things were hard for the standard employee of GameStop, nothing compared to being a part of management.

1. Everything is seen from a corporate perspective:

GameStop is a large corporation. As such, everything the company does is seen from that perspective. Now this may seem to make sense, and in some ways it does. There are problems with viewing it only from that perspective. Stores are not given the right to determine what they carry or the quantity of those items. Instead of giving managers a chance to order in titles and quantities appropriate for their stores, their hands are tied, and they have to make due with what they get. Thing is different stores sell different types of games. Some may have JRPG fans who would be all over the latest titles, but a manager might only get 1 copy. Or a game will sell very well in several stores, so the company will decide everyone needs multiple copies, whether or not the store in question can actually sell it. As an employee of a couple of different stores, I can tell you I saw this play out again and again. It was frustrating running out of the games that sold and getting multiple copies of the ones that never would just because the quantities made sense to corporate. We had to become the apologists for the company because we did not have the games we should have carried and could not really order more.

On top of that, managers are often given lists of used games they need to send to other stores. It never ceases to amaze me what titles end up on these lists. We would be told to box up games that sold well at our store, whether or not we had enough copies to meet demand, and we constantly received games from other stores we were never going to be able to sell. The company seemed to never pay attention to what really sold at any given store, meaning we were wasting a lot of time shifting product among stores that was not going to sell.

2. Emphasis on numbers, not service

Ever wonder why GameStop pushes pre-orders and Game Informer subscriptions so much? It’s not because the people working there really want to put that much emphasis on these things. Managers are given a quota of subscriptions and preorders they are supposed to meet on a weekly basis. Failure to reach these quotas could affect several different things, including the manager’s likelihood of getting promoted to a better store.

This issue became really evident at the last store where I worked. We had a heavily international clientel there, which meant we could not even ship the magazine to them if they wanted it and pre-orders made no sense as the customers were not even going to be in the country when the game came out. Despite numerous atttempts by my manager to point this out to the district manager, my store manager still found himself having to defend ou store’s numbers just about every week during the district conference call. This was despite the fact both customer service ratings and sales had increased sharply since he took over the store.

It’s hard to say who is more tired of these getting pushed so much, the customers or the employees.

3. Automated scheduling leads to poor staffing

Ever wondered why your local GameStop never seems to be staffed appropriately? A big part of that is the automated sceduling system employeed by GameStop Corporate. Instead of giving the managers the hours they are allowed to staff  and giving them the ability to set the schedule accordiungly, GameStop has a program that automatically does the scheduling for them. This may sound like a time saving device, but it wasn’t. Managers had no way of entering employee availability into the list, so employees were often being scheduled at times they could not work. What ended up happening was managers would have to take a look at the schedule and try to modify it in such a way that would actually work for their stores. My manager hated when they switched over to this system; it meant he spent a lot more time putting the schedile togethter than the old system where he was just given the hours to staff the sotre as he saw fit. It was like GameStop did not trust its managers to know what was best for theiur stores, and somehow it thinks a compujter that really does not take the employee’s schedules into account could do the job better.

The Verdict

Whether you are a manager or just a lowly Game Advisor, GameStop is not a place you really want to work. The only things that tended to keep some of us there so long were being surrounded by the games and the relationships with customers and coworkers.

The sad thing is this really should not be the case. Working at a game store shoudl be fun. As gamers, we should really enjoy being surrounded by what we love and relish the chance to introduce others to this passion of ours. GameStop found ways to take the fun away.

So in the end, we the Crew of Everyday Gamers have a hard time supporting GameStop as a whole. If you have alternatives, we would encourage you to use them. If you are looking for soem alternatives, try checking out the article Not the Only Game in Town. it might just give you some ideas on where else you can go.

What if you are in a position where you have to deal with GameStop? Well, that is a position we will be dealing with in the third and final article in this series, Living With Gamestop.

It’s no secret that we here at Everyday Gamers do not have a very high opinion of GameStop. Whether we’re discussing problems with the company with Nick Sutner in our podcast or encouraging you to look around for alternatives, we have made it clear that we are not too happy with the leader in video game retail. What might not be so clear is why we do not like GameStop. Sure, we mentioned some of our objections in various forms, but it might be easy to consider some of what we have said just sour grapes. Tom and I are former GameStop employees, and it would be easy to say we just are holding a grudge.

That could not be further from the truth. As insiders, Tom and I have had a unique view of just how this company treats gamers and employees. We have seen what we once loved become a place we can hardly bear to visit. We have seen customers, coworkers and friends affected by the decisions this corporate giant has made, and not in a good way.

So in an effort to explain just why we try to encourage you to look for other places to spend your gaming money, we have decided to lay all our info on the table. We took the time to not only compile our objections but to also talk to other former employees to get their view on the company. We wanted to give you a chance to weigh the evidence of yourselves and make your own decision. While we have our own feelings about GameStop and will always encourage competition, we  also know you have every right to know why we have chosen to stand against them.

With that in mind, let me present The Case Against GameStop.

The First Witness: The Customer

Since customers drive any retail business, you would think it would be in the best interest of the said company to treat its customers well. GameStop apparently has not figured that out. It is concerned much more about the bottom line than the customers, and it shows in many of the company policies.

Want proof GameStop has a low opinion of its customers? How about this picture taken at a store where employees were told to dress up in fat suits to promote fitness games.

1. The pittance GameStop gives for trade credit:

I would wager most of you know this one all too well. Whether or not to trade in a game can often be a difficult decision to make. In the end, you gather up the games you spent both your money and time playing and take them in, hoping to get something new for them. Then you hear the total GameStop is willing to give you for those games, and you feel insulted.

GameStop is notorious for giving gamers a mere fraction in trade credit of the price the game will be sold. For example, it was not unusual at all for a customer to only receive $20.00 in trade credit for a game which would be sold for $54.99. Part of the reason for this is the corporate mentality of the company. If a game is being traded in on a regular basis in part of the country, its trade value will be lowered, whether or not the store in question actually has any copies on hand. Add to that the fact GameStop feels it can give back in trade as much or as little as it chooses, knowing more often than not gamers will trade in their games anyway, whether or not they feel cheated.

Of course, $20.00 for a newer game is less insulting than $1.00 for a game that will be sold for $10.00. Believe it or not, I’ve seen that happen.

2. Selling Pre-orders to people who did not order them:

You go to GameStop. You put $5.00 or more down on a game, wanting to make sure you get a copy. You are told the game will be held for 48 hours. Unfortunately, you have to work the day the game comes out, so you cannot make it out to the store till late that day. You stop by the store only to be told there were not enough copies to cover the pre-orders, but there are more coming, and your money will still be good toward the game when they get more stock.

Now while there are times that stores do not receive enough to cover pre-orders, let me share the ugly truth behind what usually has happened in these cases: the store has sold your pre-order to another customer who did not plan ahead but happened to come to the store before you got there.

That’s right. Managers are often encouraged to sell pre-orders to people who come in to buy the game who do not have pre-orders. I have not only heard my manager told to do just that, I have seen the emails telling us to do just that. Never mind the fact the receipt you get when you pre-order a game promises you they will hold the game for you for 2 days.

This practice was exposed when the following leaked memo to managers encouraging them to sell pre-orders of Grand Theft Auto IV started making the rounds of Video Game Blogs:

Now the manager I worked for actually refused to do that, but many do not have that integrity. I can also tell you that he had to fight constantly with his district manager because he refused to do this. You can say that the managers who caved in were just following orders from corporate, but that does not make it right.

3. Condition of used games:

Ever had to return a used game back to GameStop? If you have been buying games there for a while, you probably have. Let me give you a tip: take a look at the game disk before you leave the store. You might be shocked at its condition.

GameStop makes it a habit of taking games in that are in horrendous condition. Many managers do not really care the condition of the games they bring in. I saw this play out as an employee. One of the stores I worked at had a previous manager who would sell games with radial scratches on them. The manager I worked for refused to sell those disks, which meant there were times a customer would bring a case to us for a game that we could not sell because all of our copies were in bad shape. Unfortunately not all managers hold to the same policy.

Now I will grant you GameStop does have a 30 day return policy on used games if they do not work. If a game was rare enough, we would sometimes take the game in even if it was in bad condition. We would let any customers interested in the game know the copy was not in the best of shape and may not play, leaving the decision in the gamer’s hands. There is a difference between making an intentional choice like that, however, and taking in games that GameStop has no business selling. Sure, the customer has 30 days to return it, but GameStop is counting on gamers losing receipts or just never getting around to returning the game.

Some games are damaged so badly, however, that they have to be sent back to the warehouse to be “refurbished.” That brings me to my next point.

4. The Myth of Refurbishing Games:

Did you know most scratched games can be repaired? You would be amazed what can be fixed. My friends at Play N Trade have shown me games they received with the circle etched into them you get from a 360 DVD drive being out of alignment that, after being run through their disk repair system, look almost brand new. All that really cannot be repaired is damage done to the label side of the disk; anything else can pretty much be fixed.

Someone really should tell GameStop. What that company calls “refurbishing” is running a disk through a polishing machine that polishes in circles, leaving circular impressions on the disk. In other words, the game is often in worse shape than it would have been had it just been cleaned.

I cannot count the times I have seen people bring used games back that had been refurbished because they would not play on the gamer’s system. It got to where some customers would refuse to buy an refurbished game, knowing it would more than likely not play in their consoles.

Then there is the fact we on more than one ocassion received “refurbished” DS games. Now other than cleaning the contacts, how exactly do you refurbish a cartridge game? Seriously, who did the company think it was fooling? More than likely, whoever “refurbished” it at the warehouse just cleaned it up a little and sent it back out to be sold. In other words, that person took a game which was returned to GameStop because it would not play and sent it back out to be sold. Tell me how that is taking the customers into consideration.

These are only some of the charges that could be leveled against GameStop for they way it treats its customers. I won’t even get into the stories I know of people getting cheated out of special editions of games, pre-order bonuses and unique items employees were allowed to buy before customers even get to see them. There are a lot of policies at GameStop that just do not favor gamers.

For many of you, this article may have been a bit of a revalatoin. For others, you have probably already experienced many of these objections all too many times. You may even have stories of your own you would like to share. Please feel free to do just that.

This is only the first half of the case against GameStop. We at EDG have yet to call our second and final witness: the employees.

Does that sound a little strange to you? Maybe you think there just isn’t enough good game music out there to make you want to buy a soundtrack. If that is the way you feel, let me challenge you to listen to the games you play. Notice how the music adds to the experience, much like a good score adds to a great movie. Think about the driving sound of the battles in Gears of War, and the great relive you felt as the music changed and dropped out, your audio clue that the battle was over…for now. Remember the haunting music that plays in the wraith mash in Fable 2, setting you on edge as you looked around each corner, trying to spot the banshees before they spotted you. Good music adds to the atmosphere of the game; we just tend to be so wrapped up in making sure we don’t die that we tend not to notice.

So maybe you’re considering starting a soundtrack collection of your own, but you have no idea where to begin. The following list, while in no way comprehensive, might help give you some ideas.

Video Games Live Vol 1

If you have no idea where to begin, consider picking up Video Games Live Vol 1. Video Games Live is a series of live performances of music from some of the most well known video games ever. The first CD is a compilation of fantastic video game music, including greats like Kingdom Hearts, Myst, Medal of Honor and a rocking rendition of the Castlevania theme that is a definite crowd pleaser.

The great thing about this compilation is not only is the music masterfully performed by great orchestras and choirs, it will give you a chance to experience music from multiple games. After listening to this compilation, you will hopefully get some ideas for some other soundtracks you may want to consider. Just remember that the older games aren’t going to quite sound as good as they do on this compilation.

There is one other good reason to buy this CD. It contains a suite from a game that has made several people decide that video game soundtracks may just be worth buying:

Halo

It doesn’t matter if you are a fan of the series or think it is overrated, one listen to the main theme for Halo will have you geared up to play. The combination of classical and rock influences make this score, composed by Martin O’Donnell and Michael Salvatori, one worth owning.

All you need to do is listen to the main theme to see what I mean. It starts with an ethereal chorus, building up to the first strings of electric guitar. Before long, you are completely drawn into the music.

If you are looking to build a video game soundtrack collection, Halo is a great one to pick up. Some might even argue that the soundtrack outshines the game. Might be a bit of a stretch, but it is rather well done. It’s not far fetched, however, to argue this soundtrack was what made many people actually start considering the possibility that game scores could be on par with movie soundtracks.

Gears of War

Forgive the pun, but an epic game deserves and epic soundtrack. Gears of War definitly delivers. Composer Kevin Riepl is a veteran of gaming soundtracks, with credits ranging from Twisted Metal Black to the Unreal series. For Gears, he took a more movie-like approach, writing a score worthy of any war drama.

The theme sets the tone early, with a driving tempo and militaristic feel that fits the game perfectly. This is followed by the haunting overture “14 Years After E-Day,” adding the eerie feel the to the background of the story. Other tracks are also reminiscent of some of the major battled in the game, like the high pitched and fast paced “Miserable Wretches,” the overpowering “Running With Boomers,” and the powerhouse “Train Ride to Hell,” which builds to the finale, leaving just a hint of more to come in Gears 2.

Mass Effect

Anyone who played the game knows just how good the music of Mass Effect is. Jack Wall, Sam Hulick, Richard Jacques and David Kates combine to create one of the most unique soundtracks in recent memory. Borrowing heavily from the older electronic sounds of 80s Sci Fi, this soundtrack ranks up there as one of my all time favorites.

Just lietening to the theme will be enough to remind fans of the great atmosphere of this game., complimented by tracks like the powerful “Spectre Induction” or the uptempo “Uncharted Words.” With 37 tracks, there is plenty of music for fans of the game to enjoy.

None of the tracks on the CD are as good as “M4 Part II” by the Faunts. I remember listening to this song as it rolled with the end credits of the game, just being amazed by the fact Bioware found a song that actually fit the game. As a matter of fact, I found myself almost sad once the credits were over because it was that good. Of all the tracks on the CD, I have listend to this one the most.

So far, all of the soundtracks I’ve been recommending are from the last couple of generations of consoles. While gaming music has really come into it’s own in these generations, there are great soundtracks from earlier consoles worth purchasing.

Metal Gear Solid

I bet that if you are a fan of Metal Gear Solid, you probably have the theme playing in your head right now… or at least a clip of it with someone screaming “SNAKE!”

The music of MGS really helps set the tone for the game, and the soundtrack brings some of the more memorable set pieces of the adventure to mind. Just try not to remember franticly trying to find cover while taking out Sniper Wolf when you hear “Duel,” or lining up shots with the missile launcher while avoiding the attack of the “Hin D.” The soundtrack even includes the soulful “Mantis’ Theme” and sorrowful “Enclosure” (plays after you kill Sniper Wolf), which remind you of the serious undertone of the game.

Metal Gear Solid is definitely a great example of a soundtrack worth picking up from an earlier generation of consoles, but it’s still a CD based game. Earlier games relied upon midi synthesizers and other programing tricks to make music. It doesn’t mean these earlier game soundtracks are not worth tracking down, however. As a matter of fact, my favorite game soundtrack comes from the pre-CD consoles.

Chrono Trigger

If you have been listening to the podcasts, you should have seen this one coming. I was lucky enough to find the Chrono Trigger soundtrack a few years ago at Bookmans, and I have never regretted the purchase.

Composed by Yasunori Mitsuda, Chrono Trigger is considered by many to be one of the best soundtracks done on the SNES. Beginning with “Premonition,” it is clear that Mitsuda was able to get past the musical limitations of the system in a way most could not. Each area in the game has its own unique music, and yet they all blend together to make a great CD.

I’m not the only one who likes the music of this SNES RPG. In fact, the next Video Games Live CD is going to have music from the game in it, and those of us who preordered Chrono Trigger on the DS got a CD with fully orchestrated versions of music from the game.

So that’s my list of video game soundtrack recommendations. It is by no means all inclusive, and I intend on getting many more soundtracks to add to my collection, but hopefully reading about these soundtracks will get you thinking about some of your favorite gaming music. You might even think about tracking down a soundtrack or two for yourself. You might be surprised by just how good they can be.

Another year is upon us and with the new year comes the inevitably long list of anticipated games. It already appears as if 2009 is going to be another great year for gamers (and more bad news for my bank account). With titles like Street Fighter 4, Killzone 2, Resident Evil 5, Heavy Rain, etc. – which games are the must have day-one releases?

Have no fear. The staff of Everyday Gamers have compiled a list of games that WE think you should pick up on day one. Read on to find out our picks.

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Thomas Pine

Killzone 2

Console: PS3 – Release Date: Feb 28th

Why is Killzone 2  a day one purchase? Duh… have you seen the videos? No really, this sequel to what was supposed to be “The Halo Killer” seems to be on target to potentially be the best FPS of the upcoming year. Add on top of this the fact that K2 is releasing during a time of the year that is notoriously gaming’s “slow” period, and you have all the more reason to pick up this game at launch. This game also promises to add some incredible online play to the somewhat lacking PSN scene. Many of the early reviewers have stated that this is the most gorgeous game to ever grace the console market. I guess we’ll all have to wait for February 28th (5th if you have early demo access) to find out the truth.

Resident Evil 5

Consoles: PS3 and Xbox 360 – Release Date: March 14th

Any gamer who played through RE 4 will likely proclaim that it was one of their most memorable gaming moments. That in and of itself makes picking up Resident Evil 5 on day one a no-brainer. Capcom is also throwing in coop for this outing, which only adds to the day one anticipation. Throw into the mix an awesome limited edition, likely to vanish off store shelves before the first week is up, and you have a version that collectors (like myself) will want to get their grubby little hands on. Even somewhat dated controls can’t detract from the must have nature of this next gen entry in gamings greatest horror survival series.

Bionic Commando

Consoles: PS3 and Xbox 360 – Releases: June 3rd

Another Capcom title that you need to pick up on day one? Definitely. The truth is that Capcom rarely dissapoints. This full on re-envisioning of the NES classic looks to redefine the limited controls of the original. Free swinging through levels, and what appears to be an incredibly unique online experience makes this a game that I will definitely be purchasing as soon as it hits retailers. It’s not often that we as gamers get the chance to see a classic remade, so this is definitely a game that you’ll want to experience as soon as you get the chance.

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Patrick Adams

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Console: PS3 – Release: Q3 2009

Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune was the first game I bought for PS3 and probably my favorite PS3 game behind LBP. Drake’s Fortune brought a movie to life right on your TV screen with an outstanding score and some really great environments. I couldn’t get enough of it. If you haven’t played it you must pick it up ASAP so you will see why this is going to be a day-one purchase for me hands-down.

GTA: Chinatown Wars

Console: Nintendo DS – Release: March 17th

Ever since I heard that GTA was coming to the DS I was siked. After seeing screenshots and videos of Chinatown Wars I am even more impressed. Depending on how it plays and controls (hopefully a lot like Zelda) I think it could be an awesome game. I personally am a huge fan of cel-shaded games so this is always a plus. The mini-games will also add that DS flavor we’ve come to love. I am guessing this version of GTA will outshine the PSP iterations by far. Chinatown Wars is definitely a day-one purchase for me.

The Sims 3

Console: PC – Release: June 2nd

The main reason I am excited for The Sims 3 is because my wife is one of the biggest fans of the Sims 1 & 2. We have all the expansion packs (the ones worth getting at least) and sometimes she can go for 4 or 5 hours without even knowing it’s been that long. This time the Sims is giving us all that good stuff from the start, a living breathing world that we can explore much like Fallout 3 and GTA (maybe not as big). I was really disappointed to hear that The Sims 3 was being delayed until June 2nd but hopefully by then our daughter will be old enough and independent enough for my wife to get some quality time with the Sims.

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David Lange

BioShock 2: Sea of Dreams

Consoles: Xbox 360 and PS3 – Release: Q3 2009

Bioshock in my opinion was the best game of 2007 and one of the greatest of all time. It was a shame to see it’s accomplishment somewhat eclipsed by the more mainstream popularity of Halo 3 and COD 4. From the moment you step into the lighthouse, players where enveloped by the haunting mystery and tragic beauty of Rapture. One of the greatest places ever created for a video game, the superb art direction and sound design permeated the sunken city with the nostalgia of a lost era and the foreboding destiny that overtook it. The stirring ambiance moved me in a way few games have and the malleable gameplay grew even more enjoyable the longer I played. Though the inclusive nature of the original story has me concerned about how they will introduce a new chapter practically, I am excited more for the sequel than any other game this year. Anyone who doesn’t pick this one up, or for that matter hasn’t played the first, should have their gamer credentials revoked.

The Conduit

Consoles: Wii – Release: Q1 2009

Built from the ground up using High Voltage Software’s proprietary Wii engine, The Conduit, a modern sci-fi FPS, is a Wii exclusive that has been hand crafted and fine tuned to optimize the system’s full potential. High Voltage made a point of this early on when it released it’s “Quantum3″ tech demo showcasing a variety of effects rendered on the engine. Dynamic lighting, reflections, and shimmering ripples promised to push the Wii’s graphics to the limit. Maximizing the full range and capabilities of the Wii’s motion controls, The Conduit is being groomed as one of the tightest, most immersive FPS experiences ever devised. It’s this obvious level of effort and craftsmanship that demands the attention of every Wii owner. Throw in an awesome art style and an intriguing Half-Life-esque plot involving aliens, conspiracies and shadowy government agencies and you’ve got one of the most promising games of the year. Keep your eye on this one.

Halo Wars

Consoles: Xbox 360 – Release: March 3rd

Created by Age of Empires developer, Ensemble Studios, the unoriginally named Halo Wars looks to adapt the frenetic action of Bungie’s praised FPS into an equally engaging RTS. Eschewing much of the time consuming tedium of micromanagement and laborious resource accumulation, traditional to the genre, Halo Wars seeks to streamline the experience and allow players to focus primarily on combat. It’s hard to argue with a pedigree that includes lineage from one of the most prolific and beloved RTS series, and the namesake of the most acclaimed shooter franchise of this generation. Come March we won’t be finishing the fight, we’ll be starting all kinds of new ones.

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Eric Bouchard

Puzzle Quest: Galactrix

Consoles: DS, PC, XBLA – Release: Feb 24th

Who would have thought you could combine the addictive puzzle game stylings of Bejeweled and cross it with an RPG? D3 Publishers did, that’s who. Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords was a surprise hit, and the creators are back with a whole new take on the series. Gone is the medieval setting, replaced by a new Sci-Fi setting and a whole new take on the puzzle. This time you are dealing with a hexagonal board, with replacement pieces coming in from three different sides. The strategies will be different, but the core gameplay promises to be just as addicting as its predecessor.

Street Fighter 4

Consoles: Xbox 360, PS3, and PC – Release: Feb 17th

After as much time as I have spent talking about Street Fighter 2 recently, this one should come as no surprise. Street Fighter 4 looks to continue the intense fighting that made its predecessor the premiere fighting game in the arcades. Combine that with new characters and absolutely stunning graphics, and you have a game that I will not only buy on the first day, but I will also probably pay for an arcade stick to play. I cannot wait to get my fireballs and lightning kicks on.

Alpha Protocol

Consoles: Xbox 360, PS3, and PC – Release: Summer 2009

For some of you, this one may be coming out of left field. If so, you really need to check this game out. Obsidian Entertainment has been working on this spy RPG for a while, and every time I look at it, it keeps getting better. In Alpha Protocol, you take on the role of Michael Thorton, a spy charged with figuring out who took control of a top secret missile defense system and used it to shoot down a commercial plane. With a completely immersive world and the option to mold your character to play as one of three spy archetypes (Bond, Bourne and Bauer), this game definitely makes my list of day one purchases.

Well, boys and girls 2008 is in the books, but instead of jumping straight into the new year we thought it would be nice to reflect back on the top games of last year. We are living during an incredible time as gamers and last year was no exception as we witnessed top tier sequels and incredible new I.P.s. There were surprises and disappointments, but what games did we feel shaped up to be the best of the best?

For obvious reasons we decided to include the top picks from each of the staff members of EDG. To close out the article we pulled out our pencil, papers, erasers and calculators, performed some difficult mathematical equations and came up with a definitive top 10 gaming list for 2008. Keep in mind this is our list, and here at EDG what we say goes (jk), but hey if you don’t agree we created a nice little forum for all of you wonderful readers – so go create your own top 10 list.

So, without further ado here is the EveryDay Gamers 1st annual Top 10 Game’s of the Year – first up the individual lists.

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David Lange

1. Fallout 3 (Xbox 360, PS3)

2. Grand Theft Auto 4 (Xbox 360, PS3)

3. Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3)

4. LittleBigPlanet (PS3)

5. Gear of War 2 (Xbox 360)

6. Left 4 Dead (Xbox 360)

7. Resistance 2 (PS3)

8. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii)

9. Valkyria Chronicles (PS3)

10. Fable II (Xbox 360)

Eric Bouchard

1. Fable II (Xbox 360)

2. Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3)

3. Fallout 3 (Xbox 360, PS3)

4. Left 4 Dead (Xbox 360)

5. Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360)

6. Chrono Trigger (DS)

7. Rock Band 2 (Xbox 360, Wii, PS3)

8. LittleBigPlanet (PS3)

9. The World Ends With You (DS)

10. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii)

Patrick Adams

1. Fallout 3 (Xbox 360, PS3)

2. Pixel Junk Monsters (PSN)

3. Grand Theft Auto 4 (Xbox 360, PS3)

4. Left 4 Dead (Xbox 360)

5. Braid (Xbox 360 Arcade)

6. Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3)

7. Fable II (Xbox 360)

8. LittleBigPlanet (PS3)

9. Castle Crashers (Xbox 360 Arcade)

10. Far Cry 2 (Xbox 360, PS3)

Tom Pine

1. Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3)

2. Fallout 3 (Xbox 360, PS3)

3. Grand Theft Auto 4 (Xbox 360, PS3)

4. Burnout Paradise (Xbox 360, PS3)

5. Left 4 Dead (Xbox 360)

6. LittleBigPlanet (PS3)

7. Fable II (Xbox 360)

8. Geometry Wars 2 (Xbox 360 Arcade)

9. Final Fantasy: Crisis Core (PSP)

10. The World Ends With You (DS)

Now for the moment you waited all year for, well not literally. EveryDay Gamer’s Top Ten Games of 2008.

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10. Burnout Paradise

Criterion threw a monkey wrench into the Burnout series by sending this outing into open world waters. What gamers were left with was the same great car smash ‘em up that they were used to without the restrictive in-between race menus. Unfortunately the early year release had many in the gaming industry forgetting about this game in their year end wrap ups. Beautiful environments, amazing online and spectacularly tight game play mechanics all combined to create the best racing game in ’08.

9. Pixel Junk Monsters

What Pixel Junk did with the introduction of Monsters was bring the tower defense genre to masses. More than just a simple tower defense game, Monsters was an incredibly addictive gem of a strategy game. Simple yet fitting graphics laid the ground work for what would become a defining title for Sony’s Playstation Network. PJM represents everything that is right in the world of downloadable games.

8. Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Aside from incredible sales Nintendo didn’t have much to write home about last year. Brawl continued the success of the Super Smash series and added online play to boot. What makes this stand atop of the fighter genre is the amount of fan service that Nintendo puts into the series. Ever wonder who would win in a fight between Mario and Link? Brawl takes characters from several of your favorite classic Nintendo games and allows you to duke it out in the ring.

7. LittleBigPlanet

LBP quickly became a synonymous with the name Playstation 3. Platformer, racer, puzzle game, game creater – LittleBigPlanet is all of that and more. The most intriguing aspect of LBP is the fact that this game is nearly whatever you want it to be. A fully functional platformer coupled with an in-depth tool set, the limitations of this game are endless. This could be the game that helps save Sony’s sinking ship.

6. Gears of War 2

More Gears isn’t always a bad thing – case in point Gears 2. The game delivers on all the promises of Clifford B and in the end what you have is more of the same. But like I mentioned that’s not a bad thing – in fact this game takes all that made it’s predecessor one of the best games of it’s year and perfects them. It may not have changed much, but when you’re dealing with one of the best shooters of all time is there really any need for change?

5. Grand Theft Auto IV

Easily the most anticipated game coming into 2008, GTA 4 didn’t disappoint. GTA 4 reinvented the city made famous in the series third title, and created a living, breathing world that would give it’s real life counterpart a run for it’s money. On top of this, the game took little innovations, such as the cell phone mechanism, and helped introduce truly revolutionary ideas. GTA 4 gets as close to perfection in the open world genre as gamers may ever experience.

4. Fable II

Peter Molyneux was finally able to deliver on one of his many gaming promises and created an incredible action RPG with Fable II. The world of Fable is as alive as any game world I experienced this past year, and possibly ever. The true genius of this game lies in the decisions that you can make – want to get a job? Go for it. Want to get married, have kids, be a jerk, be a hero? Fable 2 allows you to do what you want, and then reap the rewards or feel the negative effects.

3. Metal Gear Solid 4

Metal Gear helped define the stealth genre, so MGS4 is the best stealth game of 08? Not exactly – MGS4 pulls back the reigns on the stealth aspects of the game and allows gamers more freedom. You can approach this game in many different ways, and each one has it’s own rewards. Metal Gear Solid 4 is easily the best looking game to date, not just this year, not just on this console. Add incredible story telling and wonderful control mechanics and you have a recipe for one of the best games of the year.

2. Left 4 Dead

If ever there was a reason for online play Left 4 Dead is it. The perfect game to play with friends down the street or perfect strangers across the world. Valve has taken the premise of many great horror films and placed it in the video game realm. The small segments and quick pace are perfect for jump-in, jump-out gameplay. Even if you are without friends the A.I. is top notch – to the point where you may not miss the idiots that you would normally play with online.

And EDG’s number one game of 2008…

1. Fallout 3

Many questioned Bethesda’s resurrection of the beloved Fallout series, but those who embraced the final product were rewarded with the cream of the gaming crop. Part Shooter part role playing game – Fallout combined genres in a way that creates an accessible title no matter what your taste in gaming may be. The game lacks nothing in the substance department, with enough missions and side quests for gamers to sink hundreds of hours into. If you missed playing Fallout in 2008 then do not allow yourself to do so any longer.

When a good thing turns bad: I remember the old days of EB Games and GameStop. It wasn’t that long ago that any trip I made to a mall that had one of those two stores invariably ended up with me in it, probably more than once on that trip. I loved looking at their selection of games, trying to find the one I had been looking for or that gem you could not find elsewhere.

Christmas of 2006: I was working as the acting GM of a local Christian bookstore. Two of my coworkers (twin brothers no less) and I would frequent the EB that was in the same mall. The employees there came to know us, and when it came time to hire some holiday staff, they invited us to work for them. We jumped at the chance to get the discount and “rent games,” so of course we signed up.

It wasn’t long afterward that GameStop bought out EB. We were already being told by those working within the company that this was not a good thing. Most of them felt EB was the better company. At first, it seemed like sour grapes on their part, but it did not take long to see they were right. The change in policies at the stores, as well as not making it an emphasis to hire people who cared about games, started to leave a cold taste in our mouths. I did have to go back to work on a more permanent basis with the company in 2007-2008, and though it was made tolerable by great managers, I was not exactly relishing the experience.

I could go into a long list here of what is wrong with GameStop, but that is really not the idea behind this article. I just wanted you all to know I have seen the company from an insider’s perspective, and I have seen what was a company I really liked turn its back on the people they supposedly are there to serve.

The problem is that GameStop is the big player in the video game market. The company is the most recognized brand.

They are not the only one, however.

The Alternatives: There was a time where it was basically Gamestop/EB or bust. Then Game Crazy came, but it really did not last long; you can still find a few out there, but it is no longer a reliable brand.

So where do you go to get your games, especially used games, if you don’t want to just continue to feed into the corporate shell that is Gamestop?

Play N Trade is a new group of independent franchises appearing nationwide.

1) Play N Trade: never heard of this company? That’s not too surprising. They are relatively new, but Play N Trades are starting to pop-up all over the country. So what makes them any better than GameStop? Each store is an independent franchise and opposed to a corporate shell. What this means is the owners are given much more freedom when it comes to how they design the store, what they carry, and what specials and events they have. A couple of friends of mine just opened one in Phoenix, and the difference between this store and the local Gamestops is HUGE! They have 8 flat screen TVs with consoles hooked up for demoing games, a clean, open environment that encourages browsing titles, and a growing selection of retro games and consoles, something Gamestop refuses to carry. I even bought a Retro Duo there, which is a system that lets you play NES and SNES games. Now like any chain, there will be differences between stores, but if this is peeking your interest, check out http://playntrade.com and see if there is a store near you. If there is, check it out. You may just like what you find.

2) Local stores: Many larger cities have local games shops that either existed before GameStop and have still managed to hang in there or cater to a specific market, such as retro gamers. In Arizona, one such place is called Bookmans. Now Bookmans is more than just a video game shop: the chain deals in used books, movies, music, electronics, games….basically a little of just about everything. You can buy anything from a paperback novel to a 360 there (in fact, that is where I bought mine). The downside of a store like Bookmans is it only deals in used, which means you are not going to be able to buy the newest and biggest games there unless someone has traded it in. On the flipside, you can trade in anything they sell there for trade credit towards games, which is a VERY nice feature I have taken advantage of many times.

Bookmans is just one example of the kind of local stores you can find. Take a look at your local yellow pages or google video game stores in your area code. You may just find a store that is to your liking.

Sites like Amazon.com, Gamefly and ShopGoodwill.com can be great places to buy games.

3) Internet Sites: There are a ton of internet sites for gamers and game deals. Playswitch.com allows you to buy used games at a set price and sell your games as well. Since it eliminates the middle man when buying or selling games, you get better deals. Game HQ lets you buy or trade games for great deals. You can even consider joining Gamefly; not only do they rent games, they sell them to members at great discounts, and they give you even more discounts the longer you are a member. There’s also Ebay, Amazon, and a whole host of other internet sites that specialize in gaming and have great deals for people willing to search.

The Choice is Yours: I’m not here to tell you to never purchase anything from GameStop again. I can’t even say I never will. All I am trying to say is there are alternatives out there. If you are tired of the practices and attitude of the corporate giant, take a look around you. See if there is a local store you can frequent instead, or do a little research on the web and find a net based retailer you like. The choices are out there.

Gamestop has come to act as if it is the only game in town. Maybe it’s time we as gamers prove the company wrong.

============================ Another Take ================================

David Lange:

Ah yes the good old days of EB games and that coveted trip to the mall that would invariably find you there. I remember those days, when going to a game store was something you actually looked forward to with youthful glee. At least that’s what I’ll tell my children, when I reminisce about the golden age of retail gaming, because thanks to the soulless corporate zombie known as GameStop those joyous occasions are quickly being relegated to fond memories alone. “Son, when I was a boy, I would walk 7 miles through the snow to go to EB.” Today I wouldn’t go to GameStop if someone carried me on a cushioned pedestal. I exaggerate slightly. But not about the lack of joy, or the nostalgia of an era when your local game store was a veritable cornucopia of electronic euphoria (yeah, it was that good).

At the age of 25 (a genuine “old fart” in gaming years) I can speak to a new generation of 13-somethings whose only experience of retail gaming is an irritated sales clerk too busy unpacking a box to go get the Xbox 360 you’re trying to buy (oh wait that’s my experience). Really it isn’t all that bad, but it isn’t particularly good either, and that’s the point. It’s a sad state when a trip to the “game store” means logging onto Amazon.com, but I’d rather do that than go to an over-sized, understocked retailer.

So what changed? Lot’s of things I suppose, but the primary factor is the prevalence of industry giants such as Walmart and Best Buy. As corporations it makes good sense for them to avoid costly micro management of the multitude of product catagories they offer. Instead they focus on the mass market of the mainstream consumer. Jack of all trades and masters of none, as these commercial behemoths increase in size they swallow up various markets, smothering specialized retailers with name brand, mass marketed mediocrity. Each particular industry they absorb is marginalized and even stores such as GameStop that do “specialize” in one department still suffer from the corporate machine, cogs in which they are.

What EDG staffer Eric has done here with this feature is struck a blow for gamers everywhere, and I encourage everyone to look to alternative sources when trading and buying games. As hardcore gamers the video game community we belong to is a great thing that defines who we are. Every time we take the easy way out and buy from companies that don’t care about the individual gamer we contribute to the slow disappearance of this subculture. In the information age there are far better and more enjoyable ways to indulge in our beloved hobby, and going to the local “big box” stores is a lazy excuse we are all guilty taking. Over the next few weeks EverydayGamers.com will be featuring articles that look at unique opportunities to play and save. I hope we’ve got your attention because we’re just getting started.

Thomas Pine:

I couldn’t agree more with what Eric or David have stated. As a former employee of GameStop, I can sympathize with the underpaid minions who call GameStop their employer, but I have no compassion for the company because of what it has done to gaming. Yes, as Eric remarked, there is too much to cover in too little space, but all one needs to do is spend a little time inside one of these stores and the problems quickly become apparent. Fortunately, as the title of this article suggests, there are many other options available for gamers seeking games.

Sure you could bypass GameStop and go directly to the Best Buy or Walmart, but in essence you would be defeating the purpose. GameStop, Best Buy, Walmart – no matter the name they’re all the same monster. So, where should you go to buy your games? Most of the obvious answers have already been stated above, but allow me to rattle off a few of my top choices:

Amazon.com – Want to find a decent to great price on a game without having to wait through hours or even days of bidding? Amazon is one of your best choices. Not only do you have the option to buy games directly through Amazon, but you can also preorder upcoming titles, purchase accessories and hard to find gems, and shop various other sellers items. It’s like eBay without the bidding option. Like a game and the price? Then buy it from the seller. As an added bonus Amazon offers “deals of the day” and “gold box” deals, with both of these options giving you an increased savings over the msrp. Qualified orders also ship for free.

ShopGoodwill.com – This is a little known secret that I have been holding on to for a while. Most of you are familiar with the name Goodwill, but you probably associate it with “other peoples garbage”. Maybe that’s true, but remember the old saying – “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” I have to say that I was completely surprised when I stumbled upon this site. It a retro-gamers paradise, with games and systems ranging from as far back as the Atari to the more modern 360. Choose an item that you like and bid on it, if the bidding ends with you on top pay for the item and have it shipped. It’s a strait forward process with little hassle, but a big payoff.

Independently owned local game stores – Many names have been mentioned above, but these are going to vary from city to city. I have a few in my town that I frequent, and I’ve found that it pays to become friendly with the owners. Once you’ve built a rapport with these guys, you’ll find that they’ll keep an eye out for you if there is something that you are looking for in particular. Obviously they’re not always going to have as large a stock of games as the GameStops or Best Buys, but if you put in a request most likely they can obtain what you are looking for. In addition, you’re most likely going to be able to find harder to locate games and systems through these smaller guys, because the don’t have to go by a corporate standard of what they accept as trade-in items.

Kurt Roberts:

As a self professed budget gamer, meaning I don’t buy new releases at full price and more often than not buy used, I share the same memories of EB back in the day. (Remember free shipping and stackable coupons online that resulted in purchases that cost them more to ship than they would profit?) Without getting into a rant about Gamestop and their incessantly poor sales techniques bordering on harassment, or the insanely off balance employee structure where they either know nothing about gaming or think that they know everything and aren’t open to other viewpoints, I like others have turned to alternatives. In a small town where your only options are Wal-Mart, Circuit City, and Gamestop, I have found online resources to be the best.

Forums like those at Cheapassgamer.com or dvdtalk.com are great resources for current gaming deals, and if you visit frequently you might happen upon a very short lived sale or pricve mistake. Store ads are often posted weeks in advance, so knowing that a game you want will be $10 cheaper next week or come with a gift card is great. In the used market, half.com and ebay used to be decent, but recent policy updates and sellers dishonesty has turned me away. Amazons used markets and selling/trading subforums of the above mentioned sites are great peer-to-peer oppertunities. Gamefly often has free shipping sales with great prices, available to those who aren’t even on a rental plan with them. Patience pays off, other than a very few ‘must have’ new releases, I never pay more than $20 for a game.