Retail Radar: Two more 360 games now $40?

When it was revealed that $59.99 would be the standard third-party price point for Xbox 360 titles, many a gamer lamented. After all, the cost of truly entering the "HD Era," as Microsoft executive J Allard once called the dawn of high-definition gaming, was already plenty high. Besides the $399 a premium Xbox 360 would set you back, gamers would also have to shell out at least $500 for an HDTV. That's not even counting the cost of a subscription to Xbox Live and high-speed Internet service fees for online gaming.

Last week, 360 owners got some good news when a slew of 360 games' prices dropped to $39.99. Ubisoft cut King Kong's cost, THQ lowered the price of The Outfit, and Electronic Arts discounted (deep breath) Burnout Revenge, Madden NFL 06, NBA Live 06, FIFA Soccer 06: Road to FIFA World Cup, and Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06. They joined a growing catalog of games already priced at $40, such as the just-released Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis.

Today came word that two more 360 games would soon bear a smaller sticker price. The online stories for GameStop, EBgames, Amazon, and Best Buy all list Sega's Condemned: Criminal Origins and Namco's Ridge Racer 6 for $39.99.

When contacted by GameSpot, Sega denied any price drop had taken place. "We are still at 59.99 for Condemned as of today," a rep told GameSpot on Tuesday. "Sega doesn't have any product selling at 39.99 for the Xbox 360 at this time."

[UPDATE] Namco, on the other hand, was more than happy to confirm Ridge Racer 6 is indeed now officially cheaper. "Yes, we did change our price just as other publishers have done this month," said a rep.

Calls to several GameStop and EB Games locations added to the confusion. Clerks at both stores said that Ridge Racer 6 was indeed priced at 39.99 new, but that Condemned was priced at $49.99 new.