Gears 2 bonus maps leading antiresale DLC wave

By Tom Magrino, GameSpotPosted Oct 3, 2008 12:42 pm PT

New copies of Epic's anticipated Xbox 360 shooter will come with token for five reworked maps from 2006 original, Rock Band AC/DC track pack, Dead Space, and NBA Live offering similar incentives to first-time buyers.

Specialty gaming retailer GameStop is on an impressive run, stringing together quarter after quarter of massive revenues and company-best profits. The retailer has attributed a large part of that success to the booming second-hand market, where gamers can purchase preowned copies of games at a discount rate over new copies of the same title.

The practice has drawn withering criticism from within the industry, however. Many gamemakers have expressed outrage at GameStop's practice of aggressively pushing used game sales, the proceeds of which go entirely to GameStop. Sales of new games also benefit GameStop, but also remunerate the people who actually developed and published the game.

Escalating beyond hollow saber-rattling, Electronic Arts has begun to take a stand against the resale market. Last week, the publishing giant took one of its boldest steps toward cutting out the brick-and-mortar middlemen, releasing Criterion Games' well-received racer Burnout Paradise as a digital download through Sony's online PlayStation Network store at a budget $29.99 price point.

EA Publishing partner Epic Games has plans of its own to counteract the resale market. Speaking at an event promoting Gears of War 2 yesterday, Epic design director Cliff Bleszinski said that all new copies of the upcoming Xbox 360-exclusive shooter will include a free voucher to download the Flashback Map Pack. The map pack includes five online battlegrounds from the 2006 original Gears of War: Canals, Gridlock, Mansion, Subway, and the Tyro railway station.

Epic also plans on awarding those who pick up a new version of the game during midnight launch events at participating retailers. Those who pick up the game in the wee hours of November 7 will receive a redeemable token for a special-edition in-game gold-plated Hammerburst assault rifle, which can be used in the online portion of Gears 2. The eminent designer noted that both the map pack and the gold-plated Hammerburst assault rifle will not be available for download as DLC at a later time through Xbox Live.

Epic's move is just one more example of EA's push back against the resale retail sector. Shacknews noted the publisher launched a similar initiative with NBA Live, where gamers can redeem a code for free access to the 365 real-time update (otherwise available as a $19.99 download). The EA-distributed Rock Band 2 sports a one-use code found on the game's manual for 20 free downloadable tracks, and the newly announced Rock Band AC/DC Track Pack comes with single-use code to transfer its 18 songs into Rock Band and its sequel. Then there's Dead Space, which EA will upgrade with a free downloadable space suit with in-game benefits to those who purchase the sci-fi horror game within two weeks of its October 14 release.

378 Comments

  • Kuruption84

    Posted Nov 3, 2008 4:06 pm PT

    This isn't going to stop Gamestop who makes about a 5% profit on new games versus a 100% profit on used, and it's most certainly not going to stop people from selling their games on Ebay.

  • fainTster

    Posted Nov 3, 2008 2:40 pm PT

    So, I guess no more garage sales. The developers might want a portion of what I make.

  • SkeletalKnight

    Posted Nov 2, 2008 12:43 pm PT

    Possibly a stupid question: are the bonus maps in the voucher redone versions of the originals, or are they taken straight out of Gears 1? Either way it'll be nice to have, but I'd much rather see redone versions.

  • Carrion6

    Posted Oct 29, 2008 8:23 pm PT

    any store offers the gold-plated lancer with the limited edition, it's not just gamestop

  • Sub_Bionic

    Posted Oct 29, 2008 7:33 pm PT

    *There aren't going to be very many people playing on those maps then are there?* are you kidding? those are the most popular maps from the original. I'm sure there will be more than enough people on them. And they say they wont release them at a later date now but I'm sure we will see them available later.If they can make money off of it they will release it, that seems to be the way it goes. they should just be included with the game tho imo

  • eggmcmuff

    Posted Oct 23, 2008 7:38 pm PT

    Gamestop does a billion dollar business because they have an excellent system. I'm not crazy about them and their trade-in offers are a joke, but one can't argue with their success at making money. Developers should quit whining and create a better system for resale if their feelings are hurt by the money I'm spending on secondhand merch. Gamestop didn't STEAL the original copies from EA or Activision... Somebody BOUGHT them at retail! It blows my mind that they are so entitled as to feel they deserve a piece of the action beyond the original sale. This Perry guy at Acc-lame needs to get a grip.

  • prdeiro

    Posted Oct 23, 2008 9:43 am PT

    because you get the gold plated lancer for the Collectors edition

  • CDeathParrot

    Posted Oct 23, 2008 2:04 am PT

    It's a gold-plated... hammerburst. Why a hammerburst? Why not a golden lancer? Can't we just agree that we would much rather have a gold lancer than a hammerburst? Seriously, I don't think that's much of an incentive.

  • CATERBIRD

    Posted Oct 22, 2008 4:11 pm PT

    i just got a look at these maps, AWESOME.

  • GRNET-Rocky

    Posted Oct 21, 2008 1:32 am PT

    Perry says "In reality, every game that goes "digital" will drop in price for the consumer ... and removing fees for GameStop, Packaging Design, Packaging Materials, Manuals, Shipping, Insurance, Manufacturing, Distribution, In-Store Promotions, Co-Op Advertising, RETURNS etc. will help consumers see attractive price drops."

    Sure, suuuuure. I mean, that's what happened with e-books, right? All those retail costs went out the window with digital e-book downloads, and what happened? They are still the same price as the shelf version!

  • EclipseStorm

    Posted Oct 19, 2008 10:57 pm PT

    @ Carrion6 actually the limited editions come with a code for a gold plated lancer, not the hammerburst.

  • Carrion6

    Posted Oct 19, 2008 9:56 pm PT

    the truth is that you will get those maps and the gold hammerburst no matter what as far as I know, as long as its the limited edition one. I work at best buy and I've checked the website and the pre-order box, the limited edition comes with the golden hammerburst, plus this is saying that every copy is coming with a code for those maps.

  • -E-N-E-M-Y-

    Posted Oct 17, 2008 5:50 pm PT

    Why does everybody keep saying that? What do you mean there aren't going to be very many people. I guarantee that there will be at least over 1 million people who will be playing on those maps. I'm pretty sure that a million is a lot. So enough with the "well not many people are going to play those maps anyway".

  • zgreenwell

    Posted Oct 17, 2008 7:23 am PT

    There aren't going to be very many people playing on those maps then are there?

  • iron_zealot7531

    Posted Oct 15, 2008 5:44 am PT

    I understand the industry's hatred of gamestop, think about how hard Gamestop pushes used games on you. For example, here is my average gamestop experience:

    Me: Can I get MGS4 please?

    GS: Oh, we have that used. you want a used copy? it's a whopping 14 cents less and its only mildly scratched to hell

    Me: no thanks, I'd rather support the developer and get a new copy

    GS: YOU SON OF A B***H!!!! ok here's your "NEW" copy. *proceeds to hand me gutted game, that was shoddily rewrapped, by the employee, right in front of me*

    GS: thank you for shopping at GameRape, would you like a cleaning kit and a subscription to GameInformer with that?

    Me: *runs from store, never to return to so unholy a place*

  • rooftopsniper

    Posted Oct 14, 2008 4:45 am PT

    I feel bad now for working at an EB Games store. (in Australia) Although despite what some people seem to think about the employees of these companies I'm going to have to say they aren't all terrible. As Hvac0120 said "I really really really really really hate people who work at GameStop. I can't stand them. They always assume that I don't know anything about the games/accessories I'm buying, talk like everything they say is accurate in correct when most of the time they are not, encourage uninformed parents to buy products that would not sell had the customer been informed".

    I just have to say that I NEVER try to make people buy preowned unless they ask me for it. If someone comes to me with trade and I feel they are getting ripped off I'll tell them to sell it to a friend or sell it on ebay because they will make much more. I used to shop there and hated their way of business and despite me working there now, I still hate their way of business. I'm also a collector so I too find it hard letting go of my stuff. I have all the next gen consoles and at least 150 games to accompany them, 90% of which I do buy brand new. I would much rather pay a bit more to help the developers out then a company. It's the same reason I spend $60 on each anime boxset I buy when I could get pretty much the same thing in a bootlegged copy off of ebay for $15. I like to think I always try to help the customer out as well.

    When it comes down to it I don't get paid extra because I sold heaps of preowned games and made them more money so screw them, at the end of the day I get the same pay check regardless so I'm going to help the customer out, whether you believe me or not is another matter.

  • Get_Shorty

    Posted Oct 13, 2008 12:36 pm PT

    Well what about the Lancer replica? If I order it on amazon then I can't get the midnight redeemable token of the gold-plated hammerburst assault rifle... what the hell!

  • Eldramesha

    Posted Oct 12, 2008 7:50 pm PT

    They could also pay their employees a little more, poor guys.

  • gimlifn

    Posted Oct 12, 2008 10:26 am PT

    gamestop give u $25 on a game u bought new for $60 a few days ago and then puts it on the shelf and sells it used for $54.99. come on guys u can give a little better on the trade in values.

  • ozzdog123

    Posted Oct 8, 2008 9:19 pm PT

    so wait.....i have to bebuy Gears 1 to get the maps? or just buy gears 2 used? im confused

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