John Woo's anticipated Stanglehold will be region locked on PS3, following the logic that, since the collector's edition comes with a movie (a cool, HD remastering of Hard Boiled) , it needs to be region locked. Okay, we're with you so far. So that means the standard edition, without any bundled movie, will be region free. Right? Midway? Sony? Anyone there??

No, the standard edition will be region locked as well. And while this is but one title in a quasi-special circumstance, the precedent is cause for alarm. Every step back to region distinctions empowers companies to falsely inflate their entertainment enterprises. And in a global marketplace filled with educated consumers, we know when things really aren't "new" (I can't even stand seeing games at E3 that have been in Japan for months).

Sitting on my porch in my rocker, watching region-restricted content whiz by...I don't like this situation one bit.

Midway Forums [via ps3fanboy]

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