That Spore poster had better have a large image of Will Wright sporting his best denim on at least one side and have a scratch 'n' sniff patch that reeks of Wright's brand of cigarettes. We appreciate the finer things in life, too, you know.

Spore Galactic Edition [GameStop]

From June 20 and June 22 and June 27 and June 29, people can bring in their Ds with a copy of Diamond or Pearl to a GameStop and download Deoxys for free.

I'm not really a Pokemon player myself and my son, he's more of a Pokemon rancher, so I don't know. Is Deoxys really that rare or does everyone who plays the game have like a dozen by now?

Did You Know?

Pokémon Fans to Catch Rare Character at GameStop Stores

There are many ways to catch a Pokémon, but for two special weekends in June, there’s only one failsafe way for fans to get one of the most unique characters in the enthralling Pokémon® universe on their Nintendo DS™.
From June 20-22 and June 27-29, Pokémon players are invited to bring their Nintendo DS systems and Pokémon® Diamond or Pokémon® Pearl games to the nearest GameStop store where they can receive Deoxys™, a legendary character with transformative powers and an impressive set of battle-ready moves.
With an imaginative roster of characters and richly interactive game play, the blockbuster Pokémon game series has attracted millions of fans worldwide. According to the independent NPD Group, Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl have sold more than 4.2 million combined in the United States alone, while Nintendo DS continues to be ranked as the nation’s top-selling hand-held game system.

Seeing as 1,500 stores is less than half of the stores located in the United States (GTA IV events were held at over 3,500 locations), I'd highly suggest that you call ahead (or check this list) before showing up at your local locations dressed as Big Boss, as your sad story of standing in a parking lot alone in an eyepatch and trench coat would make us cry, and we hate one-eyed people crying.

Laser Pokémon? Count me in, at least until June 30th when I realize I never made it to the store!

Thanks to Gene for sending in this picture of the official advertisement. Thanks to him I'll be very curious as to why I set my DS on my bedside table come Monday following the event.

GameStop launches TV network [MCV]

Weekly Ad [GameStop]

Metal Gear Solid 4 Midnight Launch Locations [GameStop]

Gears of War Content
* Gamer Picture Pack
* Emergence Day Gamer Picture
* Emergence Day Theme
* "FUTURE WEAPONS" Theme
* Emergence Day Message from Cliffy B
* Gears of War Map Pack 1 Trailer
* Gears of War - Multiplayer Map Pack 1
* 'Hidden Fronts' Multiplayer Map Pack 2

Gears of War 2 Content
* Gamer Picture Pack
* Teeth Theme
* Teaser Trailer
* Trailer
* Assault Game Play Trailer

Gears of War with Maps [GameStop - thanks, coonkine!]

Fallout 3 soundtrack/poster for GameStop pre-orders [Bethesda]

The news sounds worse for Microsoft than Gamestop, though. It's 5,000 fewer stores through which Microsoft can grow sales of the Zune, and it whacks a natural cross-sell to Xbox gamers — who in the future might get exposed to XNA games on their console, and be interested in a portable device that plays them.

If you want a Zune, this really doesn't affect you. There's any number of big box retailers and online stores that can deliver it today or overnight. But long-term, it does speak to the health and adoption of the device and, ultimately, decisions that put features and content on yours.

GameStop to Stop Zune Sales [theStreet.com]

The PS3, Wii and 360 bundles will set you back $189.99. The PS2 bundle is 10 bones less, $179.99. Presumably these all include the game, guitar, drums and a mike. Gamestop just put the info up on its website, and Gaming Bits caught the scoop, noting that the bundle is $20 more than the Rock Band Special Edition bundle.

If you want to buy just the guitar and the game, you can get those for $99.99 and $59.99/$49.99 respectively. The release date is Oct. 27, 2008.

Guitar Hero: World Tour Priced at Gamestop [Gaming Bits]

Gears of War With Maps [GameStop via NeoGAF]

The first fiscal quarter brought strong results for GameStop, with earnings up 151.4 percent to $62.1 million, and sales up 41.8 percent to $1,813.6 million. The planned new store openings would grow GameStop's international store base by 25 percent, as part of the company's stated goal of developing its market share globally.

Sales of new game software increased an "amazing" 72 percent, according to GameStop - hit the jump for GameStop's top five sellers during its record first quarter.

1. Grand Theft Auto IV (Take-Two)
2. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Nintendo)
3. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo)
4. Rainbow Six: Vegas 2(Ubisoft)
5. Army Of Two (Electronic Arts)

Notably, GTA IV topped the list even though only five days of its sales fit into the fiscal first quarter.

GameStop chairman and CEO R. Richard Fontaine credited a 34 percent increase in game console install bases and an expanding demographic that is now 38 percent female for the company's growth.

"We continue to attract and serve a broader consumer base as videogaming continues to attract the core gamers and is moving towards becoming mainstream family entertainment," Fontaine said.

I actually held one in my hands at a local Walmart nearly two weeks ago, with the ever-friendly electronics clerk (one of the few at a Walmart who knows what he is on about) even offered to sell it to me early, if the computer let him. Sadly it did not, once again flashing the message warning not to sell the game until the 21st. If Nintendo changed up the release date on retailers they didn't do it in enough time to change the box stickers and POS system fail-safes.

Don't even bother looking for one today. As far as the retail world is concerned you can get your Wii Fit on tomorrow. We've been lazy this long, another day won't kill us.

Argh! Not accurate enough, for our tastes! Fortunately, we'll be able to more obsessively split hairs on the matter later this week, when NPD data is revealed, but for now we have some expertly sculpted spin to enjoy!

First up, the clear winner, Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg. He says, in part, "These sales results add GTA IV to a long list of franchises that have switched over from Playstation to find a new home on Xbox 360 similar to what happened last year with titles like Madden and Guitar Hero." Greenberg, who seems pleased, tells Level Up that it's a trend he expects to continue.

Peter Dille, senior VP of marketing at Sony Computer Entertainment, responds in kind. "If I had an installed base advantage of 3-1," he says "I wouldn't be crowing too much about a 60-40 sales advantage." Touche! Dille says that 60-40 split isn't such a big deal. Actually, it's a testament to PlayStation brand loyalty, Peter says, in a roundabout way! Regardless of the hard numbers, Dille manages to seem pleased too.

Mr. Croal breaks it down further, with some pre-April console install base numbers, for those interested. We expect better sales insight due Thursday, at which point there will be much slap fighting done across message boards and commenting threads. Don't miss it!

Scoop: GameStop Reveals That When It Comes to Grand Theft Auto IV, Xbox 360 Has a 2-1 Advantage Over Playstation 3 In First Week Sales [Level Up]

The survey, which also looked at R-rated movies, DVDs and "Parental Advisory"-labeled music, found that video games had the best enforcement rate.

The FTC also broke out its statistics by retailer. GameStop topped the list with a 94 percent enforcement rate, while Hollywood Video came in last with 60 percent enforcement.

The FTC announced its results just as Republican representative Lee Terry and Democratic representative Jim Matheson introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that seeks to reinforce Entertainment Software Ratings Board ratings at retail with $5000 fines for violators.

According to the FTC's study, ratings enforcement at retail has increased steadily since 2000, when 80% of its undercover shoppers successfully purchased M-rated games.

The ESRB conducts its own secret-shopper studies using the same surveyors as the FTC. Its most recent survey in November 2007 found 76 percent compliance with store policies.

"Video game retailers have clearly stepped up their efforts to enforce their store policies, and they deserve recognition for these outstanding results," said ESRB president Patricia Vance, in a statement released today. "We commend and applaud retailers for their strong support of the ESRB ratings, and will continue working with them to help ensure that these levels of compliance are sustained if not further increased."

Undercover Shoppers Find it's Increasingly Difficult for Children to Buy M-Rated Games [Federal Trade Commission

Checking in with the brick and mortar stores, we've heard conflicting info. Some have responded that their Wii Fit pre-order program has already ended, with some saying they're still taking reservations. Others further specified that reservations will be taken, but that GameStop cannot guarantee first shipment availability. If you're desperate, you may want to try your luck at more than one location, especially if you're planning on joining the eBay scalping ranks.

As you read, remember this is business, it's nothing personal. The alleged "marching orders" are after this.

GTA Walk-in Goals

Attention District Managers:
As you are aware, GTA IV is going to be a huge seller for all retailers. We expect that this is going to be advertised in all the major Sunday circulars, and this is going to bring an influx of new customers to all stores.

Hosting midnight events gives us a huge advantage over our competitors ONLY if we commit to taking care of these new customers during this launch. In order to reward you and your stores for committing to selling to walk-in customers, we will be providing a walk-in goal for each store and DM on the regular editions only for GTA IV.

Your walk-in goals are calculated by multiplying your anticipated reservations by your historical Reservation Pick-up % on like titles. This amount is subtracted from your launch allocation to yield the amount of product that you can have set aside for walk-in customers. See below for the walk-in goals that have been set for your market. The number one district manager in each region in actual walk-in sales vs. goal will receive a $500 cash prize. The number one store in each region in walk-in sales vs. goal will be rewarded with a free copy of GTA IV regular edition for every associate on that store team.

Happy Selling!

Happy selling? I'm sure they're just beaming with joy! Hey, to some degree, we can understand. What the hell's taking you so long? Get over to GameStop already? On the other hand, aren't you going to burn bridges with your repeat customers, GameStop?

We hope that if you did put your money down for a pre-order that you've already picked up your copy. We also hope that you'll remember this the next time your pushed to pre-order from your lovable GameStop wage-slave. Thanks to our friends at GameStop for the heads up.

"We are committed to offering a full assortment of everything gamers want in our stores — hardware, accessories and retail and rental games across all platforms — including Nintendo Wii, Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360 and Nintendo DS," said Rod Murray, vice-president, games merchandising, Blockbuster Inc.

Honestly I feel this can only be good for the game buying public. For one, the nearest Blockbuster Store to me is much closer than the nearest GameStop, and anyone who has traded in a game at a Blockbuster knows their trade-in values are tons better than the competition.

If any company has the established infrastructure to compete with GameStop in the retail video game space it's Blockbuster Video. Blockbuster currently has around 5,192 stores in the U.S., with GameStop maintaining apporximately 5,264. Depending on how serious BB is about this initiative, it would put them a stone's throw away from being the biggest video game retailer in the country. Sure they rent and sell movies as well, but GameStop has been known to peddle the odd previously viewed DVD themselves.

Say what you will about evil corporations, but face it, there isn't a mom & pop store out there with the resources to take on the big guys. The lesser of two evils perhaps, but any deal that puts a game store five minutes from my house can't be all that bad. Interesting times for video game retail await!

Stores Also to Carry More Rental Game Platforms, Titles and Copies

DALLAS, April 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Blockbuster Inc. , a leading global provider of in-home movies and game entertainment, today announced it has rolled out retail video games and game hardware to all U.S. corporate-owned BLOCKBUSTER(R) stores as part of a broader plan to significantly expand its game business.

Now, for the first time, customers can go into any U.S. corporate-owned BLOCKBUSTER store and purchase video game titles, hardware and accessories for the Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS game systems. In addition to expanding its retail games offering, Blockbuster is adding more game titles for rental with more copies than before across all platforms.

Blockbuster is featuring its expanded game offerings — including hardware and accessories, along with rental and retail titles such as "Mario Kart" and the soon-to-be-released "Grand Theft Auto IV" — on the new release wall in a specially designated game section.

"We are committed to offering a full assortment of everything gamers want in our stores — hardware, accessories and retail and rental games across all platforms — including Nintendo Wii, Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360 and Nintendo DS," said Rod Murray, vice-president, games merchandising, Blockbuster Inc.

To further support expansion of its game business, Blockbuster will also be implementing a variety of special consumer game offers, such as an exclusive Sony PS3 movie and game bundle. The bundle, available at corporate-owned stores while supplies last for $499.99, excluding tax, includes: a 40GB Sony PS3 game console that also plays Blu-ray DVDs, PS3/Blu-ray DVD remote, HDMI cable, "Spiderman 3" Blu-ray disc, "Transformers" PS3 game and a BLOCKBUSTER 12-week PS3/Blu-ray rental card that entitles users to one free PS3 or Blu-ray rental per week for 12 consecutive weeks.

If you're in need of a GTA IV hype deflection shield or you're now willing to bite at this price—even I am, despite my bitterness about a lack of Space Harrier or Cosmic Smash Guy—you can pick it up in-store or online as of right now.

GameStop Weekly Ad

Oh, and Dan from Perimeter says you should bring in your trade-ins to put towards the price of the game. I'm pretty sure Dan is a robot. Me? I preordered the regular edition, though I'm not completely ruling out mugging someone in a swag-induced panic come launch night.

It may be hard to match the already stellar beginning of the year, with nearly a billion U.S. dollars in software sales last month, but the second half isn't without some respectable hits. Metal Gear Solid 4, Gears of War 2, LittleBigPlanet, Halo Wars, Resident Evil 5 and maybe even a Nintendo published game or two are sure to stoke spending. But will it be enough as the economy sinks closer to Armageddon levels? I'm going to start using my left kidney less. Just in case.

Goldman says video-game sales have peaked [Marketwatch]

"Oh GameStop Girl, how you make my heart meter skip a beat. If you were being held captive in a mountain fortress by a ruthless mutant mafia gangboss and I had to fight my way through 16 levels of fire-breathing undead ninjas with swords the size of small ponies, I would find a way, even if, after every level, a small man continued to taunt me by saying that you were in another castle. EVEN IF."

GameStop Girl, I want to kill robotic zombie terrorists with you - m4w [Best of Craigslist]

After 7 productive years with GameStop, Steve Morgan has made the decision to reapply his energy and drive outside out GameStop Steve will officially be leaving the company on May 2nd 2008. Steve has stated from the very first day we discussed his position with our merged company that his goal was to head up a company as a CEO. After two and half very successful years as our President he now feels that the time is right to pursue his objective.

That's right, no Wal-Mart, no Target, no Best Buy, no GameCrazy.

This backs up tips we received late last week that GameCrazy stores have been canceling their limited edition MGS preorders.

While the release is pretty straight forward about this, saying the game will only be available in North America on June 12 through GameStop, I actually called to verify and was told that as of right now they have no plans on selling it anywhere else.. in North America. ever.

The release does also detail that the standard edition of Metal Gear Solid 4 will sell for $60, while the Limited Edition, which includes exclusive artwork by Yoji Shinkawa and a bevy of other goodies, will sell for $85, Konami announced today. Both go on sale on June 12.

Konami also announced their pre-order program, which will give customers who pre-order the game at select stories a copy of the Metal Gear Saga Vol. 2 DVD while supplies last.

"As the most anticipated game to be released for the PLAYSTATION®3 system this year, we wanted to make sure that no fan of Metal Gear Solid would be disappointed with the amount of content and gameplay at their disposal," said Anthony Crouts, Vice President of Marketing for Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.

Hit the jump for the break down of each version:

METAL GEAR SOLID 4: GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS STANDARD EDITION: $59.99
Marking the return of Hideo Kojima's legendary tactical espionage action series, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots features a cinematic experience and visual masterpiece that will redefine this landmark franchise as a revolutionary game for the PLAYSTATION®3 system. The game is the final chapter in the saga of Solid Snake which sends him around the world in pursuit of his arch nemesis, Liquid Ocelot. Armed with new gadgets and abilities, Solid Snake must shift the tides of war into his favor, using the chaos of the battlefield to infiltrate deep into enemy territory. In his globetrotting final mission, Snake must sneak deep into enemy locations in the Middle East, South America, and other corners of the earth to foil Liquid Ocelot's. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots includes Metal Gear Online "Starter Pack", which is the full and complete multiplayer component of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.

METAL GEAR SOLID 4: GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS LIMITED EDITION: $84.99
Featuring collectible packaging with exclusive artwork by famed Kojima Productions illustrator Yoji Shinkawa, the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Limited Edition will contain everything that is included with the Standard Edition as well as an additional Blu-ray disc featuring two "making of" documentaries. The documentaries will include extensive interviews with Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima and the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Soundtrack CD. The Limited Edition will be available exclusively at GameStop.

METAL GEAR SOLID 4: GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS PRE-SELL PROGRAM
A special pre-sale program of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots will be offered at participating retailers. This pre-sell entitles customers that pre-order either edition, a copy of the Metal Gear Saga Vol. 2 DVD (while supplies last). Featuring extensive original video content the DVD primarily focuses on the interconnected history between all of the "Snakes": Big Boss (Naked Snake), Liquid Snake, Solidus Snake, and of course, Solid Snake. The DVD also contains a compendium of the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots trailers. Additionally, each DVD allocated during this pre-order period will contain a unique voucher code that will enable the consumer to download the Metal Gear Online Beta. The download of the Beta will be available from April 17th to May 5th and the gameplay will be available from April 21st to May 5th.

There are some interesting, if dry research results, as OTX profiles "Glutton Gamers"—the type that turns around new software fast enough to make a decent return on their investment when reselling—what games are generally considered "keepers"—sorry Carnival Games—and just how much of that trade-in cash gets funneled back into the industry. Worth looking at if only for the Glutton Gamer graphic. It's XTREME!

Analysis: 49 Million U.S. Gamers Buy Used Games [Gamasutra]

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter says the strip mall swap meet is "as recession-resistant as anyone in retail can be", with NPD analyst Anita Frazier theorizing that folks will "hunker down" at home with a good, slightly scratched game to save money. Fret not, GameStop employees, you'll probably be employed by the end of the year.

GameStop's growth puts it in recession-resistant spot [Dallas News]

With that said, we're not judging anyone who hits the jump to check out the full list of qualifying games.

Baroque
Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree
Bully: Scholarship Edition
Cabela's Big Game Hunter
Carnival Games
Cars: Mater-National
Cooking Mama: Cook Off
Dragonball Z: Budokai T3
EA Playground
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn
Ghost Squad
Legend of Zelda TP
Lego Star Wars: Complete Saga
Madden NFL 2008
MLB 2K8
Mario and Sonic Olympic Games
Mario Party 8
Mario Strikers Charged
MOH Heroes 2
MOH Vanguard
Metriod Prime 3: Corruption
MLP Power Pros
My Sims
Naurto Clash of Ninja Revolution
NBA Live 2008
Need for Speed: Carbon
Need for Speed: Pro Street
No More Heroes
Okami
Pokemon Battle Revolution
Rapala Tournament Fishing
Rayman Raving Rabbids
Rayman Raving Rabbids 2
Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition
Resident Evil Umbrella Chronicles
Sims 2: Castaways
Super Mario Galaxy
Super Paper Mario
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2007
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2008
Transformers The Game
Wario Ware: Smooth Moves
WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2008

While most of us wouldn't trade in our still-warm copies of Super Mario Galaxy, tossing aside Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree probably isn't the worst decision a gamer could make.

Cheap Ass Gamer Forums [CAG via NeoGAF and DigitalBattle]

Now keep in mind that this could all be corporate rhetoric meant to make the managers feel better about working for a company that is for all intents and purposes circling the toilet. I've called some of my GameStop contacts who hadn't heard anything about preorders being canceled, though for all I know the alleged exclusives could be for games that no one is really preordering anyway. Remember one of BB's more famous exclusive games, Acclaim's Freestyle Street Soccer, one of the only titles that a used game store will actually pay you money to take off their shelves.

What I cannot dispute is Blockbuster's increased focus on gaming. My local store, which isn't one of the ones with the game store built into it, is now stocking stacks of Rock Band and Guitar Hero, selling PlayStation 3 systems, and aggressively pursuing preorders for titles like Grand Theft Auto 4 and Mario Kart Wii.

Not to mention the fact that exclusive deals have long been the company's bread and butter, from exclusive sales contracts allowing them to buy massive amounts of movies for prices the mom and pop stores could only dream about, to the more recent securing exclusive rental rights to hit films. Securing presale rights to video game titles isn't so far-fetched.

Well just have to see how things develop - if they develop - and what effect, if any, it has on video game retail. I don't see this doing much more than putting a few more pennies in Blockbuster's coffers and, depending on the titles, signaling the occasional return of launch day lines outside of GameStop stores.

"We look forward to expanding our productive business model in the Norwegian market and partnering with the knowledgeable and energetic store personnel at Free Record Shop. This transaction is another step in our strategy of bringing more video game stores to growth markets around the world."

GameStop to Acquire 49 Free Record Locations in Norway

Global Video Game Retailer Strengthens its Nordic Market Position

GRAPEVINE, Texas—(BUSINESS WIRE)—GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME), the world's largest video game and entertainment software retailer, today announced that it has agreed to purchase 100% of the outstanding share capital of Free Record Shop Norway.

Free Record shops in Norway will be transitioned to the GameStop brand, significantly bolstering the company's presence within the Nordic region. GameStop operates over 5,000 locations worldwide. Following the acquisition of the 49 locations, the company will operate a total of 160 locations throughout Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland.

R. Richard Fontaine, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GameStop, commented, "We are pleased to have worked with Hans Breukhoven and his entire management team at Free Record Shop to complete this acquisition. We look forward to expanding our productive business model in the Norwegian market and partnering with the knowledgeable and energetic store personnel at Free Record Shop. This transaction is another step in our strategy of bringing more video game stores to growth markets around the world."

Hans Breukhoven, Chief Executive Officer of Free Record Shop Holding, commented, "Free Record Shop is very satisfied with this agreement and the excellent opportunity that this sale presents us to make further investments to expand and establish our retail position in the Benelux. Besides that we are very pleased that our esteemed sales staff found employment in the GameStop organization and can help them with their planned growth."

The transaction is expected to close in early April.