On a Friday night in Logan Square, a dozen friends have gathered to play some video games. There aren’t enough stools and colorful chairs, but nobody cares. They line the walls, sit on the floor and huddle around the single plasma television waiting for their chance to play. Between rounds, they help themselves to…

Imagine Activision releasing the latest Call of Duty game without telling anyone it was coming. No developer diaries, no screenshot packages, no media events—just a quick heads up that it would be in stores tomorrow. Preposterous, right?