Best of all, while the Fable II Pub Games will be available for purchase at 800 MS points, preordering the game from participating retailers gets you the mini-games for free, my personal favorite price.

Build Your Fable II Gold with Pub Games [Xbox.com - Thanks Peter!]

Pretty nifty preorder bonus if you ask me, but what the hell does a body bag have to do with golf?

We Love Golf Preorder Gift [Capcom Unity - No, I'm not actually that stupid]

No dice. Sold out. Funcom had to cut things off because of the logistics involved with having too many people trying to download a 12.59 GB file all at once. It might tick some folks off, especially those that preordered the game and didn't get the code, but look at it this way...you saved $5.

Needless to say, if you haven't preordered your copy of Age of Conan yet, you aren't going to be playing until the game launches in the middle of next week, so you can spend your entire weekend wondering how far those damn early birds are getting in the game while you...I dunno, log in to World of Warcraft and halfheartedly stab at murlocs. I'm right there with you.

Gold Fever Hits an All Time High With the Upcoming Battlefield: Bad Company Single-Player and Multi-Player Demo

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—You've been drafted to 'B' Company! DICE, a studio of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced that a demo for its highly anticipated summer release, Battlefield: Bad Company™ will be available on Xbox LIVE™ Marketplace1 and PLAYSTATION® Store1 on June 5. Players will land on the battlefield as part of the 'B' or Bad Company, a wayward band of soldiers more interested in the pursuit of gold and personal financial gain than following the rules. Gamers will get a sneak peek at how tactical destruction changes the way shooters are played, both offline and online in the single player and multiplayer demo.

Players can also gain early access to the demo by pre-ordering the game through participating retailers in North America and Europe. More details on this special pre-order campaign can be found at http://www.battlefield.com/badcompany.

Players who missed their opportunity to participate in the closed beta get a second chance to experience the intense multiplayer Gold Rush mode on the Oasis map while the single player portion starts gamers at the beginning of their 'B' company career. The single player portion of the demo sets the stage for players as they're introduced to the humorous and sometimes irreverent set of characters that make up the 'B' company. As gamers embark on their quest for gold, they'll experience the same classic Battlefield gameplay including access to numerous vehicles, weapons and open maps as well as the new tactical destruction that only Battlefield: Bad Company can deliver.

In stores on June 25 in North America and June 27 in Europe, Battlefield: Bad Company is developed by Sweden-based developer DICE (Digital Illusions Creative Entertainment, www.dice.se). The game will be available for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and is rated "T" by the ESRB and "16+" by PEGI.

BioWare Announces Special Pre-Order Offer for Mass Effect on PC

EDMONTON, Alberta—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Leading video game developer BioWare™, a division of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS), is proud to announce that key retailers across North America will be offering $10 off for all pre-orders of Mass Effect™ for the PC1, shipping to retailers May 27, 2008 in North America and June 6, 2008 in Europe. Gamers will receive the $10 discount by pre-ordering Mass Effect at both specialty and online retailers including GameStop, Amazon.com and GoGamer.com.

Gamers who pre-order Mass Effect through the Electronic Arts online store will receive bonus items2 from the game Dead Space™, the highly anticipated sci-fi survival horror game by EA, including the first issue of the Dead Space comic book and a Dead Space poster while supplies last.

Published by EA and re-designed for the PC by Demiurge Studios and BioWare, Mass Effect invites players to take the role of Commander Shepard as they set out on an adventure to save the galaxy from imminent destruction. Wrought with treachery, heroism, difficult decisions and a universe filled with unique and colorful species, Mass Effect delivers a truly compelling storyline.

Fully optimized for the PC, Mass Effect includes a new Tactical Heads-Up Display, higher resolution visuals, an enhanced inventory system, fully optimized controls designed specifically for the PC, individual squad control and a new decryption mini-game. The "Bring Down the Sky" downloadable content for Mass Effect on PC, featuring 90 minutes of new gameplay, will also be available free for registered BioWare Community members at the launch of Mass Effect PC.

Originally released for the Xbox 360™ videogame and entertainment system, Mass Effect has received critical acclaim throughout the world with more than 80 awards including 2007 Console Game of the Year and Role-Playing Game of the Year (http://masseffect.bioware.com/previewsawards/).

The $10-Off pre-order offer is available now at all participating retail and online retail outlets. The Dead Space pre-order offer is available now at the Electronic Arts online store at www.eastore.ea.com. Mass Effect is rated "M" for Mature by the ESRB. For more information about Mass Effect, please visit www.masseffect.com.

AGE OF CONAN GETS READY FOR LAUNCH

Pre-order programs now available in all Western territories offering three day head-start in Hyboria

DURHAM, North Carolina - April 16, 2008 - Funcom and Eidos today announced that Age of Conan pre-order programs are now fully available in all major territories including USA, Germany, France, Spain, UK, Oceania and the Nordic countries. Conan fans and MMO gamers are already raving about the incredible pre-order items, including the War Mammoth and Killer Rhino, and today Funcom goes one step further to confirm that pre-ordering Age of Conan will grant players early access to the land of Hyboria.*

Ever since Funcom and Eidos started the first pre-orders in early 2008, the program has received great feedback. The exceptional Age of Conan Collector's Edition has topped the charts in numerous online retail chains for weeks, including being #1 on several all-format lists. The most eager fans are therefore urged to order their copy of the Collector's Edition immediately as it only comes in one print-run.

Funcom now also confirms an early access program which will give customers a chance of a head-start in Age of Conan. Funcom reveals that American, European and Oceanic players may enter Age of Conan as early as the 17th of May. Mere weeks away, early adopters can now live, fight and explore in Hyboria, as well as getting an essential head-start before the hordes invade.

"We are very pleased with the reception Age of Conan has had in retail and we naturally hope that the early interest and our early access programs will materialize in an eventual success," said Morten Larssen, VP Sales and Marketing of Funcom. "The positive indications are naturally an honor, but they also bring a great responsibility. As we prepare the roll-out, we know our servers will be put to the test. We therefore hope potential players will aid us by signaling their interest as soon as possible so we can scale our servers and services accordingly."

Age of Conan launches on May 20 and is consistently mentioned as one of the most anticipated PC games in development. It has received more than 25 magazine covers and more than 15 major awards including numerous "Best MMO of E3" awards and the "Best Online Game of Show" award at GC 2007. Age of Conan is a key title in Microsoft's Games for Windows lineup, as well as a showcase title for nVidia.

Visit www.ageofconan.com to join the thriving community or to sign up for the Beta

For a list of participating retailers or to get more information about the game, please visit: www.ageofconan.com

* The early access program is only available with certain retailers; a participant list can be found on the official Age of Conan website. The early access is entirely voluntary and opens up on the 17th of May for Oceanic and North American gamers and on the 20th of May for European gamers. Pre-loading of the client will commence in advance. You need to pay a nominal 5 USD / EUR fee to take advantage of the offer, which includes client download and 10 days of subscription. When the early access offer expires you must enter the physical retail box gamekey to continue playing.

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.

"With more customers being attracted to the video game category, they will increasingly find a GameStop convenient to them," said Dan DeMatteo, Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of GameStop. "This landmark store opening underscores the strength of our business model and represents a spectacular effort on behalf of our 44,000 employees worldwide."

GameStop Announces Landmark Store Opening

Retailer Opens 5,000th Worldwide Location

GRAPEVINE, Texas—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Oct. 24, 2007—GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME), reaffirmed it's position as the world's largest video game and entertainment software retailer today with the grand opening of it's landmark 5,000th worldwide location in Jackson, CA.

"With more customers being attracted to the video game category, they will increasingly find a GameStop convenient to them," said Dan DeMatteo, Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of GameStop. "This landmark store opening underscores the strength of our business model and represents a spectacular effort on behalf of our 44,000 employees worldwide."

GameStop is on track to open between 500 and 550 new stores for 2007. Stores are located in malls and strip centers across the United States and in sixteen countries worldwide. The locations serve primary, secondary and tertiary markets in urban, suburban and rural areas.

ARRR MATEYS! PIRATES OF THE BURNING SEATM RETAIL PRE-ORDER TO START OCTOBER 23

WHAT: Pirates of the Burning Sea, the MMORPG featuring high seas action and adventure in a bold world of pirates and plunder, is scheduled to be available for pre-order starting Tuesday, October 23rd at participating retail locations.

PRE ORDER FEATURES:

Players who pre-order the game will receive the following:
• An invitation to the "Pre-Boarding Party" allowing them access to the live game up to 15 days prior to launch, and the ability to keep their characters, skills and equipment after launch with purchase of game and paid subscription (characters will have a level cap of 20 during the pre-boarding party)
• Captain's Best Friend - a blue and yellow parrot
• Mighty Blades - Swedish Rapier, Old World Steel or Musketeer's Matching Blades (depending upon which fighting style is selected)
• Original Game Soundtrack CD - 60 minutes of pirate themed music (comes in pre-order box)

WHEN: Pirates of the Burning Sea is scheduled to be available for preorder in North America on Tuesday, October 23, 2007. A European pre-order date has not been set at this time.

For more pre-order information on Pirates of the Burning Sea log onto www.piratesoftheburningsea.com

There are also two bundles available. Both running $199, you can either get Jack & Dexter (with silver model) or Star Wars Battlefront (with white model).

Amazon Page [via gaygamer]

Guild Wars: Eye of the North
Prerelease Bonus Pack to Hit Shelves July 20th
Tuesday 17th July/...NCsoft® Europe and ArenaNet® announced today that the prerelease bonus pack for Guild Wars: Eye of the North™ is set to arrive on retailer's shelves on July 20th and will include a host of compelling features, including exclusive in-game items and access to the Guild Wars: Eye of the North Sneak Peek Weekend set for later this summer.

The Guild Wars: Eye of the North prerelease bonus pack will be available from retailers in North America and Europe as well as at the NCsoft store at PlayNC.com and via the Official Guild Wars online store.

Guild Wars: Eye of the North is the first ever expansion to the subscription-free Guild Wars franchise of fantasy online role playing games, which will be released to the public on August 31, 2007. This expansion will provide new content accessible to players who have any of the previously released Guild Wars campaigns (Guild Wars, Guild Wars: Factions™, or Guild Wars: Nightfall™).

Players who pre-order Guild Wars: Eye of the North will gain access to the Sneak Peek Weekend, August 24-26, 2007, where they will be able to log into the game for a first look at Eye of the North. Players will be able to explore the Far Shiverpeaks region of the world, home of the barbaric Norn. Everything players obtain during the Sneak Peek Weekend, including items, XP, Heroes, and loot, will be permanent and available when the expansion goes live.

The Guild Wars: Eye of the North prerelease bonus pack also comes with exclusive weapons, including the Glacial Blade, the Hourglass Staff, and the Darksteel Longbow. These new weapons are based on the winning designs from the Guild Wars Design-a-Weapon Contest held earlier this year. In addition, the prerelease bonus pack includes a Guild Wars Trilogy Trial DVD that provides access to all three of the Guild Wars campaigns for a special trial promotion lasting 10 hours or 14 days, whichever comes first*.

"We believe this feature-packed prerelease delivers real value to our players," said Mike O'Brien, co-founder of ArenaNet. "From past experience, we expect the Sneak Peek Weekend alone to be hugely popular, and players won't want to miss this chance to get a leg-up before the game goes live."

Plus, everyone who purchases the retail version will get access to an exclusive character not available with the online version, which seems like a pretty damn compelling reason to hit the store. Looking bad for brick and mortar when publishing companies feel they need to bribe customers to even bother leaving the house, but it does seem to produce some rather nifty incentive programs, so I won't worry too too much. Michael Fahey

Sword of the New World: Granado Espada - Retail Prespurchase available [MPOGD]

What are you waiting for? Run, you fools! Michael Fahey

Sony PlayStation 3 Console (60GB Premium Version) [Amazon.co.uk Order Page]

Kotakuite Darren was checking out the Amazon Deal Finder that was posted yesterday and ran across an interesting listing on Amazon's UK site. Apparently, the are offering pre-orders of long, long, long awaited Duke Nukem Forever for 24.99. A search of the North American Amazon site turned up no such pre-order which leads me to wonder if perhaps the Brits know something about this title that we don't. One cheeky commenter on the page claims to have done some testing work for Duke Nukem Forever's developer, 3D Realms:

I got a testing job at 3D Realms this past summer. Duke Nukem Forever was up and running, they just have to tweak the graphics on level three. It's stunning, and it'll be premiered on The Phantom, taking full advantage of the new Lapboard.

Well, that tears it, I am pre-ordering this immediately. I just hope it arrives by the time I get my Phantom that I pre-ordered last year. I still can't figure out why I haven't gotten it yet. Flynn De Marco

Duke Nukem Forever [Amazon U.K.]

A Sony spokesperson told GamesIndustry.biz, "This is just one of a number of value added incentives that retailers will be offering to mark the launch of PS3.

HMV refuses PS3 pre-orders unless consumers agree to buy PSP too [GamesIndustry.biz]

Amazon UK opened up preorders for the Nintendo Wii this morning, allowing gamers across the United Kingdom to secure one of the hottest new gaming systems around for the holidays.

For a whole 2 minutes!

While preorders were supposed to go live at 9AM GMT, a kotakuite named Juho (which is amazingly fun to say) reports that they didn't start up until 9:35, after spending the better part of a half hour endlessly refreshing the page. Then at 9:37 the preorders were all gone, having only lasted 2 minutes. It's okay Amazon UK. We understand it was your first time and you were nervous. It happens to all major online retailers.

Looking back over the past few weeks, we could have saved a lot of time by creating story templates. 'Blank' sold out of 'blank' preorders in 'blank'. It would be like Kotaku Mad Libs! Michael Fahey

Amazon.co.uk Wii Page [Thanks Juho]

That's the PlayStation 3 bundle, of course, for $1400+. You get 12 games, an extra controller, two Blu-Ray movies and a memory card adapter. What makes this different is that you can choose your 12 games, many of which are not available. It's like buying a PS3 game subscription. Hooray.

Wii after the jump.

And here we are with the Wii. Looks like they were, are, or are going to offer the system and a choice of 8 games for $650. Much better chance at getting quality titles here, but still, bundles are the devil.

Just refreshed again, not they are both showing out of stock, so either they sold out in record time, or they were never really there at all. Well that was fun. Gonna go eat some Tums before my stomach dissolves. Michael Fahey

Update: Some clarification for the tipsters' sakes. Penguin and Drawp got the info from a Wal-Mart email list they had signed up for. Bill, on the other hand, sent the tip first and said he had been refreshing pages, hence the refreshing comment.

Wal-Mart PS3 Customer Choice Bundle
Wal-Mart WII Customer Choice Bundle [Thanks Penguin Fodder, Drawp, and Bill]

GameStop and EB Games are not getting enough PlayStation 3 units for launch as they took preorders last month. Shipments originally thought to be anywhere from 8-16 units per store depending on location have been cut in half.

Guess where I had mine preordered?

I called my local GameStop to confirm this in perhaps slightly more angry of a tone than I was aiming for, and was told that this was indeed the case. They will be filling preorders in the order in which they were received, with employees asked to wait until the second shipment to purchase their systems. Customers who preordered and do not get a system at launch will be offered 'consolation' in the form of a DVD or used game under $20.

While this was certainly not unexpected, I did hope that maybe they would have had the numbers available sooner than four fucking days before launch. So yeah, if you were one of the higher numbers at GameStop, you're screwed. I am completely furious right now, but I take some solace at the thought of eBay preorder sellers wetting themselves upon hearing the news. Michael Fahey

GameStop not getting enough PS3s to fill preorders [GameSpot]

In a show of gamer solidarity, not one preorder has been filed. I am truly proud of us as a whole, shouting NO at the evil corporation trying to capitalize on our gaming needs for their own profit. Good going guys!

Due to high demand and limited quantities, our North American in-store and online pre-orders for the Nintendo Wii have ended.

Gamestop's now useless Wii preorder page [Thanks Bill, good luck!]

The 1UP story chronicles their reporters' efforts to preorder the Wii yesterday on the first morning of Wii preorders in Japan, though as Ashcraft told us earlier in the week, AsoBitCity already opened and closed system reserves last Friday. Michael Fahey

Wii Preorders Begin in Japan [1UP.com]

EB has begun sending out email notifications of their Wii online pre-order offer, which mixes the sickeningly cutesy use of 'Wii' instead of 'we' with the decidedly vile practice of mandatory system bundling. Should apply to Gamestop as well, as they are both part of the same lumbering retail beast.

And so here Wii are. Less than two weeks and counting until the most innovative product the video game industry has seen hits the streets.

This Thursday evening (CST), November 9, your opportunity to get in on the excitement arrives when our Wii bundle becomes available for pre-order online at EBgames.com. You'll get the best games, accessories and more in one convenient package delivered right to your door - all for under $699 plus tax and handling!

EBGames Wii Pre-Orders are Wii-diculous [Evil Avatar]

Remember the Best Buy employee pre-order lockdown? Well, it seems like they're not alone. This may be news to you (unless you're an employee), but both Circuit City and CompUSA both have policies in place already that prevent workers from buying the PS3/Wii. If they get caught, they're "immediately fired."

Apparently they had this in place last year for the Xbox 360 launch, but we all saw how well that worked. We mean really, if these employees can ask their wives to go pick one up for them, that's nigh unenforceable. Apparently for Circuit City, sales associates were barred from buying one until after Christmas, and they were never officially given the OKAY to do so. Poor, poor CCers. Maybe your dancing Santa can bring you one. Jason Chen

Those who wish to avoid as much as possible of the inevitable Steam congestion when Dark Messiage of Might and Magic is released later this month should be aware that the game is available for pre-order and pre-load now:

From Valve:

Dark Messiah Might and Magic is now available for pre-order via Steam for just $49.95. Those who pre-order and pre-load the game will have everything they need to start playing the moment it is made available.

Of course, if Dark Messiah's launch is anything like Half-Life 2's launch, you'll still face a few hours of smashing your fist impotently down upon your keyboard as you wait for the files to unlock. Florian Eckhardt

Amidst the kerfuffle relating to the irritating announcement from Hawaiian GameStops that $50 worth of traded-in merchandise would get you a Wii preorder, (the program is since rumored to be discontinued due to that creaking noise you hear, which is the entire internet balling its grimy fists in rage), there comes some new light in the form of an intrepid Tipster who endeavored to get the straight poop.

This is her story.

Although they aren't starting them now, here's the information I've got so far. (At least pertaining to my local store, located in Morgantown, WV.)

1. They aren't taking Wii pre-orders YET, but ARE taking pre-orders for Wii launch games (IE Zelda:Twilight Princess). That's $5 minimum down.

2. IF you pre-order a Wii game, you will recieve an automated call they day that they will start taking Wii pre-orders.

3. Wii pre-orders will not be delegated by the bundle you buy, but rather a "first come, first serve" basis.

4. Wii pre-orders are $50, and this does NOT have to be in trade-in credit.

5. If you trade in any old games/DVDs towards your Wii, you will get an additional 30% credit.

Thank you, Sarah. Hopefully this will end the confusion. And the fists. Eliza Gauger

I took this picture on my little mobile phone on Friday with the aim of posting it with some pithy analysis. It is a sign from the local GAME on Dawson Street, Dublin, Ireland.

I meant to make some sort of snarky comment about how GAME went to great lengths not to use the word 'preorder' on the sign, because there was just no damn way anyone was going to be guaranteed a PS3 on launch day. "Register your interest?" What the fuck does that mean? Why would I?

But, of course, the sign seems ridiculous for entirely different reasons now that we all know no one in Europe will be getting a PS3 for another six months. Florian Eckhardt

Destructoid has posted some rather interesting advice on securing yourself a Wii or PS3 at launch.

As I was chatting up the manager while he was going through my stuff, I ask when they'll be taking preorders for the PS3 and the Wii. He says he didn't know, but if I was to reserve a game or two, he'd put my name on a list of people he'll be calling first when they do find out the specifics for the PS3. I preorded five games and he puts me in the top 3 of the wait list. Preordering the games were $5 each and I can always get my money back on it if I wanted too. The second they get info on when they can let people preorder the machine, he'll be giving me a call. I can't say for sure if every EB will be like this, or how reliable the guy will be, but hey, go give it a shot.

That's not bad advice, and it's relatively low risk. Of course, the more people we all clue in, the less chance it'll work! Florian Eckhardt

How To Guarantee Yourself A PS3 or Wii... Maybe [Destructoid]

You can have this Dead Rising t-shirt with your game preorder in any color you want, as long as it's Cornflower Blue.

No information on what size choices, if any, there may be. Nor is there a product zoom. For all you know, that text under the shopping cart arsenal says "Ask Me About LOOM". That dog won't hunt, GameStop.

Gamestop: Hi, thanks for calling GameStop customer support! My name is Crystal, what can I help you with today?
Me: Hi Crystal. I'm calling about a product I saw on your website. The Dead Rising t-shirt that comes with the preorder?
Gamestop: Yes!
Me: So...I couldn't find any options for sizes, or anyth—
Gamestop: Oh, they only come in one size. Yep, probably extra large.
Me: I see. And the picture on the website is really tiny. Can you tell me what's actually on the shirt?
Gamestop: Nope! We haven't actually seen the shirts; they're shipping to us directly from the maker so we have no idea what they look like. Maybe check their website?
Me: Okay, thanks anyway.

Dead Rising website: MUHHH!!! Graargh! Splash, crunch. Glorrrgh. Bloop.
Me: ...
Dead Rising website: Hey check out all these fancy Flash menus! HURRRR.
Me: Fuck. You.

I hope you all found this morning's labors as informative as I did. I left the website open because I was kind of hoping if you "stayed in one place" long enough, the zombies would get you. No such luck, but the spooOOooky grumblings make a nice ambient background to my Bon Jovi mp3s. Eliza Gauger

Totally Bonus T-shirt, Dudes! [Gamestop, thanks Geoffrey]

Originally reported by GameWorld network and then confirmed by Toys Ass-Backwards Arrr Us' obnoxiously noisy website, the Wii and PS3 can be preordered with a $50 deposit and will ship with a free game. GWN speculates that Nintendo's game will be Wii Sports:

Wii Sports is basically a bunch of smaller mini-games, some of which have origins as tech demos. The idea that Nintendo decided to collate these into the Wii Sports game and include them with the Wii therefore is not so hard to believe.

Yab and Aaron both tipped this one. Well done, men. Sno-cones all around.Eliza gauger

Free Game With Wii [GameWorld Network]
Toys R Us Australian site [Toys R Us]