gamestop posts

It's one thing to tell people about pre-order bonuses for games but it's another to actually see them in action. Bethesda Softworks has done just that for the exclusive GameStop pre-order bonus for the upcoming first person shooter Brink. You can see the in-game bonuses in action via the new YouTube video you can see above this post.

Yes, you too can dress up your Brink character in clothing, gun skins and more based on Doom, a game from another Bethesda Softworks developer id Software. You can also check out some new gameplay from Brink in the new trailer. The game itself will be released in the US on May 10.

Last week developer Blind Mind Studios announced it would pull its space strategy game Star Ruler from being sold from the Impulse PC game download service. It said its decision was based on the feeling that Impulse's soon-to-be new owners Gamestop would not respect independent game developers.

While GameStop has yet to officially comment on the matter, Gamaustra got Brad Wardell, the head of Stardock and the soon-to-be former owner of Impulse, to comment. He states, "I was really surprised. By his own admission, Impulse is 25 percent of his (Blind Mind Studios) revenue."
He adds, "Impulse is going to continue to function as it has. If a developer wasn't paying attention to this, they wouldn't notice any difference. ... On one hand, they [say they] trust me, but they don't trust me enough to realize I vetted [GameStop]. Stardock didn't have to sell Impulse."

One of the many big news stories today was the reveal that game retailer GameStop will be acquiring the Impulse PC game download business from Stardock. Today Big Download and our sister site Joystiq got a chance to chat with Stardock CEO Brad Wardell to find out more about the newly revealed deal.

Wardell told us that the idea of selling Impulse began when it became clear that the download service was generating more and more revenue for Stardock. He told us that he did not have any desires to run a larger company and as such the deal with GameStop to sell off the Impulse business came at a good time. Wardell told the deal is a win for PC gamers as a whole as GameStop is moving more and more aggressively into the PC game download business.

While specifics of the deal were not disclosed Wardell did say that all of Stardock's Impulse team members would now be GameStop employees. He also said that Impulse and its team members would be moving in the coming months out of Stardock's offices in Plymouth, Michigan to GameStop's headquarters in Dallas, Texas. There will not be any layoffs at Stardock due to this deal, according to Wardell. He also told us that for the foreseeable future all of Stardock's internal and third party games would continue to be released exclusively via Impulse under the new GameStop owners.

The Impulse web site has also posted up an FAQ page answering common questions about the GameStop acquisition. For Impulse account holders, the FAQ page states, "There will be no disruption in service to existing or newly created accounts. Impulse will continue to function as normal for existing and new customers. Your current purchases will continue to be available through Impulse, Inc. "

Finally Wardell said the Impulse acquisition by GameStop was indeed one of the three major announcements that he hinted at in Stardock's recent public report that would be made this year. He would not comment at all on what the other two announcements would be like.

In a massive surprise announcement, game retailer GameStop has announced that it will be acquiring the Impulse PC game download service from Stardock. The purchase also includes the Impulse::Reactor game development tools and the Impulse::Publisher real time reporting and management tools. The acquisition is expected to be finalized in May.

GameStop also announced today it has acquired Spawn Labs, who until now were known as makers of a device that streams console games to a PC. GameStop says they will use Spawn Labs' technology to allow gamers to have "immediate access to a wide selection of high-definition video games on demand on any Internet-enabled device". Financial terms of both deals were not disclosed.

It's clear that GameStop is going after Valve's Steam PC game download business with its purchase of Impulse and with OnLive's streaming game business with the acquisition of Spawn Labs. We hope to learn more about these deals in the days and weeks ahead.

With Red Faction Armageddon now set for release on May 31, the sci-fi shooter's publisher THQ has sent out word on some pre-order bonuses that are being given out by various retailers. Ordering the game ahead of time at GameStop will net the player the Commando Pack that adds the exclusive Commando uniform and two unique weapons, the Plasma Thrower and dual Laser Pistols.

Over at Best Buy, pre-orders for the game get the Recon Pack (you can see it after the jump) with the Recon uniform and two more exclusive weapons; the Arc Welder and the "XNG-5000, which launches devastating Nanite-filled projectiles that seek out targets and dissolve them." Finally Walmart gives pre-orders a Red Faction comic book and a mini-strategy guide for their money.

[Via email press release]

As more and more games, both on the PC and console side, are being sold via digital downloads brick-and-mortar based game retailer GameStop is looking to get more out of that growing market. As part of its quarterly financial numbers today, GameStop revealed that it generated $290 million in revenues from console and PC game digital downloads in 2010. That's an increase of 61 percent compared to 2009.

While that number is still tiny compared to GameStop's total 2010 revenues of $9.47 billion it does show that the retailer is slowly moving towards the download business model. You may remember that in February the company hired former id Software exec Steve Nix to be GameStop's new general manager of digital distribution.

Batman Arkham City will be getting some pre-order bonuses from various retailers but at the moment those bonuses are just being hinted at on the upcoming super hero action game's web site. We do know that people who put their money down on this game at GameStop will get an exclusive "Joker's Carnival" challenge map when the full game is released.

It also lists Best Buy as offering a pre-order bonus but at the moment the site only says its offering a "combo pack" for Batman Arkham City fans. It looks like both Amazon.com and Wal Mart will also have pre-order bonuses but those have yet to be revealed.

[Via Joystiq]

If you are one of those folks who insist on getting their PC games by driving to a store and buying a game with a disk in a box, then GameStop is the place to be tonight. A select number of GameStop retail locations will be open at 10 pm tonight to sell the upcoming first person shooter Homefront when it goes on sale after midnight tonight.

The GameStop web site has a special page to determine which stores in your area will be open to sell THQ's next attempt to enter the already crowded FPS genre. There's no word if there will be any special activities at the stores such as contests and giveaways.

Update: Walmart will also be holding midnight sales events for Homefront at its stores, which includes a free mini-artbook giveaway for folks who come to purchase the game from their outlet.

Game retailer GameStop clearly knows that more and more games, particularly PC game titles, are being sold via download these days. Today Gamasutra reports that the company has hired someone to help bolster those efforts as has hired Steve Nix to be its new "general manager of digital distribution".

Nix was until now the digital distribution manager at id Software where he worked for the past four years. Prior to that he was the CEO of the now defunct Ritual Entertainment. In his new gig, GameStop states that Nix will lead the "strategic development and execution of GameStop's digital download business." While lots of companies already have extensive PC game download sites, GameStop's retail experience might help them gain a foothold on the competition like Steam.

Duke Nukem Forever fans will be able to get their hands on some pre-order bonsues if they put down their money early for the upcoming and long awaited first person shooter. Developer Gearbox Software announced that GameStop and Wal-Mart stores will offer different pre-order bonuses for people who buy the game before its release on May 3.

GameStop pre-orders game some extra downloadable content for the game including a EGO boost, a t-shirt pack and (our favorite) a 'Big Head" mode. Wal-Mart pre-order buyers of the game will be able to get a real world Duke Nukem Forever trucker-style cap to wear proudly while they shop at their local store.