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Activision held an earnings call today to talk about how good $100 bills feel when rubbed against a bare chest…at least, that is what I heard. Oh yeah, they talked about games, too. Hope you like Call of Duty and/or Blizzard.
News Blips:
Attendees of the upcoming Call of Duty XP convention will receive a redemption code for Modern Warfare 3: Hardened Edition. Are you on the fence regarding the upcoming Call of Duty convention in L.A.? That $150 ticket is pretty expensive for a two-day event, but what if that ticket not only gave you access to all the festivities but also a free copy of Modern Warfare 3 when it hits store shelves? Now, your money will get you a game, access to a real-world paintball recreation of an in-game multiplayer map, and all the Axe body spray your nostrils can physically inhale…y’know, because of the bros.
Blizzard is replacing the StarCraft 2 demo with StarCraft 2: Starter Edition. It is interesting how a small shift can cause a big change in perception. To me, a demo is something that I will play but will be ultimately disappointed with because it's just a reminder that I don't own the game. A starter version, on the other hand, implies that I already have something. Sure, it is only the start, but I can unlock the rest whenever I feel like it. Gamers can find the StarCraft 2: Starter Edition on their Battle.net account, and any progress made in the Starter Edition will be saved if when players decide to move on to the full version. The first hit is free.
Humble Indie Bundle 3 has been combined with Humble Indie Bundle 2. If I remember my arithmetic, that would this new amalgamation the Humble Indie Bundle 5…right? Is that how this works? The third compilation of indie games was already a great deal. VVVVVV along with And Yet It Moves are certainly highlights for me. Now, gamers simply have to pay more than the average price of $4.99 — at the time of this writing — to unlock Braid, Machinarium, Osmos, Cortex Command, and Revenge of the Titans as bonus games.
Call of Duty: Black Ops has sold more than 25 million copies; Modern Warfare 2 has surpassed 22 million. These titles (and those who play them) have taken a lot of heat recently from some parts of the gaming community, but money is louder than words. And it doesn’t get much louder than nearly 50 million Call of Duty copies sold over the last two years.
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