Resident Evil 6’s Collector’s Edition
Cost: Nobody knows.
As we’ve seen — and will continue to see — Capcom loves to make special editions for the Resident Evil series. This Collector’s Edition for the sixth game in the franchise was exclusive to Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. It includes the game, a steelbook to replace that meme-generating original cover (link NSFW), some emblems representing the three playable campaigns, an art book, a sweatshirt sporting the name of the fictional Ivy University, and either an Xbox 360 Avatar item or a dynamic PS3 theme (depending on which platform you bought it for). All of this came in a big “Needle Bomb” box that solves one storage issue while raising another.
How much did it cost? Well, that’s mostly unclear. Online retailer GAME scored the exclusive rights in the UK and listed it at £129.99 ($210). I couldn’t find any official sources for the retail prices in Australia or New Zealand, but a few angry forum users have cited figures of $249.99 AU ($256) and $319.99 NZ ($264) from seller EBGames.
As of this writing, EB’s New Zealand site lists the four-month-old release at $348 NZ (about $292 US). Another store, Mighty Ape, has it listed for $178.49 AU (app. $184.45 US) marked down from $249.99 AU ($258 US). Its New Zealand arm is offering the game for $229.99 NZ (app. $193 US) reduced from an incredible $349.99 (app. $293 US). Keep in mind that an “original price” on an online store is no confirmation that the item ever sold for that amount, but the current listings — particularly that EB one — are certainly high enough to earn a spot on this list.
Crysis 2’s Maximum Graphics Edition
Cost: $299.99
Not content merely to give their video cards special Duke Nukem paint jobs, hardware maker EVGA also teamed up with developer Crytek to produce this Maximum Graphics Edition for the PC version of shooter Crysis 2. The $299.99 bundle includes the game, a poster, a shirt, and, yes, an EVGA GeForce GTX 560 Ti graphics card which, as the name of the bundle implies, should let you play Crysis 2 at the highest graphics settings available.
This set came out three months before the FLP, but it makes way more sense because the Crysis games are famously demanding of players’ computers. “I would say to run Crysis with high settings, you need a machine that has a card that was made in the last six months. Our goal, though, is to make it really playable and look good on machines two-years-old from our ship date,” Crytek head Cevat Yerli said in a 2006 interview with IGN.
The Maximum Graphics Edition is probably the most practical bundle on this list … mostly because buying it doesn’t involve walking up to a cashier with a box featuring a big light-up arrow pointing to a guy’s junk.
Dirt 3’s Ken Block Gymkhana RC Car Bundle
Cost: $299.99
You know, it’s been a while since we controlled something remotely. Thanks for bringing us back, Dirt 3!
I can appreciate a special edition that cuts out the frills. All you got for your $300 was a copy of the racing game and a small RC version of the vehicle on the cover. Granted, that car is one hell of a frill, but at least you don’t have to worry about what to do with an ill-fitting shirt, a pen, or commemorative coins.
Speaking of which:
Resident Evil Revelations Unveiled Edition’s BSAA Watch Set
Cost: ¥39,900 (app. $432)
It’s been three whole items since we talked about Resident Evil, so I think we’re due for another one.
In May, Capcom is releasing a special edition of its console port of last year’s 3DS game Resident Evil: Revelations that includes the game and a real wristwatch identical to the one heroine Jill Valentine wears in the game. The watch come courtesy of U.S. Agency, a maker of “functional tactical military timepieces,” and this set will only be available in Japan.
Just a game and a watch, Capcom? That seems a bit subdued considering what we’ve seen so far. Oh, wait … did I say they were releasing a special edition? Make that two.
Resident Evil Revelations Unveiled Edition’s Premium Set
Cost: ¥42,000 (app. $455)
OK, that’s more like it. Why buy a watch and a game when you can buy a watch, a game, a soundtrack, and a card case with the logo of a fictional bio-terrorism task force? Maybe you could use it to store those cards from the Amalur Signature Edition. To be fair, it’s only about a $20 difference. I guess if you were going to splurge on the watch anyway, you might as well pick up the soundtrack, too.
450 dollars, though … I don’t know. I’m pretty sure that a special edition can’t get any more expensive than that.
Huh? What’s that, Capcom?
Resident Evil 6’s Premium Edition
Cost: ¥105,000 ($1,338)
I think we all knew it was leading to this.
If you hadn’t heard, the makers of Resident Evil weren’t content to just release one special edition for their sixth game. They also had to put out this Premium Edition, which is easily the most expensive bundle ever released.
Why is it so costly? Do you see Leon Kennedy’s leather jacket up there? It comes with one of those.
“Leon’s replica leather jacket from Resident Evil 6 is made of high quality cowhide leather,” Capcom said (via Eurogamer). “The jacket is an authentic recreation from the game and is fully endorsed by the Capcom Resident Evil 6 Development team. It’s designed to be close-fitting and it has the DSO [Division of Security Operations, the anti-bioweapon organization Leon works for] logo and Leon’s name tag inside. The jacket not only looks good, but also is practical, as it has six pockets outside and two inside.”
Maybe the leather jacket isn’t enough. Well, you also get four tablet cases that look like the ones your characters use to store their health items in the game (no idea what you’d do with those; maybe you could keep mints in them), some maps for the Mercenaries arcade mode, and, yes … some stickers.
Everyone loves stickers.
This edition was only available in Japan and Europe. Did the Europeans pay more? Of course they did; have we learned nothing from all of this? It cost £899 in the UK, which was about 1,456 of our American dollars when the game came out in October.