People have been suspicious of this for years now. Accusations are always made, but nothing has ever been done about it. Does GameStop sell used games as new? I am 100% convinced that they do in fact sell used games as new games. I was suspicious of this practice several years ago when I bought a few new games that seemed to have “used level” scratches on them. When I took them back to the store, the manager apologized and replaced the discs. I got what I wanted, so I was satisfied for the time being.

Over the years, I have questioned GameStop’s reasoning for new games coming in cases that were already open. Most of the time, you will hear that they like to keep empty cases on the shelves to prevent theft. While this makes sense, it also makes it real easy for them to pull off the shady business practice they are accused of. With the numerous complaints all over the internet concerning this activity, I am sure the corporation is aware of the complaints, yet they do nothing about it. Would it be too hard for them to just put cardboard inserts on the shelves and give you a new unopened game when you get to the counter?

Continue reading »

written by Will Snizek \\ tags: Accusations, business, fact, game, Gamestop, level, manager, New, nothing, practice, sell, shopping, State, store, time

I am sure most of you have already heard that Jack Thompson walked out on his hearing today.  As a result of walking out, it looks like Florida is going to move for “advanced” disbarment” according to Kotaku which means he’ll more than likely lose his right to practice law in Florida for 10 years.  On the surface this seems like a huge victory for gamers, but I almost feel sorry for Jack at this point.  Part of me wants to believe that he at least means well, even though he’s seriously misguided concerning video games.  Before walking out on his hearing today, he left the Florida Supreme Court with a lengthy note titled ‘Thompson’s Formal Objection To June 4 Sanctions “Hearing”.  In the end, it’s fairly obvious that Jack Thompson’s career in law is coming to a slow and strange end, but it really doesn’t change anything.  If you have a little time, you might want to check it out:

Continue reading »

written by Will Snizek \\ tags: Alabama, Arthur Teele, Bar, Christian, Clarence Thomas, Court, culture, Devin Moore, Douglas, Fayette, Florida, Frank Fuster, hearing, Howard Stern, Ileana Fuster, Justice William O, Justice.You, law, matter, Miami, motion, recusal, recuse, Referee, Rule, something, State, training, Tunis, U.S. Senate, U.S. Supreme, US, War

Georgia, along with several other states, has been on the prowl lately to encourage entertainment producers to set up shop in the state. The incentives they’re putting forth “allows Georgia to once again compete in an industry we used to be famous for,” said Sen. Mitch Seabaugh in a press release on Monday.

Most importantly, is that video games are part of the tax break initiative; 20% tax credit for qualified productions and a cute 10% tax credit added if they promote Georgia in their final product.

“Georgia is one of the few states whose entertainment incentives support the video game industry,” said Bill Thompson, deputy commissioner of the Film, Music and Digital Entertainment Office in Georgia.

While the state is making a complete entertainment push, game developers stand to benefit the most as the nature of producing video games is different from film and music — it tends to happen in-doors — where they need glitzy lights and known landmarks to record and advertise.

Via Press Release

written by Carlos Macias \\ tags: Bill Thompson, Break, credit, Entertainment, Film, game, Georgia, industry, Monday, Music, press, prowl, release, Sen. Mitch Seabaugh, shop, State, Tax, video

We have been using games as teaching tools for many years, but I believe that we are just starting to realize the educational value of mainstream games such as Second Life. Montclair State University recently held their Learning 2.0 Conference and an interesting presentation that came out of the event was one titled ‘Second Life as a Pedagogical Tool’. Montclair State is New Jersey’s second largest university. If you are interested in learning more about Half Life and the teaching value it presents, the following slide show is something worth looking at:

| View | Upload your own

written by Will Snizek \\ tags: Conference, event, half, Learning, life, mainstream, Montclair, New Jersey, Pedagogical, presentation, Second, State, teaching, Tool, university, value, Video Games