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GameFly's digital distribution client officially exits beta, celebrates with free copies of Bioshock

Sean Buckley — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 05:01:00 -0500

After nearly a year of testing, GameFly is ready to pull the beta qualifier off of its PC game distribution client. The desktop software serves not only as a digital storefront for PC games, but also as a queue management program for subscribers to GameFly's game-by-mail service. Active members get free access to a few hundred "Unlimited PC Play" titles as well -- offering subscribers a wide range of games from Diner Dash to Assassin's Creed. The official release doesn't differ from the beta in any significant way, but GameFly and 2K games is celebrating its launch by doling out free copies of Bioshock to anyone willing to give the platform a test drive. Crash on down to the source link below for a free ticket to Rapture, or read on for GameFly's official press release.

Filed under: Gaming, Internet, Software

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Via: Joystiq

Source: GameFly

Bioshock custom rig is Big Daddy of pinball machines, gives players a taste of Rapture

Jason Hidalgo — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 23:17:00 -0400

If you're going to revisit a certain underwater dystopia, you might as well have a ball. At least that's the approach being taken by Sweden-based DIYer rasmadrak, who has decided to build a Bioshock-themed custom pinball machine just for kicks. The project is filled with lots of neat little touches from Rapture, including Little Sister vents and a few Big Daddy homages. The builder also does a pretty good job of drilling into the details and providing insight on the creation process -- like the challenge in using two different systems such as Arduino and chipKIT together, for example -- via detailed posts in the Poor Man's Pinball! blog. The project proved to be a pleasant shock to the system for fellow pinball aficionado Ben Heck, who gave the project a sprinkling of Heckendorn love via Twitter. Pinball geeks can also follow the saga, so to speak, by checking out the source link below.

Filed under: Gaming, Alt

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OnLive's all-you-can-eat PlayPack now available for $9.99 per month

Ross Miller — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 18:04:00 -0500

OnLive, meet subscription services. It's not the January 15th date we had initially marked, but that's no matter now, the time has come. The company has introduced PlayPack, which for $9.99 each month gets you unlimited access to a selection of titles. There's no long-term commitment required and your saved games will stay on servers for at least a year after cancellation, should you change your mind and decide to come back. There's 38 games to choose from at first, including BioShock, Prince of Persia, and Alien Shooter, with more titles promised "on a regular basis." The previous plans -- free demos, multi-day rentals, and purchases à la carte -- are also still around. It's not inaccurate to think of this as early-day Netflix Instant Watch, but drawing from the same analogy, it's gonna take an ever-expanding library of strong titles (both big and small) to keep the momentum going. And make no mistake, we're really rooting for ya. Press release and list of titles after the break.

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Xbox 360 Bioshock contest winner!

Ryan Block — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 14:12:00 -0400

Ah, yes, the winner of the Bioshock + Xbox 360 contest! We know you've been waiting to find out who it was. Darcy S. of Canada's taking this bundle home, congrats! Thanks again to everyone who entered, and don't forget, we still have an even bigger, better contest going on as we speak. Check out the let Engadget trick out my home theater contest over at Engadget HD, you won't be disappointed.

Head over to the next contest!

Filed under: Announcements

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Reminder: Win an Xbox 360 and a copy of Bioshock

Ryan Block — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 18:23:00 -0400

Just a few hours left to take home a copy of Bioshock and an Xbox 360 Premium system to play it on! Head over and make sure your entry is in by midnight EDT tonight! Details and rules here on how to get virtually Ayn Randian.

Filed under: Announcements, Gaming

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Reminder: Win an Xbox 360 and a copy of Bioshock

Paul Miller — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 16:53:00 -0400

So perhaps your PC isn't quite up to snuff for playing Bioshock, or maybe you just don't want to get any nasty Sony ~~rootkits~~ DRM in the process. That's ok, the 360 version runs just peachy, and we're giving away a copy of Bioshock and an Xbox 360 Premium to play it on. The contest ends tomorrow, so check out the read link for instructions on how to enter, and while you're at it you might as well start pondering that Little Sister moral conundrum while you've got some time for introspection.

Filed under: Announcements, Gaming

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Sony's back for more, running BioShock DRM with a rootkit

Paul Miller — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 16:39:00 -0400

BioShock is undoubtedly a critical darling, but it's not without its share of technical woes. 2K Games is already on the ball with the widescreen field of view "issue," and has even slackened activation requirements, allowing for up to five SecuROM activations per copy of BioShock. Unfortunately, activation problems go deeper than that, since the Sony-owned SecuROM has deemed it necessary to pack in a rootkit with the BioShock installation, both for registered versions of the game and, inexplicably, the demo. We would've hoped 2K games chose its DRM provider carefully, and screened for such shenanigans, but Sony's SecuROM really has no excuse, since we've certainly been down this path before.

Update: Our pal Dan at PC Gamer points out that while he thought it was goofy to have the DRM on the demo too, it turns out that they pretty much always do this -- if they don't, pirates can use the unprotected exe to figure out what the difference between the demo and retail exe is, and that makes it easier to hack out.

Update 2: 2K has a statement up about BioShock's DRM. According to them, SecuROM isn't an actual rootkit, it's just hiding some registry keys on your system. Gaming Bob, who originated this story, has also retracted his analysis of the DRM as being a rootkit, and posted up some easier instructions for removing the SecuROM service, so it looks like it's indeed safe to come out and play.

[Via Fergie's Tech Blog; thanks Nfinity]

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

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Bioshock Tuesday: win an Xbox 360 and a copy of Bioshock

Ryan Block — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 22:15:00 -0400

Hey, there's this new game out today called Bioshock -- we hear it's, like, the best thing ever made. Metacritic rated it at 97 / 100, which ranks it among the greatest works of modern art including Marcel Duchamp's Fountain and the first NKOTB record. We know you want it, and we'll happily send you on your way with a copy of Bioshock and an Xbox 360 Premium to play it on. Just read the rules below and promise yourself you won't play it at night, because this game is all sorts of messed up in the dark.

The rules (yeah, there are always rules):

Leave a comment below -- tell us your current fave game. No need to tell us whether Bioshock is likely to charm you into never ever playing it again.
You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok?
If you enter more than once, only activate one comment -- otherwise we'll chase you down and drain your Adam with a giant needle.
Contest is open to anyone worldwide!
Winner will be chosen randomly.
Entries can be submitted until 11:59pm EDT on Sunday, August 26th.

Filed under: Announcements, Gaming

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