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Character service pricing going up for those paying in pounds
Though character service pricing has always seemed high, if you're paying for WoW in pounds sterling then soon you're going to have to pay a bit more. Presumably, this is to bridge the difference in value between the pound and the euro, but Blizzard's description of the price change as an adjustment to ensure they're offering the "best entertainment value" doesn't really sell it -- as pages of unhappy commenters can attest to. If you're in the market for character services, here's the new pricing, in effect April 30th: Takralus Name Change .................................................... Current Price: £6 | New Price: £7 Pets ....................................................... Current Price: £9 | New Price: No change Helms ................................................... Current Price: £10 | New Price: No change Appearance Change ...................................... Current Price: £12 | New Price: £13 Guild Name Change ....................................... Current Price: £15 | New Price: £17 Character Transfer ........................................ Current Price: £15 | New Price: £17 Race Change ................................................. Current Price: £15 | New Price: £17 Mounts ................................................ Current Price: £17 | New Price: No change Faction Change ............................................. Current Price: £20 | New Price: £22 Guild Transfer ..................................... Current Price: £25 | New Price: No change Guild Faction Change ......................... Current Price: £30 | New Price: No change Level 90 Character Boost .................... Current Price: £40 | New Price: No change Guild Transfer and Faction Change .... Current Price: £50 | New Price: No change source
PSN survey hints at upcoming subscription-based features
Sony's European team has sent out a survey to some of its UK PSN members asking them yet again about possible subscription models for the service. The survey is run by a market research company called Ipsos, and appears to offer up a list of possible member benefits for a few different plan tiers, along with pricing for each. The benefits range from more tame ideas like exclusive and early access to content to more interesting options like "free title trials" (first hour of a game for free), user-to-user challenges, "token wagering" and a service called "catch-up TV." Oh, and since it's Sony we're talking about, there's even a listed option for "cloud storage space for games." You can find the full list of possible features after the jump. The price options differ from plan to plan, but they go as cheap as £2.99 (about $5 U.S.) up to £14.99 (about $25) for monthly fees, with annual fees also listed for 55% less than you'd pay month to month (so around £19.99 up to £99.99, or $32 to $160). Note that just because all of these things are on a survey doesn't mean that Sony has them up and running -- it only means that they're testing the water in terms of what UK members are willing to pay for certain features. But you can just add this to the growing mountain of evidence that Sony is planning some sort of premium subscription service. [Thanks Marc and everyone who sent this in!]
China Blue HD crosses over to the UK, third Opium War inevitable
We've given HD DVD's bastard child China Blue HD its due for a good start in its native land, but now that U.K. Importer GBAX has made a few units available it's time for English language buyers to at least consider this Blu-ray alternative. Of course, with a £259.99 ($413.22 U.S.) pricetag for this plain TCL player, AV and HD cables, plus 14 CBHD movies (The Aviator, Blood Diamond, The Invasion, The Island, Flood, Poseidon & 8 Chinese-only flicks) to get you started the barrier to entry is high, but as shown in the unboxing / preview video -- embedded after the break, watch for ninjas -- the experience is very familiar. As Format War Central points out, the 220/240Hz power cord makes things complicated for the U.S. and other places outside Europe, but hardcore HD DVD holdouts are used to a world filled with only Warner and Universal movies already, so why not give the other blue laser flavor a try? [Via Format War Central]
January sales ahoy! A trio of Wii bargains for Brits
Got your new Wii set up, UK gamers? Congrats! Now all you need to do is treat it correctly grab some games for the lil' guy, and with the January sales kicking off today, finding bargains shouldn't be too taxing. GAME has just announced the contents of its sale, and as usual it's a matter of carefully locating the gems lost in a vast ocean of crappy shovelware. We took some time out to sift through the trash and found three sparkling additions for your library: Sonic and the Secret Rings -- £19.99 Eledees -- £29.99 Mercury Meltdown Revolution -- £17.99 Admittedly, thirty quid for the charming Eledees is still a little steep, but Mercury Meltdown Revolution for £17.99 is an absolute snip.
Wii games on the cheap for gamers in the UK
UK gamers, take note: Play.com is offering select titles for the Wii at discounted prices. Sure, you won't get the game before Christmas, but the games will ship free from the retailer. Select games such as WarioWare: Smooth Moves (£22.99) and Mario Strikers Charged (£27.99) are up for grabs, as well as the wonderful Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles (£27.99). Maybe you lucked out and finally found a Wii or decided to give eBay a try again?If you've neglected to check out some games, especially those titles that released early on, you might want to check out this sale.
Xbox 360 price drop at select UK retailers
It seems that British gamers who are willing to shop around can get the Xbox 360 for quite a bit less than the manufacturer's suggested retail price. GamesIndustry.biz reports that discount wholesaler Makro is selling the Premium system for £199.99 (Regularly £279.99) and Joystiq tipster Joanthan pointed out that UK game store Play is selling the Core system for £149.99 (regularly £199.99). The retailer-specific price drops are not officially endorsed by Microsoft, who told GI.biz through a spokesperson that "Xbox does not control the retail price of the Xbox 360" and that "prices are set by retailers." This statement may seem a little laughable to readers in America, where game hardware prices are remarkably consistent across retailers. In contrast to other consumer electronics, where retailers constantly try to undercut each other on the same merchandise, stores that sell game systems are reluctant to lower the price for fear of being cut off by the manufacturers. Hence, the price of a game system comes down across the board only when the manufacturer decrees it. Nintendo got a slap on the wrist from the FTC for such price-fixing practices back in 1991, but the lesson doesn't seem to have stuck in today's market. If Wal-mart wants to sell me a system for less than Target, who's the system maker to tell them they can't?
