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'Runner 2' and other indie hits get rare physical releases
Indie games don't often cross over into the physical world, so it's pretty notable when two separate companies make boxed games at once. Choice Provisions is partnering with Limited Run Games on a physical version of the Runner2 sidescroller on PS4 and PS Vita with 3,500 copies of each for sale online starting March 17th. Limited Run will also sell 1,000 copies of a (separate) limited Runner2 edition at its PAX East booth on March 10-12.
Europe gets boxed Wii Sports Club in July, baseball and boxing this month
Wii Sports Club will add its baseball and boxing events to the Wii U eShop on June 27 in Europe, Nintendo announced today. The publisher added the two sports to the game in Japan a few weeks ago, though it hasn't offered a release date for North American players. Those looking to pick up the full retail version of the game in Europe will have that option come July 11. The sporty HD remake landed on the Wii U eShop in November, debuting with trial versions of its tennis and bowling games. It offered per-sport and per-day pricing models, which carry through this month's launch of baseball and boxing. Wii U owners that download Wii Sports Club will get a 48-hour free trial to check out the game's five sports. Following the trial, they'll have the option to pick up 24-hour passes on the eShop for £1.79, or can permanently unlock both the boxing and baseball games for £8.99. Nintendo noted that the trial is open to all players, including those that have used up Wii Sports Club trials in the past. [Image: Nintendo]
Rochard boxed edition slingshots to EU shelves this month
European publisher Nordic Games is launching Rochard on a whole new plane – the physical one. A boxed edition of Rochard for PC is set to hit shelves on August 14, including the game, a poster and the soundtrack.CEO of Recoil Games Jan Achrenius says that apart from reaching a new, store-going audience, the boxed edition will be handy for the collectors out there:"Signing this deal with Nordic Games means that we'll be able to bring Rochard to fans of the game and PC Gamers who like to display their games on a shelf."We are delighted to expand the scope of Rochard and build a successful relationship with Nordic Games, their extensive games catalogue speaks for itself."If you haven't already bought Rochard in its digital form, maybe hold out for the real – er, we mean, boxed – version to pack in a few hours of side-scrolling, gravity gameplay. It might just be worth it.
Alan Wake busts into box form on April 3 in North America
Remedy Entertainment and Nordic Games have snagged Legacy Interactive to distribute the boxed PC version of Alan Wake in North America and will begin shipping the title on April 3. This deal took some careful planning, it appears, as Remedy previously extended the Steam collector's edition launch deal for an extra week while North American fans waited for a physical launch announcement.Similarly to the Steam version, the boxed PC edition of Alan Wake includes two DLC packs, The Writer and The Signal, and supports stereoscopic 3D and multiple screens.
Apple discontinues most boxed software
Considering that the Lion release today (which has gone swimmingly) was a vote of confidence, Apple has moved to get most of its boxed software out of the Apple Store completely, sending a notice out to retailers to discontinue titles like iWork '09, iLife '11, Aperture 3, and most of GarageBand's Jam Pack addons. All of that software will of course be available on the App Store with a download, but Apple won't be keeping them in the actual retail store any longer. This follows Apple's actions earlier this year to remove a number of peripherals and retail games included inside Apple Stores. Much of the hardware is still available, and of course the games can be purchased with a digital download, but Apple seems to want to have its stores as clean and simple as possible. And who can blame them? Apple's latest strategy has been to narrow down product lines and streamline software purchases with an App Store model, and that's worked out just great so far. With Lion already a solid indicator that customers are ready to take to the Mac App Store when needed, there's little if any reason left to bother with actual boxes and discs any more.
Could the Mac App Store eliminate boxed software inventory?
Blogger Arnold Kim over at MacRumors published an interesting conjecture today -- that Apple is planning on eliminating the space-consuming inventory of boxed software at Apple Stores through an emphasis on purchasing apps through the Mac App Store. The post provides compelling evidence of proof of this, including a quote from Apple's plans for the Personal Setup for Mac service which states that the employees who set up your Mac will "walk you through the Mac App Store." To me, the key point is in the next line, where it is stated that "boxed software also takes up retail space that could be used for higher profit items like iPad or iPhone accessories." As a person who has been visiting Apple Stores since 2003, I've seen Apple moving in this direction for eight years. Early in the evolution of the Apple retail stores, there was an emphasis on boxed software in aisles of wooden shelves, as well as an in-house theater for training. Now there are very few shelves, most located in the back of the stores and with the majority of space devoted to Apple-branded software. Training is done primarily through One-to-One sessions at the actual tables where devices are displayed.
Chuck: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray review
Among Warner's slew of TV show releases this week is Chuck: The Complete Third Season, and we took a quick look at the boxed set before it hit shelves. In case you're still unfamiliar with the NBC show, Chuck Bartowski was a regular employee at the Buy More electronics store before accidentally downloading a computer database into his head and becoming a secret agent -- all without telling his family, friends and co-workers. In the third season, Chuck makes steps towards becoming a full-fledged agent on his own and the show has a lot more action, but it still retains the comedy elements that have kept it going so far. In the Blu-ray box set the four discs contain all 19 episodes, plus a deleted scene or two from most of the episodes. The other extras available are a 20 minute behind the scenes featurette that's thankfully in HD and should be very entertaining for fans of the series, plus an incredibly detailed (and also HD) 10 minute Behind the Music-style documentary focusing on the band formed by two of Chuck's coworkers, Jefster. Otherwise, there's some lower-res gag reel footage and Warner's standard BD-Live hooks on the fourth disc, that allow users to mark the disc in their collection and view trailers and extras from upcoming releases like The Big Bang Theory. Unfortunately, there's no commentaries to be found here and there doesn't appear to be any extra downloads or streaming on the way. While the audio and video here are of good (though still grainy by choice) quality, some will be disappointed by the lack of a lossless audio soundtrack. While it crosses the line of fulfilling the standard expectations for a boxed set in 2010, it doesn't go too far beyond that. While we should probably just be glad the show is returning later this month for a fourth season it'd be nice to see even more of Blu-ray's technology put to use to bring the fans into the show -- Chuck community screening sponsored by Subway seems like an obvious choice to us.
BioShock 2 now available for prepurchase on Steam
Valve has officially announced that 2K Games' BioShock 2 will be available for purchase on Steam -- you can pre-purchase the game right now, and it'll be unlocked for play on February 9, 2010, day and date with the rest of the world. The current price is $44.99, a slight discount from the boxed version, and that includes a Steam copy of the original BioShock as well, which you can "kindly" give to a friend if you happen to already have it. Or you can nab four licenses for you and three friends for $134.97, with each of you getting to play the original also. Sure, it's a good deal if you're not concerned with "discs" or "physical media," but does it come with a vinyl LP of the game's original soundtrack? Didn't think so, boy-o.
