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Valve removes option to sell paid 'Skyrim' mods
After a few days of hearing complaints on the internet, Valve is removing the payment feature from the Skyrim Workshop on Steam. The PC gaming juggernaut explains that it underestimated the differences between the communities built around its own games and those from other studios, and toeing the waters of an established modding scene like one surrounding The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim's "was probably not the right place to start" experimenting.
Dark Age of Camelot adjusting New Frontiers again
Sometimes adjustments seem like a good idea right up until they're implemented. That's the case with Dark Age of Camelot's recent changes to New Frontiers. The game's most recent producer's letter states that they were made and quickly proved to not have the desired effects, which means that several elements need to be tweaked and re-balanced. This includes several rollbacks -- Relics will return to Relic Temples, docks will be returned to their original location, and players will no longer be able to port to shore-keeps. The updates to the game in the near future won't be limited to PvP, however, as the development team is also looking for ways to spruce up PvE content by modernizing mechanics and adding in new loot. In the longer term, there are also plans to revamp the game's LFG interface and provide a Champion Level increase. Check out the full producer's letter for all the details.
Good Old Games retracts proposed regional pricing structure
Remember Good Old Games' plans to implement regional pricing for future titles? Well for the most part, that's not happening anymore - after extensive feedback from its userbase, GOG has reaffirmed its commitment to offer the same price to all of its customers. That means GOG users worldwide will still be able to purchase games at the same price as US customers. GOG insists it will "adamantly continue to fight for games with flat worldwide pricing," but if such a deal can't be struck with publishers, GOG will reimburse users. For now, that involves "$5.99 and $9.99 game codes," but reimbursement will eventually be given in store credit to be used toward any purchase. GOG says this will apply to "every single game where we do not have flat pricing," including the to-be-released Age of Wonders 3, Divinity: Original Sin and The Witcher 3. While local currencies will still be introduced for regions that don't use the US dollar, users will be able to pick whether they want to pay with USD or their region's respective currency. GOG's switch off of regional pricing may delay or prevent the addition of certain games to its catalog, but the company says it will "remain true to its values and will keep on offering you the best of DRM-free gaming." [Image: GOG]
Wolfram Alpha lowers iPhone app price, will give refunds
Well here's an interesting twist on the Wolfram Alpha saga -- after initially releasing their "knowledge system" on the iPhone and then pulling it and trying to go premium with a $50 iPhone app, they've now reversed their position once again. The iPhone app will drop back down to $1.99 on Sunday, and there will again be a free mobile site accessible from the iPhone (and presumably the iPad as well). Wolfram Alpha seems to be cognizant of their mistaken decision to try and go premium on the app, and they're even offering refunds for those who purchased the app before this announcement. It's great that everyone will have access to the app again (and we're sure they'll see a lot more usage as a result), but it does say something about the App Store when an app with as much function as Wolfram Alpha can't find a premium selling point. Hopefully they'll find some other way to monetize and keep the service up and running. Assuming this isn't actually a bad April Fool's story (the mobile site is back up and running now, even though the app price isn't scheduled to change until Sunday), we'll see how Wolfram Alpha does with this new philosophy. Update: Apparently the price has just been dropped. The app is now $1.99 in the App Store.
