Bargain Thread 2012 Edition

Chris_Gwinn · 2012-12-24T20:06:51.000Z

Hmm. Haven’t seen any sign of the amazon emails.

Scotch_Lufkin · 2012-12-24T20:13:52.000Z

Settlers 7 looks fun, but is there a sandbox type mode or is it just a campaign? I see “skirmish” in the option in a screenshot, so maybe this isn’t the kind of game (I’m thinking SimCity or Tropico) that I think it is? It looks interesting as hell though, does anyone have a sales pitch to get me to pick this up?

SlainteMhath · 2012-12-24T20:15:14.000Z

I received a bunch of Amazon emails from purchases I made as far back as August. Not only did I get the $5 off anything in the “Best Games of 2012” list, but I also received a $5 additional creadit if the game was a THQ or EA purchase for games from those publishers.

Assuming everything doesn’t revert back to full price tomorrow I plan on purchasing a few items at $5 off sale prices.

Giaddon · 2012-12-24T20:33:44.000Z

BleedTheFreak:

Settlers 7 looks fun, but is there a sandbox type mode or is it just a campaign? I see “skirmish” in the option in a screenshot, so maybe this isn’t the kind of game (I’m thinking SimCity or Tropico) that I think it is? It looks interesting as hell though, does anyone have a sales pitch to get me to pick this up?

The brilliance of Settlers 7 is that it combines the logistics and resources based gameplay of a traditional city builder with the difficulty and competitiveness of an RTS. So “skirmish” is an appropriate term. You’re always competing against an opponent.

If you just want to build, one of the DLC scenarios is a truly massive building challenge.

But the real strength of S7 is carving a very competitive, very compelling game from the fat of more traditional city builders.

Pogo has a typically spirited pitch for the game in the thread.

Scotch_Lufkin · 2012-12-24T20:56:09.000Z

That was perfect, it’s on my Steamwishlist (all my free funds are in Steam bucks) so if it drops even a bit more, I’ll snag it. Sounds awesome. Thanks for tuning me into it, I’d always glossed over the title before tonight.

Angrycoder · 2012-12-24T21:04:17.000Z

Penny Dreadful:

If people will sell out to publishers and their draconian DRM schemes just so they can play a video game, they are gutless.

They already dropped their crazy DRM from future games.

Tyjenks · 2012-12-24T21:28:25.000Z

If my fun > DRM irritation + the cost, then it is worth it. I will fight the power when it comes to gun control or the legalization of marijuana or gay rights. I feel no compulsion to take a stand with UBIsoft nor do I feel any guilt that I am betraying my fellow gamers by not standing locked arm in arm against the DRMified menace.

malkav11 · 2012-12-24T22:59:11.000Z

Daagar:

Not to derail the thread, but the DRM is now only mostly draconian. From what I’ve read, it is no longer persistent online to play. I am downloading now (they were calling me stupid if I didn’t buy!), but haven’t yet installed to see.

Not for Settlers 7. It’s never been toned down even slightly for that as far as I can tell - certainly as recently as September it was still saddled with the most egregious always-online form of their DRM. Certain high profile titles were toned down (Assassin’s Creed II, Splinter Cell: Conviction) but it hasn’t been universal.

Edit: Per Steam:

Ubisoft requires a permanent Internet connection to play this video game at all times.

Same goes for Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, and HAWX 2. (I thought also Silent Hunter V, but there’s no DRM note at all for that one so I dunno.)

Angrycoder · 2012-12-25T00:22:24.000Z

Yeah, they did not rip out of their old titles, they just made it far less restrictive in their new titles. So you DRM guys won. Come out of your caves, the war is over.

Hanacker · 2012-12-25T00:47:21.000Z

Penny Dreadful:

If people will sell out to publishers and their draconian DRM schemes just so they can play a video game, they are gutless.

Gutless and having fun playing awesome video games!

Rock8man · 2012-12-25T05:04:33.000Z

Brad Grenz:

Well, we’ll see what sales may come back for Christmas day. I’ve gotten the EA, Ubisoft and THQ coupons so far. Just waiting on the 2K one, which I should be due, but they’re probably doing it last since it doesn’t become active until 12/26.

Rock8man:

Nice, you buy games from all the publishers. I just got my second EA Games email. I guess I buy lots of EA Games on sale from Amazon. Of course, each one says that I can only use one $5 promotional credit only, so getting multiple EA Games $5 promo credit is worthless.

But yeah, hopefully we’ll see some good deals tomorrow. Like Battlefield 3 with all the DLC for less than $15.

So it its in now Christmas Day. (Merry Christmas Qt3!). And it’s hilarious to me that the few sales they had on EA Games, like Battlefield 3 (Vanilla with no DLC) for $13.99, is now gone and is up to $34.23. Same with a few other discounted prices I noticed yesterday on EA Games. Oh well.

There will be a sale on Battlefield 3 premium tomorrow, but that will be too late to redeem this $5 promotional credit, which will now forever sit in my pool of credit, unable to be redeemed.

Zephyr · 2012-12-25T05:14:53.000Z

Darksiders franchise is still $13.19 on Amazon and the THQ $5 credit was applied at checkout.

SlainteMhath · 2012-12-25T05:35:18.000Z

Slainte Mhath:

Assuming everything doesn’t revert back to full price tomorrow I plan on purchasing a few items at $5 off sale prices.

Well, you know what they say about assuming…seems that unless you really want to pay $5 (after credit) for a 10 year old EA game or a SIMS expansion the EA codes are pretty much worthless. Everything either reverted to full price ridiculousness this morning, or went from being 75% off yesterday to not even 50% off with credit today.

I’m thinking the same thing will happen on January 1st, making all those $5 credits sitting in my email a joke. I’m still happy I got the games I originally bought at good prices, but I’d hoped the Amazon credits might make up for the lackluster Steam deals this sale. Not going to happen.

EDIT : SPOKE TOO SOON! THQ has stepped up to the plate and kept a lot of the sale prices intact today. So with $5 credit you can grab Saints Row Third Full Package for $2.50, or Warhammer 40K Dawn of War 2 and/or Chaos Rising for $5, or the THQ Medley Pack (Metro 2033, Space Marine, Homefront, Stalker and two Red Faction games) for a low low $5.

Rock8man · 2012-12-25T05:46:45.000Z

Yeah, I wish I’d had THQ credit. They seem to have done a good job keeping the sales on.

EA Games credit is pretty worthless today.

The games I’m tempted by in Amazon’s PC Digital Store are the Batman games for $10 (I own plain Arkham Asylum on PC and 360, but don’t own the GOTY yet, and I played through Arkham City on 360, but not on PC yet). And Dark Souls for $15.

blah · 2012-12-25T05:58:28.000Z

Guild Wars 2 is $29.99 at Amazon.

amazon.com

Amazon.com: Guild Wars 2 [Download]: Video Games

A full 250 years after the original Guild Wars, massive upheavals, cataclysms, and globe-spanning events have changed the world of Tyria. Human civilization is in decline. Other races are rising up, t ...

malkav11 · 2012-12-25T07:34:21.000Z

Hanacker:

Gutless and having fun playing awesome video games!

Ones that won’t be playable in five years time most likely! Yay!

RickH · 2012-12-25T10:33:51.000Z

Epic Mickey 2 for all platforms on sale at Amazon. $20 for 360/PS3. $25 for Wii. $25 for 3ds, but its really not the same game.

Hanacker · 2012-12-25T10:40:42.000Z

malkav11:

Ones that won’t be playable in five years time most likely! Yay!

Good thing I bought them cheap!

Papageno · 2012-12-25T11:11:24.000Z

Hey, can someone confirm whether the Lego LOTR game on Amazon activates on Steam? Or does it have some other third-party program (please say no)?

mprod · 2012-12-25T11:25:05.000Z

Papageno:

Hey, can someone confirm whether the Lego LOTR game on Amazon activates on Steam? Or does it have some other third-party program (please say no)?

yes. lego lotr activates on steam. so does scribblenauts. bought both yesterday. there is no third party stuff