Sony Divides Up MAG Factions For Pre-Order Bonuses

@BlisteringOrange: Actually, it's not Massive Action Game, it's just MAG (not an acronym, just capitalized cruise control style) now. which I think was a smart move.

@Atomsk88: Except the Gamestop exclusive God of War stuff. You can get the Kratos costume, sure. Not the Minotaur and Medusa costumes.

@LiamR:
Rock Band
Street Fighter
Afrika
(Lets keep this on a roll)

@bkchurch: Again, you are complaining about Sony doing business. I'm ok if I don't get these special characters, because I don't deserve them, because I did not pre-order the game - because I want to check reviews first.

Guy next to me really wants to have this special character that stands out from the 256 headed crowd. He gives some assured money for Sony, Sony gives him something special in return. Sounds fair to me!

Now some people are like, why can't I have it! But you can, it's the same thing with PS3 and BC. I have BC console because I saw it was important feature and bought one before they were getting rid of the feature.

BC is bad business for Sony for the time being. People had the chance to get it. Stop complaining. Oh, and BC comes back - you just have to buy PS2 games from Playstation Store. They will find an excuse that they cannot find solution to use Blu-ray player with fully emulated BC. Damn you Sony. I don't know weather to hate you or love you. But if that company gives something to reward pre-ordering lot.... they can't be completely evil, right?

@Outkastprince: Gold Weapons suck, In-game Pre-order only items suck.
and you Americans still don't question the $5 pre-order?

@AncientUnknown1: If you die..you die forever, I'm sure many would be happy about that..

Bkore

@deanbmmv: Guitar Hero

Play Station. Game Cube.

LiamR

I still think Raven will have the largest population. I do wonder how Zipper will balance the population.

AncientUnknown1

@deanbmmv: For example Gears of War had it right and wrong in it's pre-order bonuses. From what I semi know, one bonus let you turn one of your weapons gold, which was cool and affected nothing. The other if I recall was a lancer and that's where paying $5 to pre-order becomes disturbing.

Isn't it enough that you get first dibs for pre-ordering? I'm going to pre-order Final Fantasy as soon as I can, but please keep your silver painted blade with +14 atk and the ability to summon a Gamestop employee to yourself.

Outkastprince

@BlisteringOrange:
Final Fantasy
SimCity
Star Wars

@puresewas1de: Maybe its like being a red spartan, a green one, or a blue one.

@Archaotic: I don't mind the exclusive content if it's purely cosmetic. Golden guns? Don't care if you have that. New costumes? Nope.

I don't know about the classes or factions in MAG, but I will be pissed if I can't play as a certain class or faction or play with all that class or faction has to offer just because I didn't pre-order the game at Gamestop.

Then again, I have no clue what a S.V.E.R. character is. Same for a VALOR or RAVEN character. Different abilities, different guns, different armor? Absolutely no clue.

puresewas1de

This is bad... Gamestop is obviously going to get the most preorders as it is the largest game store with this deal. Meaning that 80% of people who preorder are going to be S.V.E.R. and the whole balance of factions is going to be screwed up.

I'm sure they thought of this though.. we'll see.

@bkchurch: You could also look at it like this:

"We are giving you something extra, since you bought the game at $69.99, helping us out even for just a little."

It's just like buying a collector's edition. You bought the game at a higher price, you get something.

You wait for it to go down, you miss on something...

Life is unfair. My teacher told me that. I'm going to sleep now. Bye.

@Archaotic: It's unfortunately not just Sony. Smackdown vs Raw 2010 this year has split their content. Order from one place and you get The Rock, order from another and you get Austin. The Rock's code will be released later but Austin's is a true exclusive that won't be made available for those who don't pre-order from certain places.

This trend is terrible but it's not something that's going to end. Hopefully they will find a happy middle ground where the content is only temporary.

Mike Newlad

@Xuchilbara: Wait? you can only make a character for one side?
Wow that sucks. One of the reason I got turned off on BF:heroes was you were tied to one class and one faction.
How do you play iwth freinds?
"Hey wanna join me on MAG?"
"Okay"
"I'm on Raven"
"aaah...."

@bkchurch: Well, in honesty, the Gigablades are pretty superficial themselves. They don't change the game in any major way, they just give you a slightly more powerful melee attack that usually gets you killed.

But I see what you mean, and I generally agree with it.

how about sending me a beta invite Sony! kthxbai

If I pre-order at GAME I get money-off on FFXIII.
GAME wins

Pre-orders suck. Should jsut be one pre-order bonus, and it shouldn't really effect the game in anyway except maybe a model change that says "I liked this game so much I bought it before it was out".

@Archaotic:

OR better yet, just stop handing out exclusive in game content to people who pre-order the damn game. I hate that I miss out on something just because I don't wanna pick up a game until it hits the $40 mark or I have the gall to want to give the game a shot via rental or borrowing from a friend before I lay my money down for it.

It doesn't matter if it's something significant like inFamous's Gigawatt blades or just superficial like this. I don't like being screwed out of content because I didn't preorder.

bkchurch

@Archaotic: On the other hand, it's nice to see other stores besides GameStop to have some pre-order bonus. Lately it has only been GameStop, and if we're talking about individuals who flock to any kind of bonus, that would pretty much give the store an advantage in sales.

Atomsk88

@Archaotic: so true, it sucks not getting stuff because you choose not to shop at a specific store.

Pre-order the game!!?!?!

I don't even know the name of this game yet!! Or is the name MAG the official name?

If it is the official name then... well... it kinda sucks. Massive Action Game. How generic could you get?

@Archaotic: There's my hatred comment. Been waiting for someone to hate this type of deals for all games, not just the ones they hate. I kind of hate that they do this to us and we eat it up like rice cakes, dammit I said rice cakes! I'm so hungry.

Outkastprince

@Gabbelgak: I notice positive comments so far, which is funny since people seem to shit on these type of deals when it's a game they don't enjoy. But give them something they want and pre-order bullshit is quite alright? Give me a break.

Man, I'm so hostile -hits his hand- But yeah, I do like those pre-order deals. XD Though I hate that they spread it out through three or four stores, it's becoming pretty common to do this to us.

Outkastprince

@Gabbelgak: LittleBigPlanet did it as well, but eventually everyone was able to download all of the pre-order goods.

Atomsk88

@Xuchilbara: no i didnt beta mag, i dont even have any clue what im talking about. isnt the internet great?

this game looks nice

Sony. You need to stop doing this. It just pisses people off. Don't you remember people whining about the Gigablades? Or the Uncharted 2 unlocks? Or the Ratchet and Clank bonuses?

PEOPLE DON'T LIKE GETTING LESS CONTENT. Just get one preorder bonus for every retailer and stop it.

I think this is awesome! A good way to show loyalty towards your faction!

S.V.E.R. FOR LIFE!

Gamestop & Game Crazy: "We got McDonalds, we got McDonalds!"
"Ew, Amazon, where did you get that Welfare Burger?"

@shredmanifesto: You must not have been in the beta.... You cant switch factions without completely deleting your character. And if you do that you completely lose your rank.
So there is no way for this to be DLC, thanks for playing!

Now this is the kind of pre-order BS I can get behind. Serves a kind of neat social experiment.

AmoretteImp

Location specific preorder bonuses is a sign of the end of days. Worst. Idea. EVER.

@shredmanifesto: $5 pre-order that goes towards the game, or $5.99 DLC in addition to the full price of purchase.

Yes, Game Crazy + Raven = Satisfaction!

Atomsk88

...which will be released later as 5.99 DLC. Thanks for pre-ordering.

@Adhominem: and knowing Sony it will probably suck, like warhawk and socom.

@elmorepow: Do you people who pre-order albums get access to exclusive songs that no one else will be able to buy down the line? No. Do people who pre-order movies get special access to deleted scenes and behind the scenes content that those who didn't pre-order will never be able to access? No.

This bullshit wouldn't fly in any other industry. Why do we stand for it in this one?

bkchurch

i cant even remember the last time i went on home...

WayByWind

Never pre-order a game you just want for the multiplayer. Based on past evidence from basically every major multiplayer game, come launch the online component is going to be broken.

Also, does "pre-order" sound weird to anybody else? I thought ordering the game insinuates that you're getting at a later date. I guess it stands for Pre-Release Order?

Adhominem

@sander_dutch:

mmmmmmmm......fresh welfare burgers. yum!

Oh, to hell with virtual pre-orders. This one of the lamest trends I've seen in gaming in a long time and of course Gamestop would have to be in the center of it.

I'll still go with Amazon. ECA discount, plus any potential sales and Prime always make it better than preordering at GameStop for a silly in-game costume.

@deanbmmv:
Metal Gear
Aperture
Guild Wars

Spnkr

@Archaotic: Having all this pre-order crap is about the only way they can sway certain folks into buying the game when it comes out, instead of just waiting to pick it up used.

Business is brutal.

What sucks about these pre-order goodies is that in the end Canada usually gets screwed over and over looked. At least with the UK, game publishers will custom make preorder bonuses for those regions. in canada they just assume that EB will cover it, which usually means we only get once choice with this stuff. Same with Bestbuy/Futureshop, if they get part of a US deal, Canada only gets the one usually.

I would love to see devs try to custom-make bonuses for us. Afterall we are no longer a small market, and If i recall we have more gamers/populace then the US. Also dosn't hurt that most major AA developers have major studio houses here.

@deanbmmv: Wrong kind of roll?

@deanbmmv: The $5 goes toward the final purchase.

Technically you "don't" have to even put down $5 but it secures a copy for you from Gamestop's distribution center.

When they set up their launch day shipments if there is any kind of last minute quantity issues from the publishers they will make sure they try to send 1 copy for ever $$ preorder...and if any are left one for every none money order.

99% of the time it really doesn't make a differnce on hit titles (they get like 100 copies even in rural areas) but on niche or cult games sometimes they won't even get 1 unless someone has it pre-ordered.

I wish I could disagree with you there regarding the PlayStation Home space via Amazon...but I can't. Only because...in all the time I've been in Home, I don't think I've ever had another person to my personal space...I don't really USE Home in that way. At least, not yet...

bah ... i want to give this game some time
not for servers, because it will be ready in the first week as for any online game ...

but for reviews and impressions ... and to see if i'm bored enough for that game mostly

like warhawk, i doubt i'll be having pleasure playing MAG since there will be a lot of killing from distance, unexpected deaths, i don't like those games

HeavyMental

@deanbmmv: Wow, that would be a terrible idea on Zippers part.

Arronwy

@bkchurch: you really have to look at it from another angle. It's not "you getting screwed out of content". It's the pre-order-ers getting rewarded for doing exactly what the game company needs/wants -- People to NOT wait for games to decrease in price.

@deanbmmv: We're gullible, they know how to sell to us Americans. It's usually "We're giving you ALL THIS (picture above) FOR $5!? It's like you're ripping us off! and we smile and buy it like we just pull off the biggest heist since Thelma and Louise.

Outkastprince

@deanbmmv: SONY: NO! And just for that comment, your FFXIII is now 299..enjoy your price cut :D- Sony

Bkore

@Bkore: Thats how every game should be. If I die, I want the disc to melt and I'm forced to buy another copy.

After the game comes out and people are swarming to one, they'll probably give some perks to joining other factions.

Darkly Dreaming svenhoek

@vega480: I agree with this but otherwise see no problem with pre-order incentives.

Bergerac

VALOR FTW

@BlisteringOrange:
The name is still MAG, but they dropped the "Massive Action Game" tag line. So it's a little less generic now.

I could car less if they call it Mega Ass Gimps, as long as the gameplay is good, which it appears from the beta it is.

VEX

@Archaotic: Well at least the Ratchet and Clank stuff is attainable in-game.

PlatformJunkie

@BlisteringOrange: You're not getting the game at a higher price. That 5 bucks counts toward the 60 plus tax.

PlatformJunkie

Go RAVEN. Future mercenaries of ultimate destruction win.

VALOR is cool too...but meh at the thug faction.

@emeraldgsl: I don't think those 2 game sucked. But I'll agree that they were very very niche.

Adhominem

I played this at PAX and I wasn't impressed. Hope its better at launch.

thekidq909

Dunno if I wanna be Valor or Raven. Leaning towards Raven though. If they don't announce the Valor pre-orders I might go with Raven and then cancel the pre-order. Doesn't that make me evil?

What kind of crap is this? I never buy anything at GameCrazy, nor is there any local shops near me. Gamestop however gets all my business. But I'm going Raven, so no exclusive character for me :(

BigDaddyDLo

@PlatformJunkie:

New games are usually three dollars cheaper on Amazon, on top of that if you're an ECA member (1 year membership only costs $15) you get 10% off all games purchases on Amazon. That brings the price of a new game on Amazon to $51.70. If I pre-order a game at Gamestop or Best Buy or Gamecrazy I'm paying $60 plus $3 tax plus shipping if I order online.

So at the end of the day it costs at least $11 more for me to buy a game at one of the B&M chains than it does to buy on Amazon. Hell even if it's not in Goldbox and you're not an ECA member for whatever reason it's still $3 cheaper. And Amazon always gets shafted with the shitty pre-order bonuses.

So tell me again: how is it that I wouldn't be paying more for pre-order bonuses?

bkchurch

Wait, the Home reference is complete sarcasm... right?

I would definitely rather have the Home space instead of the in-game characters.

valor is probably for best buy. I'll preorder mine at gamestop. i'll also preorder from gamecrazy cause their pretty dumb there so i can just cancel and keep it. That and gamecrazys in las vegas is kinda disappearing and becoming marks videos, who the hell is mark?

@SacGamer: I agree... except in the opposite.

ctorrans

@BigDaddyDLo: Might be worth the drive, then. How far away is the closest GameCrazy? My store has offored, on occasion, to ship the game to the customer upon release if it's paid in full. Maybe you could work out a similar deal?

Raziel

@Adhominem: Well, at the moment, 256 people in the beta seems to be working just fine.

So I bet Valor will be the preorder on Amazon to complete the Triforce of pre order bonus companies. Even so, I plan on getting this at a small local shop here in L.A.

Yamagata

@emeraldgsl: Warhawk is awesome, not that I place any value in the opinion of someone who tells people they're idiots for not buying a 360.

Abno

you need to keep your home remarks to yourself k thanks.

I know there are many problems with pre-order bonuses (in my opinion) but the biggest issue in this case is that it will skew the game balance.

Hear me out.

GameStop is the largest game chain in the US. Which (logically means) that it will pre-order the most. Especially compared to Game Crazy... and the TBD (even if it's Amazon) won't even come close.

Now you have a day one game population logging in and anxious to use their pre-order bonus thus gravitating to the faction that matches their bonus.

Since a majority of those sold will absolutely be GameSpot bonuses, the lions share of gamers will default to S.V.E.R.

Good luck finding players on the other factions for the first week or so. In fact, if it's really hard to get balanced teams (especially the large scale battles) it could turn off many early adopters and gimp the game out of the gate.

Then again... nothing of the sort may happen. I'll just have to wait and see.

@Xuchilbara: If that remains the policy upon release (which would be laaaaame), it looks like I'll be picking up a couple cheapo thumb drives to keep separate gamesaves for each faction. Hopefully that solves the problem; they better not copy-protect that shit.

I think it would be best if they just offered a regular version of the game at all places and preorders could choose a figure.

I personally don't think I'll be playing as S.V.E.R. but there are, literally, no other other game stores nearby that aren't Gamestop, and even if there was, I doubt they'd be Game Crazy. Which leaves Amazon, but personally I was looking at the Raven faction.

TheCodexx

are these available in Canada? usually eb gets the gamestop pre-order bonuses, most of the time. but we don't have gamecrazy here (at least not that i know of) and amazeon.ca is not always getting the same stuff as amazon.com. so would we have to import or something?

Who gives crap if you get stupid extra character models? This game is cheaper on Amazon. It cost 56.99. I have a ECA Membership that gives me 10% off. I will be paying about 51.29 for this game. Amazone has the BETTER deal!

With 1180kbit downstream and 160 kbit upstream, will this be playable? I really want to play this but my connection is rubbish and probably won't change till Christmas falls in june.

@skaven: To be honest right now S.V.E.R is really under represented in the game and the other 2 factions are always quick to fill a side so this may help to jump start a less popular faction if only by mistake this could turn out to be a good thing.

Really good point you make though guess we will have to see how it turns out.