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The Game Times: The Week in Video Game News 11/13
PS4s to include free memberships and PSN credit, Microsoft giving away XOne bundles
All North American PlayStation 4 systems will include free trials and credit toward PlayStation services, Sony announced Friday.
PlayStation veterans and newcomers alike will have a full month of the three included services on the house, provided they live in US or Canada. A post on the US PlayStation Blog confirmed that the "threefold surprise" consists of:
- $10 Sony Entertainment Network wallet credit for PlayStation Store
- 30-day free PlayStation Plus membership trial
- 30-day free Music Unlimited service trial
The announcement also confirms that the $10 of PSN credit may be put toward anything in the store. However, the 30-day PlayStation Plus trial is for new subscribers only. In other words, current PS+ members won't gain a free month and are better off passing their card on to a friend.
The news comes on the heels of Microsoft's almost unbelievable Xbox One giveaway which began with a round of emails reading "Consider yourself gifted. All free. All yours."
The lucky email recipients were promised an Xbox One system, 12 months of Xbox Live Gold, 12 months of Xbox Music, and copies of Ryse: Son of Rome, Zoo Tycoon, Forza 5 and Dead Rising 3 free of charge. Suspecting a scam, Xbox users took to Twitter for confirmation, only to hear—straight from the lion's maw—that both the emails and simultaneous Xbox 360 notifications were entirely legitimate.
The Xbox One bundle lottery was revealed alongside Microsoft's announcement that long-time Xbox 360 owners would receive a free copy of Killer Instinct with all the game's fighters unlocked.
(Source: PlayStation Blog, GameZone)
Related game news
- Soon-to-be PS4 owners will be able to control their system by voice. But it won't always listen.
- From the time you pop it in, you're just 3 minutes away from playing Killzone: Shadow Fall...enormous installation and all.
- Remember Sony's back-room-only VR headset? It's back.
- PS4 footage of Watch Dogs was used in a promotional video for Xbox One.
Amazon and Target offer 2-for-1 deals on PS4 games, other retailers unable to keep up
Next-gen pre-order leader Amazon responded to Target's buy-2-get-1-free offer with an identical offer, albeit it one with a serious time constraint.
The promotion's official Amazon page details the following:
• What is the promotion? This is a buy 2 get 1 free promotion. Simply add 3 of the select list of PS4 games to your cart. At checkout, use the eight digit promotional code, GR8TNESS. The discount will be reflected in your Order Summary.
• What is the promotional code? GR8TNESS
• When will the promotion be applied? The promotion will be applied at checkout after you enter the promotional code.
The eligible games total 14, including all PS4 launch titles. The promotion itself is valid today, November 12, from 1-9 p.m. PST or while supplies last.
It's short-lived, to be sure, but Amazon's PS4 promotion distinguishes it from the many retailers—GameStop, Toys 'R' Us, Best Buy and FYE—who openly refused to match Target's discount.
(Source: Dualshockers)
Related game news
- Sony and Amazon are now officially joined at the hip thanks to the "Amazon PlayStation Network Store."
- It isn't free games, but GameStop has some big events planned for PS4's launch.
The part with the videos
Get a taste of what it's like to use an Xbox One...
...and a PS4 with these UI demos
For those who just can't wait to hold one yourself: watch Shuhei Yoshida unbox a PS4
Take your game beyond the court in NBA 2K14's MyCAREER
Final Boss
Sony France made quite a splash with their PS4-themed apartment room, dubbed "Apartment 4," back in October, but Microsoft has stolen their thunder and then some with the Xbox One Hotel, an entire building dedicated to the splendor of Xbox One.
That's, like, 100 times grander than an apartment.
You can catch a few screenshots below, and see the entire Hotel gallery here.
