Words about games
Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light – Review
Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, PC – £3.39
PC version review by Ben Tyrer
Right now, this game is on offer over at Steam as part of the Square Enix week promotion. What better time to share my thoughts on the latest escapade of beloved raider of tombs, Lara Croft?
0Zavvi announce 3DS price drop
Alert SavyGamer reader Justin just let me know that Zavvi have emailed him to let him know that they will be dropping the price of the 3DS tomorrow.
They’re currently selling the console for £217.85, much more than the best price elsewhere (£197 from Amazon).
Here’s the email in full:
2Hi *Customer*,
Thanks for placing your order with zavvi.com. We are pleased to let you know that we will be reducing the price of your 3DS. A refund of the difference you paid upon placing your order will be processed automatically back to your account shortly after despatch of your order. You can view the new price tomorrow Click here.
Should you have any further questions please contact us through your online account message centre or on 0844 264 0702 and we will be happy to help you.
Many Thanks,
The Zavvi Customer Care Team
Zavvi 15% off coupons now expired
It seems that despite the initial terms and conditions for Zavvi’s 15% off coupons saying that they would be valid until the end of March, The Hut Group have decided to end the promotion early.
The Britvic “Reward your Thirst” promotion page has been updated with this message:
Zavvi.co.uk (The Hut Group Ltd) has announced its withdrawal from the Reward Your Thirst collector mechanic as of 04.02.11 in accordance with the Terms & Conditions.
The web site looks like this if you are curious.
It also looks like they have revoked any previously issued coupons (none of mine are working). No word on whether they will be cancelling preorders or not, let me know what happens to any of yours.
We had some good deals I suppose.
15Massive Zavvi currency glitch
Edit: It appears that although this seems to work on most items, it doesn’t work on everything.
It looks like Zavvi have just updated their £/€ exchange rate, but made a mistake, and switching from pounds to Euros actually significantly reduces the amount you have to pay.
If you add items to your basket, then click on the “Euro” flag in the top right, you will save about 25%.
This can be used in addition to the 15% off coupon.
No idea when they will notice this mistake, but don’t tell them you heard it from me.
Here are all recent SavyGamer Zavvi posts.
Cheers ran93r.
Update: Here are some nicely discounted items to consider ordering:
Nintendo 3DS [Black] – £158.26 delivered
2,100 MS Points – £9.86
Dead Space 2, Xbox 360 – £23.43 delivered
Dead Space 2 [Limited Edition], PS3 – £23.43 delivered
Pilot Wings Resort, 3DS – £18.65
The Sims 3, 3DS – £18.65
Rayman 2, 3DS – £18.65
Here’s a list of PS3 games you could buy for £47.99
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Killzone 2
Demon’s Souls
Valkyria Chronicles
Little Big Planet
Alternatively, you could buy Mass Effect 2, a 12 month old 360 port, for a whopping £48 on PSN. The same game that is available for the 360 right now for just £6.81 delivered.
The download version, which cannot be resold, should be cheaper than the disc version. It is the same game, only with less middlemen to pay, and minuscule distribution costs.
The PS3 disc version is available for the still fairly expensive price of £32.26 delivered.
Insane.
Via VG247.
915% off Zavvi coupons back on.
Last week you could get coupons for 15% off at Zavvi. Then they ended the promotion because they accidentally were allowing you to use them on items over £100 (and the T&Cs said it was only for items £100 or less). Now they are running the promotion again, but have fixed the coupons so that they no longer work on items over £100.
Currently, the promotion web site is not giving out any Zavvi coupons, but previously issued coupons are now working on the Zavvi web site.
If you’ve not got any, try using these (let me know in the comments if you have used one):
497-2E46-CD79
497-22DB-A724
I’ll update this post when the promo site starts giving out coupons again.
Update
The web site is now giving out coupons again. Here’s the instructions:
1. Head here and register with fake details (using “normal registration”). You will need to enter a valid UK address, but it does not have to be your address.
2. Hit “Send Recommendations”.
3. Enter a fake name and fake email address. Repeat this up to 9 times (you can only send 10 recommendations).
4. For each fake email address, you will get a point. For 3 points you can claim a single use voucher for use at Zavvi.
5. Once you’ve got three vouchers, sign out and repeat the process.
We all know Zavvi‘s service isn’t fantastic, and they are kind of dishonest, but there will be some excellent deals to be had using these coupons.
10Speculation: The 3DS will cost ~£249.99
Nintendo have already announced that the Japanese price for the 3DS will be ¥25,000 when it releases there in February, but we’re still left guessing what the price might be in the UK. With a little bit of creative estimation and number crunching, I’ve come up with an RRP in pound sterling that will probably be not far from the actual price when it does come out here next year.
8Unlimited 15% off Zavvi coupons
Remember when Zavvi were giving out unlimited free 10% off coupons? Well, this is the same, only with 15% off coupons.
Here’s what you need to do:
1. Head here and register with fake details (using “normal registration”). You will need to enter a valid UK address, but it does not have to be your address.
2. Hit “Send Recommendations”.
3. Enter a fake name and fake email address. Repeat this up to 9 times (you can only send 10 recommendations).
4. For each fake email address, you will get a point. For 3 points you can claim a single use voucher for use at Zavvi.
5. Once you’ve got three vouchers, sign out and repeat the process.
We all know Zavvi‘s service isn’t fantastic, and they are kind of dishonest, but there will be some excellent deals to be had using these coupons.
21Why region lock a console?
It was recently confirmed that as a first for Nintendo, they will be region locking their new portable console, the 3DS. Previously the DSi was region locked for downloadable content and a very small number of DSi enhanced DS games, but ~99% of the library of DS games would work on consoles from any region.
12New category: Mac games
I’ve just created a new category for Mac games. Up until now, there wasn’t really anywhere that had Mac games for cheap regularly aside from Steam, and since those were always for Windows too, I just mentioned which ones were also for Mac.
With the launch of the Mac Application Store, now there are sometimes Mac only games on sale, so I have created a category specifically for it, which you can find here, and subscribe to via RSS here.
If a deal is just for the Mac, I’ll post it in the Mac category, and if it is Windows/Mac, I’ll include it in both.
2There are probably some cheap games on the Apple Application store right now…
…but, because I don’t own an Apple computer, I’m not allowed to look at it.
It seems strange that there isn’t a web frontend or something that I can look at from any other type of computer. I wonder what they’ve got to hide from the non-Apple using world.
Anyway, there’s no way of me finding out what games are on special offer from a Windows PC, so short of someone buying me an iComputer, or you lot/publishers emailing me to let me know of discounts, you’re going to be on your own.
Edit: Aha! James in the comments points out that there is a web front end. Although it appears to just be a list of all games in a given category, in a seemingly random order, with no pricing details until you click on a link. Extremely close to useless without being totally useless. Brilliant work Apple.
8Back again
Basically this, but every time they say “Dilated”, imagine they are saying “Savy”, and every time the say “People”, imagine they are saying “Gamer”.
Since the problems which I suspect were the fault of my previous host, QIQ, I’ve been working around the clock to try and get SavyGamer back up and running properly.
There’s a few fiddly things that need to be changed that I’ll sort out over the next few days, and I’m on a newer version of the theme so there are a few small changes. Let me know if you see anything not working correctly.
Ironically, I gather that the downtime over the past few days has got the attention of some new people. Hello you! If you’re new, make yourself at home. SavyGamer is a web site that is constantly updated with the best deals on video games from all sources. If you want to save money on games, then stick around. <3 Cheers for your patience whilst I've been sorting this out.
4Do not go on SavyGamer.co.uk, or click on this link.
I hope you’re reading this from somewhere safe, like an RSS reader.
Basically the problems that my host had said that they had sorted 7 days ago are actually not sorted, and so there is some nasty malware embedded somewhere on the site. Microsoft Security Essentials is successfully detecting the malware, and preventing it from infecting my PC, so if you suspect you might have been infected, I recommend using that.
I suspect this is going to force my hand and make me move to somewhere else. I’m currently looking into my options, but will be posting deals to twitter.com/savygamer in the meantime.
I’m really sorry about this, I’m doing everything I can to fix it.
0Steam Christmas Sale leak?
Does this really count as a leak? I think probably. Either way, I bet I got your attention with that question mark headline, sucker. These are some indie packs that have been added to the Steam registry, which I don’t know what it is.
Indie Smart pack: Lumines, Droplitz, Puzzle Agent, Quantz
2D pack: Bullet Candy, Geometry Wars, Super Laser Racer, VVVVVV, Galcon Fusion
Heavy Hitters: Audio Surf, Shattered Horizon, World of Goo, Zeno Clash
Fright Pack: The Path, Zombie Driver, Scourge Project, The Void, Burn Zombie Burn
Fantasy Pack: Spectromancer, Fairie Solitaire, Fortix, Bob Came in Pieces, NyxQuest
Flight Pack: Every Day Shooter, Gratuitious Space Battles, Dogfighter, Flotilla, Guns of Icarus
Adventure Pack: Gish, And Yet It Moves, Mr Robot, Samarost, Jolly Roger
Kids Pack: Toki Tori, Crayon Physics, Secret of Magic Crystal, Max & Magic Marker, Delve Deeper
Beat Pack: Rhythm Zone, Beat Hazard, Turba, Chime, Bit Trip Beat
Future Pack: Uplink, Twin Sector, Hammerfight, System Protocol, Hacker Evolution
Brain Pack: Big Brain Wolf, Windowsill, Zen Bound 2, Diamond Dan, Puzzle Bots
Mix Pack: Darwinia, Defcon, Cogs, Eufloria, Plain Sight
It certainly looks like the kind of sale items Steam might have over Christmas. 12 indie bundles for the 12 days of Christmas? It’s also about time the phenomenal Every Day Shooter goes on sale too. Going by the pricing of the Thanksgiving sale, these packs will probably be £3.99/£3.50 each.
There is also one massive indie pack:
Indie Potato Pack: Amnesia, Bit.Trip.Beat, Toki Tori, Red Orchestra, Killing Floor, Darkest Hour, Audio Surf, Wonderful End of the world, Defense Grid, AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! A Reckless Disregard for Gravity, The Ball, Cogs, Braid, Super Meat Boy
Also mentioned are:
TellTale complete pack
Alien Breed pack
So maybe hold off buying any TellTale or Alien Breed games in the meantime.
If you want a reminder of what the last Steam Christmas sale looked like, check out this post on it.
Thanks LovingSteam of Neogaf for being in the know.
10SavyGamer no longer a virus
Gosh what a lovely/horrible week the last seven days have been.
I’ve been away since Wednesday last week, and after thinking I’d finally got everything sorted following my fairly incompetent hosts allowing mine and several other people’s websites redirect to spam for a period of ~15 hours, I got inundated with messages of people telling me that their browser/antivirus was flagging SavyGamer as containing malware. In a moment of madness, whilst at ATP, I tried to fix in on my phone, but that didn’t get very far.
I’m pretty sure that this infection was my host’s fault, but I don’t actually know for sure, so I can’t say for definite that it was their fault.
Anyway, SavyGamer has now got a clean bill of health, and short of any other major unexpected disasters, ready for another year of saving gamers across the internet money on those games that we all love so much. Let me know if there are any particularly good deals I’ve missed over the last few days.
10SECURITY WARNING – Update your virus scanners!
Hey, guys. We’ve got reports of Google throwing up security errors when trying to visit SavyGamer. This may simply be Google warning us about the malicious redirection we had a few days ago (which has since been fixed), or it may be something more serious. When Lewie gets back he’ll investigate and get it sorted. Sorry for any problems this might cause.
In the mean time, I suggest running a virus scan immediately, just in case there’s any problems. If you don’t have a safety suite, I recommend either Microsoft Security Essentials or AVG – both good free protection.
4I'M ALIVE
Terribly sorry for the downtime and redirecting to spam today, although based on the amount of interest on twitter I might start a sideline in Viagra. It genuinely wasn’t my fault all, and was entirely QiQ’s fault (that is my host).
It appears to be totally fixed now, although I’m planning to switch to a new server in the next month or so just to be sure.
Update: Dank Ross‘s QiQ hosted Motorsport blog Motorsport Musings had the exact same thing happen.
Update2: and Andrew Molloy‘s blog, Dark Mobius
2AI War: Fleet Command, PC – Review
AI War: Fleet Command, PC – £5.32 (DRM free, direct from the developer, but also can be registered on Steam)
Review by Bobby Foster
If I could take only one videogame with me to a desert island, it might be this one. There is so much depth and challenge here that even if I spent a lifetime in solitary confinement playing it, I might still never be able to say I’d mastered it.
Unfortunately, away from the desert island, my patience was too short.
14The SavyGamer Awards 2010: Results
The results are in, and the votes are counted, here’s the definitive answer to the ultimate question of “Who is a bit rubbish, and who is a bit good?”. We’re looking at Retailers, Digital Distributors, Publishers, Developers and online retailers, and the criteria that they’ll be judged on include value, quality of service and attitude towards customers. Read on to find out who’s crowned a being Savy, and who is going to forever bear the mark of UnSavyness.
26Direct2Drive pricematch actually utterly useless
A couple of days ago I reported that Direct2Drive appeared to be offering a pricematch against Steam and GamersGate. Turns out they are, but only on items that are priced at RRP, not anything that is discounted. This means that the Steam and GamersGate Thanksgiving and Christmas sales do not count.
It is true that their Terms & Conditions do point this out, although they were not live when this offer started. Clearly this is a price match policy in name only, they have got no interest in actually offering their customers better value on these games than GamersGate or Steam.
I am deeply sorry to anyone who, as a result of me telling them about this offer, ended up paying more than they needed to for a game.
9Pretend you are an IGF judge 2011: Part 3
This is the third and penultimate compilations of links to publicly playable games that are part of the Independent Games Festival 2011.
Follow these links for part 1 and part 2
0The SavyGamer Awards 2010: Vote now
We’re approaching the end of another year of video game buying, and what better time to praise those corporate entities in the video game industry who do a good job, and make nasty scathing comments about those that do not. We’re going to take stock of who’s done the best job of keeping your money in your wallet, and a smile on your face, and who has left you feeling ripped off and disappointed.
4Worst Buy?
Today, the UK arm of the US based mega-retailer Best Buy launched their online store.
I was excited to see what fantastic launch offers they might have, after their brick and mortar shops have had some great opening offers, and hoped that increased competition in the sector might end up being good for customers.
I loaded it up, and didn’t see any launch offers thrust in my face as I had expected. No matter, I though, I’ll probe futher into the video games section as see what they have.
Upon clicking on “Gaming”, I was prompted with this message:
Best Buy Entertainment is managed in conjunction with The Hut Group. It has a separate shopping basket, checkout and Customer Services to the rest of bestbuy.co.uk. As such you will need to set up a separate account for this site with your payment and delivery details.
Hmmmm.
12YOU CAN NO LONGER WIN: Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light
UPDATE: All of these are apparently gone. Thanks for playing!
I was digging through my inbox and found three unused codes for Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light on Xbox Live Arcade. Handily, the game’s just been updated with online co-op and has the first DLC puzzle pack free for a limited time.
K9CJX-J3KHF-MKDTB-7JB7V-4HWV8
The game focuses on co-op puzzles similar to those you might find in a Zelda game, and so I decided to make finding the codes a bit of a puzzle.
K7TX8-8C464-BWK6R-6XHJ6-DFVRM
I’ve hidden the three codes in different places throughout this post. If you can find one and redeem it before anyone else, you’ll get the game for absolutely free.
MJJX2-Q77QK-464HV-TJQ4X-9PGXY
I hope I haven’t made it too difficult. If you do manage to crack the devious puzzles I’ve laid out, post in the comments and let us know that you’ve grabbed one.
3