Hacking the PSP Blog

PSP Value Pack $199.99 @ GameStop

The latest ad from GameStop shows the PSP Value Pack on sale for $199.99 ($50 less than the original price). According to Sony they no longer sell Value Packs to retailers so it appears that GameStop has a few left in stock. Let it be known that this is a GameStop-only promotion and not a mandated price drop by Sony. PSP Value Packs are only available at select GameStop locations so your luck will vary. If you're interested in this deal then give it a shot at your local GameStop!

Via PSP Fanboy

Off Topic: Thompson responds to the Take Two suit with one of his own

In response to the suit that game publisher Take Two Interactive filed against Jack Thompson last week, Thompson has filed a countersuit against the company, continuing the ever-growing saga of Jack Thompson v. The World. Thompson claims that Take Two is part of a "vast conspiracy to deprive [him] of his civil rights". Not satisfied with the religiously-motivated diatribe he sent to us here at Ars, Jack is now seeking a legal beatdown of his long-standing enemy.

Thompson even goes so far as to claim that the company has "violated federal RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) statutes." These statutes are typically used to prosecute organized crime, which Take Two apparently knows something about.

A copy of Thompson's filing, seen by Ars Technica, makes for eye-opening reading. Starting the counterclaim with various quotes from George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, Thompson then builds his case by parlaying the rhetorically-shady history of Take Two's rise to supposed infamy and chronicling the horrible, terrible, bone-chilling games that have been so unjustly unleashed upon society:

The cravenness of Take Two is so deep that its attempt to enlist the aid of the very courts that so prominently and correctly played a crucial role in the civil rights movement is an irony undoubtedly lost upon the technologically adroit and morally challenged cultural Neanderthals in the Edinburgh, Scotland, software design studios of Take Two’s Rockstar Games.

Take that, Take Two! Though he dislikes the "Neanderthals" at Take Two in general, he reserves special scorn for certain products, like Manhunt. "This is the same Take Two/Rockstar Games which excreted into the teen world the game Manhunt," he writes, "which inspired the copycat bludgeoning murder by hammer blows of a Leicester, England, youth."

Read the full article here...

Frank Caron
March 22, 2007

Source: Ars Technica

Full downloadable games coming to UK?

YourPSP's official PSP Store is Europe's premiere destination for PSP downloads. It's provided us with a great number of downloadable demos and other goodies. However, it looks to be getting an overhaul. What new upgrades might the site be receiving? Full downloadable games, if this page from the UK PlayStation site is to be believed.

To the right of the page, links to downloadable demos of Loco Roco, Killzone and Ridge Racer 2 can be found. But more interesting are the descriptions for Wipeout: Pure and Go! Sudoku: "Download full game now."

Sony has promised that the PLAYSTATION Store would one day find its way to PSP. As they've shown with the PS3, full downloadable games are a crucial part of Sony's strategy. Could Europe be the first region to receive downloadable retail games? If so, how will it work? When will it expand to other countries? Was the web version of the PLAYSTATION Store the beginning of something bigger? Stay tuned for more.

Andrew Yoon
March 22, 2007

Source: PSP Fanboy

Follow-Up on my opinion piece from yesterday...

For those who are interested, I have received my first email from Best Buy customer "care". Of course, it's a form letter. Like I discussed yesterday, there is no one who will call me or write me a personal email. Instead, they send you right back to their "888-BEST-BUY" phone number, where someone else can ignore you. I spoke to a manager at my local store yesterday and he was upset how tied his hands were (I let him go). Seriously, he can't call anyone except that phone number as well, just like the new arrangement in Sprint/Nextel stores.

Note their email basically says "go away, we don't want to get involved with you." It's oh-so-comforting that I am now part of a database. Maybe the great Oracle will solve my problems (get it? <grin>). I also like how they wrap up the "sorry but not sorry" form letter with a line that translates to "please spend more money with us".

Apparently Best Buy has had a lot of trouble with In Home Service before. They've been sued multiple times over not providing the service. I honestly didn't know this. Please save yourself from going through the pain I have. Don't buy Best Buy In Home Service plans. I must admit, though, their Magnolia Home Theater people are wonderful. Too bad they have to sell Best Buy service plans!

I have translated the email to the form. Below is the original email from them. After it I have placed what the template likely looks like.

Here's their email:

Auri, 

I am Marvin with Best Buy Customer Care.

I apologize for any inconvenience you have experienced related to our In Home Service. 

Best Buy strives to make each experience you have with us positive and as fun as possible, and we are disappointed if we don't live up to that expectation. We are constantly looking for ways to give you the best possible Best Buy experience. We appreciate all comments from our customers. When a customer gives us feedback of any kind, we enter it into a database with other customer comments. We then look for trends to help us identify areas for improvement.

Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns at 1-888-BESTBUY (1-888-237-8289). We look forward to your next visit to one of our stores or to www.BestBuy.com.

Sincerely, 

Marvin

Best Buy Customer Care Team

What the template probably looks like on their server:

<Customer First Name>, 

I am <Random CSR Name> with <Department Friendly Title>.

I apologize for any inconvenience you have experienced related to our <Primary Department in Complaint>. 

Best Buy strives to make each experience you have with us positive and as fun as possible, and we are disappointed if we don't live up to that expectation. We are constantly looking for ways to give you the best possible Best Buy experience. We appreciate all comments from our customers. When a customer gives us feedback of any kind, we enter it into a database with other customer comments. We then look for trends to help us identify areas for improvement.

Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns at 1-888-BESTBUY (1-888-237-8289). We look forward to your next visit to one of our stores or to www.BestBuy.com.

Sincerely, 

<Random CSR Name, repeated>

Best Buy <Department Friendly Title> Team