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[Updated] Did OnLive coupon dustup earn gamer good will?

Update: Joystiq reports that GameStop is now offering a $50 store credit and a two-for-one used game offer for customers affected by the Deus Ex: Human Revolution coupon controversy.

Before this week, if you mentioned OnLive's cloud-gaming service to dedicated gamers, you'd hear lots of skepticism. Whether it's doubts about OnLive's responsiveness or reservations about the absence of a local copy of games that have been paid for, OnLive has met with plenty of consumer resistance (although we like it) since it emerged in 2009.

This past week, though, OnLive seems to have earned itself some good will. At the start of the week, gamers discovered a coupon for a free OnLive version of Deus Ex: Human Revolution in their boxed copies of the game's PC version. Putting the service, and a copy of a well-received fan favorite game, in the hands of gamers who risk nothing by giving OnLive a spin can only help win fans.

Then, a few days into the week, news broke that retailer GameStop was pulling the OnLive coupon from its Deus Ex copies on the grounds that OnLive is a competitor to GameStop's own forthcoming streaming service, due to hit beta later this year. That move, of course, met with outrage from the gaming community.… Read more

Deus Ex: Human Revolution: More human than human

Eleven years since its original inception, the Deus Ex series welcomes a new entry in the form of Deus Ex: Human Revolution. In a world where human augmentations have been commercialized by big business, human beings have the option to upgrade not just their bodies but also their minds. Such an ethical hot topic has created passionate factions on each side of the argument forcing players to find a balance between the two.

A franchise known for mixing RPG and action elements all while giving the player the freedom of choice, we've been anxiously awaiting to see just how such an ambitious collection of mechanics play out on current-generation consoles. Taking a special look at the game on PC is CNET Senior Editor Rich Brown.

Jeff: After just surviving a summer drought of games like the one we just experienced, Deus Ex: Human Revolution is a very welcome light at the end of the tunnel. It's an incredibly deep and layered game with a cerebral storyline that will charm even the most jaded cyberpunk enthusiast--a true complement to the game's great Blade Runner-inspired art direction.

The best way I can describe Human Revolution is a cross between Metal Gear Solid and Mass Effect. The team at Eidos Montreal borrowed the best elements from each of these franchises and made it their own, successfully weaving a game that lives up to its series' legacy of giving the player ultimate choice. This concept applies to almost everything Adam Jensen--the game's main character--does, from interrogating a person of interest to infiltrating a testing laboratory.… Read more

Nvidia's PhysX makes PC Batman: Arkham Asylum worth the wait

Two weeks after the console launch, PC gamers finally got their version of Eidos Interactive's Batman: Arkham Asylum last week. Originally slated to launch with the console versions, Batman was delayed three weeks for the PC, presumably to give both developer Rocksteady Studios and partner Nvidia time to polish the integration of Nvidia's PhysX game physics acceleration technology.

After spending a weekend with the game, we can report that we were pleasantly surprised at how much the PhysX effects enhanced the atmosphere of the game's gloomy setting. Our last outing with a PhysX-enabled AAA PC game, Mirror's Edge back in January, was much clunkier.

In Batman, sheets of paper scattered on the floor move convincingly as characters walk over them. Bricks, glass, and tiles shatter and break apart realistically. Fog, smoke, and spider webs waft and curl around characters realistically (the slideshow at the bottom of this post shows off some Nvidia-provided screenshots). With PhysX off you get none of those effects, and a less interesting environment as a result. Compared to the tacked on PhysX-effects in Mirror's Edge, the effects in Batman noticeably improve the atmosphere.

Not every effect in Batman is a winner. The banners draped over various rafters and arches throughout the game, presumably to show off realistic cloth behavior, seem more appropriate for an athletic facility than an asylum for criminals. The PhysX effects also provide no benefit to the in-game mechanics, but given that only a subset of PC gamers have PhysX-enabled PCs, we can't blame the Batman development team for not using PhysX to full advantage.… Read more

Goldmund's $135,000 Blu-ray player

It sure looks expensive, and at $135,000, the Goldmund Eidos Reference Blu-ray player is definitely in the upper crust of Blu-ray players in terms of cost.

Hand-built in Geneva, the Eidos Reference Blue is a truly rarefied design. Limited in production to 50 units, dawdlers will be left having to make do with a plain vanilla Denon or Sony Blu-ray player.

Will the Goldmund outperform the Oppo BDP-83 Blu-ray player we raved about a few days ago? I have no idea, but I do know that a $20 Casio watch keeps time just as well as a Patek Philippe … Read more

Avalanche Studios lays off nearly half of staff

Swedish video game developer Avalanche Studios, which made 2006's Just Cause, has apparently decided to slash nearly half its staff after losing contracts for two new games.

According to GamesIndustry.biz, Avalanche said it will lay off 77 of its 160 employees after losing the contracts, which would have been worth as much as $34 million.

The company's CEO, Christofer Sundberg, told GamesIndustry.biz that it had lost the first contract in February, but had been able to weather that by moving staff around. But after the second contract was lost last week, it had nowhere to put … Read more

EA Mobile, Eidos Interactive sign agreement

Despite a failed deal with Take-Two Interactive, and a Spore DRM backlash, Eidos Interactive signed an agreement on Monday with Electronic Arts announcing exclusivity to multiregional distribution and licensing rights to selected titles from the their catalog for EA Mobile.

Now, Eidos will provide licenses to EA across all existing mobile channels and mobile devices for four key titles: Tomb Raider Underworld, Just Cause 2, California Games X, and Minesweeper, with a future option on the mobile versions of the majority of Eidos videogames for three years.

According to a news release, Javier Ferreira (VP of European Publishing for EA … Read more

Spring video game fling

The spring thaw has begun, and with that, video game publishers make their annual pilgrimages out to the East Coast to show off the latest builds of upcoming games. We got a chance to get hands-on with several high-profile titles (and some fairly obscure ones) that are sure to eat up many hours of your leisure time later this year.

John Woo's Stranglehold, from Midway, is a buzz-heavy game, bringing together the talents of not just the famed Hong Kong director, but also his action star muse Chow Yun-Fat. It's full of HK-style slow-motion gunfights and is reminiscent, … Read more