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Limited Run Games Guide and How To

Guides
lrghero2

Limited Run Games is a small publisher and manufacturer of physical video games and the associated goodies that come with them. Their original idea was to sell limited releases of games, essentially take the cost of doing one run, do a bit of math for some profit and then sell the games. Then, in kickstarter fashion, make them and deliver them to their customers. That worked well for awhile, but now they’re sort of a hybrid limited game company. So now games come in an open pre-order cycle with a limited window to purchase and much longer manufacturing times. So let’s dig into a bit about how the Limited Run Games process works. If you’re curious more on the philosophy of LRG, check out our article on the game collector’s market. Closed vs. Open Pre-Orders There is two types of pre-orders: If something is closed then it’s best to make…

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NISA Online Store Guide, How To & FAQ

Guides
nisa store hero

Nippon Ichi Software, Inc. of Japan is one of my favorite companies out there. Their North American division is known as NIS America, Inc. or NISA. Their online store is the primary source of NIS games and it’s located here. There’s actually a lot to the store you should know and we’re going to dive into it. NIS America, Inc. Games – What style are they? So what do they sale? They’re best known for the Disgaea franchise. They’re also known for some weirder titles, isometric RPGs and visual novel style games. They also publish games for other developers as well. Some of the more recently known releases would include Crystar, MONARK, Blue Reflection: Second Light, etc. They’ve published games for Atlus and Spike Chunsoft. Fans of their most popular series will know the site well as it’s the absolute best place to secure a copy of a NIS game.…

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How to Play Final Fantasy XIV for Free

Guides
ffxiv free trial presskitimgendwalker

FFXIV is one of the few MMOs out there that still require a monthly subscription fee, along with the likes of World of Warcraft and uh, I’m sure there is some more out there. Point being, if you want everything the game has to offer you have to pay the subscription fee. Of course, like WoW, Final Fantasy XIV let’s you play for free with some limitations. Unlike WoW, the free trial is actually insanely lofty and pretty much let’s you play most of the game without ever having to subscribe. A Note for Those Who Have Ever Purchased the Base Game Bruh, you’ll have to start over. You’ll have to make an all new Square Enix account in order to play the free trial and, if at any time you upgrade from the free trial, you can not return. So keep that in mind. The good news is that…

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Is Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack Worth It?

Editorials
nintendo switch expansion pass worth it

The answer is a resounding: of course, it’s up to you to answer is Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack worth it. It’s an objective answer because there’s a few things in play with the question: do you play Animal Crossing or not? If you do, then it’s obviously very much worth it. If you don’t, then well… we dive deeper into that below. Prices validated as of 2023. Since this is a personal decision, let’s start with facts before we share opinion: Price The price boils down to the below: Nintendo Switch OnlineExpansion Pack1 Month: $3.993 Month: $7.9912 Month: $19.99Family (12 Months, 8 Accounts): $34.9912 Months: $49.99$30 increaseFamily Membership (12 Months, 8 Accounts): $79.99$40 increaseComparison between Nintendo Switch Online and the Expansion Pack Features Nintendo Switch OnlineExpansion PackOnline PlayNES & Super NES Game LibraryCloud Game SavesSmartphone AppVoice in Multiplayer (via App)Special Offers (free items in some games)Ability to purchase…

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Building Blizzard Back Better: New Owners Would Solve World of Warcraft’s Problems

Editorials
blizzardgenericoutlandheader

Veteran Internet users know of the turbulent time when Activision bought Blizzard and the gaming community exploded with anger. Of course, this wasn’t the first sell of Blizzard… the gaming company had previously been acquired by Vivendi, Sierra-Online (via CUC) and Davidson & Associates just to sort of measure out a few. Blizzard had a long history with Vivendi and that spree of 1998 to 2008 was pretty much considered their golden years. So, with that said, with all the problems the 2020s have brought Blizzard, what is the solution to their woes? Go back to their glory years where WoW released, Diablo released, StarCraft and StarCraft 2 released, etc. Forget Diablo, It’s Not a “Blizzard” Game Let’s set something straight, Diablo is actually a Condor Games game. Blizzard bought another studio, renamed them Blizzard North and they worked independently from Blizzard. The last thing they produced was in 2001…

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The Truth Behind the Video Card Crisis

Editorials
RTX Card City

There’s a lot going on right now in the world of video cards, but one of the hard truths that we have to face as gamers is that the actual super truth is that we’re hitting a point where the fidelity of games isn’t utilizing the entire graphics card power and thus, we’re looking at suffering in the video card market for a myriad of reasons and how people game is entirely one of them. People are quick to say “supply shortages” and “silicon shortages” as the reason for video card stock shortages and to a degree, it’s the simple answer, but what if I told you GTX 680s being viable today is probably a lot more involved in why there isn’t a rush to solve a what is now over a year long shortage in video cards. The Bargain Bin’s the Reason The biggest reason behind the ongoing video…

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How to Find Games for the Cheapest – A Deal Site / Aggregator Tier List & Cash Back Rewards Guide

Guides
crop farmer showing money in green summer field in countryside

We wanted to put together an all in one resource on how to go out and find your next game purchase at the lowest price, for PC & console. The below guide covers the best deal site aggregators which let you search across multiple vendors and we also cover the best cash back rewards programs that you can leverage without any kind of credit card signup or formal card cash back program. You’d be surprised, sometimes you can get 8% back on a $300 purchase, which is $24 extra dollars back for doing nothing. The reason why is that it’s just easy to buy the game directly off of Steam or your console’s storefront. You search for the title and pay whatever they’re asking for. The problem is that with just a little bit of effort, you can find the game likely way cheaper. Then, on top of that, with…

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Are We in a Retro Game Bubble?

Editorials

In a recent video by Karl Jobst, he proposes that we’re in a retro video game bubble that’s been artificially inflated by the same folks who have done so with coins and comic books. That prices right now are unsustainable and that the market will collapse, leaving sellers with no buyers. Which is kind of scary for folks who love video games and kind of hard to take in for those who are attempting to invest in retro games. Well, when we ask if we’re in a retro video game bubble, the answer is very likely dependent on the game itself and the condition of the game. Loose cartridges, CIB games and games that are new but not graded are all right now showing minor inflation due to higher demand during 2020 and 2021 lockdowns for older games, especially in the Gamecube market. Collectors may have to pay a premium…

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How To Solve Nostalgia and Start Retro Game Collecting

Guides
retrogames

If you have fond memories of the good ‘ol days of games from bygone eras then you may want to consider buying games now instead of later, no matter which day you read this. The reason being that physical game media is becoming more rare by the day as games break, get thrown out and are lost to the fates of time. The prices of which are increasing, especially as older games which used cardboard for their cases begin to decay from moisture and age. The community and market for physical video games remained rather stable for a long period of time. Generally speaking, games were worth a percentage of their retail price based on popularity, with more popular games taking a smaller percentage of their retail on third party sites like eBay. For instance, a $49.99 game would likely sale for $35 on eBay used for the longest time,…

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Should You Reserve the Steam Deck?

Editorials
steamdeck

Steam Decks have just been announced and reservations will have opened up at 10AM July 16th. Assuming you have the chance to reserve one, depending on how much stock Valve has. You can reserve one on the following page at Steam and it comes in three models. A base model, a mid-tier model and a high end model. A quick rundown of the three: Base: 64GB of storage and a carrying case. $399Mid Tier: 256GB NVMe SSD (faster storage), the carrying case and a Steam Community Profile bundle. $529High End: 512GB NVMe SSD, anti-glare etched glass, the carrying case, the Steam Community profile bundle and an exclusive virtual keyboard theme. Note, there is a MicroSD slot for more storage. Great Overview If you want a solid professional unbiased overview of the hardware, checkout Gamer Nexus. History & Stock Shortages Valve has failed on almost every hardware release so far, with…

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