.FLYINGHEAD CONSUMER ADVOCATE
.TITLE How to get a hundred bucks back from your overpriced PlayStation 3
.AUTHOR David Gewirtz
.SUMMARY Apparently, Sony has decided that being dead last in the next generation console wars is a loss of face. Perhaps selling a game console for $599 wasn’t such a hot idea. On July 9th, Sony dropped the price to $499, leaving the console expensive, but no longer mind-blowingly expensive. Here’s where we’ve got good news for you recent purchasers. Read this article to find out how you can get $100 back, as long as you act fast. Right now, fast.
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Apparently, Sony has decided that being dead last in the next generation console wars is a loss of face. Perhaps selling a game console for $599 wasn’t such a hot idea. Of course, Neo Geo learned in 1990 that $599 for a console wouldn’t fly. What? Never heard of Neo Geo? Yeah, we rest our case.
.CALLOUT Simply bring your receipt back to the store and both companies will give you back $100.
Some of you, lured by either the built-in Blu-ray player or the overwhelming need to piss off the Church of England by playing Resistance: Fall of Man, payed $599 as recently as this month for your very own PS3.
Some bright light at Sony finally figured out that $599 for the 60GB model was too expensive. The PlayStation 3 wasn’t flying off the shelves. In the Circuit City we were in today, there was a sign saying "Wii sold out" with the word "again" hand-written underneath with a Sharpie. By contrast, another sign said "PS3 in stock". On July 9th, [[http://www.us.playstation.com/News/PressReleases/402|Sony dropped the price to $499]], leaving the console expensive, but no longer mind-blowingly expensive.
Here’s where we’ve got good news for you recent purchasers. If you payed $599 for your PlayStation 3 console in the last 30 days, you may have $100 coming to you. Both Circuit City and Best Buy (and possibly other retailers) offer a price guarantee. Simply bring your receipt back to the store and both companies will give you back $100.
Now, be aware your timing has to be just right. You have to have purchased the console in the 30-day window and you also probably need to get back to the stores pretty darn quick to get your refund. If you do so, there might be your very own electronic Ben Franklin coming back to your credit card.
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Curious about what has the Church of England in a tizzy? The Resistance: Fall of Man game has a shoot-em-up scene in Manchester Cathedral that has the the Very Reverend Rogers Govender, on behalf of the Dean and Canons of Manchester Cathedral, losing his mind.
The Very Rev has apparently coined a new term: "virtual desecration". It seems aliens aren’t permitted in the Manchester Cathedral, and, to settle the whole mess, the Church has demanded a "substantial donation" from both Sony and Insomniac Studios, the game’s developer.
Now, remember this is the same Church of England that got the Pilgrims’ funny hats all a-tither. That’s right. This is the very same Church of England that executed pilgrims Henry Barrowe and John Greenwood in 1593 for missing services (which, at the time, was an offense subject to fine, imprisonment, and even execution). So the very same Church of England that killed people for not attending services is now suing a video game maker for including an alien battle scene in a not-quite-accurately rendered interior representation of one of their Cathedrals.
The controversy has resulted in a formal criticism of the game by former British Prime Minister Tony Blair (proving he can stick his nose into places other than George Bush’s… Well, ’nuff said).
After Blair’s bitch project, Sony eventually apologized to the Church (but didn’t change the game or make any donation, substantial or otherwise).
The Church still has its collection plate out to Sony. Legal minds the world over are debating whether the Church has any legal right to restrict representation of it’s interior.
Gamers, now aware of the controversy, have set sail in their own four-wheeled Mayflowers, journeying to their local stores to buy even more copies of Resistance. This, of course, proves that pissing off the Church of England has the power to increase sales but, fortunately, will no longer get you executed.
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.H1 Product availability and resources
Read about [[http://www.us.playstation.com/News/PressReleases/402|Sony’s price drop]].
Read about [[http://www.resistancefallofman.com|Resistance: Fall of Man]].
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