Tag Archives: sony

Why customer service at video game companies seems so bad

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Every gaming customer serviceindustry has its critics, but few are quite as vocal as an enraged video gamer whose game has just inexplicably stopped working—especially when a new console or game is involved.

With consumer expectations set high, and the demand for instant gratification pressing, irritating problems—like new games going on the fritz, or screens blacking out—can be magnified, and consumers’ tempers can be short. Customer service wait times can feel epic, and some problems never seem to get fixed.

Add the echo chamber of social media, and one can get the impression that video game companies are uniquely bad when it comes to customer service. But is that true?

Read more at CNBC.com

Video game brain drain: Top execs leave industry

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As CNBC-ps4the video game industry says goodbye to one generation of hardware, it’s also saying goodbye to a number of high-profile names.

In the past several weeks, well-known, high-ranking executives at Microsoft’s Xbox division and Sony’s PlayStation unit—as well as other less familiar names—have announced their departure, and some analysts say these could reflect broader shifts in the industry.

Read more at CNBC.com

‘The Last of Us’ wins big at GDC Awards

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There’s last of us-ranchan upside to fighting off Clickers in a post-apocalyptic world. You win a LOT of awards.

The Last of Us, Naughty Dog’s critically-adored survival game, captured top honors at the Game Developers Choice Awards Wednesday night, winning the Game of the Year award along with a pair of other trophies for Best Design and Best Narrative.

Read more at Yahoo! Games

Sony unveils its own virtual reality headset for PlayStation 4

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Virtual project-morpheusreality just got a lot more real.

After months of whispers, Sony confirmed Tuesday evening that it’s working on a virtual reality headset for the PS4. And while it didn’t give any details regarding a release window or price, Sony’s entry into this market further raises the profile of so-called VR 2.0 devices, building on the momentum Oculus started with their anticipated Rift device.

Read more at Yahoo! Games

Virtual reality, indie gaming to dominate Game Developer’s Conference 2014

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Middleware, gdc-14-walkuppost-mortems on game design, and discussions on ways to improve monetization in free-to-play titles generally aren’t the sorts of things that rev up players. And, on paper, the annual Game Developer’s Conference might seem a little too ‘inside baseball’ for the average person.

But in the detail-obsessed gaming world, GDC is one of the highlights of the year. It lacks the pomp and circumstance of E3 — as well as the big game announcements, generally — but it’s one of the best ways to get a sense of where gaming is going.

Read more at Yahoo! Games

Sony raises – yes, raises – the price of the PlayStation 4 in Canada

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Typically, ps4-hrdware-large18-1console prices obey the rules of gravity: they fall. But in Canada, things are just plain loony. Er, loonie.

Sony is reportedly raising the price of the PlayStation 4 by $50 in the country. DualShock 4 controller and PlayStation Camera prices are also on the rise, each climbing $5.

Read more at Yahoo! Games

Report details biggest problems with next generation consoles

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Everyone’s Sony Launches PlayStation 4 In Japan As Console Retakes U.S. Retail Lead Over Microsoft's Xbox Onea critic. And when the subject is next generation consoles, they’re especially ferocious.

Sometimes that’s legitimate. Sometimes, it’s user error. (And sometimes, it’s an odd mix of both.) Fixya has dug through over 40,000 complaints to determine the most common problems with each of the new machines on the market.

Read more at Yahoo! Games

Microsoft looks to ‘Titanfall’ to boost console sales

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Sony titanfallmay have gained an early lead in the battle of the next generation consoles, but Microsoft is launching its counteroffensive—and it’s a big one.

“Titanfall,” a new game from the creators of the “Call of Duty” juggernaut, hits shelves on Tuesday. It’s expected to be one of the biggest games of 2014. And it’s exclusive to Microsoft systems.

Read more at CNBC.com

Is the Xbox One in trouble?

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Roughly microsoft-xbox-one2three months after the Xbox One hit stores, its price was cut.

On February 24, Microsoft lowered the retail price of its next generation console in the UK from £429.99 to £399.99, the equivalent of a $50 price cut in the U.S. At the same time, the company unveiled an upcoming Titanfall bundle in both regions, which includes a copy of the system’s most anticipated game at no additional charge.

The bundling of such a big game raised some eyebrows, but the UK cut really set gaming forums ablaze. Was Microsoft acknowledging weakness in Xbox One sales? Was it “pulling a Nintendo” to remain competitive? Was the company throwing in the towel?

Not at all, but it’s clear the company — and its flagship console — have their work cut out for them.

Read more at Yahoo! Games

Report: Sony to unveil its VR gaming headset next month

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Rumors sony-vr-headset-cominghave been swirling since last September that Sony plans to introduce a virtual-reality headset for the PlayStation 4. Now it appears the company is preparing to open up about it.

TechRadar, citing unnamed sources, reports the company will unveil the headset at the 2014 Game Developer Conference, which starts in San Francisco on March 17. Other sources, speaking to Yahoo Games, say they also expect the company to make an announcement at the show, though they note it may change its mind at the last minute.

Read more at Yahoo! Games