Xbox Concept GAME Store Opens In London

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Xbox Concept GAME Store Opens In London Posted: 14 Jul 2013 05:00 AM PDT An Xbox-dedicated "one-of-a-kind concept store" has been opened by GAME in the BoxPark Retail Mall on Bethnal Green Road, Shoreditch, London, UK. The concept store will be exclusively promoting and retailing Microsoft Xbox products, with the sale of hardware and software, including limited edition "My Xbox" console skins and the new slim line Xbox 360. Customers can also interact with the products on offer and will have playable gaming pods and the store features a head-to-head challenge area. "Our partnership with GAME represents another way Microsoft is investing in retail and creating a unique offering for both partners and consumers, as we continue to build on the Xbox 360's success as the number one selling console in the UK," said Microsoft's Jon Grimes. This new store is hoping to boost sales and encourage players to stay loyal to Xbox, following the massive backlash from controversial features of the new Xbox One. In a move which received praise from GAME, Microsoft u-turned on their policy which limited lending and selling of used games as well as changing the constant internet connection requirement.  Players will now only need to connect to the internet during the initial system set up.  In spite of this though, the future of the Xbox One console is still uncertain amongst the new playing platforms that have emerged in the last  eight years since the release of the massively popular Xbox 360 console. Online and smartphone content is currently the fastest growing sector in the global video game industry, which DFC Intelligence expects to be worth around the $82 billion mark in the next four years.  The mobile platform has expanded, prompting general game titles to draw in larger audiences, leaving the traditional console market under threat.   David Cole, DFC Intelligence analyst stated: "New console systems from Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony are expected to help the console segment regain some momentum in the 2014 to 2015 time frame. However, the steadiest growth is on the PC and mobile side." David Howard, a representative of GAME added: "The GAME Xbox store at BoxPark takes the shopping experience to the next level, presenting the world with a bold new face for retail and showcasing the very best of Xbox to the UK gaming community. This concept store comes with a wealth of potential and we look forward to revealing more about our plans in the near future." Could we eventually see a Playstation concept store too?

Want Some Privacy? Get A Typewriter! Posted: 14 Jul 2013 03:00 AM PDT The Russian government has decided to purchase new typewriter equipment. According to the Russian procurement service website, the Federal Guard Agency has ordered 486,000 Roubles worth of electric typewriters. Could it be they feel this is the solution to privacy issues? Well to put it more into context, the amount spent on this equipment equates to $15,000, about 20 typewriters. So to be fair they are not overhaluing their whole system for documenting the country’s goings-on but what is interesting is that according to a source for Russia’s Izvestiya newspaper; the Defense ministry, the Emergencies ministry and the “special services” are already using non-electronic devices to produce documents. Even President Putin is supposedly receiving some correspondence this way. “After scandals with the distribution of secret documents by WikiLeaks and the exposes by Edward Snowden,” the anonymous source explained, “it has been decided to expand the practice of creating paper documents” — especially because each document can be traced back to its unique typewriter signature. So if you are concerned about security, maybe a typewriter could be the answer. Some Brooklyn-based writers told the New York Times how much they love using typewriters. Users love the fact that they don’t have the delete key to fall back on, that they have to commit to their thoughts. They also don’t have to worry about recharging the device! Would you consider using a typewriter? Tell us your thoughts.