Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Help me give money to 343i and not GameStop

I can't wait for this game to come out!

I have an idea...

After nearly two years avoiding GameStop, I had a moment of weakness and walked in.  My intention was to pre-order Halo 4.  Thankfully the employees were following corporate protocol perfectly and quickly convinced me NOT to give them any money.  

I would much rather pay Microsoft directly for Halo 4 and be able to download it at midnight on November 6, 2012.  I don't think that is unfair of me to think this, so I drafted a letter to Microsoft with my proposal.  Below is my letter:  

Dear Microsoft,

I want to stop the blood flow and increase your revenue flow.

Almost daily I read about the unfortunate closing of another beloved game studio--and every quarter I read stories about record profits of used game stores.  To me, this is a tragic imbalance.    

My goal is to give the largest percentage of my gaming dollar to the companies I love; meanwhile, avoiding giving money to the companies I believe are responsible for this current travesty.  My solution and proposal is using day-of-release digital distribution via Xbox LIVE’s Games on Demands.  

I am not alone in this, as many of my gaming friends would also support same day release sales on Games on Demand.  Furthermore, I would like to believe millions of gamers would support this concept.   Yes, I would venture to say, by cutting out packaging, shipping, and other overhead related costs in association with retail stores sales, the companies I love—such as 343 Industries and Microsoft Studios—will see much larger profits by supporting same day sales on Games on Demand.

So do we have a deal?  You release Halo 4 via Games on Demand on November 6 and I’ll give you money whenever you want.

Sincerely,
Ryan

I would like your help.  If you see something in this letter that would make it more convincing, please let me know.  Also, I would like names, e-mails, and addresses to send this to.  I have less than two months to accomplish my goal.  Thanks for your support!

Ryan