Mozzer
08-01-2006, 09:12 AM
On the advice of a certain GRiM, I was told that the following would make a good article. Apologies for posting it twice - it originated from the Gaming Section.
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Ask me about 18 months ago the best place on the interweb for cheap games and pc stuff and I would have told you Special Reserve without hesitation. At that point I didn't know about eBuyer or any of the other online games stores so £30 for a game was totally wowzors. And as a member I got regular magazines, free postage and reddies.
Ah, reddies. Get one with each purchase. Collect 5 and claim a free gift. And when you subscribe for £7.50 you got a free gift as well, worth £8! As well as all the other benefits. I always wondered how they were funding all this generosity, but it didn't bother me much. It was a kick ass place to buy stuff, and I never would have considered anywhere else.
Alas, in early 2005, I was proved right in some respects. Suddenly there were no more Reddies and no more free postage for members. And the games went up to £32. I guess they were having difficulties after all.
But of course this change in developments meant there was suddenly no incentive to shop there at all. Ebuyer was generally cheaper for pc gubbins, and I discovered the likes of simplygames where games were £30 and free postage to all. I forgot about Special Reserve.
My subscription ran out in October and I never bothered re-subscribing. The emails and magazines stopped.
Then today I tried checking the release date for Metroid Hunters. And gathp, they have disappeared. No trace of them on google, and specialreserve.co.uk redirects to freeola. (Use the www and it just says "not found".)
So I guess everyone else abandoned them as well. And all they did was take away the generosity we had taken for granted.
Fare thee well Special Reserve, whereever you may be. (Most likely the Recycle Bin.)
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Ask me about 18 months ago the best place on the interweb for cheap games and pc stuff and I would have told you Special Reserve without hesitation. At that point I didn't know about eBuyer or any of the other online games stores so £30 for a game was totally wowzors. And as a member I got regular magazines, free postage and reddies.
Ah, reddies. Get one with each purchase. Collect 5 and claim a free gift. And when you subscribe for £7.50 you got a free gift as well, worth £8! As well as all the other benefits. I always wondered how they were funding all this generosity, but it didn't bother me much. It was a kick ass place to buy stuff, and I never would have considered anywhere else.
Alas, in early 2005, I was proved right in some respects. Suddenly there were no more Reddies and no more free postage for members. And the games went up to £32. I guess they were having difficulties after all.
But of course this change in developments meant there was suddenly no incentive to shop there at all. Ebuyer was generally cheaper for pc gubbins, and I discovered the likes of simplygames where games were £30 and free postage to all. I forgot about Special Reserve.
My subscription ran out in October and I never bothered re-subscribing. The emails and magazines stopped.
Then today I tried checking the release date for Metroid Hunters. And gathp, they have disappeared. No trace of them on google, and specialreserve.co.uk redirects to freeola. (Use the www and it just says "not found".)
So I guess everyone else abandoned them as well. And all they did was take away the generosity we had taken for granted.
Fare thee well Special Reserve, whereever you may be. (Most likely the Recycle Bin.)