Game pre-orders: The 14 best pre-order bonuses
- February 18, 2009 15:12 PM PST
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Ah, the pre-order bonus. Just about every gamer has encountered the often lackluster but occasionally awesome pre-order incentive. To entice gamers to pre-order a game, publishers or retailers often give away a freebie of some kind. The game industry has seen many pre-order deals, most of which are forgettable. But there have been quite a few noteworthy pre-order bonuses too.
Our criteria for the consideration an item was simple -- it had to be offered as a pre-order incentive, either by the publisher or by a large retailer, and it had to be an item (not a price discount). There have been countless pre-order deals over the decades -- but these are the sweetest ones.
14- No More Heroes Toilet Paper
No More Heroes creator Suda 51 has in the past talked about how he often comes up with game ideas while sitting on the can, so it's no wonder that No More Heroes-themed toilet paper was given away as a pre-order bonus in Japan. Sadly, not many of these rolls were given out -- and you definitely won't find them in your local grocer. We have to wonder, though, if they're as soft as Charmin. Unlikely.
13- Haze Syringe Pen
Free Radical's PlayStation 3-only shooter might have sucked, but at least you got some pretty sweet swag when you pre-ordered it; a nectar-filled syringe pen. Okay, so the syringe doesn't actually have nectar in it, but it really does function as a pen, which is actually pretty cool if we do say so ourselves.
12- Chrono Cross Clock
For those who pre-ordered Chrono Cross for PlayStation, Square offered a pretty sweet freebie: a Chrono Cross analog desk clock. The clock was originally available only in Japan, but Square brought it stateside with the North American release of the RPG.
11- Mirror's Edge Runner's Bag
With the way things are going, it can't be long until there's a market for "runners," like Faith in Mirror's Edge, who is tasked with delivering messages off the wire in a city where the government controls and monitors all communication. Should you find yourself in Faith's shoes, this Mirror's Edge runner's bag, which was given out as a pre-order incentive, should come in handy.
10- Viewtiful Joe Bobblehead
On the Internet, you rarely happen upon a statement that most can agree on, but try this one on for size: bobbleheads are awesome. Few would disagree, and those who do are heartless killjoys whose opinions honestly don't matter. This kick ass bobblehead was given to those who pre-ordered the original Viewtiful Joe on GameCube. But we'll avoid the expected pun here -- even if it is Viewtiful. Oh wait.
9- Wii Reggie T-shirt
This amazing t-shirt was given out at GameStop to those who pre-ordered Nintendo's Wii system. But who is that angry, Wii-mote-wielding man on the front? Nintendo hasn't officially said, but around the Internets, it's commonly agreed that it's none other than Reggie Fils-Aime.
8- Conker Whoopee Cushion
Who doesn't love the sound of a long, drawn-out comical fart? Haters, that's who. Gamers who pre-ordered the awesome Conker's Bad Fur Day on Nintendo 64 were given this sweet tool of hilarity. We only wish we had one lying around. If you do, we'd gladly take it off your hands. We could definitely put it to good use.
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- Feb 05 2009 at 01:48:23:PM PST
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I got the zelda master quest disc, that was a cool pre-order freebie. I wish they had done the guitar for WT, I could use that!
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The appearance of Rare's Banjo-Kazooie remind me of something. When will there be another DK game, I'm not talking about like the conga drum crap, I mean a genuine DK adventure. The old SNES games were awsome! DK 64 was pretty wicked, but are we going to see any in the near future?
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How about the Soul Calibur II cel art and t-shirt, or the t-shirt and wall scroll for Ninja Gaiden?
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Where is the Ghalleon punching puppet you got for preordering Lunar 2 for the Playstation? That thing was awesome!
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jay92388 wrote:
The appearance of Rare's Banjo-Kazooie remind me of something. When will there be another DK game, I'm not talking about like the conga drum crap, I mean a genuine DK adventure. The old SNES games were awsome! DK 64 was pretty wicked, but are we going to see any in the near future?
You probably won't for a long time. Rare and Nintendo (from what I understand) parted on bad terms. I'm not sure who owns what, but Nintendo owns a part of donkey kong (I'm not sure if it's the name or the "story" for a lack of better word, but I believe it's the franchise name) and Rare owns the other part.
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omg i have that master quest collectible,
still in mint condition, Wind waker was the only game i ever pre-ordered and it was for that master quest edition
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uh I still got a black San Andreas bandana I boosted from a former competing magazine
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