EA tempts game media with $200 checks

• by Dave Rudden
• September 09, 2009 15:39 PM PST

In an attempt to promote Dante's Inferno, EA is sending $200 checks to members of the gaming media. What did GamePro do with their check?

Our previews/community master Andy Burt received an interesting package in the mail today. A Fedex box from a company called "Avarice & Prodigality" came with a Dante's Inferno branded box bearing a check for $200, made out to Andy. Included paperwork mentioned the fourth circle of hell, avarice, which is better known as greed. The check, which included real bank notation and routing numbers, came with a warning stating "This check is as real as the consequence that follows." A call to the phone number listed on the check indeed confirmed that this is, in fact a real check.

This isn't the first time that Dante's Inferno has courted controversy. At E3 2009, a fake protest was staged about the game's sacrilegious and adult content. When it came time to promote the "Lust" circle, Comic-Con attendees were asked to take salacious photographs with their booth babes. In comparison, the severed leg cake and barbecued rib lunch sent to the GamePro office was relatively tame.

Did the GamePro staff succumb to the temptation of greed? Well, we won't keep you on eggshells. We didn't cash it.

Instead, we're planning on donating $50 to the Child's Play charity fund. It's not quite the same, but we're just video game editors, not a publisher with deep enough pockets to toss around $200 checks.

THE VERDICT by Dave Rudden

Andy and the rest of the GP crew have thought up something pretty cool to do with the check. "Check" back later to find out what we're doing!

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