Streaming games service OnLive announced today a limited time promotion giving away a free OnLive Microconsole to those that pre-order a copy of Kaos Studios' and THQ's upcoming first-person shooter Homefront.
The Microconsole -- which plays games run on remote OnLive servers -- is usually sold for $99. But a "limited number" of players that pre-order Homefront on or before March 14 will receive the system for free, excepting shipping & handling and tax charges.
The pre-order will also come with a free PlayPass allowing immediate access to THQ's Metro2033 through OnLive.
“This is a watershed event: It’s the first time a game system has ever been given away with the purchase of a game,” said OnLive chief executive Steve Perlman.
The OnLive Microconsole does very little processing work itself, instead sending controller input to a remote OnLive server over the internet. That server then sends back the game's streaming video and audio output to be displayed on an HDTV or monitor.
OnLive's library of just over 40 games can be demoed for free, rented for three or five day periods, or purchased directly for unlimited access. Users can also sign up for a Netflix-style subscription that offers unlimited access to most titles for $9.99 a month, with the first month free.
... A limited number of OnLive subscribers will also receive an email after March 14, 2011 (11:59PM PDT) containing a promo code for a FREE OnLive Game System...
So if I pre-order I may not fall in the limited number and never receive the email ... and I get stuck with $XX.XX THQ virtual game , no physical disk and no OnLive system
Homefront has a scary storyline premise... looks like a very American "What if everyone turns on us" story, though. Just as OnLive seems like a very American-oriented service! How much support would be offered outside of the US or EU?
From the promo:
... A limited number of OnLive subscribers will also receive an email after March 14, 2011 (11:59PM PDT) containing a promo code for a FREE OnLive Game System...
So if I pre-order I may not fall in the limited number and never receive the email ... and I get stuck with $XX.XX THQ virtual game , no physical disk and no OnLive system
Deceptive ! This OnLive looks like scam