When it comes to downloading games using Steam, a lot of people are getting fed up with the fact that it is costing them more than to buy. This is especially strange seeing as you don’t have any packaging to go with your new game. If you are paying around fifty pounds for a game then the least you will want is some pack that you can put on your shelf as evidence or a backup in case you need to install it again on a new system.

Of course you can download it again but why should you have to go through the process a second time?

What is more annoying is when the unbelievable happens like when Call of Duty Black Ops was released. Everyone who had decided that it would be a good idea to sit outside the shops until the game was released was told that they would have to download the game via Steam, when they got home.

What is even stranger is at the same time as all the people who had queued all night and were downloading Black Ops through steam, the game could not be bought from Steam because you had to get the box from the shop.

So how much of the 50 is actually saved by the game developers in order to put the players through so much trouble and the real question is do you think it’s worth it? One thing is certain and that is Steam have to cope better with their high demand on major release days. Too many people have reported crashes and customers are getting fed up with the bugs in the system.

Although most of us are happy enough with the idea behind Steam, it is the implementation of it that is bothering us. However with such a rapidly growing service there are bound to be some bugs but the crashes should be few and far between now because of investments in infrastructure. If you stick with it, you should see improvements to Steam.

For all your gaming needs, including R4 and memory cards, just follow the link.

The Oscars are something we have all heard of where the cream of the acting world get recognised for their work over the past 12 months. There are though some pretty big game of the year awards held every year and the software houses and developers are all fighting for their own bit of recognition and appreciation.

The only difference between the game of the year awards and the Oscars and is that you are unlikely to see a red carpet or a tuxedo and there will be considerably less tearful speeches.

The way that awards work in the gaming industry is by public vote from those who read the video gaming or computer press; you do not normally see these awards held at a top venue. Another way that games are voted on is through the games manager GameSpy or Steam which are desktop favourites for the PC. This is good because then at least you know that the people that have voted are the people that are spending the money and playing the games.

Although there were many people addicted to the Call of Duty Series throughout 2010, the big winners for this year were surprisingly, Mass Effect 2 and Red Dead Redemption. One of the names in contention this year is Mass Effect 3 according to those who use the GameSpot forum.

This forum tends to be one of the ones that will measure how hot a game is. However Mass Effect 3 is an RPG and there are a number of other categories to consider as well.

The debate continues in terms of football games as to which game is better FIFA or Pro Evolution. In September we will see the new versions of each of these games being released and then time will tell on which one people prefer but it should be close.

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Most of us are aware of the fascination that most men have with gadgets but this is an industry that is changing all the time; so what gadgets are most men after at the moment? Although a man’s age will often determine what type of gadgets he will prefer there are some gadgets that are loved by all men regardless of their age. If you are planning on buying a gadget as a gift for the man in your life, then the following will not fail to impress.

The latest iPhone is a gadget that is desired by most men everywhere and it does not matter what age you are because you are seen to be cool if you have an iPhone. These phones are still very much sought after gadgets despite the fact that many of us have them these days.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is one of the most popular tablet PCs that you can buy these days which uses Android 3.0 OS; in fact it has even become more popular than the iPad. This super tablet packs a desktop PC sized punch because of the use of a dual core processor and another benefit is the dual cameras built in to the front and the rear. And it is possible to take it anywhere with you without any hassle because it only weighs 599 grams.

The iPod Touch is without doubt the best looking and coolest iPod to hit the market and what makes it so cool is all the apps that are available. And the gaming is out of this world for a unit that size.

This gadget is just over a quarter of an inch thick and has a huge amount of power with HD recording on the camera. The latest iPod Touch from Apple uses iOS 4 and this makes it truly versatile.

To get more street cred you would just need one of these gadgets but if you wanted the ultimate credibility then try to get all three.

For all your gaming needs, including R4 and memory cards, just follow the link.

The world has changed drastically over the last ten years and it is so different now to ten years ago in terms of kids growing up; we must wonder if this change has been good or bad. Now we have the computer game and FaceBook generation where kids are still playing with their friends when they come home from school, but instead of going around their house and knocking on the door they are sending them messages through Twitter, FaceBook and of course linking up with them through games consoles.

We don’t really know what problems it may cause if our child just sits on his or her games console playing something like Call of Duty for hours at a time. This is a game which basically encourages them to kill as many people as they can all night.

We really can’t tell what this is doing for the social skills of our kids but the only good thing about it is the fact that our kids are able to talk to each other.

One thing we do know however, is that these console and computer games have changed the health of our kids with a definite drop in the number of kids playing real sports. Now if kids ask each other to play football after school it often means an online game of FIFA or Pro Evolution which is a slight improvement in the killing involved in first person shooters.

What is more surprising is that the computer games and console games all carry a PEGI age rating that is similar to the movie ratings that go by age. The problem you have is that despite a game being clearly labelled as rated for an 18 year old it’s the hard to be left out if you are younger than 18.

Most parents will take it for granted that their kids have to have the next in game or accessory.

For all your gaming needs, including R4 and memory cards, just follow the link.