As an old curmudgeon, I hate clubs. They’re horrible places, full of inflated prices, physical exertion and Carly Rae Jepsen (or whatever you kids are listening to). Luckily, Slave of God, the new game from Increpare (Stephen Lavelle to human ears), lets you experience a night at the club from the comfort of your own PC. I say comfort, Slave of God is a disorientating game of harsh strobing lights and unsettling music. In this way, it is a completely accurate representation of a night on the dance floor. It also manages to capture what’s special about a room full of drunken, sweaty music-lovers. There’s an emotional high to the sense bombardment. There’s also a section where you piss pixelated yellow cubes haphazardly around a toilet. It’s quite the thing. This is a bit of a departure from Increpare’s recent experiments with puzzle games – including the commercially released English Country Tune. Slave of God is still a mind-bending experience, but it won’t make you (okay, me) feel mentally inadequate in the process. You can get the free download here.

The Entertainment Retailers Association have released a report claiming that over £1 billion was spent on digital media in the UK during 2012. More than half that total was a result of games, which took in around £552 million in digital sales through the year. That’s a 7.7% increase in money spent on games delivered through your broadband tubes.
That sales boost wasn’t felt by the retail sector, which according the BBC is set to announce a “big drop” in its annual figures. According to a BBC analyst, retailers are blaming the decline in retail sales on “a lack of compelling titles”. At this rate I’m going to have to add a “financially troubled industry figures say the cattiest things” tag.
These numbers won’t come as a surprise to regular PC users. With only a few exceptions, games are available digitally from launch at comparable prices to their boxed brethren. It’s worth keeping in mind that the report covers the full range of platforms, though. While the consoles are increasingly hosting digital versions of AAA games, they often come with a hefty price hike.
Retailers continue to experiment with ways to stay relevant in the digital age. Most recently, GAME started to stock Steam gift cards, allowing customers to buy vouchers that top up their Steam account.
Thanks, PCGamesN.