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Warner Bros. Insists that All Catwomen Be Paid for New and Be Connected to the Internet

Want to play those Catwoman levels in Batman: Arkham City? Then you're going to need an online pass code.

As if Warner Bros. hasn't made enough of a sport out of trying to baffle the consumer with its utterly bizarre and incomprehensible pre-order schemes for Batman: Arkham City, we can now add one more bat to the consumer's skull (albeit a far less confusing, far more obnoxious one) courtesy of Batman's publisher.

Lack broadband Internet and hate paying for new copies of games? Good luck if you want to have Catwoman.
Lack broadband Internet and hate paying for new copies of games? Good luck if you want to have Catwoman.

This latest moment of consumer grudge humping comes via today's news that the Catwoman missions contained within the game will be locked behind an online pass. Despite WB's constant hyping of the Catwoman bonus missions, you won't be able to freely access them unless you have a new copy of Arkham City, as well as an Internet-connected console. If you do pick up a copy used, you'll need to pony up $9.99 to gain access to these missions.

While the Catwoman missions aren't required to get through Arkham City's storyline, I can say having played as the character in preview builds that they're actually fun, and most definitely a perk of the game. Gamers without Internet-ready consoles are fewer and further between nowadays, but they still exist, and shockingly enough, some of them might want to play Arkham City--as Catwoman, even. As for the used players? Well, you're probably getting used to this sort of thing these days. I ask you: Where's your Occupy Wall Street movement? Where's your protest march? Where are the jobless college kids acting on your behalf?

Of course, the answer is "playing video games and writing enraged Internet comments at nobody who can actually affect change." Right then. Carry on.

Alex Navarro on Google+

219 Comments

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downtime58

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Edited By downtime58

As someone who occasionally buys used games, I can't say I'm thrilled when games use passes for online content - but at the same time, it makes faint enough logical sense that I won't argue it too much.

And while the Catwomen content is probably non-essential to the main story, I feel like we're getting closer and closer to a kind of proverbial content-blocking line.

This is the crossing-point where developers/publishers start uses passes to block content that might be considered integral to the game's experience (if you don't already consider online content integral).

I kind of wonder which game company is going to the first to cross this line? And then, what happens after that?

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SuperCycle

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Edited By SuperCycle

So does this mean I just need the internet access to download the Catwoman missions, or am I going to have to be connected to the internet to play those missions?

I am not a hundred percent clear on how these types of things stop gamers from buying used games? You would think the idea wouldn't be to punish these gamers by putting roadblocks in the way of enjoying the games but it would be to entice these gamers by constantly supporting the game. Like releasing quality DLC throughout the year. That way if someone bought the game used and kept the game, you would have still made profit over the year throughout DLC sales.

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leebmx

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Edited By leebmx

@PJ said:

@JRock3x8 said:

the only way this garbage stops is if you all agree not to buy the game and we all know that will never happen

Yeah, it won't happen because why wouldn't I buy one of my most anticipated game of the year. I always buy new games and have a 100mbit/s internet connection. These things doesn't bother me one bit.

And frankly, why does WB have to give you something you didn't pay them for? I actually think these online passes are a good thing since that way the publisher and developer get money from (some) used copys of the game and it encourages people to buy new copys of the game.

If you want to experience the game as intended by the developer/publisher then pay them for the game. If you don't want to pay them then you shouldn't expect them to give you the same service as those who did. It's as simple as that.

I understand what you are saying, but why does this thinking only apply to video games, not books, DVDs, cars etc. Is it because used games sales are a much larger part of the market than other mediums? Or maybe it is because the pricing structure for video games is not fit for purpose and publishers are just dealing with the side of the issue which affects them instead of dealing with the root problem which is static $60/£50 games.

I might be wrong about my second point but I really don't think anyone can truthfully claim that second-hand markets are fine in all products bar video games.

EDIT: I suppose one crucial point might be that in most other products, books, cars, clothes etc you get a degraded product if you buy 2nd hand. However digital media is generally the same no matter how many previous owners (maybe you get a dog-eared manual but who cares about them these days) so this might make the used market more attractive.hmmmmm

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tomance

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Edited By tomance

If you buy it new, there's no problem. I don't see anything really too wrong with this.

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warchief

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Edited By warchief

@Dan_CiTi said:

Does this mean you cannot progress in the game without having Xbox Live Gold? What.

@Dan_CiTi: I do not think that would be the case. If you are silver and have a connection then you should be ok. Also the missions are not required for progress, but yeah its still not cool.

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PompousDawson

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Edited By PompousDawson

I sympathize for people that rage out over games having online passes. These types of modes use to be free on past generation platforms. Blame crazy profit margins that these publishers demand, along with all those bonuses the CEO's need to have annually and its no wonder WB is charging what it is for their bonus DLC.

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NutNButterCrunch

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Edited By NutNButterCrunch

Sometimes I forget that even amazing games have THE MAN watching over them and trying to squeeze every last dime out of them.

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Subjugation

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Edited By Subjugation

Weeee DRM.

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Chop

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Edited By Chop

Warner are such awful publishers. Trying to charge an extra ten bucks for games here, all their preorder messes, stuffing bonuses for games into movies...just bleh.

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arch4non

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Edited By arch4non

Buy the game then pirate all the preorder stuff is what they're saying I should do, right?

It's certainly what it sounds like they're telling me to do.

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ProfessorEss

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Edited By ProfessorEss

Sucks that I'll have to pay 10 bucks to play Catwoman in the game I plan on borrowing from my friend but it is what it is.  

I just really want to know why Warner Bros charges ten dollars more for their games than everyone else. 
 
...oh, that and why they, like everyone else, despite "hating them sooo much", give pre-order bonuses to their pretend nemesis Gamestop. 

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NakAttack

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Edited By NakAttack

@scottygrayskull: Alex wrote this, not Patrick.

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Ghostiet

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Edited By Ghostiet

Just add fucking cd-keys to console games and let's get this over with, Jesus.


Also, I find it baffling they give pre-order bonuses to GameStop, who is pretty much the biggest problem of publishers fighting used games right now.

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scottygrayskull

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Edited By scottygrayskull

@NakAttack: Oh shit! That's embarassing. Corrected. :\

Teach me to have a bunch of stories open at the same time, got too mixed up for my own good.

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Lazyaza

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Edited By Lazyaza

The whole "used games sales are terrible for developers" thing is buuuullshit, always has been. 

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Jayzilla

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Edited By Jayzilla

have you played LOTRO? WB bought Turbine(the dev behind LOTRO) and the store is insane. Pay to Win. This isn't surprising in the least.

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Sanious

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Edited By Sanious

Not buying new now.

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JoeyRavn

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Edited By JoeyRavn

I'm getting the PC version, so I'm not bothered by this. It has Games for Windows Live, so buying used copies is out of the question. They've already fucked us with 1. no kind of Collector's or Limited edition of the game on PC and 2. the obviously "we need to make a profit on consoles before piracy destroys the PC version" last minute delay to some time in the first half of november.

So, yeah.

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CheapPoison

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Edited By CheapPoison

Well...Phun...

Ow well screw em.

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RE_Player1

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Edited By RE_Player1

Looks like I won't be buying used day 1 than.

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MeatSim

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Edited By MeatSim

i have no problem sticking with Batman but I am probably gonna buy new anyway.

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RE_Player1

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Edited By RE_Player1

Also I like these online passes. One more step to serial keys.

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BlameGamer

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Edited By BlameGamer

I have the utmost respect for Rock Steady. They made my favorite game ever, I just fucking LOVE Arkham Asylum. It's a fantastic game on all fronts. Graphics, controls, fighting, platforming, boss fights, voice acting, everything about the game was phenomenal and easily made it my favorite game EVER.

I have a hard time processing this though. Every cool outfit has to be bought, not earned via game achievements or good playing?

What happened to the days of beating a boss in under 2 minutes gives you Costume X? Or how about kill 200 enemies with your weakest weapon gives you weapon Y?

This absolutely sucks, and is so sad, so tremendously sad. I'll probably pirate this second game now because I'm ACHING to play with Dark Knight Returns Batman. I mean shit, what happened Rock Steady? :( You broke my heart man.

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supergg2k

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Edited By supergg2k

@spartanman1222: I agree. Penalizing people who don't have internet access doesn't make sense either.

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iamjohn

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Edited By iamjohn

@Lazyaza said:

The whole "used games sales are terrible for developers" thing is buuuullshit, always has been.

Ssh, don't say that out loud, people might actually realize you're right and stop clinging to that stupid argument.

Someone in the thread we had about this before Alex wrote this story legitimately tried to argue that used sales are worse than piracy. What the fuck.

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lord_canti

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Edited By lord_canti

ok normally i wouldent care i buy games new for the reason there doing it, i know its good i dont mind getting at launch so the developers get a share. but MY XBOX IS NOT ONLINE ALL THE TIME i have one ethernet leading upto my room and its shared between my xbox and computer. so i plug in my xbox to the internet download it thats fine but if i want to access them missions and be offline im shit out of luck? that sucks

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DancingJesus

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Edited By DancingJesus

@lord_canti said:

ok normally i wouldent care i buy games new for the reason there doing it, i know its good i dont mind getting at launch so the developers get a share. but MY XBOX IS NOT ONLINE ALL THE TIME i have one ethernet leading upto my room and its shared between my xbox and computer. so i plug in my xbox to the internet download it thats fine but if i want to access them missions and be offline im shit out of luck? that sucks

No, you don't have to be online to play the missions - only to unlock it for the first time.

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DancingJesus

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Edited By DancingJesus

@BlameGamer said:

I have the utmost respect for Rock Steady. They made my favorite game ever, I just fucking LOVE Arkham Asylum. It's a fantastic game on all fronts. Graphics, controls, fighting, platforming, boss fights, voice acting, everything about the game was phenomenal and easily made it my favorite game EVER.

I have a hard time processing this though. Every cool outfit has to be bought, not earned via game achievements or good playing?

What happened to the days of beating a boss in under 2 minutes gives you Costume X? Or how about kill 200 enemies with your weakest weapon gives you weapon Y?

This absolutely sucks, and is so sad, so tremendously sad. I'll probably pirate this second game now because I'm ACHING to play with Dark Knight Returns Batman. I mean shit, what happened Rock Steady? :( You broke my heart man.

It has little to do with RockSteady and more to do with the Publisher. Rocksteady doesn't decide these kinds of things. And by you pirating their game you are only hurting them.

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BlameGamer

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Edited By BlameGamer

@DancingJesus: True, I realize this isn't the choice of RockSteady. Still, the first game is my favorite game and to see the second be released so gimped is frustrating. :S

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DancingJesus

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Edited By DancingJesus

@BlameGamer said:

@DancingJesus: True, I realize this isn't the choice of RockSteady. Still, the first game is my favorite game and to see the second be released so gimped is frustrating. :S

It's not really gimped. It's no different than serial codes for PC games. If anything it's less punishing...

If you buy it new you get everything - it's a simple as that unfortunately.

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Shadow

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Edited By Shadow

All this is really doing, is guaranteeing that in a couple years when you can't find new copies anymore, no one will want to buy the game

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BlameGamer

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Edited By BlameGamer

@DancingJesus: You don't recieve none of the cool costumes if you haven't pre ordered. Unless I'm mistaken?

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DancingJesus

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Edited By DancingJesus

@Shadow said:

All this is really doing, is guaranteeing that in a couple years when you can't find new copies anymore, no one will want to buy the game

You can buy the game used and then buy the Catwoman portion separately for $10 online afterwords. So you will always be able to get the full experience if you so choose.

It's the same exact thing as the Mass Effect 2 Cerberus Network.

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MrMcJerk

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Edited By MrMcJerk

Her flip says WOW ACTION but her facial expression says HO HUM I'M CATGIRL OR WHATEVER

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Draxyle

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Edited By Draxyle

I am certainly getting tired of being treated like a criminal by all these publishers. I can't think of any other industry with such poor respect for their customers that get away with it too. It's only the publishers that actually have money that do this too. You don't see Atlus scraping the barrel for dollars like this.

It's very frustrating because I want to support the developers as much as I can, but I refuse to give money to EA, Activision, and all the others that still treat us like children to be punished.

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Shadow

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Edited By Shadow

@DancingJesus said:

@Shadow said:

All this is really doing, is guaranteeing that in a couple years when you can't find new copies anymore, no one will want to buy the game

You can buy the game used and then buy the Catwoman portion separately for $10 online afterwords. So you will always be able to get the full experience if you so choose.

It's the same exact thing as the Mass Effect 2 Cerberus Network.

I hate doing that sort of thing. It's why I'll probably never play Dragon Age 2.

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RE_Player1

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Edited By RE_Player1

Am I the only one who likes these online passes?

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DancingJesus

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Edited By DancingJesus

@Shadow: Right, that's the point. It's supposed to be a pain in the ass to discourage used sales because publishers don't see a dime from that.

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tourgen

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Edited By tourgen

I am disappointed to see more and more pieces of console games locked behind online passes.
 
"It just plays" used to be a big edge for the consoles.  Now you have to worry about internet connections, serial codes, and just as much or more patching as a PC.
 
It's a bummer.  I wonder if the big 3-4 game publishers' mad scramble for cash now will eventually cut their throats.

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MordeaniisChaos

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Edited By MordeaniisChaos

That is the most bizarrely confusing title to an article ever. I figured it out, but it makes no sense. If I didn't know what you were talking about that would just blow my mind.

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streek471

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Edited By streek471

Glad I have it pre-ordered, still, these online passes are getting annoying.

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DancingJesus

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Edited By DancingJesus

@tourgen said:

I am disappointed to see more and more pieces of console games locked behind online passes. "It just plays" used to be a big edge for the consoles. Now you have to worry about internet connections, serial codes, and just as much or more patching as a PC. It's a bummer. I wonder if the big 3-4 game publishers' mad scramble for cash now will eventually cut their throats.

I agree 100%, it's a damn shame but it isn't enough for me to not enjoy some of the year's best games. Whathca gonna do? :(

It's part of the reason I stopped playing PC games between the online DRM nonsense and a whole other host of issues.

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Winternet

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Edited By Winternet

Why oh why do they keep bullshiting all of us?

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craggle

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Edited By craggle

@iAmJohn said:

@Lazyaza said:

The whole "used games sales are terrible for developers" thing is buuuullshit, always has been.

Ssh, don't say that out loud, people might actually realize you're right and stop clinging to that stupid argument.

Someone in the thread we had about this before Alex wrote this story legitimately tried to argue that used sales are worse than piracy. What the fuck.

You know who makes that kind of argument? A pirate.

Yearrgh.

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bhhawks78

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Edited By bhhawks78

Add this to the list of games I WAS going to buy new but no longer will unless it's a 5$ steam sale.

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gorehorn

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Edited By gorehorn

@Lazyaza said:

The whole "used games sales are terrible for developers" thing is buuuullshit, always has been.

Enlighen me, what's your evidence for that claim? Every used copy sold potentially means 1 less new copy sold, so developers and especially publishers have nothing to gain from the used market like it is run by GameStop. If customers were smart enough/could be bothered to sell their games themselves for meaningful profit I'd see an argument for an increased budget to spend on new games, but right now that money is mostly going to GameStop not the publishers.

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CaLe

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Edited By CaLe

I thought they said a in a recent Gametrailers preview interview that you start the game as Catwoman.. so those who don't buy the game new will start as Batman then?

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BlameGamer

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Edited By BlameGamer

I'm lolling at the troll face Catman was sporting on the headline. "Problem, gamers?"

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ItBeStefYo

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Edited By ItBeStefYo

@msavo: why would you like them?

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Metaltron

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Edited By Metaltron

@wolf_blitzer85 said:

I AM ENRAGED!

me too. i thought this was going to be in the disc