Posted on Friday, March 23 2007 @ 16:05 CET by Thomas De Maesschalck
Some gaming fans
received a free 42" LCD TV from Sony with the purchase of their PlayStation 3 console at the European launch:
Sony and other major retailers had talked up the long-delayed launch, organising special late-night events for those who couldn't wait until Friday morning to pick theirs up, though the console's hefty price tag appeared to have dampened the consumer frenzy that greeted launches of its earlier versions.
In the basement of Virgin Megastore's flagship London outlet, hardcore video game fans who waited in line for more than a day for the midnight launch were rewarded by Sony, which gifted each of the first 125 a new 42-inch Sony TV.
"It feels great, man, especially with the free TV on top," a jubilant Atkah Armah, 28, told AFP from the store, after collecting his PS3.
"We were sitting in the queue for about 50,000 hours, and all of a sudden, some guy came out and said, 'There's a free TV', and then he goes, 'and everyone in the queue's going to get one'.
"That was pretty amazing," Armah said, adding that he was going straight home to start playing his copy of Ridge Racer.
Virgin Megastore said it had booked extra security and free taxis to whisk gamers home and avoid them falling prey to muggers.
