The "I Hate Gamestop" Thread

[Doppel]

While GameStop does make most of it's profits from game sales, they do make money off peripherals and consoles. Plus, handhelds aren't going anywhere. GameStop might not be the juggernaut it is now in the post physical media world, however, people will still need extra controllers, cables, consoles, handhelds, accessories, etc. People, who are impatient, are not going to want to wait a few days when their controller breaks or a new console comes out. They want to go and pick it up. Amazon is trying to combat this (see their drones). They know the convenience of grabbing locally beats out waiting, especially in places you have to pay tax regardless.

People will need those, but most can be bought anywhere. The point is GS will lose a great deal of business when games continue the existing trend of going digital. Unfortunately for them, they need a demographic to not go online when in fact it is more poised than any other (younger consumers with a technology bias) to do just that.

 

[cmdrdredd]

People will need those, but most can be bought anywhere. The point is GS will lose a great deal of business when games continue the existing trend of going digital. Unfortunately for them, they need a demographic to not go online when in fact it is more poised than any other (younger consumers with a technology bias) to do just that.

Well I dont see physical media dying at all. There are still a lot of people who want to have the disk so they can play the game any time. If 15 years down the road they want to play a game that they bought digital but the servers are gone how do they download it? There is also a good number of people who want to have the collection with the cases and artwork and maybe the steelbook special editions etc. There is still going to continue to be a good market and incentive for companies to release a disk version too. Even if that disk turns into a flash drive in the future.

I actually can't believe it is a debate. There is no way in hell GameStop doesn't end up like blockbuster. ALWAYS bet on digital. It won music, it won movies, it's winning games. GameStop B&M will be crushed in an increasingly digital world.

It did not win movies. Look at how many movies come on blu-ray. The quality of the digital movie is not the same either. Again, there will continue to be a market. Not to mention that some movies cannot be found streaming but you can buy it.

 

[Bman123]

We have years to go before it goes all digital. They have plenty of time to figure out a plan for then. I don't see GameStop going out of business. As long as you can buy and sell used systems they'll be open

 

[ponyo]

Remember EB Games? They were brilliant selling out to GameStop at the peak. I don't know if GameStop will last another decade.

 

[BikeJunkie]

Remember EB Games? They were brilliant selling out to GameStop at the peak. I don't know if GameStop will last another decade.

5 years is where my money is, barring a (successful) overhaul of their business model. A couple people chirping up in defense of GS without digesting the facts or the trends of similar businesses/models in the past. No matter... we'll know soon enough.

 

[Fulle]

Gamestop is the only retailer out there that would pull new games off the shelf, gut them, and re-sell them as "used", with a huge mark up, while keeping unsold copies in a warehouse.

Screw them. They can't go out of business fast enough.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Gamestop is the only retailer out there that would pull new games off the shelf, gut them, and re-sell them as "used", with a huge mark up, while keeping unsold copies in a warehouse.

Screw them. They can't go out of business fast enough.

Mark up? They lose money when they buy a new product and have it sitting unsold. Every game is paid for prior to it getting on the shelf.

 

[Fulle]

I was referring to the Xenoblade and Metroid games. They literally pulled brand new Xenoblade games off the store shelves, ruined the packaging, and then put some back up for absurd prices as "used".... while keeping back stock to artificially create scarcity.

They went above and beyond to make sure they were sticking it to their customers.

 

[zerocool84]

Yes of course eventually physical games will go away but that's still a ways off because games are so huge and real high speed Internet still has a ways to go in this country. At least another 10 years

 

[smackababy]

I was referring to the Xenoblade and Metroid games. They literally pulled brand new Xenoblade games off the store shelves, ruined the packaging, and then put some back up for absurd prices as "used".... while keeping back stock to artificially create scarcity.

They went above and beyond to make sure they were sticking it to their customers.

Proof? Because, in order to do that, they'd have to either sell it as new and associate would pocket the extra money, process the sale of the new game then generate a trade in (while explaining the money discrepancy) and then wait for the used copy to sell in order to gain "profit".

So, I think you are either making that up or heard some incredibly stupid and false story somewhere and are repeating it as fact.

 

[KeithTalent]

I was referring to the Xenoblade and Metroid games. They literally pulled brand new Xenoblade games off the store shelves, ruined the packaging, and then put some back up for absurd prices as "used".... while keeping back stock to artificially create scarcity.

They went above and beyond to make sure they were sticking it to their customers.

This makes no sense to me. I truly do not understand how that helps the store. What am I missing? :hmm:

KT

 

[cmdrdredd]

With Xenoblade Chronicles specifically, and this is the only game I am certain of. They had an exclusive deal to sell the game. It was a limited production. Some months later it turns up on ebay selling for $80-$100+. Then gamestop pays for a reprint of the game but sells it as used, but the used price matches the previous new price. Then once it gets scarce again it starts selling as used for $69.99.

That game was unavailable in any form except through gamestop or ebay scalpers.

 

[KaOTiK]

This makes no sense to me. I truly do not understand how that helps the store. What am I missing? :hmm:

KT

The MSRP on Xenoblade was the standard $50. The GS used price was like $90 for awhile.

 

[KeithTalent]

Ah ok, I get it now. Thanks for clarifying.

KT

 

[smackababy]

With Xenoblade Chronicles specifically, and this is the only game I am certain of. They had an exclusive deal to sell the game. It was a limited production. Some months later it turns up on ebay selling for $80-$100+. Then gamestop pays for a reprint of the game but sells it as used, but the used price matches the previous new price. Then once it gets scarce again it starts selling as used for $69.99.

That game was unavailable in any form except through gamestop or ebay scalpers.

That is entirely different than what he was trying to say.

 

[cmdrdredd]

That is entirely different than what he was trying to say.

Because they didn't pull them off the shelf and sell it as used. The game was out of print entirely. Nobody could get a sealed copy in the stores. Nobody sold it except Gamestop to begin with.

 

[Bman123]

Supply and demand. No supply equals high prices, common sense especially for a business

 

[smackababy]

Because they didn't pull them off the shelf and sell it as used. The game was out of print entirely. Nobody could get a sealed copy in the stores. Nobody sold it except Gamestop to begin with.

I understand what happened, but the poster I was referring to stated they pulled games that were new off the shelf and sold them as used, which means they were in the system as new. He also stated it happened with a game other than Xenoblade.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I understand what happened, but the poster I was referring to stated they pulled games that were new off the shelf and sold them as used, which means they were in the system as new. He also stated it happened with a game other than Xenoblade.

I've only ever heard of the Xenoblade situation. I don't think they let any new sealed games sit in the warehouse unsold. They'd be losing money on every copy they have there.

They do on occasion take a title that is old and has no demand and start selling them as used games to try to move them. I've seen that before.

 

[Fulle]

They did pull them off the shelf, and re-sell them as used. I noticed, since the game wasn't in high demand in my area, being a niche as hell Wii game. In several store locations they never really sold out of the game, and then magically the new copies were replaced with used ones, with inflated prices.

But if we're going to argue they didn't pull the new stock (which I'm fairly confident they did), at the very least, they failed to put out a re-print to meet the demand... and instead did a limited re-print where they stocked the game as used with working unused Club Nintendo Cards packed in. Why? So they could keep the inflated price.

Most recently, "used" stock magically appeared for Black Friday, but marked down to a more reasonable $40. But what wasn't sold on the sale, was quickly marked back up to $70.

They pulled some shady as hell, anti-consumer stuff on Xenoblade Chronicles...

 

[cmdrdredd]

They did pull them off the shelf, and re-sell them as used. I noticed, since the game wasn't in high demand in my area, being a niche as hell Wii game. In several store locations they never really sold out of the game, and then magically the new copies were replaced with used ones, with inflated prices.

But if we're going to argue they didn't pull the new stock (which I'm fairly confident they did), at the very least, they failed to put out a re-print to meet the demand... and instead did a limited re-print where they stocked the game as used with working unused Club Nintendo Cards packed in. Why? So they could keep the inflated price.

Most recently, "used" stock magically appeared for Black Friday, but marked down to a more reasonable $40. But what wasn't sold on the sale, was quickly marked back up to $70.

They pulled some shady as hell, anti-consumer stuff on Xenoblade Chronicles...

With that title at least they were cheaper than ebay prices. $100 for a disk in a sleeve lol.

 

[Fulle]

Gamestop had exclusivity and completely controlled the supply. So it's not a case of "they're selling it for less than ebay prices", when they're the ones driving the price up to begin with!

 

[Fulle]

Xenoblade Chonicles is the worst example, since Gamestop had full exclusivity, but they also did their very best to drive up costs on Metroid Prime Trilogy (also magically in stock for this year's black friday), and Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn.

It's just something Gamestop does....

 

[cmdrdredd]

Gamestop had exclusivity and completely controlled the supply. So it's not a case of "they're selling it for less than ebay prices", when they're the ones driving the price up to begin with!

I'm looking at it differently. Gamestop sells an exclusive game. Game is out of print. You can't buy it anywhere. So you can't play it. It isn't Gamestop's fault that some guy puts a copy on ebay and people bid it up to $100. I can only blame the people paying those prices. It's not like I blame Sony or Microsoft for making a new console limited and if you weren't quick enough you can't buy one easily except from ebay or someplace with an inflated price. If they are selling at high prices it's the buyers I blame for creating a perception of high cost and value. What I do blame them for is the limited nature of that particular game. I also equally blame the developer and publisher for going the route they did.

 

[BikeJunkie]

I'm looking at it differently. Gamestop sells an exclusive game. Game is out of print. You can't buy it anywhere. So you can't play it. It isn't Gamestop's fault that some guy puts a copy on ebay and people bid it up to $100. I can only blame the people paying those prices. It's not like I blame Sony or Microsoft for making a new console limited and if you weren't quick enough you can't buy one easily except from ebay or someplace with an inflated price. If they are selling at high prices it's the buyers I blame for creating a perception of high cost and value. What I do blame them for is the limited nature of that particular game. I also equally blame the developer and publisher for going the route they did.

Dude, you are seriously being the most blatant GS apologist imaginable. I call BS on you not being an employee/shareholder/shill.