The "I Hate Gamestop" Thread

[JD50]

I dunno, I definitely like the ease of using digital media, there's just something about having the case with the artwork and physical disc. I have no idea why I don't feel like this about PC games though, because I prefer all digital with PC games.

 

[preslove]

I've decided to buy littlebigplanet 2 to play with my gf. It's $18 used at gamestop (according to their website) and $20 on PSN for a download. With tax, the used game would be a little bit cheaper, but I like the idea of not having to switch disks to play.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Never? You're being awfully absolute there.

Blu-ray is able to provide 4k soon. The bandwidth necessary is around 30Mbps to do it without massive compression. The average home in the US has 7-8Mbps. That doesn't include lossless audio which streaming doesn't provide. Then you have Comcast and others salivating at bandwidth caps.

The whole way we access the internet and the players involved need an overhaul before we are ready in the states.

 

[Doppel]

Right....that's why the PS4 E3 reveal was one of the loudest and biggest events of E3 history, and why Xbone launch would have been a complete failure if MS didn't backtrack, its because nobody cares about physical copies or ownership of their games.

People do care. I'm one of them; I hated MS's decision.

This doesn't change in any way my confident projection that digital will grow--after all, that's what it is doing in spades--and continue to shut down physical media. I'm not even saying I like it. I play new games cheap now by buying, playing, selling before they drop in price.

PS4 vs almost failed Xbone launch showed where consumers stand on the issue.

It showed where SOME consumers were on the issue. Go back 6 months you'll find not everybody cared about MS' decision.

PC software had long already been restricting use and attempting to lock the software to one PC.

So you agree fully this has already happened to PCs. Since many in the console industry seem to want it to happen here they have a precedent to look at.

I disagree with you about PC games. They absolutely used to be sold. I've sold them before. I think the last I sold was Half Life 2. Now with them digital it's not possible. Hell, I even remember renting PC games back in the 90's.

a lot of people giving anecdotal "facts" in this thread.

AFAIK every single thing I've said about the future demise of physical media is easily verified by googling digital vs physical distribution of games. It's already started. It's not a future event. The future event is not the start; it's merely the end. We're already taking the path.

I don't see digital taking over until it quits matching the physical copy in price. IMO, this is the only reason Steam is so popular. Once it becomes cheaper to go digital over physical, we'll see that big shift. Until then, it will just be a very, very slow change with digital winning in the end.

Overall I agree, and I even posted some incredibly detailed study in a thread I created several months ago about this. A $60 game that can be traded, to most consumers, is only similarly attractive in digital if it's about $40-45. Somebody studied this and has a ton of data behind it. There are people to either side of this; some already are happy to pay $60 for digital, and others just want physical no matter what.

 

[BikeJunkie]

I don't understand the "hatred"... I mean, if they have something that you feel is a good deal, then you buy it. If they don't, then don't shop there. Pretty much like any other business, right?

What's to "hate"?

Unfortunately, the term came from a zealot who couldn't handle people claiming that the days of GS' current business model were numbered. Without any evidence to support his emotions, he just labeled anyone who disagreed with him as "haters". While I admittedly don't like GameStop, I do support capitalism and their right to earn a buck; I just don't think they'll be able to do so in the long run. Has nothing to do with hate and everything to do with what we've already watched happen with other media formats.

 

[BikeJunkie]

i think i'm in the VAST majority of the market. 100% guess but the fact that stores like gamestop and other stores have people lining up on launch night to purchase games

Except that this has been taking place in the absense of a digital download/pre-load option. Besides, while it's been years since I actually stood in line for a pre-ordered game, my impression is that people are doing that less and less. There's just not the scarcity of games any more. I can ALWAYS walk into a WalMart the morning after release and pick up the game. But I digress. The first sentence is the the gist of it.

the fact that there was a huge backlash about the original x1 concept should say something, and the fact they changed their stance on it should also say something

This has already been largely debated, but to recap, I agree it does say something, we just don't know exactly what that something is. All that's certain is that 1) there is a group of people who rebelled, though we don't know their size, and that 2) MS took too large of a leap.

IMO, the crux of the problem is that Microsoft was pedaling a $500 piece of equipment that was suspicious as a gaming device, yet it had all of these rules attached to it, one of which was a cold-turkey militant shutdown of the used game market. When all of those rules were swallowed in one piece, the whole thing just became a clusterfsck and people rebelled. And as Doppel said earlier, we saw the same rebellion with Steam. That's the key here: there is so much precedent on so many levels that it's flat out silly to suggest that the landscape for GS won't be vastly different or even nonexistent for GS 5 - 10 years from now. We're already on those paths of precedence, and to expect that we'll suddenly veer off in a new direction and counter what's already happening is just wishful thinking.

just like with anything, you have the vocal minority saying they want something (digital only), but then you have the other 99% of the people who are quiet because they like the way things are.

I see what you did there The "vocal minority" term is not typically applied to a group content with a transition. There is no group of gamers screaming/clamoring for a militant transition to digital, so the "vocal minority" you described doesn't actually exist. Now, the group that flipped their !#@$ over not being able to sell their games... who knows if that was the masses or just a vocal minority. Frankly I don't think it matters. They'll end up playing ball just like those who came before them did.

 

[Axon]

I can't remember the last game I've purchased from Gamestop. Their ridiculous "you have to pre-order lololol" policy has always driven me nuts, and now that there is absolutely no reason to pre-order, they can really take a walk. Why should I give you a penny of my hard earned dollars months in advance?

Further, their service is terrible, the lines are incredibly slow, and they never seem to have a new copy. Is it that hard to have a copy in plastic? Damn yo.

 

[BikeJunkie]

Their ridiculous "you have to pre-order lololol" policy has always driven me nuts, and now that there is absolutely no reason to pre-order, they can really take a walk.

I've never been a big pre-order guy. I have a WalMart and a GS right down the street from me, and given the choice I'd rather not step into either one.

A couple times I walked into GS the morning after release and asked for a copy and got nothing but smug attitude in return (for not pre-ordering), and never walked out with an actual copy of the game. I walked 20 feet over to WalMart and could pick from a pile of 50 copies. No attitude, no up-selling, no "sign up for some club/subscription/jellyofthemonth" crap. I have NEVER been unable to get a copy of a game at release by going to WalMart, Target, or whatever other huge retailer is nearby.

And really, high demand hardware aside, the whole concept of pre-ordering is hilarious to me. I didn't pre-order the PS4 **or** the Xbone, yet I have one of each sitting right here at my desk. You guessed it: both procured the morning after If I can do that, I sure as hell don't need to pay in advance for the next Call of Duty or Madden. Especially now that I can just download them *ahem*

My main interest here is the debate of their viability as a business, but we do still have one or two people wondering (ignoring) why GS has such a bad reputation among many gamers. Well, here you go. Supply/demand manipulation, aggressive up-selling, snobby attitudes, take your pick.

Achievement Unlocked: Sucking harder than WalMart.

 

[Tweak155]

I only pre-order if I really like the series and want to support the dev and it gets delivered to my door.

The one time I pre-ordered a game I actually had to pick up was so I could get it at midnight. I wanted to play it THAT night. And yes, that was at a GameStop. It went smooth, no complaints.

Where GameStop DID screw up was when I pre-ordered the Zelda 3DS XL bundle. When I pre-ordered online I could only have it shipped to my house. I couldn't pick a store to have it available at, but I could with Best Buy. WTH?

 

[exdeath]

I preorder if its something that's limited edition that I know I won't get later.

The Last of Us Post Pandemic edition, looking at you.

Or if there is some kind of bonus like CDs and artbooks for JRPGs.

Didn't preorder Ni no Kuni or Xenoblade Chronicles? Yeah the steel book and art book are like $30 on their own now.

I've been at this long enough to know when. Xenoblade? Yup.

Bioshock Infinite or GTAV CEs? Nope. Too popular and too many made.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I can't remember the last game I've purchased from Gamestop. Their ridiculous "you have to pre-order lololol" policy has always driven me nuts, and now that there is absolutely no reason to pre-order, they can really take a walk. Why should I give you a penny of my hard earned dollars months in advance?

Further, their service is terrible, the lines are incredibly slow, and they never seem to have a new copy. Is it that hard to have a copy in plastic? Damn yo.

I have never had this problem I see constantly online about never having a sealed copy. There are multiple people here who say that has never happened either. Yet someone always claims they "never" have a sealed copy of a game.

 

[Wingznut]

I have never had this problem I see constantly online about never having a sealed copy. There are multiple people here who say that has never happened either. Yet someone always claims they "never" have a sealed copy of a game.

Same here... Between myself and my two teenage sons, we've purchased dozens of new games from Gamestop, and we've never seen a new game sans plastic. And actually, I've never heard this from anyone I personally know, just online message boards.

 

[BikeJunkie]

There are multiple people here who say that has never happened either.

And there are multiple people who say it has. Conclusion? Both statements taken at face value, it happens at least some of time... which is infinitely more than it should.

Or you could just come out what you really think... that your experience/word is the gospel and everyone else's is highly suspect.

I know you probably think I'm picking on you (or "trolling," as that word serves as a better scapegoat). Look, I'm new here. But since I started participating in the console forum, I've noticed that you seem to take that approach with the majority of topics. You are extraordinarily quick to dismiss opinions that differ from your own, and you assert your own as though they could be digested as nothing less than pure fact. You're flabbergasted by anyone who doesn't comply. I know, welcome to the internet, right? Except you stand out a bit in this regard on this particular subforum. I noticed this long before the topic of GS surfaced, and I noticed that you're particularly sensitive to the topic of GS itself.

So if you think people are being argumentative with you, the above is probably why.

 

[Axon]

I have never had this problem I see constantly online about never having a sealed copy. There are multiple people here who say that has never happened either. Yet someone always claims they "never" have a sealed copy of a game.

Of course it's a slight exaggeration. When a game is newly released, they have sealed copies. However, recently, I went in to ask if they had lego batman 2 for my son, but all they had was an unsealed copy. So it does happen, and unfortunately, not that rarely. I did not purchase the unsealed copy and just went a few blocks out of the way to best buy. Sealed copy, no problem.

 

[Tweak155]

I just bought a new game from there on Black Friday... and, yep, it had plastic I had to work my way through to open it! AND that was in NYC. Of all places to lose plastic, I pick NYC!

 

[BikeJunkie]

Same here... Between myself and my two teenage sons, we've purchased dozens of new games from Gamestop, and we've never seen a new game sans plastic. And actually, I've never heard this from anyone I personally know, just online message boards.

Up until about a year ago, it was routine in every GS in my area. It happens less now (though still happens), but before then, you had to explicitly ask for a sealed copy and hope they had one. Usually they didn't. They'd fetch the case. They'd go to another drawer and fetch the disc. They'd put them together and charge you the NIB price. Lovely.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Same here... Between myself and my two teenage sons, we've purchased dozens of new games from Gamestop, and we've never seen a new game sans plastic. And actually, I've never heard this from anyone I personally know, just online message boards.

I think it is a misconception that spreads around because someone was buying an old and obscure title or just happened to be buying the last one and they would have ended up with the gutted copy. Then they go online and say "gamestop opens all their games". I dunno...people who browse or shop there would obviously know how it works and when it happened to me they apologize about it but I dont even really care. The game works and I'll open it in 10 minutes anyhow.

I like my local gamestop because I got to know the employees. I see them all the time and we chat about new games and gaming news while I am there. I help them out by putting money down on games I am going to buy so I can get any pre-order bonuses. They help me out by giving me a heads up on things that come in they think I might be interested in. There isn't much of a fighting game market in my area but they saw me buying a lot of fighters and I was talking about arcade sticks etc. So the manager calls me and asks if I may be interested in a special edition street fighter 4 package they got in with a soundtrack and some making of DVDs etc. I think that is great service that they remember their good customers. They held a battlefield 4 marketing poster for a guy who was always in there buying games and was super excited to play BF4 on his ps4. They remembered him and thought he may want it when he picked up the game. We also know each other by name which probably helps make the atmosphere a little nicer.

I guess people who look at it from the outside and might catch someone on a bad day have a different impression. The better stores will take care of the customers who continue to patronize their location. Far better than you get from target, best buy, or wally world. You will be lucky if you find someone who knows anything about gaming. Like with any business though you have good and bad. You will have managers who go out of their way to make you happy and a return customer even if they take a bit of heat for doing a return or not making a sale off someone. You will also have those who are only about numbers and going by the book on everything because all they care about is looking good for the DM.

 

[Axon]

I just bought a new game from there on Black Friday... and, yep, it had plastic I had to work my way through to open it! AND that was in NYC. Of all places to lose plastic, I pick NYC!

I've certainly gotten sealed copies from GS before, it's just that they try to sell me unsealed copies often enough that I've noticed. No dog in the race, just something that happens.

 

[BikeJunkie]

I think it is a misconception that spreads around because someone was buying an old and obscure title or just happened to be buying the last one and they would have ended up with the gutted copy. Then they go online and say "gamestop opens all their games".

So, this "never" happens to you (by your own words), but you're qualified to expound upon the experiences of others with blind conjectures to add context to what *actually* happened to them?

I rest my case.

Here's a crazy idea: ASK THEM instead of rushing to judgement and being preposterously presumptuous.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I've certainly gotten sealed copies from GS before, it's just that they try to sell me unsealed copies often enough that I've noticed. No dog in the race, just something that happens.

It does but there is a reason. I just mean that on forums I see it posted as an "always" occurrence. I have bought the last copy of a game before and got the gutted case with the stickers on it myself. Part of it seems to be that they dont keep a lot of older titles on hand. Only maybe a couple copies. They have a ton of hot new releases though. Most of the stores are small though with limited stock space.

 

[Wingznut]

And there are multiple people who say it has. Conclusion? Both statements taken at face value, it happens at least some of time... which is infinitely more than it should.

Well, to be fair, an actual real world experience is often more valuable than message board chatter. What happens so often on the internet, is that someone reports something (a unique experience) and people parrot it. Then it turns into "I hear about that all the time", but that really isn't accurate at all.

Up until about a year ago, it was routine in every GS in my area. It happens less now (though still happens), but before then, you had to explicitly ask for a sealed copy and hope they had one. Usually they didn't. They'd fetch the case. They'd go to another drawer and fetch the disc. They'd put them together and charge you the NIB price. Lovely.

Ohhhh... You mean, the shelf would have empty boxes, and you'd take one of those up to the counter, and they'd pull the disc out of a drawer and then sell it to you. It would be a way to stop shoplifting.

I haven't seen that done anywhere in like a decade.

 

[Tweak155]

I've certainly gotten sealed copies from GS before, it's just that they try to sell me unsealed copies often enough that I've noticed. No dog in the race, just something that happens.

I don't doubt it... they may need display cases out on the floor. I don't know how else they'd get them. If they just sat games out on the floor they'd start disappearing.

 

[Wingznut]

So, this "never" happens to you (by your own words), but you're qualified to expound upon the experiences of others with blind conjectures to add context to what *actually* happened to them?

I rest my case.

Here's a crazy idea: ASK THEM instead of rushing to judgement and being preposterously presumptuous.

The street goes both ways, Bike... Just because people prattle on the internet, doesn't make (whatever) issue widespread.

Take the recent DOA consoles. If you paid attention to the internet, you'd think it was a 50% failure rate.

 

[BikeJunkie]

Ohhhh... You mean, the shelf would have empty boxes, and you'd take one of those up to the counter, and they'd pull the disc out of a drawer and then sell it to you. It would be a way to stop shoplifting.

No, I mean you walk up to the counter and ask for Gears of War 3, and they fetch an empty box from a drawer of empty boxes, fetch a disc from a drawer of discs, and then put it all back together. I've actually witnessed two GS employees systematically going through a pile of Black Ops 2 games and opening them, separating them, etc.

I used to think it was just an EB Games thing, but the practice continued long after GS took over.

What's weird is I don't live anywhere near a high crime area, either. 50 miles south of me, maybe I'd understand. Here? There's no reason.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Well, to be fair, an actual real world experience is often more valuable than message board chatter. What happens so often on the internet, is that someone reports something (a unique experience) and people parrot it. Then it turns into "I hear about that all the time", but that really isn't accurate at all.

Ohhhh... You mean, the shelf would have empty boxes, and you'd take one of those up to the counter, and they'd pull the disc out of a drawer and then sell it to you. It would be a way to stop shoplifting.

I haven't seen that done anywhere in like a decade.

This happens most on used games cause they dont require the case for a trade and a lot of titles dont have many copies available. Since it may be out of print you cannot find it new.
It is situational. It isn't as if they open the game because you are buying it.