Used Games Will Steer GameStop Through Recession

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Sarah Fri, 07 March 2008 10:38AM

It's All Part of Their World Domination Plan

You’ve got to hand it to GameStop, they really know their business stuff. They’ve got about 12 billion stores on Earth and other planets now, and they make a hundred trillion dollars a day on new and used games and systems. And while some people may want to scoff at the “used” portion of GameStop’s merchandise, equating them to pawn shops, GameStop has the last laugh. Why? Because those pre-owned products are their ticket to getting through the upcoming recession unscathed.

While other video game and electronic retailers may be worried about business dropping off with the suffering economy, GameStop will continue to increase profits, according to Forbes. The leading factor for this is the profits GameStop makes off of their used products, which get more and more profitable as games and consoles become more expensive.

So keep trading in those games of yours for less than half of what they’re worth, guys. It’s up to you to help GameStop through this recession. After all, if they don’t open up a million more stores this year, they’ve pretty much failed as a company. (Just kidding, GameStop. You know we love you. Please don’t hurt me.)

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They'll never get any of my old games...I keep them all.

ThE BuTTon SmAsHeR Reply Fri, 07 March 2008 10:46AM
I don't trade in games anymore. I got tired of the trade-in value. Plus that software warranty that they had for that little while wasn't even worth it. They reneged on everything that the warranty covered. The warranty was supposed to cover damaged (cracked, chipped, etc.) discs for an even exchange of software. They didn't tell anyone that they were discontinuing this plan until they wished to purchase the plan with new/used software. Another part of this cancellation of the warranty plan is that those who had already purchased the plan for games in the past lost out on $3 and the policy is null and void.

Double whammy on that one. Sucks and makes my purchasing at the conglomerate limited to used games only. Sometimes I wander in there and buy a new game but I just do business, maybe shoot the $h*t for a little bit, and then go about my day.

They can gloat and prosper all they want. I still shop there either way. The only thing that I really hate about the company is the extremely huge employee turnover rate that they have. They make all this money and don't pay worth anything. It's a good part-time job for people that need it and a good managing job for those who gain it.

Another thing I don't like is "Would you like to reserve anything?" while I'm checking out. That works on gamers that aren't sure what's coming out and reminds them of what's to come. It doesn't, however, work on those of us who know exactly what we want and know when it's coming out.

QMarc80 Reply Fri, 07 March 2008 11:26AM
Wow! That was a longer posting than I thought it'd be. Sorry.

QMarc80 Reply Fri, 07 March 2008 11:26AM
valid points, while I usually don't trade anything in because I am a packrat and hang on to everything I ever buy, I must admit that they sometimes run some awesome trade-in and reserve deals that are nice to take advantage of. I know when everything's coming out but I still reserve everything... just makes it easier to keep track, personally.

Sarah Reply Fri, 07 March 2008 12:28PM
My three cents:

1. Except for the trade-in deals, just eBay games you don't want. In fact, buy a game brand new, beat it, then eBay it. You will get 95% of your money back. Now just wait a year and buy it used off eBay for 10% of its original cost. You win!

2. People complain about the trade-in values at GS, but here's something to consider: you can't trade in games at BestBuy/Target/etc at all, and you can't find/buy rare old used games from 4 years ago either. So, in short, nobody is forcing you to trade in games, but the option is better than nothing.

3. Preordering games is unnecessary 99% of the time, barring smaller shipments like Geometry Wars Galaxies or... Guardian Heroes for Sega Saturn!

WiNG Reply Fri, 07 March 2008 02:55PM
Well put, Wing! However, I'm still a fan of reserving just because you never know, and because I can pay off games little by little and have them completely paid off months before they come out. Just works for me, but to each his or her own.

Sarah Reply Fri, 07 March 2008 03:50PM
How is not ruled as a monopoly of sorts when you go in to Willowbrook Mall, for example, and there is a Gamestop, EB Games, Software Etc., and Funcoland - ALL THE SAME STORE - and this is a rather small mall in the Wayne, NJ area. There are 4 versions of the same store in one spot. I just want to walk into Funcoland and be able to get my newspaper with the latest used prices for old consoles. That would be great. I honestly hate shopping at Gamestop and tend to order games from Amazon and yet since I work in a mall myself I do make my way down the hall to the Gamestop on occassion. They are allowed to sell you open games as "new" and seriously Gears Of War is not still worth 50 dollars new let alone used. Lame.

Darth Mattingly Reply Sun, 09 March 2008 11:00AM
Agreed.

QMarc80 Reply Sun, 09 March 2008 09:46PM

Used Games Will Steer GameStop Through Recession

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