Leveling Down

Is GameStop really that bad?

In Part 1 of our discussion on used games, espion4ge and I discussed our own personal buying habits when it comes to used games. Of course, when you think used games, you have to think of GameStop. Although there are new retailers trying to get in on used games (and there’s always eBay and Craigslist), the fact of the matter is, it’s GameStop’s world and everyone else is just living in it.

In the second part of our discussion, espion4ge and I discussed GameStop’s policies, how we felt about them, and whether we thought there might be ways to improve GameStop. Is GameStop really as bad as everyone thinks? Is it really great for consumers? Check out Part 2 to hear our thoughts, then let us know yours.

Part 2: How do you feel about GameStop and its used games policies? Do you think there are healthier ways to handle the used games market?

In part 1, espion4ge you said you “hate to admit” the number of used games you buy. I actually kind of feel ashamed when I buy used games too. But I think that is a product of my feelings towards GameStop. I don’t begrudge their business model, but the fact of the matter is, the majority of their profits come from used game sales and they have built their entire business model around it. GameStop kind of gives me a “sleazy alley salesman” feeling, I go there and get some great deals but don’t necessarily feel very good about it. The thing that bothers me most is that the salespeople are trained to always say “Would you like a used copy for $5 less?”, and I’ve heard rumors that employees are measured by how many used games they sell. If they don’t ask me about the used copy, they inevitably ask me to preorder something. It’s like I can’t just go in there and have a pleasant conversation about games. And don’t even get me started on what it’s like when I call my local GameStop. I have some ideas about how to make GameStop a more pleasant experience, but I’d rather hear your opinions on the question first.

Can GameStop become a little friendlier?

Yes, I believe that if not currently, then back in the day, employees got commissions based on how many games they got people to pre-order, how many Game Informer subscriptions they sold, and possibly how many times they got customers to buy used games instead of new games. What sucks is if you pre-order with one employee but go in a week later and want to cancel that pre-order with a different employee, the second employee’s numbers gets decreased so they’re not the happiest to cancel the pre-order. At least that’s what I thought was going on just based on what I read online and what I’ve experienced.

But honestly, I’m actually quite satisfied with GameStop. People complain about their sleazy sales tactics of trying to get you to buy used instead of new, but as a knowledgeable consumer it doesn’t bother me at all.  Everyone agrees that GameStop’s main profit margins come from used game sales. In turn, that conveniently places the store all around the country, so you have access to buying both new and old games easily. I’ll gladly deal with employees asking me to pre-order a game if it means I only need to take 5 minutes to get to the nearest GameStop.

Think about a world without GameStop. It would mean we would have to either rely on online ordering (Amazon still has trouble getting us games on release day) or brick and mortar stores such as Best Buy. Best Buy is such a huge store that not only are there less of them around, but the lack of specialization in gaming hurts them. They don’t get their games as early as Gamestop does, and if you want an older game, forget about it. Large retail stores have a model of “after the first couple months of sales for a game, we need to get rid of it so we can stock the next big title.” Gamestops don’t have that issue simply because the used game industry allows us to catch up on games we missed. I’d rather buy a used copy of Ninja Gaiden on the Xbox at Gamestop than – oh yeah, there’s no other real option aside from eBay.

Where can you find Ninja Gaiden for Xbox?

Having said that, I think that GameStop only presents a good value when you take advantage of their trade-in deals or used game promotions. When you take advantage of their B2G1 free deal and have an Edge card for 10% off all used products, that comes out to $33 per $60 retail game. And if you take advantage of trading in games that are relatively new with promotions like the 40%-50% bonus, you can potentially even be making a profit. For example, when I went to take advantage of their B2G1 used sale most recently, I picked up Halo Wars and Star Ocean. But I didn’t have a 3rd game, so I just picked up Street Fighter 4, even though I already owned it. I went ahead and traded it in the next day with the current 40% promotion, and got $45 credit for the game. So as you can see, if you’re a smart consumer, GameStop really can be a great benefit. Just don’t be one of those consumers that agrees to pay $55 for a used game and trades in any game without taking advantage of a promotion. Plus, I’ve sold games on eBay before and after the fees and all that, it comes out to be about the same as what I’d get at GameStop during a trade-in promotion. The good thing about GameStop is they’ll never complain about what I just traded in. With eBay you may have some kid going “You said this was mint but there’s a slight scratch here”, etc. So to simply just go in and dump games I don’t play anymore instead of packing, shipping, and worrying about complaints means I almost always trade in my old games to GameStop.

I believe that with the frequent trade-in deals as well as discounts on their used games, GameStop definitely has a lot of value for me as a gamer and intelligent consumer. In fact, if GameStop didn’t run any promotions with regards to used games, I wouldn’t be buying or trading in my games to their stores at all. I also think their policies are pretty good with regards to used gaming. They have a 7 day guarantee, and if for any reason you don’t like the game, you can just return it. I don’t see how they could make that any better without being taken advantage of.

As for other ways of handling the used gaming market, I can’t think of any off hand. With all of the fees and such associated with online listings and payments, I personally don’t enjoy going that route so there’s really not much more of a way to go about it besides Gamestop’s brick and mortar “trade-in centers.” I personally think it’s awesome that they have an in-store locator for every product of theirs – both new and used. Very convenient.

In terms of healthier ways, I assume you imply a way for developers to make money off these used game sales. I’ve got no bright ideas on that topic, as pawn shops and the like have been around for ages and the original creators of the product never saw profits from used sales.

I actually don’t think developers should get a cut of used game sales, so that’s not really what I consider a healthier way to handle the used games market. I guess what I was trying to get at with the question was the fact that GameStop is great for informed and savvy consumers like yourself, but when it comes to people like parents or kids, they manage to pull off some traps to get their money. I’m not sure if this GameStop employee training video is for real, but the fact that I even question that it might be really bothers me. For those too lazy to click the link, it basically trains employees to take advantage of various types of people to come into the store to maximize profit (hilarity ensues). I wish they handled the used games market in a more friendly way, not only to consumers like yourself but with all consumers.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BqkPm0owi4]
Is this training video for real? Unfortunately, I think so.

I understand GameStop is a business, and everything they do is for the bottom line. But I feel they could create more consumer (and employee) friendly stores and still turn a profit. Think about your typical comic book store. A large part of a comic book store’s economy is based on trading used comics. Of course it’s different, because comics increase in value, but the feeling you get from comic geeks in a comic book store is that it’s a safe haven where they can trade their stuff. GameStop, as a franchise, can’t be like that, but it could take little steps to make things more friendly. Maybe it makes me a dork, but it’d be fun to just walk into my local GameStop and just discuss games with the employees and whoever else is around. It could be a place for gamers to hang out, and by increasing traffic to the store you could potentially increase business. But yea, that’s not going to happen, and maybe I am the only one interested in stuff like that. Though if used book stores have book clubs, I don’t know why used game stores can’t have game clubs!

Basically, it all boils down to the fact that I respect GameStop’s business model, but the way they execute it skeeves me out. It’s too bad, really, but in this economy, I guess what’s most important is staying afloat. Target keeps its video game section afloat by selling 500 Hannah Montana DS games, so I sincerely am glad GameStop is around for me to pick up stuff like Retro Game Challenge.

In the final section of our discussion tomorrow, we consider how digital distribution is going to affect this whole used game thing. Will used games become a thing of the past? Our answers to that question…tomorrow.