Best Buy Gets Into Used Games Market, GameStop Doesn't Care

[Keane Ng]

Best Buy Gets Into Used Games Market, GameStop Doesn't Care

Electronics retailer Best Buy is tossing its hat into the used games business ring, but current king of the market GameStop couldn't care less.

From Amazon to Toys R Us to Wal-Mart, it seems that every company that can sell videogames these days also wants to sell (or at least buy) used games. Electronics mega-retailer Best Buy announced yesterday that it'll be the latest entrant into the increasingly popular market, with a plan to install kiosks into its stores to trade in used games for store credit, similar to Wal-Mart's scheme.

With all this big-name competition you'd think that GameStop, which currently sits on the majority of the pile of money that is the used games racket, would be a little bit scared, but the company seems to be completely nonplussed. The difference between their service and the kiosks at Best Buy and Wal-Mart, GameStop says, is the people.

"We are very confident in our business model that allows our expert associates to help consumers trade in product, a fact not addressed with a self-serve process," GameStop said. No offense to any of you GameStop employees, but I'm sure there are some folks out there who'd be glad to avoid any interaction with GameStop staff.

Analysts agree that all these new names in the used games market won't make much of a difference for GameStop itself. "While we believe that Best Buy's entry into the used video game market will create a new overhang on shares of GameStop, we expect Best Buy's initiative to expand the used videogame market rather than take significant share from the specialty channel," Colin Sebastian of Lazard Capital said.

So instead of knocking GameStop off the top of the money pile, this will just make the money pile bigger for everyone. I suppose it means more options for consumers, which should be a good thing in any case.

[Via GI.biz [http://www.gamepolitics.com/2009/06/24/gamestop-shrugs-best-buy-enters-used-game-biz]]


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[snuffler]

Best Buy lfg, GameStop lfm. Win win really. I like the idea of best buy having me able to trade in my old games for store credit, as long as I can use the store credit on stuff other than video games. That would appeal to me far more than just the games available at GameStop.

 

[WaffleTron]

"We are very confident in our business model that allows our expert associates to help consumers trade in product, a fact not addressed with a self-serve process," GameStop said. No offense to any of you GameStop employees, but I'm sure there are some folks out there who'd be glad to avoid any interaction with GameStop staff.

Hey I used to work at gamestop you jerk, and I was a model employee!... Yeah I'd rather deal with Best Buy, they are much nicer there. >.>; At least there I can trade in my crappy games for like... Soda, and chips!

 

[GonzoGamer]

"We are very confident in our business model that allows our expert associates to help consumers trade in product, a fact not addressed with a self-serve process," GameStop said. No offense to any of you GameStop employees, but I'm sure there are some folks out there who'd be glad to avoid any interaction with GameStop staff.

I know I would. However this may end up turning Best Buy into a terror if:

We end up having to wait a half hour on line for two people in front of us.
They try selling you pre-orders and magazine subscriptions when you finally do get to the counter.
The moron who is supposed to put a used game in the case before putting the case in your bag, doesn't.
The said moron can't find the game you handed over the case for after waiting for him to find it for another half hour.
They make us pre-order any new game and sell the used games for $2 less than a new copy.
They offer no more than $20 credit for games that are $60 on the shelf.
Try to sell us opened games as new.
They generally turn into pricks who point and laugh at shoppers who only own a wii and don't know anything about the gaming industry.

I hope they are not only better than gameslop (they don't have to try hard) but they completely lead to it's bankruptcy.

 

[dodo1331]

I hope Gamestop gets destroyed. They are absolutely terrible.

 

[Low Key]

There is nothing wrong with competitiveness. I just hope Best Buy gives a fair price for games. GameStop doesn't, which is why I have a lot of games I don't play lying around my house.

 

[Pimppeter2]

Best Buy lfg, GameStop lfm.

What does that mean?

 

[Jsnoopy]

god i hate gamestop.

 

[blackshark121]

I work at a BBY, and I have never heard of this... time to phone up the manager...

 

[Ginnipe]

I'll still go to gamestop, one because I have an EDGE card, allowing me to purchase more and get more from used games. But one of the reasons I like gamestop is that most of the people in my local gamestop acually know what their talking about when it comes to games and hardware. I can see Asking a Best-Buy person which game I should buy and them telling me some hyped up peice of bullshit insted of leading me in the direction of an acuall good game. The quality of the workers is more important. Althogh, if Best-Buy will buy my games for more then I might sell them their and buy them at the gamestop about a 1/4 of a mile away.

 

[Ginnipe]

"We are very confident in our business model that allows our expert associates to help consumers trade in product, a fact not addressed with a self-serve process," GameStop said. No offense to any of you GameStop employees, but I'm sure there are some folks out there who'd be glad to avoid any interaction with GameStop staff.

I know I would. However this may end up turning Best Buy into a terror if:

We end up having to wait a half hour on line for two people in front of us.
They try selling you pre-orders and magazine subscriptions when you finally do get to the counter.
The moron who is supposed to put a used game in the case before putting the case in your bag, doesn't.
The said moron can't find the game you handed over the case for after waiting for him to find it for another half hour.
They make us pre-order any new game and sell the used games for $2 less than a new copy.
They offer no more than $20 credit for games that are $60 on the shelf.
Try to sell us opened games as new.
They generally turn into pricks who point and laugh at shoppers who only own a wii and don't know anything about the gaming industry.

I hope they are not only better than gameslop (they don't have to try hard) but they completely lead to it's bankruptcy.

Like I said in previos threads, th quality of the worker far surpasses anything els, I want to know what is the acual right decision to make when spending $20-$60

 

[snuffler]

What does that mean?

Literally? Best buy looking for group, gamestop looking for more. Figuratively it means Best buy wants some coin and gamestop doesn't care if best buy is treading on their soil to get it.

 

[GonzoGamer]

"We are very confident in our business model that allows our expert associates to help consumers trade in product, a fact not addressed with a self-serve process," GameStop said. No offense to any of you GameStop employees, but I'm sure there are some folks out there who'd be glad to avoid any interaction with GameStop staff.

I know I would. However this may end up turning Best Buy into a terror if:

We end up having to wait a half hour on line for two people in front of us.
They try selling you pre-orders and magazine subscriptions when you finally do get to the counter.
The moron who is supposed to put a used game in the case before putting the case in your bag, doesn't.
The said moron can't find the game you handed over the case for after waiting for him to find it for another half hour.
They make us pre-order any new game and sell the used games for $2 less than a new copy.
They offer no more than $20 credit for games that are $60 on the shelf.
Try to sell us opened games as new.
They generally turn into pricks who point and laugh at shoppers who only own a wii and don't know anything about the gaming industry.

I hope they are not only better than gameslop (they don't have to try hard) but they completely lead to it's bankruptcy.

Like I said in previos threads, th quality of the worker far surpasses anything els, I want to know what is the acual right decision to make when spending $20-$60

What?
Well, the fact that you subscribe to their yearly fee on top of getting ripped off by their practices tells me that you've already drank their koolaid and you'll likely defend them until you run out of money. But when spending $60 on a game, you should be getting a new sealed copy and not a "practically new" copy that's only been played by the employees.

The employees do make a bit of a difference. For example, in the NYC area,the Rockefeller Center branch is the only one I can stand shopping in because the clerks don't force you to pre-order a new game or try to sell you pointless crap (like their yearly fee), there's never a line, and I never have to wait more than a few seconds for them to find the game. Still, because of the location, I only go there when gamestop has an exclusive premium that I want or if they're having a big sale. The worst game store in NYC however is the Flushing gamestop. Besides smelling the way the name sounds, the employees are pants on head retarded. The last time I was there, the moron behind the counter took forever to get the games for the cases and even missed one; he actually handed me an empty case for it. He was too concerned with getting me to pre-order crap and subscribe to their yearly fee to give me what I paid for.

The problem I have with gamestop on the whole is that the (business) success in their shady practices are one of the main things that makes gamers look like the least savvy consumers on the planet. Now there are many businesses who think, 'hey, we can talk gamers into buying anything.'

 

[Skreeee]

Does this mean the jilted Gamestop roadies will now pester the cashiers at Best Buy and make my wait in line infinitely longer and far more annoying?

I hate them so much.

 

[Ginnipe]

"We are very confident in our business model that allows our expert associates to help consumers trade in product, a fact not addressed with a self-serve process," GameStop said. No offense to any of you GameStop employees, but I'm sure there are some folks out there who'd be glad to avoid any interaction with GameStop staff.

I know I would. However this may end up turning Best Buy into a terror if:

We end up having to wait a half hour on line for two people in front of us.
They try selling you pre-orders and magazine subscriptions when you finally do get to the counter.
The moron who is supposed to put a used game in the case before putting the case in your bag, doesn't.
The said moron can't find the game you handed over the case for after waiting for him to find it for another half hour.
They make us pre-order any new game and sell the used games for $2 less than a new copy.
They offer no more than $20 credit for games that are $60 on the shelf.
Try to sell us opened games as new.
They generally turn into pricks who point and laugh at shoppers who only own a wii and don't know anything about the gaming industry.

I hope they are not only better than gameslop (they don't have to try hard) but they completely lead to it's bankruptcy.

Like I said in previos threads, th quality of the worker far surpasses anything els, I want to know what is the acual right decision to make when spending $20-$60

What?
Well, the fact that you subscribe to their yearly fee on top of getting ripped off by their practices tells me that you've already drank their koolaid and you'll likely defend them until you run out of money. But when spending $60 on a game, you should be getting a new sealed copy and not a "practically new" copy that's only been played by the employees.

The employees do make a bit of a difference. For example, in the NYC area,the Rockefeller Center branch is the only one I can stand shopping in because the clerks don't force you to pre-order a new game or try to sell you pointless crap (like their yearly fee), there's never a line, and I never have to wait more than a few seconds for them to find the game. Still, because of the location, I only go there when gamestop has an exclusive premium that I want or if they're having a big sale. The worst game store in NYC however is the Flushing gamestop. Besides smelling the way the name sounds, the employees are pants on head retarded. The last time I was there, the moron behind the counter took forever to get the games for the cases and even missed one; he actually handed me an empty case for it. He was too concerned with getting me to pre-order crap and subscribe to their yearly fee to give me what I paid for.

The problem I have with gamestop on the whole is that the (business) success in their shady practices are one of the main things that makes gamers look like the least savvy consumers on the planet. Now there are many businesses who think, 'hey, we can talk gamers into buying anything.'

All of what your saying is probably true, but remember your in NYC, just about everyone I find their is a daouche just trying to get his next paycheck. I'm up in Maine where the small population of gamers acually care about eachother. At my local gamestop they acually tell me what is the best decision, thats why I like it, and they don't just tell me to buy the new game so they can score $60. They will tell me to get the used version and see if I like it and return it if I don't. It's the person who acually cares about their customer not the paycheck, thats the kind of person I like and my LOCAL gamestop has it.

 

[Simalacrum]

well, i'm just glad that stores like Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Gamestop simply don't get into England... although we have our equivalent equally crappy game stores that rip us all off with used game prices... seriously, £5 return for a PS3 game and then selling the same game for £30 is just unfair.

 

[toasterslayer]

my gamestop employees r cool. but when i sell games there, i get ripped. i could sell them gears 3 and get TWOOOOO whole dollars.