Blockbuster UK Will Not Honor PS4 or Xbox One Preorders

[drthmik]

I thought Blockbuster was long dead and gone!

 

[Davey Woo]

I have no idea who would use Blockbuster to pre-order a games console over ANY of the supermarkets, GAME, Argos or whatever else is available. I'm actually surprised Blockbuster is still around, even more so that they attempted to do console pre-orders.

 

[TheIceQueen]

The amount of pre-order hate up in this thread is a little ridiculous. There's a vast difference between pre-ordering software and pre-ordering hardware. In the case of software, of course you don't know much until the reviews come out. There's hours and hours of content that needs to be played to get a good handle on it and software itself can be very subjective. Of course you should be more tentative when pre-ordering software, but when it comes to hardware that are in direct competition with each other, you have many tools at your disposal to know if you want a system or not.

Hardware companies have to face competition more directly than Battlefield vs. Call of Duty. They have to completely sell you on their product, so they'll lay it all down on the line. There's a lot of information out there floating about the PS4 and Xbox One. It's easy to get your hands on information regarding hardware products because of this, especially considering the amount of media attention on both systems at the moment.

But no, it's "totes cool and edgy" to hate on people and call them "sheep and fanboys" simply for wanting something on day one that they were going to buy anyways, but at least wanted to ensure that they could get it.

And I'm not even getting either console, as I'll happily stick with my PC. I just dislike the people who've got to hate on others simply for wanting something enough to want to get it the first day it comes out, or even just hating on others for liking something at all. You're not cool and edgy. You're just pretentious.

OT: I'm mostly surprised that Blockbuster still exists. I thought they were beaten back ages ago.

 

[Shoggoth2588]

This company still exists in my country?

I'm surprised.

The fact that Blockbuster still exists at all surprises me! If I knew you people had them I would have tried moving over there. I would have failed but I still would have tried[sub]...that was my all-time favorite work-place...[/sub]

 

[Quellist]

I have a Blockbuster in my town, they are pretty cool about rentals, they will write off pretty much any overdue fees if you ask nicely and bend over backwards to let you rent more for less. Being that nice i cant imagine they turn a massive profit...

That said, i preorderd my PS4 from Amazon largely because i didnt have to pay for the privledge

 

[Icehearted]

Preordering is a fool's game anyway.

Pre-ordering like this is a fools game, why anyone would stump up cash ahead of delivery like this I will never know. I pre-ordered mine in August and will get it launch day and I won't have to pay until the day they dispatch it, if it turns out to be a PoS I can have 14 days to send it back and get a refund too. I get to review it myself, don't have to pay upfront and won't even have to leave the house.

If you've got the money and need or want it ASAP, more power to ya! Even better if you've got a saucy return slip you can use, or flip it elsewhere as people do. I and most of the folks I know can't afford to be Day 1 enthusiasts, I didn't even have a PlayStation 3 until just over two years ago, and that was a sale that brought it down to $200, no tax.

I'm the kind of guy where even if I could afford to I probably wouldn't buy a rainbow array of Ferrari's, one for each day of the week. If you can and do, who am I to judge?

 

[Terramax]

Preordering is a fool's game anyway. Wait for reviews, see what the public says, maybe get a deal a little while later. It only technically makes sense when supporting an indie or a small project, in this case it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever

This is a console, not a game, therefore this rule doesn't apply in the same way.

I mean, I don't buy consoles day 1 either, but it's quite obvious that a juggernaut console like these are likely to have many games in the long future.

On topic; yeah, I'm actually shocked Blockbuster are still going. Rentals in the UK are fucking ridiculous.

Here in Japan, the average titles costs just 0.40p-0.80p to rent for 1 week. 1 WEEK!!!!

 

[Terramax]

Is it bad that while everyone is getting up and arms about the PS4 and Xbone releases, I'm finally going to go around this holiday season and pick myself up a PS3. Also if I can get my hands on one, a PS3 controller that is shaped like a 360 controller (all the advantages of the 360, with all the D-pad and stick placement of the PS3, bliss), and buy a metric ton of exclusives while everyone is orgasming over the PS4.

Not bad at all, however, I'm not certain the PS3 will likely drop price for a significant while. I guess there might be an influx of 2nd hand PS3s that might drive the prices down, but I think game stores know there are others like your goodself looking to pick up the console when the PS4 is the new in-thing.

Come to think of it, I still need to get a PS3 too...

 

[Icehearted]

Preordering is a fool's game anyway. Wait for reviews, see what the public says, maybe get a deal a little while later. It only technically makes sense when supporting an indie or a small project, in this case it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever

This is a console, not a game, therefore this rule doesn't apply in the same way.

I mean, I don't buy consoles day 1 either, but it's quite obvious that a juggernaut console like these are likely to have many games in the long future.

On topic; yeah, I'm actually shocked Blockbuster are still going. Rentals in the UK are fucking ridiculous.

Here in Japan, the average titles costs just 0.40p-0.80p to rent for 1 week. 1 WEEK!!!!

Your contextual argument is a fair one, and again I say that if you can afford to be a Day1 enthusiast, then why not I guess. Game and console preorders are different though, you're right about that, but then this sort of thing, even legitimized further by supporting the developer, didn't exactly work out well for Ouya supporters.

Then again, who really needs one of these right away? I think iPad 3 owners might point out the folly of jumping in first. Hell, even I have a launch Xbox 360, and those damned things were "fixed" and "remodeled" more times then I can count, further justifying the "wait and see" mentality.

People seem to forget how these things have a way of breaking down somewhere between the end of the honeymoon period and the time just before and after the warranty is dead. It's up to the buyer to ask if it's worth the risks.

 

[Overquoted]

I guessed the disasters that last generations launch consoles were would have taught people to wait for the second or third revison before spending hundreds of bucks. Most launch 360's died within nine months to two years and the 40 and 60 GB PS3's didn't last much longer...

While I don't have a launch PS3, I did buy mine in early 2008. It's one of those good ol' fat boys with a 40GB hard drive. Still kicking, too. I replaced the hard drive with something larger, but the original hard drive wasn't broken. In fact, nothing that came with the original console has died. Even the controller works, though I wouldn't advise using it to play an FPS. The analog sticks aren't very sensitive anymore.

Bonus, it doubles as a space heater in the winter! *snicker*

I figure I'll grab a PS4 early next year. Truth be told, the PS3 is really showing its age right now. The menus, the store, game loads...all of it is ridiculously slow.

 

[Terramax]

Your contextual argument is a fair one, and again I say that if you can afford to be a Day1 enthusiast, then why not I guess. Game and console preorders are different though, you're right about that, but then this sort of thing, even legitimized further by supporting the developer, didn't exactly work out well for Ouya supporters.

Then again, who really needs one of these right away? I think iPad 3 owners might point out the folly of jumping in first. Hell, even I have a launch Xbox 360, and those damned things were "fixed" and "remodeled" more times then I can count, further justifying the "wait and see" mentality.

People seem to forget how these things have a way of breaking down somewhere between the end of the honeymoon period and the time just before and after the warranty is dead. It's up to the buyer to ask if it's worth the risks.

Indeed, it is a shame that these days first-day buyers can get burnt in the long run with consoles failing to last as long as they ought to. Then again, it's not as if they break down within the first week or so. Usually after a few months of play, and I'm sure most that want the console that much aren't willing to sit it out 3-6 months to see what happens.

Generally, it's only Nintendo consoles which appear to be consistently durable upon release. Then again, I haven't heard as many sob stories of the PS3 dying so much either.

As for why people want to buy day 1? Well, that's what the strong initial lineups are about I suppose. Not only that, but if you've not got a super powerful PC, then the graphics for these initial releases will give the average consumer that 'wow' factor they only get to experience but once every console generation.

Actually, I regret having not bought a PS Vita sooner. I wasted my money on a 3DS and decided to wait it out, only to later find I could've had a significantly more fun experience had I bought the Vita on day 1 and skipped the 3DS completely.

 

[J Tyran]

Preordering is a fool's game anyway.

Pre-ordering like this is a fools game, why anyone would stump up cash ahead of delivery like this I will never know. I pre-ordered mine in August and will get it launch day and I won't have to pay until the day they dispatch it, if it turns out to be a PoS I can have 14 days to send it back and get a refund too. I get to review it myself, don't have to pay upfront and won't even have to leave the house.

If you've got the money and need or want it ASAP, more power to ya! Even better if you've got a saucy return slip you can use, or flip it elsewhere as people do. I and most of the folks I know can't afford to be Day 1 enthusiasts, I didn't even have a PlayStation 3 until just over two years ago, and that was a sale that brought it down to $200, no tax.

I'm the kind of guy where even if I could afford to I probably wouldn't buy a rainbow array of Ferrari's, one for each day of the week. If you can and do, who am I to judge?

The PS4 isn't that expensive at £350, its cheaper as a stopgap measure than upgrading my PC for the moment. I can play the next gen games still and then upgrade my PC early next year, I will want one eventually anyway so might as well get one at launch. The PS4 new isn't much more expensive in the US than the $200 you paid for a PS3, its pretty good value and not an extravagant splurge.

 

[Nico4]

Too late, already recieved the warning... uhhh, whoops.

In any case (better now than never), I really aren't surprised about this situation. I imagine it'd end so since the likes of Netflix appeared... which is a bit sad.

 

[The White Hunter]

This company still exists in my country?

I'm surprised.

The fact that Blockbuster still exists at all surprises me! If I knew you people had them I would have tried moving over there. I would have failed but I still would have tried[sub]...that was my all-time favorite work-place...[/sub]

You should have asked for a transfer that would be the easiest way in.

How was it working there?