GameStop Releases Xenoblade Chronicles Stock, Increases Price

[Roxas1359]

I really really hope this inspires Nintendo to rerelease this at a bargain price, preventing Gamestop from profiting from what is at best shady practice and at worst possibly Illegal.

Sadly it's not illegal that they can do this since the game was so limit in print. Nintendo saw no need to localize Xenoblade Chronicles in the US, so GameStop took a chance and localized it allowing them to set the price. Combine that with the fact that Nintendo consoles are region locked based on both disc and hardware and then you get multiple situations like this. For example have you seen the going price for the One Piece Unlimited Cruise games in Europe? Those things are expensive.

Really this does suck, but the sad thing is that GameStop were the ones who actaully even brought Xenoblade Chronicles to the US, and the only way to fix this would be to reprint the games, and why would GameStop wanna do that when they've obviously got a nice little scheme going.

 

[Leonardo Huizar]

Lets Plays are still free... just saying

 

[medv4380]

Bold move, but all Nintendo has to do is a quick port to the WiiU so that it can be purchased via eShop and their legitimate price gouging due to restricted supply is obliterated. It wouldn't even be a shotty port since most of the hardware is nearly identical architecture.

 

[ThunderCavalier]

GameStop performing actions that are controversial and serve to piss off its consumers?

Yeah, sounds like an average day.

If I used my Wii more often, I would go out and get Xenoblade. As it stands, I might not have it for much longer, so I'm not planning on putting in a $90 investment, even if the game is reportedly awesome.

 

[Billy D Williams]

Well, we all pretty much know that GameStop very likely (if not definitely) did this intentionally (i.e. held onto extra copies to sell when the game was really rare). So assuming that is true, while its a douchy thing to do, its a very well played business strategy, no doubt in my mind.

 

[Arqus_Zed]

I'm experiencing a malevolent sort of joy right now.

For years on end, the US market has been getting ALL the advantages: earlier releases, special compilation releases and games that never got outside of Japan and the US (Tales of ..., Metal Saga, Suikoden III, Radiata Stories, Grandia III, Devil Summoner 2, Xenosaga I & III, Arc the Lad: End of Darknes, etc.). But then the whole Operation Rainfall thing happened. We European folks finally had a stroke of luck in that Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story and Pandora's Tower had their European release dates confirmed at a time when they weren't even sure the games would get an American release at all. And I just sat there and watched with glee how this one trinity of titles drove a whole group of people mad, starting up a petition and calling the whole damn thing an "Operation". Christ, you guys aren't used to not getting want you want, are you?

And then this happens.

Now, I can't help but sitting here with a grin on my face, whispering: "Justice".
(Even though I realize it has very little to do with any form of justice.)

Thats a pretty nasty attitude and i'm british myself and got all games new at a reasonable price so its not sour grapes on my part.

As if all the bloody ebay resellers offering 'New, sealed' copies of the game at a disgusting markup arnt bad enough, when retailers get in on the game the people who suffer are the actual gamers.

Nasty attitude? Guilty pleasure is more like it. I am yet to meet someone who never enjoyed a little moment of schadenfreude. So yeah, just because I'm relieved that for once in this medium's run we don't have to touch the dirty end of the shit-stick, you're gonna go all "for shame" on me? Well then, good sir, I myself will state that I disapprove of you and your "holier than thou"-attitude.

 

[Hero of Lime]

I should have picked it up when it first came out. I've heard nothing but good things about it, but I figured I could pick it up discounted in the near future, that won't be happening for a while I suppose.

 

[Bad Jim]

GameStop may have simply been holding onto a stock of new copies that it then reprinted as used so it could raise prices.

Couldn't they have done that anyway, when selling as new? Or is there some contract that sets the price for them for new copies?

In theory, yes. In practise, no. People will pay inflated prices for rarity. But if a retailer is selling new copies, the game is getting less rare, so people will just wait for the price to drop.

But if Gamestop can get away with claiming they are selling used copies, people will think the game is still uber rare and might pay the premium for rarity even though the game is actually becoming less rare.

It's a bit like limited editions that are limited to how many they can sell.

 

[Stabby Joe]

It's even gone up in the UK, £50 on Amazon currently. That's kind of what happens when you release what is technically a niche game on a now dried up platform.

Great game though.

 

[Lunar Templar]

Wait, it is an uncommon thing in the US for rare used games to be worth far more than retail?

That's a common practice here in Australia.

really depends on how rare the game really is, but yes, some rare games do cost as much or more then retail.

such as Lunar 2 [http://www.amazon.com/LUNAR-2-Eternal-Blue-Playstation/dp/B00004RBQX],or Odin Sphere [http://www.amazon.com/Odin-Sphere-Playstation-2/dp/B000IONGU4], or Valkyrie Profile [http://www.amazon.com/Valkyrie-Profile/dp/B00004WMQB/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1376512327&sr=8-3&keywords=valkyrie+profile] granted, those are Amazons princes, but you get the point, Ebay won't really be much better.

but this isn't the same thing as those, those games are a gen or 2 old, and have been out of print for years. Game Stop, if we are to be believed, deliberately drove the price up by creating a false shortage and then sold new games as used to set the price higher, and that's just not cool.

 

[major_chaos]

YES FINALY. Ran out and picked this up as soon as I found out. Between coupons and a trade in I got it for 60$ instead of the $100+ I was looking at on amazon, and now my Rainfall collection is complete.

Wait, it is an uncommon thing in the US for rare used games to be worth far more than retail?

That's a common practice here in Australia.

No it's not.
I could probably go get Thief Deadly Shadows, Makai Kingdoms and Final Fantasy X-2 all used for less than the price of a new $60 dollar game.

Those are not really good examples, considering none of them are all that rare. better examples would be things like (Amazon prices. Rounded):
Mega Man Ledgends 2: $65 used, $400 new
.Hack GU Vol 1: $60 used, $125 new
Valkyrie Profile: $70 used, $220 new
Panzer Dragoon Saga: $285 used(!) $1,500 new (!!)

Rare games being expensive is not uncommon.

 

[WhiteTigerShiro]

On the one hand, it's hard to blame them for charging $90. In fact, it's a bit of a bargain when you consider that the game easily goes for over $100 on eBay. On the other hand, though, it's easy to throw-in with the nay-sayers who are pointing out that GameStop mostly likely just sat on a bunch of shipments so that they could gouge the price up later. It wouldn't be the first time Gamestop has done some shady (but unfortunately legal) practices.

All-in-all, this is why I don't shop at Gamestop.