General Category > General Discussion
GameStop Rage!!!
6521ordnut:
TC - come cross one of the bridges - we in Bellevue have a couple Gamestops (Belleuve Square and Crossroads), and there is a Play-n-trade in Kirkland. I have only had to return two games in 10 years.
shenske:
I think you just got bad luck of the draw. I've shopped at gamestop's and pawnshops all around for 7 years now and have only had a handful of games not operate. Did you look at the disks prior to bringing them home? I always check my discs before purchasing them. Also, if I want the game bad enough and I felt I got it at a good price and just take my discs and gets them proffesionally resurfaced.
About Gamestop not testing their games when they are trading in .... I bet next to no game stores actually test their games. There simply isn't enough time to go through and test every game. Especially when you consider most gameshops are packed with only 1 or 2 people working. Also it isn't feasable to hire someone to test all the games. The used game business is not as lucrative as some people may think. With the constant deprecating of games sometimes they don't even break even on their investment when purchasing the used game from the customer. That's partly why people get so little when trading into Gamestop .... It's a business.
I know it's frustrating to not have some games work every once and a while but that's the risk you take when buying stuff preowned anywhere. If you desire product working 100% of the time then the only way you can ensure that is to buy new. At least they have a good return policy, many other gameshops I have been to don't even offer returns. It's just the way it is ;)
Arseen:
--- Quote from: shenske on December 09, 2010, 01:05:55 AM ---Many other gameshops I have been to don't even offer returns. It's just the way it is ;)
--- End quote ---
Glad Finnish consumer law (and EU also I think) gives mandatory right to return broken games (and other stuff also) when shopping from a shop or other business, online or offline, even used ones.
ShoothimNow:
The Exchange near me gives a 30 day return policy for any defective items. They are uberly cheap compared to GameStop and BuyBacks.
I never go to gamestop as they only have current gen games now for a rediculous price.
BuyBacks is a joke... they price match loose games with Amazons top selling price. They seriously had a copy of
- Diddy Kong Racing $279.99
- Super Mario 64 $119.99
- Super Mario Land 2: 6 Coins $149.99
- Pokemon Red $199.99
And to add insult to injury even more, BuyBacks only has a seven day return policy. Still, I am happy there is a return policy at all!, but then again... I prefer the exchange a lot more...
The Exchanges Price (that I bought the games for)
- Diddy Kong Racing $2.50
- Super Mario 64 $6.00
- Super Mario Land 2: 6 Coins $1.00
- Pokemon Red $5.00
Zelimpdna:
"The used game business is not as lucrative as some people may think."
According to GameStop's latest quarterly financial results, the used game business accounts for 47.5% of their profits. That's pretty lucrative.
http://www.kotaku.com.au/2010/11/why-gamestop-wants-your-used-games-so-bad/
EDIT: The GameTraders near me [probably the best game-specific retailer we have in Australia, and the only major one which deals with retro games and systems, right back to the Atari VCS (2600) Although having said that, a good retailer here is still, on average, double the price that you can pay importing games from the UK or US, even if you include postage] checks consoles when you trade them in, but not games as it would just take too long.
But they do give you the option of testing any games before you purchase them, and I've seen them offer full refund or exchange to another customer who brought a Dreamcast game that didn't work. They are a franchise though, not a chain, so that might just be how this particularly manager does things.
For all new purchases, of games and everything else not game related, Australian law ensures right of refund if goods are DOA, and also a minimum manufacturer's warranty of 12 months. Not sure if this, or any other laws, cover used/second-hand purchases from stores though.