GameStop Pulling Deus Ex: Human Revolution PC Off Shelves [UPDATED]

Ok, hows this for an example. A buddy of mine owns a successful local comic shop. Recently I've noticed that there are several ads in alot of the books each week with whole page ads for Mile High Comics. Now, as owner, should he be able to rip out those pages because it advertises for the competition, and you think he should, does the customer or potential customer have the right to complain about such a practice?

I have to say it. Square Enix comes out of this looking like a giant batch of huge pussies. They put their product in a store with a fat bonus for their customers, and the store has the temerity to crack open those boxes and take the bonus out? And Squenix fucking apologizes? Have some fucking self-respect. Christ.

Ugh. Square basically kowtows to Gamestop, says we should buy it there anyway?

"  because, like all retailers, we" 
 
Isn't it presumptuous for arrogant self-righteous corporate PR creeps to speak for all humanity?

I can smell the trolls....GameStop as well as any other retailer have the right to specify what contents are in the box. Thats exactly how pre-order bonuses work.

Gamestop does a lot of shitty unreasonable things. This is really not one of them. No retail store wants to sell you products that advertise a competitor. SE's already confirmed that the promotion was indeed done without Gamestop's knowledge. They are actually well within their rights and common business sense to cease selling the item. They are also not, from the sounds of it, canceling people's preorders or anything of the sort, so I don't see much to complain about here. Its like if a game got released on Steam with promotional coupons for Origin, or vice versa. Valve and EA would take it off their listings immediately.

@Napalm said:

Square Enix was just basically bent over GameStop's knee. What the fuck...

That's what I'm so confused about. Somehow, after all the backlash, Square Enix comes out looking like the bad guy and is forced to apologize? Is GameStop actually allowed to have a contract with companies that says, "Hey, we can modify your games any way we want before selling them"? That seems like it would violate some more general retail laws, especially if they're still selling the game as 'new'.

Great, and Square Enix HAS to apologize to Gamespot if they want to sell copies. I hate the world.

@S3kShun62 said:

Its not any single person's content until they buy it, regardless of being pre packaged or not. Square Enix apalogized to GameStop for this misunderstanding, and is now telling you to go buy the game from them. If you want to walk out of GameStop, feel free to...you're choice. But for those upset at this at this...SE basically told you they screwed up...not GameStop. Enjoy

And I bet they said that through gritted teeth.

I just think this is another example why consumers should do their best to get informed before making a purchase.

Its not any single person's content until they buy it, regardless of being pre packaged or not. Square Enix apalogized to GameStop for this misunderstanding, and is now telling you to go buy the game from them. If you want to walk out of GameStop, feel free to...you're choice. But for those upset at this at this...SE basically told you they screwed up...not GameStop. Enjoy

@cordialsnail: This, last game I bought from a retailer was Wrath of the Lich king

Well, now I'm glad there is not a Gamespot in my country :s

Square Enix was just basically bent over GameStop's knee. What the fuck...

I'm sure a thousand other smug assholes like myself beat me to it, but people still buy PC games from brick and mortar?

@Ashtwin said:

In all seriousness, how was that coupon supposed to infringe on the sales of a program that wont launch til sometime next year?

Future sales. They don't want people even knowing about OnLive, much less becoming a customer.

Well shit damn hell fuck, I just got my X-box copy this morning, and was planning to get the PC version eventually, but now that I have been deprived of content that is rightfully mine by retail assholes I've got to throw down the 60 bucks anyways. Thanks Gamestop!!!

On this day I solemnly swear to never set foot in a Gamestop ever again. Who's with me.

Okay, so Square Enix clearly violated their terms with GameStop, and so they don't get to be pissed. That's fine. But OnLive should still have plenty of cause to be pissed. They had no responsibility to inform GameStop about this deal, so can't they still sue? They're getting pretty boned because of this. Also, I really, really want someone to sue GameStop over this (or anything, really) and win.

In all seriousness, how was that coupon supposed to infringe on the sales of a program that wont launch til sometime next year?

@bretthancock said:

"packed in without our knowledge". I think I speak for everyone with half a brain when I say go fuck yourselves Gamestop.

I know right? Like SquEnix is supposed to consult them regarding everything they sell? Fuck off. I fucking HOPE there's a Penny Arcade comic about this, Tycho will eviscerate these morons.

Went to walmart to buy the game last night and they had the displays out promoting the game but no game. Here I was being all "anti gamestop" and walmart failed me. I was told that the day shift was supposed to put them out and was left standing there wondering WTH

@S3kShun62 said:

This is what bugs me....people are ripping into GameStop for doing this, but what if it was Best Buy, or Target, Fry's or any other retailer? Don't give me that "They wouldn't do it" because unles you're corperate office for any of those companies...you won't know. Yeah, it's stupid they did it, but if you were in their shoes, would you want to hand business to a competitor? Imagine McDonalds saying "Here, buy a Big Mac and we'll throw in a coupon for a free Whopper from Burger King".

You're missing the point. It's not that they are taking out their competitor, its the issue of company policy regarding used games vs new games. If they will not accept a game from you that is brand new simply because the cover was removed, what gives them the fucking right to tamper with another company's property, reseal it, slap a "new" sticker on it and charge you $60 for the game. Customer satisfaction and quality assurance means nothing to these people.

I'm glad I haven't bought a game from Gamestop in about a decade.  Evil fucks.

The lesson to be learned: BUY EVERYTHING FROM AMAZON ALL THE TIME.

Or Best Buy. Or Fry's. Or Target. Or even K-Mart. Just not fucking Gamestop.

The real news here, for me, is that Gamestop still sold PC games!

Today is the turning point. This is the the day that retail sales of games is now officially irrelevant.

I've never seen OnLive get so much publicity.

Show of hands, the people that thought this was a dead platform till now?

No one at my Gamestop pulled the games; I actually sold a few copies today. A few guys were worried their copy would be open, but they weren't. Most of the people that came to the store to buy the PC copies are pretty hardcore regulars, and I'm not gonna give them a reason to stop coming.

So this means Gamestop will start pulling Xbox Live coupons out of new games too, right? Right? It's a competitor, after all.

Jeeeesus.

So people even give a shit about onlive anymore? honest question because the majority of NA who has broadband is on broadband like Comcast, ATT, Knol etc. which all have bandwidth caps, why waste bandwidth on low res laggy input gaming? and if you're buying it on PC why would you want to use it? i have yet to find one PC gamer who even acknowledges onlive as a real platform, it's shitty how GS does this but its GS, they open games, play them and sell them as new i see it everytime i go it, just the other day i went in to pick up Deus Ex Aug, guy hands me a non-sealed open copy and said it was "display" it's new and i got in an argument with him about how if its open it isn't new and he ended up having to have a manager from the across the mall come and sort it out.

If you are one of the 3 people that love onlive and actually care about getting the onlive game no offense, but GS has done worse crimes than take this out and the whole selling opened games as new is complete bullshit and they have tried to do it to me NUMEROUS times, the ONLY reason i still go there is because of cheap used PS3/360 games and CE pre-orders.

Yeah, I've seen enough. So long GameStop. I've got $20 invested at the moment, holding 4 pre-orders. Forget that. I'll spend my $20 in store and then cut all ties with GameStop. I'm so done with them.

Cashed in my Father's Day gift card to pick it up there. Had to hit up 2 stores to find a copy. Wished I'd have gone online to get it.

Patrick buried the lead... Apparently, Gamestop still carries PC games in store. Color me shocked.

How about this, DON"T BUY GAMES from Gamestop!

Lets not sell games GREAT way to make money!

Lmfao...yeah.  Fuck Gamestop for its overpriced games, shitty trade-in values, and coupon snatching douche-baggery.  Steam > Gamestop.

You know, I really like dealing with the people at the EBgames (Gamestop Canada) That I usually go to, but it's shit like what they have been pulling for this release that makes me want to seek better alternatives. Between pulling PC copies of the game off shelves after opening them before giving them to customers, and not having the foresight to realize that Canada is a freaking huge country, and it takes longer to ship the pre-order codes, I don't know if I'll go back.

There you go GameStop. A much better strategy. If you hate handing those coupons out, don't hand the games out. Now you are only screwing yourself, not all your customers. Kudos.

And so my dislike of gamestop grows even more.

This is filthy. There's no other retailer I've ever heard of that rips open new games, movies, or whatever and sells them as new. Not Walmart, Target, Best Buy, CostCo, Sam's Club...or anywhere I've ever seen games sold. This is sleazy and their excuses are horrible.
 
Also, who the crap is going to use whatever online service GameStop is going to implement? Boy oh boy if I ever did want a business to fail, GS is it.

soooo shady

What about buying used games, people? Don't we need Gamestop for that????

I've never seen OnLive get so much publicity.

Show of hands, the people that thought this was a dead platform till now?

lol. well at least they're honouring all returns with a receipt. seriously though, this shit is hilarious (and pathetic). 

What about buying used games, people? Don't we need Gamestop for that????

@S3kShun62 said:

This is what bugs me....people are ripping into GameStop for doing this, but what if it was Best Buy, or Target, Fry's or any other retailer? Don't give me that "They wouldn't do it" because unles you're corperate office for any of those companies...you won't know. Yeah, it's stupid they did it, but if you were in their shoes, would you want to hand business to a competitor? Imagine McDonalds saying "Here, buy a Big Mac and we'll throw in a coupon for a free Whopper from Burger King".

It still does not justify opening new copies of a game, removing something that the publisher put in there and then trying to sell it as new, as if it was never tampered with.

I wonder if Gamestop did more damage overall to themselves by informing so many people of OnLive's existence with this fiasco.

Why do people even go there? Christ, haven't they heard of Amazon, Bestbuy or even fucking Walmart?