Does anyone even shop at Gamestop anymore?

@jkuc316 said:

I still go retail, because I don't have a debit/credit card.

You are missing out. You should consider getting a pre-paid visa card.

Not really. I usually do Amazon for my new releases, and if it's something I'm not sure about, I might pick it up down the road at Best Buy. I'll only go into GameStop if I'm looking for something older I can't find anywhere else, and it's something I want to get that day.

@kingopork said:

Amazon a vast majority of the time. I will stop at wal-mart at 7 am for the occasional purchase. Only issue I have is that UPS gets to my house by 5-6 o'clock.

That's the issue when I go the Amazon route as well; it usually takes until the end of the day for me to get my shipment. I usually work later into the night, so I suppose it all works out.

No. They no longer receive any of my gaming bucks.

Yes.

Deus Ex: HR was on sale at Toys R Us for $35, I couldnt find one that had it in stock so I bought it at a gamestop because it was on sale for $45.

while i have used amazon a few times, i'll buy from gamestop just because they have good pre-order bonuses ( i dont get charged to pre-order a game in nj, the 5 bucks gets deducted from the full price)

but i still check amazon for their prices/incentives

Rarely, but it is only when they offer a good sale (that amazon is no longer doing, i.e. infamous 2 hero ed, for about $50)

@Sanious said:

Yes.

Deus Ex: HR was on sale at Toys R Us for $35, I couldnt find one that had it in stock so I bought it at a gamestop because it was on sale for $45.

Amazon had a bunch of them in stock for 35 dollars at the same time!

http://slickdeals.net/permadeal/57992

My Gears 3 Epic edition will be the last game I buy from Gamestop. I recently moved all my reserves to Amazon.

Steam or Amazon. Sometimes Impulse, but only for Impulse exclusives. (SoaSE)

I'm going to be getting Gears of War 3 at the midnight launch from Gamestop.

At their midnight launches they give out bags of free stuff and free food.

Sadly yes and I always scratch my head and wonder why. Amazon and Steam are all you need. Gamestop is a ripoff in so many ways possible.

@TheSilentTruth said:

It's a quicker service. Most of the time I don't feel like waiting a week to get a new game.

I get same day delivery with Amazon. And I don't even have to leave my house or pay tax. So nice.

I agree. I pretty much shop exclusively at Amazon when it comes to video games. I live in California too and don't have to deal with tax. And I have Amazon Prime which has free two day shipping.

I used to shop for my games at Gamestop, but they eventually forced me to stop for exploiting the 'return a pre-owned game within seven days and you can trade it in for a game or games of equal or lesser value' every day. For three months.

I usually go to Best Buy for my games, but there's an EB right next to it, so if the Best Buy's out of stock, I'll head over to the EB and give it a go.

Dude... If amazon was to go under, I'm pretty sure i would be very emotional and not know what to do!

I go to Best Buy or HMV if Im ever going to buy a game from a brick and mortar store

@Athadam:

1. The pre-order fee business. You're correct in that GameStop doesn't allow you to completely withdraw the funds you deposit for a pre-order. However, anyone who pre-ordered Duke Nukem Forever who decided not to buy it when it turned out to be terrible can put however much of that money they want towards buying another game. If you're already planning on buying more games at GameStop, you're effectively getting your deposit back, as you're just being saved that money in credit the next time you want to pick up a game.

2. Sometimes, games are only worth $5 at GameStop, and that moment is disappointing. However, Black Ops is probably STILL worth $30 at GameStop, as they're still buying and selling tons of copies of that game! Comparing any other game's resale value to Call of Duty is going to leave you flabbergasted, but that's because a stupid number of people buy Call of Duty.

3. They do ship same day as release, but you don't RECEIVE the game on release, you receive it 8-15 days afterward because that's how their free shipping works. I preordered Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 this way; I remember how it works. Unless they have different approaches for games and albums (in which case WHAT THE HELL, AMAZON?) you'll only actually GET the game day of release if it's a digital download or if you're already paying to be an Amazon Prime member.

4. I have observed tax on Amazon.com in Illinois and Wisconsin so far. Digital downloads carry no tax, but anything you have shipped definitely has tax slapped on.

5. I agree that many online retailers allow you to save money on physical copies of games. There is, however, inherently a convenience fee of waiting for the game to arrive, and you lose an experience to actually meet some people who might be enthusiastic about the game that's releasing. Yes, GameStop is higher priced, and when it comes to buying a copy of Bayonetta you should ABSOLUTELY go with Amazon at this point, but GameStop is a social location as well as a retail one for me. Again, generally people report the terrible practices of GameStop employees, while I report that I wish I could get to know my GameStop employees even better. They seem like cool dudes. This is not just one store, this is three or four of them that I regularly frequent.

I don't mean to sing the gospel of GameStop or anything, of course, it's just that you specifically targeted them. I do revile Best Buy, as I said before, but I totally took my brother to Wal-Mart to get his 3DS to join the price-cut-AND-Ambassadors-club. Personally, compared to the HMVs I saw in London, I think GameStop is sick, but generally speaking I still just miss EB Games.

The other fear I always have about shopping on Amazon, though, is that I buy tons of stupid shit that I don't mean to purchase. Unless I'm very deliberately searching for something, ordering it, and signing off, I spend absolutely ludicrous amounts of money looking at "Amazon Recommends..."

Yup

I will only go there if another store doesn't have the game I am looking for.

I do.

@Athadam said:

They charge you a pre-order fee, give you extremely terrible trade-in values,

They don't charge a fee, it's a down payment, the same way you pay the full price at Amazon. The game will be $5 less when you pick it up.

@Athadam said:

and charge a lot of tax.

Amazon charges sales tax, too, except in California. I'm in Portland right now, where there is no sales tax at all, so that's kind of YMMV.

Aside from that, I get gift cards for GS every now and then for completing surveys, but then end up spending them on their online site. Pro tip, you can use a GS gift card at their site to buy Xbox Live or PSN points, and they won't charge tax and will just give you the code through the internet. I mean, yeah it'd be easier to just give Microsoft or Sony your money, but like I said, if you got giftcards lying around, don't have to wait for store hours.

@Little_Socrates said:

The other fear I always have about shopping on Amazon, though, is that I buy tons of stupid shit that I don't mean to purchase. Unless I'm very deliberately searching for something, ordering it, and signing off, I spend absolutely ludicrous amounts of money looking at "Amazon Recommends..."

You say fear, I say benefit!

Also, Amazon prime is pretty awesome. They give discounts if you have a college email address. I'm an alumni and still have one, so it's like 40 bucks a year for free two day shipping on most things.

I pre-ordered Dark Souls through them yesterday.

Oh yes I do. In fact, I dropped $78.80 on nothing but used games there about a week and a half ago.

@satansmagichat said:

@Little_Socrates said:

The other fear I always have about shopping on Amazon, though, is that I buy tons of stupid shit that I don't mean to purchase. Unless I'm very deliberately searching for something, ordering it, and signing off, I spend absolutely ludicrous amounts of money looking at "Amazon Recommends..."

You say fear, I say benefit!

Also, Amazon prime is pretty awesome. They give discounts if you have a college email address. I'm an alumni and still have one, so it's like 40 bucks a year for free two day shipping on most things.

...I may change my Amazon email address. I actually have liked everything I bought that way, but I didn't really need to own Grant Morrison's Batman & Robin Vol. 1.

I've never bought at a Gamestop. Way back I did use to buy at Frys and compusa(yeas, that place) I remember the clerk bad-mouthing Gamestop when he was getting my game from behind locked glass, I cannot remember why but it had to do with the game(box and all) being secured as such. Then I discovered Amazon...and for that matter, steam also.Full respect for GOG and such, also.

Yep.

They're the closest retail store that sells games, so yes. I do buy games from the from time to time.

@Little_Socrates said:

...I may change my Amazon email address. I actually have liked everything I bought that way, but I didn't really need to own Grant Morrison's Batman & Robin Vol. 1.

Yeah, I was thinking more about how you always end up needing to add a few bucks to get it to $25 for free shipping and buy stuff like Solitary Fitness or some paperclips. Or the worst is when you actually want something that costs a couple bucks but the shipping is more than the cost of the item. Prime's nice for that, when all you need is some soap and don't want to have to wait till you have $25 worth of stuff in your cart.

This message brought to you by Amazon Prime. Amazon... and you're done™.

@Athadam said:

Now with websites like Amazon.com, does anyone seriously use brick and mortar retailers like Gamestop anymore?

They charge you a pre-order fee, give you extremely terrible trade-in values, and charge a lot of tax. This while Amazon gives you free shipping on most games, same day pre-order release shipping, no tax, better customer service, tons of promotions, actually low prices on used and older games, and great trade in values. In my state (California), buying from Amazon saves me around 10% every single video game purchase.

A few months back Amazon offered $100 credit for a $300 Xbox 4gb w/ Kinect. I've never seen Gamestop do any promotion similar to that at all.

Heck, even Best Buy does good trade in value.

Is there any reason to use Gamestop?

Where do you guys shop?

They don't have a pre order fee do they? Its just put down atleast 5 bucks for a pre order (which you can get back if you cancel before the day it comes out) or if you do pick the game up the 5 bucks goes towards the purchase.

The reason gamestop stays in business isn't because of guys/gals like us. They stay around because for a lot of people gamestop is the only place to get advice for games. Realistically if you knew nothing about a game, would you trust the random guy at walmart? Or the "game counselor" at gamestop? Of course we would say neither but for the unsuspecting person they will believe the fine folks at gamestop.

It doesn't hurt that a lot of people are very weary of buying from online.. even an extremely reputable store like amazon! I know this because I work at a store and if we are out of a game or dont have something, I'll recommend buying it online for cheaper than what we sell it for only to hear something like: "no, I dont trust putting my information online."

And as far as trade ins go, most people just bring in their games in and say put this on my Call of Duty preorder! They think they're getting a great deal with the extra % to preorder trade ins but if most of us looked at what they were getting, we would offer them double and we'd still be coming out well ahead. Its just a fact that a lot of people are happy to turn junk (to them) into any sort of cash. Its sad because I know people from work who will trade in six games (recent games at that!) and maybe get a new game. I wont say how I feel about the situation but all I'll say is I wont shop at gamestop unless there is a crazy deal I cannot pass up.

I don't shop there, because I don't tend to buy used games all that often. Especially at the prices they're asking for which is a total ripoff, no used game should cost more than 30$. I also never sell my games because I like collecting them, and honestly the trade-in value for 99% of the games out there is worthless.

They're also kinda dumb at the gamestop, I hate having the employees try to talk to me about games. I don't like buying games in a brick and mortar store to begin with, don't further my embarrassment.

@Athadam: You are aware of the fact that most gamers don't go on gaming websites and don't care about gamestop's business practices.

There's no preorder fee, and most of the time I like their preorder bonuses better than other retailers. Tax isn't that much and you act like they set the tax rate which isn't true...lol

Taxes are a good thing, kids. Unless there's some underground communist revolution in the workings that I am oblivious to then you really shouldn't try and avoid them.

I really only use Gamestop for when I want an obscure game that a place like Target wouldn't carry and don't want to wait for Amazon.  

I really can't afford buying games, so I rent them from Gamefly. Sometimes I'll buy them off from them too if they are exceptionally cheap and I plan on replaying them or buying DLC.

I bought a game from one last week.

@Enigma777:

They hire people who love the ps3 and wii. Wii over a ps3 or xbox is brain damage. Defending the ps3 for games like ratchet and clank is beyond borderline retardation. Long line ups.... Gamestop is not my favourite store. The best thing about it - game insurance.

@awe_stuck said:

@Enigma777:

They hire people who love the ps3 and wii. Wii over a ps3 or xbox is brain damage. Defending the ps3 for games like ratchet and clank is beyond borderline retardation. Long line ups.... Gamestop is not my favourite store. The best thing about it - game insurance.

WTF are you talking about? Ratchet and Clank is awesome!

I tend to stick with Best Buy for my games. The Reward Points are a nice bonus for someone who buys as many games as I do.

@Enigma777 said:

@awe_stuck said:

@Enigma777:

They hire people who love the ps3 and wii. Wii over a ps3 or xbox is brain damage. Defending the ps3 for games like ratchet and clank is beyond borderline retardation. Long line ups.... Gamestop is not my favourite store. The best thing about it - game insurance.

WTF are you talking about? Ratchet and Clank is awesome!

He's just trying to a get some anger out of the PS3 and Ratchet and Clank fanboys, it's what they do :P Just leave it alone

I do on occasion, but only when I trade in games. I don't have many games left to trade, so I usually go with Amazon--especially for pre-orders (which, honestly, I don't do very often anymore). My last experience with Gamestop (to pick up my pre-ordered Deus Ex) was such a complete disaster that I doubt I'll even bother with it ever again. They tried to give me an opened, clearly used copy of Deus Ex (the disc had fingerprints--not mine) as my release-day pre-order. No thanks, jackasses. Then they had the audacity to try to tell me it hadn't been opened. The manager even argued with me about it. And I hadn't even left the front desk. Crazy.

All the time because I can barely wait until Tuesday much less 3-5 days after that for my game to arrive. I hate the stupid pre-order tango but thats a price I'm willing to pay in order to pick up my game at midnight.

@awe_stuck said:

@Enigma777:

They hire people who love the ps3 and wii. Wii over a ps3 or xbox is brain damage. Defending the ps3 for games like ratchet and clank is beyond borderline retardation. Long line ups.... Gamestop is not my favourite store. The best thing about it - game insurance.

WTF are you talking about? Ratchet and Clank is awesome!

Haven't shopped at a GameStop in about 2 years. I buy everything off of Amazon. They have great pre-order deals and I use the pre-order game credit to buy cheap older titles. I'm constantly getting great older games for nothing just for getting the big titles on day one.

@kingzetta said:

@Enigma777 said:

@awe_stuck said:

@Enigma777:

They hire people who love the ps3 and wii. Wii over a ps3 or xbox is brain damage. Defending the ps3 for games like ratchet and clank is beyond borderline retardation. Long line ups.... Gamestop is not my favourite store. The best thing about it - game insurance.

WTF are you talking about? Ratchet and Clank is awesome!

yeah welcome to 2006, didn't think there were still console wars kids around.

So if I like a game you don't, that makes me a system fanboy? Great.