My adventure going to Gamestop for the first time in years.

It's been maybe 3 or 4 years since i was last in a Gamestop (or EB here in the frozen north). But on my way home from work today I drove past one and though i'd go in to see if they had the legacy adapter for rock band 4.

Now i asked the guy if they had the bundle and they did, as he took it up the register i braced myself for the "do you have an edge card, would you like to pre-order (latest game), etc". We got past those with no hard sell and then came the 3 dollar disc protection, i of course said no and boy did he look shocked. Pointing to a scratched up cd taped to the counter he went on to try to get me to pony up an extra 3 bucks ending on how i wouldn't want to spend the price of the bundle plus tax to replace it if something happened. It took a lot of will power not to ask him why the high holy hell i'd have to re buy the adapter if the fucking disc gets scratched, but i just wanted to get out. This is another point for the all digital future, let us all praise our binary overlords.

Well, not to mention the PS4 and Xbox One don't read from the disc anyway. He was looking for commission on the disc protection most likely.

I've found that as long as I go to the same Gamestop and level with the employees upfront my interactions go smoothly: a "do not upsell me, I am always here for specific things and that's all I will be leaving with" vibe does wonders. Most sales people don't care enough to push through an obstinate customer.

As long as digital games are €10 more expensive in Europe than physical copies I'll stick to discs. And I just can't understand why GameStop is still a thing in the US when they treat their customers like shit (as there has been billions of these stories online).

Praise our digital future

As a point of comparison, I don't get as hassled when going to Best Buy.

I haven't shopped at Gamestop since Red Dead, and don't plan to now. 99% Digital since then, and every once in a while Amazon or Best Buy. I'll still get a digital Game Informer subscription from gamestop.com, and not from the store because I don't wanna fuck with Gamestop.

Imagine the day when gamestop.com starts asking you repeatedly if you wanna pre-order CoD, or get some disc-protection. They show you a jpeg of a scratched up disc and everything.

At least you were asked if you wanted the three dollar disc protection. Back before I stopped going to GameStop all together, they kept throwing in the extra three dollar charge without asking first. Happened at separate locations, too.

Gamestops are just like any other store--some of them are fine and others are awful. My local Gamestop has a bunch of awesome people who know what they're doing, rarely offer stupid bullshit they know the person won't want, and never push on anything. Others I've been to seem to be staffed by people who've never played a game in their life. I understand that Gamestop is an easy scapegoat for everything wrong with retail, but it doesn't deserve all of the crap it gets.

@wemibelec90:

You're right, but the "good to shitty" ratio of Gamestop stores seem to be something like 10/1 in my experience, so I think the hate is still pretty well deserved. Some chains just have policies that often result in bad costumer experiences (employees directly earning profits from selling you disc protection being one of them).

I hope all the people that cant handle going into Gamestop never decide to buy a new car.

On the bright side I bought the ps3 version of Metal Gear Rising for about 5 bucks used at ebgames, so yay?

Yup still the worst, I had to go in the first time in years to get fallout 4 (ps4) since my PC was broken. Wait in line get the game and the girl asks if I want protection, I tell her no and she proceeds to tell me the game is over 100hrs long and it will wear out, I tell her that's ok. At this point she gets a bit of attitude and tells me people have already had to replace the discs multiple times this week. I just think it it's been a week and my disc is faulty you guys will be replacing it with or without disc protection. I just tell her no again she sighs and finally rings me up.

I'm glad the computer is fixed and I can use steam again, game retailers are awful.

Never had that kind of problem at mine, asked if I have a card, I say yea, they ring me up. If they ask for warranty I just say no and that's it. There's 3-4 around here and all of them are pretty great.

Ya'll need better Gamestops near you.

@71ranchero: my Honda dealer never tried to not sell me a car because I didn't pre-order my oil changes.

I've actually never had a problem at any EB Games I've gone to, and honestly, they've treated me better than my local independent game store, whom I used to frequent until they sold me faulty products and then refused to give me a refund or replace it.

I always run afoul of their business model because I only go to there is I need something, last time is was for a gaming headset as my xbox chat thing broke and I didn't want to wait for Amazon. So each time I go in there there is always someone trading something in and getting something else. Seeing as this seems to be the Gamestop core business I'd hope it would go smoother but it never does. I watched one guy ahead of me turn in his 360, the clerk takes the console and checks all the stuff to make sure it is working and that the cables are all there and the controller works. Good so far but when all the checks are done after 5-8 minutes or so she tells the guy that it is worth $18 trade in. I'm not surprised the guy decided that was way too little value for him and he would just keep the console but why oh why didn't anyone find out the trade in value prior to all the time spent testing the dang thing out? So by the time this non-transaction is done 10 minutes have passed and I'm once again questioning my decision making process that led me to Gamestop again. I've never been able to walk into one of their stores and walk out with my desired product in a timely manner.

I had a pretty similar experience the last time I went to EB. In my case it was for a pre-order of the Limited Edition of Forza Horizon. Everything was fine until the disc protection bit, at which point he became visibly angry and exclaimed something like, "you're going to spend $100 on a game and not get the $2 disc protection for it?!". If I had to get something in-person these days, I'd get it from basically anywhere but an EB/GameStop. Thankfully Amazon and the different platforms' digital offerings this generation make it really easy to never have to go to any stores.

@otterchaos: Part a marketing tactic (many people after going to the trouble of all that might go "well I don't use it anyway") and also there's a legit concern that maybe it wasn't going to add up to that $18. Maybe everything worked but the composite cables and so they'd have offered like $15 instead. Also if someone was to call ahead of time he wouldn't get a number because the people at the store aren't going to know their stock at the time of the buy until it happens.

Less applicable for sure since it's gamestop and it's a console trade-in, but I do work used retail and I know how the used retail thing works ;)

I still use EB here in Australia on a fairly regular basis (combination of poor internet and high digital game prices). I have never had any issues with the staff trying to upsell me on anything. Generally the staff seem pretty capable of knowing they are far more likely to sell things like disc protection to mothers buying games for their kids than mid-20's people who clearly know exactly what they want.

ok, i have nothing against discs if you got a good place to get them or it's a better deal for you cool. i'm lucky enough to have pretty good internet and real no attachment to physical media. also my local bestbuy was sold out of them as were most of the other gamestop / eb's. my point wasn't a disc vs digital thing anyway it was that this ass clown couldn't think past his script to the fact that if the disc gets scratched i'd only have to pay for a new disc not the adapter bundle agian and the act he put on was like i just dumped gasoline on myself and was trying to light a cigarette.

Thanks to Amazon, day 1 digital, and Steam I haven't been in a Gamestop in years, but when I did I never had any of these "hardsell" types behind the counter, but maybe that's why my local Gamestop went out of business a few months back.

I guess I'm just lucky with my local Gamstop. They just ask if I want to pre-order anything, instead of asking how about this or that or the other. They also leave it alone when I say no to disc protection. I still haven't been in there in a while though.

My nearby Gamestop is convenient, if nothing else.

Went there to pick up Bloodborne about a month ago, after I bought a PS4. $60 for a used copy. Walked across the street to Best Buy and picked up a new, sealed copy for $35 (even had the choice between disc and digital). It'll be a Gamestop-free future, not even by choice.

Maybe I'm just fortunate with the SF Bay Area gamestops, but I've never had any issue with gamestop employees shoving pre orders or disc protection down my throat. Even when they ask the question, it's short and brief and they don't hassle me when I say no thanks.

The times that I've been to a Gamestop haven't been too bad in terms of upsells or anything like that. From time to time I would be asked about the disc protection or pre-orders, but I don't remember any kind of a bully or pushy attitude when I declined. Recently I stopped being a subscriber to the $15 yearly program because I don't buy as many used games now that I had in the past, and so because of that, I do get asked if I would like to renew. That question doesn't bother me, because it's part of the business and I understand that. I will say, though, that some people who shop at the store simply are not familiar with the products that Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo have to offer. During the times I've been witness to these conversations, I've heard Gamestop employees explain about the systems and seek to help with picking out games based on the consumers' interests in a way that looked engaging, thoughtful, and honest.

The clerks in my local Gamestop ususally don't know shit about the games they're selling, but other than that I don't really have a problem with upselling, at least no more than anywhere else where there are membership cards involved. They're still expensive as fuck though.

I don't know, everything is fine with the couple of GameStops I go to in Denmark. I never buy new releases there though. Insanely expensive compared to the other places you can get it. However, it's a good place to pick up some cheap used Xbox 360 games or something. They always ask me if I want the protection, I just say no, and they leave me alone immediately. But probably the company culture is completely different in the US than in Denmark or anywhere else in Europe. Hence, so many Americans complaining about them, but the few non-Americans don't have any complaints.

@underscore_underscore: Hey, I work at one of those GameStops! Now I'm curious if I'm included in this group of not-pushy clerks.

@revan_nl: these stories are all highly exaggerated. They ask their bit, you say no, you pay and leave. People who have an "adventure" or feel like it's the worst experience in the world to get asked a question or two during a sale must have it real tough in the rest of the world. I've bought dozens of games from GameStop and sometimes they don't bother with the spiel and sometimes they try to sell hard but I was never gritting my teeth or anything. I come in, find a used game for $10 that is still $39.99 on PSN and leave fairly satisfied - that's why they're still in business. Also yes, digital pricing in Europe is fuuuuuucked.

@humanity: I bought two games at a GameStop in NYC in 2009 when I was there on holiday and the experience was simply 'put games on counter to pay and go'. In the Netherlands only specialised gameshops ask whether or not you want a season pass but that's about it.

My issue with Best Buy brick & mortar is I'll often get asked if I need help by 5 or 6 different employees in the span of 15 minutes. I get that they don't want people walking out (people who don't know or can't find what they need), and part of it's probably a loss prevention tactic, but sometimes I just want to browse. If I really need help, and you aren't right in front of me at that very second asking if I need help, I'll track someone down.

Even if he did try to hard sell you on the disk can you blame the guy for toeing the company line? I worked at GS for years and can tell you we had tons of examples of disks being screwed up. Especially 360 games with rings on them. And you know what? We actually had people buy the warranties and use the crap out of them too.

GS employee's actually don't have to worry about numbers anymore. it used to be your hours were based off the number of Power Up subs, reservations, and up sells you could do. Thankfully they've moved away from that as it was an incredibly shitty system.

@revan_nl: As someone who used to work in retail I really just don't spend any time thinking about the experience once I leave the store. It's not that much of an inconvenience for me to politely say no to a couple of things.

Thanks for this riveting tale

The last time I went to Gamestop the girl behind the counter didn't hassle me at all.

She did tell me all about how much she wanted to go home and that she had been standing behind the counter for 11 hours since a co-worker didn't show up when he should have.

I mean that also happens to me but not as frequently as you mentioned, probably just once or twice. Having grown up overseas, I actually find the fact that store attendants trying to be somewhat helpful to be really convenient.

It isn't always that bad. And while helpful is better than totally absent/unhelpful, maybe just ask me if I need help once and leave me alone for a bit.

I've used two GameStops for years and never had a bad experience. Some newer employees try to upsell a little hard, but they mellow if they last a bit. As with all retail, the customer's attitude affects the staff and GameStop people catch a lot of shit.

@krayzeegloo: What street is your gamestop on?

@revan_nl: Yah thats basically it. People tend to have it out for GameSpot these days like it ruined their childhood. I've honestly never understood it as I always found really great deals on used games there. I rather go to a GameStop than wait for shipping from eBay or something, but I guess I'm just impatient.

As a random aside, this is not a only an employee to employee experience but also regional. I live in Seattle, WA, but am originally from NJ. The gamestop employees here try the upsell but are usually really mellow about it. Like them asking quaintly is supposed to sympathy pressure me into upsell items. While in NJ, I get a way more direct, HEY YOU SHOULD BUY THIS, WHAT ABOUT THIS? NO? Ok well now let me be passive aggressive the remainder of this transaction since I'm getting no commission on you. I tend to frequent gamestops, but only cause I like to see what used games are floating around.

I remeber when I was looking in Gamestops for a copy of the first Blazblue, back when the game only came in its limited edition. I walk in and the 2 employees were arguing about some game(can't remember what it was) in an almost cartoonish nerdy way. I look around for Blazblue to no avail. So I go to ask if they have a copy, thus interrupting their conversation, and the lady I basically said "If its not over there then we don't have," and then resumed talking to the other employee. So I left.

I don't remember where that Gamestop was, but there's another that's dangerously close to my house and they've been pretty great. Its also in a pretty low traffic area so maybe that's the key.

No bad experiences over here from what I can recall, only a handful of times when they've offered me the disc protection and that's about it. Visiting an independent gamestore in the same city was more unpleasant, when you could feel the clerk's eyes on your back the whole time and he'd come over to talk excitedly about whichever game you happened to pick up. Good customer service is swell 'n all that, but I need some room to breath...and I feel awkward about saying that I'd like to browse on my own, when I can still feel the guy standing a few meters away in any case.

I live in NYC and I've found that the Gamestops in Manhattan, especially downtown, have cool employees that know their stuff and are satisfied with a simple "no thanks" when they offer season passes, memberships and disc protection.

The Gamestops in Queens however.... those have the employees that start fuming and react like you murdered their family and they are out for revenge on you if you reject any of their offers.

Because I'm a grown ass adult I'm able to understand that when places like gamestop try to push rewards cards and upsell me on thing, I know that those people probably don't want to be pushing that shit on me. But that they are expected to by management and corporate, so they do it to keep their jobs. I politely say no thanks, buy whatever it is I'm buying, and leave.

That's the thing that tends to be a bit annoying. If I say I don't need help and wanna browse, don't just come up and try to help anyways.

Actually when I worked retail, I was told to do that. Their idea was that it scared people from shoplifting and gave off that "customer service" vibe everyone clamors for.

I went into a GameStop maybe 6 months ago. I don't remember any protection plan nagging, but they certainly are a persistent creature.

This is the trimmed version of him talking to me and following me through the store after I told him I wanted Mario Kart 8 and an extra controller: "Hey, how's it going? Are you just looking around? Do you need anything? What are you looking for? Oh ok, we have that right over here! Are you looking for this too? Yeah that's a good one! Do you need anything else! Well what kind would you like? We have this kind, and that kind! Right on man! Are you looking at any of these Amiibos?"

Maybe he actually did try to sell me a protection plan, but I was so irritated I didn't care anymore. It wasn't like he wasn't helpful or anything, he was just too helpful. If I say "I'm looking for these two specific things" I don't really need much help in the process of finding the thing that says "Mario Kart 8".

I don't really go to Gamestop that often anymore, but I haven't really had a shitty experience there since... 2009, maybe? Yeah, I still get ID'd pretty often, but the cash grab deal pestering has been pretty low-key and I can usually get in and get out quickly enough. Definitely prefer digital, though.

Never been hounded at my Gamestop. They ask and I say no thanks. But I also worked at one during a holiday season and I know how corporate pushes on employees to sell subscriptions/preorders/whatever or they kinda hint at firing you.