GameStop is consistently thrown to the wolves around here. I still have yet to see what the big, overlying problem is with their establishment. Here’s the most common ‘offenses’ I seem to read over and over. 

GameStop Employees

I have never in my life seen a business criticized over and over for trying to move product. All of those complaining have a problem with employees pushing pre-orders, used games, and membership cards. This is what makes a business work; without striving for profit, a company like GameStop would file bankruptcy within hours of launch. GameStop is not your fucking hangout. Stop acting like you should be able to go and loiter. 

And GameStop hires people with retail experience, because, and I can’t stress this enough, they are a business striving for profit. The employees aren’t there to have a conversation about your self-important views about how Halo should’ve been Game of the Year. And on the off-chance they do spark up a conversation with you, it’s to make you comfortable spending money at their store rather than somewhere else. These people are not your gaming buddies.  

Business Practices

They sell used games because game retailers make very little from new copy sales. If the gaming market was nearly as profitable as the movie market, the situation with used games would be entirely different. I really don’t think it’s shady to put profit and staying in business first. The gaming industry is starting to take steps to curb this anyway. 

If pre-orders are what get your fire burning, it’s the same deal: a way to make money. It sounds like a lot of titles nowadays are giving away extra content to entice customers, so it really isn’t all bad. I’ve also read a lot around here about GS losing record of a pre-order being made. While this surely isn’t ideal for a place you shop, adult shoppers keep record of what they spend their money on. This is the electronic age. Checking transactions are viewable online, and if you spend what you would consider a large sum of money on something, especially something you aren’t receiving right away, receipts are something that should be kept in a safe place. GameStop losing record of your pre-order isn’t just a screw-up on their end; you should be able to prove that you did so.

Gamers are not entitled to special treatment because their hobby isn’t as mainstream as others. Seriously, grow up and become responsible consumers with a reasonable expectation of retail outlets. What I really don’t understand is how a gamer can think of GameStop and Best Buy as different types of businesses. They aren’t. 

You are not special and don’t deserve special retail treatment because you like to play video games. 

LET THE MADNESS BEGIN!!!!

Gamestop
 "I'd like to purchase game X"
"We're out. DId you pre-order? No? You should have pre-orderrrrrrrrrred!"
 
Best Buy
*Walks into store, sees plentiful stacks of game X ready to purchase without hassle*

"

GameStop is consistently thrown to the wolves around here. I still have yet to see what the big, overlying problem is with their establishment. Here’s the most common ‘offenses’ I seem to read over and over. 

GameStop Employees

I have never in my life seen a business criticized over and over for trying to move product. All of those complaining have a problem with employees pushing pre-orders, used games, and membership cards. This is what makes a business work; without striving for profit, a company like GameStop would file bankruptcy within hours of launch. GameStop is not your fucking hangout. Stop acting like you should be able to go and loiter. 

And GameStop hires people with retail experience, because, and I can’t stress this enough, they are a business striving for profit. The employees aren’t there to have a conversation about your self-important views about how Halo should’ve been Game of the Year. And on the off-chance they do spark up a conversation with you, it’s to make you comfortable spending money at their store rather than somewhere else. These people are not your gaming buddies.  

Business Practices

They sell used games because game retailers make very little from new copy sales. If the gaming market was nearly as profitable as the movie market, the situation with used games would be entirely different. I really don’t think it’s shady to put profit and staying in business first. The gaming industry is starting to take steps to curb this anyway. 

If pre-orders are what get your fire burning, it’s the same deal: a way to make money. It sounds like a lot of titles nowadays are giving away extra content to entice customers, so it really isn’t all bad. I’ve also read a lot around here about GS losing record of a pre-order being made. While this surely isn’t ideal for a place you shop, adult shoppers keep record of what they spend their money on. This is the electronic age. Checking transactions are viewable online, and if you spend what you would consider a large sum of money on something, especially something you aren’t receiving right away, receipts are something that should be kept in a safe place. GameStop losing record of your pre-order isn’t just a screw-up on their end; you should be able to prove that you did so.

Gamers are not entitled to special treatment because their hobby isn’t as mainstream as others. Seriously, grow up and become responsible consumers with a reasonable expectation of retail outlets. What I really don’t understand is how a gamer can think of GameStop and Best Buy as different types of businesses. They aren’t. 

  

You are not special and don’t deserve special retail treatment because you like to play video games.

"

With a business as big as GameStop you can't expect to have great employees everywhere. That being said I worked at GS for 2 years and the hours suck, but at least I knew what I was talking about. That's all I have to say. Oh, and they're always next to Jimmy John's. Isn't that awesome!?

" Gamestop  "I'd like to purchase game X" "We're out. DId you pre-order? No? You should have pre-orderrrrrrrrrred!"  Best Buy *Walks into store, sees plentiful stacks of game X ready to purchase without hassle* "

In my experience, they hire high school or college students who just want to get their paycheck. Very rarely do they know their product.  "

Amazon is better. Just saying.

Personally, Gamestop has never seemed like it was meant for me. The "hardcore" gaming audience i mean. 
 
It all seems more fitted towards the much larger "casual" gaming audience. The people who only want "That Call of Duty Thing" will probably be more 
interested in the pre-order game and other stuff like that. 
 
The casual Wii owner who will come in for a game, and see that he can pre-order the next Mario. 
 
That's, to me, who the place is trying to sell to.

" Amazon is better. Just saying. "

The only problem I have with GameStop is how some outlets allow employees to "rent" new games and then sell them as new when they are returned. Having employees borrow used games is understandable given their generous return policy, but new games should be new. Obviously not all stores do this, but it makes me wary of purchasing a new copy of a game from there.
 
That said, there are plenty of alternatives for new games out there, so I just use them and don't worry about all this GameStop fuss so much.

I still don't exactly know what you're bitching about. I don't like dealing with people trying to shove crap at me that I don't want, but I certainly don't have a problem with a place selling used items. There are far more things to dislike about Game Stop than that - just as there are plenty of other businesses I don't like and don't give my money to. I won't bother listing all the things I dislike, because you can find them all elsewhere (you know, selling opened games as new, encouraging the custom in-game items, their stupid loyalty card program, the lack of knowledge their staff has, etc).
 

I have never in my life seen a business criticized over and over for trying to move product.

I go there for the great deals. 
Then again I'm not a complete faggot towards the people working at Gamestop so two of the people working there are my close friends now. 
One of them keeps giving me discounts on games and he also gives me huge discounts on MSPoints, the other she keeps giving me free stuff with any purchase. 
Pre-order betas when I haven't pre-ordered, anything that they have. 
Got a Headset once for "looking good", so yeah I'm not gonna complain. 
 
Try treating them nicely for once instead of acting like a fucking jerk and then maybe you will have a better experience :D

I don't see how they can hope to exist when Amazon gets you the games more quickly, cheaper, more reliably, with less hassle, and doesn't even add on sales tax in many areas.

I agree with the OP. People get annoyed and/or offended too easily.

" Gamestop  "I'd like to purchase game X" "We're out. DId you pre-order? No? You should have pre-orderrrrrrrrrred!" 

" @hack745: If I walked in to a clothing store and the guy behind the counter had no idea what I was talking about, i'd be equally as pissed.   You can get a pair of pants anywhere. You don't get a DLC code in your jean pocket only available at JC Penney. Gamestop, for the most part, is the only brick-and-mortar store dedicated to video games and video games alone. If you want that armor for your Spartan, you have to go there. If you want extra songs for Def Jam Rapstar, you have to go there. Comparing a niche market like video games to something sold everywhere like clothing really isn't a fair comparison.     

 Not to mention when was the last time you bought a shirt and they asked you if you want to buy three more shirts next month? "

It seems to me whenever I see a "I hate GS" thread. It's from people who used to be regular customers until they got burned once and lose their shit. I would understand if it happened multiple times then yeah, complain to your little hearts content. No ones perfect, let them understand that they messed up in a calm manner, no age requirement there.  
 
I used to work for a record/CD distro and sometimes customers felt that they could be jerks just because they were buying stuff from us. Customers have no right to boss people around behind the counter.

I don't want special retail treatment, I just want a good price on a used game once in a while and Gamestop doesn't even come close to providing that. I have my other stores for that. 
 
In terms of employees pushing pre-orders and other junk upon you... it's bull shit to say that it's necessary for that business. For example, if I go buy some pants at the pants store, they don't push me to pay for the fall line months in advance, and they don't push stupid pants membership cards on me either.  
 
So there.

People still buy games in actual shops? Who knew?

I dunno why, but I've had a good experience every time I go to gamestop
I normally buy games from Best Buy, but sometimes go to Gamestop to buy a game that came out a while ago
Maybe it's just my Gamestop, but I get a game, buy it, they ask me if I want to pre-order something, I say no, they let me go on
I've never been asked to buy a guide

I hate GameStop for how they treat their employees. Which is similar to how I treat my cats shit.

They lie about the profitability of new games. They buy most new games for around $38 and sell them for the full $60.

I seriously think that anyone that believes their BS about making now money on new games is a softhead.

I like my local GameStop, they've got some good employees and it's still attached to a Barnes and Noble so I'll go there to browse their used game selection. I generally have a good experience there, but I still dislike the corporation.

Sure, Gamestop isn't terrible, but when compared to the variety of other retail outlets, they are clearly the worse.

Best Buy and Amazon are miles ahead of Gamestop in terms of customer satisfaction.

" I dunno why, but I've had a good experience every time I go to gamestop I normally buy games from Best Buy, but sometimes go to Gamestop to buy a game that came out a while ago Maybe it's just my Gamestop, but I get a game, buy it, they ask me if I want to pre-order something, I say no, they let me go on I've never been asked to buy a guide "

I don't expect special treatment when I go to Gamestop, I expect better treatment than the company currently meeting my needs, else why would I switch?  If Hastings is going to give me more back for my used games, why would I go to Gamestop.  If I can purchase a game on Amazon from my house, without being bothered about pre-orders for games I have no interest in, why should I go to Gamestop?  It doesn't matter what reasons consumers complain about Gamestop, if they want sells they'll meet those complaints.  In short, fuck Gamestop, I don't loiter there because I won't spend money there, and if they want my money, they'll have to at least meet other companies offers. 
 
On another note, I picked up Halo Reach at Walmart and got a $20.00 gift card, does anyone know if Gamestop offered anything similar?  I know Amazon did.

I like games. They sell me games. I'm a big boy who has no trouble saying "No thank" if someone asks if I want to pre-order or buy a warranty. While they might not be my go to store for gaming (yeah, I use Best Buy) I have absolutely no problem with Gamestop.

Hey OP do you work at Game Stop?

You do deserve more. Anytime you are spending your hard earned money you deserve more. I don't care if it's Target, Best Buy, Gamestop or McDonalds, you deserve special treatment and us taking the crap service that we get is why we don't get great service anywhere.

If you don't like it, don't buy from them. Looks like enough people would rather go through this shit than get their games somewhere else. And thus, capitalism rages on. But yeah, if it sucks, don't complain. Just stop buying. Oh and:
 
@Axxol said:

" Amazon is better. Just saying. "

" @LordXavierBritish: Games are incredibly easy to pirate and many titles are available digitally. "

" Hey OP do you work at Game Stop? "

I'm no fan of companies that are out to screw their customers.

If I want to play a game, I go and find it. If a gamestop is close by at that moment in time then I go buy it there, otherwise its usually bestbuy as I have a nice chunk of rewards points to still use up.
 
I do think the dudes at Gamestop get a little more flak than they deserve though. Working in retail video games myself, I have learned that a lot of people bitch just to bitch no matter how nice, accommodating, and knowledgeable you are. There's no way around it as some people think as they are the customer they are entitled to some sort of special treatment while expecting to get 30 dollars for Forza 2 only to get pissed when they find out their old ass game (in the grand scheme of things) is worthless.
 
 I love my job because I know what I'm talking about when it comes to video games, and more often than not, most of the customers are really cool people. There are however those few customers that are complete fucking morons and get angry whenever they think they are being wronged, when in fact they are just complete fucking morons.
 
You know...the ones that bitch about a video game store. It seems like there are too many uptight assholes out there in the world today.

" I'm no fan of companies that are out to screw their customers. "

I don't expect special treatment at gamestop - I expect the same kind of treatment I get at every other fucking store I go to. And that entails not being harassed about pre-orders and used game memberships and whateverthefuck else to the point that I walk out mid-purchase.  
 
That happened the last two times I ever tried to buy something there. I've been in car dealerships that weren't that fucking pushy.

" @ComradeKritstov said:

" I'm no fan of companies that are out to screw their customers. "

Nice to know you back up your claims with facts. "

You guys know this is a troll right?  This is a copy pasta....  Wheres my Cool Story Bro?

I agree that, rather than ferociously bitch about the up-sells and twenty questions at checkout, people should try to exercise that whole "open market" thing we do so well in this country.
 
However..........I do have an ethical issue with their practices. GameStop is unique in that it is the only major chain that advertises itself as specializing in video games. They got to this position by focusing their attention on used games, a very profitable business if bought and sold in massive numbers. They now display new titles from publishers, and then the used copy right next to it. They train their employees to push used game sales over new game sales. They offer incentives for used game purchases, as well as having an open return policy on used games only.  The past two times I made a purchase at GameStop, the cashier spent a good deal of time trying to convince me to buy the game used instead. 
They have openly shown that they are in the used game business, yet try to barter with publishers (such as when digital downloads are involved) as if they really care about new game purchases.
 
If a BMW dealer made a business out of putting a used BMW right next to the new one, and trying his damnedest to sell the used on instead, it wouldn't be long before BMW told him to get fucked and stopped giving him cars.
 
Game publishers need to realize that until they stand up to GameStop, they will continue to lose market share to used sales.

" I just go in, buy my game, and leave.  I've been to three different ones in my area, and all I get asked is "Any pre-orders?  Guide?"  "Nope and nope."  "Ok cool, here ya go"

" I like games. They sell me games. I'm a big boy who has no trouble saying "No thanks" if someone asks if I want to pre-order or buy a warranty."  

" Amazon is better. Just saying. "