I personally love my local EB Games. I personally know all the employees and they give me pre-order bonuses if they have extras as well as free magazines or items if they go down to $0. I prefer to buy my games from there actually and only go to Wal-Mart if they have a game out a week early like Super Smash Bros. Brawl (worked for Wal-Mart at the time and they had to pay 75k to Nintendo, hahaha atleast I got to play SSBB a week early) or if they have a huge discount. The employees are nice and they know lots of their customers by name and have chats about the products as well as ask the known customers for their advice if another customer is asking. 

"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've never had an issue with Game Stop.  
The ones near me are very friendly and well run. I actually use my Edge card and the Game Informer subscription comes in handy for bathroom reading material when i'm not playing Professor Layton on the shitter.  

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

" @hack745 said:

" @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 don't think the amount of money they give for used games to people is screwing them? "

" @hack745 said:

" @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 don't think the amount of money they give for used games to people is screwing them? "

" @hack745 said:

" @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 don't think the amount of money they give for used games to people is screwing them? "

" 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* "

I don't live in the U.S. so we don't have Gamestop here, but I do always find it kind of funny that it managed to become such a large chain if it's really as bad as people here say. Logic dictates that if something is really bad, people won't try it again. So my guess is, that while I'm sure there are some bad experiences, there is a certain level of exaggeration involved.

" @ComradeKritstov said:

" @hack745 said:

" @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 don't think the amount of money they give for used games to people is screwing them? "

I didn't realize they held a gun to your head and forced you to sell your games to them. "

"Nope. They're allowed to set the bar for what the offer for games. If you don't like it, there are other options. That isn't screwing the customer over. "

" 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 don't have any particular problem with gamestop; there are just a ton of other places I can go to and get games without any hassle.  Also, I know a place that breaks street date, so if I really want a game I go there.

Amazon. BAM.

" 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. "

 I have another friend that worked there who said that when they didn't get enough used copies of new games, they were told by regional to go into the back, take sealed copies of the games, rip off the plastic, then put a used sticker on them. Don't tell me that Gamestop is a business like any other, because no other retailer I know pulls that crap. "

" @hack745: Apple is actually a perfect example. Employees aren't allowed on the sales floor until they know their shit. If you ask any Apple employee any question in any store, they'll know what they're talking about. 

You can't really expect Gamespot to employ qualified employees like they can at BestBuy, where there's more informed employees in the electronics department.

" @Anthony said:

" 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* "

Yeah, it's just unheard of for two separate businesses to order different amounts of the same product. That, and Best Buy might be a slightly larger entity able to stock more games.   
 

@Tiger_Buttercup said:

" @hack745: Apple is actually a perfect example. Employees aren't allowed on the sales floor until they know their shit. If you ask any Apple employee any question in any store, they'll know what they're talking about. 

I worked at an Apple Store in 2003-2005 and I can tell you this is not the case. Many people didn't really know anything or even used Macs at all before going onto the floor.

" @Anthony

@Tiger_Buttercup said:

" @hack745: Apple is actually a perfect example. Employees aren't allowed on the sales floor until they know their shit. If you ask any Apple employee any question in any store, they'll know what they're talking about. 

I worked at an Apple Store in 2003-2005 and I can tell you this is not the case. Many people didn't really know anything or even used Macs at all before going onto the floor.

The post iPhone Apple is a very different company. It's kind of hard to comment on a job you had seven years ago. "

" @DystopiaX said:

 I have another friend that worked there who said that when they didn't get enough used copies of new games, they were told by regional to go into the back, take sealed copies of the games, rip off the plastic, then put a used sticker on them. Don't tell me that Gamestop is a business like any other, because no other retailer I know pulls that crap. "

I am perplexed as to how that is a smart business decision.  "

"Hey, would you like to preorder?, you get this sweet exclusive ingame thing if you do!"
"hey, sure, why not, gonna buy it anyways"
 *game comes out*
"heres the game, that will be 60 dollars"
"....where is my preorder bonus?"
"oh sorry we are out, we handed them out to the first people that came. First come,first served"
 
Real story. They even handed that the bonus out to people that didnt preorder

@hack745:  I am going to address each point you raised individually. 
 
1.) Used game sales. 
This in itself is not bad.  The underling problem here is the discrepancy between what a person trading a game gets, and what Gamestop sells it for. A person that actually pays attention to this discrepancy feels pretty rotten and feels cheated. 
 
2.) GameStop hires for a sales position with little emphasis on game knowledge. 
While a typical consumer won't have an issue with this, a working knowledge of games should be part of the job description.  The best example is the Persona 4 case raised earlier in this thread.  A person who has working knowledge of games in general would know to look under Shin Megami Tensei for Persona 4.  Again this is only a problem with somewhat obscure games. 
 
3.) Pre-Orders 
While this is by and large not a problem, digital content is sometimes split between several retail companies. This causes a person to potentially have to pre-order and buy several copies of a game to get the full experience.  This is more of a problem with the retail market for games than GameStop specifically. There is also the issue of lost pre-orders due to employees entering wrong information, this results in that employee possibly receiving corrective action.  
 
4.) Gamers are not entitled to be treated to special treatment 
 
Now this point is the BIG reason why there is a lot of hate for GameStop specifically.  Because of the high sales orientation Gamestop has, it trickles down do employees to think like this.  GS employees usually do not think of customers in terms of the customer's needs. GS employees usually think in terms of selling the usual subscription/pre-orders above everything else. This makes a customer feel as if they're being treated like "potential subscription" instead of an actual customer.  This is really not the fault of the employee and more of the way GameStop trains them. 
 
TL;DR:  Gamestop employees usualyl treat customers like numbers instead of catering to specific needs.  That is where all the hate come from.    

The problem lies more with their execution. While selling used games is fine, GameStop will buy your game for $15 and sell it back--without a case most of the time--for $55. These used games are rarely in good condition, and usually just a few dollars cheaper than  buying the game new. 
As for the employees, they are usually really incompetent. I went to pre-order The Beatles: Rock Band last year, and he said the special edition had two guitars, when, in reality, it only had one. Also last year, when I went to pick up my pre-ordered copy of Modern Warfare 2, I saw a huge line of thirteen year olds with their parents. The employees had been told to talk to parents about the airport scene in the game, yet they gave incorrect. information. They said that at one part in the level, someone walks over to a mother and child, and shoots them with a shotgun, which didn't come close to happening. 
 Your points about GameStop not being a hang-out are valid, but as someone on the other side--who just wants to get their game and get out--the idiots in the store talk about the stupidest, most ridiculous things. I don't want to be near these people. 

" @Anthony but he didn't go "uuuuhhhh hard drive? We don't have those. Are you sure they're called hard drives? Do you want to pre-order this mouse? You'll get a free limited edition mouse pad. No? Are you sure? It's an awesome mouse pad. Why are you walking away?" "

i support steam

" s. The employees had been told to talk to parents about the airport scene in the game, yet they gave incorrect. information. They said that at one part in the level, someone walks over to a mother and child, and shoots them with a shotgun, which didn't come close to happening. "    

I agree. If you didn't pre-order a game you shouldn't go to Gamestop on launch day when people have been in and out all day buying copies of said game. Just go to Wal-Mart if you didn't pre-order. Easy enough.

" @C2C

@hack745:  I am going to address each point you raised individually. 
 
1.) Used game sales. 
This in itself is not bad.  The underling problem here is the discrepancy between what a person trading a game gets, and what Gamestop sells it for. A person that actually pays attention to this discrepancy feels pretty rotten and feels cheated. 
 
2.) GameStop hires for a sales position with little emphasis on game knowledge. 
While a typical consumer won't have an issue with this, a working knowledge of games should be part of the job description.  The best example is the Persona 4 case raised earlier in this thread.  A person who has working knowledge of games in general would know to look under Shin Megami Tensei for Persona 4.  Again this is only a problem with somewhat obscure games. 
 
3.) Pre-Orders 
While this is by and large not a problem, digital content is sometimes split between several retail companies. This causes a person to potentially have to pre-order and buy several copies of a game to get the full experience.  This is more of a problem with the retail market for games than GameStop specifically. There is also the issue of lost pre-orders due to employees entering wrong information, this results in that employee possibly receiving corrective action.  
 
4.) Gamers are not entitled to be treated to special treatment 
 
Now this point is the BIG reason why there is a lot of hate for GameStop specifically.  Because of the high sales orientation Gamestop has, it trickles down do employees to think like this.  GS employees usually do not think of customers in terms of the customer's needs. GS employees usually think in terms of selling the usual subscription/pre-orders above everything else. This makes a customer feel as if they're being treated like "potential subscription" instead of an actual customer.  This is really not the fault of the employee and more of the way GameStop trains them. 
 
TL;DR:  Gamestop employees usualyl treat customers like numbers instead of catering to specific needs.  That is where all the hate come from.    

The topic should be locked now because this says it all. "

Yeah, no. If my local gamestop had a selection even bordering on decent, I might actually buy something from them once in a while. But alas, they don't. Which is why I buy all my stuff from either Best Buy, Amazon, or a local electronics pawn shop.

I agree with most of what you said, it seems that the majority of the internet are 13-year olds that don't understand basic economics, i.e. companies need to make money, and that the store is a business like anywhere else and there are rules. I believe I at one point read a blog post where someone complained that a Gamestop employee kicked them out after they spammed the F word a bunch. Are people really this self-entitled? Why?
 
The only thing that annoys me is how they sell used games as new; new games are new, used games should be noticeably discounted and I'm sure that's how it works for the wares of nearly any store. Then again I'm a PC gamer that uses Steam almost exclusively so that problem doesn't really affect me anyway.  
 
Also, as previously mentioned there's Amazon. If you don't like GS, don't go. 

Hey Hack, what do you care if people complain about a the store in their area that has either bad service, annoying employees, bad business practices, or all of the above?  And for that matter, what do you care if they attach that bad experience to the larger company that it belongs to? And heaven forbid that their bad experiences be in significant number across multiple stores, and they have decided to stop shopping at it, but none the less, what is it to you that they do so, voice their complaints, and find others who have encountered the same?
 

Personally, I have gone to other specialty stores and found the same problems (obnoxious or woefully ill informed employees), and because of that have not returned. The thing about Gamestop (or EB Games as it is still called here) is it is a big chain with some of these practices set as policies, that you get many of the same bad experiences at what ever store you go to.  At clothing stores, I often find that the employees who work there (and have worked there for any length of time) know that the policies don't equal sales, and often ignore them in order to have good sales numbers and keep their jobs.  So when I say no to the online survey, they don't push it any further (though this might be because it doesn't tie into their bonus like pre-orders do at Gamestop). 
 
Mind you, I have had a few good experiences at these stores too though, and still shop there from time to time.  But once again, why do you care?

If i could get away with it, id burn every GameStop to the ground, THERE
 I've dealt with car salesmen less sleazy then every jerk at GameStop

I mean I'm all up for businesses trying to make a profit, but not all forms that make it have to be condescending in order to make a profit. Some companies just have to be down to Earth and usually those companies have a core set of customers that'll abide by them so as long as they provide with worth-while service. *coughaintbomb*

Gamestops are ugly, cramped, and stinky. You are pestered with bullshit when you try and actually spend money there. They don't match the GC bonuses of other retailers, and their used game prices suck.
 
I don't give a rat's ass if the employees know about games, the store sucks for plenty of other reasons.

This is the Internet.  Negativity is all we've got.

" @hack745:  I am going to address each point you raised individually. 
 
1.) Used game sales. 
This in itself is not bad.  The underling problem here is the discrepancy between what a person trading a game gets, and what Gamestop sells it for. A person that actually pays attention to this discrepancy feels pretty rotten and feels cheated. 
 
2.) GameStop hires for a sales position with little emphasis on game knowledge. 
While a typical consumer won't have an issue with this, a working knowledge of games should be part of the job description.  The best example is the Persona 4 case raised earlier in this thread.  A person who has working knowledge of games in general would know to look under Shin Megami Tensei for Persona 4.  Again this is only a problem with somewhat obscure games. 
 
3.) Pre-Orders 
While this is by and large not a problem, digital content is sometimes split between several retail companies. This causes a person to potentially have to pre-order and buy several copies of a game to get the full experience.  This is more of a problem with the retail market for games than GameStop specifically. There is also the issue of lost pre-orders due to employees entering wrong information, this results in that employee possibly receiving corrective action.  
 
4.) Gamers are not entitled to be treated to special treatment  Now this point is the BIG reason why there is a lot of hate for GameStop specifically.  Because of the high sales orientation Gamestop has, it trickles down do employees to think like this.  GS employees usually do not think of customers in terms of the customer's needs. GS employees usually think in terms of selling the usual subscription/pre-orders above everything else. This makes a customer feel as if they're being treated like "potential subscription" instead of an actual customer.  This is really not the fault of the employee and more of the way GameStop trains them.  TL;DR:  Gamestop employees usualyl treat customers like numbers instead of catering to specific needs.  That is where all the hate come from.     "

" Amazon is better. Just saying. "

Mostly i don't question their business... i question their staff.  It's like they have a crazy farm that breeds special GameStop staff.

Fun fact: Gamestop employees are disposable, and are treated as such. Since so many people are more than willing to work for minimum wage for people who won't respect them, they have a surplus of young, inexperienced and naive potential employees. 
 
In many locations, these employees are forced to compete with one and another, selling people preorders, Game Informer subscriptions, and store cards. Whoever does this the best, gets the hours. If you don't shove superfluous bullshit down the throats of everyone who comes into your store, you end up with a 10 hour work week, and a pay day that reflects this.
 
This eliminates any sense of unity between coworkers, and ensures you will never get together to form some sort of union and petition for fair treatment.
 
Gamestop is a plague on the games industry, and the worst offenses they commit, no one is even aware.

" @C2C said: 

4.) Gamers are not entitled to be treated to special treatment  Now this point is the BIG reason why there is a lot of hate for GameStop specifically.  Because of the high sales orientation Gamestop has, it trickles down do employees to think like this.  GS employees usually do not think of customers in terms of the customer's needs. GS employees usually think in terms of selling the usual subscription/pre-orders above everything else. This makes a customer feel as if they're being treated like "potential subscription" instead of an actual customer.  This is really not the fault of the employee and more of the way GameStop trains them.  TL;DR:  Gamestop employees usualyl treat customers like numbers instead of catering to specific needs.  That is where all the hate come from.     "

GS employees treat customers like numbers because ultimately GS employees are treated like numbers.  Their performance and ultimate job security comes from subs and pre-orders.  The good sales people work around this and mask the fact that you are just a number but you are always going to run into people like the 16 year old kid who is not a seasoned sales vet and is afraid they are going to lose their job if they don't get the  sub / pre-order.  However this isn't the only company that operates in this fashion, Waldenbooks (now knows pretty much as Borders) used the same model as does the shoe store Famous Footwear.     

I'm not disagreeing that GS can't do things better but these issues are general retail sales issues, GS just gets the spotlight put on them because they are the primary retailer for games. "

 I just went in to EB Games today to buy a game for the first time in over a year. I have had gift cards for the store, but as a PC gamer I have been buying all my games exclusively through Steam as they are usually cheaper since the US/Canadian dollar are equal for all intents and purposes. So I have been waiting for a game to come out that would let you use the boxed copies CD Key to apply it to your Steam account, and that game finally arrived with Civilization V.
 
The only problem I had with my store was that they had one poor kid working the counter, and there was a line up of about four to five people that I had to wait in, but he moved them through rather quickly for just being one kid, who was obviously new, working the store by himself.. Once I got to the counter I was in and out with my pre-order slip in five to ten minutes- it took a little longer then needed because one of the gift cards was being a bitch and wouldn't read properly.
 
Now because I went in knowing what I wanted ahead of time my experience may have been different. I have personally never had a bad experience with that store, but when I was in college the one that was in that city was bad because they had idiot employees. This one I use now seems to only higher good people. I think they may do the equivalent to an asshole test and if you fail it then you don't get hired. When I was going regularly into the one near by they knew me by name whenever I walked in, and in many ways they treated me like the big whale equivalent of walking into a casino every time I walked into the store. This was back when I sold all my console games during some big super sale they where having, one that they have never done since I might add, where they where basicly giving you the same amount they would sell the game at if you sold over ten games, and since I had over a dozen, and that the deal worked exponentially, I walked out of there with over $700 in store credit.
 
Outside of that one time deal however, the biggest problem with them is what they will give you for trade ins. I asked them what they would give me for my 360 and a handful of games and they told me $50 for the 360 and $20 for the games. If I did give it to them that afternoon that same 360 would be on the shelf for $200 and each one of those games for $20 a pop. That's just insulting, but since I sold all my console stuff during that big sale I mentioned above to fuel my transition to PC gaming, pretty much exclusively, I have no use for the trade in program.
  
Also, I can't stand that thing they started doing where they rip a part all the games and keep them in a spindle behind the counter. That's not new. When you open the package you are now selling me a used copy. If they do that when I go to pick up my copy of Civ 5 on Tuesday I plan to make a stink about it just to see what they will do. I fully expect they will probably just tell me to go fuck myself, but still. I'm curious.

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

nice, nice, to know that you like gamestop. i went there the other day the guy seemed cool. i don't know if it is just him or the entire gamestop. i just think that he is happy that my friend was preordering  something.

If I can walk into a Best Buy or Walmart on release day, or better yet give amazon $0.99 for release day shipping, why would you ever goto go to a game stop?