There honestly won't be a whole lot of depth to this post. I do also realize that it has been more than one year since my last post. Since I last checked in, Kelli and I bought a new house which is easily twice as large as our previous place. Yes, it's very large and pretty nice, if I do say so myself. But that's not what I'm here to talk about…
GameStop is a pretty decent chain when you want to buy video games. They keep a good selection of newer games and have a modest variety of previous generation titles. But what I think is their biggest downside is just that - they're a chain. They are actually the largest video game specialty store in America [citation needed] and that means A) their motives are largely profit-driven and B) they easily overpower their competition, which usually takes the form of locally-owned game stores or smaller chains that operate only a handful of franchises.
But what's so bad about that? After all, that's just good 'ole capitalism and this is America, after all. If that's what I'm whining about here, I might as well just turn this into a Wal-Mart bashing article. What really tweaks my girdle is GameStop's operating practices. Consider the following:
Every game on GameStop's show floor is an empty case. This makes sense to me as it makes it much harder for a shoplifter to get off with anything of any great value. What doesn't make a lick of sense to me is how GS has the nerve to list half of this merchandise as "New". To collectors (of any item, not just video games), there is a great distinction between new, like new, good, fair, poor, et cetera. The moment the manufacturer's seal is broken from a piece of merchandise, it is no longer considered "new". It bothers me that GS can get away with this and still charge full price for a "new" item.
Not only do I view this as downright unethical, this also opens the door to even greater travesties which I only recently realized. In short, in addition to selling used games as "new", they can also do the reverse and sell a brand new game as used. Why would they do that? Please continue to follow me.
In the first situation - selling a used game as new - I discovered how awful this practice was when I found two copies of Phantasy Star Portable at a local GS. One copy was not in the original case, did not have the instruction manual, and the printed sleeve was missing. This copy was being sold as "used" for $6.99. Another copy included the manual and printed sleeve, but the case looked like it had sat under a teenager's bed for a year and a half before traded back in for in-store credit. This game was obviously not new, but GS could charge the "new" price of $19.99 - highway robbery.
Now in the second situation, selling a brand new game may not seem like a issue. Typically the used price of a game is lower than the new price of a game. Typically. Let me enlighten you.
Xenoblade is a Japanese-style role-playing game made that was originally released exclusively in Japan. However, a large number of American RPG fans petitioned Nintendo to bring the game to the U.S. Their campaign worked and Nintendo localized the game for American fans, but only in very little quantities and exclusively to GameStop stores. Brand new, the game cost $50. However, due to the rarity and exclusiveness of the game, used copies sell for $70 at GS and higher elsewhere online, like at Amazon.com.
I picked up a copy of of Xenoblade Chronicles (as it was thus named when it came stateside) after this Christmas. After all, if the price for a used copy is bound to go up from here, I might as well buy a copy now. I can guarantee that my copy of the game was brand new. The case was shiny and clean, the manual was unbent and unwrinkled, and the media side of the disc was spotlessly clean. I am meticulous with the care of my many games, but even I can't keep the "never-been-played" sheen on my game discs.
I understand there's little I can do about this type of shady business except not shop at GameStop. I already bought my game. All I can do is hope its value skyrockets over time. I will leave with a bit of advice though: if you're considering starting a game collection of value, or are looking to get the most bang for your buck, don't blindly go straight to a GameStop. Instead, look into smaller stores like Gamers or Video Games Etc. or "mom and pop" game stores. Many times their prices will be lower than GS just to try to remain competitive. They also have sales that make their prices even more competitive. Check in frequently because you never know when they'll start discounting games for a certain console.
Lastly, don't overlook the thrift shop. I have been fortunate enough to discover literally hundreds of dollars worth of games at thrift stores but only paid less than what I'd pay for a McDonald's value meal. Seriously, ask me about it sometime. I love retelling tales of my best game finds. Most of them don't take place at GameStop.
