Is Gamestop Evil? The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

[D.D.D.]

You can remove that label from the glossy cover if you go slow. Stretch the price label as you peel. Goo Gone or Liftoff 2 will clean any remaining glue.

With the April deadline approaching of GBA games going away, how much longer before Gamestop stops selling Gamecube and PS2 games? Very likey this year maybe even by summer?

To update my earlier comment:

Now is the time to get Game Boy Advance, Gamecube and PS2 titles at Gamestop.
Inexpensive, and a huge Selection. Get them before the the cases and manuals get tossed!

Oh well. Kind of a bummer since the next time I'll be near a GS is June. Then again, the last time I went in for some used GC games and asked to see the discs before purchase, they were all in less than satisfactory condition except 1 (PoP:Sands of Time). Meh, GS's time has come and gone.

[noiseredux]

Hit up GS yesterday. Found Haunted Mansion (GCN) for my wife for $4 complete. I found NeoGeo Battle Coliseum (PS2) for $4 as well, but when I brought it the counter the guy couldn't find the disc. He looked it up, and sure enough -- no game in their inventory. So he gave me the case and manual for free. So now I have another disc-only game to track down haha.

[sevin0seven]

Hit up GS yesterday. Found Haunted Mansion (GCN) for my wife for $4 complete. I found NeoGeo Battle Coliseum (PS2) for $4 as well, but when I brought it the counter the guy couldn't find the disc. He looked it up, and sure enough -- no game in their inventory. So he gave me the case and manual for free. So now I have another disc-only game to track down haha.

the same thing happen to me when they could not find the disc for Contra shattered dreams last year.

[Hobie-wan]

the same thing happen to me when they could not find the disc for Contra shattered dreams last year.

Hmm, I seem to be missing that one. Must be harder to find than Contra Force.

[noiseredux]

from IGN:

A new class action lawsuit has been filed against retailer GameStop this month alleging the retailer is deceptively selling used games that advertise additional content to its customers.

The suit is centered on the issue of selling games used that contain one-time use codes. These codes are included in all new copies of games and unlock downloadable content at no additional cost. However, if the code is not included or has already been used, the owner will then have to pay an additional fee to access the content.

The suit claims GameStop misleads consumers at the time of their purchase "to believe that the games which are originally sold with free downloadable content are also included when consumers purchase the same games used, when in fact the free downloadable content is no longer available."

In some cases, such as the three customers that filed this new lawsuit, the combined cost of a used game from GameStop and the download content can exceed the cost of brand new copy. Several game publishers, such as Electronic Arts with its Online Pass, have started including these codes to incentivize customers to purchase games new.

The lawsuit alleges GameStop's concealment of this information is to induce its customers to buying used games instead of new.

"By advertising the additional downloadable content as being included with the game and by not informing consumers that they will not receive all the advertised features of the game, GameStop misrepresented and concealed material facts regarding its used games," the lawsuit reads.

"This situation is analogous to selling a used book to customers without telling them that there are chapters missing."

A copy of the lawsuit in PDF form can be seen here.

GameStop was hit with a similar lawsuit in March of last year. Customer James Collins purchased a used copy of Dragon Age: Origins and later found out he could not obtain the download content for free as advertised on the game box. The case has not been resolved.

Disclaimer: GameStop and IGN are partners.

[Flake]

Yay for frivolous lawsuits that preclude the expectation of common sense for the masses!

...what do you mean the person that bought this game at full price USED the one time use code before selling the game back?

Also is incentivize a word?

[noiseredux]

[CRTGAMER]

Really? Greedy dumb bastards think the DLC has not been used yet on a USED game? Sue the damn lawyers.

[irixith]

Also is incentivize a word?

It seems so!

As to the lawsuits, publishers wanted to mess around with Gamestop, and it appears to be working. However, if I was Gamestop corporate, I'd simply set a policy not to take in any used games that rely on an additional code to access the online content.

[Flake]

As to the lawsuits, publishers wanted to mess around with Gamestop, and it appears to be working. However, if I was Gamestop corporate, I'd simply set a policy not to take in any used games that rely on an additional code to access the online content.

No it's just going to be one more line for the cashiers to have to say in between asking me to subscribe to some program or wondering if I want to pre-order something. If they are smart, it'll also be a blurb on the receipt.

I feel bad for gamestops employees when they get to the cash register. They must feel like tools having to ask a bajillion stupid questions that they know the customer does not want.

Frankly this law suit is a bad idea because Gamestop has the most generous return policy on used games I have ever seen. 7 days money back no questions asked? Gamestops lawyers are going to have a field day with this one.