For once, I agree with you.
That is cool.... but I just totally ddin't do what I said I was going to do.
Before I went to work for a couple hours I looked at every chain I could think of online to see if I could find the game I wanted anywhere. Target, Kmart, Walmart, Best Buy. The closest store to have it in stock outside Gamestop was in a town 30 minutes away (60 minutes round trip if traffic is good). Both the Walmart and BB in that town had it. So I thought, well my only choice is Gamestop or order it online.
So I finished working and went to Gamstop. I looked for it and couldn't find it new or used and told the fella behind the counter that the website says they have it instock "new."
Low and behold he said, "If we do it is the LAST COPY."
Is that their BS sales pitch answer for selling you a copy that is opened? Or did we all really experience last copy syndrome? Like I said, I typically buy my games on release Tuesday and they are always sealed and taken out of a shipping box. Until today, I have never been offered an opened item as new, not shrink wrapped.
Well, I wasn't in the mood to argue or get mad and order online so I inspected the disc and it was pristine. It wasn't used but did an employee take it home to play? Who knows. I needed some MS points anyway so I went ahead and bought it even though I said on here I wouldn't and had basically told myself not to.
But this isn't normally an issue and I doubt it will happen to me again. If and when I go there again it will be strictly to avoid the longer drive to Best Buy on a Tuesday release day, in the event Target doesn't have a game I want. But I would typically go to Best Buy anyway and get a couple movies or whatever too.
But, this circumstance was different. Sacred 2 Fallen Angel only got 6-7 out of 10 by the reviewers but the gaming community members who like such games said it is great. My thinking is that they didn't press enough copies, expecting poor sales. Gamestop can pretty much be counted on as having everything in stock new while Best Buy and Target often don't in just a few short weeks or months that follow a release of a game.
Another thing that annoyed me was that they were selling Sneak King used for $10. Hello, I am pretty sure we paid something like free to $5 for the BK Xbox games a few years ago. Who would buy Sneak King. If somebody wanted it that bad that I knew in real life I would probably just give it to them. It really isn't that fun.
Somebody asked how they know if you open it and play it regarding return policy. They put a queer clear round sticker on the case. I guess if the seal is broken they consider that the same as buying at a normal store and opening the shrink wrap.
I really cannot believe they get away with this legally and from the game manufacturers. It is totally foolish. They should not be opening these games. I understand wanting the employees to be familiar with the games at a specialty store like that. I often ask them how the game is knowing those dorks have probably played anything I am buying. But what they really need to do is either A- sell the kid his own copy at cost or B- have one copy that the employees can take home and then sell it as USED when everyone is done trying out the game. For god sakes it is only $5 mark down for a used game.
Let me ask, because I have never done it. If a game is one month old and a very popular game which they have very few of used and you go in to sell your game that they are going to turn around and sell for $55, what do they give you for the used game? $25? $20? Talk about a huge profit margin. I read an article that they are making way more money off used games than new. I should stand outside their store with a sign saying "For trade: game a, game b, game c. Looking for: game d, game e, game f." That way, nobody is profiting off my trade like they are. What foolishness.