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Gamers have a love/hate relationship with GameStop. On the one hand, GameStop is a monstrous corporate entity that pays pennies on the dollar for trade-in games and uses harsh tactics to reap a mountain of sales that don’t really benefit developers or publishers. On the other, it’s often very convenient to drop into a GameStop, trade in a few old games and pick up something new. But GameStop, like most retailers, faces an entire new world of online competition. The world of video games is especially fast moving, with a large number of purchases now going to direct downloads instead of brick and mortar retail chains. GameStop seems to be aware of the trend, and is adding new services in the hopes of balancing out its business model.
Starting this holiday season, GameStop will try a new program in 200 U.S. stores in which it sells tablet PC devices. The store will offer only Android tablets at first, from manufacturers like Samsun, Acer and Asustek. They’re not straying too far from their gaming roots, packing seven free games (Dead Space!) in with each tablet and creating a special wireless controller to interact with each device.
My friend and I were actually in a GameStop last week (she was looking for some old DS game) and noticed that they’re now accepting iPad trade-ins, so maybe this is just the first step in an entirely new business model. If they want to keep their profits high, they have to find revenue other than software.
Of course, this also brings them one step closer to their pawnshop reputation, but we’ll just have to see how it plays out.
Would you buy a tablet at GameStop, or have your experiences with the company soured you to the brand?
Via The Wall Street Journal
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Comments
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Also, I love gamestop because I can buy a game used from them and if I don't like it, I can return it within a week for a full refund. What developer or publisher would let you do that?
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That's not true at all. I took 3 games in there just last week and walked out with $42 (extra 30%, look for the deals). They'll turn around and get $90 for them. That's damn near 50%.
That's hardly pennies on the dollar and it sure beats EBAY any day!!! Do you people also piss and moan when you trade in your 25k car for a shitty 2k? Get over it!
I would have walked away with much less selling on ebay or cregslist plus it would have been a headache, cost of packing materials and cost of shipping.
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I don't understand the hate for GameStop recently. I shop there all the time. And while some older DS games might sell for fifty cents over there, you've got to admit, they ARE a business after all, and they simply can't pay full price for your game. Even if they did, it would still be the $2.99 they turn it around for. Just don't sell your crappy games to GameStop. ;) What's that? You wanna keep Skyrim but sell Barbie? Okay, well give you a buck. That's how it works! XD
As for the topic at hand, I'm hoping to get one of these devices some day. Unless I get an overpriced one from EBay, I probably won't be getting a used one for the same prices that GS will prolly be selling them for (as opposed to buying a brand new one). I have always wanted to see what was so great about an iPad.
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