Topic: Gamestop Ripoff?

I just cleared my credit card (finally) but needed to get some Wii points for Super Mario Kart last weekend. So instead of charging it straight to Visa like I normally do, I said I would go to Gamestop and buy some points with, ya know, real money. They charged me 13euros for a 1000pt card!!! Is this right? It was always just 10euro when purchased with my credit card, did I just get really ripped off? Or is this the norm for Wii-Points in brick and mortar shops? :-/

Swedish shops charge a bit more than the actual value. So yeah, it´s generally a poor deal to buy the cards in store. Due to money exchange using credit cards isn´t a very good deal here either, right now Wii points cost about 10% more here compared to the Wii launchdate.

Holy cow! 2000 Wii points cost $19.99 here in the states (about 14.82 euros at the moment)

I said I would go to Gamestop and buy some points with, ya know, real money.

Why do that? But now you know not to do so. Although I don't get why you paid 13 Euros in store - why didn't you just decline when you found out the cost and got some when you went back home? You didn't pay without knowing the price, surely?

Lots of things are cheaper in the US - particularly electronics and games. So I'm not surprised that Nintendo Points cost more in Europe. Everyone else is getting ripped off. I can't even buy point cards where I live, but I don't mind anyway because via credit card I'm paying the appropriate amount. US$20 = 2000 points.

I guess because I'm trying hard not to run up another massive credit card bill and its things like Wii-Points, phone credit, games on steam ect, that all add up to me eventually getting into big trouble ha ha! I know they all seem like small things, but trust me, they add up fast!
So thats why I paid 13euro in store, and the cashier said the price before money was exchanged. It was more of a, later on that day, the more I thought about it, the more peeved I got about it. Also, I remember purchasing Wii-points in Gamestop when the service first started and the were only 10euro, so I'm not sure when they jacked up the price.
Eh, I think in future I will use the credit card though, just for this. So I dont have to give those b*****ds in Gamestop any extra £££

Here in germany 1000 Points usually cost 10 Euros. But there are some bad retailer who try and charge way too much for them like 15 to 20 Euros. Recently, I buy Wii Points only through the Wii Shopping Channel to eliminate the middleman.

In the States, prices listed by manufacturer are MSRP (suggested price only). Techinically if a store wants to sell an item for below or about the MSRP, they can. The manufacturer cannot force stores to sell at a set price. That is price fixing, which is illegal - just ask Nintendo about that.
I usually get an occasional points card at Game Stop and they charge 19.99. It would be too easy to keep charging my credit card using the download service, so buying cards helps to keep me in check.

@Froggie: Are you suggesting that sales and clearances are illegal?

He was saying the exact opposite - that a manufacturer cannot force a retailer to sell things at MSRP. The retailer can discount or mark up items as they please.

Plus, Gamestop needs a profit.

My 2 local gameshops are both selling 1000, 2000 and 3000 Point Cards for 10, 20 and 30 Euros. 13 Euros is indeed a ripoff. You are basically spending 1100 Points on Super Mario Kart now.