GameStop Hit By Layoffs As Analyst Predicts 'Unsustainable' Sales Decline

A shell of the company they once were. Growing up, I could spend hours browsing the shelves of the local EB Games/GameStop. Once they started ridding of vintage games, that started their decline in my eyes. Not to mention the last couple pre-orders I made at a GameStop, where the game didn't get delivered to their store until the evening of release day or later.

Ok now is the time. Everyone buy 100000 worth of stock today and tomorrow and then we sell on Tuesday.

I wonder if trading and selling digital media will be a thing someday. hope this doesn’t effect the price I’ll get for four games I wanna turn in soon

"Gamestop EMPLOYEES hit by layoffs."

ftfy.

Gamestop did the laying off. 👍

Digital media isn't the problem. I prefer to buy games physically, but I and most other gamers I know actively avoid doing business with GameStop whenever possible. I've never had an experience at ANY other retail chain where the employees constantly try to upsell you ike a sleazy used car salesman. I understand that's what their job expects from them and that they can get fired for not meeting certain quotas, but it still makes for a crappy consumer experience.

The trade-in value is insulting, then they have the gall to turn around and sell whatever used product you brought in as a premium. They don't test the games to make sure they actually work. I had an employee literally laugh at me like I was stupid because I said I wasn't interested in renewing my rewards card.

They treat their employees like trash. At my local store, there was a big uproar because a manager got fired--the reason being because we had gotten like a foot of snow, so he closed up shop early because there wasn't any business. This guy didn't have a car, so he literally walked to and from work in the deep snow that day. Not that it would have made it much better if he had a car; you shouldn't make your employees come into work when there is inclement weather and the roads are covered in ice. To my knowledge, they never hired him back. That's not to mention the disaster of a PR stunt that was the employee TikTok challenge from a few years back.

Even as a kid, I remember getting hussled by GameStop employees into buying extra peripherals I didn't need. I hate that there are layoffs for all those involved, but I think for many of them it will prove to be a blessing in disguise. This isn't a sign that gaming is in a recession like the industry-wide developer layoffs are. This is a problem that could have been avoided if not for corporate greed. You can't treat your employees and your customers like garbage and then wonder why nobody wants to do business with you.

Reggie joining the board of directors has to be the most questionable decision in his career. Maybe he thought he had enough experience to turn the tides, but I think the reason he stepped down shortly thereafter is because he realized even he was in way over his head.

I can only speak to my experience, near me there is a Best Buy and a game stop side by side. I check Best Buy regularly because they often have good sales on switch games. I’ve stopped going into GameStop completely, there’s never any kind of deal for anything I care about, and the used games are just $5 less than new, sometimes without the case. And the vibe is rarely good.

The larger digital trends will probably get them regardless, but if an avowed physical game buyer like myself doesn’t want to go in there that’s a big problem.

@rjejr The Nintendo Life ninjas are approaching your comment at dangerous speeds.

Ugh, this hurts me a bit. I loved this company years ago, but my recent experiences with their services just haven’t been great. I know that many of these problems are store specific, but I’ve had too many issues with preorders not arriving the day of release, store hours not matching listed store hours on their websites resulting in wasted trips, pick-up in-store products being ‘unlocatable’ by employees, etc. I eventually gave up and started using Best Buy for physical releases.

GS apparently needs another stonks rush.

...On a serious/more reasonable note, sadly I think the chain will continue its slow decline like Blockbuster. It's sad as there are very few dedicated video games options in my area (Oh, there ARE plenty of "Video Gaming here!" signs to be sure, but this is the gambling/"Gaming" industry; it's legal and highly regulated in bars, restaurants, truck stops, etc. in my state). But at the same token, GS is slowly digging its own grave through baffling decisions and mismanagement. I genuinely feel sorry for any affected employees though; my local GS has some great staff.

I did have a bad experience recently when an online order I made (two games on sale and the Noah + Mio amiibo pack) was insanely delayed with no explanation given; the shipping label was printed three weeks before the order finally started moving. At least the agents I worked with were fine. Still not sure if GameStop or FedEx dropped the ball with this one.

The last few games I bought or preordered, I went through Best Buy. I'll occasionally venture into GameStop if I feel like it, but as @Not_Soos said, I don't like being upsold on things like rewards programs, protection plans, peripherals I don't need, etc. I just want to get my game or console and get out of there.

I don't know if GameStop is totally doomed. After all, people have been saying it for years, and yet they're still around (same with Nintendo). There's the possibility that they could turn things around, there's the possibility that they might not. It comes down to the age-old adage of "I'll believe it when I see it."

And I don't put much stock into what Michael Pachter says, because he was also one of those "Nintendo is doomed" people during the Wii U era (whereas Nintendo has never been stronger as of today with the wildfire success of the Switch, being the richest company in Japan right now, and zero debt to their name), and he also said that Netflix would bite the dust while Blockbuster would continue to operate (when the opposite actually happened).

I cannot recall the last time I bought something from GameStop, let alone set foot into one. Any games I've bought in the last few years or more has been done via Amazon, because of release day delivery.

We can blame the move to digital all we want, but a specialty store like this wouldn't survive unless they offered something unique. And they don't; just employees doing their job pushing subscription plans and preorders with lackluster (if any) incentives.

I know they've been trying to stay afloat, but maybe it's time for those employees who were spared from this round of layoffs to start looking elsewhere for work. The next round might be sooner than they realize...

@Broosh couldn’t agree more. I used to work at a store just around the time before they started phasing out stuff like N64, PSone, GameCube, etc. it was really good at first but started to decline soon after. Still I was able to score some great finds, especially for PS2. Those days are long gone though as is my store. And had a preorder issue as well, I had Final Fantasy VII Remake deluxe edition preordered, and the stores in my area ended up being forced to close for the pandemic, which fine, I get that. What really made me angry though was when they eventually did reopen and I got a call saying they haven’t gotten their shipment of it and wasn’t sure if they would get any in. I kept my preorder in hopes because it was long sold out at this point, and found out they shipped closed store preorders to other stores in the country that could remain open… then they cancelled my preorder and kept my $5. I mean it’s $5 sure, but it’s the principle. Now the only time I ever shop at a GameStop is when I can rip them off, like how I traded in my PS5 two weeks ago towards a slim Spider-Man 2 bundle. Got it for about $30. They definitely lost money in this deal as they will likely be sitting on that PS5 for some time

@sixrings
Redditors walking up into wallstreet like:

@AstroTheGamosian he was totally wrong on Nintendo on multiple levels…. Even thought they should put all their IP on mobile platforms and quit making hardware.

But I don’t really think he’s wrong on GameStop. I still buy from them bc I feel sorry for them. I bought a Series X bundle back when they were hard to get and most recently bought a PSVR2. I also buy their t shirts with my $5 monthly coupon. I guess I see them doing some business, but mostly not.

@Darthmoogle That's terrible! I also had a few orders go into "limbo" when they didn't actually get stock of the games/amiibo/etc. that I ordered and gave me a "we'll reach out to you if we hear anything"-type of response. So yeah, I'd say ripping them off is justified at this point with trades, especially since they've ripped us off with trade values for years now lol

Surprised nobody has mentioned the reason that caused me to quit shopping there way back during N64 era (unless I overlooked it). If you are selling “new” games, they should be new, not opened. There should still be shrink wrap on the case. It’s as simple as that. In the 90s I bought a “new” N64 game that already had a save file on it the first time I played. Haven’t trusted them since.

But where will I go to get Funko Pop figures? I'm surprised they've lasted this long, even if you buy physical in a brick and mortar store, Best Buy or Target offer better prices and a better shopping experience.

I feel like they should bring all that retro stock they have back to the stores. They can’t compete with modern digital but they are sitting on games that don’t have digital counterparts. I remember when we were boxing up n64 games to ship back to corporate and I lamented just taking those games off the market/out of circulation. The only good thing that came of it for me was I picked my region clean buying games super cheap and with my employee discount. Basically tripled my collection in a few weeks. It would also lessen the stranglehold independent retro stores and ebay have on prices. People should not have to pay hundreds of dollars for a game to play.

i enjoy shopping in person at gamestop you will always find a game you was not expecting to find...

@Not_Soos As a former Gamestop employee, you are exactly right. At first things were fine but after a while corporate policy shifted to really emphasize reservations and Game Informer subscriptions (I worked there in 2003 and 2004, so that’s the time period I’m talking about). These things were always important, but under the new policy reservations and subscriptions were tracked on a per employee basis, and the store was sent an email every week ranking all the employees in the district based on how they had performed. The lower performers were written up and after three write ups you were terminated. My store was the only mall store in the district. I don’t know if this is obvious but mall stores have a different type of customer than strip center stores, so we were always near the bottom. The policy forced the store manager to systematically fire every employee, 100% turnover over the course of like 8 weeks. Even in the more successful stores the only people who survived this regime were the ones who adapted to be pushy, aggressive sales people. The store manager, and the store managers of all the other stores in the district as far as I recall, all hated this policy and thought it was insane. They complained but I guess corporate had made up its mind.

i been a funcoland/gamestop customer since the early 1990's.

@OctolingKing13 Of course it won't affect the amount you will receive for your games. They will still give you the standard 50 cents a game so that 10 mins after you leave they will sell it for $35

Them removing their vintage and retro collection is what made me loose interest in wanting to check out their stores, all they got is the same modern game i can find anywhere which makes it dull and not worh the time browsing. Their Japan imported anime goodies like figures and stuff are really cool but i can never afford them.
I would still sometimes wondered into their shops but them stop giving out physical goodies with pre-orders made me seize my purchases all together, i just don't see the point much anymore, I buy all my games from Amazon now.

Even during the good times of physical media I'd only really get consoles at gamestop.
The very rare games I'd buy there were limited to only thegames you can't get elsewhere like some JRPGs or anime games due to the Gamestop tax which was always 10-20 extra for anything compared to any other outlet like Smyths,argos etc.
Then amazon killed that off as you can pretty much get any game off them.
Digital hurt them but also the likes of Cex and more catered retro gamestores muscled them out of physical second hand games too.

We only have two game stores in town. GameStop and a locally owned and operated store. I really hope GameStop stays open as the local store is ridiculously overpriced.

Lose the sales quotas, bring back retro games, bring physical items back to the reward system, and staff the stores with attractive women. Blam, problem solved!

I would much prefer to buy my gaming products from Amazon or a Walmart retail store these days…

@rjejr And they would make MORE money! Let's put this plan in motion. Invest now before it's too late!

@Bearzilla823 it ain’t ten cents lol usually get $14.00 to $25.00 in regular cash per game

Too bad. I have fond memories of visiting my most local GameStop, where the manager at the time would always chat with my brother and me about games. He actually gave us a whole bunch of stuff, goodies like preorder bonuses for games nobody bought (including a couple of X-Blades T-shirts lol). We even got the Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon display! Not to mention a swath of guidebooks that he needed to clear out to make space in the shop.
Cool guy. Worked out, too, because we loyally purchased all of our games there for years.
Of course, that GameStop, and another three in the area, closed down. Years even before the stock memes. These days, I either order online or pop into Best Buy when I'm feeling physical.

Buying games in a store is alot more interesting, than buying them online. Hopefully GameStop will fix their problems and be again, what people used to love about them.

The only reason I ever go to GameStop, formerly EB Games here, is to buy a console. And even then, only if Walmart is sold out. Like, I was excited when EB moved into my tiny home town when I was a teenager but honestly, I don't really care that they're going under now. I embraced the all digital future during the 3DS days and I'm not especially motivated to go back.

@JohnnyMind yeah like I recently went and picked up a copy of Tokoyo at a gamestop. It was the only gamestop out of four cities the weekend of release to have ONE copy. The dude pushed me to reup my power rewards membership, and then guilt trip me saying indie games won't count as sells worth having unless I sign up. Dude was condescending, rude, and a honest *****

Gamestop barely carries stock, and their windows for preorders is so quick to close it's a pain to deal with. When I picked up Tokoyo dude even admited a game released in May can't be preordered. Like, why is that even a thing. I can understand that if it was a smaller indie shop. The idea I can't preorder a game unless it's months away is insane and stinks of trying to make sure people forgot they preordered. Which is how I got my copy of Tokoyo...it was a unpicked up preorder.

It really goes to show you that customer service is the most important part of retail. My GameStop employees are amazing and we even became actual friends. I even worked part-time at their store to help them out during a christmas season. They know it's corporate ruining things so they just want to run their game store as best they can and it shows.

If the future of gaming is digital, then gaming has no future. How can a physical store survive in a digital world? The big gaming crash 2.0 is coming soon!

I'll hate it if they don't make it. But it's the way of the world now. It's nice having a dedicated gaming store, but it's obviously not feasible since they do not make much money off of new games. I do not want to ever have to rely on Walmart or Amazon for my gaming, I use them as sparingly as possible anyway for whatever I may need. I won't mind going digital I guess.

As there's been an ongoing discussion about the world going from physical gaming to digital, so too do brick and mortar stores suffer from this change. Even the once powerful resale market that Funco Land once was driving has dried up more and more-- If the gaming giants can distribute the games directly to consumers, what then becomes the point of a middleman digital reseller? More specifically, even if GameStop became a digital only reseller, they would have to come up with something that would make it worthwhile, and besides unique sales/deals, I can't think of anything sustainable. At this rate is only a matter of time before GameStop goes the way of Game in EU.

I feel like a vacuum is forming, GameStop hasn't been hardly anyone's first pick for years. My hope is that a new chain, or a smaller existing chain, that's kind of everything we love about our smaller retro stores, steps up. Better environment, deals, employees. I know it would hurt a lot of people in GameStop fell that like work there, but for the industry, I think it would make things better.

Or GameStop takes a 180 I'd be happy with that too. It's happened before, like subway stepping up their game like a decade ago.

@Broosh I was terrified my aforementioned order was in limbo since one of the games I ordered, The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails was delisted from GS's website the day after I made my order. I figured it was one of those scenarios where an item wasn't listed as unavailable too late. Thankfully that isn't what happened...I think. The game I received was sealed and legitimate.

How long have they known this would eventually happen? Why weren't they restocking retro games and consoles for the last 15 years instead of going in the opposite direction and phasing them out? They did this to themselves.

I worked at GameStop for 10 years. 8/08-6/18 I stayed that long due to my coworkers.

It was predatory sales.

there are cool game stores and then there are game stops... they are not able to make proper changes

I'm super torn with this article.

On the one-hand, DUH!!!! We've all known for a long, long time that GS is dying. And, probably should just die a painful death.

On the other hand, this is from Michael Pachter. If he's saying it, we all know it's at least mostly partially inaccurate.

So, this ends up being, I guess you might call it an oxymoron? Can both statements be true?

@Kiyata there are game store who do excellent but they sell you an experience. game stop has to come up with a concept that makes buying there exciting. there will always be physical games even though it gets less. the same for music and film

Here's the thing people talking about Digital games should be careful what you wish for aka Sony removing digital library and making excuses oops we did it again or Crunchyroll saying we can't accommodate your prior subscriptions from previous. Like I said your Agreed to their EULA/TOS and anything Digital or Digital Library they have ownership you have squat since you agreed to their EULA terms. So people need to wake up and smell the roses aren't that rosy here.
Or watch this past YT about Ownership.
Digital Distribution Vs Physical Media and True Ownership
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdsWQGAlopk
This sounds more and more is happening now.

GameStop is Headquarters debacle making none of the stores did this and maybe they should look at the Golden parachute given to a certain person as to why they are out of Touch what is going on at the store levels whom are doing a fantastic job and get the brunt of the problem because of Corporate Mismanagements.

It's all crumbling around us.

@SwitchForce My entire Switch collection of like 150 games all fits on my 1tb SD card with room for another 100. Now imagine trying to carry around 150 either large chunks of plastic in cases or 150 tiny little pieces of plastic in one case which, if lost, is gone. No re-downloads for those games. Just gone.

Sure the long winded arguement COULD be made that somehow my SD card falls out of my Switch and gets lost AND they shut down the eshop and then I too am screwed.

These days I mostly just use GameStop to preorder collector edition games in store and put like 50% down and pay the rest when it releases. I totally agree that it hasn’t been the same in recent years, however I have had a few wholesome interactions with the employees in the past couple of months, but other than that, not much going for them unless you like Funko pops and buying games at full price…

@LoneHammerBro If one has to switch that much and I have 300+ games but I don't load up all the games but the one I play the most. Switching games out isn't that hard. Download Egames are tied to the account and can't be shared or sold or given away. That doesn't make it anymore appealing. The problem can be fixed - it's is will they do what's right for the GameStop stores and stop the wasting of money at the top first. Remember the bucks stop at the top and if they can't address that then anything else down does nothing.

That's too bad, I've usually had good experiences with my local Gamestops as well as preordering stuff online to be delivered the day of launch (that's how I got my launch-day Switch, actually).

Yea, it's annoying to always be asked if you want the game insurance every time you buy a game, but I just politely say no and I've never had a sales associate who got pushy or anything.

There are lots of benefits to digital, I get it, but at the end of the day the stuff really isn't yours, you just have a digital license. Just not a fan of that, plain and simple. But maybe "ownership" as we know it will continue to change in many areas of our lives.

I hope GameStop goes out of business. Their shady practices and also stating that a game that's not sealed is considered new is outrageous! I don't know how many times I ordered a new game on their website and had it show up unwrapped and sometimes with scratches! Company ripped off people with their trade in values and by the looks of it seems that they will go the way of circuit city f GameStop!

I don't think Gamestop going out of business would be good for the gaming industry. I really can't think of any industry where a the death of a dedicated business, especially one with brick and mortar locations, is a positive.

Toys R Us is a shining example; if you are a toy collector, the demise of that business hit hard. Amazon, Walmart, and Target have yet to serve as acceptable substitutes. I reckon the same would be true of Gamestop.

Every system I've purchased over the past 20-25 years has been from Gamestop, usually a pre-order. I'm not looking forward to the day everyone is rushing Walmart, Target, and Amazon to fill that same gap, given how often I hear of preorders getting cancelled or selling out in mere moments.

Imagine GameStop becoming a store that sells lot's of Anime/anime style stuff in the future.

They might actually go that route. Because the GameStop near me is now selling Manga XD. Also Anime figures too, etc.

Besides that, I actually hope they figure out a way to stay afloat without affecting too many people's jobs. (For starters, label the games that are not sealed as "open box" not "new.")

@rjejr loser

@rallydefault have you be satisfied overall with your Switch purchase now that it has been years since it occurred?

I haven’t been to GameStop in years. The last straw for me was when I preordered Fire Emblem Awakening. The day it came out, I was at work and they called me and asked if they could sell my copy to a walk in customer, to which I replied, “um no, I’m at work, and will pick it up around 6pm” I was so mad about the audacity of asking that on the day it came out, just cause I wasn’t there when the store opened, I guess. I’ve heard worse stories where they don’t even ask and just sell the preorders anyway, so I guess I should count my blessings.

After that I was pretty much done with them. I am very fortunate that a retro game store opened up in town that sells anything from Atari, to current games. They’re great to their staff and nice to the customers, and they don’t screw you over if you sell something.

@PixelRain I always buy games at full price as a way to show my appreciation to all those who worked on the game

@GEKGanon just pre-order on Amazon and avoid the misfits who ruin launch nights.

@sixrings been a Nintendo fan for 40 years

@Arehexes wow what a creep that GameStop worker seems like. Reminds me of the Comic Book Guy misfit/douchebag from The Simpsons.

I have to say I still go there because I still feel physical is king, but most of the salespeople just come off as know it alls and I’ve always felt selling used games for $5 less than the new copy Is just plain insulting. In fact how the hell are they in trouble with the huge profit margins that come from used game sales anyway?? And stop asking me if I wanna buy protection on the games for $2!! Know your customers- that crap is for moms with young kids who don’t take care of their games!! 🙄
Then when I told them I haven’t been getting my GI mag in the mail they said they’re doing away with it and would I like to buy the current issue? Buy the current issue?? I paid the sub so it can be mailed to me every month! 😡

The policies may be bad, but I like my local store. The employees are fun to talk to, and the five dollar off coupon has paid for itself and made my amiibo collecting pretty smooth. Got my Xenoblade amiibo there for retail price a few weeks after release when I thought hope would be lost. There were even some buy two get one free promos I used to get some Gameboy games and a used 3ds xl in a store from them as well.

@IceEarthGuard If they wanted to stay afloat they would have restocked retro games and consoles. It's obvious to me that they intended to go under when the clock ran out on them.

At this point I’m just hoping there will even BE physical games next generation. I’ll shop at whatever brick and mortar place I have to. Otherwise you’re owning nothing, reselling nothing, and paying a Sandisk tax to have a games library.

I’ll also say I’ve had no issue with Gamestop, formerly EB Games here in Canada. They seem to compare pretty favorably to the operation in the States, as here I get upwards of $30 in trade for some Switch games, not $5-10. The employees will mention the protection plans and whatnot, but they take a simple “no, thank you” as an answer. If anything I get worse vibes from Best Buy, and Target left the entire country.

This news doesn't surprise me in the least.

I prefer buying physical games, and locally, too, rather than get completely assimilated into the Amazon borg collective, so I've patronized my local GameStops a lot over the years. For the most part, the sales agents have been friendly enough and we'll have decent conversations, and some of them have even gifted me promo items for the kids.
But it's sad how they are underpaid, with poor benefits, long hours, and yes they are definitely forced to upsell, even to a regular like me. It must be demoralizing to work for such a company. And corporate clearly is declining. The selections of new and used games is pitiful - they barely bother to stock any new Switch games, so God forbid you forget to preorder. I've been a Pro member for years, because my accrued points paid for it, but the membership barely has any merit - you don't even get a free print subscription to Game Informer any more! Now they keep copies at the store and try to sell them to me, AND after a recent change to their points systems my hard-earned points expire after a year! With such high turnover at the stores all my favorite sales agents are long gone, they've already closed 2 of the 4 stores nearest me, and I'll never understand WHY they would stop carrying retro games when the demand and prices for them have never been higher. They can't even be reliable with fundamental services like ordering online with in-store pickup. I lost a preorder once because I did not pick it up within 3 days - they just refunded my deposit and put the game on the shelf, without the courtesy of a phone call!

GameStop as a company just does not seem to be invested in serving their customers or promoting and sustaining the games industry at all. I just shake my head sometimes thinking about the lost potential. I hate to see the decline of local, in-person retail and boutique shops, but based on my experience with them, it is hard to imagine that GameStop can right the ship at this point.

I will say until my dieing breath that the industry needs a place like GameStop, but that place is not Gamestop.

@Zeebor15 There are plenty of retro shops.

The GameStop near my house was more closed than open and then about three weeks ago closed for good with mine and other people pre orders as well, even during the past Christmas Season they did not have the staff to open…it’s mismanagement..they need to focus on customer service instead of pressure for pre orders Pro subscription and the sneaky practice of applying a 4.00 game warranty with out the customer concent..I will go to other retailers and Amazon Almighty for my game purchases…and I really don’t fell bad for them….

Dont blame this on digital sales... i refuse to buy digital..

@Crono1973 I agree they should bring back retro games in for their stores. They would also need give fair prices/store credit for used video games for those who want to sell to them, because they would need inventory, if they offer very little, then they won't get much retro games in their stores.

For the larger-medium size Gamestop stores, I welcome more than just Video games in them though.

@ShinG67 Nice job getting past the “Is that all you have to say? prompt. Too bad about your lack of sense of humor though.🤷🏻‍♂️

@SoIDecidedTo Oh it would be a goldmine. 👍

@Not_Soos Yeah I half expected it to be taken down by now but I was curious what the reason would be, and it was worth the risk if at some point in the future it really happened. 😂

Similar scenario is happening in my country with two major physical shop brands...they either close branches or focus more on smart devices portfolio. Undoubtedly, digital sales contributed to this...with xbox S and PS5digi.

@MSaturn That's actually part of the problem, if you think about it. Not just with GameStop, but many corporate chains (it's a big part of why I left my job at Kroger a few years ago).

The store managers and employees are the ones on the ground with their finger on the pulse of their communities and local clientele, but the suits in the corporate headquarters are only looking at numbers and trying to pad their bottom line to please their executives and shareholders. And if the store managers and employees push back, they simply get replaced with a corporate drone to do HQ's bidding.

It's simply not a sustainable way to do business, as it then drives away those customers who were once loyal to you. And then they double down, triple down, and quadruple down on those boneheaded policies, and then turn around and blame "changing markets" for their failure when it really just comes down to plain old corporate greed.

Maybe if more corporations were just honest with people, and finally come out and say that they're greedy [insert euphemism for a child born out of wedlock here] who just want as much of our money as possible, I'd respect them a bit more. I wouldn't be more likely to shop there, but they'd at least gain my respect for telling the truth as to why they implemented those policies to begin with.

@ShinG67
I never thought it would happen, but the Switch has overtaken the SNES as my favorite console of all time.

So yea, I've been pretty happy with it lol

@rockodoodle Exactly. That's what I meant. He was one of those "Nintendo is doomed and should go the way of Sega" people.

Of course, a few people I've personally spoken with who feel that way were saying PlayStation instead of mobile, but the way Sony has been going (over $31 billion in debt, and the PS5 standing at only about 50 million units sold, their worst-selling home console so far; only the Vita sold worse), I'd say they're more likely to pull out of the console market than Nintendo is.

Ditto with Microsoft, as their Xbox Series X/S has sold around 21 million units (their worst yet, just a few million behind the original Xbox), and they seem to be transitioning more into a publishing powerhouse by buying up all of these third-party game developers like Mojang, ZeniMax, and Activision Blizzard.

And as I said, he was also wrong about Netflix and Blockbuster. What he failed to realize is that Netflix offered the convenience of renting a movie from the comfort of your own home. Customers by and large prefer to do that instead of having to waste the gas by driving all the way to the nearest video rental shop.

And Netflix was also one of the pioneers of digital video streaming, so you didn't even need to wait for the DVD to come in; you just had to press play. That accelerated the demise of video rental stores further.

Maybe he's right about GameStop this time around, maybe he's not. Time will tell. But as I also said, people have been saying it for years, but they're still around. Heck, I've lost count as to how many times that YouTube channel ReviewTechUSA has posted a video saying that this is finally the end for GameStop. So we really have no way of knowing until it finally happens... if it ever happens at all.

@ShinG67 I almost looked him dead in the eye and bought Tokoyo off of Amazon. I just wanted to leave and be done with it. Because I only went to that store because they were the only one out of multiple gamestops across five cities (I might have said 4, but I keep combining two cities because they are so close together) to have it on release weekend. Gamestop as a company is just worthless for someone like me who buys unknown or small indie games. Stuff I won't know about untill like a month of release becauze no one talks about it. Like I didn't know Class of Heroes 1 and 2 was getting released on Switch/Steam until I saw ANOTHER small dungeon crawler also getting released, which I only saw because random happen chance of steam saying here is something you might like.

So by the policy the dude told me (and has happened to me at a closer store) I wouldn't have been able to preorder it. Which given how gamestop won't buy smaller releases unless they are preorders (happened to me with the FFXII DS sequel) why would I ever use them at all?

@MoonKnight7 If it makes you feel worse my recent purchase at game stop was someone elses preorder. I don't even think the 48 hours had passed. Which unless things changed I thought was the rule for preorders.

@IceEarthGuard I mean even the local mom and pop game stores I go to does the same thing. In fact I think they sell more figures and plushes now more than ever. They even dumped their entire bluray/dvd sections to expand their gunpla section. I think that stuff just sells more in general, like why they completely stopped selling imports.

I know at my local GameStop the employees themselves used to take the few amibo that would be sent to our store with new games like skyward sword, Mario 3D world. Also 3 times I pre ordered games for the switch and had to wait 2-3 days after release because they would tell me corporate didn’t send enough to cover preorders. I’m sure the employees got theirs tho.

GameStop locations closing are nothing to celebrate. People losing their jobs is never a good thing and it's not good for their local communities either. Brick and mortar places where you can purchase physical games and other items are important. Choice and competition is always important.

I agree with all the comments about corporate greed and mismanagement. But not every GameStop is bad. The ones I've gone to have never been disrespectful to me nor too pushy.

At the end of the day, you get out of it what you choose. I never do their crappy trade-in deals. And I don't purchase their "new"-but-unsealed games just to save $5. I would buy used games that I had missed years earlier at cheap prices, and that worked out well for me. Matter of fact, I made a killing buying used PSP and GameCube games in the early 2010s and built my entire library for those two consoles.

And to the people who "embrace the all digital future"... You don't own those games - even if you paid $60 for them. If your Switch were to break down years from now and you had to redownload your purchased games on a different Switch, you're depending on Nintendo keeping their Switch services and eShop open. Ask Wii owners if they can redownload any of their purchased games. They can't. And that's what the game industry wants... For us to not own games and have to repurchase them over and over again (or rent them via Switch Online/PS Plus subscriptions).

I never liked paying a new price for a game that’s really used anyway, their practices should have been stopped years ago, should be illegal

@-wc- This does not need clarification. Of course GameStop employees would be the ones hit by layoffs. Layoffs ONLY affect employees.

As a former Gamestop employee this doesn't surprise me. Worked at GS for three years, and truthfully I loved the place. The employees were good, the customers were fun, was a good place to work, but they are very heavy on stats. Everything is about upselling, either warranties, accessories, etc. Over three years I saw the store slowly get deader and deader each month. Lots of complaints about the value of trade versus how much we'd sell for. People would pre-order items that would either not show up, or arrived broken. I think the future is digital regardless if people want digital or not.

@Daze_of_Reality And to the people who "embrace the all digital future"... You don't own those games - even if you paid $60 for them. If your Switch were to break down years from now and you had to redownload your purchased games on a different Switch, you're depending on Nintendo keeping their Switch services and eShop open. Ask Wii owners if they can redownload any of their purchased games. They can't. And that's what the game industry wants... For us to not own games and have to repurchase them over and over again (or rent them via Switch Online/PS Plus subscriptions).
Such is true of the reality of Digital Games here's a old truth that matches up to what your mentioning about.

Digital Distribution Vs Physical Media and True Ownership
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdsWQGAlopk

This rings true and is becoming a Reality now....

@nala310 I think the future is digital regardless if people want digital or not.

Then you should be driving your ecar of the future? This is short slightness mindset that doesn't factor consumer choice or whom controls what media you buy or purchase. That's not the choices I want to have. Digital you have no ownership and you agreed to their EULA/TOS and they can pull or remove at will. Take into Sony removing subscribers paid content and Crunchyroll not moving user accounts over for what they paid for. That isn't the choice I want to have.

@SwitchForce No disrespect intended but if you think companies care about their customers, you don't get business. Companies only care about the money. Gamers are addicted and will buy digital if that's the only option. Most of my games are digital,. unless I really like the case or it's a collectors edition. It's why Best Buy pulled all their DVDs, physical media is a dying entity. It's easier to move a bunch of hard drives then thousands of DVDs. I speak from experience on that, having moved across country easier to dump everything to HD and dispose of the discs.

They know that, and as far as what someone said about the Wii games, by the time they've shut down servers completely people have either moved on to newer systems or modded them. Look at PS2 and PS3 and even PS4, all are fully hacked and all the games can be find with a simple search. Same thing will happen in 10 years with the switch. .

@AstroTheGamosian it doesn’t look promising, especially if the next generation doesn’t have drives. I don’t think collectibles and other merchandise will be enough to save them.

@OctolingKing13 A console equivalent Robotcache maybe? I came across the sponsor a while ago for PC game selling. I don't expect it to be a thing really but it is selling digital software then just the more lacking refunds or limited refund times/is the game really broken limits.

I buy what I can at EB/GameStop but thing is they have so much stuff. The Zing expansion didn't help. Sure some people buy them but it also is just a lot more products to try and sell/fill up store space.

I know how annoying the 'do you have membership' thing is. I hate saying it. I hate the giving the card or details to them. I don't sign up to any of them. I don't care about discounts/point systems or however they base them around products.

I only on occasion see customers in there not as bad as my local Sanity. RIP only one source for my anime these days with that store gone as well. Artists I listen to aren't big enough to be sold in stores and well many tv shows or movies aren't for me. The odd ones but not purchase to rewatch them (same with many anime either). I browse EB/GameStop every week or so. Buy rarely.

I am almost never trading anything in because I know what games are on the shelves at this point only the physical Indies are the only unknowns to me I pick up on occasion. So if I already do my research unless it's a particular title I don't know I know what I'm buying so they can't sell me on something.

I also buy pre-owned or around under $18 or $18-30 40+ range for particular titles availability popping up.

For anime/AA Japanese games I can always find them at EB/GameStop but at other stores nah they are too mainstream games big with only a few Indies I've gotten from them and anything else is clothes or browsing for something else but rarely go to them as no need as the other stores around the EB/GameStop in my area do the job for other needs in my shopping complex.

Retro games only go so far in retro games stores (sure I get my PS3/360/Wii/Wii U games there but otherwise if I want particular PS4/Xbox One/Switch games yeah EB/GameStop offered them so I do rely on them a fair bit for some releases) so if EB/GameStop goes that's many in-betweens I will have a gap on and I'll be disappointed.

Goodbye my AA Japanese games not at my Walmart/Best Buy equivalents. Goodbye difference of their pre-owned programs. The titles they offer availability. EB as a store I need for some games with it gone. It will make things difficult regardless of their business practices.

It’s time for GameStop to go. It’s felt like they’ve been desperately clinging to relevance for the last 10 years.

@MSaturn

Man, that sucks. I never worked at GameStop, but I had a good friend who recounted what the experience was like a little bit. So I knew they pressured employees to meet certain sales goals, but I didn't know the specifics too well. Thanks for sharing your experience. I worked at Walmart for about a year, which had its own ridiculous policies. The turnover rate was never THAT high, but a lot of people quit or were fired due to the toxic environment and unrealistic expectations.

I had a manager tell me once that they can get in trouble if they don't meet a certain quota for write-ups. So literally, if they're not punishing people enough, corporate will think they're being too lenient; either punish your subordinates or we'll punish you. Such a crappy business practice that really is going to cut into employee morale and just reduce productivity in the long run. These retail stores should be happy with what they get; nothing wrong with wanting to get the best out of your employees, but constantly dangling the threat of termination over your face isn't the solution. I'd rather keep a decent, albeit not perfect, empoyee on my staff than to fire him and lose even more productivity to train a new employee who may or may not work out.

When you're firing people left and right or they're all getting fed-up and quitting, you're not getting anything done because it just becomes an endless cycle of hiring, training, and firing. Your employees should be a long-term investment; don't fire them unless they've done something egregious if they're actually good at their job.

@rockodoodle Well, if the next-gen consoles are digital-only, then of course stores like GameStop will be hit hard. That being said, they could transition to an online-only business model, like Circuit City did, selling consoles, accessories, last-gen systems and games, and bring back the retro gaming stuff. Maybe they can limp along there.

One reason I order from Amazon is members gets free shipping and no shipping charges even when you get more to avoid GS shipping they still charge shipping.

@AstroTheGamosian I don’t think that would work…but possibly a cybercafe with PC terminals and consoles? Charge by the hour, have coffee, appetizers like u could get at Starbucks

The model can't be sustained because of corporates raiding of the company and paying off big Golden Parachutes when the upper management did nothing to improve the business climate. That's where the meat should be cut at - if you can't show you yourself can make money for company you should pay it back. Instead blame the GS stores for your low profits when paying off the Upper managements bonuses. And allow each GS store locally identify their market consumers this will allow them to insure their consumer base locally can find and buy and support locally stores to improve margins. Business needs to change radically their mindset if they want to survive and insure they put Quality over profits in long term the profits will grow and be sustainable long term but we all know where that goes. In one ear and right out where the sun don't shine mantra.

@rockodoodle Eh, I dunno. If the games are tied to your own account at home, that means you'd probably be unable to access it at a cyber café with their consoles, since accounts are usually tied to the console itself. Thus, you wouldn't be able to pick up where you left off on your console at home. The game would be tied to the store's account, and I bet you anything the game's progress would reset once your time was up.

At best, you'd be paying to play what is essentially a glorified demo, which I think is even less sustainable of a business model than what they have now. As it is, most demos that I have seen are free, and are designed to pique interest in the full game itself. Why pay for a demo when you can buy the full game, after all?