Retailer GAME has announced that it will be ending its GAME 'Reward' programme along with the GAME 'Elite' Membership scheme (which is essentially a paid tier of the former) on 31st July 2024.
Essentially, then, following this date, customers will no longer be able to redeem any points accumulated on in-store and online purchases. GAME has stressed that reward points will be offered until 15th July, after which you'll have until the 31st to redeem them.
In an email sent to customers, alongside a statement provided on its website, GAME states "We would strongly urge you to redeem your GAME reward points prior to the closure date on purchases in GAME stores or online to avoid disappointment".
The news will undoubtedly come as a disappointment to many, regardless. In this writer's experience, many spend months, if not years, accumulating points in the hope that these can then be redeemed on new hardware. As we know, Nintendo's Switch successor will be announced at some point before the end of March 2025, and it's also assumed that Sony will release a PlayStation 5 Pro at some point this year.
Right now, however, your best shot might be to spend your points on the upcoming Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition, which launches on 18th July 2024. Cool, huh?
GAME's announcement follows confirmation that the chain will no longer accept trade-ins on consoles and games, with the increased number of concession stores within Sports Direct cited as a possible cause. It was also reported earlier this year that GAME staff were hit by redundancies after the firm moved the majority of its workforce under zero-hour contracts.
With the demise of trade-ins and now its reward programme, one does wonder what exactly GAME has up its sleeve to differentiate itself from other major retailers. Only time will tell.
What do you make of this latest move from GAME? Do you have reward points waiting to be redeemed? Let us know with a comment in the usual place.
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[source game.co.uk]
Comments 43
With GAME exiting the trade-in sector that's been dominated by CEX, I guess that leaves it as a new-games retailer at most.
I don't see what'll set it apart from the likes of Amazon, really, aside from things like if they manage to secure retail exclusives that make them the only option.
Could this be GAME over?
It's hard to see how GAME can possibly continue for much longer. It's been a while since I've worked there, but as far as I can tell, it no longer offers anything that I would deem beneficial. If folks aren't already opting for cheaper options elsewhere, then perhaps now is the time.
I have no idea how GAME is even still open.
I enjoy going in for a browse but honestly I can't remember the last time I actually bought something from them.
Smyth's tends to be at least £5 cheaper on all new games so they're pricing themselves out of sales
GAME is on it's last few breaths, RIP GAME.
Everything Mike Ashley touches dies.
Whoever has CEX in the pool for Last Man Standing would be coining it right now.
Hard to even feel bad for them, the one on Union Street’s been a disaster for years and they treat their staff abysmally. With our local indie shop going under roundabout Covid times, it’s basically CEX or bust in town.
It’s not looking good for game is it?
They lost my business when they sold me a second hand game as new (it had save files on the cart) and wouldn’t do anything about it.
Interesting, I visited GAME during my trip to Scotland last week.. Really nice store with alot of merchandise. Far more than my local game store (Game Mania).
Went in trying not to buy anything - went out with Persona 3 Reload for Xbox and 3 Animal Crossing plushies lmao
The fat cats have been stripping this company down for years, looks like they can't squeeze anymore out so they will it go to the wall now.
What's next? Liquidation. Haven't bought anything from GAME since the mid 2000s.
They really trying kill physical media
GAME feels like the retail equivalent of David Brent visiting the office after he's been fired to try and harbour sympathy from his ex-colleagues.
I only go into Game to laugh at their ludicrous prices. Probably won’t do that now I know they’re putting workers on zero hours contracts, scum move.
Most certainly yet another sign that the end is near, but more than being about physical retailers in general it seems to be because of issues related to GAME specifically like those mentioned by some comments here.
Not been the same since they gobbled up Gamestation and destroyed that brand. They only sell at RRP and their trade in whilst they did it, was the worst deal you could get and they wouldn't price match.
I luckily left Gamestation as a manager before Game took over.
I've been buying physical new releases at Amazon, Argos and supermarkets for years now never paying over £40 on release day. CEX for all of my pre owned.
Sports Direct (Fraser Group) has had some of the worst criticism (justified IMO) for zero hour contracts.
The minute they bought Game, it was the beginning of the end.
@Duncanballs Yeah, same — on the rare occasion I do buy games on their initial release it'll be from Currys/Argos — at least they knock £5-10 off the retail price; Game always price them at full whack. If the game's been out for a few months (as is more likely the case), I'll nab it from CEX
It's the only gaming-focused chain I know that's left in the UK, yet it still fails. The only impressive thing they've done is stay open this long.
GAME took over the local Games Wizards franchise in Australia, and everything was worse off for it. They eventually went out of business what feels like forever ago now (it’s probably been over 10 years, though I don’t care enough to confirm). JB Hi-Fi is my go-to as they’re usually the cheapest and have the better pre-order bonuses (among other deals).
EB has a decent range of other gaming paraphernalia and pop culture merchandise, but I rarely buy games from them as they’re usually too expensive, and they typically “gut” the packaging of games (their term), and if I am to pick up, say, an exclusive from them at full price (like some of the Atelier games), then I’ll refuse to buy if they don’t have a shrink-wrapped copy on hand. To their credit though, they do price-match... if asked.
I learned some years ago, however, that first party Nintendo releases are almost never shrink-wrapped in Australia for whatever stupid reason, but every third-party release, in my experience anyway, should be.
I imagine this would be like if EB Games or GameStop or whatever they're calling themselves now axed their platinum membership. In which case, my response would be: Oh no! Anyway.
I didnt even know this was a thing.
Man, they've really gone downhill over the years, huh?
I think my last purchase from GAME was the Baten Kaitos remasters as the physical was exclusive to GAME. Before then... probably some of the trinkets for a christmas present or two. Its been a long time since they provided actual substantial worth from anything they offer, and a full on closure of the brand seems to be on the horizon. Kinda sad, but hard to really care at this point. The store just sucks.
It does look like GAME is on the way out, since the only incentive to buying there, is that they have physical stores, but that of no use when there are none of the physical stores located in your area. It already had little use, what with the “picking up order in store” option being as much as normal delivery. Which is on the expensive side. Just buy from Shop To, or even Amazon. Like Deku Deals was listing a deal at GAME, and I was like “but that’s practically the same price with their postage added on. It’ll be weird without GAME, but I’m not sure I’ll miss them. If anything I miss the Hayday of GAME/EB.
Are they trying to self-destruct?
This said, I think the last time I bought something from Game was 2007. Once upon a time it was a great place, especially in the early GC/PS2/Xbox era, when it was focused on games. But it soon became a shell of itself after that....
The once all powerful Game going out with a whimper.
They are over expensive in the UK, in shop.
And have different prices and deals from internet to shop sometimes to get more money in shop.
Shops like Smyths Toys and Curry’s
Do better deals most of the time.
Seems like it will simply live on as a Brand Kiosk inside Sports Direct. Those so called "GAME Lite" stores will be the true death of the company.
@nessisonett The worst thing about that is the Gamestation on Union St was great before Game bought them and shut it down. F@*k. Mike Ashley! I also have to assume they're responsible for G Force closing.
I had £149.77 in store credit and reward points combined, and I've just made what I imagine will now be my last ever GAME purchase after hearing this news. Shame really as I was holding on to all of it to go towards the next Switch, whenever that ends up releasing.
I did just buy though (I don't even know their full proper titles as I haven't paid the most attention to them so bare with me)......
Paper Mario (new remake one)
Princess Peach Adventure
Mario and Rabbids Sparks of Hope
Sonic Frontiers
Sonic Superstars
Oh well GAME/Electronics Boutique/Gamestation..........we had a good three plus decade run 😞
Better dig out that card then from my drawer
@FredBiletnikoff RIP GForce, they’d been around as long as I’d been going that end of town. Always had a random selection of stuff but there were plenty imported cool games and I’d rather give them my money than any of the big businesses.
GASP, better hurry and spend my checks........79p!
@nessisonett As a staunch Nintendo fan, I used to buy Winning 11 from G Force. I finally gave up and played Pro Ev on my brother's Playstation.
Was in a GAME recently. Heard they had a couple of attractive prices on some Switch games so went in to see if they had any in store. Found one I was happy to buy, took the shelf case to the counter to pay.
Then stood there watching the clerk take the contents out of a clear case and start putting them inside the beat-up shelf case.
Me: "Actually, can I have a new case please? That one's a bit tatty."
Clerk: "No, this is all we've got."
Someone put them out of their misery.
Game have been good for getting physical indie games cheap on clearance sale. For example, I got Shovel Knight on Switch for £20, Shantae 4 on PS4 for £15, and The Sexy Brutale on PS4 for £5. But I haven't bought anything day-one from them for years because of their atrocious prices. So I'm not surprised that they're struggling.
@RainbowGazelle About 7-8 months ago I walked out with a ton of XBox games for 98p each at my local GAME.
I have no idea why they were so cheap, they were popular titles like Mass Effect Legendary, AC Valhalla, The Bayonetta/Vanquish steel, just to name a few, and they were not used as a couple were sealed and the rest had all their included DLC codes working!
You could put it down to the XBox brand not doing so well or stock clearance but goddamn.
Needless to say if they do close down, the sales are going to be insane....
The idea here is tighter integration with Sports Direct, so you'll probably see the remaining standalone stores close in future.
I went into my local GAME-in-Sports Direct recently and was surprised to see it was a full sized store and not just a few games behind the till situation like some people I know had mentioned.
That doesn't change the fact I'm not supporting a Mike Ashley owned business where staff are treat like dirt though.
If I still bought stuff from GAME I might care. As it stands though, I don't.
CEX is 10x better than GAME because it has all the second hand stuff, including retro. GAME has nothing.
@Dazman CeX only has second hand stuff
As a ELITE Member half way through a membership, this is very annoying. One of the upsides was that if you didn't make as many points as it cost, you got the difference. Plus I've saved up £18 I have to spend real fast.
Worth also saying I've found on here. GAME have not even bothered to email to say this is happening!
Mike Ashley has run it down the toliet. Man only know how to bully underpaid workers to sell cheap, nasty, sweatshop, import sportswear in chav-tastic temples of sadness. Everything else he buys up he leads to utter ruin. (He's on the board of much-beloved Hornby next...)
Always enjoyed going into Game when I was younger, but can't remember the last time I went in. Much prefer CEX or Smyth's now.
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