BestBuy.com wants your Wii gaming loot now
by Christopher Grant 
{ Jun 8th 2006 at 10:58PM }
Got some money you feel like letting a giant corporation -- one with a lackluster record when it comes to gaming -- have in exchange for ... well, their word? Big box behemoth Best Buy's online counterpart would be just thrilled to take your $49.99 per game in exchange for them holding a copy of the mass produced merch when it's released.
One can make the case for pre-ordering and reserving consoles -- despite how badly gaming retailers FUBARed their 360 allocations last year -- but software? C'mon! With the exception of Red Steel, those aren't even launch titles! Nintendo's even said Brawl won't be out until "after the turn of the year." Sure, BestBuy.com looks a little sleazy, but if folks are willing to part with their loot for little more than the promise of something that hasn't been dated or priced, who can blame them? Get rich quick scheme #42: open online gaming shop, take pre-orders for Metal Gear Solid 5, retire!
Buy early, buy often:
PS3 titles listed for Oct. 1st and ready for pre-order
More Revolution pre-release madness from GameStop
Zelda Revolution: wishful thinking or calculated scam?
Halo 3 on pre-sale
[Via Engadget]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Nick Evil @ Jun 8th 2006 11:02PM
I guess the preordering thing isn't common in the UK. In most game stores in the US, you're beaten to death by sales nerds over their reservation policy. You're begged to reserve pretty much everything here.
jOEfRO @ Jun 8th 2006 11:10PM
Real accurate Best Buy, exspecially since Nintendo stated that both Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Mario Galaxy wont be out in 2006, but 2007. Best Buy you could at least put TBA on all preorders since Wii doesnt even have a firm release date yet.
dsub @ Jun 8th 2006 11:52PM
this is hardly a big deal. EB Games and Gamestop have been taking pre-orders for Halo 3 since before the 360 launched. Hell, I had a 360 pre-ordered and paid for before this time last year. If I remember correctly I pre-ordered it the day after the MTV announcement. This is the way these companies have to do business, not only does it help them by creating an early picture of how much demand there is, but the manufacturers (MS, Nintendo, Sony) also get reports of this pre-order data as well. These reports can show an early clue as to what the games per console attatch rate is among other things. The retailers rarely get a solid release date more than 30 days in advance, and even beyond that the exact releases are often pushed back a week, or moved ahead one, so they are basically left with the only option of taking pre-orders.
These release dates listed here are merely fill-ins until a concrete release is announced. Best Buy is not a news site, and anyone who uses it as one to dig up info on game release dates is simply being mis-informed.
Now that I've said that, I would NEVER pre-order ANYTING online. Why? Because it doesn't ship to you until the day it's released, meaning you don't get your hands on it until two or three days after it's out. I always pre-order IN STORE. That way you can go in and just pay on it weekly or whatever, and if you change your mind, you just get your money back right on the spot, that, and you get it the moment it's released. I'll never understand why anyone would purchase a new game from the internet. Virtually every person in the US lives within a quick drive to some gaming retailer of some sort. Why would you go through the trouble of paying the same price for a game, plus shipping, just to wait three days to get it, when you could go to a store 5 minutes a way, save the shipping, and get the game instantly. Whatever.
vidGuy @ Jun 8th 2006 11:56PM
I've never preordered anything, ever. And I'd never even think about preordering until concrete details are out - but even those can be risky (look at LoZ: TP for an example). This is plain ridiculous, but other sites have been doing much worse, putting the price at $59.99 cause they think Nintenod will match the 360 in game price and picking weird release dates - I've seen Dec 15th as a release date for some games, where's that come from?
I plan on being one of the first to own the Wii, but I won't preorder. Sometimes it's nice living in a small town.
Crazylink @ Jun 8th 2006 11:59PM
1. Open online gaming shop
2. Take pre-orders for Metal Gear Solid 5
3. ??????
4. Profit
Pretty Obvious @ Jun 9th 2006 12:10AM
I have never and will never preorder anything other then consoles. It doesnt matter how popular a game is, you can always walk in a store first day and find a copy. Did it with all previous GTA's, Metal Gears and Halo. Preordering software is stupid.
Joe @ Jun 9th 2006 12:15AM
Crazylink, nice reference. That made me lol.
HotShotX @ Jun 9th 2006 12:25AM
Lest we forget that it was a Best Buy manager who was scalping 360s off for hundreds more than the initial cost when they launched in November.
http://www.joystiq.com/2005/12/03/best-buy-kinda-apologizes-for-ripping-off-gamers/
-and-
http://www.joystiq.com/2005/11/26/bb-employee-manager-deceived-xbox-360-purchasers/
Now, while BestBuy DID apologize for the actions of some of its chain, I don't really consider them to be a valid source for my gaming needs. In short, the following quote sums up my point:
"Remember this, gamers, when it's time for you to purchase your PS3 and Revolution consoles." (and games)
~HotShotX
Probot @ Jun 9th 2006 12:41AM
#3,
I don't know if this is the exception or the rule, but when I ordered Xenosaga Ep. 2 online, I got it the day it went to stores.
There are only two reasons to pre-order something. First, is if it's a console that's likely to be sold out (or would require long lines). Second, for the pre-order bonus.
#5,
I get the reference, but the profit is actually in step 2. They get money when they take the pre-orders. So, like the post says, they're just selling you the promise you'll get the game.
I've heard a lot of people (some former eployees) critize Gamestop/EB Games for forcing people into pre-orders, (e.g. hiding copies of a game in order to convince people that pre-ordering is necessary.) I doubt this is store policy, but I guess commissions from pre-orders is higher than normal sales.
All anecdotal evidence, but maybe someone has heard similar stories.
Todd Rabanus @ Jun 9th 2006 1:08AM
sure these stores always ask you to pre-order big title games or systems but that's just business. I pre-ordered a 360 the day after E3. Gamestop had a 360 with my name literally written on the box on launch day. Why because I got on the top of the list. I have gone to game crazy (Hollywood video) and gamestop lately and they are both accepting pre-orders for ps3 and Wii. My sugeestion is to pre-order at a brick and mortar store. Every week you can go put some more money down on the system and get a receipt handed to you by a real life person. and if you go in every week and put some money down (even $10 will help) and spend some time shootin the bull with the workers then you will get some free swag and the promise that no matter how many systems they get in on launch day you will get one of them. But order from bestbuy.com and deal with having to talk with the "customer rep" from india. take your pick.
Judd @ Jun 9th 2006 1:14AM
Nick Evil: I'm one of those game nerds you were talking about and I won't say what company I work for, but let's just say we sell Game Informers. And Probot I want you to know that not only do we not get commission(no matter what we sell) but I started off at minimum wage. We are forced to push subscriptions and reserves otherwise people get fired. But despite that, I do admit that reserving a game is a good idea, because if you know you're going to buy it why take a chance that it'll be sold out when we guarantee a copy. People come in all the time and put in their spare change into their reserve that way they don't have to come up with paying $53 the day it comes out. But putting the full fifty dollars into an online store(considering they haven't even announced the price of Wii games yet),yea that's retarded.
Nick @ Jun 9th 2006 1:16AM
I don't trust Best Buy after the whole 360 mad house extravaganza. If you don't know, some managers of Best Buy lied to their customers after the first shipment of 360s. As soon as they got rid of the first shipment and the second one came in, they told their customers that they never came in, bought them via credit and sold them on Ebay for a quick cash fix. This obviously isn't the case for all Best Buys, but who's to say it won't happen again? I wish you luck if that's the chain you are planning on buying from. Same for the PS3.
Pixelbox @ Jun 9th 2006 1:54AM
Most of these stores hype the preorder because it means that lots of gullible folks will loan them money for multiple months. The earlier the better.
For a smart investor, your money + a few months = more money. Preorders are just interest free loans.
sev4 pri1 @ Jun 9th 2006 3:17AM
Please dont bad mouth Best Buy. It was the only place to get a 360 without pre-orders. Over 200 units launch night, and it was definately worth the 24hrs we waited. The unintiated showed up as late as 12hrs before launch and bought a 360.
Our attach rate was high, and my branding compells me to camp for ps3/wii should they honor last launch's setup.
The ZeroCorpse @ Jun 9th 2006 5:46AM
I wonder why Joystiq never mentions the abysmal pre-sales policy on Xbox 360s at GameStop and EB Games, who both took pre-orders almost year in advance of launch, and then couldn't fulfill the pre-orders and told people who had paid in full in the later months of the reservations that they would have to wait until March or April to get their Xbox 360... Meanwhile, all that pre-order money is sitting in their bank, earning interest. Lots of people ended up having to cancel pre-orders after missing launch day, launch week, launch month, and still not getting an Xbox 360 from GameStop.
And how about the unfair practices of places like Target, Circuit City, and Toys R Us, who all demanded that if you wanted an Xbox 360, you HAD to purchase a bundle... Toys R Us got in VERY small allotments of 360s, and they sold them in $800 bundles to a very select few.
And let us also take note of Wal*Mart, who were deliberately turning off their Xbox 360 demo units to keep people from hanging out in their stores, and the large number of Wal*Mart employees who walked off with 360s without having to wait in a line, like Best Buy employees did.
And then there were K-Mart stores, who- I'm told- got shipments of around 10 units per store, and in some markets NOT ONE UNIT made it to the floor for customer purchase.
And of course, do not forget the profiteers who made launch so rotten by camping out aggressively, buying more than half of the available units at most retail chains, and artificially inflating the online market value during the holiday season.
And while it's easy for Joystiq to gripe (CONSTANTLY) about the VERY rare instances of particular Best Buy managers *breaking explicit rules established before launch*, Joystiq seems to ignore the THOUSANDS of Best Buy stores that provided hot beverages, food, and security to the people camping out for 17 hours in a wet winter season. They also ignore the Best Buy employees who "worked" OFF THE CLOCK overnight on those lines, maintaining order, and even standing in line like everyone else.
No bundles were required at Best Buy. Stop blaming the company for the actions of a few bad employees, unless you're going to praise the company in the same breath for all the good things they did during the launch, or at least blame the other retailers for equally bad employees in some markets.
Fine. Best Buy had some bad people. Stop singling them out. Some of us WORKED OUR ASSES OFF to keep our fellow gamers warm, comfortable, and happy during one of the most botched launches in game history. NOBODY ELSE was offering an XBox 360 without bundles, without pre-orders, in the same quantities, with the same service and courtesies. A line of almost 90 people was dealt with in my store, with everybody getting ONE unit, and NO BUNDLES forced on anyone. We also kicked two self-professed profiteers ("I'm sellin' mine on eBay!!!") off the line, making it possible for people who wanted a 360 for themselves (or an XMas present) to get theirs, instead of having to buy it online for $1000 from the same profiteers we kicked out.
Hate on Best Buy all you want, I suppose. It's not fair, but hey- It's like a hobby around here now. Either way, you'll be there when the Wii launches and GameStop doesn't get more than a dozen of them, and Toys-R-Us wants you to buy a $600 Wii bundle. I'll probably be there with beverages for all you ungrateful jerks waiting in line. Again.
You're welcome.
Mark in Austin @ Jun 9th 2006 6:35AM
Good comments, ZeroCorpse. You state the case for 360 pretty well.
At this point, I'll most probably be camping out for my Wii instead of rolling the dice with EB or GameStop. I'll get there on the day before Launch Day (probably early in the morning.. 8AM perhaps?) and wait. The pre-order horror stories from the 360's launch, the high level of buzz for the Wii, Nintendo's stated intention of launching worldwide with such a small supply.. it all factors into my decision to wait in line.
Here's hoping for good weather.. :P
Mark in Austin @ Jun 9th 2006 6:37AM
Editing correction:
You state the case for Best Buy pretty well.
that guy @ Jun 9th 2006 7:54AM
EB in Canada is NOT accepting pre-orders for Wii (believe me, I check pretty much every day). Although this is frustrating, I really can't blame them. Why? Because they're trying to avoid what happened with the (horrible) 360 launch, where even people who pre-ordered a 360 months and months in advance didn't get one, sometimes for a month or more after it launched.
I would be pissed if I didn't get a Wii the day it came out. But I'd be a HELL of a lot more pissed if I PRE-ORDERED one and STILL didn't get it the day it came out. At least if EB told me they didn't have enough to allow me to pre-order, at least I wouldn't be getting my hopes up or anything.
That being said, I will have a Wii the day it comes out. I'll sell my first born if need be :)
student @ Jun 9th 2006 8:09AM
This is interesting. Best Buy didn't accept preorders on the XBox 360 so I would assume they're not going to for the Wii either. So that would mean you can preorder games but not the system. So if you aren't able to find one at launch well.... at least you'll have the games.
Mog Bert @ Jun 9th 2006 8:57AM
Hey, if you think putting up a few Pre-order Wii games for $49.99 is bad, check out this link!
http://www.ebgames.com/search.asp?filter=0&ckSearchcount=1&orderAscDesc=Asc&linkpage=1&rangeFrom=0&rangeTo=ALL¤tpage=1&keyword=wii&searchtype=quicksearch&platform=0&genre=0&lookin=title&selection=ALL&imageFlag=show&sortby=default&statcd=&publisher=&esrb=&title=&searchcount=50
OK, if that didn't work, it is 32 (THIRTY TWO) pre-order Wii games for $59.99 (now I wish I could type my numbers in all-caps).
Really, you all need to be bashing the people who need bashing most.
Anonymous rep @ Jun 9th 2006 9:04AM
The point Chris was making in his article and commentary - and which seems to have been missed by some of you - is that there is no need to pre-order ANY software. I don't care whether it's from GameStop or it's clones EB / Babbages (there's still a few of them hanging around), or from Best Buy online or Circuit City Online.
It's SOFTWARE. That means it's a mass production thing, and there WILL be large quantities of it available. If you don't happen to find it at GameStop because they sold out of their 50 copies, then run over to Wal-Mart - they'll have it in stock on Thursday when they reset their planogram. Or any other gaming store - it's still software and there is (or will be) no shortage of it.
Even Oblivion, with the mass restickering in stores and recall, was still available in our retail market during this time.
(The recall was due to the rating change, not due to anything else.)
Hey Alex @ Jun 9th 2006 9:19AM
I think the bigger story here is the pricing. Wii games are going to be $49?
that guy @ Jun 9th 2006 9:27AM
#19 - normally I would agree with you (and Joystiq), but I will bet absolutely any amount of money that almost every store will be sold out of Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for both Wii and GameCube. Some software does sell out, and it's usually Nintendo games. Look at Mario Party 7. Look at Nintendogs. Look at Animal Crossing: Wild World (the last was a bit of a different story as Nintendo seemed to be purposely slowing production of the game but you catch my drift).
Not trying to sound fanboy-ish or anything, but if any game(s) is/are going to sell out, it'll probably be Nintendo games. Mark my words - you won't be able to just walk into a store when Wii launches and pick up a Zelda: TP game for either system. ESPECIALLY considering it will be in stores the exact same day as the Wii launches (and unlike the Wii itself and other Wii games, EB IS in fact already taking official pre-orders for Zelda - check for yourself).
Thomas Crymes @ Jun 9th 2006 9:40AM
Cartridge-based games are different than disc based games because catriges actually cost a little bit to manufacture and take time. Pressing a disc takes little time and a very small amount of money.
Shortages of disc-based games are very very rare.
avery @ Jun 9th 2006 9:49AM
In Canada you can preorder the console from bestbuy. That's how I got the 360 at launch.
daniel @ Jun 9th 2006 10:05AM
#1 i think your wrong look at the outrageous prices and stupid dates play.com have for wii games £50 each and its says christmas day http://www.play.com/Games/Wii/NAVSUB/5-/RegionHome.html
im just gonna go reserve my wii stuff in the local games shop once firm details come in
TC @ Jun 9th 2006 10:12AM
From Best Buy Preorder FAQ...
"Q: When will I be charged?
A: You will not be charged at the time you place the pre-order. Only when your item ships will your credit card be charged. If you order additional items along with your pre-order, you will be charged for each item as it ships."
As this is the policy at any reputable site I am seeing serious flaws in your business scam, err...plan. Booyakasha, non-story.
that guy @ Jun 9th 2006 10:13AM
Thomas - I agree wholeheartedly with your closing comment. Nevertheless, I will still put money on Twilight Princess selling out the first day, and there being a lot of disappointed people going into the stores not getting what they want.
I'll also bet you that nevertheless is a stupid word. If it's even a word at all.
Joby @ Jun 9th 2006 10:31AM
You can pre-order Wii games in the UK on Play.com and they come in at a staggering £49.99... I thought these where supposed to be cheaper?
dsub @ Jun 9th 2006 10:49AM
Zero Corpse-
When the 360 launch happend, nearly EVERYTHING you listed there was spoken of by joystiq.
bladestar @ Jun 9th 2006 10:58AM
$49.00 + tax? damn! I thought wii games would cost $29.00 - $39.00. I thought they said this games are relative easy to make and do not require big budgets to make. Developers don't have to develop for HD, Delphi multichannel sound/music or near the amount of work required to make a PS3 or Xbox 360 game. How do they come with these prices? How are big budget games like Halo 3, FFXIII and MGS4 (they drop to $49 or $39 within 6 months) with hundreds of people working on them cost only $10 more than a wii game with a lot less people and require alot less work? Nintendo said it; Wii games will cost a fraction to make compared to the PS3 and XBox. Well, I don't care if they cheaper to make unless it’s a lot cheaper to buy and $10.00 less does not sound cheap. Best buy better be wrong!
n8dogg @ Jun 9th 2006 11:35AM
Gamestop was retarded when it came to the release of the 360.
They made us take reservations starting from the end of E3, and were only able to get them to about 10 customers per store on launch day.
But now, I can assure you that we're not taking Wii or PS3 reservations until about a month or so before the systems come out. And even then we're limiting how many reserves are avaliable.
Gamestop treats their employees like trash, by the way. They start us off on minimum wage, and won't do a review on our performance for raises until every APRIL. And even then it's only about 20 cents. In my case, it was ZERO. And I've been working there for a year already.
Want to know why I got shafted in the raise department? Because I didn't sell enough subscriptions and reservations. Gamestop pushes the HELL out of resses and subs, even to the point of emphasizing them over actual sales. We get no commission, obviously, and customers think we're jerks when we keep asking about a subscription to Game Informer or a reservation for Madden 07, when in reality we're doing it to keep our JOBS.
What's more, we look like liars and cheap-skates when the actual release of games come around. One of the best and most effective ways to get a reservations is by saying a game will be in limited supply upon release. And EVERY SINGLE FUCKING TIME Game Stop ALWAYS over stocks their stores. Kingdom Hearts II, for example. We said that the game would be hard to get upon release, and we were actually being sincere. We had about 130 reserves at our tiny store, and we definately knew that people would be hard-pressed to find them. As it turns out, Game Stop ships us WAYY more than we reserved (about 160, with more coming in the next week), causing our customers to make snide comments about how we lied during the reservation stages. It pissed me OFF.
UGH. Rant over.
that guy @ Jun 9th 2006 12:16PM
Bladestar - you're right that Nintendo is trying to cut down on production costs when making games, but not ALL games for Wii will be like that, if you look at the new Zelda, Mario Galaxy, Red Steel, etc. These are still full-fledged games for the 'hardcore' gamer so to speak and have been in development for a long time. And Nintendo DOES make games cheaper depending on development, simplicity, etc. If you look at the DS, games like Magnetica, Brain Age, etc, are quite a lot cheaper than the Metroid Prime Hunters, New Super Mario Bros, etc (and even NSMB was cheaper than what I thought it would be).
Anywho, all I'm saying is that cheaper is cheaper is cheaper, no matter how you slice it.
vidGuy @ Jun 9th 2006 1:36PM
It's important to note that these are just guesses as to release date AND PRICE. Like I mentioned earlier, I've seen LoZ:TP with a listed price of $59.99, and there's 0% chance that's what'll cost.
Nintendo has said that no (1st party?) game will cost more than $49.99. This doesn't mean that they'll cost that much, or that all games will be the same price.
I think we are getting to the point where games will be released for different prices based on depth/length and appeal - different than the standard $49.99 across the board for games this gen. The 360's Table Tennis launched at $39.99 I believe. Halo 3 is, in my mind, guaranteed to launch at $59.99.
I imagine that some games will be released for less than $49.99, and Nintendo would do well to lower their first party games to $39.99, or even $44.99. Smaller games won't be nearly that much. Provided that Wii Sports is not bundled with the Wii console, I can't see it selling for more than $19.99 at release. For Super Mario Galaxy and Twilight Princess, though, expect to pay $49.99, and be pleasantly surprised if they sell for anything less.
The fact of the matter is that Nintendo is not raising the price of games. With many 360 games selling for $59.99, and PS3 games rumored to be between $59.99 and $69.99, the Wii's games at $49.99 will look much more appealing.
bladestar @ Jun 9th 2006 1:50PM
I'm not talking about some casual game ala xbox 360 live games (Geometry Wars or Street fighter that cost only $5 or $15 max when released). I'm ok if some wii games like mario or zelda is $49.00 but let that be premium games, but if I'm going to be deprived all the features(HD, Graphics, sound, etc) required by big budget games in order to reduce the cost of development and not benefit directly as the buyer then hell no. Why should I care that companies making games for the wii will spend $5 Mil instead of $20 Mil and make a profit of $45 plus the $15 mil they saved on development. And "cheaper is cheaper is cheaper, no matter how you slice it." It's not completely realistic when you are talking about different products. i.e. If you are offered a BMW 2005 for $10,000 and Honda 2005 for $9,500 (they are both in good condition). Which one would you buy? see? Cheaper is not always cheaper no matter how you slice it.
Nimby @ Jun 9th 2006 3:02PM
I still have Zelda:TP on reserve both at Gamestop, and the evil leader themself Bestbuy I will fill you in when that game comes in... I hope you guys can wait a couple 'a years.
Judd @ Jun 10th 2006 2:23AM
n8dogg; I completely agree with you I'm also a Gamestop employee (see #11). I started working in November at minimum wage and did actually manage to get a raise of 15 cents in April in exchange for selling my soul. But to those who've suggested that a company like Best Buy is any better I gotta disagree. The fact that they had 360's available didn't make them any better than Gamestop, it made them worse, because they were screwing over those that reserved systems half a year earlier, by allowing those who just showed up to the store that day and purchased one. But the truth is the system launch wasn't Gamestop or Best Buy's fault it was Microsoft because they made the decision to screw over their fans by
A. Like I said, giving shipments to Best Buy and screwing over other stores(probably cause Best Buy paid them money or gave Microsoft some sort of free promotion on Windows etc.)
B. During the system's launch party, giving it away to people like Paris Hilton or rap stars (who when asked what game they were gonna play only knew of Madden) as if they care about playing it anyway, and even more so as if gamers give a crap that celebrities have Xbox 360's.
C. Giving away hundred's of thousands of 360's for free with their Mountain Dew sweepstakes. You should only give something away for free if you actually have more than the amount that is givin away to sell. D'oh.
CrazyObiRon @ Jun 10th 2006 9:57AM
Great comments!
#3 dsub
I can tell your a retailer like myself, your right on the money$
#6 Pretty Obvious
Read #3, Maybe you can find a game at release but if your going to buy it anyway go ahead and put $5 down to pre order the game. The sales associates dont get commission in GameStop or Game Crazy it just will help the store get a better alloocation and the other gamers that arent as lucky as you to find titles when they release.At Game Crazy the $5 goes towards the game when you pick it up and you get a free rental at Hollywood Video(same company).
#10 The comment that Game Crazy is taking Pre orders is FALSE!( I work there)
We are taking customers names and numbers and calling them when we start taking Pre Orders.
Count on Pre Orders to start on the PS3 and Wii in Aug. or Sept.
If you havent been in a Game Crazy (gamecrazy.com for locations)check us out we blow GameStop and EB away on priceing and service.
CrazyObiRon(Xbox 360 Live gamer tag)