GameStop's world takeover continues with 5,000th store
The GameStop juggernaut just keeps on rolling along. No sooner do they report record quarterly profits than they triumphantly declare the opening of their milestone 5,000th store in Jackson, CA. For reference, the 16-country international chain is now nearing Wal-Mart levels of ubiquity (and yes, we know GameStops are a lot smaller than Wal-marts, but still). Don't worry, though, the store still comes up short against Starbucks' 12,000+ locations or McDonalds' 31,000 restaurants.With remaining competitors like GameCrazy facing major financial problems, will it be long before GameStop is the only game-focused retail chain around?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Lunitsond @ Oct 24th 2007 1:36PM
First Post, haha. Anyways, I think that Gamestop should watch themselves because they could fall into the anti-trust issues that Microsoft had a few years back.
Mr Khan @ Oct 24th 2007 4:46PM
I believe Microsoft got into all that trouble because they were using their ~90% marketshare to leverage people to buy Microsoft Software in a package deal with Windows OSes, and that was when they got hit with antitrust threats in the case United States v. Microsoft
So it would only occur if they started trying to get exclusive rights to sell certain games, say
gonk @ Oct 24th 2007 6:31PM
i thought i heard recently that gamestop would exclusively have some game, i can't remember the name though
and i think i heard about walmart being the only place to pick up some other game too
man i hate both of those chains
LAZoftheTamarinds @ Oct 24th 2007 1:37PM
What a coincedence! Just a few weeks ago our EB games became a Gamestop.
harrison_schaerr @ Oct 24th 2007 1:38PM
EB games and GAMESTOP are dummy companies owned by the same company... all they did was change the name.
jamma @ Oct 24th 2007 2:09PM
I think the UK's GAME stores are also part of the same group, as they all used to be EB games stores once upon a day
daniel @ Oct 24th 2007 2:16PM
GAME is a different company they just licensed the eb name when they got started
harrison_schaerr @ Oct 24th 2007 1:37PM
uh... can they stop selling used video games please, and stop undermining the industry upon which they make their living?
seriously, 80% of their shelf space is used games, imagine if they sold new games there instead?
ColossalHat @ Oct 24th 2007 1:40PM
But if they sell more new games, they can't reap the 100% profit of reselling used games.
WiNG @ Oct 24th 2007 1:44PM
I don't see what everyone's problem is.
I walk into a Best Buy, Target, or Wal-Mart, I have one choice: buy a new game.
I walk into a GameStop, I can CHOOSE to buy a new game, or buy a slightly less costly used game. I can even sell my games at mediocre prices. I can also buy really old games sitting on the used game shelves.
harrison_schaerr @ Oct 24th 2007 1:47PM
When you buy a used game, the developer and publisher get no compensation.
it's stealing to buy or sell used games, because it robs developers of much needed compensation for games that cost millions to develop.
unlike a song which can be written in spare time and played on a 100$ guitar, video games actually need massive compensation to pay off the massive production costs.
Fullmetal Salchemist @ Oct 24th 2007 1:50PM
You forgot the part where you can choose to buy an opened, beat-up copy of the game for the same price as a pristine, factory-sealed copy.
ColossalHat @ Oct 24th 2007 1:53PM
So, by your argument, it's perfectly fine to pirate music, but if you BUY a used game, it's illegal. God, I guess I'm a massive thief. But wait, didn't they already make a profit off the game I bought? And don't people actually have to buy the game before it becomes "used"? Your argument is somewhat foolish in that there is always a limited supply of used games while new ones can be reproduced at a whim.
Gangsta Smurf @ Oct 24th 2007 1:54PM
Stop selling used games?! WHAT TEH HELL ARE UU SMOKNG MAN!
Vidikron (FU) @ Oct 24th 2007 1:56PM
How is it stealing? Games work on licenses just like all other software. When you sell a game your are transferring the license to someone else. You don't have a copy of the game anymore and you can't play it. I see your point, but you could make the exact same argument against used cars and even homes... pretty much about any used market items. Are you against sale of all used items? If not, why should software be treated differently than something else... like a used car?
d-pad @ Oct 24th 2007 1:56PM
I went to EB games once to get rid of brand new copy of Quake 4 that came with my system.
They offered me 6 dollars.
I then told them to fuck off.
harrison_schaerr @ Oct 24th 2007 1:58PM
@colossal
... you don't support the developer when you buy a used game... you don't help them fund the next big game that they want to make.
if the developer can't make profit, they shut down.
that's why buying or selling used games is morally wrong, because it cannibalizes the gaming industry.
harrison_schaerr @ Oct 24th 2007 2:03PM
@ vidicrun...
look, it's just the simple economics of game costs x million $ to make, thus we must sell X million copies not to go bankrupt.
by buying used games, you don't help developers and publishers meet that quota, and if they can't, that development studio is going to shut down.
you aren't buying a disc when you buy a game, you're compensating the artists who made the game, and supporting them in making more great games.
it's morally wrong because it in the end robs us, gamers, of new great games because publishers and developers can take less risks and make less ambitious games because they aren't making enough money to fund them.
Vidikron (FU) @ Oct 24th 2007 2:07PM
I know what your point is, but what I want to know is why software should be treated differently than anything else.
Going back to my used car example... When someone buys a used car the original manufacturer isn't getting any profit from that sale. The exact same thing can be said of just about any item that can be bought used. So, are you against the sale of all used items and, if not, what is your rational for thinking software should be treated differently than other used items? After all, it takes millions to develop vehicles and lots of other consumer items.
gonk @ Oct 24th 2007 2:08PM
dpad, that's what I did a couple times too. They would've turned around and priced it at like $55 too. Fucking assholes
Vidikron (FU) @ Oct 24th 2007 2:15PM
@gonk
No doubt. I hate how most recent games are sold used for $5 under retail. WTF? I may as well buy new at that price. That's why I don't ever buy any used games there. I usually by new anyway, but if I ever buy/sell used games I generally do it through a forum and often try to get a straight trade with someone else. Both parties come out way better than going through Gamestop.
harrison_schaerr @ Oct 24th 2007 2:19PM
@vidikrun
good point, but remember it only costs 1-2$ to produce the dvd and case for a video game...
it costs honda thousands of dollars in parts and labor to build each honda.
every game that sells, manufacturing costs are only a tiny fraction of the cost of producing the disc itself... the real cost is in, as you obviously know, development and design.
this isn't the same for items like cars and other consumer products... yes, there are definitely design and development costs for every product in existence, but in the video game world, the development cost and the production cost is a 50-1 ratio...
if everyone threw away their old cars instead of buying new, it'd be a tremendous waste of the massive cost the car was to manufacture...
it's not the same for a video game and many other IP based products...
where video games are differentiated from music and movies is another bullet point here.
music isn't expensive to create. it requires some cheap instruments, and the spare time of a few people to create music...
what development or design costs are there?
musicians can easily make a wealthy living off concerts alone, and movies can easily fund themselves off box office ticket sales alone.
video games aren't like this. there are no stars in the video game industry, no media darlings who get paid billions to work on a game, no brad pitts or george clooneys...
simply put, of all intellectual properties, it is more morally wrong to buy or sell used video games than any other IP.
It is much more wrong to buy a used game, rob the developer and publisher who spent millions making it of any compensation than it is to illegally download a song online that cost virtually nothing to create.
it is more morally wrong to pirate a movie off the internet than to pirate a song, because again, music costs virtually nothing to create, while movies again cost millions.
musicians can live like kings based off concert ticket sales alone. sorry, i said it.
At some point, people have to understand that they sucking the blood out of the industry every time they buy or sell a used game...
LJKelley @ Oct 24th 2007 2:41PM
How is using a game for a month and then returning it any different then game rentals from GameFly or Blockbuster?
We don't owe the developers anything and last I checked they made a profit. They are more than welcome to change the license but get ready for a backlash.
robert @ Oct 24th 2007 3:27PM
@ Fullmetal Salchemist
the only way to buy a sealed pristine copy of anything at gamestop is to buy into their pre-order hype
gonk @ Oct 24th 2007 1:43PM
two things that must be linked in every gamestop post:
http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2007/03/30
http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2006/12/18
LJKelley @ Oct 24th 2007 1:48PM
Thats awesome! Thanks for posting.
Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Oct 24th 2007 1:48PM
Those comics are made of win, and by the law of syllogism, so is your post. +++
Sean @ Oct 24th 2007 1:47PM
Resistance is futile.
NATO_Duke @ Oct 24th 2007 1:50PM
I look forward to the day when I can go to Starbucks and find an EB games kiosk inside. Someday...
ColossalHat @ Oct 24th 2007 1:56PM
More likely, the Starbucks will be inside the Gamestop/EB Games store. Hell, I'm waiting for the day when Starbucks starts putting coffee machines in phone booths.
r-deezy @ Oct 24th 2007 4:20PM
Phone booths??? What is this thing you speak of? Is it a sound proof place where you can talk on your cell if it's noisy/windy outside??
Too @ Oct 24th 2007 1:50PM
Yeah, my local mall now has TWO GameStop stores, because one converted from EB Games.
Vidikron (FU) @ Oct 24th 2007 2:00PM
We have a similar situation where we have a Gamestop and an EB Games in adjacent shopping centers. They were both there before the companies merged. When the merge happend I thought one would be closed, but both have remained open. Both seem to be doing good business too.
jamey @ Oct 24th 2007 2:04PM
Sadly my GameStop was just closed "indefinitely". Far sadder is that it closed due to the asst. manager being killed when someone robbed the store.
Riseagainstme @ Oct 24th 2007 2:05PM
Yea so, I buy a S-video cable for a PS2 a while back at a gamestop. Decide I want component instead, go to return it. Reciept says: "Opened accessories can be returned/exchanged within 7 days" I went back the very next day. They said its against store policy to give me my money back. I bitch and moan to no avail. I drive over to a different game stop, they gave me my money no Q's asked. You can guess which gamestop I will no longer be shopping at. Bunch of dicks.
d-pad @ Oct 24th 2007 2:07PM
Harrison,
Share the acid or explain the trip.
How do you think the used games end up at EB in the first place? With your logic, Toyota would be out of business by now.
harrison_schaerr @ Oct 24th 2007 2:36PM
ugh... well my dad actually works in the car industry, so i think i can explain it.
car manufacturers like honda have created ways to continue profiting off sold cars...
by making them break over time.
yes, the machine shops run by various car manufactures are merely ways to continue profiting off cars long after they've been sold.
most people don't know this, but a big part of the reason our transition into waste free fuels like hydrogen energy has been so slow, is that those kind of machines need less repair and break less frequently.
i mean... how would you have profit making emissions and inspections tests if the vehicle you drove could only emit water as a byproduct?
you couldn't.
Car companies like Honda, Ford, Toyota, BMW manufacture cars to break over time so they can make more money off having you repair them =)
they also get paid not to develop non gasoline based engines by oil companies =)
video game discs don't break down over time. on my 70th play through of halo 1 on xbox, it still hasn't broken.
counterstrike source, which exists only on my hard drive distributed via steam doesn't break down over time either.
Microsoft loses billions of dollars from the xbox 360 breaking, it doesn't make millions.
the video game industry isn't like the car industry :)
d-pad @ Oct 24th 2007 2:59PM
What about Bush, the C4 and WTC7??!
Cyro @ Oct 24th 2007 2:10PM
Hmmmm. Still trying to think how can some one make this post about something bad about the PS3.............
Hahaha. Just Kidding.
Sean @ Oct 24th 2007 2:25PM
"You can't even buy a used PS3 in a Gamestop because that would require someone to buy it in the first place."
or
"Man, there are like a million used PS3s at my Gamestop cause PS3 sucks."
robert @ Oct 24th 2007 2:42PM
sad thing is... judging from your post history you really aren't kidding and have nothing to say but "PS3 Sucks" in as many ways you can find.
NeuroMan42 @ Oct 24th 2007 2:12PM
If only they would start hiring a staff with a BRAIN, and not their regular smart-ass attitude. The shops here is run buy jacktards with no knowledge of games at all.
valthun @ Oct 24th 2007 2:50PM
I try to buy new for all of my games. I resort to used when it's a title that is no longer in print and have just decided it might be a fun game to play. There are just way too many games out there. However I am mostly a PC gamer and find myself at Target or Best Buy for the PC game purchases since they actually carry stock of PC titles. Rather than a gimped shelf in the middle of the floor with maybe 50 titles, and half are MMOs. The only time I buy and a Gamestop now is when there is a collectors edition I really want and is exclusive to them, or if I am on that hunt for the elusive title still in print and they actually have a new copy of it. Or of coarse when I am looking for that elusive out of print title and they may have it used.
jordanho1 @ Oct 24th 2007 3:03PM
someone will come along soon i bet and help gamers sell and buy used games w/o having to have gamestop as the middle man... and avoid ebay's janky-ness.
Benny @ Oct 24th 2007 3:15PM
I hate game store assistants... they all seem to be fuckwits who know nothing about gaming. I was in GAME at Lakeside the other day, and a woman came in asking for 'Nintendogs 2'. The guy helping her looked for it for TWENTY MINUTES. I was tempted to help him out and let him know there's no such game, but instead I decided to have some fun and watch the retard suffer.
Seriously, if I went to a garage asking for my left phalange to be replaced and the mechanic spent 20 minutes looking for it, I'd be worried.
angryguy77 @ Oct 24th 2007 3:22PM
If the game is good enough, then there really won't be that many used copies to buy. When I have a good game, I never trade it in becuase it has replay value to it. Also, used games are supplying jobs to a lot of people. 5000 stores means that there is a lot of people out there that are making money to help support themselves. This is the dumbest thing I have ever heard, "These poor developers are going to go under". Used games have been around since the nes days and I only see the market getting stronger. I guess we should ban renting games too. I mean you shouldn't be able to find out if a game suck or not before you buy it.
WiNG @ Oct 24th 2007 3:37PM
"it's stealing to buy or sell used games, because it robs developers of much needed compensation for games that cost millions to develop."
Okay I guess I was stealing money from Nissan when I sold my car, and the buyer was stealing also. The better solution would have been to throw it out. Or to incur the cost to ship it back to Nissan so they can reclaim its parts.
Benny @ Oct 24th 2007 4:47PM
While we're at it let's shut down Oxfam. Those vile thieving pigs.
thebigwhif25 @ Oct 24th 2007 3:56PM
I guess out of 5k, i have the 1 good gamestop?
the store i frequent always treats me with respect and due w.e they need to to help me. They took the time to get to know me, manager would remember that it was me who had the car trouble and gave advice about where were good shops etc..
these people are human just like you and me. It does not help when and i quote the manager"a lady calls me a liar because we dont have mario for the ps2". Retail is not easy, ive worked it.
and i dont know what the big whoop about buying used is. I do it al lthe time for the guarntees. I had a new copy of two worlds in my hand ready to buy at Gamestop, they reccomended the used copy because of the iffy reviews. Well i didnt like it and the 1 game a month i limit myself to did not get wasted, as i went and swapped it out for a different game ebcause it was used.
So i could of done that
or
Gone to Target/CC. searched down a guy with a key. asked him if the game behind the 4 faced coipes of COD3 was Two worlds because it was the logical spot. Find out it was, buy it, unwrap it in the car (oh so precious wrapping!) go home, play it, find out i hate it and be out 60 bucks...it sucked but atleast i have the wrapping, right?
or buy it used, swap it out finding out i dont like it.
My local gamestop is one of the most personal stores in my area and it will always earn my money. Take the time to realize they are human and most of em need the job to survive.
Jeremy @ Oct 24th 2007 4:04PM
Gamestop does sell a large amount of used games. They have paid the developers for the new games, and the original consumer pays Gamestop for a new game. When a consumer decides to trade in a game, Gamestop credits them an amount approximately 50% of the original price for games that are 1-3 months old. Yes, they put it back on the shelf for sale as Used at $5-10 off the original. But that is not 100% profit. It is a simple factor of operating costs.
Gamestop has an advantage. You can see how some games start at $50, and within 3 months, they drop to $25. Think of all the really sweet games you played for a current gen system. You can buy them brand new, or wait a little and save money (still buying new). AND, when a title has outlived its shelf life in stores that only sell new, the inventory is depleted, and no more are available. If you want to buy it, where do you go? Ebay or Gamestop. They give you an option to find games that are older. Regardless you have options.
Selling used games is not illegal, and those who think so are not thinking clearly. Can you honestly say that the last garage sale you had cheated the original manufacturer of the toaster oven your mom sold? You get to keep that money, with very little overhead.
BTW I worked at EB for 4 years, and got to know the ins and outs of the operation. Yes, it looks like you got $25 for a brand new game trade, and they put it back on the shelf for $45, but that $20 is not straight profit -- there are other costs associated. If you don't like the idea, try selling it on ebay. And remember all the additional costs ebay passes on to you, listing fees, reserve fees, final value fees, and then you have to ship it. Your call; but you have options. Don't shop there if there business model bothers you.