The deal, as seen on their website, states that customers who pre-order the Ubisoft game will be able to pick it up on the release date and play it for a full week, then be able to sell the used game back to EB for full retail price. The deal only applies if the game, case and manual are kept in good condition, and if the game is returned within a week of purchase.
If we were Sony or Ubisoft, we would be less than thrilled with this promotion, which seems to suggest that Haze is only worth a week's investment of time. Then again, a sale is a sale, and maybe more Canadians will be tempted to purchase the title, if they know ahead of time that they don't have to keep it.
(Page 1) Reader Comments
Now they're just going ahead and owning it. Yeah, return the new game within a week so we can sell it as new again!
Reply
Yea they tried to do that to me too, I said FUCK NO!!
Supermarkets and online. Fuck you knobish shops.
You know a lot of people have been complainng about the downward spiral of retail game stores but I for one will be glad to see the back of them.
They make a sale, and have your cash. Inventory down, cash up.
They take it back as store credit. Inventory goes up by resale value, and unearned rev goes up, I believe. Im not sure though.
Reply
LOL. Got news for you, buddy, EB didn't develop Haze and doesn't have any control over how good the game is.
This sounds like an open declaration of war between retailer and publisher. The retailer is basically saying that the margins on the new game sales are so razor thin, that they would rather just translate the money directly into store credit.
If they can get 1/3 of those customers to spend the credit on buying high-margin used games, then they will make much more money than they would have on the straight-up sale of Haze.
It will also drive much, much, more store traffic on what otherwise would have been a low sale item, and allow them to collect interest on the preorder (and pocket money from the occasional customer who forgets to pick it up).
The interesting part, as Rubix42 suggests, will be to see what exactly they do with the returned copies. Do they try to resell them as new? There's no way they can unload all that inventory as $5-off used games. Do they try to return them to the publisher?
Also, this guarantees the person who's still indecisive about purchasing the game reassurance to pre-order it. If they're unsure, then hey, return it if you don't like it. By forcing the indecisive to pre-order it, they know EXACTLY how many copies to order so they don't go too far over with extras. Extras = more new games to sell = sucky-ass profit.
If they keep the game, no loss, just like selling a new one. If they bring it back, they take 5 dollars off the price, and slap it on the USED game section, where in turn they make full profit on each one sold, compared to the maybe 10 or 15 they'd make by selling new copies.
Also, the customer has store credit, not there full money back. There's no doubt that EB will convince the customer to purchase a used game for few dollars cheaper so EB can be even more profitable.
Brilliant.
Regarding gift cards, for any retailer, SEC accounting rules are such that the cash paid for gift cards cannot be recognized as revenue until the card is redeemed or expires. So retailers do see windfalls when people lose their giftcards, and millions of dollars worth of them go unclaimed, but this takes *years* to do properly, and requires tracking the things very carefully for a long time. So its more like a free loan with NO interest that they cannot spend for about 5-7 years, depending on state laws. Less of an amazing deal for them.
I have had them tell me to buy a used game, instead of new, so I could play through it and get a different game if I returned it within a week. I guess if the staff is unhappy enough with the company, and likes you enough, you could buy one game and play through many as you buy and return them over and over.
(I expect used copies of this game will remain bloated for a while.)
Reply
Reply
When I rent games, I typically finish them in three days. If I really enjoy the game, I try to artificially inflate the time spent on the game by not playing it as much (like that makes sense......).
As far as Haze is concerned, Like most games of this type, the MP is whats going to keep people around. People may be more reluctant to return it because of that.
First off, the reason they are doing this is to push pre-orders. Notice that you have to have pre-ordered the game. If you saw an ad that said, "hey, if you buy it here, you can return it within a week if you don't like it", that's going to push a lot of people into doing it.
Gamestop makes maybe 4-5 dollars on a brand new game sale, so it's probably worth it to them to lose 5 when someone takes it back (return it for 60, they sell as USED for 55).
And as the above poster said, yes, if you arent a total dickbag to the employees, they will tell you that if you buy any used game you are able to return it within 7 days. FOR ANY REASON. FOR A FULL REFUND. Saw a brand new game you were on the fence about? BUY THE USED ONE FOR *GASP* ONLY 5 LESS, then return it for a full refund in a week.
But hey, you guys all hate the company so much. Keep going to blockbuster and shelling out 8 dollars for a week.
Reply
Reply
I must try harder... I'll the the Hokage of Douche bags on this site... BELIEVE IT!
Reply
Reply
Reply
Reply
Maybe it will be true and the game will suck, but the reverse can also be true and they are confident that most people will not return the game.
Reply
Reply
What is there to lose? If I like it i get to keep it but if it's a flop EB's will give me full retail price refund. Chances are more people will keep the game for more then a week. If they do this in the states count me in.
Used games in the US have a 7 day try and take back if you dont like it policy.
Reply
Reply
Reply
Which is why I've made it a point to buy my videogames from either Best Buy or CC...
They're just so emo/freaky...
BUSTED!
Reply
Reply
1) The fact that despite most people intending on following through, there's actually going to be a much lower percentage who actually do, or comply with the terms fully. Because piracy on the PS3 isn't "rampant" they don't have to worry about people copying the game and returning it. Those people that do return it will be scrutinized with a magnifying glass: they'll disqualify you if the disk is barely scratched, they'll disqualify you if a the manual is creasedl, they'll disqualify you if you bought it 7 days and 1 second ago.
2) Considering all the supply issues that retailers are apparently having (you can't buy a game that you haven't preordered for a few days anyway, even if they have the stock to fill their preorder obligation), I wouldn't be surprised if Gamestop is allocated less then they anticipate demand to want. By offering the return program, they can turn around and sell it to someone who they can then "Upsell" again - remember Gamestop makes more money selling their membership cards/magazine subscriptions and cluebooks then they do the actual games. Oh, and if the person who comes in to buy that used copy of Haze also picks something out of the used bin, that's another bonus.
Reply
There's just something around this title. Some shitty "haze".
Reply
The onus here is on the developer. Make a game that consumers would want to keep for more than a week and you'll be alright. Deal or not, this should be their goal. Not shitty as games like Jumper that cost $60 and only last 2 hours. I know the developer can't control what EB is doing, but to me EB is doing me a favor (if I lived in Canada and decided to buy this game (which I wouldn't if I did live there)).
I understand that developers are not making money on the sale of a used game, but it's not a unique situation. How many people always buy a new car when they need to replace their current vehicle?
Reply
It sucks for the publisher though.
Reply
Sucks for the publisher though. A lot of people just play games through once and then trade them in. =\
Reply
Reply
So $59.99 x 13% tax (ontario) = $7.79 that you dont get back from this trade in. You must also pay Tax on the second game you purchase. If you really want to try haze for a week, you better off heading to rogers video and renting the game for $7.99 which is a 1 week rental.
Reply
Didn't I read that you pirate all your games?
Reply