Amazon testing trade-in program
by JC Fletcher 
{ Mar 5th 2009 at 11:52AM }
To trade a game in to Amazon, all you have to do is visit the trade-in section of the site, select the games you want to trade in (at least $10 worth), print a free shipping label and send it out. You'll get a gift card in return -- plus an extra 10% if you do it before March 19. Unfortunately, the trade-in values seem roughly commensurate with GameStop's, which means they're pretty low. But sometimes eBay is such a hassle!
We wonder about GameStop's future if enough retailers band together to provide GameStop's services without requiring people to visit GameStop's stores.
[Via CAG]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Rhamsey @ Mar 5th 2009 11:59AM
ive never been a fan of trading in my games, i almost always buy used, but i hate trading something i paid 60 dollars for and getting 10 back the two weeks later. if only they were offering a bit more. still a great alternative to having to leave the house. we all know that the sun causes cancer, and gingivitis
Latin_Trident @ Mar 5th 2009 12:21PM
Gamestop, you are now officially screwed! I hope you go mad broke or you lose a lot of money! You rip people off and your own employees. You deserve to lose money!
Amazon, I love you.
Latin_Trident @ Mar 5th 2009 12:23PM
i take it back. I like craigslist more.
MarkHawk @ Mar 5th 2009 12:32PM
It's not really amazon that is buying your games. Besides they don't sound like they are offering better then Gamestop. In fact it's worse and I've yet to see them do a Buy 2 get 1 free sale.
Either way... Keep your games. For the kids of course.
Rhamsey @ Mar 5th 2009 1:19PM
MarkHawk, completely agree. my step brother is 6, and in his room, he has a n64, ps2, gamecube, atari, super nintendo, nes, gameboy color and an advanced. plus access to all of those games. hes going to grow up the coolest kid. (hes already beaten halo ce single player)
lasersanchez @ Mar 6th 2009 1:05AM
Sell your games on half.com, ebay, or even Amazon. It's not that much harder and is generally worth the effort unless you're doing that instead of working overtime or something.
Shagittarius @ Mar 5th 2009 12:01PM
The only games I trade in are the ones I hate, and I hope they resell it a million times so the developer who ripped me off gets as little money as possible from said title.
I'm my ideal world the only games traded in would be crappy games.
Markez @ Mar 5th 2009 12:14PM
1st part, yeah that sounds like you.
2nd part, while containing a grammatical error, yeah that sounds like you.
:P jk
Courtney @ Mar 5th 2009 12:32PM
Markez, we've just received confirmation of everything we needed to know about Shag:
"I'm my ideal world..."
Just preface everything Shag says from now on with that phrase, and it will all make so much more sense.
iFester @ Mar 5th 2009 12:03PM
So far a list of places that do this are:
EB Games/GameStop
Futureshop (Canada)
Toys R Us
Blockbuster
Amazon
I wonder if we're going to have a trades war to see what place can give you the better deal towards purchases of new products in exchange for your games.
MarkHawk @ Mar 5th 2009 12:30PM
I've been using Goozex and love the program. Check out my referral link and maybe I'll benefit if you like the program. I learned about it from the Joystiq Podcast.
http://www.goozex.com/referral.asp?idr=6178756537285
iFester @ Mar 5th 2009 12:35PM
I appreciate the link, however I've been using Goozex for quite some time. I'll double what a quality service it is and urge others to use your referral link. I hear there's also another place online called PlaySwitch. It's only available in the US though and I live in Canada.
Baby J Penn (PSN johnnynumber5) @ Mar 5th 2009 1:12PM
From my personal experience Block Buster's Game Rush service gives the most for trade in's though it is only store credit. The only problem is they only have Gamr Rush stores in larger/urban areas. Now that I don't live in Orlando it's either Gamestop, e-bay, craigslist or Amazon.
As far as Amazon goes it's still no extra incentive because they actually give you the exact same amount as Gamestop. The reason I know this is because I just brought up Prince Of Persia and COD World At War and the prices were identical. The only difference being my 10% edge bonus as well as the special they have where you get an additional 10% for 2 games, 20% for 4 and 40% for trading in 6 games.
It really doesn't make sense for me to trade those two reasonably new games for less value than 1 new retail release. So, I just kept the games and said screw it.
MarkHawk @ Mar 5th 2009 1:16PM
Excellent, I also would love to try a BlockBuster exchange but even in Phoenix I've yet to find a Blockbuster willing to take trade ins. Phoenix is pretty large urban wise.
I've stopped trading in games and am trying to either trade games for other games (thus goozex)
Also Kyle you rock. Your my first referral :D
tmontana213 @ Mar 5th 2009 12:04PM
If Amazon gives more money for trade-in's I'll definitely use this service.
Duke @ Mar 5th 2009 12:23PM
Don't count on it:
50 Cent Blood on The Sand - Xbox 360
Trade-in Value: $15.00
Ouch, that games only 2 weeks old and gets you only $5 more than Battlefield Bad Company.
Oh, I only used that example because 50 is supposed to be a Joystiqer now. Right 50? You there? Bah!
BxGT @ Mar 5th 2009 12:56PM
YO FIDDY HIT THAT BIG ASS RAMP!
Mr Khan @ Mar 5th 2009 12:04PM
Feh, trade ins. Always soured on that idea ever since i got literally a 1% return on my original Pokemon Stadium trade-in, $0.75 for a game i paid $75 back in the day...
I keep it, even if its a game i know i'm probably never going to play again (like Final Fantasy III)
Valump @ Mar 5th 2009 12:06PM
Umm...you can already sell your used games on Amazon. It's pretty easy and you'll make more money. (It easier than eBay.)
SoCoolCurt (PSN: KillaKornbread - XBL: SoCoolCurt) @ Mar 5th 2009 4:32PM
yea alot of people forget that Amazon has a seller part as well. it's not auctions either so you set you price and people either buy it or they don't. i usually get all my textbooks for school on there cause they are SO much cheaper than the school bookstore.
samfish (is ready for MadWorld!) @ Mar 5th 2009 12:06PM
Mah. I'm not trading in at those prices. I could get more money for Kororinpa alone than if I traded in all of the games I had on Amazons list!
Tom @ Mar 5th 2009 12:09PM
Its like mail order Gamestop, still a rip off. Goozex.com is the only way to go.
Markez @ Mar 5th 2009 12:12PM
Can you fill me in more on your personal experience there? I looked into it once, but it still seems too value/$ based. I'd prefer a forum where people would just do trades without caring what the associated dollar value was.
Tom @ Mar 5th 2009 1:13PM
Ive recieved 200 games from Goozex and sent out around 150, and only 1 negative feedback. Its reliable, you get your games value. Ive more than tripled my collection from Goozex. Not to mention a fantastic community with tons of contests and gaming events. Including the Winter/Summer gaming olympics.
Saq @ Mar 5th 2009 12:32PM
goozex is awesome!
Markez @ Mar 5th 2009 12:10PM
I like Amazon. I like eBay. But anyone expecting me to put something in the mail to send, other than a Netflix envelope, is sorely underestimating my ambition in that regard. And please don't tell me it's not that hard, because then I'll just plug my ears and go LA LA LA LA LA LA I CANT HEAR YOU LA LA LA
samfish (is ready for MadWorld!) @ Mar 5th 2009 12:14PM
Hell, I barely even OPEN my mail half the time. And they want me to SEND something?
How positively droll of Amazon!
xGeneral DEATHx @ Mar 5th 2009 12:35PM
LOLz...it's true...I don't even open most of my mail (I burn it to keep warm in the winter)...I didn't read the whole article...how do they ship these? If it's USPS, I'll just keep it, thank you very much.
Mr Khan @ Mar 5th 2009 3:24PM
packing to ship is a bitch, though. I forget what i used last time i had to ship a disc in for repair
Jonathan @ Mar 5th 2009 12:12PM
I still don't get why people will go to GameStop and sell back a game for 10% orf what they paid for it when you can easily sell it online and get like 50-75%. I just sold my old copy of Hot Shots Golf for PS3 on half.com for $34 when I'd probably have gotten $10-$15 from the almighty GameStop.
joeybeast @ Mar 5th 2009 12:12PM
Gamestop offers instant gratification.
Amazon does not.
The Baron @ Mar 5th 2009 12:22PM
Sometimes walking is just too much to deal with, ya'know?
el serpiente @ Mar 5th 2009 12:24PM
And what segment of the population has difficulty with delayed rewards? Mostly children. Which is why gamestop is the perfect storm. You have a business model centered around exploiting immature, impulsive beings who don't earn their own money.
MowDownJoe @ Mar 5th 2009 3:30PM
Amazon gives you credit to buy MP3s or god knows what else. GameStop doesn't.
See? It works both ways.
Hooray It's Rob! @ Mar 5th 2009 9:19PM
el serpiente:
"And what segment of the population has difficulty with delayed rewards? Mostly children."
money.cnn.com:
"The average American household with at least one credit card has nearly $10,700 in credit-card debt"
Unfortunately, I don't think the adults have much more sense than the kids.
el serpiente @ Mar 5th 2009 12:14PM
Competition is always good. I'm surprised it took this long for it to emerge.
That said, you should always be selling your games yourself and not donating your hard earned money to a corporation that leeches off the people who make a living with actual talent.
WRE @ Mar 5th 2009 12:23PM
But then don't you just become an individual "that leeches off the people who make a living with actual talent."?
Markez @ Mar 5th 2009 12:24PM
Yeah, serp, you make me sick, you leech. Get offa gaming's teet, wouldja, you teet leech.
el serpiente @ Mar 5th 2009 12:42PM
There's a difference between an individual consumer buying something new then selling it after a period of time, and a corporation buying games at depressed prices en masse and selling them at a few dollars below the retail price
dark_inchworm (on Steam!) dark inchworm (on XBL!) @ Mar 5th 2009 12:15PM
My personal guidelines:
Buy them new, lose maybe 5 bucks, help the devs stay afloat.
Sell your old copies to a friend, make $30 or $40 for what came out just yesterday instead of just enough to eat at a Chinese buffet.
Buy used if you CANNOT find it new AT ALL, and check the quality to ensure that you aren't buying Disgaea: Dew Coaster.
The trade-in business makes me barf :-/
The Dom @ Mar 5th 2009 12:41PM
You sell your games to your friends? dont let them borrow? Some friend you are
dark_inchworm (on Steam!) dark inchworm (on XBL!) @ Mar 5th 2009 12:45PM
Good point... I'm not above borrowing :P But if someone wants something I don't want anymore, well, you know. (though that really isn't likely given that I keep just about everything I buy)
Scotty @ Mar 5th 2009 12:18PM
I hate Gamestop.
That is all.
GameTrialzDotCom @ Mar 5th 2009 12:33PM
Thats why Game Trialz is popular because you trade games without a fat cat (Gamestop); taking your money. Trade without tokens or points just $5/mo we have gamer tag challenges, and more. Coming this summer rentals so as soon as Game Trialz gets famouse these companies are trying to get into the game.
Markez @ Mar 5th 2009 1:27PM
5 beans a month? No thanks. Isn't Goozex free?
Lieutenant @ Mar 5th 2009 12:21PM
Another company doing this? RIP retail gaming.
This is a lot better than anything I've seen in terms of trade in value though. It's not direct cash like Ebay/Craigs but you're pretty much guaranteed to get the money.
Hopefully they have policies in place to only accept games with the original casing, cover, and manuals. I've passed over a ton of games at eBay/Craigs/Game__ because they were incomplete. Some might say that's stupid but I like the quality of things I buy.
Lieutenant @ Mar 5th 2009 12:22PM
eh, lame.. the prices for trade in value are pretty much the same as GameStops
Jonathan @ Mar 5th 2009 1:26PM
Half.com is really good they are owned by ebay BUT it's NOT an auction so you are guaranteed the money. They give you discounts on buying postage online to ship the stuff too. The people buying from you have to pay first. Definitely the easiest hassle free way to go.
xGeneral DEATHx @ Mar 5th 2009 12:39PM
Sell them on half.com. Even with the price of the media mail packaging and handling, you still make more money than you would through Gamestop or Amazon. Not to mention the fact that the price isn't always sky-high on used games there, unlike Gamestop who only knocks $5 off the new game's price in order to sell you a used product.
BxGT @ Mar 5th 2009 12:24PM
I think will the continuing growth in trading games will spark some type of revolution in the gaming industry.Downloading the last boss if you bought the real game.