EA Stop Selling At GAME/Gamestation

[Lörd TH]

Rumours going round that EA will not be selling any more of their release's through GAME/Gamestation.

 

[Jonno394]

The writings on the wall for The GAME Group now tbh.

Their credit is shot, and the likes of Nintendo, Ubisoft and EA are refusing to provide them with stock unless they pay upfront for it.

It will be a sad day if they die though, as then the only places you can walk in and buy would be Indies or supermarkets. Supermarkets undercut the likes of GAME/HMV etc to drive customers into their stores, without the high street competition they could theoretically start charging full price for everything.

 

[Sweey]

I wonder what that means for Mass Effect 3 pre-orders. As I've got sense, mine (one for me, one for my dad) are with Amazon as they were the cheapest I could find for PC.

 

[Lörd TH]

 

[Jonno394]

I wonder what that means for Mass Effect 3 pre-orders. As I've got sense, mine (one for me, one for my dad) are with Amazon as they were the cheapest I could find for PC.

All titles from SSX onwards will not be stocked, so all ME3 pr-orders are being refunded. I may pre-order the CE now but from another site as they will be picking up GAMES lost stock.

 

[Sweey]

The last game I bought in-store (just so happened to be GAME as well) was World of WarCraft in 2004 and even then only because the price was excellent and, if I recall, had included late beta access or some other bonus of some sort. Couldn't tell you the last time I stepped foot inside GAME, HMV or a similar store.

 

[Dale C.]

Fuck Game, they overprice as it is. Why is it any different paying full price for a game at a supermarket, when you can potentially pay more for the game at Game?

Internet ftw.

 

[Haribo]

Couldn't tell you the last time I stepped foot inside GAME, HMV or a similar store.

I always go into GAME if I'm around (there isn't one local), but I never buy anything. Some of the prices of pre-owned games there are criminal. Only bought one thing online from Gamestation in the past few years.

 

[Jonno394]

WHat people need to realise is, competition is one of the reasons why the internet games retail is cheap They want you to buy your games online from them, rather than the spur of the moment purchases on the high street. The same goes for supermarkets.

If there is no competiton, then those left will charge what they want. If GAME and HMV collapse, then there is every chance supermarkets wil stop undercutting so much and that web retailers will start charging closer to RRP or at RRP

 

[Dale C.]

But there will always be competition man. There are thousands of sites on the internet, big retailers like Amazon that sell stuff by the shop. It's not like the supermarkets will now have a monopoly on games sales, and even if that does happen, there will be compeition between Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys etc.

There will always be a competitor.

 

[Jonno394]

This is a good read in that regards dale:

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-02-28-what-would-happen-if-game-died

 

[Dale C.]

That just seems like a massively depressing and worst case scenario kind of article. I can imagine the nerd who wrote it, getting more and more upset with what he's writing, and by the time he's finished he's already took a drug overdose and got the noose ready :lol:

GAME relies on video games to have a business. Supermarkets do not. If the high-street video game business plummeted, supermarkets could simply strike them from their inventory and replace them with something else.

This wouldn't happen though. They wouldn't just stop selling them, and even if they did, shops would spring up selling them, and it would just start the process all over again. If people make it, there will always be someone to sell it; such is consumerism.

 

[Sweey]

While we need competition, bricks and mortar stores are dead in the water.

PC games are increasingly headed the way of downloads and for some crazy reason, Steam (one of if not the largest singel store) tends to price games at launch higher than retail/internet outlets do for the boxed version of the game - Skyrim was a great example. Quite how the hell that works, I don't know.

 

[Ali]

While we need competition, bricks and mortar stores are dead in the water.

PC games are increasingly headed the way of downloads and for some crazy reason, Steam (one of if not the largest singel store) tends to price games at launch higher than retail/internet outlets do for the boxed version of the game - Skyrim was a great example. Quite how the hell that works, I don't know.

I find the downloadable versions of games are pricier in general. Look at the games on the PSN store (I'm not talking about the exclusively downloadable games). Going even further, look at the price of the movies on the PSN store!! Bloody horrendous!

 

[Dale C.]

I suppose it's convenience. That's the only thing I can think of really, buying, getting and playing a game without having to ever leave your seat.

 

[Viperized]

I honestly cannot remember the last time I purchased a game in store, with the exception of Uncharted 2 at Argos. I paid £44 fucking quid. An absolute rip-off, but I guess I was desperate to play the game.

I have almost exclusively shopped online this 'generation'. Amazon, ShopTo and Play.com have been my main sources.

I think it's important to wait a short while after the release date. The prices almost always drop.

 

[Viperized]

While we need competition, bricks and mortar stores are dead in the water.

PC games are increasingly headed the way of downloads and for some crazy reason, Steam (one of if not the largest singel store) tends to price games at launch higher than retail/internet outlets do for the boxed version of the game - Skyrim was a great example. Quite how the hell that works, I don't know.

I agree. It boggles the mind. I assumed direct download would be cheaper as it eliminates the manufacturing costs. But it seems publishers will try to squeeze every ounce of money.

Competition is good. Unfortunately, it's all going. If there is no competition, they can charge whatever the hell they like :\

On the PSN store, FIFA 12 costs £50!

FIFTY FUCKING QUID.

I dread the day DD becomes mandatory. Consumer rights are already being deprived. I can barely sell my PS3 games anymore with the advent of online codes.

 

[Ali]

I only really use GAME when I want to trade in old games, or the pre order benefits tempt me.

I agree. It boggles the mind. I assumed direct download would be cheaper as it eliminates the manufacturing costs. But it seems publishers will try to squeeze every ounce of money.

Competition is good. Unfortunately, it's all going. If there is no competition, they can charge whatever the hell they like :\

On the PSN store, FIFA 12 costs £50!

FIFTY FUCKING QUID.
I dread the day DD becomes mandatory. Consumer rights are already being deprived. I can barely sell my PS3 games anymore with the advent of online codes.

Even old games are stupidly priced on PSN store.

 

[fick]

I dread the day DD becomes mandatory.

Amen to that.

There is a fairly new retailer opened near me (Bee.com), and they have an amazing collection of pre-owned BR's, DVD's, games and console hardware, all in good condition and at prices that challenge most online only providers. With Game being so expensive at present I have favoured this other store for my owned/trade swaps purely due to price & despite having £30 on a Game card (which I may need to use & soon :hmm

Supermarkets make little or even lose money on software but can afford to as it's a part of something bigger. If someone comes in to buy a game & leaves with some clothes, electrical goods or just food shopping, then the supermarket is up. Game cannot offer this. The company I mentioned above (Bee.com) as well as the likes of CEX get around it with the BR's & DVD's and used hardware, as while they are cheap, the trade in prices are low. They make margin based on people coming in and making multiple item purchases. Again, Game cannot currently offer this.

Their biggest error in some respects was becoming the only real Game outlet on the high street, after swallowing up EB (if anyone remembers them!) and then Gamestation.

 

[Sweey]

Amen to that.

There is a fairly new retailer opened near me (Bee.com), and they have an amazing collection of pre-owned BR's, DVD's, games and console hardware, all in good condition and at prices that challenge most online only providers. With Game being so expensive at present I have favoured this other store for my owned/trade swaps purely due to price & despite having £30 on a Game card (which I may need to use & soon :hmm

Supermarkets make little or even lose money on software but can afford to as it's a part of something bigger. If someone comes in to buy a game & leaves with some clothes, electrical goods or just food shopping, then the supermarket is up. Game cannot offer this. The company I mentioned above (Bee.com) as well as the likes of CEX get around it with the BR's & DVD's and used hardware, as while they are cheap, the trade in prices are low. They make margin based on people coming in and making multiple item purchases. Again, Game cannot currently offer this.

Their biggest error in some respects was becoming the only real Game outlet on the high street, after swallowing up EB (if anyone remembers them!) and then Gamestation.

The bigger supermarket plan is also to put HMV and GAME out of business as they will pick up the residual sales from the likes of those, again along the lines of being able to offer other products at the same time.