GAME Australia goes into administration, pre-orders cancelled with no refund

[kirbysuperstar]

http://www.news.com.au/technology/gaming/hundreds-of-jobs-in-doubt-with-game-in-limbo/story-e6frfrt9-1226355124969

Australia's managing director Paul Yardley responded by issuing a statement claiming the UK branch's decision did not "necessarily impact us here."
But less than two months after Mr Yardley issued the statement, the Australian subsidiary has followed suit.

how do i runned company

[disgaeniac]

That's terrible.

For me, as I almost always pay-in-full when pre-ordering...it's terrifying!

We need some GDIC (...like the FDIC protection from banks...but for games).

At the least - I guess that I should stop paying in full (and just pay the minimum) when pre-ordering...just in case...

[darko]

At the least - I guess that I should stop paying in full (and just pay the minimum) when pre-ordering...just in case...

I agree, although, if you live in the US and deal with Gamestop: 1) SLAP for dealing with them, 2) the likelihood of GS going bankrupt in the US is extremely low. You should be fine.

[disgaeniac]

Yes!
It's true - I *do* deal w/ Gamestop

*BUT* w/ certain caveats/stipulations.

1).  If I receive a Gamestop gift-card.

2).  Like the situation right now...I pre-ordered 2 copies of Game of Thrones for the PS3 (coming out tomorrow)...only because pre-ordering it from them (iirc, is the only way that) nets you a 64 page art-book signed by George RR Martin.

In my opinion, it's quite likely that this signed, limited art-book will quickly be far rarer & more valuable than the game itself will be.

3).  I'm not above taking advantage of a B2G1 (or 2) deal there for games from *OLDER* systems.

I've never pirated a game and can afford to buy current-gen games new (as I do like to support the creators of the gamess that I buy).

*Lastly*

A friend of mine that works there is constantly offering/giving me the store displays, posters, guides (if/when they get "pennied-out)", etc.

That's it for Gamestop & me...

[disgaeniac]

At the least - I guess that I should stop paying in full (and just pay the minimum) when pre-ordering...just in case...

I agree, although, if you live in the US and deal with Gamestop: 1) SLAP for dealing with them, 2) the likelihood of GS going bankrupt in the US is extremely low. You should be fine.

*Right Now* the likelihood of Gamestop going bust in the US is very low.

Next gen (or the one after that, or the one after that...) when gaming unfortunately/inevitably goes completely digital (crushing all of Gamestop's *used* profits)...that likelihood will increase exponentially; I think.

*EDIT*

I think that I remember reading about there being a "Gamestop" topic going here already somewhere...

I haven't seen it, so can someone link/direct me to it?

[darko]

Yeah, I probably started it. No big deal. It was just a rant-fest anyway

I still use one or two GSs for B2G1 - I just really, really hate them. If I had to preorder a game from them I would, but I would hate every minute of it

[amauriel]

There used to be a GS close to where I worked (two jobs ago ) that had this super nice manager. And it was in a small town, and he worked a lot of the time. He knew me as "freebie girl", because I would only pre-order when there was a GS-exclusive pre-order bonus. I used to go into that one quite a bit, and I still do if I get close (it's over an hour away from me now) because they aren't picked over, are no-pressure, and are actually nice. About 2 years ago, I went in there and walked out with every Resident Evil that was released on the GC, besides Code Veronica, and Cubivore, and I think it cost me maybe $60 total. None of those games were easy to find anywhere back then for a reasonable price, but yet that one GS had them all.

As far as other GS's go, I once had a guy in my local GS ask me if there was anything wrong. I told him that I didn't like always getting games that were not wrapped in plastic. He threw the game in a plastic bag, wrapped the bag around, and handed it to me, saying it was "wrapped in plastic now". Even though that store is less than 5 minutes from my house, I've been in maybe once since. Around here, being fairly close to a big city, they all have sales quotas and things to keep and that makes them unbearable.

[disgaeniac]

Yeah, I probably started it. No big deal. It was just a rant-fest anyway

I still use one or two GSs for B2G1 - I just really, really hate them. If I had to preorder a game from them I would, but I would hate every minute of it

Believe me, I *Feel* you on that.

I truly have an *Extreme* dislike & Disdain for just about everything "GameStop-Related".
(Except for maybe the horrible bashing & over-generalizations (from what I've seen, at least) that the employees get.

Yeah...I get *really* annoyed w/ the constantly annoying and non-stop barrage to try & push pre-orders & 'Extended Warranties' on us...but I do try to keep in mind that, for the most part, it's a bunch of (close to) minimum wage employees working there that (and I know this because I'm friends w/ a few people that work there & I've talked to them about this) *ABSOLUTELY* *HATE* the fact that they *HAVE* to keep-on w/ the pushing of the pre-orders & 'Extended Warranties'...almost as much as we hate hearing that shit over...and over...and over...and over...and over...and over yet again.

Also (*and* this just fuels my hatred towards all things Managerial, Administrative, & Corporate when it comes to GameStop) is the fact that, the amount of hours that many employees are *able* to work...is *directly* tied to the amount of pre-orders that they get...instead of being based on *Sensible* & *Logical* things like the employee's reliability, efficiency, personality, knowledge & experience related to the items that they're selling, etc.

Even worse, in my eyes, is their "policy" concerning the cancelling of pre-orders.

Say if a customer decides to pop-in the store one day to cancel a pre-order (taken by employee "A") -and- if employee "B" happens to have the misfortune of being on the register when this cancellation takes place...well...you guessed it...employee "B"'s hours can now be cut (for "negative"/losing pre-orders).

Obviously, if there's certain employees at these stores that you feel go above & beyond and do their jobs very well vs. other, certain employees that you can't stand/are ass-hats...this 'system' can *easily* be 'abused'/"Manipulated" by the customers to 'reward' those employees deserving of being rewarded...and to see to it that the shitty employees...also can get *exactly* what they should be getting.

Combining this w/ the "Survey" System (that they use/have printed on the receipts); it's simple enough to have a (not insignificant) impact on the staffing of your local stores by, say giving straight "10's" to the good employees while giving straight "Zero's" to their counter-parts

[soera]

I used to have a general like for Gamestop. It just seems that as the time they are in business continues, my lack of any respect/like for them dwindles as well. They were a legitmate game store at first. Knowledgable employees who were more than just a minimum wager who is there just waiting to clock out. Their game selection used to be pretty wide and various systems/genres. The prices used to be pretty competitive. I do have to believe that most of what I dislike about them now isnt exactly the employee's fault but big brother who couldnt give a single fuck about the gamers or the community but about his own wallet.

[darko]

I used to have a general like for Gamestop. It just seems that as the time they are in business continues, my lack of any respect/like for them dwindles as well. They were a legitmate game store at first. Knowledgable employees who were more than just a minimum wager who is there just waiting to clock out. Their game selection used to be pretty wide and various systems/genres. The prices used to be pretty competitive. I do have to believe that most of what I dislike about them now isnt exactly the employee's fault but big brother who couldnt give a single fuck about the gamers or the community but about his own wallet.

I think you're confusing GS with EB. The only GSs I can stand are the ones that were once EB Games.

[scott]

I used to frequent GS all the time. I was friends with pretty much every employee at the store I used to go to. Actually that's how I know Matt too. I've gotten a bunch of swag from them too over the years and for awhile I went there exclusively for my games. But then as people started finishing school and leaving for other jobs, it doesn't feel the same. I've since switched from GS pre-orders to Amazon pre-orders, that's one of the reasons I almost missed Xenoblade Chronicles.

The only real reason I don't visit GS more often now, is that they don't sell older games. So if I want to look for Game Boy or Saturn games, I'm limited to the other shops. Which is cool, cause some of them are mom and pop shops. Or I have to hit up ebay/amazon.

[disgaeniac]

...And Now...since I've gotten myself started on the whole "Gamestop" thing again...even though I've already posted similar things on other boards & sites (Jobocan may well have seen me saying all of this shit before)...I feel like posting a few ideas/thoughts that I've had concerning Gamestop (and their practices) here and seeing/hearing what everyone here thinks:

1st  I *TOTALLY* believe in & support the 'concept' of *OWNERSHIP*.  If/When gaming & Consoles ever becomes completely "digital"/"Cloud"-based...I'll be done with it.  I'll *NEVER* buy and/or support any company or console that does away w/ my right to own (and be able to hold/touch/feel, see on my shelf, loan, buy, sell, give, snap in half (if I wanted to), re-sell, trade, etc) the games/consoles that I spend my money on.

Since I *AM* such a staunch supporter of ownership...and...since I'm no big fan of encouraging and/or inviting the government in to regulate/be in control of anything else (they've already got Waaaaaaay too much SAY and *SWAY* & have inserted themselves into many more positions of power, authority, influence, monitoring, and enforcement than *I* think that they should be...this means...that I'd be a hypocrite to bitch about & defend *MY* ownership rights...and then, turn around & deny those exact same rights to Gamestop (much as I may & do *hate* them).

Which brings me to my other ideas, thoughts, and 'suggestions" (for Gamestop).

2nd  Since, like I just said, I so strongly believe in & support ownership rights (and the right to buy, sell, and re-sell your property)...I have to say that Gamestop also has the right to buy, sell, and re-sell the their property that they've bought.

*However*, I also think that their wanton raping and parasitic effect on the developers (and producers) that actually *create* & *make* the games that we love & enjoy playing & collecting so much has been allowed to continue, un-checked, for far too long.

This (I'm sure) has contributed *Greatly* in said developers & producers now being at the point that they are now at regarding upcoming generation(s) of consoles & their ability to play/not play used games.

What I'd like to see (and think is fair)-and what I'd be thinking/doing if I were in Gamestop's shoes would be:

A).  Personally, I'd like to see them agree to *only* selling used games from the *previous* gen (and even older gen's).
There's no doubt in my mind that they could easily make enough money doing this to remain a profitable business, while, at the same time, giving the devs/producers much more time to make their profits from selling their games as new (w/o worrying about/competing w/ *one* copy of a game they've been paid for being continously sold & re-sold countless times); usually right next to their *new* copy on the shelf...but for like $5 less.

B). More realistically, I think, that they should, at the least agree to, say, a "6 month window"-giving the game's creators at least 6 months to profit from sales of their new games.

C).  Lastly, for now:) - I think that they should implement an electronic, "point-of-sale" system where (I'd say) 10% of the *Profit* from *used* game sales is credited to the relevant devs/pubs of the game.

I've seen (and been told) that very often, a game they buy for $5 ends up getting re-sold for $25.
They've just made $20.
At 10%; $2 of this would be credited to whoever it should be.

In this case, they've *still* *more than* *tripled* their initial investment...for most...more than tripling your initial investment would be amazing.

My points here are, mainly that, in this manner:

1). Gamestop could continue profiting into the future (while, once they've lost all of their used game revenue); I don't think that they could.

2).  Devs/pubs would be thrilled w/ this continuous stream of residual income that they'd no longer have any reason to "do away w/ used games".

3).  Which, in turn, only benefits us, as the consumers, the game creators, and the retail stores...everybody wins!

Thoughts?!

[darko]

While your logic seems fairly sound, I don't really see GS putting in any type of POS system that would give a piece of each sale back to a developer. I think the best option out of the few you listed would be to require a 6-month window between a new game release and the ability of GS to sell used copies. I'm guessing that 90% or more of the profits realized from a new release are within the first 3-6 months anyway. This would hurt GS's bottom line, but would be much better for them than losing the rights to carry certain games (which seems more likely with every new release). People only go to GS because it's easy. If they didn't have a new release that people wanted, the masses would simply take their money to Amazon, Wal-Mart, Target, Best Buy, etc.

[disgaeniac]

Yeah - I'm entirely convinced that Gamestop would absolutely *Hate* the idea of having to kick-in a % of their used game profits.

BUT...Can (even those asses making the decisions for Gamestop) be *THAT* *DUMB* that they can't do the simple math & figure-out the difference between kicking-in, say, 10% of their used game profits compared to losing 100% of their used game profits once they've (inevitably) eventually Pissed-off the Pubs/Devs to the point where they actually *DO* just *completely* 'lock-out' used games from their newer consoles?

I know...I know...it's a stupid question...

Of Course they *can* actually be *that* stupid...they keep proving it time & time again

[scott]

I've said it before. If it got to the point that game consoles started locking out used games. I'd stop buying said game console and focus on all the amazing games that I don't own. I'm sure its cheaper for me, in the long run, to buy a Sega CD and Snatcher cib just to play it, or a PC Engine Duo and import games.Tthan try to keep up with all new games for said system on release day or shortly after.