What is Digg?221 Comments
- Lixie, on 10/12/2007, -5/+146When I pay 60 dollars for a new game, I want my 'New Game Smell' dammit! The type of new game smell that only comes from a freshly opened game.
- inigomntoya, on 10/12/2007, -1/+92"Dugg because submitter is an idiot."
I have seen "Dugg because submitter is hot", "Dugg because it appears to be the trendy thing to do right now", "Dugg because I was trying to squash a bug on my touch-screen monitor", etc, etc...
But that, my friend, is the worst excuse for a digg I have ever read... - Diggtatorship, on 10/12/2007, -3/+89EB Games and Gamestop allow employees to "check out", and play games, and then turnaround and sell them as a "new" game. I know this first hand. For this and other reasons, I don't shop there.
- thatsmyaibo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+60I used to manage a Gamestop. Here is the deal with that. All cases used on the floor is a case from a new version of the game (which is put in a sleeve in the drawer behind the register). The policy corporate tells employees to use is to place a clear sticker to seal the case and as long as the sticker isn't removed, it can be returned. They call it "gutting" the games. They do this in Europe at CD stores to prevent theft. I don't mind that too much. I always wish we could go back to the days at Toys R Us where they had the flaps on the wall and you take that ticket to the front and get the game (i miss that "customer service, to the ticket booth please" voice).
THIS is why I wont buy an unsealed game at Gamestop though. The employees are allowed to borrow games for a 4 day period, play them, re shrink wrap them, and sell them as new. That pisses me off. - RandomGuySteve, on 10/12/2007, -4/+45I wonder if Walmart, Target, and Best Buy do this.
Oh wait, no I don't. They don't. Why does EB games do this again? - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+35reminds me of dixons/uk, getting an obviously opened mp3 player (even the batteries were used), and then being refused to be refunded the next day because 'it was used'(!)
- Diggtatorship, on 10/12/2007, -0/+33"Would you consider not buying a book because it was sitting out on a shelf, not shrink wrapped, and people could touch it?!"
Maybe, depending on the condition its in, but thats a bad comparison since books aren't sealed to begin with in most cases.
I don't care what condition its in, if it was sealed and now its not, then it's sold as open-box or used NOT new. It's a shady practice no matter how you look at it. When people pay for a new product they expect it not to have ever been used or taken home/enjoyed by somebody else. I know for a fact that the "check out" system is still practiced. My sister-in-law works there and always has a game checked out. - ts8lemonade, on 10/12/2007, -2/+33Sorry for comment abuse but I have some things I want to say. First off I work at a local Gamestop and we do indeed "gut" copies of some games. This means that we take out the game, put it in a sleeve to keep behind the counter, and put the empty box out on the floor. We only do this to one or two copies of the game so that it can be represented out on the floor; we do not do this to every copy and we always sell the sealed copies to customers first. This basically ensures that the floor copy won't get stolen. I understand that places like Best Buy, Walmart, and Target don't do this, but also keep in mind that our store doesn't have those things that detect stolen merchandise when you walk out of the store. Our stores are smaller stores with usually only a single security camera, so if we didn't keep games behind the counter, it would be incredibly easy to steal them.
That being said, I completely sympathize with this person. I couldn't agree more that this policy of opening up games and selling them as new is ***** up. When I buy a game that is new, I want it to be sealed. That is one of the ways to guarantee that it is in fact, new. I don't see why they don't changed this practice, and just keep all of the new games displayed behind the counter. For instance, we aren't supposed to take back any new games once they've been opened, so if you get sold an opened copy you're kinda *****. If I didn't work for Gamestop I can say that I most definitely would not shop there, because we have some of the ***** practices and policies of any corporation. - gwolf, on 10/12/2007, -4/+33The truth is that they do this as a way of preventing returns. Once opened the item can't be returned for the purchase price. It's a dishonest business practice that wouldn't be tolerated with any other kind of purchase.
- Ocelot13, on 10/12/2007, -1/+21i hate it when they slap those damn yellow stickers on every case, then they layer them on so theres like 3 - 4 stickers on each case. then after you buy the game, its almost impossible to get the stickers off, and if you do, youre stuck with that crappy residue that gets covered in dust and makes the case look like you pulled it out of the dumpster.
- kaiyraa, on 10/12/2007, -1/+19At the EB Games I work at, we let all customers know right away if we are selling them a display copy when we are selling a display copy and we explain why the game has been opened. We show them that the disc and the manual are in perfect condition. Most of the time customers are fine with this, we put a clear sticker on the side of the case to close it in case they do want to return it, we consider this to be the same as shrink wrapping for our new games. If a customer is still unhappy about this because it is a gift, we offer to take the price tags off and shrink wrap it for them but beyond that, explain that we can do nothing because it is a company policy.
On the sign out process, as a previous customer, I'm not the biggest fan of it. The technical policy is actually that we can only sign out used games anyway I believe, but very few stores follow this. Personally, I will only sign out used games, I mean it is only about a week before a new release comes in as used typically. I feel it is wrong to take home a new game and play it, even under our sign out policy, it really isn't new anymore. That is a dishonest policy, which is why I don't do it. The display copy really just comes down to a matter of personal preference, of whether or not you want to take the plastic off yourself or not. If an EB/Gamestop employee ever hands you a game off the shelf behind the counter with no wrapping though, chances are it was signed out. - djSyndrome, on 10/12/2007, -0/+17"I have worked at four different EB locations in two different districts, and have not heard of a store loaning out games to its employees since 2003."
You must be from Utah, then. Every EBStop employee I've spoken to here (Northern California) freely admits this policy in front of customers. The fun comes when they expect people not to get pissed off when two minutes later they try to pawn these 'borrowed' games off as 'new' to a customer who overheard them.
"I would buy open packaged games ALL the time and saved a BUNCH of money"
That's different. EBStop is selling opened games at new prices, hence the problem. - vanadium77, on 10/12/2007, -0/+17Hell, GameStop's sold me a BAD copy of Dragon Quest VIII, sold as "New" and after I'd gotten home, noticed had not only been opened, but scratched.
I insist on unopened copies nowadays. - xtreme777, on 10/12/2007, -1/+17Screw that! If I'm shelling out 50 bucks for a new game I want to be the one who opens it! Call me old fashioned but that's the way I like it. I refuse to buy "new" games at Gamestop/EB/Rhino mega-conglomerate. Used is another story...
Also, what is stopping an employee from registering one of the opened "new" games, for example a new Nintendo game? Nothing! - rolosworld, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17hmnnn... I wonder, what happens if they have a used game, a used game manual and a used game box that looks new. would they sell it as a used game?
One time I bought 1 "new" game from them and I really think it was a used game that they passed as new because it looked too nice to be a used game, I got suspicious because the manual didn't had the new smell + the pages where too much flexible for a new manual. Also it didn't have any additional papers or special offers. - Ohnodonho, on 10/12/2007, -0/+14I do. When I decided to get Counter Strike Source I thought "Well, I like Gamestop so that's where I'm going to get it." At the time I didn't know they open them but when I opened my copy of CS:S and tried to install it I was confused because I tried to find the cd-key but it was nowhere to be found. I called the store and the guy was like "Oh....uh... I don't know what happed to it. I guess I accidentally threw it away because I throw away the extra stuff in the cases." I was pissed.
- AngryBacon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Why not just put out display boxes and keep the shrink wrapped ones behind the counter or in the back room?
- keyboardduder, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11I used to wrk at Gamestop in Fairless Hills, PA and in Bensalem, PA and the business has a policy for employees to borrow games. The borrowing isnt a big deal and its a good idea because it helps the employees learn more about new games, however, the employees can borrow any game they want, used or new, use it, play it, beat it, and return it to the store, then SHRINK WRAP IT BACK UP. The policy will be taken away if more complaints are made about it. The problem is, no one wants to buy a used game as NEW and thats a fact.
- d722002, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10I once returned a week-old copy of NHL 2004 to a Gamestop, after marking it with a tiny dot on the barcode label. I recieved $6.00 for the game. When I came back a week later, the game had been re-shrinkwrapped and was being sold as 'New' for $50.00, proven by the mark on the barcode.
- digitalMessiah, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8I used to work and manage an Egghead software (remember that store?). Well all the time we would re-shrink wrap things. Primarily I would let any of the people who worked there borrow games or software to "try out" and then just seal it back up. We also did this for returns that were in good condition. We became experts at it and never were questioned over it. On occasion where the store did not have a game we wanted to try out we went else ware to buy it, play it for a few days, use our shrink wrap to reseal it as new and return it.
I know as a consumer knowing what you are paying full price for has already been used and resealed totally sucks. in our case we were all experts on 90% of the software in the store because we played it or tried it this way. Otherwise the marginal employee discount would not allow for this. I wish companies would just take the hit and just allow for a store copy that was held and used for 3+ months and then allow to be sold as used. - PureGamer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8The difference is it's a used ***** game. If it's opened the game already depreciates in value, so you SHOULD get the used price. I don't care if it's only a few dollars it's a bad business practice. They've done this for years, I remember buying "new" GBA from there and getting home and there being data on them. What kind of ***** place lies to customers like that? Outright ***** lies to them? I know some other stores are ***** terrible (Namely BestBuy and Wal-Mart) but this takes the cake.
- Leo21k, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9@mornif
Um yes they are devalued by being opened much like anything that can be purchased in a store. - OmniMe, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8After freely looking at the cases at EB/Gamestop, I head over to Walmart and buy it anywhere from 5 cents to $20 cheaper. The game is sealed to boot. Just don't shop there, that's all.
- Diggtatorship, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7"not anymore. I was working at EB when they removed that policy. As a point of reference they stopped allowing that about three years ago."
Tell that to my my sister in law since she routinely has games checked out for her xbox360. It is still done all over the country, maybe not at your store, but at others. - mczolton, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10Dugg because Gamestop employees are idiots.
- bazuden, on 10/12/2007, -7/+14***** you EbenieRosa.
I took my copy of Virtual Tennis 2 to EB to trade in a few years back. I got about 15 bucks for it if I remember correctly. While I was there I checked the used shelves for a copy cos I wanted to see how much I'd been ripped off. There were no used copies, and no new copies either.
The following week, while I was browsing, I thought I'd have a look at how much they were charging for my copy. There were still no used copies of VT 2, but there was one NEW copy, going for $60.00, which is exactly how much I paid for the game as new three months before.
*****' rip off *****. - Rikkochet, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7You're missing part of the point too...
Hi, I'm Mr. Friendly Gamestop employee. I'm going to check out... World of Warcraft.
And create an account.
Now that I'm done with the DVD, I'll check it back in.
Now some poor ***** buys that copy and can't create an account because it's magically "in use".
Hilarity ensues.
Any time a unique CD key or serial number is involved, it MUST be factory sealed until it's opened BY the consumer. To dodge this is to, at the very least, open holes for customers to potentially be cheated, and at worst is illegal as per the terms of the EULA. - ShugNinx21, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Let me shine some economics on you as well as some common sense.
1. What they are talking about here is GameStop opening brand New games, possibly taking them home and Using them, and then selling them to customers as new.
2. Once a retail item is opened it is considered Used, which is why you can't open games then return them even if you didn't play them as well at why places like BestBuy sell open box items.
3. If GameStop opened New games for Display then sold them Used they would Lose money as it would cost them $50 for the new game, which is far more then they pay customers for games thaty they sell used.
If you're going to sell me something open box then you should sell it to me at open box prices. - theHealingTree, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I work at EB Games/Gamestop, and yes, we do get to check out new games then turnaround and sell them as new, rather sleezy in my opion, but hey, I got to play guitar hero without renting or buying it!
- noreturn, on 10/12/2007, -6/+11Important message to get out, but I don't think the author could have written a more poorly constructed story if he tried.
- ts8lemonade, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5You guys who are saying this practice isn't allowed anymore are ***** retarded. I work at Gamestop, and I have sitting in my room a copy of Lost Planet (brand new) that I checked out from the store and have played.
Also, once new games have been opened we aren't supposed to return them. That whole 7 days for any reason is ONLY on USED product. - crashingechelon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4As a former EBgames employee, from March 2005 to July 2005, I have always found that as an issue. The main reasoning behind doing it was we needed a "gutted" copy of the game to place on the shelf. I couldn't guarantee that the game would be 100% new by the time someone had decided to purchase it. As a personal choice when it came to buying a new game I always took a sealed copy and even before working there I would always request a sealed copy. If they had told me that was their last copy, I would tell them 1 of 2 things, 1) I'm not gonna buy it than or 2) Can you check with another store if they have it. Also when I had worked there if there wasn't a sealed copy of the game left, I would always inform the customer about it and would let them decide if they still wanted to purchase it or not.
As for used games that was a different story. I was never happy with what we always had to do, if a customer were going to buy a new copy of the game and we had a used copy in stock, we were to try and get the customer to purchase that copy. My issue with used games or "pre-owned" games (EBgamestops politically correct way of saying used) is that they hurt the industry of gaming. The reason we were pushed to sell used games was because the company could make more money that way. By buying new the publisher or developer would get the more money out of it.
So my story to you is when you buy a new game request a sealed copy if they have one and don't buy used games from them. If you want used I suggest ebay or amazon, I know it still hurts the publisher that way, but at least EBgamestop isn't getting any money.
I have also known of stores re-sealing returned merchandise and selling it as new. I've witnessed it first hand at EBgames and I know Wal-mart has done it in the past as well as other retailers. Also for the record EBgames stopped "renting" out games to employees a few years ago. GameStop was the only one that kept this practice and now since they own EBgames it makes me wonder if it continued. - b04155, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I've never had any problem returning either a used game or new for full price as long as I had the receipt and it was within the prescribed time frame. I did have one idiot try to sell me a "new" game without the manual because they ran out. My response was literally, "Are you f*cking kidding me." Even a used game without a manual I ask for more money off. "But, you can download the manual online".. yeah, but you can't supply it to me right now so take money off biatch. I get the discount so the end result is okay, but overall I give EB/GS a low D in customer service.
- Wolfie351, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6Back when I was 10 years old and buying Apple II games, the local computer store would regularly open packages and let customers try the games out before buying. I would buy open packaged games ALL the time and saved a BUNCH of money by not buying lame games with my hard earned newspaper route money.
- thefish185, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Ok, I used to work at at Gamestop in Illinios, so I can't speak on behalf of all Gamestops out there. There are two reasons why a new copy of a game would be given to you in an usealed case.
1 The disc was taken out of the box to have a disply copy on the shelves, the disc was put into a sleve behind the counter. It is essentially "new"
2 We (and I'm assuming many Gamestops) had a policy of allowing employees to "rent" games, even if they were sealed. Employees took games home many times, broke the seal, and played it. 3 days later They'd bring it back to the store and we would sell it as new. Because it was taken care of (hopefully careful) by employees it was still considered new.
Shady? You decide, I think so. So, if they try to sell you a copy with a broken seal you can always refuse to buy it if it means that much to you.
As far as games that a Gamestop buys back from a customer that still look mostly "new," dont worry, those are always sold as "used." To sell it as new would throw off inventory reports to corporate. - keynlock, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I own a local game store in my city, and I routinely hear of this from furious customers.
The game would be on the shelf, but "sealed" with one of their clear stickers etc.
I took the time to question why they are selling something as "new", when it is obvious it has been opened and stored in a counter for resale.
The store manager claims that they are still new, and have never been played.
I guess Ebgames/Gamestop have the authority to re-define what is new, and pre-played, and still charge the tax which only comes with buying a new copy.
Unethical. - Philodox, on 10/12/2007, -9/+12Diggtatorship: not anymore. I was working at EB when they removed that policy. As a point of reference they stopped allowing that about three years ago.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I worked in the computer section of Myer (a large aussie department store chain) for several years and we would remove the contents of ALL software boxes prior to putting the boxes on the shelf. We'd take the contents and shrinkwrap THEM, then when a sale was made the shrinkwrapped contents would be placed in the box.
If a customer returned the box with the contents unwrapped, we wouldn't take it back.
None of the software we received from suppliers at the time (close to 10 years ago) would EVER be shrinkwrapped, some would have a dinky little quality control seal over one end of the box, but that was about it as far as tamper-evident measures were back then. - jhodulik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3It can be even worse than this article makes it out to be. After paying full 'New' retail price at GameStop for Phoenix Wright last year, I got home to find that not only was the box already opened, but a fair portion of the game had already been played through. As a company, GameStop pulls crap like this far too often, and I know many people like myself who now refuse to shop there. They practically have a monopoly on the retail game shop industry, though, which makes it difficult, albeit it desirable, to shop elsewhere (outside online retailers like Amazon, of course).
- Wingman007, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3As an EBgames employee, I assure you we cannot check out PC games. The rules with PC games are ridiculously strict. PC games can only be sold brand new, unopened, for the exact reasons you described. We can't even accept returns or trade-ins on any opened PC games.
- istrikelast, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Okay, so here's MY EBGAMES horror story.
A few years back, I picked up Star Wars Galaxies (I know I know, but I was a die-hard Star Wars fan with misplaced dreams of bounty hunting in my downtime) and I got home to find that the serial key needed for the game was already used. A little annoyed, I even called SOE to find out what the deal was and they told me the key was already used.
So I went back to the EBGames and told the two young clerks about my troubles getting the game set up and that I wanted a new copy (wasn't looking for a refund or a swap, just another copy). Both the kids looked at eachother, giggling, and then as they went to the back to get a new copy, I overheard them say things like "see, I told you that would happen" and "just find a new one and mark this one as used and we'll be fine". And yes, this is one of the times where they grabbed the display box off the shelf and stuffed it with some poorly rubber-banded manuals and discs (which actually damaged the manuals).
So either a) these kids were trying to pawn off a used copy of the game at NEW price or b) the kids had swiped the codes off the game to use themselves and accidentally sold me the copy.
Either way. I hate it.
But!! there is a simple workaround. Just ask for one in the shrink wrap. They have them. But you have to ask for one. In fact, I usually go an extra mile and ask for one without all the ***** stickers all over it.
What's worse is when you get an opened copy with all the EB stickers on it. That *****'s hard to peel off. - marcuschi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I used to work at Gamestop and we used to take the last "new" copy off the shelves and shrink wrap it in the back. I mean this was company policy, we had our own industrial size wrap machine complete with hair dryer. Good as new!
- Infekted, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3This happen to me.
my girlfriend bought me this Socom 3 game (new release at the time) from EB.
she doesn't really know anything about games but bought me one because she knows i like it.
when i opened the EB bag and took out the game.
The case was sealed with a circular clear sticker which looks like the one they used on hallmark card envelop.
just so you cannot open the case.
and the price tag is still there. $69.99CAD.
so i ask her "why would you pay this much for a used game?"
she said "used? i bought that new!"
so i told her that is clearly an opened game and probably used.
but im so excited to play and didn't really bother traveling back to the store just to exchange it.
so i opened it and yes it was played but not abused. no scratches or anything, so far its ok.
some sellers on this stores will really take advantage of people that doesn't know much about this things.
and that is BS. - vitaminbmeister, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I bought a "new" copy of Trama Center for the DS. Got home, 6 hours of play time, on three game save slots. What happened? The manager told me the workers open games and play them, but it was still new. I asked him how they didn't use the game to play it. He gave me the difference for it being used plus 10%. Idiots.
- h4mx0r, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Whenever I go to EB, I ask if they have an unopened one in stock. If they don't, then I have some consideration to do before I make a purchase.
- XISUPERMANIX, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5I went there to purchase a new GTA San Andreas for $25 they told me I could get a used one for $12 I said no because I have had trouble with used games before and they are very stingy with returning stuff. So I get home and try to play it, there was no scratches on the disc and it was 100% clean, I played for about 10 minutes when the game started to skip and take a long time to load cut scenes. I thought it was a problem with my PS2 since I hadn't played it in a very long time so I cleaned it. Same thing happened about 15 minutes into the game and occasionally would skip during game play. I went back and asked for a refund, at which they said "We can only give you store credit" I said ok and I tried to buy a new one but there was only $12 on my account. This was pissing me off because now I knew the game was used but repackaged as new, the game itself was sealed and look exactly like a new game. The clerk checked my receipt and said the game was sold as used but at a new game price. After bitching to their manager for about 20 minutes I finally got a new game and it actually worked. To this day I believe that the people that worked there sold me a used game, made it look new, and pocketed the $13 from the $25 I paid for it. Yeah I know it sounds pretty insane but if they did this an entire day, one person could make an extra $100 or more. Although Bestbuy is more expensive I shop there now and I haven't had any problems. ***** GAMESTOP.
- ShugNinx21, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3With GameStops opening of new games and selling them to the consumer as new there are a few pluses and things you can do to take advantage of the situation.
1. Ask the clerk to provide you with a new sealed copy of the game in it's original celophane.
2. If they don't have a sealed one and you still wish to buy inspect the disk and the contents of the box and only buy if you are satisfied. Don't be afraid to ask for a different disk or manual.
3. These are the only stores that will let you return a game because you thought it sucked. You have a week or so to return that horrible piece of crap of a game for full return value, then buy a different one that doesn't suck. - keithmh, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3When I went to buy Fight Night Round 3 for the Xbox360, the same thing happened to me however I got pissed when the clerk held the game out and dropped it on purpose because he was telling his coworker a story. I proceeded to tell him I wasn't about the buy a game he had just dropped (on purpose). Whether it still works or not..its just bad business practice and customer service. I walked out, as did two other people standing in line behind me.
- thatsmyaibo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I don't know if EB does it anymore, but Game stop DOES allow employees to borrow games, reshrink them, then sell them as new. I know for a fact it is still being done here in LA. My friend borrowed Marvel Ult Alliance for the 360 last week. That's why I'd rather buy my games at Fry's Electronics.
- exiva, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I had the same thing happen when I bought Need For Speed on PSP, I demanded a sealed case and was told this was new and not to worry. I ended up not buying the game because of their refusal to sell me a copy still in shrink wrap (The box was the display one with at least 6 stickers on it.) I've had more bad experiences at EB/Gamestop than I've had good ones (I had the Manager of one tell a Nintendo Customer Service Supervisor that she was wrong and that the policy for Dead pixels on consoles did not exist) and refuse to even step foot inside their store.
-
Show 51 - 100 of 213 discussions
The Digg Toolbar for Firefox lets you Digg, submit content, and keep track of Digg even when you're not on the Digg site. Download the official 
© Digg Inc. 2009
— Content created and posted by Digg users is