"GameStop Enters Sellout Talks"

[keepdreamin]

That doesn't do much good for current market stuff. Every single major PS4 release I've gotten has received online updates.

[80s_Atari_Guy]

Every single one of my Xbox One, and PS4 disks have had not one, but many updates. Some, like Drive Club on PS4 and Forza 6,7 on Xbox, have had many gigabyte updates.

[keepdreamin]

Every single one of my Xbox One, and PS4 disks have had not one, but many updates. Some, like Drive Club on PS4 and Forza 6,7 on Xbox, have had many gigabyte updates.

 

Yup, this guy knows ^

 

Once those games get taken offline, you ain't getting the most up to date fixed version if you pop those discs in years from now and the patches are gone (and as Austin said, if the games even boot). Having a bookcase full of those titles isn't going to mean squat. All a person can hope for is the popular titles see a remaster on whatever the latest hardware is.

[Cobra Kai]

 

Yup, this guy knows ^

 

Once those games get taken offline, you ain't getting the most up to date fixed version if you pop those discs in years from now and the patches are gone (and as Austin said, if the games even boot). Having a bookcase full of those titles isn't going to mean squat. All a person can hope for is the popular titles see a remaster on whatever the latest hardware is.

Certainly some valid points in here that I haven't put much thought into personally. I'll actually consider the digital download now more often if the price is cheaper, but that is usually the opposite I find. I'm still regularly finding the physical disc (brand new) cheaper than the digital game, especially with if you're an Amazon Prime member you get %20 off the retail price if you pre-order or purchase within 2 weeks after the release date.

 

I still have a hard time coping with paying full price for a download, and I don't think I've pulled the trigger on anything yet that is $49.99 and up. The thing that sucks the most is if I end up not liking the game, I can't even sell it to anyone afterwards. It's seems so logically silly to not receive any tangible product for that kind of money.

[Flojomojo]

Meh, bits on a disk are no more "real" than bits on a hard drive.

 

So who's going to buy GameStop? It could be interesting to see them rolled up into a bigger, stronger retailer. Walmart seems like the obvious contender, adding games to their portfolio alongside Vudu. Amazon is playing at physical stores, too.

 

Whatever happens, I think their business model will need to change. All those little freestanding specialty stores in so many locations seems very inefficient and expensive.

[80s_Atari_Guy]

 

 

Meh, bits on a disk are no more "real" than bits on a hard drive.

 

In the context of the thread, this is meaningless. Just a throw away comment that has no relation to the discussion.

[keepdreamin]

 

I still have a hard time coping with paying full price for a download, and I don't think I've pulled the trigger on anything yet that is $49.99 and up. The thing that sucks the most is if I end up not liking the game, I can't even sell it to anyone afterwards. It's seems so logically silly to not receive any tangible product for that kind of money.

 

The physical material that comes with modern games is worth less than the gas spent on the trip to GS to buy it.

[Tanooki]

I think the real deal that most Switch an almost all 3DS games work right out of the box not needing the rest put there or repaired puts them somewhat in the clear this time around.

 

But there's a reason why I have a PS3 and PS4, but don't ever say I do when someone asks about games anymore. The games are incomplete out of the box, so before their value really chunked into the toilet I sold the entire selection off and converted my time on those into movie boxes alone. That's the future of game consoles, rentals for games, and meant to play purchased and rented physical or streaming media -- that's the value in the long term right there. If I didn't find blu ray player menus so annoying still I'd dump the PS4 and use one of those instead.

[Andromeda Stardust]

With a physical disc I can always play a game, even 20 years from now. Good luck trying to redownload a game once a company has gone out of business or killed the servers.

I'd like to see someone insert LA Noire into a still functional Switch 20 years from now, and actually be able to play it. It's one of the worst offenders, but other publishers are also locking off massive portions of the games, simply because they cheap out on media size.

 

 

It is fine by me if the company releases updates, free or paid dlc. But if anyone release an unfinished game that doesn't work out of the box, and will not function without a giga-download, I will refuse to buy it on principal. LA Noire is equally stupid in this respect because the game doesn't actually have online functionality besides the giant update comprising the other half of the game that the company was too cheap to put on the cart.

 

 

I think the real deal that most Switch an almost all 3DS games work right out of the box not needing the rest put there or repaired puts them somewhat in the clear this time around.

For now, this is mostly correct. Several games have had their online components locked to a downloadable update, which will mean squat once the servers are down, and all you get access to is the single player mode anyway.

 

= = = = = = = = = =

 

I can see this being an issue even in the present ecosystem, where people living in extremely sparse rural areas are relegated to either dial up or super expensive and super laggy satellite (which iirc use a land-line for the up link). The vast majority of consumers in the US get their broadband through either DSL, Cable, or mobile cellular plans. Unless you're on a university, military base, or large corporate campus, you are not gonna be getting internet directly from a fiber line. And in some distant rural outputs, there is none of these options (dsl, cable, mobile) available. You either get your TV through satallite or hoist an antenna. And you have only dial up for internet access.

 

Even for us, living in a fairly sized city, we get our internet through ATT U-Verse. It's limited to 6 Mbits, because the janky twisted pair wiring they laid down in the 60s is still there, and was only meant to handle ~50kbs of bandwidth or less (analog voice calls). Prior to getting Uverse, we still frequently had static on the lines, and afterwords, they attempted to give us a free upgrade to 21Mbps. The modem crashed, and we had to have a technician out here to reset it back to 6mbs.

 

But for the guy living in some cabin up in Alaska or somewhere equally remote, having games that function relatively bug free on day one without an update patch or dlc is important. For the rest of us, call back in ten years when you pop a new game into your old console and the servers no longer exist.

[Flojomojo]

Must every modern gaming thread devolve into a bitch-fest about downloads vs media? I thought this was supposed to be about GameStop.

 

I assume LA Noire is packaged that way so it can be easily gifted. It doesn't really make much sense to sell it at retail in that condition otherwise. GameStop also sells prepaid cards and stuff for downloads too, right?

 

GameStop GameStop who's gonna buy GameStop?

[Tanooki]

Yes Gamestop sells those generic cards and even game specific cards too for those too scared to use a one time card charge unsaved to their console or handheld.

 

Gamestop being bought out I'd have to question who would want the risk. Perhaps Thinkgeek? Probably 1/3 of the stuff in the store now has their tags or their partners on it anyway.

[keepdreamin]

GameStop GameStop who's gonna buy GameStop?

 

You can always preorder a franchise near you. Do you have any GameStop franchises in mind you'd like to preorder?

 

I wasn't bitching about download vs physical copies. I was merely point out the idea those modern game discs are "physical" is a complete illusion, and people who think they're physical games are deluding themselves.

Edited July 1, 2018 by keepdreamin

[Flojomojo]

Gamestop being bought out I'd have to question who would want the risk. Perhaps Thinkgeek? Probably 1/3 of the stuff in the store now has their tags or their partners on it anyway.

It would be difficult for ThinkGeek to buy GameStop, because GameStop already owns ThinkGeek.

https://gizmodo.com/sorry-hot-topic-gamestop-owns-thinkgeek-now-1708529608

[Shawn]

It would be difficult for ThinkGeek to buy GameStop, because GameStop already owns ThinkGeek.

https://gizmodo.com/sorry-hot-topic-gamestop-owns-thinkgeek-now-1708529608

 

Subsidiary outfits have bought their parent company out in the past. I don't see it happening here but you get what I mean.

[80s_Atari_Guy]

Gamestop sell physical media. Idiots in this thread want the end to physical media. Thats why many people "Bitch", because we see a future where there won't be a way to play them.

Idiots who disagree, also see a world of Unicorns, and free! magic beans for everyone because - "We've done it in the past, we can do it in the future" lol. Without proving a single solution to how you would do it.

 

When Gamestop are gone, they're gone forever, no matter how much you hate them. I don't live in the US, but I do care about brick and mortar stores still selling physical media.

 

Here is a FACT that won't happen for a long time.

Here in the UK, physical media, for consoles, sells more than downloaded media. Kids buy pre-owed games because they can't afford new games. To afford just one new game. they take a bunch of pre-owned games to the store to buy one new game. They swap games in school with their mates, they take them to their mate's homes to play multiplayer games. This is REALITY, and it would take a massive cultural change to get these kids onto digital media only. The games industry would be shooting themselves in the head if they went down the route of digital only games, and they fucking know it. We also have far differing internet speeds than almost any other Country. I can walk across the road, in a local town near me, and go from Fibre optic broadband (upto 76Mbit), to ADSL internet (upto 8Mbit) due to how telephone cabinets are located and which one you are connected to. So, anyone on 8Mbit or less, will NOT be downloading their games. Anyone on a monthly data cap will NOT be downloading their games. Any family where their kids buy their games will NOT be downloading them.

 

The Games industry want everyone on digital media because they hate pre-owned games. They think they deserve a 2nd cut from the sale of the pre-owned games, but this will never happen. Cars sold 2nd hand, the car companies don't get a cut. TVs sold pre-owned, Samsung, Sony, Panasonic all don't get a cut from the sell. Intel and AMD don't get a cut from pre-owned CPUs. Nvidia and AMD don't get a cut from pre-owned graphics cards. This is why Gamestop, and other high street stores are hated by the Games Industry. They love it when they sell their games, they hate it when they sell them again, pre-owned. To change that, you would have to also change ebay, gumtree, craig's list, etc... Make selling pre-owned games a crime. Yeah, good luck with that.

 

I still don't get why those who only buy digital games get so angry over those who prefer physical. Why does it bother you if there is a physical games market ?

 

If digital is so wonderful, then why are digital games so damn expensive ? Why does it take a Steam summer sale, for digital games to become more affordable ? I remember when PC games were £30. Now, the norm is £49, and thats digital. I purchased GTA V on 6 DVDs for £25, yet (at the time) Steam had it for £35. Why ? how is a physical copy on sale for less than a digital copy ?

 

I honestly predict a digital-only future where games will come out at a starting price of £100. And, without any brick and mortar stores and physical media, we won't have a choice but to either buy it at £100, or hope a sale comes up.

Edited July 1, 2018 by 80s_Atari_Guy

[Flojomojo]

In the evil, scary future, all games will be free but require constant internet connection, and expensive subscriptions or microtransactions to do anything.

Except for those that don't.

Fortunately, one can always write thousands of words in barely-related message board topics. That makes everything better, for everyone.

So, GameStop? Not the only place in town that sells physical media. I still think walmart and amazon are hurting them more than downloads, but I have no proof. Nor do I have an axe to grind over adapting to the modern world.

[80s_Atari_Guy]

lol.

[keepdreamin]

What physical games is GameStop selling, again? They got out of PS2 and Dreamcast era games long ago. From where I'm sitting, I see them selling outdated software that needs internet access to be updated. What do I get for the convenience of purchasing their early revision software? I need to spend time and gas money to get it, only to then transport it to an internet connection.

 

I guess the only benefit is I can trade in the early revision software for other early revision software, that will subsequently need to be updated as well.

[PlaysWithWolves]

A weird thing happened when I moved out of the 18-49 demographic. Suddenly some of those battles just didn't seem worth fighting anymore. I like having dozens (or more?) games hidden away on my Xbox Live account and not on my shelves. If younger generations want to save GameStop, they need to patronize them.

 

But why? Best Buy, Wal*Mart, Amazon and possibly other places offer the same things GameStop does--even trade-ins. GameStop is a boutique store that offers little different than big stores. Our closest store had a monopoly for years, so it was needed. It became redundant the moment Best Buy moved in literally across the street, eight or ten years ago. Or at least, when BB started taking in game and console trades. It's still there, somehow, but undoubtedly struggling.

[Flojomojo]

So what COULD differentiate GameStop from big-box retail, and online? What are some things that can ONLY happen in a GameStop? Besides the "I want this game and I want it today, on physical media" scenario, which is a loser?

 

Spitballing ...

They could do events like contests or tournaments, get more true retail exclusives, go all-in on same-day release perks, maybe EARLY releases (and not just midnight launches, which are inconvenient and potentially dangerous)? Partner promotions where you get free something-or-other of low value except to teenagers, like with movie passes? Set up LAN gaming rooms so you can really try stuff out, perhaps rented by the hour? Geolocated perks like they used to try with StreetPass? Maybe member-only betas or other early access?

 

What if people could play big-name games a significant period of time ahead of launch, without a big download? It's not for me, but maybe it could work if they could repeat it enough to build up loyalty again? Seems like "a good start" but not enough to sustain.

 

I'm having trouble imagining much that GameStop can do better than anyone else, or services/events that require a physical presence and wouldn't be risky/costly. Events and pre-orders can happen online, often with better results. Twitch will always be bigger than meatspace. If Gamestop is losing sales, and don't have leverage over publishers and distributors, they're not in a position to demand special treatment. I don't watch them very closely, but I haven't observed much innovation beyond what they've been doing for the past 20 years under different names.

 

I guess their used electronics testing kiosks are kinda neat, as well as their pawn-shop databases for capturing personal data and stolen merchandise. That benefits the company more than puts them in a competitive market position, though.

 

Otherwise ... it's like the movie theater situation. It's hard to get butts in seats when everything comes to video just a few months later.

 

It looks like Gamestop's suitors are private equity firms, such as the outfits that chewed up and spit out Staples and Toys R Us. Seems to me that would be the end of this company.

[pacman000]

I imagine this is like Hastings; GameStop's owners know their market is going away, so they're trying to get out.

 

They'll sell; the company will last a few years; then collapse.

 

I was sad when Hadtings went under; in fact I'm still sad; nothing else has the same selection. GameStop? Meh... Smaller chains are better.

[80s_Atari_Guy]

I know it looks like I'm defending Gamestop, but I'm not. I don't live in the US so it's irrelevant to me whether they go bust or not.

What I'm defending is RETAIL Disks, actual physical disks that I can buy or trade-in, in a shop.

 

Here in the UK, we have CEX, and Pink Planet - or whatever they're called now. Lets take CEX. I can walk into a CEX and buy, for literally pennies, hundreds of PS3 originals, Xbox 360 originals, Wii originals, Wii-U originals, PSP originals, Vita, PS2, etc... etc..

If this was a digital-only world, I couldn't do this. Hardly any of these games would be available, for next to nothing, whenever I want them.

I love browsing the shelves, talking to the staff - the good ones, not the ones looking for their commission - talking to other people there. Seriously, as soon as I start browsing the retro sections, other people often start up a completely random conversation about the games, the hardware, the memories. It's fucking great, and could never be recreated buying digital, or browsing a digital store.

 

I genuinely feel scared of losing all this. As much as I love PC gaming, and buying from Steam, I will never recreate the 90s, going games shopping with my mates. Buying games, then off to MacD for food, chat, ribbing, discussing what we purchased.

I'm also back on my PS3, and loving it. Games are so cheap, and there is so much choice.

[Flojomojo]

I genuinely feel scared of losing all this.

Since it's not something over which you have much control, it's probably healthier to work out how you'll adapt. I used to love looking at sales circulars for when new games went on sale for $35, browsing Cheapassgamer.com, bargain bin diving at Blockbuster and Hollywood Video, and hunting for stuff at The Record Exchange (used media store I like). I would buy, flip/trade, buy more, constant cycle of trading up and trying new things. There's a GameStop store within an easy walk from my house, but it holds almost zero interest for me nowadays. That wasn't true 15 or 20 years ago.

 

Selling 10-year old media for "literally pennies" is good for you and other buyers, but it hardly seems like a sustainable business. If your experience is like mine, eventually the selection in those shops will dry up (or your collection will grow) to the point where you have better stuff at home than you could hope to find in a store.

 

Your 90's experience is like American Graffiti, going to Al's Drive In and cruising the strip -- important to you at the time, but not what kids want to do nowadays. Imagine how your parents must have felt about what was important to you at the time. That's what you've become (it's OK, none of us is getting younger).

 

Kids today have their MMOs, MOBAs, Fortnite, and things we will never understand. They are driving the games economy with their disposable income, they are the people for whom the publishers are creating games and movies and books and other things we are too old to enjoy. The cheapass secondary market will get their leavings, as before, but when everything is digital, there's nothing to pick up in store.

 

I've never said I like this, that I want physical media to die. It's just that I see how things are going, and it's not all bad. Try to learn Arena of Valor or League of Legends and you'll find a whole other subculture, one where people play a single game for hundreds of hours to see its depth or to participate in the accompanying online scene. Get into modding something like Skyrim in ways you could never do with a retail physical copy. Play some Hearthstone, there's a lot going on there.

 

Refusing to change is a kind of death, worse than the death of some dorky store that is easily replaced with decent alternatives.

[80s_Atari_Guy]

Thats a great post, Flo. Hope you don't think I was being a miserable sod. I'm just passionate.

[eightbit]

As long as companies pull the "download required" BS with physical games (I refuse to buy them as well) and people continue to embrace digital only games, Gamestop has no future. That is why this is entirely about Gamestop. What future do they have if they have nothing to sell? There is absolutely no question that digital purchases hurt places like Gamestop. One day soon digital media will be the predominant way to game and physical media will fade away along with Gamestop and other stores that provided physical games for sale...just like other brick and mortar locations that have become "obsolete".

 

I hate Gamestop and could care less about them, but I do have to say that I hate even more that people blindly embrace things without thinking of future consequences. Everyone embraced the ipod and digital purchased music for instance. That ended a bunch of great retailers like Sam Goody, Tower Records, etc. Then, years later people wanted physical music media (vinyl had made a huge comeback in recent years for example) but now we don't have many places to go to buy them.

 

You don't realize what you'll miss until its gone.