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Anyone ever buy a console at its launch from Walmart?

_Angelus_

Banned
If so how did they go about organizing selling the console once they open their doors to buyers? I just got word that mine is opening two hours early on Tuesday(5a.m.) and that its first come first serve.

Problem is there is only 10 units to sell to customers-5 premium and 5 core machines. :lol
Right now they don't know if they will be selling to the first 10 people outside their doors or not. I'm thinking they can't possibly think to open the doors and have people make a mad dash to their electronics,that would be a damger to them since if someone got hurt they could open themselves up to to legal action.

I'm thinking they'll probably have the machines set up near the check out stands near he front,or that they may just have people draw lottery numbers if more than 10 folks show up at the door.

The town that this WalMart is in is a small town,but with only 10 machines to go around there will more than likely be atleast 10 people at their doors when they open.

So does anyone know how WalMart goes about setting all this up? Do they pick people from a line? Or maybe pick lottery numbers?

Thanks.
 
GameCube.
It was a 24-hour one, but they decided to start selling them at 5 AM.
It was a hilariously fun event. I pissed off a lot of mothers.
About midnight they handed out numbers. Then at 4:50 AM we all gathered around the electronics area and when our number was called, we got we wanted.
 
Gamecube as well.

Those fuckers at Funcoland said I wouldn't be able to pick up my reserve (I waited until I knew the price before putting down $50 and $5 for some select games), that I would get it two weeks down the line.

I got to Wal-Mart about 2:00 PM. There was a small line of about 14 or 15. By 7:00 that night, over 60 people were in line, and only 54 would get a system.

Anyway, long story short, it was a crazy night and the very next day I got a call from Funcoland saying my Gamecube was in. Asses.

And as far as it goes... From what I experienced, you can line up outside the store, but it's only so you can get a ticket for later that night at about 11:00. At 11:00 you get in line inside the store and the waiting begins to buy the thing at midnight. Just call down there and ask if there's a line.
 
M3wThr33 said:
GameCube.
It was a 24-hour one, but they decided to start selling them at 5 AM.
It was a hilariously fun event. I pissed off a lot of mothers.
About midnight they handed out numbers. Then at 4:50 AM we all gathered around the electronics area and when our number was called, we got we wanted.


So basicaly stay around to closing time,hope they give me a ticket number,come back a little before 5,show the number and I get a 360?

Hope this works at this WalMart.

Thanks for the info,much appreciated. Atleast now I have some sort of idea on how they may go about doing the launch:)

Edit,ah now I see what you posted at the end of your reply AniHawk,good info,thanks. That makes me feel alot better on how to appraoch this launch.
 
Ecrofirt said:
A good suggestion, I think, is to call Wal Mart and ask how they'll be handling it.

Good plan-I'll do this tomorrow and again on Monday just to be sure they have it all down properly. I spoke with 3 employees at the gaming area. They said 5a.m. they'll open and start selling,there was nothing about tickets being given out. But then its probably something that the manager knows about at the moment.
 
Hrm, there seems to be a trend. I got my GameCube at Walmart as well. I drove to ToysRus at about 8 AM for a 9 AM opening, saw a line that stretched around the block, and then went to Walmart. Nobody was there, and I easily picked up a a system :)

It wasn't a 24 hour store, so I guess it was just first come first serve.
 
I bought a PSP at launch from Toys R Us, but never anything from Walmart. I'm considering going back to Toys R Us for my 360 even though I have one pre-ordered at EB. Have to wait until December for mine over at EB.
 
I bought the PSP at launch at WAl Mart. I didn't really want to but frankly those guys at EB drive me crazy and every place (including EB) was selling the gretzky bundle (canada) which I did not want. Wal MArt had a stack of value packs so I could actually pay for the games I wanted and not be shoveled a game I did not.
 
yeah it is a first come, first serve bases.

That's why I'm going to Walmart early on Tuesday to buy at least one XB 360....which is going straight on ebay thereafter. I'M GOING TO BE RICH!!!! *evil laugh*

Thankfully the Walmart is right beside my high school so I don't need to skip classes to beging with.
 
Mom tried at walmart (called ahead) but she didnt realise that people lined up for systems. SO when she called at 1am, they were already sold out.

Instead she went to lineup at Best Buy at 9am.

Ive never lined up for a console, but my mom has. How sad. :lol


In my defense, I wasnt in the country at that time.
 
PS2(yeah...yeah...I know. It was a last minute thing, I wasn't planning on getting one and then found out some friends were going to stay outside overnight and it seemed like a good idea at the time), with a couple of friends. Tons of people showed up, much more than they had enough stock for. Got there about midnight, and we were 25th-ish in line. Once the employees started showing up, they handed out numbers based on the order of everybody in line.

It actually was a fairly good time, but there were people who lined up for hours and didn't get one, and they weren't altogether happy.
 
I always seem to get my consnoles at Toys R Us. I didn't even think about it until recently. I always got my console on launch day (except for the N64). No lines. I just walked right in and picked one up. Even my launch PS2. Maybe it was because that TRU wasn't the most popular (closed a year or so after getting my GC there) but I never had to camp and never missed out on buying what I wanted.
 
Gamecube, and it was more of a problem that I left my job early to go get in line, than it was getting what I wanted once I got to WM. :lol
 
I got both my PSP and GameCube at launch from Wal-Mart with no problems. I drive about 20 minutes out to one in the middle of nowhere, and they started selling at midnight both times. Only a couple of other people were there, and when I went back the next day there were still systems left. Forget bundles, preordering, and camping out! :)
 
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