Pie and Beans
Look for me on the local news, I'll be the guy arrested for trying to burn down a Nintendo exec's house.
I know its just the same business name thats been around for decades but... good lord.
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UK Retailer GAME is dead | Brera's Lament
- Thread starter CrunchinJelly
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I know its just the same business name thats been around for decades but... good lord.
Looks like he got out at the right time to me.
Part of GAME's business plan was to buy up all competition. They wanted to be the only game "specialist" in the country, even if that meant they had to own two "competing" chains.
Admittedly, with hindsight it was a stupid move, but it was done in the first year of the Wii boom when many people thought gaming was reaching an expanded audience and that the bubble wouldn't burst. It was nothing but positive for GAME, who had bought out their only major competitor and significantly expanded their retail presence.
This was, of course, before the financial troubles we now see ourselves in, and emergence of iThings, which lured the fickle casual consumer away in droves.
Though admittedly, after my first ever Steam sale I knew that this was the beginning of the end for places like GAME, and that was when I started to anticipate GAME's move into digital. However, all they seem to have done is obstruct it, spread FUD about digital and online shopping in-store (salespeople at the Cardiff branches, at least, are told to tell potential customers that online stores won't deliver hardware and software in time for the release date, so the inflated in-store prices are worth it), and not develop their own UK-based digital download platform.
Quite frankly, I was surprised they never acquired (or tried to acquire) Green Man Gaming, but their current state is pretty telling as to why that never happened. I imagine people high up the chain must've known they were in deep shit long before talk of them going bust was being discussed.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
I think that would be the idea, pushing some kind of digital gaming strategy and leveraging publisher and developer relations via a retailer to get favourable deal for digital distribution. It all ties into adding value to their broadband and digital TV offering. Remember that the new Tivo boxes have dedicated internet connections and an OnLive type of streaming solution is more than possible with their network.
I think we are talking about blockbuster
Meh I don't know.
Here in Australia this shouldn't affect us too much we still have EB Games here
as well as Gametraders (awesome for retro stuff)snoopeasystreet
Member
I hope this is true. I want to see people get real creative with the virgin games jokes.
Considering it took two of his interns constantly harassing him to convince him to set up Virgin Gaming - where you could win money playing Xbox 360 and PS3 competitive multiplayer. Remember that?
Yep Branson won't want GMG for either Virgin Money and/or Virgin Games(btw Virgin Games is a casino based web service).
Am I misremembering, or was there a "Virgin Games Centre" which predated the Megastores?
I expect if Virgin does buy a bunch of GAME or Gamestation stores, it won't be a direct replacement of them with a new games chain, but as a means for Virgin Money to rapidly expand its retail presence. I think people are ignoring that specific part of the hearsay. A good way to get a retail presence is to buy up a bunch of stores from a collapsed company, and that's one thing that Virgin Money is definitely looking to do right now.
Though I imagine a few GAME outlets do turn a profit still, and those could be lucrative places to run a retail business in the short term, in order to gain a foothold in the digital games business in the long run.
Though I imagine a few GAME outlets do turn a profit still, and those could be lucrative places to run a retail business in the short term, in order to gain a foothold in the digital games business in the long run.
DaSorcerer7
Member
so is there going to be a big fire sale soon?
I'd say big fires in store are equally as likely as a fire sale
If you think the Spring Clean counted as a firesale then I shudder to think what you normally spend on games.
Monkeylord
Member
My GF's up at Bluewater with her family today. Phoned me a few mins ago. Found Punch Out for just under a fiver, but pretty much everything else was full price or worse.
£8.99 for Bioshock 2 (360) Pre-Owned
£18.99 for ME2 (360) Pre-Owned
£99.99 for Soul Calibur arcade sticks
What the hell are they thinking!?!!
Probably not even worth my time, but it's lunchtime and I may spend the 2mins to walk along to the Oxford Street branch to witness the madness.
£8.99 for Bioshock 2 (360) Pre-Owned
£18.99 for ME2 (360) Pre-Owned
£99.99 for Soul Calibur arcade sticks
What the hell are they thinking!?!!
Probably not even worth my time, but it's lunchtime and I may spend the 2mins to walk along to the Oxford Street branch to witness the madness.
Wow at that ME2 price. That's insane. I remember picking it up many months ago for £12 at CEX. I hadnt finished ME1 at the time, but that price was too good to pass up.
Hell, CEX still sell the highly desired ME1 CE for £15. Just checked their site, and yeh, stores have it in for £15.
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Tesco and Asda are going to profit from this no end. They already do pre-owned and no doubt there business will boom going forward.
That's the problem with supermarkets, you go in for bread and milk and come out with everything but bread and milk. Pre-owned games, clothes, holidays lol.
Hell, CEX still sell the highly desired ME1 CE for £15. Just checked their site, and yeh, stores have it in for £15.
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Tesco and Asda are going to profit from this no end. They already do pre-owned and no doubt there business will boom going forward.
That's the problem with supermarkets, you go in for bread and milk and come out with everything but bread and milk. Pre-owned games, clothes, holidays lol.
I never understood why game never had more playable units in their stores. HMV seem to permanently have 4 console units that you can piss about with. I see a playable unit in Game now and again but they are often switched off. Games Workshop or the Apple stores prove how beneficial it is to make a shop a social hub as much as a point-of-sale
I'm glad to see Game go but I don't want to see video gaming lose presence on the high street or plenty of good people lose their jobs because of blatant poor management.
Edit: I also think that this is perhaps a culmination of the fact that games are just too damn expensive in the UK.
I'm glad to see Game go but I don't want to see video gaming lose presence on the high street or plenty of good people lose their jobs because of blatant poor management.
Edit: I also think that this is perhaps a culmination of the fact that games are just too damn expensive in the UK.
There is no madness in there; there's just nothing worth buying. Might be worth keeping an eye on the stuff with no packaging which seems to be spreading along the pre-owned section, though.
Ravensmash
Member
In my town, HMV (next door to GAME) have a lot of gaming stock - both new and preowned, a fairly wide selection too.
Not sure if this has already been said but GAME own Gamestation, so both high street stores will be going. Gamestation.co.uk doesn't even sell ME3 even though it has just come out. In England, we are pretty much screwed since they are the only popular high street gaming stores around. Gamestop appears on occasion, but not often have I seen one. With the amount they charge for games it isn't surprising they are going out of business. Don't know about everyone else but I always buy my games from Amazon or from ***********. They are both cheaper than most other stores, and Shopto even offer free first-class delivery. I've had a few games come a day before the release date, which I thought was excellent service. I wonder if this will affect CEX or other second-hand companies? I guess eventually they will go out of business too. Especially with more games having a 'one time only' user content
JustAnotherOtaku
Member
Went to my local GAME this morning and came back with 10 games (PS2/Wii/DS/PSP) for around £13 which I was more than happy with! Darkness 2 LE was £25 too.
Ravensmash
Member
Not sure if this has already been said but GAME own Gamestation, so both high street stores will be going. Gamestation.co.uk doesn't even sell ME3 even though it has just come out. In England, we are pretty much screwed since they are the only popular high street gaming stores around. Gamestop appears on occasion, but not often have I seen one. With the amount they charge for games it isn't surprising they are going out of business. Don't know about everyone else but I always buy my games from Amazon or from ***********. They are both cheaper than most other stores, and Shopto even offer free first-class delivery. I've had a few games come a day before the release date, which I thought was excellent service. I wonder if this will affect CEX or other second-hand companies? I guess eventually they will go out of business too. Especially with more games having a 'one time only' user content
ShopTo are insane, last order took three minutes to be dispatched, and that was a preorder on a Wednesday.
Monkeylord
Member
Just checked the bank account of the one card I have on me... not even worth getting up from my desk, lol.
And by "madness" I didn't mean it would be like grannies at a jumble sale, more the bleak emptyness of such a large store with next to no stock.
dreamcastmaster
Banned
Guess they'll find out if preowned really is helping or hindering the industry.
I know! I really hope they don't go out of business because for service they are definitely the best. They also have nice staff to talk to if anything goes wrong
which only happened cause of a stupid mistake I madeMonkeylord
Member
CEX/Cash Converters/Cash Generator will still be here. Loss of Game/Gamestation will do sweet FA to the pre-owned market.
I would doubt the actual selling power of in-store demos. You tend to just get six-form schoolkids on their free periods hanging out around them more than anything else.
It makes sense for a new console/peripheral to get people to understand the concept, but for your average game I don't think it's going to convince people either way.
bitoriginal
Member
I visited Game earlier. I really don't know what some of their customers are going to do when they close. I know that many people here scoff at Game's prices but I'm sure that for many people Game/Gamestation is their one-stop shop for anything gaming related.
I overheard a conversation and it went something like this:
Idiot: I literally CANNOT WAIT for Mass Effect 3 to come out.
Friendt: Err dude, it came out on Friday?
Idiot: Bullshit, it's nowhere to be seen in here. I think if it had come out I'd have seen it.
Friend: Yeah, I don't think Game are stocking it.
Idiot: What the fuck? Why?
Dude seriously missed a high profile release like Mass Effect 3 because he couldn't find it in Game. I'd consider him a moron but I expect there are many people like him.
I overheard a conversation and it went something like this:
Idiot: I literally CANNOT WAIT for Mass Effect 3 to come out.
Friendt: Err dude, it came out on Friday?
Idiot: Bullshit, it's nowhere to be seen in here. I think if it had come out I'd have seen it.
Friend: Yeah, I don't think Game are stocking it.
Idiot: What the fuck? Why?
Dude seriously missed a high profile release like Mass Effect 3 because he couldn't find it in Game. I'd consider him a moron but I expect there are many people like him.
Not sure if this has already been said but GAME own Gamestation, so both high street stores will be going. Gamestation.co.uk doesn't even sell ME3 even though it has just come out. In England, we are pretty much screwed since they are the only popular high street gaming stores around. Gamestop appears on occasion, but not often have I seen one. With the amount they charge for games it isn't surprising they are going out of business. Don't know about everyone else but I always buy my games from Amazon or from ***********. They are both cheaper than most other stores, and Shopto even offer free first-class delivery. I've had a few games come a day before the release date, which I thought was excellent service. I wonder if this will affect CEX or other second-hand companies? I guess eventually they will go out of business too. Especially with more games having a 'one time only' user content
There was a Game, Gametsation and GameStop in Stockport at one point. GameStop Is not there anymore.
But the best game store there was Game City by a country mile. Fair prices, nice people who owned it and if you built a relationship with them, I.e got to know the, and talk to them they'd be more than happy to break street dates for you by a day or two.
People have short memories - hell, I have a short memory, I can't even remember where I used to buy Atari ST games from when I was younger (Our Price? Maybe?). I would actually be surprised if games retail on the high street dies completely, and I'm sure even those who have shopped exclusively in GMG stores will eventually work out that there are other places that sell games and they might have different stock - it just might take a bit of time!
Never heard of Game City, but they sound pretty sweet. Did they go out of business or something?
I'm going to keep a close eye on their New Vegas CEs. Last time I looked both Game and Gamestation had it discounted £5 on PS3, but not at all on 360.
xxczx
Member
Tecmo Koei are also out
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/ninja-gaiden-3-and-warriors-orochi-3-also-skip-game/092676
My bad already posted :c
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/ninja-gaiden-3-and-warriors-orochi-3-also-skip-game/092676
My bad already posted :c
Monkeylord
Member
By £5 or TO £5.
This is important... don't hold out on me!
(I know the answer, but refuse to admit it).
bitoriginal
Member
Yeah I just think it's a shame that many games won't get a fair shot at performing well because of poor consumer awareness. Game really did cannibalise the competition on the High Street.
Yes. Do you know the area? They were up on Underbank near the markets. Next door to The Stage Door, the fancy dress shop. But saying that, I've not been up that way for years, that fancy dress shop is probably not there either now.
There was another independent game shop across the road from Game City, they were a little less popular and went bust years before.
The shop didn't even have a sign above the door. But you knew what it was straight away because of all the huge posters and cardboard cut-outs in the window. The thing with Game City was, the guys would genuinely be happy to help you. If you were trading in for example and came up a few quid short, they'd just wave it. They genuinely appreciated your business and always gave a thank you.
I remember that place well because I first played the Xbox and Halo:CE there.
I just don't want to be forced into supermarkets as the only retail option. We're lucky to have an HMV on our high street, but if that closes we have no alternatives.
While online and supermarkets are good for discounts, I like having a browse on a Saturday morning in the high street, and I like knowing I can pick some games up on release date rather than playing the postman lottery. Supermarkets require a conscious trip which is a pain.
Cosmonaut X
Member
Used to get all my ST games from WH Smiths, random little computer shops, corner shops that had stock of odd compilation discs or budget titles, and mail order for bigger games that weren't stocked anywhere near my neck of the woods.
No, I don't know the area well enough, sorry. That is disappointing that they gave such good customer service but probably won't be there anymore. Sounds way better than dealing with these faceless companies who only care about money. Where's the love for gaming gone?
bitoriginal
Member
I totally agree, I think it's very important for a specialist games retailer to have a presence on the High Street.
Supermarkets and HMV will do for a time, but the problem with HMV is that they are too slow when it comes to re-pricing products to keep up with the competition. HMV just can't keep up with the constantly changing prices of games. For example, they are currently selling Halo ODST for £20 when you can buy it for £1.98 in Game.
This has benefitted me numerous times when it comes to trading stuff in as they generally offer higher prices than Game/Gamestation, but if they are the only presence on the high street for games then I'm going to be shopping for games almost exclusively online. I really hope that the majority of Game stores will be replaced with another specialist game store, or fingers crossed maybe we'll see the rise of some great indie stores.
checkeredknight
Member
Oh, this reminds me! We have two Game Boy Micro's sitting in our stock room; a pink and a green one IIRC. If they're still up there on my shift tomorrow I'll take them down and check the prices for you, if you like.
bitoriginal said:
You'd be surprised how uninformed some people are. I've over-heard a few customers saying they're looking forward to it despite it being out already. There's a lot that shop at GAME / GameStation and no-where else. One woman told me yesterday she's shopped at GS for nine years and would never go anywhere else (no idea why.) A lot of people (such as this woman) don't trust using their debit / credit cards online as well. If we don't stock it, they don't buy it. Simple as.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
That's basically what it's about. They don't much care about retail as an industry to be in, but want to leverage their publisher and developer relations to get into the extremely lucrative digital distribution market. That and expanding Virgin Money so that it becomes a real competitor in high street banking, just for clarity, Barclays made £1.2bn profit last year on their UK high street banking alone. Paying £80m for a few hundred retail locations to convert to Virgin Money and also gain a foothold in the digital distribution market that is worth potentially billions in the next 10 years is definitely a risk worth taking if the right people are put in charge, basically not the current board.
No, I don't know the area well enough, sorry. That is disappointing that they gave such good customer service but probably won't be there anymore. Sounds way better than dealing with these faceless companies who only care about money. Where's the love for gaming gone?
Yeah, around for 16 years! I remember buying FFIX from them. Also my bro got Majora's Mask and the Expansion Pak needed to play it in some sort of deal.
They were pro. RIP Game City.
bitoriginal
Member
I hope you're right. Where I live, when a store closes down, 90% of the time it gets replaced by Poundland.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
On the nostalgia front I remember buying FFVIII in the Enfield town EB Games on the way home from school, I had to get the 307 from Barnet and then the W8, but the 307 would stop outside Palace Gardens in Enfield and the EB Games inside was awesome. Bought so many games there on the way home from school.
I remember when I applied for a job there in 2003 and was distraught when they turned me down. D:
I remember when I applied for a job there in 2003 and was distraught when they turned me down. D:
So true! Near to my GF there was a massive Border's store. 2 floors with a Starbucks and small GAME franchise inside. The books were overpriced but for gaming magazines, there was no better alternative.
But when they went, a Poundland moved in.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
When Woolies closed down we ended up with a 99p stores. Terrible place, but really they have pretty much all the same stuff that Woolies used to stock bar the new release CDs and DVDs.
CrunchinJelly
formerly cjelly
I love Poundland.
Some stuff is overpriced, though.
Some stuff is overpriced, though.
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