The Fall of GAME and Gamestation
PC and console games, online gaming, CS clans and minesweeper.
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationI never particularly liked GAME as I thought it generally seemed expensive and tacky, and although I did buy a couple of consoles in there I hardly ever bought games, only when they had sales to be honest. As such I wasn't really bothered when GAME in my town closed as I still had Gamestation and Pink Planet Games Exchange (a regional chain) which I thought were better anyway.
It didn't really surprise me that the franchise had got into financial difficulty, as supermarkets and websites such as Amazon have all been particularly competitive on video games lately. I can't quite see it being another Woolworths however, as I think it's still got a bit of life left in it. It'd definitely be a shame to see Gamestation go, but I suppose I'd survive with Amazon and Cex...... -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationI definitely agree. GAME's website was tricky and slow to navigate through at the best of times, I don't think I've ever bought anything from it. I really feel that they should have put more effort into their online services, and overlooking this is probably going to be the final nail in their coffin. A Steam-esque service wouldn't have been a bad idea either.(Original post by Captain Jack)
Really the likes of Game, Gamestation, HMV etc should have been changing their business models years before they tried. They were a number of years behind other companies with moving to online sales allowing the likes of Play and Amazon to get a head start. Then they should have developed a download service like Steam. To me the saddest thing is the wasted opportunity. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and Gamestation(Original post by oElectronic)
I remember hearing something about GAME refusing to be bought over in the past when their financial troubles first started. Maybe they thought they could get it back together? But let's just see what happens now.This is unlikely. Gamestop did have a presence in the UK until they withdrew from the UK in early 2012 and closed all their UK stores. Gamestop are now an online only retailer in the UK, I doubt theyd want a presence in the UK market after closing all their UK stores just a month or two ago.(Original post by Lyde)
Following this with interest. Both me and the husband have thought that this was coming for a long time. The Mass Effect drama seems to be the nail in GAME's coffin.
We are wondering whether Gamestop will buy them out to get a presence in the UK gaming market.Last edited by bloomblaze; 08-03-2012 at 00:50. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationGood. I'm glad GAME is going under, although I sympathise with anyone losing jobs over this. GAME has a policy of offering pre-owned games to the customer before brand new ones, even if it is £1 cheaper, because they keep all the revenue from pre-owned games. Game developers only get money from the first sale of a game, so really GAME have been trying to increase profit at the developer's expense, a bit odd seeing as they rely on game devs. Also, there's been a problem with GAME owning a monopoly over the gaming market in the UK. It has no incentive to compete with reduced titles at other game shops because no other specialises in it. It's sad because I got a GAME card last year and I've never used it. I probably never will. I will find better deals online, such as Play.com and Amazon.
I never even knew Gamestop even had stores in the UK.(Original post by bloomblaze)
This is unlikely. Gamestop did have a presence in the UK until they withdrew from the UK in early 2012 and closed all their UK stores. Gamestop are now an online only retailer in the UK, I doubt theyd want a presence in the UK market after closing all their UK stores just a month or two ago. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationThey did have stores in the UK until early 2012, most of which were in Northern Ireland.(Original post by Snagprophet)
Good. I'm glad GAME is going under, although I sympathise with anyone losing jobs over this. GAME has a policy of offering pre-owned games to the customer before brand new ones, even if it is £1 cheaper, because they keep all the revenue from pre-owned games. Game developers only get money from the first sale of a game, so really GAME have been trying to increase profit at the developer's expense, a bit odd seeing as they rely on game devs. Also, there's been a problem with GAME owning a monopoly over the gaming market in the UK. It has no incentive to compete with reduced titles at other game shops because no other specialises in it. It's sad because I got a GAME card last year and I've never used it. I probably never will. I will find better deals online, such as Play.com and Amazon.
I never even knew Gamestop even had stores in the UK. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationAh, I think my Belfast flatmate may have mentioned it once.(Original post by bloomblaze)
They did have stores in the UK until early 2012, most of which were in Northern Ireland. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationThey had one or two stores in England as well.(Original post by Snagprophet)
Ah, I think my Belfast flatmate may have mentioned it once. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationWell I guess I couldn't have missed it, knowing how very few high streets we have here.(Original post by bloomblaze)
They had one or two stores in England as well. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationThere was one in Birmingham. That's the only one I've ever seen.(Original post by Snagprophet)
Well I guess I couldn't have missed it, knowing how very few high streets we have here.
I remember the days when Game was the cooler version of Electronics Boutique. And I just about remember even further back when EB was called Future Zone. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationGames are still at those prices. PC baby! Oh yeah!(Original post by Yan_k)
This and the fact that the price has gone up over the years. I know about inflation but the price of games went up before the financial fall. When games were £30 and £35 at most those were the days.
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationYeah I saw that and thought the same. Apparently some of the in-store prices are outrageously cheap. Shame i'm stuck in an office with no GAME/Gamestation nearby(Original post by rich2606)
Looks like they are having a firesale on preowned stock.... it's not looking good for them at all.
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationHow much money do you spend going out getting drunk?(Original post by Add!ction)
I just can't justify paying those prices for a video game. I'll stick to my Theme Hospital for PC, that's enough excitement for me
I feel sorry for the staff working in Game stores throughout the UK, however, something like this has long been expected. I mean, there's only so long you can be the most expensive retailer on the market and scew over publishers with your rip off trade in prices (£40.00 for a new game, £38.00 pre owned wut?) before people realise that they can save money by shopping online. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationI don't usually go out and get drunk. If I go to the pub with friends I rarely go over a tenner. I don't have a job so the little money I do get gets spent wisely.(Original post by mikestraws)
How much money do you spend going out getting drunk?
I feel sorry for the staff working in Game stores throughout the UK, however, something like this has long been expected. I mean, there's only so long you can be the most expensive retailer on the market and scew over publishers with your rip off trade in prices (£40.00 for a new game, £38.00 pre owned wut?) before people realise that they can save money by shopping online. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationGood job (y)(Original post by Add!ction)
I don't usually go out and get drunk. If I go to the pub with friends I rarely go over a tenner. I don't have a job so the little money I do get gets spent wisely.
It's my standard response to people who tell my I waste money on video games, then consume about 100 quids worth of booze and fags in a week lol. -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationFollowed this quite closely, but I have to agree, I'm not surprised, the writing has been on the wall for some time. The prices are extortionate, the knowledge the employees have in regards to games etc is actually very poor for a company that purports to be a specialist games retailer. The website is abysmal, add to that there are usually 2-3 GAME/ game station shops in the same area.
IF they've been treating the game dev's like crap to thats not exactly a great sign either tbh, you'd normally expect them to bend over backwards to accommodate GAME as its obviously one of the best ways to get their products out to casual gamers etc, but the fact that they simply will not consider more favourable terms suggests something is seriously wrong tbh!
For a start they could do with downsizing, i.e closing stores and making the hard decisions. Yes, its not the most favourable scenario but if they were to carry on as they are now they would surely go under. IMO what they have to do after that is sort out their website and pricing policies. They can so obviously corner a part of the market if they have a business plan towards it as they obviously cannot compete with the prices online. Maybe corner the second hand market or something like that? Maybe even offsr better deal on bundles of games/ console bundles etc. Personally, i HATE buying consoles online, i much prefer the security a shop offers me in terms of warranty etc and GAME could use this to their advantage if the corporate bigwigs in charge had a clear long term plan of where they wanted to go.
As sad as it is to see them going under, the standard of their customer care, their pricing etc have all significantly eroded over the years, and its unfortunately coincided with the rise of the internet, meaning its hit them harder.
TL;DR: They've got to buck up their ideas or they will fail -
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Re: The Fall of GAME and GamestationI don't think your wasting your money, Game and Gamstation just charge too much and people don't have a choice. I love playing the Sims 3 but it costs hundreds of pounds and on top of that, EA want to make you pay for custom content.(Original post by mikestraws)
Good job (y)
It's my standard response to people who tell my I waste money on video games, then consume about 100 quids worth of booze and fags in a week lol.
