While classic retail staples such as Blockbuster and Toys 'R Us failed to innovate after decades of unrivaled success and ended up fading away, one company continues to struggle and desperately try to stay relevant despite changing times. After financial concerns and rumored imminent buyouts earlier this year, GameStop has announced their latest attempt to revitalize their brand. The company will be teaming up with the designer firm R/GA, and plans to renovate some of its stores in order to spice up the "GameStop experience". A few of these ideas include letting consumers play games before they buy them, changing the store layout to "appeal to gamers", offering competitive e-sports sessions in-store, and selling more retro games. R/GA will be implementing these ideas in select stores across the United States. As to whether this is enough to prevent GameStop from becoming a mere relic of the past is uncertain, as one of their previous ventures--trying to pivot into selling mobile devices--resulted in major financial losses for the retailer. It also appears that GameStop's most recent focus, trying to sell more collectibles and toys has not been significant enough to secure the company's future alone.

The partnership with R/GA’s Austin and Chicago teams is part of GameStop’s broader business transformation strategy to evolve its efforts in cultivating innovative customer-centric opportunities to bring video game culture to life in every neighborhood. GameStop’s renewed customer-first focus stems from qualitative and quantitative research led by GameStop and R/GA that identified four major motivations gaming fans have for playing video games – immersion, achievement, creativity and community.

Source

 

[Veho]

letting consumers play games before they buy them, changing the store layout to "appeal to gamers", offering competitive e-sports sessions in-store

So basically what gaming stores had been doing since forever? Wow, such a novel and brilliant idea. Such amaze. Mind = blown.

 

[TunaKetchup]

Gamestops in California should convert into a weed shop

Play games and smoke weed

 

[Silent_Gunner]

In the age of every game being practically unfinished and requiring Day 1 patches (even KS projects like Bloodstained, ESPECIALLY on the Switch), does owning a physical copy grant you much other than an easy way to make backup copies and having to rely upon scouring the Internet for update files for not just the game updates, but system firmware updates, other files needed to get this to work, DLC to work, etc. when the inevitable comes about and the PS4 is no longer relevant enough for Sony to keep their official servers running?

My point is, GameStop may be relevant for a legitimate means of obtaining retro games and collectibles outside of eBay, Craigslist, and other online retailers like Redbubble or Insert Coin Clothing, but not much else, and that's assuming that they're even selling the games at prices people are willing to pay for them. And it ain't gonna be stuff like A Link to the Past or Super Metroid if people know what they're doing and look to eBay on the prices of those games to see how much they could get if there are people willing to pay as much as some of those sales are going for, especially if the game is CIB and in mint condition!

In short, Gamestop will become:



--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Gamestops in California should convert into a weed shop

Play games and smoke weed

GAMERS RISE UP

BOTTOM TEXT

 

[8BitWonder]

Assuming the pricing isn't ridiculous, I'd be down to see more retro games offered and displayed on shelves.
Can never have too many retro stores.

 

[Deleted User]

Maybe if they stopped ripping off their customers their business might pick up.
Only thing I bought from them in 10 years now is my Switch.

 

[XDel]

I'm thinking reach arounds at the door might be nice. I'd probably come back more than once per day in fact!

 

[Xzi]

Oh no way, GameStop is gonna start selling games again?! Le gasp!

Yeah...I don't see this preventing them from going under. They should've spent the money on offering better discounts for members, and maybe it would've delayed the inevitable a bit.

 

[kuwanger]

R/GA will be implementing these ideas in select stores across the United States.

The hallmark of uncertainty.

if people know what they're doing and look to eBay on the prices of those games to see how much they could get if there are people willing to pay as much

eBay requires dealing with shipping prices as well as the lower liquidity of sale. There's also the inherent risk of disputes. If Gamestop wants to change, they'd model themselves harder on volume on the arbitration of price rather than the price difference. Their prices don't have to be substantially better than eBay. It's enough to be really close and just have the buy/sell price be different enough to recoup costs and for profit. I don't imagine Gamestop wants to take the risk, though.

 

[Idontknowwhattoputhere]

I guess the games will still stop

 

[FAST6191]

Can't say I have been in many in recent years but I would not have said renovation is what was necessary -- most things seemed functional enough. The lack of stock, the lack of staff, the lack of people giving a shit such that online or going to any number of other locations was a far superior experience, listening to some of the manglement then the lack of ability to tailor your stock to the location conditions and so forth did them in, possibly not helped by some people falsely assuming downloadable games as they presently stand are the way forward. Can't call the rip offs (it is the standard pawn shop model) but the lack of some of the nicer deals and incentives did not help matters so much.

That said kicking it old school ( http://www.actsofgord.com/ ) is not a negative move.

 

[tech3475]

In the age of every game being practically unfinished and requiring Day 1 patches (even KS projects like Bloodstained, ESPECIALLY on the Switch), does owning a physical copy grant you much other than an easy way to make backup copies and having to rely upon scouring the Internet for update files for not just the game updates, but system firmware updates, other files needed to get this to work, DLC to work, etc. when the inevitable comes about and the PS4 is no longer relevant enough for Sony to keep their official servers running?

DRM and Price may still be factors depending on the user/context.

I've seen games on discount physically while still being full price digitally.

 

[Godofcheese]

I stopped buying from gamestop after they stopped selling pc games, including Collector's editions.
Also after when I had an argument with an employee that called me stupid for playing on PC, and that I couldn't resell the games.
= sell games to gamestop and get ripped off.

 

[Silent_Gunner]

I stopped buying from gamestop after they stopped selling pc games, including Collector's editions.
Also after when I had an argument with an employee that called me stupid for playing on PC, and that I couldn't resell the games.
= sell games to gamestop and get ripped off.

Wow, 10/10 customer service. I've gotten better service at Walmart! XD

 

[tech3475]

I stopped buying from gamestop after they stopped selling pc games, including Collector's editions.
Also after when I had an argument with an employee that called me stupid for playing on PC, and that I couldn't resell the games.
= sell games to gamestop and get ripped off.

I've heard that GS employees are pushed to sell second hand over new, including one story where someone sold a new game as second hand, so that might be one reason why they hate PC copies.

Personally, last time I went into a GS, I looked online and found near enough everything I looked at cheaper online.

 

[Godofcheese]

I've heard that GS employees are pushed to sell second hand over new, including one story where someone sold a new game as second hand, so that might be one reason why they hate PC copies.

Personally, last time I went into a GS, I looked online and found near enough everything I looked at cheaper online.

I once tried selling a sealed copy of a game (console)
They tried to make me believe that a 70% cut on the retail price was a fair deal.
Sold it instead on Tradera for almost full price. (Swedish version of eBay pretty much)

 

[D34DL1N3R]

Assuming the pricing isn't ridiculous, I'd be down to see more retro games offered and displayed on shelves.
Can never have too many retro stores.

You must be pretty young. Gamestop had retro games for a looooooooooooooooooooong time before pulling them due to lack of sales. The lack of sales was due to their ridiculous pricing, plus far too many copies with no cover art and/or game manual.

 

[Chary]

You must be pretty young. Gamestop had retro games for a looooooooooooooooooooong time before pulling them due to lack of sales. The lack of sales was due to their ridiculous pricing, plus far too many copies with no cover art and/or game manual.

I’ll never forget the cluttered look of a GameStop from the early 2000s, where dozens of carts of shovelware NES and genesis games filled bins upon bins that no one ever bothered to glance at.

 

[Silent_Gunner]

I’ll never forget the cluttered look of a GameStop from the early 2000s, where dozens of carts of shovelware NES and genesis games filled bins upon bins that no one ever bothered to glance at.

I actually heard that Mike Matei got James Rolfe all of those NES games for the AVGN show by going clearance shopping at GameStop. Talk about an investment! (not that I'm a fan of Mike Matei compared to James Rolfe, he's like that guy who replaced Steve in Blue's Clues)

 

[leon315]

Just compare GS' to its competitors like Amazon, GS has most expensive offers above them all, amazon offers games at far cheaper price, even on D1 products along with free delivery to your home/workplace, and you can sell unwanted used games on Ebay at highest bidder, there's really no reason to do any business with GS anymore, aty least a sane people.

So basically what gaming stores had been doing since forever? Wow, such a novel and brilliant idea. Such amaze. Mind = blown.

dude, the sarcasm was spotted kilometres away.