Confessions Of A GameStop Shift Supervisor

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I encourage anyone that has ever purchased a game at GameStop to give this “28 Confessions Of A GameStop Shift Supervisor” article a read.

G, a shift supervisor at GameStop, is tired of all the GameStop bashing that goes on on the internet, and has written us a very lengthy guide to shopping at his store. Some of it is useful. Some of it is a defense of GameStop's unpopular policies. All in all, if don't enjoy being harassed for reservations or sold opened, "gutted" games, you should probably just shop somewhere else.
 
I was a Gamestop shift-manager many moons ago. I always hating telling my employees to push reserves and magazine subscriptions. What is worse, is having a little kid bring in their old used games and us only giving him a few bucks for 4 or 5, then we turn around and sell those games for damn near 1000% of what the "value" of the game is according to the system. It's really crappy. So glad I don't work for them anymore.

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention there was a new store that opened up that I was a part of, a few months after the numbers posted, they FIRED all of the employees there? Starting for the manager (one of my good friends), assist-manager, myself, then the rest of the employees? They sat us individually in the back of the store and had us tell them why our numbers weren't as high as the mall store location. We were next to a friggin' Walmart that had the games for less, in the middle of nowhere? Gamestop a good company? I think not.
 
its sad that i can go into bestbuy or target hell even walmart and get gh2 but i cant get it at gamestop/ebgames.


lets take there preorder thing for example i have 3 friends that are mangers/co mangers at gamestop. there district manager bitches to them that there not meetin there reserver quota for certain games. i tell them the reason there not is cause the military base is deployed. anyone living near a base knows when the base is deployed cause all business suffer. but they dont care they just want them to meet there number.

and i highly reccomend never buy a used game ever. reason why is because the devloper is not seeing that as a sale or getting any of that money on that used game sell. the profit is going to gamestop. so quit worrying about saving 5 bucks buy the full version and support the devloper.
 
Oh.

*sheepish* I misread that as Confessions of a Gamestop Shoplifter.

Which would be another interesting article.
 
At least he's smart enough to NOT agree w/ lending to employees of games. That should not be done in ANY case whatsoever - and reason enough that they should not be gutting a single package. No package guts, less chance of having a fubar'd/missing/etc game. If they want to allow employee loaners, take a hit for the company and put out 1 or 2 copies of a game for STORE/EMPLOYEE USE ONLY, and then sell the game afterwards (could probably write that off as a business expense in the end!). You're only f*cking the consumer and creating bad will by allowing this, 'reliable' part-timers or not.
 
As I often do, I agree with Penny Arcade:

Mike Krahulik from Penny Arcade said:
I continued trading in the games I had brought and mentioned to Tycho that we should just run across the street to Best Buy and get COD 4. John piped up from atop his over turned apple crate. "They won't have it until tomorrow" he told us. Actually Best Buy had plenty. In fact they had so many they actually had them stacked next to the registers in case people wanted to buy them. This is what shopping in a fucking store is like! You go in and buy what you want. You can take your 28 confessions and shove them up your fucking ass. How about instead of giving me a 40 paragraph strategy guide so I can shop in your pawn shop without getting screwed you just sell me a game when I ask for it.

http://www.penny-arcade.com/
November 7th's news post.
 
Oh.

*sheepish* I misread that as Confessions of a Gamestop Shoplifter.

Which would be another interesting article.

:D So did I.

Sounds like Gamestop employees are at the mercy of either a cutthroat industry, bad management or both. Since I play PC games exclusively (and GameStop doesn't carry any of my old PS1/Nintendo/SNES faves) it's irrelevant, but sad. I don't see how they can compete with big box stores like Wal-Mart and Target.

The article was well done but it doesn't sound like anything other than a panacea to cover up bad business practices.
 
it has been a LOOOOOONG time since I bought through GS/EB. Reserving games there means nothing...absolutely nothing. 4 out of the last 5 times I reserved a game, I show up to get the game (*on launch day) only to find that there is NO copy for me.

One time they called me on my cell phone to pick up my game, as luck would have it, I was already next to the mall at BestBuy. In less than 15 minutes, my game wasn't there and the store manager blamed not enough shipped to cover pre-orders. I asked:

A.) Why sell more pre-orders than you can supply?

B.) Why did you call me to say I could come get my game?

Response:

"If you are going to get upset you will have to leave the store."

So I left the store....for good.

lame.


Besides, the selling used games thing hurts the industry as a whole and GS/EB is rarely ever cheaper than BB -Wal-Mart.
 
...in defense of the store manager that told me to leave if I was going to get mad, it probably wasn't his fault...I look mad all the time. I look mad when I am happy, so he probably mistook my "annoyed" look for "I will kill you and go next door and get a Mrs. Fields cookie" look.
 
...in defense of the store manager that told me to leave if I was going to get mad, it probably wasn't his fault...I look mad all the time. I look mad when I am happy, so he probably mistook my "annoyed" look for "I will kill you and go next door and get a Mrs. Fields cookie" look.

heh, I am the same way.

Anyway, I buy most of my games at Target.
 
" BY CAUSTICITTY AT 11/06/07 12:14 PM

Psh. It is fine for THEM to open the games and sell them at full value, but if you dare open the game, play it and don't like it enough to return it the same day, you're definitely not getting anything near the full value back."


I agree with this fellow. Honestly have to wonder how such a crappy little business keeps on kicking. The employees hate it, the customers hate it... why is it still around?

Reminds me of working for TAG / USSC. Lure people in with more than double minimum wage then have to keep luring more in because they quit so damn fast. But hey if you can answer a phone and tell a gateway person that although their computer isnt working right now, they should really buy some Norton Antivirus... then its all good...... Since they are getting their few bucks a minute from their client.
 
Personally, I don't even go to stores to get games anymore. I order from gamestop online. No preorder, they have always shipped on time, you just have to deal with a fiew extra dollars for S&H (money that would get eaten up by Gas or public transit anyhow) and getting it a day or two after launch. Which is no big deal to me.

Also about the no preorder, they don't charge you till the game ships. I even have them deliver it to my office so I can oogle the box or if I feel like it, install it on my work computer. Perks of being IT.
 
The store is evil. Unlike BFG, this one deserves all the bad press it can get. I remember getting hassled for trying to return something unopened and w/ a receipt...wtf?

For the past 2 years, I will go to Fry's on release day and pick up the game for $10-$15 bucks left and there are ROWS of them. The only hassle there's the line...but that's filled w/ candy and all manner of electric gonad shaving devices. :D
 
The time spent to write that would have been much better used to work on his resume or sign up for some classes.
 
" BY CAUSTICITTY AT 11/06/07 12:14 PM

I agree with this fellow. Honestly have to wonder how such a crappy little business keeps on kicking. The employees hate it, the customers hate it... why is it still around?

Everyone may hate it, but they don't hate it enough to stop shopping there.
I think the last time I went to Gamestop was when I wanted to get rid of my busted Xbox. Sure, I dont get very much for it, but what do I get if I let it just sit around and gather dust, Nothing!and hey, if I can dump off an old broken Xbox, and a few games and get some money towards a new 360 then its worth it. Thats why there still around, Wal-Mart is not going to give you anything for the old Xbox or games, niether is Best Buy ot Target. Even if you don't like it, its still the only real option out there to dump off your old junk.
 
GS/EB can burn in hell for all I care.

That kind of stupid fuckin letter or post or whatever the hell it is makes me hate them even more for thinking we don't have a reason to hate them. AAAH!!! :mad:
 
Circuit City has all the new PC releases for 40 bucks nowadays anyway. And if you're lucky, you can go through self checkout and not be bothered by ANYONE. EB/GS with self checkout... Hmm... now that's an idea.
 
I always liked funcoland much better than gamestop / EB, maybe it was just because they weren't overloaded with ads for games every which way you look. All the gamestops I've been into the stores look like they're trying to fit way too much into way too little, so they have no room to actually show off the titles without making me feel claustrophobic.

Too bad GS/EB bought them up.
 
Hmm I went into a GS on Halo 3's launch day and didnt have any problems or grief buying it. In addition, the two people working there at the time were two hot ~20 yr old girls.

I may go back there and try to buy Rock Band on launch day. I live a mile from a BB so it probably wont be an issue.
 
I used to stop in now and then and get some DVD's when they had the buy 2 get one free DVD sales and look in the bargain bins for games.

I stopped going there when I was going to buy my Xbox 360 there a couple months ago, and asked the kid at the counter if they had the new 360's with the HDMI in stock. (Not the Elite, but the Pro or Premium with the HDMI) and the kid said: "No only the Elite model has the HDMI and it also has a slightly faster processor and better graphics and we won't be getting those in stock for another few days." :rolleyes::p

Keep in mind that the Premium HDMI 360's were just coming out, but I knew Best Buy and other places have had them for a few days, so of course I figured an actual supposed video game specialty store would have them in stock, or at least have knowledgeable people working there. So after I asked the kid if he's SURE he doesn't have any in stock and even told the kid that I know for a fact I can goto the Walmart which is in the same plaza as the Gamestop I was at and get an Xbox with HDMI, he's like, "Well go ahead but they aren't even out yet."

So then I went to Walmart and got my 360 with HDMI, LOL.:eek: Haven't been back to the same Gamestop since, and only went to another location once to get Oblivion GOTY for my 360.
 
As I often do, I agree with Penny Arcade:Originally Posted by Mike Krahulik from Penny Arcade
I continued trading in the games I had brought and mentioned to Tycho that we should just run across the street to Best Buy and get COD 4. John piped up from atop his over turned apple crate. "They won't have it until tomorrow" he told us. Actually Best Buy had plenty. In fact they had so many they actually had them stacked next to the registers in case people wanted to buy them. This is what shopping in a fucking store is like! You go in and buy what you want. You can take your 28 confessions and shove them up your fucking ass. How about instead of giving me a 40 paragraph strategy guide so I can shop in your pawn shop without getting screwed you just sell me a game when I ask for it.



http://www.penny-arcade.com/
November 7th's news post.

lol, BRAVO one again Penny Arcade.

While most of what this guy says about not being a dick to GS employees for various reasons is understandable he lost my interest as soon as he dove into the "gutted" games issue. I dont swear often on this forums but if you really think it isnt a big deal, (and thus encourage the snide look i once got when i changed my mind due to it), then FUCK YOU.

first of all, a "niche" shop can still survive without gutting games, grow a brain and use a different box system.

as the man said, vote with ones wallet, maybe he could remind someone why they would go to a GS in the first place if they could indeed hit up a Target or Best Buy that puts the games in nice safe cages or containers, garunteed to never be opened and on display for the world to see. And mind you, GS as a corporation is huge, and tha video game sections at a target or a Best Buy are not often THAT much bigger than a GS.

If i buy a game brand new i want it brand new, games are expensive enough, and now that i KNOW that GS employees can, if they choose, not only sell gutted copies brand new, but CHECK THEM OUT, i am so not going to a B&M GS.

Hell, if for whatever reason, perhaps a pre-order bonus (in my mind the last real reason to buy from GS, or for that matter pre-order a game) why not just get it online, eliminate the store employee and his 28 paragraphs and be garunteed your shiz in sealed condition.
 
Hmm I went into a GS on Halo 3's launch day and didnt have any problems or grief buying it. In addition, the two people working there at the time were two hot ~20 yr old girls.
We need a location on that . TY
 
This was alot of crying imo. They can make all the guides they want, rude uninformed people are that way for a reason. They arent going to read your guide. They dont care, and in all honesty, I cant say I do either. Suck it up, and do your job without whining. Almost all jobs suck, I know mine does and no is playing any violins for me.
 
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