The Video Game Critic

One thing that drives me crazy about Gamestop/EB is how all employees must have been trained in 'sleight-of-hand' tricks. Whenever I buy a game, used or "new", they quickly slip it in the case as fast as they can and put that annoying super glued sticker over it. I always request to hand inspect it beforehand because many times, the discs look like they have been used for knife sharpening.

How so many people can scratch a disc that bad is beyond me. Even "new" games have scratches on them so I would have ended up buying a damaged "new" game without even realizing it. I've also caught one Gamestop employee secretly recording personal information (off my credit card) without asking my permission, which is a major violation of Canada's privacy laws.

Still, it's nothing compared to how Blockbuster video treated me last time. I was looking at a game from the glass case and when I went to look at the box, the employee grabbed it from me and closed the case quickly. I had to hold back from saying, "How the %$^ can I shoplift it right in front of you?"

I understand the video games are a high theft item, but why do we put up being treated like criminals? Can you imagine a clothing store having everything locked in a cabinet being successful?

I never buy new games at GameStop because they shrink wrap returned games and resell them as new.  You can always tell the resealed games from the originals which have wrap that's folded on the edges.

Once they tried to pull "this is the last copy so I'll just take the empty box off the shelf" and I was like "no thank you".  Then the guy got really belligerent like I had insulted him or something.

How companies like GameStop can stay it business is beyond me, but I think it has something to do with how they bastardized the used game market.  Oh, and the fact that they made their own monopoly by buying up the other game stores.

"but I think it has something to do with how they bastardized the used game market.  Oh, and the fact that they made their own monopoly by buying up the other game stores."

Kind of like the same way you hate EA for monopolizing the NFL tag?

I hear ya. The little guy aint got a chance. Somebody does something original and good and what happens? A corporation comes along, grabs it up, and milks it for all its worth.

You remember the 90's when alternative Rock suddenly became popular and the machine sucked the life out of it (poor ol' Kurt . . .)? It's evil man, evil.

Also, did you make up the word "bastardized"? I think I saw that word in one of your latest reviews. You need to copyright that thing or something.

 

After working well over a year as an assistant store manager of a gamestop, a rather large volume gamestop at that, I can tell you the company as a whole is a joke. The give over glorified titles such as game adviser or senior game adviser and for min wage expect young college students to open and close stores, often working on their own or with just one other person to help. A shipment comes in and that shipment must me opened, processed, games gutted and placed in drawers with the cases being tagged and put properly on the shelves. Then you have two areas a day, (unless your the store manager) to clean as well as re-organize. Twice a month sales fliers and all signage has to be changed. Then you have to deal with customers and keep up after the kids that trash the stores...even as an assistant manager i did this for only a few bucks more than min wage. It is never ending you have goals to achieve, 10% when I left, in edge card sales as well as a unit per sale goal and a $$ amount goal. and each year you have to beat the previous day for the past years sales and every night track and write each of theses figures..you have to clock out before you leave, so anyone other than the manager who gets a salary is no longer getting paid while locking up and taking the deposit to the bank. As a low ranking member of the staff they expect you to learn things fast, f 10's, TOH's ect... and if you mess up they punish the management who in turn finds ways to fire you! My advice support your mom and pop video game stores and stay clear of gamestop and most defiantly don't work there.

Oh and the comment about employees not being able to take home new games, if it is a large volume game we were openly allowed (all the stores in our state) to take home a new copy for four days to preview. Yes we resold them as new...Not to mention the games you sell to our employees who are to tired or lazy to process that stack of games you brought in so they deem them defective so they just get to toss them in a large vat for the dm to go through but you the customer still lose over half the games value, $12 for a game they put on the shelve five min after you leave for 45.99.......Or how when a new version or a sequel to a game comes out the original loses half in value but goes up in price on used... Or how the managers and DM's go through the preorders...yep that $5 you put down and moved and forgot to update your number, when they call your house and it is disconnected then the manager cashes it out and you just tipped him $5..

Crystal - thanks for taking the time to chime in.  It's good to see an actual employee corroborating these complaints.

They were who we thought they were!

[QUOTE]After working well over a year as an assistant store manager of a gamestop, a rather large volume gamestop at that, I can tell you the company as a whole is a joke. The give over glorified titles such as game adviser or senior game adviser and for min wage expect young college students to open and close stores, often working on their own or with just one other person to help. A shipment comes in and that shipment must me opened, processed, games gutted and placed in drawers with the cases being tagged and put properly on the shelves. Then you have two areas a day, (unless your the store manager) to clean as well as re-organize. Twice a month sales fliers and all signage has to be changed. Then you have to deal with customers and keep up after the kids that trash the stores...even as an assistant manager i did this for only a few bucks more than min wage. It is never ending you have goals to achieve, 10% when I left, in edge card sales as well as a unit per sale goal and a $$ amount goal. and each year you have to beat the previous day for the past years sales and every night track and write each of theses figures..you have to clock out before you leave, so anyone other than the manager who gets a salary is no longer getting paid while locking up and taking the deposit to the bank. As a low ranking member of the staff they expect you to learn things fast, f 10's, TOH's ect... and if you mess up they punish the management who in turn finds ways to fire you! My advice support your mom and pop video game stores and stay clear of gamestop and most defiantly don't work there.
 [/QUOTE]

Boo Frickin' Hoo. you "worked" for Gamestop and they expected you to do things to make the company profitable... how awful.  

[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]Crystal - thanks for taking the time to chime in.  It's good to see an actual employee corroborating these complaints.

They were who we thought they were!

[/QUOTE]