Willco is this true? [GameStop]

[demi]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=334297

I didnt read the rest of the thread... here's the OP

And I'm also canceling my Edge card. Man I feel like a sucker after watching this video.



inb4locked

Basically:

-Gamestop rips you off
-Edge card is an even bigger ripoff since the 10% means nothing if you shop around
-Employees are forced to jam pre-orders and subscriptions down your throat
-employees lie to about not being able to give refunds in order to keep their numbers high
-hours given to employees are based on their numbers, and are often only given 3 hours a week
-standard raise is $00.21 a year, lunch breaks are never given
-when paid, employees are NOT given checks, instead they get a debit card with their pay loaded onto it from a bank sponsored by GameStop

[MrAngryFace]

SALES DRIVEN BUSINESS KEEPS EMPLOYEES WHO SELL?!?! NOOOOO! THIS SHATTERS EVERYTHING I BELIEVE IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The last two sound like bullshit

[Trent Dole]

[Enl]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=334297

I didnt read the rest of the thread... here's the OP

And I'm also canceling my Edge card. Man I feel like a sucker after watching this video.



inb4locked

Basically:

-Gamestop rips you off
-Edge card is an even bigger ripoff since the 10% means nothing if you shop around
-Employees are forced to jam pre-orders and subscriptions down your throat
-employees lie to about not being able to give refunds in order to keep their numbers high
-hours given to employees are based on their numbers, and are often only given 3 hours a week
-standard raise is $00.21 a year, lunch breaks are never given
-paid, employees are NOT given checks, instead they get a debit card with their pay loaded onto it from a bank sponsored by GameStop

With the exception of the bolded everything else is pretty much right on target. I managed a Funcoland for two years until Barnes and Noble took over. Managing Funcoland was a very nice experience since the company was pretty laid back on how they ran things and we were allowed to do what we wanted with the store.

Then when Babbages took over, jesus, it was hell. While Funcoland gave commission on Game Informer subscriptions and warranties, Babbages stripped that away. The freedom we had over the store soon became a slave to advertising. It fucking sucked. On top of that I was let go for not taking out the garbage on a rainy night, despite my store sales being among the best in the district. No shitting you right there.

5 years later I did a seasonal job at one of the Gamestops and at that point the way they ran things became so foreign and chaotic that I will never work there again. 

[MrAngryFace]

I dunno whats worse: Not taking the garbage out cause its rainy, or firing someone because of it

[Beardo]

I dunno whats worse: Not taking the garbage out cause its rainy, or firing someone because of it

[UnoIllNino]

That video was pretty rad, but it was nothing you wouldn't already know if you have been selling games lately.  I use Ebay pretty much all the time.  Either that, or a small mom n' pop store in my town.  I only deal with Gamestop when I need to pre-order a game for some sort of exclusive. 

Like this week, I pre-ordered Socom so I could have beta access.  You can buy an episode of "Qore" to get the same beta, but you don't get access until next week.  Gamestop customers have a week headstart.  Since I had a lot of time to play this weekend, I wanted it now, so I bit the bullet and went to Gamestop.

Here's the kick in the balls though.  When I go get Socom, the game will still cost me $62 and change.  This is AFTER I've given them 5$ down already.  So by that logic, the game is 67.99 at Gamestop when its just $59.99 at every other store.  So really, pre-orders now do NOTHING other than get you whatever bonus item is offered.  Its up to you to decide if its worth it or not.  What I'll probably end up doing is cancelling the few pre-orders I have and compiling them into one game.  That way I only get over-charged once but it kind of evens out when you consider the demos/betas/stuff I've got in exchange.

I actually recently applied at Gamestop for a part-time job.  Just a night or two a week.  Why?  Because I know a lot about games and I would like to be able to chat with my fellow gamer.  I have no loyalty to the company and will not "sell" to the customer if I feel it is not in their best interest.  Fuck that.  I have a full-time job already and don't really need the job at GS, so if they want to practice being assholes, I'll gladly jump ship.  If only every store was full of employees in my same situation.  It'd be a much better experience for everyone.

[UnoIllNino]

My bad.  Double post.

[JustinP]

what do you mean "is this true"?  i thought everyone already realized gamestop ripped consumers off and had awful business practices. 

[Enl]

I dunno whats worse: Not taking the garbage out cause its rainy, or firing someone because of it

Well considering the amount of downpour and where the dumpsters were inconveniently located I thought it would be ok to take it out the next day. I thought wrong apparently.

[cool breeze]

UnoIllNino, I'm pretty sure that the $5 you put towards the game is taken off the final price.  So say the game was $60 and you put down $5, you would only need to spend that $55 when you go to pick it up.  An actual employee can correct me if I'm wrong.

And I never had any problems with Gamestop.  I only buy new games anyway, and if I do buy used games, I'm not daft enough to pick up GTA4 a week after it came out for $5 less.  A few weeks ago I bought 5 used games with a coupon and all together it was under $15 (Just one of these games was $10 on XBL), so I am satisfied on that front.  I also never had an employee force me to pre-order a game or sell me on a magazine.  I also have been given a full refund on a game before.  I start to wonder if people just shop at jackass stores or I shop at nice ones.  This also isn't a short period of time I have been going to EB/Gamestop since I have been shopping there for many years now through various stores and various managers without issues.

[Grecco]

Meh gamestop is only good for flippin games. Problem is the Circuit City near here is garbage too

[demi]

what do you mean "is this true"?  i thought everyone already realized gamestop ripped consumers off and had awful business practices. 

bawwwww

[Mr. Gundam]

He's too busy at the Gamestop manager's conference in Vegas getting free stuff to respond.

[demi]

Then I guess I'll have to keep this thread alive by trolling Sony

[homborg]

-when paid, employees are NOT given checks, instead they get a debit card with their pay loaded onto it from a bank sponsored by GameStop

ahahahahah what the fuck

they also go out back and shoot an orphaned puppy for every lost game informer subscription

[UnoIllNino]

UnoIllNino, I'm pretty sure that the $5 you put towards the game is taken off the final price.  So say the game was $60 and you put down $5, you would only need to spend that $55 when you go to pick it up.  An actual employee can correct me if I'm wrong.

Sorry, bro, but this is not a mistake on my part.  I pre-ordered Metal Gear 4 some time back.  When I went to pick it up, I paid $62.00, though I'd already put down $5.  I didn't realize this until after I was home, and I assumed they just didn't realize I was a pre-order and thought I was a walk-in.  But, I was back a week later and they claimed my pre-order had been picked up.  So basically I paid $67 for Metal Gear 4.  And this was the regular version.

Now its happening again.  I pre-ordered Pure and was told I would owe $62 upon pickup.  I didn't question it though because the manager was there talking to me about employment (even brought up management, so apparently they like me there) and I just figured I'd ask him about it later.  I have only been back in there once since then and he wasn't around, so I'm waiting until I see him again.

I'm pretty sure my 5$ pre-orders are just securing me copies now, not actually going toward purchase price.

[Bloodwake]

Pretty much all of that is true, former GameStop employee here.

We do get lunch breaks, but that is the average raise. The employees lying about returns is bullshit though. It's more of a return policy thing where the manager decides to break it or not due to the circumstance/level of bitching from the customer. If a manager broke policy all the time it would be different.

The rest of it was pretty much common knowledge. And the explanation for the pay card goes like this:

Basically, whenever 9/11 happened, there was some sort of issue that arose (mainly through paranoia) that kept GameStop employees from being paid on time. This is about the time that GameStop decided to make all of its transactions digitally, either by putting it on a debit card or through direct deposit. Direct deposit is, of course, the better option, but this isn't an "GameStop exclusive" business practice. I worked at ACS over the summer as a data entry guy and they gave me the same options. The bank with the cards isn't exclusively affiliated with GameStop either.

3 hours a week is pretty pathetic, but true.

[cool breeze]

Sorry, bro, but this is not a mistake on my part.  I pre-ordered Metal Gear 4 some time back.  When I went to pick it up, I paid $62.00, though I'd already put down $5.  I didn't realize this until after I was home, and I assumed they just didn't realize I was a pre-order and thought I was a walk-in.  But, I was back a week later and they claimed my pre-order had been picked up.  So basically I paid $67 for Metal Gear 4.  And this was the regular version.

Now its happening again.  I pre-ordered Pure and was told I would owe $62 upon pickup.  I didn't question it though because the manager was there talking to me about employment (even brought up management, so apparently they like me there) and I just figured I'd ask him about it later.  I have only been back in there once since then and he wasn't around, so I'm waiting until I see him again.

I'm pretty sure my 5$ pre-orders are just securing me copies now, not actually going toward purchase price.

That is pretty messed up.  Again, this isn't something that happens around my area.