Gamestop

This sh*t is expensive but my kids love video games so I shop here. The staff is always helpful but I always feel like I paid way too much for a piece of plastic. But hey my kids deserve to have fun playing video games after dealing with my crazy ass all day. :)

Location specific: There are currently three Gamstops in Gainesville, this being the smallest of them. The space is long and slender leading to some uncomfortable waits in line. The clientele seems to be particularly bothersome at this location. Every other time I visit there’s some idiot in line that I’m stuck behind running his/​her mouth about their favorite mature rated game.
Company wide: There are a few Gamestop policies and procedures that get me grumpy while shopping at their stores.
1] Trade Value: Gamestop doesn’t give it’s customers anything close to what their games are worth. You’d be better off selling your game through Amazon or eBay than trading here. You’ll often get 50% more than what Gamestop would give you. Note to parents, don’t let your children be taken advantage of when trading here. If you think your kid is getting the bad end of the deal, step in and help them sell their games elsewhere.
2] «New» Items: About 75% of the time I purchase «new» games here, they usually have the shrink wrap and security stickers removed. Their return policy allows customers to return new items, so I’m always suspicious that I’m buying a used game at a new price. When gifting an item, this is particularly bothersome as I’d like the person receiving it to know I got them a new copy.
3] Long line waits: There is rarely a time when I’m not waiting 5 to 10 minutes in line to buy something. This could easily be addressed if their employees weren’t forced into trying to plug extra warranties, game reservations and their store card.
4] Used Prices: There is often only a 3 – 5 dollar difference in the cost of a used game vs a new one. Even if the game is missing the instruction manual and case, they still sell it for the same price as a copy that isn’t missing these items.
Gamestop has been successful in buying up most of their competition which has forced me into shopping here despite my gripes. Gainesville used to have Rhino Video Games before they were bought out. Gamestop doesn’t come close to the service and value Rhino gave it’s customers. R.U. Game moved from Alachua into Gainesville (smart move), but still doesn’t have the selection to compete with Gamestop. As video games are impulse purchases for me, I go to Gamestop to get my fix, but try and sell/​purchase through the internet as much as possible.