http://ps3.ign.com/articles/784/784989p1.html Bad news for the UK IMO. Gamestation kept things competitive and their used section for retro and PC games was superb. RIP Gamestation! :noooo:
I read about this a few days ago at ign, and it is unfortunate. True competition between two major outlets has been lost under the artificial division of a single corporate entity with two faces instead of one. What is even more offensive, is the fact that they want to make consumers believe that there are true alternatives of each other.
I loved gamestation and the retro stuff they had, It was the only gameshop i would go into and they had more games you were never likely to see in any other gameshop Yes RIP :crying: although i do cling onto the hope game don't completely bugger it up
Seemed to me like Gamestation had been sliding towards a GAME-style business model anyway. In the store nearest to me the space for retro stuff has been seriously cut, and NES, SNES, N64 and Megadrive carts all get dumped into one huge basket. The cabinets that used to be dedicated to retro have now been filled with second hand DS and PSPs. I can't see them continuing to trade retro games for much longer. Anyone want to guess how long it will take for the stores to be rebranded with the GAME logo?
And prices to match. I'd give them 2 years, at most. Remember when EB bought out Future Zone? About a year later and the average prices were higher on all carts. Then EB bought out GAME, it's main competitor, and prices went up again. Ho-hum It's worse in the USA though, especially since Gamestop bought EBGames. Zero real competition.
I thought it was the other way round? If that WAS the case, why did they keep the GAME branding and not EB? Regarding the Gamestation takeover, in the words of Bender: 'I'll get my own retro games store! With Blackjack... and Hookers! In fact... forget the blackjack and the games store! Oh, screw the whole thing.' EDIT: Yay! 'Active Member'!
They kept GAME as the trading name because it was better than EB/Electronics Boutique :lol: Er.. Grats on status change!
They kept the game name as the EB name was registered from EB in the states, they are otherwise unrelated, but the UK company had to keep paying royalties until last year (?) for use of the name.
that really sucks, in my local shopping centre, there are 2 gameshops, game and gamestation, so at least theres some competion between them to get a good deal, now people will have no chance i always preferred gamestation, as the sold retro stuff cheap (got a pokemon stadium 2 cart a few weeks ago for £3 and it was bogof!) and their price on trade in was ok, with game they basically gave you pennies and half the staff didnt have a clue about games
As a gamestation employee, I can give you guys some insider info. Gamestation will remain Gamestation for quite a while. Lots of changes GAME want to make willl result in "monoplolization" charges. Anyway, expect no big changes from Gamestation for a while!
We once had funcoland, gamestop, and electronic boutique. They are now all the same company. 4 stores in the same mall, same company, same shitty duplicate pricing. I refuse to shop at EB, they have terrible attitudes towards people and product, and hate shopping there while being told about wonders of their discount club and magazine. I just go to pawn shops and target. I <3 target.
Here in the BC, there's Best Buy and Futureshop (who are both owned by Best Buy USA) and EB Games. Zellers, HMV, Superstore and Costco all sell games too, but they're not real game stores. Canadians simply don't get as much choice. When I lived in the UK, I always perferred Gamestation. 2 for 20 quid, 4 for 20 quid and the like. I picked up Chu Chu Rocket for 1 quid there, and MGS with Wipeout for a tenner. Metal Gear Solid 2 for 5 quid. In Lincoln there are 2 GAME stores (1 in Debenams and 1 off the High Street), now there'll be no competition at all!
I was speaking to my M8 who left a week ago to be a house husband and he dropped in to his old store yesterday They are supposed to be keeping the two stores running side by side as the people that use each of the stores are completely different. Gamers tend to use Gamestation as staff are always more knowledgeable and can tend to be a bit more flexible on deals/bundles etc and GAME are the fashion followers....those saddos that must have their PS3 and FIFA 200100200 if you get my drift.....no disrepect to PS3 owners here but you know where I am comind from So at the moment they don`t forsee two may major changes.....perhaps some higher ranking staff as two many chiefs!
Thats the reason i use gamestation so i hope they don't change anything, I can never find anything useful in game except pc games.
from my experience in the UK, every game's shop I ve been to are complete n00bs. They know very little about technical matters and are just there to push the games. Also, their second-hand stuff has always been more than I m willing to pay for them, yet when you want to sell them your used games they will buy it at an extreme undervalue. I avoid gameshops here.
Can't see the problem. Instead of 2 shit game shop chains now there will just be one. Game has always been shit, gamestation became shit when they stopped selling imports. The uk games shop scene died back in the 90's, the internet is now where its at. I dont miss walking into a real shop at all.
Game and Gamestation were the only real 2 game companies in England, now i suppose there'll only be Game
Maybe well shall get some more Gamestops here in the uk so there will be a lillte more choice in gameshops and not just two under the one company
