Is Wal-Mart becoming the new Gamestop?

Over the years, Gamestop has made a very bad name for itself; in spite of its success. Gamers all across the United States feel cheated and slighted by Gamestop, and in many cases have all the right to feel so. Even after so long, no other company has become as notorious as Gamestop, but will that all change?

Wal-Mart is the largest chain of massive, discount department stores across all of North America, and have always had a section to sell video games. So far, very little has gone on that has given Wal-Mart's video game section a bad reputation, but some may find what a few stores have done recently to be, quite frankly, unbelievable.

[sumo311]

I would be pretty darn mad if that had been me buying the game. What Jerks! Not even putting a warning on the box!

[ConnorSmith]

I know, no dcency whatsoever. What's it to them to tell people anyways, they're a massive company, won't hurt em

[Darkstorn]

Both GameStop and Walmart sicken me. I get my games exclusively from local Mom and Pop video game stores (and Amazon.com when the have a really good sale).

[MACHone]

It's stupid to stereotype all GameStops just because of a few bad eggs. I work at a GameStop now after working at a (now closed) Game Crazy for over three years and I have to say that 99.9% of all our customers leave very happy. The fact that "everyone hates GameStop" is a myth.

[qface64]

no walmart is not the new game stop that is silly gamestop is still gamestop

i got my heart gold for 32 bucks at walmart NEW!!

[Darkstorn]

@1.3-
There are two logical fallacies in your comment:

1. I never said "everyone hates Gamestop." I said that I hate GameStop.
2. It is not a fact that everyone hates GameStop, I know quite a few people who only feel marginal to it.

[Proxy]

Call up your credit card provider, truthfully explain the details to them. They may indicate that you can legally file a charge back and have the money credited back to your account, despite what Walmart has to say about the issue.

Take your game back:
"Sorry, we don't accept returns on opened games."
"I already got my money back through a Visa charge-back, but here's your game back."

I believe Walmart might fight it and thus reverse it, but you could also fight. It all might not be worth the trouble considering the bargain bin purchase price.

[Nikuma]

Wal-mart is just ignorant. It does suck for this guy that lost 25 bucks, but man this article makes it out to be some huge deal. Oh noes walmart is ignorant to the fact that this game not longer works and are still selling it! Evil corporation omg boycott them!

Really now?

[nnotdead]

agree with Nikuma. Walmart just didnt know any better. plus they tend to have a good return policy, so it should be easy to get your money back.

[anti-fanboy]

I see how Walmart would not have taken it off the shelves after so many years. I don't know if anybody has been there recently but they don't exactly have employees that know all that much about video games or anything at all. It would be one thing if it was Best Buy or Gamestop selling something like this but Walmart a store that is around 100,000sqft. Many things are bound to not get pulled of the shelf. But usually if you give a hard enough time trying to return something they will even take a half eaten candy bar back I mean it is Walmart.

@1.3
Its not hard to have 99% satisfaction when everyone who comes in is 8 years old and don't know any better. I stopped shopping there when I was about that age and every time I bought a used game and went across the street to see the new price at Best Buy for the same price.

[ThanatosDMC]

I like Walmart. I buy my groceries there since it's mostly cheaper than other stores.

[jjohan35]

This article suggests that Wal-mart is responsible to track every game that has been released, including those that are over 3 years old and in the clearance bin? Get real man. Wal-mart isn't responsible for what the developer does or doesn't do. If anything you should have done the research yourself. That's what happens when you buy a game over 3 years old.

[JsonHenry]

The only things I hate about gamestop are the geeks that work there (some are cool, but most are social outcasts for a reason) and the fact they are made to harass you about this deal and that deal when I don't really give a sh!t.

[bruddahmanmatt]

Absolutely. No store is responsible for keeping track of the status of EVERY DEVELOPER'S online servers. It's the author's fault for not doing his homework on an MMO beforehand. I find it absurd that he attempts to blame his stupidity on Wal-Mart. The funny thing about this article is that if Wal-Mart had accidentally say discounted Uncharted 2 to the same price as Uncharted 1, we wouldn't be hearing a damn thing about them "becoming the next Gamestop". The author would have taken advantage of Wal-Mart being unaware and not said a damn thing.

As far as Gamestop being evil, yes they jack up the prices of their used games and try to nickel and dime you into buying everything but the kitchen sink, but it's YOUR FAULT for not doing your homework beforehand and it's YOUR FAULT for electing to trade in your games. The only legit gripe I have with Gamestop and why I refuse to buy games from them is the fact that they remove new titles from the sleeve for "security purposes". I simply don't like the fact that my supposedly "new game" has already been opened. After some of the stories my friend has told me about his experiences working there...no buy from me. Shrink wrap FTW. They can keep their lame pre-order bonuses.

[Dave1351]

haha you people kill me, is walmart supposed to test the game before selling? theres no return on games because people copy them and return them. its not like the product was defective

[SCThor]

Is there a way for Walmart employees to know what MMO games are still playable on line? I mean...I don't think they have the resources to have people checking the internet 24/7 researching that.

Now, if...IF NCsoft sent them a memo letting Walmart know their game wasn't playable no more, THEN is Walmart fault, otherwise it isn't.

[SaiyanFury]

The fact of the matter is, Walmart doesn't deal in used games like Gamestop does. They sell new games, not used ones. And the technical definition of used is an open package that is no longer factory sealed. How is Walmart supposed to keep up with every little thing that goes on in the games industry? They're so widespread in product range that it'd be nearly impossible to them to stay on top of everything. If the author liked the game so much, why didn't he stay on top of the updates regarding it? I'm not trying to defend Walmart as such, but I've never had any problems in dealing with them. The closest Walmart to me and my wife is 25 minutes away, and the only place that sells stuff 24 hours. We're both night owls that prefer to shop closer to midnight instead of during the day when there's a tonne of people present. Reasonable prices, and decent policies (as far as we've ever encountered). I'm sorry the guy was out 25 bucks but it's not Walmart's job to follow the games industry and it's goings-on.

Gamestop on the other hand does really suck. Especially their tendency to sell display copies as new. Whenever they tell me they're out of stock except for the display copy (remember how I said the definition of 'new' was a factory sealed copy?), I'm already on my way to the door before they can turn around to tell me. I just say no thanks and goodbye. It's especially sad, cause if I buy a new game, open it, and try to sell it back to them, they'd call it used, the same as I do. Kinda hypocritical.

[Tricksy]

anyday!

Of course my preferred place to purchase is Best Buy. But I think walmart is the lesser of those two evils.

gamestop and EB should only sell Valve and M$ games that way all the douchebagery can be kept in one place for me to avoid.

[evilmonkey501]

Although wall-mart should stop selling the title , the consumer should still educate themselves before making ANY software purchase.The publisher should also recall any existing stock when a game can no longer be played.This is a double foul.

[mega BIG time]

"This is what will happen..." This article is pure speculation. Fail.

[tdrules]

Gaming retail will be dead in 5 years who cares...

[sumo311]

Right on, I couldnt agree more!

[ConnorSmith]

I dont know about deadd necessarily.... But certainly less significant!

[cyborg6971]

5 years my a$$ try like 15 at least. I'd love to see it in 5 but how in the world would that work. It takes forever to dl 500 mg let alone 25 gb. 2 more console gens then we'll talk.

[ConnorSmith]

That's more like it !

[dirthurts]

I don't buy it. It's as simple as that. I'm sure that there are a lot of people out there like myself.

[qface64]

im one of em im a physical media owner now and i always will be

[Idle h4nds]

I don't see that happening any time soon at least until the average home network reaches 500-750 mb/s.

[SCThor]

I don't care waiting 1 or 2 days after launch day.

[Tricksy]

physical media will be around for a long time.

way too many older generations too used to buying hardcopies. not to mention they will all live longer then previous generations. even if young people can be trained by corporations and the media to not want to have a hardcopy version of their product, that just isnt enough of a demographic for Digital download to compete enough to own the market for a long long time.

Sony is lucky; bluray is going to be around for a long time. longer then dvd probably as the BD can be increased in capacity so much.

[evilmonkey501]

educate thyself and these things wont happen.avoid the impulse.

[KillerPwned]

If you compare Walmart`s prices on games to Gamestop`s. Gamestop, most of the time has the better price even new and not used. Gamestop is not perfect but there is once in awhile they got that one game you been really looking for or a good deal on something that has nothing to do with trades. It also all depends on the kind of people that work there the gamestop i go to the guys there are great and not push overs like i hear about all the time. Walmart eh id only go there if it was like a console that just released i`am looking for.

P.S. To me Amazon is a god at buying games from love that place!

[never_waste_a_bullet]

both gamestop and walmart are bad places, unless you want some elderly person who knows nothing about games, thats why i dont shop at either anymore

my mom went in to get l4d2 for pc and they told her l4d2 wasnt for pc at all, i almost didnt get l4d2 for xmas

[itsralf]

The writer is the same kid who posted an article the other day about how he bought a used game at GameStop and had to pay an extra fee to play online because of the DRM, or something like that...

Look up a game before you buy it, and you'll be fine. Nobody goes into a store to spend $60 on something they know nothing about, anyway.

You can't really expect Walmart, GameStop, Target, Kmart and every other retailer to modify the box art on every game.

[Dac2u]

I love how some people always blame the consumer. If you buy an item from somewhere you have a right as a consumer to open a working product unless you're specifically told you're buying that item "as is," which isn't the case here. If you buy that game you're receiving a game that describes itself as completely functional. Granted, it's probably not Wal-Mart's fault for offering a broken game, most likely the fault is on the game's publisher, we don't know for sure though. Still, the consumer should have the right to buy a working product or be reimbursed.

You seriously believe nobody buys an item for $60 without doing any research?! Have you ever been inside of a store before?

[mikepmcc]

No, he's totally right in this case. The author wrote almost the exact same article a few days ago, whining about how the buyer got "screwed out of their money". Ever heard the phrase caveat emptor? Buyer Beware, should we now require every store to put a notice on xbox games that says "xbox live incompatible"? When will it end...sheesh.

[itsralf]

GameStop didn't warn me that Modern Warfare 2 wouldn't work online for the first couple weeks... Is that GameStop's fault that MW2 didn't work online? No. It's not the retailers fault that a product doesn't work. So quit blaming the retailer.

And like Mike (+bubble) pointed out, should every retailer put a sticker over all of the original xbox games that say that they no longer play online? That would take mass amounts of resources, time and cooperation.

It's the consumer's duty to research a product before they buy it. If you blindly purchase something, it's your problem when you get screwed over.

[EliteAssassin81]

why are ppl hating gamestop now? Where else can you buy a use game and return it in 7 days if you don't like it? My gamestop treats me good and warns about games that might suck. Also gives me great trade in prices, and always have great deals going on

[peowpeow]

EBGames (gamestop in australia?) use to have the worst staff, who didn't know sh*t about games. Seems they've had a staff relisting :P new, young gamers work there. Prices are better nowadays, preowned games get really cheap at this branch !

[Faynob]

they never did me wrong anyway but this story is crazy. But I do hate Wal-Mart and you better believe I'd be pitchin a b!tch about this and get at least some store credit

[Idle h4nds]

I've never had a problem with them either but then again I never sell my games and I see the largest amount of dissatisfied customers are the ones who buy a game and go to try and sell it back a month later to see that it's only worth half of what they paid. Then they go look on the shelf and see the same game being sold for $55.

On the other hand you have many satisfied customers who walk out of the store with a couple year old gems that they missed along the way for $50 or less.

Rule of thumb: never sell your games to any used game seller. Unless you REALLY don't like it or your getting a decent price for it.

[DigitalHorror81]

with you Faynob, but it's not Wal-Mart's fault if (Insert MMOPRG here) decided to kill the servers. That's like buying a used Sega Dreamcast in 2010 and wondering why the internet browser doesn't work. People need to know what they're buying and quit being so damn retarded. Look at Socom: Confrontation. It's online only. When that server is finally killed, you're basically stuck with a coaster. Granted the game is 10/20 bucks used and new right now, but still. Buyer needs to beware and do some research before opening that coveted plastic shrink wrap.

[avengers1978]

The Gamestop I go to is great, the people are friendly and helpful, some of them down right gaming encyclopedias, I've went to gamestop for a long time now and they have never done me wrong. Wal-Mart is a department store you can't expect them to have the knowledge that say a gamestop might. They had something that they had been tring to sell for some time and decided to put it on sale, they probably had no idea that Tebula Rasa was no longer playable. The person buying it should have known though. Wal-Mart didn't do anything wrong as a department store they are only interested in selling as much as possible.

[Shendow]

Ares here over prices their games, rarely you will seen a game that is at $20 bucks that didn't suck bad an I mean really suck bad (We are talking about games that they couldn't sell one copy).

Games that I can find in most stores for under 40 buck is about 60 bucks their, I know most of the people at GameStop here an the only thing I hate about are Gamestop is the manger action like he knows all about Sony and has notthing good to say.

He told me one day that no one has ever sold a 360 to get a PS3 but they have sold their PS3 to get a 360, I watch in one day 3 people sell more 360 titles then I have seen and their 360 for a PS3.

But the fun part is that I watch him talk to a person about 360 Vs PS3, the guy ask if they both had online, an he told the guy yes but XBL cost monthly and he ask what about PSN? Free.....The guy was shock an said "FREE!?!" -_- yep. Guy was sold after that an hearing about what all comes with it.

So not every GameStop is bad, just like not every store you go to or game you get is bad.

[prejur]

I guarantee you Walmart customer service would give a refund.

This comparison isn't even close to being realistic.

[fullmetal297]

I get ten percent discount for practically everything since my sister works at Walmart, so it my haven when it comes to buying games and gaming consoles. But, I've since moved on to PC gaming and rarely shop for games at all.

[Dan50]

I hope not Walmart censors all media that come into it so it can keep its family friendly status. Uncensored music is forbidden and some video games are banned from sale like GTA 3 when it came out Walmart didn't sell it.

[kingsnake420]

This is not wal-marts fault and i will tell you why. I am a merchant supervisor or dept manager of d5 electronics and i happen to know allot about how wal-mart handles there pc products. We have 3 sections of pc merchandize which are new release product, product that is modular for about 4 months and a pc productivity section that has your anti virus and other software. The section that gets switched out every 4 months will get a number of titles that go on recall when they are about to switch out product. This is not a recall based on defective merchandize but a recall just to purely get rid of old product in stores so they aren't sitting on a ton of old product. These recalls are only in affect for a short period of time and if they miss the window to get rid of it they are stuck with it. For that particular store to have tabula rasa only means that the department manager of that stores electronics department is not keeping up on there recalls and therefor is stuck with a ton of product that probably won't sell. If it does it may not even work due to a number of reasons including servers that are no longer up and running. This is due to a very bad dept manager and not wal-mart as a whole because i know for a fact that this software was on recall to be shipped out of the stores because i received the recall through my email and did it myself.

[lightningsax]

This was kinda my reaction to the article too. It's obviously the result of someone in charge of inventory not knowing video games and not keeping an eye on recalls. That's what you'll get when you're in a giant department store that can't afford their own resident gaming guru, and the person in charge of it decides not to keep up on everything.

I mean, as a gamer I know that Tabula Rasa wasn't worth the disc it was printed on, but if I were just a manager with no interest in the stuff, I'd have to keep up on the recalls. Not Wal-Mart's fault, just one person.

[Theoneneo81]

I love gamestop dont see why people whine as much I'll admit the trade in value does Suck but besides there In general if i get a game its either Gamestop or the occasional Amazon if its a better deal.

[xboxlover]

The Origional xbox live for 80 bucks(comes with 2nd splinter cell and a ghost recon game). Also the origional dvd playback kit for 50 bucks. I laugh everytime I see them, and am sad everytime I think of some well wishing parent/grandparent getting this for their kid/grandkid for their xbox 360. The people there are useless and I help parents or whomever is buying stuff from the electronics anytime I can.

[ZILLA]

people go to wal mart.i go to GAME STOP cause its like a meeting place for gamers not just buying a game and leaving.i think they should have a store called HARDCORE GAME,and set up game tourneys and have contest in house that would be sweeeeeeeeeeeeet!

[Coolmanrico]

I think it was just a mistake. Most people at walmart don't have any clue about video games. If it was Gamestop on the other hand it would be a different story and even then if Gamestop wasn't notified there is no way someone could have prevented this.

[JRisburning]

Price matches...which is pretty sick...but maybe because it's not a SUPERCENTER, just a small one.

[DJFildez]

I think the people at Gamestop know everything about video games, so if you have a question, those guys can help you, but at a Wal-Mart? i highly doubt they have the knowledge the guys at gamestop do.

[stuntman_mike]

in the U.K Wal-Mart is called Asda and i always check there first when buying a new game as they are always £5-£10 cheaper, and as for the staff its right that they dont know much about games they just put what they have out on the shelf.

now on to the article as i understand it Tabula Rasa is a pc game and in all stores in U.K you cant return P.C games because of piracy and such. also if the guy knew Tabula Rasa was no longer playable why buy it, he should have said to the shop staff or store manager of the game.

[ATi_Elite]

To this day I don't understand why people hate Game Stop? Most of the people I talk to in Game Stop play the games while no one is in the store so when I ask them questions about a game they have a lot of useful info.

They let me know what's good or what sucks and most important Release Dates and pre orders.

Before I stopped playing on consoles it was the best place to troll for cheap games as well. It's still the best place to go to buy little kids birthday presents.

Happy birthday little Johnny i got u Pokemon, Yu Gi Oh, and Ben 10 now GO away.

[Scary69]

Some of you sound like idiots. First the open game policy is everywhere including best buy. How can a company place a sign stating this game does not work half of walmart employees do not play games and those that do play the newer games.I think walmart should have tested their games on one of their PS3's and once they realize it did not work exchange it for something else.This happen to me once with a PC game I called home officer and was refunded my money. Rather then whine about how the game did not work contact corporate or even the game manufacture until something gets done. Sheesh Not everyone can hold your hand to do things you need to do them yourself.

[Dac2u]

@mikepmcc - Here's what I keep seeing about caveat emptor "This rule is not designed to shield sellers who engage in Fraud or bad faith dealing by making false or misleading representations about the quality or condition of a particular product." There's a hell of a lot more to caveat emptor than "buyer beware."

@dinorawrr - If you had read what I wrote, you'd have seen my mention of the game probably being the publisher's fault. So, I wasn't blaming the retailer, unless of course they were told by the publisher that this game wasn't working and Wal-Mart decided to sell it anyway. Also, yours and mike's points about the Xbox live not working are moot, since the games still work as far as single player goes. The game mentioned in the article is 100% unplayable. And no, it wouldn't take massive resources to make a simple sticker and place it on the Xbox cases, not that I'm suggesting they should do that, I just wanted to point out that you're wrong again.

[ImmortalLegend]

Ok, so my friend bought a used PS3 from there for like $240 I think and wanted to take it back after only a week because he wanted a slim and the ps3 he got smelled like cigarettes lol. So he went to take it back to the gamestop that he bought it from and they said that the serial number in their database (I guess) didn't match the one that he tried to take back and they also said that when they plugged it in it didn't work. The thing is, it was working before it he even took it back and he had the receipt and everything! They refused to take it back and offered him only 50 dollars to trade it in! I also have another story about one of my experiences with my local gamestop, but I don't wanna make this too large of a wall of text lol. To sum things up, F**K GameStop and long live Amazon.com.

[ReBurn]

Caveat emptor.

You should always know what you're buying before you buy it.

[JeepGamer]

Wal-Mart = Isolated case largely happening due to ignorance.

Gamestop = Company that knows exactly what it's doing as it becomes a glorified pawn shop and harasses customers.

[Morgue]

So now people expect some random Joe or Jane that works in the electronics/game department at Walmart to know when a online game that was placed in the bargin bin has expired? Obviously the guy knew enough about the game too buy it but yet didn't know it wasn't playable online anymore?

[JJFNIGHTS80]

To tell you the truth guys I work here at a Wal-Mart Electronics dept. Been working for years. I HATE THE COMPANY BUT I get good benefits if I stay their even though not helping paying through college and still have a job. Their strict on returns and exchange. 15 days for GAMES OR COMPUTER SOFTWARE. UNOPENED, if it's open not working you can ONLY EVEN EXCHANGE WITH RECEIPT. Game consoles with THE ORIGINAL BOX, MANUAL REMOTE A/V CABLE CONTROLLER, POWER CORD EVERYTHING, WITH RECEIPT YOU GET FULL REFUND. I keep telling people to save the receipt make sure it's UNOPENED then you can return with full refund. Rent the GAME BEFORE YOU BUY IT. YOU CAN'T RETURN A UNOPENED GAME JUST BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT IT. Cause the return company won't give the store their credit. I tell customers rent before you buy if you can't make up your mind so that way you won't waist your money.

[lightningsax]

Where the heck would someone rent Tabula Rasa for PC before they buy it? If there's a place, they should also stop renting it.

Why the heck would someone who didn't know about the shutdown find out about it before opening the packaging?

Sure, if you're going to buy that game, you should know what it is beforehand. People on N4G know that. However, a company doesn't make a nice, shiny cover and have it displayed on a shelf marked "Sale" or something to attract gaming snobs like us. That attracts parents and clueless kids.

It's awesome that you're doing your job, and that you're a gamer who sells games. Obviously this one person responsible for this at this one store isn't much of a gamer.

The article is dumb because it blames the whole organization, but your reply - unopened returns, renting before buying - does not apply to the effects of selling Tabula Rasa to people that have no clue.

[EliteAssass1n]

only reason why i still go to Gamestop(called Eb games here in Canada) is for their trade 3, get 1 new. I find games for $10 at my local flea market, and then head to gamestop to trade those three in for a new game (2 weeks ago, it was BF:BC2). so essentially i paid $30 for a $80 game. awesome.