Is retail dead?

Consumers are out spending billions of euro/dollars around the world in outlets that sell video-games, peripherals, consoles and other gaming accoutrements. But I haven’t stepped into a bricks-and-mortar game store in months. I’ve been in one maybe two or three times in 2010. Am I a lone wolf in the digital age, or are gamers turning away from their retail brothers…

[Substance101]

For most PC gamers likely. I havent been to a retail shop in 3 years atleast, aside the time i went to buy SC2. About 150games on steam now.

Also retail never has the complete game library anyways, so pointless going there, on digital networks i can pick any game i like and when the discounts roll in it gets even crazier.

[HarryMonogenis]

I get most of my games from Amazon UK now. Their prices are nearly --if not always-- much, much cheaper. On top of that they sometimes offer those £10-£20 vouchers with a purchase -- which just makes you think "might as well shop at Amazon again."

I just find it annoying to see retailers complaining about sites like Amazon, but don't do anything to counter them -- like their own discounts etc..

[cakeisalie]

I get most of my games from Steam or D2D these days depending on who has the better offers. Most games 2-3 months after release can be had very cheaply like between 10-20usd. Which can result in a huge saving.

Retail pretty much cant compete.

[deadreckoning666]

Retail ain't dead...by thats were their gunna end up unless they can find a way to stay competitive with the great prices at Amazon and Ebay.

[AAACE5]

I've been to several stores over the past few weeks and retail is far from dead! Seems like stores like Gamestop have been losing some business due to the fact that a lot of times you can get better deals elsewhere.

Just stopped at a Target today and it confused me! They had lots of Kinect sensors on display, but had absolutely no 360's in stock. I found lots of PS Move sets, but only 1 Ps3 was in stock. The crazy part is, it looked like no one was interested in the Wii as they were fully stocked.

The numbers from this holiday season should be fun to watch!

[jessupj]

Last time I bought a game in an actual store was more than 2 years. I rent by mail and I only buy online. Why spend $120 instore when I can buy the same game online for $60. It's takes another week to get to me but it's a no brainer

[HolyOrangeCows]

"But I haven’t stepped into a bricks-and-mortar game store in months"

Just because this guy is a shut in, doesn't mean the outside world disappeared. He should drive by some of the retail stores around here, lines jetting out the door at every new release.

[BlackTar187]

yea unless they find a way to give me cheaper prices with 10-20 credits then amazon will always get my business.

[Letros]

PC, yes
Consoles, no

[TANUKI]

It's quite true. Most of the game stores around my area, have reduced their PC games to just ONE table-shelf thing. For console games, you get at least 4-6 walls full.

It really sucks, b/c I primarily game on PC (PS3 close second...).

[visualb]

true.

the day downloading a 20+ Gb game onto your console is a piece of cake things might change.

I still like having the case, the booklet, etc though =)

[Raoh]

pretty much.. i'm buying my ps3 exclusives but i'm buying everything that else via steam for my pc

[LarVanian]

Is retail dead? Obviously not. Most people buy their consoles and games from retail shops. Not everyone has internet to buy goods from places such as Amazon, Play or Ebay and I know a good few people who don't feel safe buying things online. Retail is here to stay (At least in my lifetime).

[thorstein]

Christmas... How is Santa supposed to give my kids games ??? I honestly can't imagine them coming down on Xmas morning and getting a note that reads, "Santa Downloaded your Favorite game on the PS3 for you!"

AND, there is something great about having the game in hand. It also makes it more portable and available to be resold. You can't resell digital copies.

[Ducky]

... how short is your lifetime? O.o

The only issue so far is that not everyone is hooked to the net. That can change within half a decade.

Movies are almost on the point of being digitally distributed as well as games on the PC... console games will follow shortly down the same road.
Publishers hate the used game trade, so they'll be keen to thwart out retail too. Cut the middle man.

[NeoSprtacus]

@thorstein

Amazon delivers.

What I used most for Christmas shopping.

[Stealth20k]

hahahahahha

Absolutely not, even on the pc, sales are still higher with retail but more units are sold with dd because its cheaper.

And besides, retail sales have never ever been higher so how is it dying?

Another bullshit article

retail will never die. Its the same reason music,books, movies/dvds are still sold in stores. Games are the same.

Once retail dies, the industry dies. Its a requirement

DD wont be the prominent option (but still only an option) for 25-50 years. Microsoft,nintendo,sony all feel this way.

[CharlesDCI]

Man, everything is dying nowadays

/s

[DarkBlood]

true true

/s

[CrAnKiTuP_01]

I know huh

/s

[rbanke]

Retail is totally dead. Just today, I downloaded a ham sandwich, a pair of jeans and a case of beer.

Really though, as far as gaming is concerned, retail is dieing but wont be completely out of the picture for years. There is far to many people with slow internet. Also a growing movement TOWARDS bandwidth caps. That combined with the people who dont yet trust digital distribution or just like owning a hard copy, will ensure that retail game sales are here for a while longer.

[newhumanbreed]

They mean retail as in electronic retail stores, not grocery stores. Other than food, I buy everything from Amazon as it's cheaper to get my item delivered to my home than to drive out to a store and pick up it my self.

Things like TV's, radios, and PC's will keep electronic retail stores alive since people like to try those things out before they buy them. People will probably slowly, but surely stop buying games from retail stores since they most likely will pay the typical $59.99 slapped with sales taxes if they live in a state with sales taxes.

[rbanke]

serves me right for only glancing at the article and assuming it was a digital distribution vs retail article lol.

Yes, in that sense, it seems to be taking a hit. I did 85% +- of my Christmas shopping online, and tend to buy most things online if i can help it. It's more convenient for me and usually much cheaper.

I think there will always be room for both though. Maybe online shopping will be the gateway for us to go back to smaller more focused stores rather than super walmart style stores.

[lil boy blue]

lol funny thing I read all day

[theonlylolking]

No

[Freshnikes]

Gamestop I avoid that place like bad bud.....it is like a geek reunion in there....when I got the move...dude kept telling me about the kinect coming out soon do you wanna pre-order...c'mon son just ring me up....I got the psp go last week and same story ...dude trying to tell me how psp 3000 is better and I can't get this new game blah blah blah even after I told him nah I'm cool this is for my 4yr. Old son that was with me...he kept going I wanted to slap this revenge of the nerds geek....I'm done with gamestop I started buying my games from wal-mart they just ring you up and you keep it moving ....only got the psp go...cause it was $150 at gamestop...I notice a lot of the ppl in gamestop are getting some used xbox game...and look let just say trashy and that is being modest .....Sony needs a apple like store with high end gadgets...gamestop fails....

[jashmister]

I wish they would in Australia they overprice everything and deserve a unattended funeral.

[BlackTar187]

i can't stomach how much retail is in other parts of the world. When i travel it scares me.

[visualb]

no but the creativity of some "journalists" is...

[projectmayhem]

If that was a dig at me then fair play - you're the first one to call me a journalist, rather then an opinionated blogger twat.

Though it is kind of the same thing...

[a08andan]

Well both yes and no. Retailers such as Gamestop, Game etc with physical stores will eventually disappear or become very rare. I see no reason to why people won't start ordering physical copies of their games online instead of going to a store. It is cheaper, and people are always looking for ways to save money. I mean, why pay $60 or 60 euros or similar in a store, when its available on for example amazon for $50 or even $40 with delivery-cost included.

[Omega Zues]

Ive stopped shopping at Gamestop a long time ago. Back in the day Funcoland was amazing. The last time I entered Gamestop I was surrounded by piles of used games and couldn't for the life of me find a new copy. To which then I was givin a 10 min speech from the Clerk on why I should pre-order,reserve, pick up a guide, trade in ect ect. Every time I said no, the Clerk just continued to push his sales pitch harder. For a moment I thought I was in Mexico being pushed in to sales.

Needless to say that was the last time. I stick to Bestbuy and better yet, Amazon.

*No offence to Gamestop employees, I understand your just doing your job.*

[rulakir]

I prefer having physical media, but i do own downloads.

[AKissFromDaddy]

I shop exclusively at Amazon and Steam for games. I actually shop at Amazon for everything else too.

[nskrishna2]

Lol...in my country where even a 1mbps connection is rare...Digital Download will never work for at least 10 to 15 years..even that is doubtful..
I love Retail stores....we get the game and no waiting for downloads...

[A LIVING LEGEND]

Retail isn't dead but in decline.
To survive it must adapt.I prefer a store with people as opposed to a domain with personas.
Having said that,a savings of 30% is enough to ignore the local retailer.

[cheetorb]

Funny, article sounds like some PR rep trying to push digital downloads instead of hard copies.

[projectmayhem]

Reading it back it does sound like that alright... half way through writing it I realised how much I dislike going into bricks-and-mortar stores. Sorry :P

[Rich1631]

I always like having physical copies of a game.

[DJMarty]

Is retail dead? Obviously not. Decent Gaming Journalism is dead and buried.

[ThePiousPriest]

Retail is almost completely dead PC wise (only reason why I shop retail PC is because my apartment complex has me locked into their ISP and downloading 1 gig + files takes hours on end.). Console wise, retail will become extinct, just other factors will determine when.

People say retail won't die, but content delivery has always changed and evolved. No one thought Blockbuster in the 90's would be in the position it is in today. Couple a business model with unpopular items (late fees and billing), absurd return times and a new, cheaper, alternative and Blockbuster is in serious problems. Even after closing more stores, they are still encourage folks to push Blockbuster's alternative a la Redbox, then dismissing the persons encouraging the alternative.

Once word gets around to the industry that digital distribution isn't just some far fetched way the gasping for breath PC Industry (which isn't the case, the notion of PC Gaming dying has simply been perpetuated by those who have a vested interest in it failing), it will catch on. Gamestop talks of being interested in digital content delivery, but it really is just a middleman trying to act as a wedge between Sony and Microsoft to protect it's main source of profit (used games). If it came down to a war between Steam and Gamestop, Steam wins due to the way it can move massive amounts of games and its reputation. Gamestop could try to flounce out the funny commercials, but people would eventually see through it and the excessively high profit margins.

[HK6]

Until console sellers realize that we won't pay more for a virtual copy of a game that is stuck on our hard drive as opposed to a physical copy with resale value, then retail will still be alive.

[Spenok]

Now the author may not have gone into a retail store very often. And the online retail space for Games has vastly improved its sales as of late. That hardly says that retail is dead. With over 7k Gamestops WW and an average of 1.5 stores opening each day, Walmart, Bestbuy, Frys, Target, ToysRUs and just about every other retail outlet that caries any kind of electronic carrying some sort of game, Retail sales for games is hardly out the window, and will be around for a LONG time to come.

[projectmayhem]

Your figures don't translate well in Europe, though. I cited in the piece that Gamestop are closing stores in the UK and while other places are doing games, it's on a much smaller scale and doesn't really serve the greater good of gaming. It'll be interesting to see financial forecasts for 2011 when digital is taken into consideration. Steam is so huge I would say it's played a huge part in "PC Games" sections in stores being pushed down to one single shelf/rack. If Sony & Microsoft start allowing publishers to put full games on PSN/XBL I reckon a huge chunk of people will never bother with real stores again.

Also the article, while not quite directly, was referencing Amazon and the likes for buying hard copies - which is a bigger threat to retailers then digital in the immediate future.

[Spenok]

Understandble. I agree with what you said about Steam. I pretty much buy all my PC games from there. And i can almost asure you that Steam (and Amazon) are a pretty big factor as to why the PC section in stores has gotten so small.

I know what you mean, but for someone who works in retail (meaning me) i used to manage a local gamestore and after that work in the software department of an Electronic store. I can assure you that many people still like to own a physical copy.

I can see digital distribution in the near future being big, if not as big as retail. Though i dont see it overtaking retail for a long time to come. If EVERYONE started downloading games at 20-50GBS a pop, it would take days to download. Lol

[Kishin]

I personally buy most of my used games on Ebay.ca and when I truely want a game "right F* now" I got retail. I will rarely buy from say gamestop.ca since they use UPS for Canada and UPS are a bunch assh0les.