Samurai Shodown Anthology PS2... WTF!

[eskobar]

Mine arrived from CD universe and it was the Canadian version; very happy with it

[Zoltor]

So, usually, SNK's games get tossed into the bargain bin very quickly.

But has anyone looked at the eBay prices for Samurai Shodown Anthology? Used copies of the PS2 version are selling for around $50 on average. NEW versions go for over $120. Why the hell is this particular title SO EXPENSIVE? The Art of Fighting and Fatal Fury Anthologies got relatively large print runs, but man... You'd think SNK would want to print a second run of this game.

Maybe I'm just pissed that I couldn't buy this when it was new. Still. WTF? Over in Japan it's even gotten a budget release, so it's not even close to being rare.

Maybe I just wanted to vent... They've gotten several collections that we won't get (ADK, Sunsoft, Savage Reign). Stupid SNK. >_<

Actually, a bunch of people as well as myself was talking about Game Stop's shady(hidden) practices over at the ATLUS forums just the other day, and this game was used as an example(as to it being insanely hard to find, due to Game Stop's BS).

Well evidently GS has an internal rating system, and depending how good "they" think the game will be, they may or may not allow pre-orders(aka order the shipment so it arrives on day one) or GS may not order any shipments at all(seeing how 80% of the retail gaming stores in the USA are either GS or owned by the same people, this is a rather big problem, and makes no sense for GS to do this, but that's what they do).

Now I don't know what that game is actually worth(it may be fair or it could very well be a rip-off), but that's what is going on here, and such actions would surely drive the price well above the standard for fairly new games(unluss the game is like utter crap, thus no demand).

[Kitsune Sniper]

Actually, a bunch of people as well as myself was talking about Game Stop's shady(hidden) practices over at the ATLUS forums just the other day, and this game was used as an example(as to it being insanely hard to find, due to Game Stop's BS).

Well evidently GS has an internal rating system, and depending how good "they" think the game will be, they may or may not allow pre-orders(aka order the shipment so it arrives on day one) or GS may not order any shipments at all(seeing how 80% of the retail gaming stores in the USA are either GS or owned by the same people, this is a rather big problem, and makes no sense for GS to do this, but that's what they do).

Now I don't know what that game is actually worth(it may be fair or it could very well be a rip-off), but that's what is going on here, and such actions would surely drive the price well above the standard for fairly new games(unluss the game is like utter crap, thus no demand).

... That's funny, I was told by a Gamestop employee (a manager, even) that they don't allow people to preorder anything priced less than $15.

bcks007: Yes, that's their scam. They inflate the price artificially - even if a game retails at $15 they'll still sell it at inflated prices.

[Zoltor]

... That's funny, I was told by a Gamestop employee (a manager, even) that they don't allow people to preorder anything priced less than $20.

That's funny, because at GS, there is no such thing as a newly released game that cheap(29.99 is like the cheapest).

Back on topic, however on the case of the before mentioned game, forget about pre-ordering, if GS ordered any shipments at all, it was an unnoticeable amount, so you can't really find them at GS(if you're lucky enough, perhaps someone traded a used one into GS, but It's highly unlikely you'll ever find a new copy through GS owned stores).

[Kitsune Sniper]

That's funny, because at GS, there is no such thing as a newly released game that cheap(29.99 is like the cheapest).

Back on topic, however on the case of the before mentioned game, forget about pre-ordering, if GS ordered any shipments at all, it was an unnoticeable amount, so you can't really find them at GS(if you're lucky enough, perhaps someone traded a used one into GS, but It's highly unlikely you'll ever find a new copy through GS owned stores).

Believe it or not, there HAVE been PS2 games released there at $15 or less. Some of SNK's compilations were sold for $15 from the start, and I think some recent budget games have been that cheap too. :P

[Flashback2012]

Actually, a bunch of people as well as myself were talking about Game Stop's shady(hidden) practices over at the ATLUS forums, and this game was used as an example(as to it being insanely hard to find, due to Game Stop's BS).

Yes, yes....it's ALL Gamestop's fault. JUST Gamestop and Gamestop alone and NO ONE else! Not Target, not Wal-Mart, not Best Buy, not Toys "R" Us, Game Crazy, Meijer, Fry's, Costco, Microcenter, or Sears/K-Mart. NO...JUST GAMESTOP!

No offense, but the only "BS" here is what rattled off your keyboard. I'm well aware that Gamestop's craptacular reputation is self inflicted but let's put the bottle of Haterade down for a bit and see if we can see the forest from the trees.

Well evently GS has an internal rating system, and depending how good "they" think the game will be, they may or not allow pre-orders(aka order the shipment so it arrives on day one) or GS may not order any shipments at all(seeing how 80% of the retail gaming stores in the USA are either GS or owned by the same people, this is a rather big problem, and makes no sense for GS to do this, but that's what they do).

Evidently you are correct, there is indeed an internal division that decides whether or not a game gets added to the pre-order list. There are plenty of titles that don't make the pre-order list that Gamestop still carries. I remember quite clearly buying Bomberman Jetters new for Gamecube from them and never being allowed to pre-order it. I'm sure if I did a once over on my collection, I could find a few more titles I bought that way.

What I'm having a hard time with is this "it makes no sense for GS to do this." comment. Umm...well, what is GS? It's a business right? Not every game they stock is going to be a CoD: MW, Madden 20XX, World of Warcraft, or "Hero/Band" game that sells like hotcakes. Gamestop IS interested in having a diversified inventory of titles, after all, they ARE a speciality retailer and it's one their advantages over companies like Wal-Mart and the like who stock the more mainstream titles and discount shovelware.

The reality of the situation however is that some of the games they only order 1-2 copies of per store almost never sell at the original MSRP they are brought in at. It usually takes discounting and selling at a loss or moving it to used inventory for the title to sell. I can go into any number of GS locations and have no trouble picking out the titles that have come in new and just sat, and sat, and sat, and sat some more on the shelves collecting dust ever since they came in on the initial shipment.

I do sympathize with the gamers though. I mean, it's all about having it now, Now, NOW amirite? I mean I would have loved to have had my Bomberman Jetters a week earlier than I did but I DID get it when it eventually came in. I mean how dare GS make me wait like that so they could save some money on shipping costs! Why should I care that they have fixed costs they have to worry about like lease payments and utilities, payroll, insurance, and whatever else that companies have to worry about...it's all about ME and how I needed my game a week ago!!

Now that I think about it...I could swear I was the only one that bought one of the two copies of that game when it came in and I maybe played it once or twice at most.

Now I don't know what that game is actually worth(it may be fair or it could very well be a rip-off), but that's what is going on here, and such actions would surely drive the price well above the standard for fairly new games(unluss the game is like utter crap, thus no demand).

Okay I get it. GS rubbed you the wrong way with their offering pennies for your trade-in only to turn around and put the game on the shelf at $5 less than the new price. Like I said above, a lot of Gamestop's unfavorable reputation is self inflicted. However, how I read your reply is that it's Gamestop, and ONLY Gamestop that is responsible for the out of whack prices on the PS2 version. I've already conceded they ARE a major player in the gaming retail world but they are NOT the only player.

If you look at this thread, you can see the game could be had at some of Gamestop's biggest competitors for new titles, namely Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart decided to carry it but Gamestop did not. What about Best Buy? Target? Costco? Sears? Where's the outrage for them? Where's the speculation on their internal departments determining not whether a game is able to be pre-ordered or not, but carried at all? Are the Haterade cannons aimed at those retailers as well who like GS opted to not carry the title? Don't their copycat actions just light a fire under your arse for doing what GS did?!

C'mon now...I need more anger!! Gimme some

That's it! Let's see some more!


Whoa! A Time to calm down! Deep breaths! Slowly....in...then out....


Okay then...oh wait, crap....I forgot about the publisher! What kind of print run did they put on this game? Surely they KNEW it was going to rocket in value on Ebay....right? Wait, wait...I got it! Because Gamestop, and ONLY Gamestop (never mind those small timers like Best Buy, Target, etc) chose not to carry the PS2 version of the game then the publisher was FORCED to only print what they did. SEE?! We CAN blame GS! Who cares that the PS2 is nearing the end of it's life cycle and the fact that it's a niche title, we figured it ALL out.

Well...this is an open and shut case Johnson! Gamestop is GUILTY as charged! They would've gotten away with it too if it wasn't for you meddling kids and that dog! Don't worry about those other retailers, they were just towing the line that Gamestop had the lead to. I think our work is done here, at least until the next episode when we can blame the carnival closing down and global warming on GS as well!






Maybe I should give up drinking.....

[Flashback2012]

... That's funny, I was told by a Gamestop employee (a manager, even) that they don't allow people to preorder anything priced less than $15.

That manager was correct in what he told you, somewhat. Under the old GS POS, if a game wasn't listed for pre-order, an associate could make a "dummy" SKU for the game. When GS adopted the EB POS, it was put in place that games under that threshold wouldn't be able to be pre-ordered.

That's funny, because at GS, there is no such thing as a newly released game that cheap(29.99 is like the cheapest).

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

Here....

http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/Prod...oduct_id=76168

and here...

http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/Prod...oduct_id=75168

and here...

http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/Prod...oduct_id=74904

and here...

http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/Prod...oduct_id=75347

oh wait...how bout over here....

http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/Prod...oduct_id=75867

and here!

http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/Prod...oduct_id=73006

You're absolutely right....no such thing! Nope, no sir, not at all!
Oh wait! Hold on a sec....Okay, okay, ya got me! Are almost all of those shit titles? SURE...but the simple fact remains...there IS such a thing.

What's more...the last two titles linked, Barbie and Ghostbusters, were available to pre-order.

Back on topic, however on the case of the before mentioned game, forget about pre-ordering, if GS ordered any shipments at all, it was an unnoticeable amount, so you can't really find them at GS(if you're lucky enough, perhaps someone traded a used one into GS, but It's highly unlikely you'll ever find a new copy through GS owned stores).

I've already beat this drum so no sense in doing it twice. Again I'll ask though, where's the apathy and anger for the other companies like Best Buy, Target, Sears, Toys "R" Us, and the like who had unnoticable amounts (aka 0) available on their shelves?

[Zoltor]

To Flashback2012: First of all back water stores(that aren't nation wide spread), and department stores with the joke that they call a gaming section don't count(Toy's R US maybe Valid, don't know if their gaming section is still good, like it was in the old days (but who goes there anymore for gaming).

2nd I wouldn't trust anything listed on GS's site or what they say in person(I have already caught those people sticking their "New" stickers on used products. As for their site lististing, just recently I checked it to see if GS still carries them(still getting new ones in), it was priced at 45(+ cost of shipping, which is about right), I go in to the store to buy it, and it was priced 15$ more. I tell them what their site says, and they just denied it(they are nothing but scammers).

[Kitsune Sniper]

So you're basically ignoring all his arguments and continue to slam Gamestop?

Man, talk about anger issues.

If the clerk had taken the time to scan the product into the system, he would've gotten the new price. I've had that happen to me a fw times, I buy something with a $10 price tag and it ends up being $7 or $8 instead.

[Zoltor]

So you're basically ignoring all his arguments and continue to slam Gamestop?

Man, talk about anger issues.

Have you ever seen a target or other non gaming store's game section, It's completely pathetic to say the least.

[Kitsune Sniper]

Have you ever seen a target or other non gaming store's game section, It's completely pathetic to say the least.

I've been to Sears, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Big!Lots.

They've ALL had decent gaming racks. Especially Target, for some reason... and I don't expect any of those to carry Niche Atlus RPG #175, that's what the internet is for.

[mobiusclimber]

I've been to Sears, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Big!Lots.

They've ALL had decent gaming racks. Especially Target, for some reason... and I don't expect any of those to carry Niche Atlus RPG #175, that's what the internet is for.

None of those stores are game stores, tho. None of them should be expected to at least have a copy or two of every new game that comes out. I'm not sure even a game store should be expected to do that, but I'd expect it MORE from a game store than I would some store w/ four racks of games (last I was in Target that's how many they had, for an example, and Big Lots had NONE).

Not defending any of the other comments made here, but lets at least be realistic.

[Zoltor]

I've been to Sears, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Big!Lots.

They've ALL had decent gaming racks. Especially Target, for some reason... and I don't expect any of those to carry Niche Atlus RPG #175, that's what the internet is for.

I'm sorry but 2 or so lanes devided by 6 systems, doesn't allow for much of a veriety in selection.

(lol @ the ATLUS remark, anyway even if they did cary such titles, theyr'e basically instant sell outs, so you wouldn't be likely to see them) I was talking in general, not specifically looking for a specific game/game made by a certain company.

[Kitsune Sniper]

I'm sorry but 2 or so lanes devided by 6 systems, doesn't allow for much of a veriety in selection.

(lol @ the ATLUS remark, anyway even if they did cary such titles, theyr'e basically instant sell outs, so you wouldn't be likely to see them) I was talking in general, not specifically looking for a specific game/game made by a certain company.

Two lanes?

I've been to these stores in three states (California, Georgia, and Tennessee). Target had TWO WALLS filled with games. Sears had two complete shelves on both sides, plus the clearance bin. K-Mart has had one very long wall of games with at least four copies of everything in stock (including Atlus games!) Big Lots was just a small shelf but they had six copies of every game in stock! It counts, dammit!

I'm not expecting them to have tons of copies, but they DO stock a lot more copies than you'd think.

[Flashback2012]

To Flashback2012: First of all back water stores(that aren't nation wide spread), and department stores with the joke that they call a gaming section don't count.

I know right! I have to trek across a huge arse swamp and some steppes to get to my backwater Best Buy! I can only transverse the path on foot and it's uphill both ways! It's a bitch I tell ya! And going to Toys "R" Us? Fogettaboutit! It's even more remote and back water than Best Buy is. I'm not about to go crossing a shark infested barrier reef and hopscotch around volcanic lava flows just to save $5 off Borderlands or Madden 2010.

Okay...so Target doesn't count. For the sake of things, we'll bump them off the list. Damn Frenchies...they can't hope to compete with the real Uhmerican goodness that is Wal-Mart! Why Target's department store layout is NOTHING like Wal-Mart's....ummmmm.....department...store...layout. Well cripes, I guess Wal-Mart doesn't count. OH SURE...they're nationwide, international even, but they're a department store with a joke selection so....BANG!! OFF THE LIST WITH YOU WALLY WORLD!!

Pay no nevermind that in one move, Wal-Mart was able to drop Gamestop's stock 9%.

http://kotaku.com/5417200/gamestop-s...rt-price-slash

Nothing to see here people! Move along in an orderly fashion! One foot in front of the other and no shoving!

2nd I wouldn't trust anything listed on GS's site or what they say in person(I have already caught those people sticking their New stickers on used products. As for their site lististing, just recently I checked it to see if GS still carries them(still getting new ones in), it was priced at 45(+ cost of shipping, which is about right), I go in to the store to buy it, and it was priced 15$ more. I tell them what their site says, and they just denied it(they are nothing but scammers).

THOSE.RAT.BASTARDS!!

It's time to resurrect the timeless and tireless debate on one of Gamestop's most controversial policies....selling gutted games as new when they're clearly USED!!

I command thee argument....RISE FROM YOUR GRAVE!!









Ooer....hold on a sec....technical difficulties and what not......







Aha! Okay now....RISE FROM YOUR GRAVE!!



Okay, on second thought, let's not dredge that up. We're not even talking about used games anyway, we're talking about NEW. I'll ask a 3rd time now, even if we take Wal-Mart out of the equation (who incidentally has been cited SEVERAL times in this thread as having the game IN STOCK), what about places like Toys "R" Us and Best Buy? Where's the outrage and disgust towards them? They're neither backwater nor department store....do they get an exception placed on them as well? Must all things in your narrow argument begin and end squarely at the feet of Gamestop?



Seriously, at this point I'm just going to assume that Gamestop scarred you for life. Those lying, cheating, sneaky bastiches. They killed your dog didn't they? You were happily playing catch in your front yard with your loveable mutt and an errant throw sent the ball into the street prompting ol' Rex to chase after it. Just then, the sign that hangs over the storefront was driving a van full of the low brow, mouth breathing "game advisors" when it saw your dog in the middle of the road and jammed on the accelerator (which is pretty impressive for a marquee sign to do that...much less drive) and bore down on your dog at full speed!


OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH MMMMMMMMMMYYYYYYYY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOODDDDDD REX! LOOK OUT!

~bump~

I bet they backed up over the busted up lump that was your dog just to make sure it was dead and to add insult to injury, mocked you by only offering you a 1/4 of what Rex sold for new...in store credit! Good thing you have an Edge card though, you can get an extra 10% for his carcass and they won't take off for missing the box or book!

No Edge bonus and 20% less if you wanted cash though.


So the moral of the story is Gamestop is the devil incarnate it seems. OH, IF ONLY they had bought even ONE copy for every one of their 4000+ stores, the rarity of this title wouldn't be so high and none of the people in this thread who bought multiple copies to resell would be able to flip their extras on Ebay to the suckers who HAVE to have the PS2 version. It's a TRAVESTY I tell you...how DOES Gamestop sleep at night?!

[Kitsune Sniper]

...

That's it. I'm asking a mod to lock this. Take your fighting elsewhere.

[Flashback2012]

...

That's it. I'm asking a mod to lock this. Take your fighting elsewhere.

Sorry Kitsune, I got carried away.

[PapaStu]

...

That's it. I'm asking a mod to lock this. Take your fighting elsewhere.

Wow.... Last I looked at this thread this morning, it wasn't nearly as bad as it turned when I was at work.

**lockerooni**