Gamecrazy Destroying Current Generation Game Cases

[esquire]

Well, I went into my local Gamecrazy tonight. I like the people that work there, and I get 10% off all their used stuff with the discount card.

Anyways, I glance over at their Gamecube section (which is always quite thin) and notice that Star Fox Assault is in a thin clear dvd style case, like the kind they put in TV Series Season DVDs, like Seinfeld. Then I notice all the Gamecube games are in them. WTF? The cases appear to have the front and back artwork from the slip. I open one up, knowing the artwork can't feasibly fit inside one of these slim cases. To my dismay, they tore the artwork in half, eliminating the 1/2" part that goes on the spine of the GCN case, the part with the name on it.

I ask the clerk what gives? He says his manager did that, and he wasn't sure if this was a corporate idea or just his idea. But they are experimenting only with Gamecube, but may doing the same with PS2 and XBOX games. I tell him, "That's stupid. First you are destroying games, well your destroying the condition they should be kept in. Second, you are spending more money to buy these stupid cases. Third, you don't have many Gamecube games to begin with, so why the need for space (he told me they store the manuals in the back and put them with the game when it sells, so they still need some space to store the manuals). Fourth, if you continue this, you'll lose a customer. Why should I spend the same amount for an incomplete game when I can go to EB/Gamestop and buy the same game for about the same price complete."

The clerk responded, "I know. I buy all my used games here and will stop too."

Stupid.

Someone needs to let these jagoffs know they'll lose customers. I plan on going back in to talk to the manger. Not that it will probably matter, but I want him to know how I feel. Selling used games is where their bread and butter is. I hope other people say something too.

[jwl]

Now that's really messed up. I hope you talk some sense into that manager, but knowing most managers, they're better than the customers and won't listen to you x_x .

[VG_Maniac]

I know they do that with PSX and Dreamcast cases. I was just in GameCrazy earlier today. They had over 200 PSX games for sale and about 30 Dreamcast games...not a single one of them had the original case. They were all in thin, clear, plastic cases. I don't think they throw out the double size cases, but everything else gets tossed. :/

[Sothy]

that crap goes on all the time.

They are trying to market only to players and have no corporate strategy to sell to collectors but then fail to realize the Demographic buying old Dreamcast games wasnt too huge to begin with.

[DigitalSpace]

Absolutely. Fucking. Stupid.

Here's hoping they'll realize how bad of an idea this is before it's too late, although I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't.

[Half Japanese]

Rhino Games (not that big a chain) does this too. All their PS1, DC and N64 stuff is done this way, but they don't even keep the original artwork. They print out shitty lo-res scans of the artwork that's so horrible you can't read it and stuff those in the thin cases instead. Which is why I never bother to look at their store but maybe once every 6 months or so (I did get a dogbone there for $3 once).

[InsaneDavid]

I know they do that with PSX and Dreamcast cases. I was just in GameCrazy earlier today. They had over 200 PSX games for sale and about 30 Dreamcast games...not a single one of them had the original case. They were all in thin, clear, plastic cases. I don't think they throw out the double size cases, but everything else gets tossed. :/

For the most part PS1 and Dreamcast games come in as disc only. Now longbox PS1 games are usually junked or sometimes kept behind the counter when space allows. However most DC and PS1 games are traded in as loose discs. I can't begin to tell you how many people would bring in entire zippered CD cases full of PS1 games during my stint at GameCrazy. At most stores PS1 games are kept behind the counter in a drawer while the cases they do have are kept in a pile somewhere or in the back. Then there's a binder with a list of all the PS1 games they have in stock. Just recently my local store moved to mateing the PS1 games to their cases and putting them in a display case like when they first opened.

The stores DO need to make room for the next three consoles (XBox360 is two months away remember) so some changes are on the way but shredding the GC covers seems like it's probably just the manager in THAT store. They get way too much power over their stores especially if your local District Manager is a fucktard which most are.

On a side note, all Saturn cases are destroyed since they take up so much space and the few that do come in are smashed to hell from shipping from the DC anyway. Additionally GameCrazy is no longer buying Sega Saturn games, they will come up in the system for $0.01 for trade. (so if you see someone with a pile of Saturn games go into your GameCrazy, railroad them outside the store before they leave and offer them a few bucks for their stuff - if they're trying to trade in Saturn games there they must not know a whole lot) I was talking with the manager of my local GameCrazy (nice guy, knows his stuff, bad business manager) last week and he said that all the Saturn games are going to take a nosedive in price as the month rolls on, the early releases are already down to $1.99 and the trend will continue so keep an eye out. I don't care too much for disc only Saturn games but if they're only a couple bucks you can't argue with that.

Lastly, if you want to know if something is going to be phased out, ask what the trade in value of a game for the platform is. If it's a penny, then they're clearing out the Distribution Center inventory and once that's gone so will be the platform.

[MR.TI994A]

If they are doing this to save space, why not get rid of all the NES, SNES and Genesis games that practically no one buys. Most of them are sports games anyways.

Another thing they could do is save the artwork, and just put out a display case for each game.

Last thing is to stop buying up games that only give less than $5 in trade. Most of these will sell for only $9.99 with minimal profit, if they sell at all. I mean how many more copies of Nightcaster, Dark Cloud and Madden do they need to have. Some this is to blame on the store manager from not keeping track of his used stock. Maybe they just don't have the discretion, but if it were up to me, I'd turn away trade-ins on games that I already have 2-3 copies and aren't selling. Mom & Pop Game or Video Stores do it, so should Gamecrazy. Hell, even FYE turns away trade-ins. I found that out trying to trade in 12 copies of Drake of the 99 Dragons last year.

[josekortez]

This is why I don't usually shop GameCrazy. Who charges $35 for Echo Night for PS1 and throws away only the back insert to the game? Do they really think that you want to play the damn thing incomplete?

[Cmosfm]

I understand you're upset with this, I really do, but this is probably the 50th time this topic has been brought up and it was some time back when I learned to just stop caring.

[EricRyan34]

Wow im pretty pissed off about this too. Managers before customers though!

[MegaDrive20XX]

Oh it gets worse my friends. Genesis, GBA, SNES, NES boxes in the trash can at work I see everyday.

When PSX games are shipped to another store...all the cases are thrown away...and each disc is put in a cheap plastic sleeve.

[Slate]

Gamecrazy is a collector's Nightmare.

Someone please give them three options: To save the boxes and instructions, To not take in anything Pre-PS2, Or to go out of business due to being sued.

[walrusmonger]

I work at a gamecrazy, and I tried as hard as I could to stop our boss from making us do it, but it's not managers, it's regional managers that want this.

"We want the store to look uniform."

You know what's sick, people are still buying them.

While I get 20% off used games w/ my employee discount, I'd rather go to gamestop or eb and buy them used there without any discount. If I want something used now, I have to snatch it up after it gets traded in.

Of course at our store we only fold the edge over, so this way you can at least fit it back into a regular case, although you'll have a crease.

The stores are too small and carry too many games, with all next gen consoles out in a year or so, there will be no space at all.

[Oobgarm]

I understand you're upset with this, I really do, but this is probably the 50th time this topic has been brought up and it was some time back when I learned to just stop caring.

/me nods

There are always other places to take your business if a particular chain or store does something you don't like. No sense getting all worked up over it, as what you do and say will have no bearing on the way a corporation functions. Especially not a videogame store.

While I don't agree with the practice personally, I can see how they have no room and the sad reality is that average customer is only concerned with the disc/cart itself.

[Slimedog]

Gamecrazy is a collector's Nightmare.

Someone please give them three options: To save the boxes and instructions, To not take in anything Pre-PS2, Or to go out of business due to being sued.

Well, I'd never buy a game in less than complete condition, but why would this practice result in them being sued? I don't see any laws being broken, just common sense.

[scorch56]

Well.. I.. for one.. would PAY for those empty, original GCN, Xbox and PS2 cases. I've bought several current gen games lately (both locally & on evilBay) that while the discs & manuals are OK.. have cracked or severely damaged cases; and I'm having a really hard time finding empty, original replacement cases for these locally. The few places I found online carrying 1st party replacement cases want too much for them.

[VG_Maniac]

I asked a GameCrazy employee along time ago about them throwing out boxes and he denied it being true. That was about 3 years ago...so maybe it's time I asked again. I wish I could get them to give or sell me their extra boxes since they are going to be tossed in the trash anyway. Maybe it's time I took up the fine art of dumpster diving!

[Dimitri]

It's nearly impossible to find good-condition PS1 games around here. The local Gamestop here literally has a bin that they just chuck all the PS1 stuff into. I've seen loose discs and manuals sitting in this bin, as well as pieces of cracked-apart cases. Mismatched stuff abounds -- ESPN Extreme in a Raiden Project case, FIFA something-or-other in a Street Fighter Alpha 2 case...longbox inserts cut up to fit into standard jewels...it's nuts.

On the other side, though, my friend got a free Einhander case and manual because the disc had been stolen. The employees and us looked all over for it...I wanted to actually buy the game, too... x_x

[Slate]

Gamecrazy is a collector's Nightmare.

Someone please give them three options: To save the boxes and instructions, To not take in anything Pre-PS2, Or to go out of business due to being sued.

Well, I'd never buy a game in less than complete condition, but why would this practice result in them being sued? I don't see any laws being broken, just common sense.

OK, i got rather hyper there. It's just the fact that some certain stores could be destroying the boxes for the real rare stuff (Adventurevision, Vectrex, Virtual Boy, Microvision, PS1 Lightspan Games) That annoys me.