GAME shutting over 100 UK shops

[bledd]

PC games are not the main focus of a high street shop, and for good reason

edit, +1 to what Fox said above^

 

[reefoid]

No loss to me, I've boycotted Game for the last three years anyway due to some of the worst customer service I've ever experienced at the Southend branch - rude, swearing in front of children, shop layout that meant if more than 6 people were queuing its a nightmare to get to the back half of the shop, etc, etc.

They joined my blacklist along with Co-Op, Tescos, Top Shop, Next and several sandwich shops in the Southend area to name but a few. I really need to stop being such a grumpy sod, I'll have banned myself from every shop in the country by the time I'm 50!!!

 

[trickycurve]

There are two GAMEs within a couple of minutes of each other in Guildford, and I *think* there's a Gamestation in the Friary Centre.

There's no point in having duplicate shops within a minute of each other, so this is probably a good thing.

 

[WaynelleUK09]

Were lucky to have Grainger Games in the North East who are cheaper and have better stock. One or two dodgy assistant mind, but they've been moved on last I seen.

It's no surprise really, especially after the takeover last year or the year before.

Yeah grainger games is great, I got bad company 2 from there for £27 while game were charging £34, so it was obvious who was goin to get my cash, and it's the same for most games.

 

[Berserker]

Newbury has a GAME and a Gamestation, about a minute apart. The Gamestation here used to be Games Workshop.

We did have two GAME stores for a while, but one of them was in a Borders bookshop.

Not sure how many Reading has - but certainly more than one of each.

 

[dannyjo22]

The cambridge Game and Gamestation are literally 15 metres apart and they have 3 of them in town. Pointless really because the only time they are ever busy is at xmas full of parents who don't know any better.

 

[DB_SamX]

I explained exactly why its the case but you seemed to ignore it.

I'll try again.

The company had a policy of not closing stores when they aquired new business. In the late 1990's, EB aquired Game and for some time each town/shopping centre had a GAME and an EB - perceived by the market to be competition - and some larger towns had a Debenhams/House of Fraser concession as well, making a total of 3 stores in some cities and more in others.

However in 2002 the decision was taken to rebrand all the stores under the same name, and GAME was the name chosen. But they still didn't close the duplicate stores, instead remaining loyal to the staff who worked in them etc.

This has produced the situation today where many towns have 3 or more branches of GAME.

Personally I really enjoyed my time with them - I worked there from the day I left school and figured I ought to get a job to buy some computer hardware with until the week before I started my graduate job.

Obviously you'll get idiots in some of the stores but they do pay peanuts and as a result they do tend to get monkeys, same as any business really.

I do think this is all being a tad over-stated. The company has massive overlap and is not vanishing from the high street any time soon. They've not made a loss, merely a reduction in profit.

The store closures are an obvious, sensible and long overdue business decision.

Just glad it took them ages, as my old store is one thats going

Spot on. I worked for them too during 6th form and enjoyed most of my time there.

Actually glad you explained the EB and concession stores as well as I was about to as well to explain their several numbers per town.

Closing stores down was inevitable.

 

[Scania]

Probably has more to do with online shops and digital downloads.

Who buys games in shops anymore.

Me!

I have never bought a digital download game and don't want to either.

Its not in my collection unless its sat on my shelf - which is still pretty much my attitude toward music too.

 

[Jay662]

I think as a company they take advantage of people.

For example I bought a 360 and got Assassins Creed 2 free. I went in to Game to trade it in and got £17 when it was still selling for £39.99. I later went in to HMV and was offered £26.

Needless to say I won't miss the shops all that much. Even in Cumbernauld there is a Gamestation and A Game in a tiny run down town centre.

 

[Luke]

Adapt or die.
There is a saturation of game/gamestation shops for reasons set out above, so consolidating them can only be a good thing.
Making the prices realistic may also work for them but then they have their overheads to add on and that's why it will be hard to compete with online stores.

 

[Xordium]

I tend to buy most stuff online but it is nice when out and about and forced to go on family shopping to sometimes pop in and get a game as a reward for not murdering the wife and children. So it would be a shame to see them go completely as I think there will always be a place on the highstreet, in my eyes, for them. However, they are not exactly endearing themselves to publishers by being so active in the second-hand market.

 

[LordSplodge]

Ok apart from you .

It's a declining market though and I expect to see places like Game close stores every year or two.

Me. I buy them once the hype has died down at quite a reduction in price compared to the online price.

 

[uchuff]

In Crawley there are 2 Game's within about 200 yards of each other. The reason being one is in the shopping mall and one is not, I was just thinking that they could easily rent a larger unit in the Mall and merge the two guess thier management might just do that.

Pretty sure the one in the mall used to be an EB before the merger, explaining the duplication, as per Fox.

 

[Tummy]

There are, 3/4 that I can think of off the top of my head in Leicester City Center.

 

[OzyOly]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/game-shutting-over-100-uk-shops



Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, i remember years ago working for Game when they brought out Gamestation and literally had to be the most stupidest thing i have ever seen....and now their closing down a lot of stores together with massive staff hour cuts

idiots.

When I worked for them at Clifton Moor head office, the sacked all the office staff in the merger. They don't do things nicely.

 

[xJcBx]

Not 100% but I think there's still 2 in Bristol that are relatively close
(Acidhell clarification?)

There was 2 in Bath until 1 closed recently so that the place could be rebuilt on.

I always buy everything online because its so much eisier to get a decent price, if I buy around 10 games a year for PS3 alone, and each one I save >£5, say 7, from the store price and £2 for post and packing, in total about a £5 saving on average, thats at least £50 a year, without including petrol and a wasted day.

I <3 the Internet.

 

[4T5]

Manager of my local shop reckons it's just the stores that are doubled/tripled up & my store is Safe, he just hasn't got any Big competition around our way just the one Indi.
Pleased about this as they Proper look after me.

 

[Glaucus]

Not 100% but I think there's still 2 in Bristol that are relatively close
(Acidhell clarification?
I <3 the Internet.

pass, I don't do shopping and avoid it all cost, Internet for the win.

 

[Borrish]

I think as a company they take advantage of people.

For example I bought a 360 and got Assassins Creed 2 free. I went in to Game to trade it in and got £17 when it was still selling for £39.99. I later went in to HMV and was offered £26.

Needless to say I won't miss the shops all that much. Even in Cumbernauld there is a Gamestation and A Game in a tiny run down town centre.

It works both ways. A colleague here traded a game at HMV and then discovered that he could have got an extra £8 or so had he gone to GAME.

 

[OpenToSuggestions]

I refuse to buy games from GAME anymore, as every single game seems to be at the RRP price!

I just get games from etailers. I still prefer the disk though as I feel I am getting something for my money. I feel that if I do a digital download then I might as well torrent it.

I think GAME need to realise that no-one buys game from them because they are all 44.99 or 49.99 (ie the rrp).