GameStop: We're the largest retailer of PC games!

[Keven]

Yeah, GameStop, my favorite store, is now claiming they're the biggest PC game retailer in the world.

In some sort of scheme, they've started selling downloadable PC games (downloaded via Impulse, the kinda neat indie Steam rival they bought last year) in store via plastic card with a keycode you go home to activate.

GameStop is claiming they have 1,500 PC games, making them the biggest. I thought Steam had more than that, but either Steam has a lot of demos and non-game crap, or GameStop is claiming that Steam isn't a retailer because they don't have brick-and-mortar stores.

Do you hail our new GameStop PC gaming overlords?

[kbohip]

I freakin' HATE Gamestop!

Me: Hi. I'm here to pick up the latest and greatest game title that I pre-ordered last week.

GS employee: Oh, you didn't see the ginormous display with 800 copies for the PS3 and the Xbox 360 right by the front door?

Me: No, I wanted the pc version.

GS employee: Ohhhhh, uh I see. Um, I'll have to get that out of our secret back room where for some totally bizarre reason we keep ALL of our pc games. I'll just be about 10 minutes, as I need to find a priest to go with me to ward off all of the vampires that guard them.

Me: Cool. I'll just wait here in the sea of console kiddies.

Seriously, I've not been there in probably 3 years now.

[Keven]

I freakin' HATE Gamestop!

Me: Hi. I'm here to pick up the latest and greatest game title that I pre-ordered last week.

GS employee: Oh, you didn't see the ginormous display with 800 copies for the PS3 and the Xbox 360 right by the front door?

Me: No, I wanted the pc version.

GS employee: Ohhhhh, uh I see. Um, I'll have to get that out of our secret back room where for some totally bizarre reason we keep ALL of our pc games. I'll just be about 10 minutes, as I need to find a priest to go with me to ward off all of the vampires that guard them.

Me: Cool. I'll just wait here in the sea of console kiddies.

Seriously, I've not been there in probably 3 years now.

Yeah, I haven't been there in a while either. My LA Noire experience where the GS employee berated me for pre-ordering through their website rather than in-person at the store really put me off. Plus, the whole used game business is totally shady. I had to stand in line behind a 12 year old kid trading in three plastic Walmart bags filled with old GameCube games once when I was trying to buy one game.

I do play console exclusive games on the Xbox 360 or PS3, but I have been ordering my games on Amazon, or just stock piling a list of games I want and giving it to the parents on Christmas. It's easier than organizing some kind of system where they buy me stuff on Steam. And I buy myself mostly everything I want on Steam anyway! Steam giftcards would be cool though.

[Activate: AMD]

or GameStop is claiming that Steam isn't a retailer because they don't have brick-and-mortar stores.

This was my first thought when I saw the title

Do you hail our new GameStop PC gaming overlords?

ALL HAIL THE HYPNOTOAD GAMESTOP

[IAmGhostDog]

GameStop is claiming they have 1,500 PC games, making them the biggest. I thought Steam had more than that, but either Steam has a lot of demos and non-game crap, or GameStop is claiming that Steam isn't a retailer because they don't have brick-and-mortar stores.

I prefer hard copies, disk in hand.
GameStop has it, Steam doesn't.
Was looking for Fallout New Vegas Ultimate Edition.
Could have bought it on Steam.
Called my local GameStop.
One copy in stock. Had them set it aside.
Picked it up the next day.

My LA Noire experience where the GS employee berated me for pre-ordering through their website rather than in-person at the store really put me off.

Really? What's the difference?
It's the only way I pre-order major new releases.
(online w/in store pickup)
You might be shopping at the wrong GameStop.

[Keven]

Really? What's the difference?
It's the only way I pre-order major new releases.
(online w/in store pickup)
You might be shopping at the wrong GameStop.

A very good question. The guy literally said to me "You know, we do prefer if you pre-order things in the store and not online."

I don't know if they get a commission on pre-orders or what, but I was still giving my money to the GameStop machine and he should of been happy with that.

Best Buy, Walmart, Target, everybody does "order online, pickup in person" deals now. I was shocked last year at the LA Noire deal when the guy said that to me.

[Meridian]

I also much prefer a physical copy, even with most game now being Steam activated and thus nit needing it. It's for the same reason I have physical books not Kindle, and CDs and not MP3s. And I also agree that Gamestop's customer service (in the UK) is shoddy. I agree that they are almost totally geard up to consoles, with PC games on a single shelf in the darkest corner. I tend to use Game (which seems to be struggling on) or Amazon.


M

[Big B-man]

I consider them an option for my gaming needs. However, I do shop around. I tend to be impatient, so while not necessarily on line, there are other places outside my lovely "interwebs".