The summer months are here which means lots of things to do, mostly for the kids. It's drive them here and there, keep them busy, and plan weekend trips for all of us to enjoy. The summer also gives myself the opportunity to get caught up on all the games I normally don't have time to play during the school year. Four kids and school work ties up all my free time.
With old games in hand, I head out to the local Gamestop to trade in. Normally I just drop the games on the counter and let them scan what I have, pick my new title, pay the difference and leave. For some reason, today was different. I actually paid attention to what was happening. I never realized how much of a racket this company has.
For example, a title like Black ops retails new for $59.99 and used for $54.99. The trade in value for that particulate game is around $20.00. They do throw some perks in if you use the trade in towards an upcoming release, but its not much. That is one heck of a mark-up! They also take systems in on trade and do the same type of mark-up. A Nintendo Wii retails used for them at $99 while trade in value is around $40. Oh, and these are not the cash prices. If you want to sell your games outright you can knock another 20% off the trade in price.
Its hard to fight a system that has been here for years. Gamestop has been around since I was a kid and I'm sure they will be around for my children's children. Other retailers like Best Buy and Target have started their own version of trading. They see the value in that area of retail. I feel it may be time to look into other ways of making the best out if our used game value than just handing over millions blindly.
Hey there (I'm enjoying the blog by the way! Interesting!). I've recently discovered Amazon's trade-in market. I trade in textbooks for school (usually for twice what the bookstore will give me) and you can trade things like video games too. They will obviously pay more if you accept an Amazon.com gift card, but I generally use that to turn around and buy my books for next term. And anyone with a .edu email address can get free Amazon Prime membership, which includes the free 2 day shipping! Amazon really seems to be jumping head on into this market, and I think they will be giving outlets like Gamestop a run for their money!
ReplyDelete