On Wednesday, March 5, 2008, I headed over to my local EB Games, which is owned by Gamestop, to pick up God of War for the PSP. It wasn’t out yet, but what I was told, may shock you, but only if you’ve never visited a Gamestop or EB Games before.
Yeah, they suck. Read the unbelievable story, after the jump.
Well, God of War wasn’t in, but they did have some of those new McFarlane Halo Action Figures. For those that don’t know, Todd McFarlane, love him or hate him, was a long time comic book artist before forming Image comics with a bunch of other comic artists. He eventually branched out into making some of the coolest action figures ever seen.
Now, back to the story…
Anyway, I asked to check out the Master Chief figure behind the counter. I just wanted to see what it looked like, I wasn’t really interested in buying it. The store employee eagerly obliged. After checking the figure out, I said to no one in particular, “this isn’t as cool as I thought they’d be.” Both store employees agreed. One, who I presume was the manager, as he was overriding a transaction for the other employee, said, “Yeah, he isn’t that cool, but the Cortana figure is really awesome!”
Intrigued, I asked to see that figure. He looked up with a grin and said, “we don’t have any of those anymore.” The other employee asked the manager why. As I was browsing some of the games, I heard the manager say:
“We only got one dude and I picked that one up right away.”
WTF?!?! After hearing that bullshit, I turned and said, “Wow, way to save the good stuff for your customers. Real nice.” The manager looked up at me, but said nothing, but the lackey said, “Hey man, it’s a perk of the job.”
As if aspiring to be a manager of an EB Games was all about screwing the customer over at your first chance. Good grief.
I can just see the Gamestop training videos now…
“Okay guys, you’re just trainees now but when you become manager, you can take all the exclusive stuff for yourself. Forget the customer. It’s a perk of the job! Sell it on Ebay or Craigslist… That’s what you work for… To screw people over.”
Brilliant.
I’ve been hearing a lot of these stories lately. I’ve been inundated with stories about Gamestop managers and employees buying up Wii consoles and selling them on Craigslist. These are obviously rumors from faithful readers, but after the shenanigans that I witnessed, I wouldn’t doubt it.
I’m done with their store forever and I encourage you to do the same.
F$%k You EB Games in Villa Park, Illinois.
Yeah, I just called you out.
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I actually have to diagree. Thats the benefits of working in a store for example Tesco when my mum worked there she got 10% discount and they were allowed to buy things first when they came in if they wished.
This kind of stuff happens at Game and Gamestation in the UK. It is a perk of the job
When I worked at Best Buy, if you were caught doing something like that you could be fired on the spot
what… you didnt know that gamestop employees are better than you?? What rock have you been living under???
Screw gamestop… best thing going for them is their return policy on used games… Best rental plan i’ve ever had!!
I can’t stand 90% of GameStop employees and your a 100% right about them buying a Wii and selling them. I know a manager and he tells me that his employees do that. Not to mention my friend acquired 3 Wii console for myself but they were all given to friends at cost (good Karma).
Waho Gamefly!
I go to Best Buy for my video games. Before that it was Funcoland..glorious Funcoland…(Funk o’ Land?).
speaking of Ebay
http://cgi.ebay.com/Halo-Cortana-Figure-Mint-In-Box-Very-Rare_W0QQitemZ320223361733QQihZ011QQcategoryZ52514QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
This guy is located in IL… Could be your friendly Gamestop employee
Does sarcasm mean anger issues? No, seriously, dude wake up! This is 2008, welcome to the jungle! (I completely disapprove the manager’s attitude, that was sarcasm :p). At least they could keep the goodies for themselves! eBay scum!!
^Coincidence? I think not.^
I still go to my local EBgames, but that’s just because choices here are next to none. I don’t want to drive for an hour to get to a Target or Best Buy, just to drive back. The only other two places I have to buy games are Wal-Mart, and Circuit City.
Luckily, my EBgames still has the same staff it had long before Gamestop gobbled them up. Were the staff to ever change, I wouldn’t go there. I’ve never had a problem buying what I wanted to buy (pre-order or not), and they stopped asking me if I wanted to pre-order about a year ago.
Ran into a similar situation here in T.O At a local EB Games
Manager tried to keep the last Forsa 2 they had for himself so I called him on it
Told me they didn’t have any left yet not 5 min earlier I was told by an employee she had one copy left in the “system” but couldn’t find it
Words can’t describe the pissed off looks they were giving each other when the manager tried to say she didn’t know what she was doing and checked the “System” wrong
LOL
SCUM BAGS!!!!!!!
I gotta admit. If I was forced to work at a Gamestop or Eb Games, I would take whatever perks I could get. You would too, Lono.
i buy my games always from best buy or kmart.
kmart more often, because they try to screw you less often.
This is a common issue. There are many rules in place with gamestop regarding its employees. Anything an Employee buys cannot be resold (I think standard games do no count) to anyone but Gamestop until after a 1 year period.
The serial number is tracked, and if it is seen on Ebay or anything of the such, the employee is immediately terminated and barred from rehire. (to my most recent understanding)
That said, just because there are rules doesn’t mean that such things never happen. I’m sure they happen a lot, though the chain trys to discourage it.
As far as “firsties” yeah, I saw a lot of that, but meh. I know that your experiences with GS suck, but this is entirely dependent on the employees at the location. My Stop had mostly level headed employees that sincerely cared about customer service (no joke, I attend college with a few of em) and cases such a RESELL didn’t happen.
Item exclusivity did happen on two major occasions. A Wii (As in one) and a Rockband.
Don’t justify the crap, doc…
@Clstirens: that’s why they use Craigslist, so they can avoid getting caught…
@Doc: That, and not to mention the occasional promo deal.
Often we could take home special store displays (such as the super mario galaxy on), and certain companies sent us free full pc games to promote them. (I got Defcon that way)
Happens all the time.
Coworker of mine has family that works at walmart, my boss wanted a wii… so my coworker (naturally to kiss ass, jk… if he reads this?) managed to get his brother (or uncle?) to buy one before it got off the trucks… due to employee disc, he made money even though he sold at reg price.
We were also told that of the 5 that came in that shipment only 1 or 2 made it to the shelves…
Basically you need to know an employee willing to buy before it gets stocked… Although Anski’s right my friends that work @ BB don’t tend to, for fear of instant firing…
However since you didn’t actually want to buy, was the manager willing to show it to you, or did you just search for an image online later?
@Lono: Like I said. I know.
They get away with it all the time, and it is really annoying too, but I’m sure this happens with any employer. Just part of human nature (sadly).
It just really sucks for us gamers.
@Clstirens: Doesn’t mean it’s right. Which is why I shared the story with the world.
the grey market for gaming stuff, consoles, games, figures, etc… is causing problems for big companies like Nintendo… maybe stories like this will change things..
Ah, who am I kidding.
So a tiny little action figure is classed as a ‘perk’?
I know it’s the principle and not the actual thing he took, but let the little weiner have his action figure. Hell, maybe he’ll have too much fun with the damn thing to bother getting their first with any other useless pieces of crap that (dis)grace the walls of GameStop.
It isn’t right…But, what other benefits do they get? A whole $5 an hour?
The point is, if they didn’t give those ‘perks’ to employee’s, they wouldn’t get anybody to work for them at all.
Did you really want a Cortana figurine? You really must be a Halo Jesus fanboy Lono.
That’s not the point DJ Res.
I’d say thats worse the guy working there said himself that he bought it. They easily could have brought more in and then buy one.
I always hear horror stories like this but I guess I’m a lucky one and never get anything like this at the local Gamestop in my town (Spokane, WA). I always buy from them since they get new games quick. I guess it just depends on the management at the store which the one in my town has always been good to me and anyone else that shops there.
You guys are over reacting. If he really was buying all of the stock and selling them on ebay – that’d be one thing… but all he did was buy one. If he paid for it, why should you be more entitled to it them him? If he’s putting money in the register, he’s a customer too.
The comments about buying all the Wiis & selling them for profit is an entirely different thing. But saying that buying something from the store you work in legitimately is “shenanigans” is just immature.
Staff holds are about the only perk at EB. I worked for them for years in every store position. Trust me, in between boneheaded upper management and ridiculously low wages, getting first dibs on product is well deserved. At least if it’s being done for personal use. Trust me, you can’t hate an EB employee any more than they hate themselves for continuing to work for such an inept and malicious company.
Sorry, I’m with the Gamestop peeps on this one Lono-licious. Their only mistake in this instance might have been a lapse in discretion. They shoulda just said “someone bought it”
@Doc: Unbelieveable. So while on the clock, when stuff comes in, they can just buy up whatever they want… no matter what? That’s why Wii’s are getting ridiculous prices on Ebay.
Unbelieveable.
@Mike: what you’re saying and my article are two waaay different things. You may like being duped by companies and employees taking all the valuable merch before you even have a chance at it, but that’s because you’re a sheep. A cow. You’re the kind of person that is a follower. You get herded in life. Pathetic, really.
“Yeah, I just called you out”
LMFAO
yeah the guys at the gamestop near me said:
“you kidding me 1/4 of our sales are from me buying stuff and reselling it on ebay”
wow what a way to F#@% customers over -_-
Who cares. You had a run-in with an arse of a Manager…it’s not like that everywhere. I don’t want to sound like I’m defending the dick, but really…is this that big of a deal?
Buying figures, games or anything else before giving a chance to customers is a fair perk, these employees are forced to ram reservations and subscriptions down your throats only to be hated by you because of it with a wage of 5.75 an hour if hes paying for it it is in his right i mean those figures are 14.99 each even with the discount thats about two hours of work he spent besides why the hell do you want a small blue plastic doll in your house its useless.
The wii histeria its another thing entirely if they do it it indeed is wrong but i bet only a few of them actually get a chance, the company records all transactions of their employees if the find an employee that has bought more than 2 wiis ill bet a red flag will go up and besides most managers wont even let you buy a console at launch just to give us ass you said and are luno cattle to buy it ourselfs
You’re just playing yourself hardcoregamer.
I also find them to be biased fanboys. That’s hella annoying! Plus taking things like the cortana and wiis is a dick move. Screw you gamestop.
@Vhlud: Heck yeah you buy your games from Kmart. Because I work there. And we need the sales. From ALL of you.
But, besides that, half of my coworkers there are into videogames in some way, so when we’re selling something, we give honest opinions and suggest something that we find to be good if the game that they come across sucks hard. Of course, I don’t know if other Kmarts are like that. But, we do try to tell it how it is.
i think that if a european swallow teamed up with another european swallow they could carry a coconut
Nah, but if it were an AFRICAN swallow, perhaps, then, the coconut could be carried from a more temperate climate…
@Clstirens
HUH???
People that work with athetes, music artists, stars, etc. get autographs and memorabilia. Movie theatre employees get free screenings. Back in the day, Arcade employees played games for free. Work in a bar and get free drinks after hours. Bath and Body Works employees have tons of lotions and soaps in their closets. The list goes on and on. If you want the perk, go work in the industry. I’m not saying I’m a fan of somebody taking advantage of their position/the system, but it’s the way the world works gang. Gamestop would have to make a concerted, conscious effort to police this one aspect of their business to the utmost to eliminate it, and even then I doubt they could completely. Just like Best Buy doesn’t completely. What changes is that the average employee is less apt to casually pilfer goodies and you won’t get the snide comments and wink wink, nod nod. Don’t think for a second that the crafty ones don’t still find ways to scoop up good stuff, though.
yeah it blows, but I did it too when I worked at best buy. It’s a crappy fact of life
Come on guys! Don’t tell me you would not do the same thing! We are talking about a toy here, not a Wii or something!!!
Ive had a few issues with that same gamestop, they have a habit of saying a game is in stock then when you get there your told they dont have any.
The last straw was when I was picking up Burning Crusade from them, they keep the contents of the box behind the counter, got home, installed the game enter code and it wont work. Took it back, had to argue to the employee to finally get a replacement, get home put in code same freaking thing.
Im either very unlucky or someone in that store was grabbing the codes.
I use the Bensenville Gamestop now, good for the ps3/psp/wii titles I’ve been getting but they dont carry PC titles unless you preorder it.
shop gamecrazy. Mine is by far the best store you could go to. Employees are awesome. I mean, except for the one fanboy that makes you feel like crap for buying ps3 games, but lucky for me I have both, so I can pretend I came in for the Xbox version all along
of course, everyone has opinions, atleast they aren’t dicks
shop gamecrazy. Mine is by far the best store you could go to. Employees are awesome. I mean, except for the one fanboy that makes you feel like crap for buying ps3 games, but lucky for me I have both, so I can pretend I came in for the Xbox version all along
That’s ridiculous. There is no point in mentioning the one off product to a customer when you were the person that got the item. He was a moron for even mentioning the product. I’ve found problems with the Gamestops i’ve visited as well. Though i have to admit that the one i was at tonight had new employees that didn’t seem like jackarses.
Nice job in calling them out.
I mean, the attitude and the fact that the manager said that with you still there was wrong, but I don’t see the problem with getting something if that’s the only one your store will be allocated. I mean, even if he didn’t do it, you wouldn’t have gotten it, right?
His biggest issue was saying anything about where it went in front of you.
you know, this is just ridiculous. if you post these anti-gamestop blogs all the time, why *should* the manager leave the action figures for you?
I doubt that picking up a ‘super cool Cortana action figure’ (and yes, I can see you pushing your glasses back up your nose and snorting while saying that, fanboy) would spurn you to write a pro-gamestop blog. The fact that the word ‘again’ is in the title leads me to believe that you would have looked for any reason to bitch upon entering the store.
Gamestop employees are more than willing to help out regular customers that are friendly, cooperative, patient… but just because you happened upon a store (not knowing the item was going to be there, mind you) and wanted the same item as the store manager does NOT give you first dibs on everything that comes in on shipment, nor does it give you the right to bitch.
With all of this said, the manager shouldn’t have told you he bought it. I’m sure if he had known you would have pitched a fit and posted it on the internet, he probably wouldn’t have.
And yes, wii selling is underhanded and dirty. But there are people like that in -every- industry, whether they tell you so or not.
Sorry to rant, but really — get over it.
Spot the Gamestop employee..
Sir Jerkface, have you ever worked retail? Had you of worked in retail, you would of been informed, employees are not allowed to have any type of “dibs” on any of the merchandise on the particular day they happen to be scheduled in. They are only allowed the “dibs” that stop the pudding from getting all over their shirts, or are those called bibs, I don’t know, I am not a parent.
Hey let me tell you something about gamestop employees. One, yeah, I’m sure they get first come on all the stuff that comes in, but what you may not know about “businesses” is that once something sells, you get more back in stock. It’s not the only figure you will ever see in that store again. If you bothered not to go from zero to pissed and realized this you’d get alot further.
Second, Gamestop has a STAFF of people at their Home Office in Texas monitoring all of their employees from having an ebay or craigslist account. Yes, although some of these people may slip through the cracks, but a friend of mine got busted because they track you IP. If you get caught selling something online, i.e. rare games, action figures, etc. you get fired. Period. So before you get all pissy like so many other gamestop haters, think things through. It’s a business, just like any other. The staff I’ve worked on in other retailers have perks to the job too, it just seems that everyone likes picking on Gamestop. Dont’ get it, and never will.
No one cares that bookstore employees get free book checkouts or get first come to the harry potter figures that come in, no one cares that people that work in fast food get free meals or an allowance for food. Just relax, retail sucks no matter who you work for.
Plus, who cares? It’s an action figure. Spend your money on something that actually matters. Unless you’re a collector, and from the sounds of it, you’re not mature enough to be, you shouldn’t give a rats’ a$$.