GameStop appears to be hell-bent on world domination. The U.S.-based retail giant has an impressive global presence, which includes Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Germany, Norway and Denmark. In late June, the company expanded its empire when it purchased New Zealand’s Gamesman stores. Now it looks like the used-game-pimping chain has its sights set on “Europe’s second largest video game market.”

Follow me past the jump, but be careful not to make too much noise. I hear that executive chairman R. Richard Fontaine can hear a penny drop from 10 miles away. The last thing I need is a monetary offer for my soul.

Gaming site Gamasutra has reported that GameStop is set to gain 332 stores in France after purchasing Micromania, the country’s “biggest specialty games retailer” for $700 million. The acquisition, which still has to be approved by the European Commission, would be paid using the company’s “own cash reserves, revolving credit facility and a $150 million committed term loan from Bank of America.”

I don’t know how French gamers feel about the company, but I rarely shop at GameStop. In fact, the only time I will actually enter one of the retail chain’s brick and mortar locations is when I need to confirm a specific release date. Sorry Mr. Fontaine, but I try to distance myself from stores that try to sell me opened games for $50. I don’t care what some smug, d-bag cashier says, a copy of “Okami” ceases to be new when it is removed from its original packaging. For all I know, that disc could have been stored in a toilet.

Despite my hatred for the company, this is probably not the last time GameStop will attempt to expand its influence. Though digital distribution is becoming increasingly popular, the retail giant saw an impressive $1.8 billion in sales during each of the first two financial quarters of this year. Plus, if you believe what CEO Daniel A. DeMatteo told GameDaily, the company has plenty of time to grow since “the network won’t be in place to do digital distribution of full games until 2020 to 2025.”

With that said, I fully expect GameStop to acquire Siberia, Antarctica, the Yukon Territory, Jupiter, Wario Land, Dream Land and Candy Land by the end of 2009. As long as I can still purchase games from Best Buy and Target, Fontaine and DeMatteo’s competition-devouring machine is free to gobble up any country, planet or fictional location it desires.

Source: Gamasutra

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