pinata242

Hey, $5 is $5. But if it helps drop the price of used games to get BB to stop this, I don't think anyone will complain

http://kotaku.com/5332358/best-buy-n...s-on-new-games

orangecrush

I don't see this working out too well for BB if they price match some of the used deals of the week Gamestop does.

lopper

For some older used releases that Gamestop prices pretty low and that Best Buy still keeps in the $40-50 range, this isn't a bad deal at all.

fujishig

Best Buy normal pricematching is already a hassle. I assume you need some kind of competitor's ad (which is relatively rare), or they're going to be on the phone with Gamestop a lot (and Gamestop employees love answering calls about used game prices).

pinata242

I'm so glad I don't have these BB PM Nazis the rest of the world has

fujishig

Nazi or not, they're not just going to take your word for it that Gamestop sells a new game for 20 bucks used. Maybe they'll look it up online, but that opens another can of worms, I would think.

dsa_shea

Matching prices has never been a problem for me. They have even matched the TRUS Buy 2 Get 1 Free on PS3 games more than once. They've even matched promotions from Staples and Office Depot on electronic devices where they include something else like a HDD hub and case for free. Let's wait and see how this plays out before we bitch about it. Hell, I'll take the five dollars difference in price if that is all we get.

Decker

So I could get an AA-title new release for $55 + tax at Best Buy vs Amazon for about $48 after ECA discount with no tax? Thanks but no thanks. I'll still preorder everything that comes with a decent bonus though (I just did Uncharted 2 for the MP gold guns and Halo ODST for the Sarge DLC).

pinata242

What I find works, without question, is having a receipt. Gamestops are everywhere and they have a full-price return window, don't they? (I ask because I honestly don't know). There's bound to be one right by a Best Buy. Just buy what you want at GS and then take the receipt to BB and have the CS desk match it.

You can even return the item to GS as soon as you buy it just to get the receipt.

This works for me every time. There's no calling stores for stock. There's no scrutinizing ads. It's right there in black and white.

fujishig

I apologize that this is going off topic, but you buy the item at Gamestop, return it to get a receipt, then buy it at Best Buy to pricematch? In this case I guess you get a new product instead of a used one, but in most cases, why not just keep the first item you bought? RZ points?

pinata242

I don't buy used, so I don't buy at Gamestop (hence why I don't know their return policy).

My examples typically come from TRU where they give gift cards and/or % off. RZ points help, yes, especially if you're in the Gamer's Club which makes every game purchase approximately quadruple points.

For example, when Ghostbusters came out. TRU gave you a $20 GC for each copy. Also that week they had a "buy 1 console game, get another console game 20% off" deal.

I stacked a 360 and Wii version of Ghostbusters and my receipt looked like this:

360 - $39.99 ($59.99 - $20)
Wii - $15.99 ($39.99 - $20 - 20%)
GCs - $40.00

I returned those items at TRU and they cashed out the $40 GC. I took that receipt to BB and got the same price on the games w/o having to be out the $40 in GCs I didn't really want. Plus I got 56 regular RZ points (1/5 of $5) and 56 RZ-GC points (1/3 of $10). If you buy at BB first and get the price adjustments on the receipt you can save another 10% of the difference in each game (in this case, it would have been another $4.40).

I then sold the Wii version on Half for, I think, $21 after fees.

Now, is this going to be worthwhile for every $5 deal? No, absolutely not. But I do do this and all I ever need is a receipt. So the whole point was me giving one more way to get a PM at BB.

foxdvd

It would not surprise me if Best Buy was working with game companies to cut into used game sales. I could see game companies working with big chains to work something out so that new games would sell for used prices if it meant them getting some of that money instead of gamestop getting all of it.

tonyc3742

The GS return policy, last time I bought a game, was returns (not just exchanges) allowed on all used stuff within 7 days. That's worth more to me than the potential 4% cashback--eventually--in RZ points.

I buy used, and I'm also not going to make four trips back and forth to various stores to save ten bucks or whatever.

That's a good point, they might well be incentivized by the game companies to try to move some of the dollars away from used sales.

pinata242

You're doing both of these wrong. I make no more than 1 stop to any store. And my point earlier, which you're well aware, is that there's a GS everywhere. I can't think of a BB w/o a GS in throwing distance.

I'm getting 8.67% on my BB gaming purchases, so your 4% is a little off. Whatever

Simple math if I spend $750 that's 3 $5 certs and 5 $10 certs. $65/$750 = 8.67%

edstein

I'm an engineer and generally good at math but this post just made my head hurt.

discostu1337

Meh, our used is still a way better deal. You can return it after playing it/beating it/hating it within a week. And the EDGE card knocks it down to $49 for newer used titles.

Michael Corvin

Except the Edge card isn't free.

edstein

It's like $15 and comes with a magazine subscription. Not a bad deal at all.

tonyc3742

And 10% or more bonus on trade-ins, I think. Usually not a great deal but you can maximize the deals.
I don't generally spend 750$ in cash on games in a year anyway, so I get individual games at the place with the best price (or by trading online with other users.)
I think the last game I bought at Best Buy was Scene It BOS when it was on sale. I missed the Mercs 2 and Pure deals, and Circuit City had better offers on some newer games.

pinata242

Yeah, $750 isn't what I spend, it was just the lowest common denominator between the $150 and $250 threshold to make the math simpler

I never buy a game without the best deal either. I just don't buy used and I don't sell my games back to a re-seller, so that's why I have my method.

Tarantino

I think the main win in this situation is not ever having to walk into a Gamestop again.

dsa_shea

Wasn't it mentioned that the magazine subscription (G.I.) might be cut from the edge card enrollment? If that happens then there is no way in hell I would pay 15 bucks for that Edge card.

Deftones

this is going to be a bitch for them to monitor, unless they go by the Gamestop website price for used titles. Gamestop stores vary on used prices even within a few miles of each other. Sort of annoying, really. Partially why I rarely buy used games.

Supermallet

Gamestop varies on used prices? They didn't when I worked there. It's more likely that some stores are better at changing the stickers on price changes than others.

Michael Corvin

and if you bypass GS altogether you can generally get 25%+ more by going the half/amazon route.