[General Discussion] Gamestop and gutted games

That's odd they would gut both copies of the new Guilty Gear. Far as I can tell, no stores got more than 3, 4 copies, save for the larger volume stores. Even still, that's not a game we'd typically gut two copies of.

Why do we (GameStop) gut two copies (or more) of a game? Well for one, you should notice that each "new" section has a column dedicated to "New Releases", where a single title is gutted twice. That strategy is used as a selling tool -- the theory is it won't catch your eye if you only see it once, but seeing it twice will make you remember it and persuade you to buy it. It's a subconscious thing.

The other reasoning behind gutting more than one game goes back to our planagrams. We have to have a certain amount of space dedicated to specific sections, i.e. new PS2 games, used Xbox, etc. Sometimes we have to gut more than one copy of a single game in order to fill that space. Most stores don't have that problem, but new stores and stores with an unusually small amount of product variety will have that problem. My store was one of those, but I got it fixed.

Really though, an opened copy of a game shouldn't bother you. Unless you've got a fetish for peeling off that annoying plastic, just buy it. No one else's played it, and it sits peacefully with the instruction manual in a safe place. No biggie.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Sorry to hear that, Miles. Unfortunately, that's one of the things (few though there are) GameStop doesn't have a uniform policy on. At my store, we don't leave the instruction manuals in the case in the instance of gutting new games. Everything comes out.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by rpgcrazied

I dont understand why gamestop does that. Why do they have to open every copy, and put the disc in a sleeve? Cant they just have one opened(display case) and leave the rest sealed? If i buy a game new, it better have shrink wrap on it.

Already answered in thorough detail. Scroll up, or read the quote!

Quote:

Why do we (GameStop) gut two copies (or more) of a game? Well for one, you should notice that each "new" section has a column dedicated to "New Releases", where a single title is gutted twice. That strategy is used as a selling tool -- the theory is it won't catch your eye if you only see it once, but seeing it twice will make you remember it and persuade you to buy it. It's a subconscious thing.

The other reasoning behind gutting more than one game goes back to our planagrams. We have to have a certain amount of space dedicated to specific sections, i.e. new PS2 games, used Xbox, etc. Sometimes we have to gut more than one copy of a single game in order to fill that space. Most stores don't have that problem, but new stores and stores with an unusually small amount of product variety will have that problem. My store was one of those, but I got it fixed.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.