If there's one thing that I've noticed recently, it's how the gap in price between certain new and used games is considerably small. It's a trend also noticed by a writer on Xbox 360 Wire, who noticed that a new copy of Battlefield was priced at £39.99 in GAME, while a secondhand copy was only a few quid cheaper at £37.99. Putting on his journalism hat, the writer inquired a store clerk, who eventually made a surprising revelation.
According to the GAME employee, Electronic Arts is able to forbid the retail chain from independently setting its own prices for used games. EA sets the (high) price for its own games. This allows EA to keep its game prices artificially high, and of course, drive consumers to purchase a brand new copy of the game -- after all, with only a few pounds' difference, who's going to buy a potentially scratched and urinated upon version of Battlefield?
Price fixing of this nature is not only a shady practice, but is downright illegal in the UK. We do stress that this is ONLY a rumor and is based on what a GAME employee supposedly said. IF it's true, it remains to be seen if this is only a special arrangement between EA and GAME, or if other stores and publishers are up to the same shenanigans. As I say, the price of secondhand games certainly seem to have gone up recently, and even I have found it "more economic" to surrender a few quid's difference for a pristine version of the game -- it's a marketing strategy so flawless (save for the legal part) that it must definitely have been considered by publishers.
True in this case? Impossible to say for sure, and you can guarantee that EA won't ever say "It's a fair cop son, we're guiltier than the McCanns!" It wouldn't shock me if it turned out that someone in the industry was pulling strings in the secondhand market, however.
Contest:
12:20 PM on 08.14.2008
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GRiD and The Club were also very pricey . . .
why on earth do games cost so much anyway? even downloadables!!!
and why does game smell of sweat and cigarettes?
So how is this news again?
GAME is likely just maintaining their own margins. If they know that two quid is likely enough to trigger an incremental purchase of a used copy of a game while the full price retail copy would go unsold why would they drop the price any lower?
Price fixing allegations or not, seems like Edge should be pushing used, not new games.
It's not news. It's a Rumortoid. Do you see the Rumortoid heading? That means it's a Rumortoid.
Also, a post is a post because I say it is, son.
EA have been in my good books recently (Burnout updates!) but this would put them firmly back into the cess pit again.
Although for current releases, it's not uncommon for the difference to be $5. Maybe they just haven't changed the price yet.
Also, a post is a post because I say it is, son.
DAY-UM!
We also have high pre-owned prices on Battlefield, but even higher prices on Call of Duty 4. Which is the same in GAME.
Ultimately our pricing policy on pre-owned is not determined by anyone externally, unless we aim to price match. Instead it is based upon stock within the company and general sales/availability.
I have been alarmed by the standard of GAME employees recently, my local store hired someone who while attempting to sell a 360 made this claim:
"I'm on my 23rd machine now, costing me a fortune."
Twat.
He also reckons that GAME is in talks to buy out Take Two.
Yeah, GAME employees - fonts of truth and wisdom, the lot of 'em.
Were you at Summer of Sonic like you said you'd be? Apart from my Sega contact, can't say I met a single soul I knew.
Can't say I've ever paid that much attention to the £37.99 used games though, it rather struck me as defeating the object of buying preowned.
We popped in for an hour, but had another appointment in Kent later that day... :(
Sadly the amount of 'far too young to be true Sega/Sonic fans' left us a little jaded, but we did point at people.
Suffice to say we won't be writing anything up though as 'popped in for a bit, got angry with some kids and left' isn't really much better than our general article quality as it is :P
You stay the duration?
Same story really. I hung around for about an hour, took a photo of the Robotnik cosplayer, but as soon as I saw someone indicating that he actually knew the words to the Shadow The Hedgehog theme tune, I knew I had to say my goodbyes.
LOL! +1 to you good sir.
Damn my over-active imagination, at least it keeps me convinced that I have an enormous penile swell.
Look at GameCube games. I saw them charge £18 for just the disk of Louigi's Mansion, once. No Box, just the disk in a little plastic bag :|
The real problem is how GAME now own it's main competitor Game Station. There really aren't any other video game shops, so that should set off alarm bells. Well for anybody who cares, obviously not for the regulators who, after a quick investigation, saw nothing wrong in a monopoly of the fastest growing business.
In January I bought a PS3 from ebay along with 3 sports games I would never play, after shopping around at the above 2 stores as well as a Cash Converter, CC offered about £11-15 each and Game £15-20 each, yet at GameStation I got £67 in total.
Of course, if I knew a good 'Swap Shop' type site for the UK (sans Noel Edmonds of course) pre-owned rip-offs would rot on the shelves.