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Circuit City to expand used game sales program
Following an apparently successful ten-store test program started nearly a year ago, Circuit City has decided to broaden its used game sales, according to SmartMoney. No word on how many new stores will be adding a used games section or how quickly the expansion will roll out, but Circuit City Vice President Irynne MacKay said the company wants to be "competitive on pricing." That's a relief. We were worried they wanted to gouge us.High margin used game sales could help the struggling electronics retailer, whose sales fell 11 percent last year in the face of competition from Best Buy (which, incidentally, was also testing out used game sales at one point). The company is also toying with gaming tournaments, a 10% off "Gamer Savings Club" (with a $20 annual fee) and a new store layout that prominently features gaming kiosks. That all sounds well and good, but we'd recommend caution with the placement of those Wii kiosks. There's nothing worse than an overzealous Wii Sports player knocking over an innocent customer looking at big screen TVs.
Gamestop's used game sales data in beautiful chart form
We've long known that used games are the key to profitability for a growing number of video game retailers. But just how key are they? Over at Next Generation, Matt Matthews digs into Gamestop's latest SEC financial report and extracts the answer to that question in handy, easy-to-read chart format. Among the key findings: Gamestop's used software sales grew a whopping 444% from 2003 to 2007, compared to a "mere" 384% for new software. Used sales account for 44% of Gamespot's gross profit in 2007. Gamestop makes a ridiculous 50% gross profit margin on used game sales, compared to just 21% for new games (i.e. Gamespot keeps 50 cents for every dollar of used game revenue it receives, but only 21 cents of new game dollars). An estimated 53% of all games Gamestop sells are used games. While this might sound like bad news for publishers that only make money off new game sales, remember that consumers tend to take trade-in value into account when making those new game purchases. A bloated $65 price tag for a new game is a lot easier to swallow if you know you can get a good portion of that back once you're done with it, after all.
TechForward and NEW sparking trend of gadget buyback services
It's no secret that gadget aficionados like ourselves have mounds of kit that was hot stuff in its heyday, but figuring out what to do with it once its prime has passed is still a mystery to some. 'Course, the entrepreneurs in the crowd simply offer their previously loved wares up to the world via eBay (or similar), but for those lacking the time / motivation to do so, rest assured, companies are on the prowl to totally take advantage of you. TechForward and NEW are two firms that are looking to make a mint from entering the gadget buyback realm, and as you'd probably expect, the cash doled out to suckers individuals who bite on this is woefully less than market value -- but then again, it's ultra-convenient, shipping is free and it's guaranteed, hassle-free money. Sounds like the pawn shop just got with the times, eh?[Image courtesy of PlanoPawnShop]
GameStop coupon: 20% off used games [update]
Need to fill a few holes in your DS library? Take advantage of this week's GameStop sale for over 175 used games. While most of them are crap -- license-based software and other forgettable releases -- the titles listed below are worth picking up at these prices. Hotel Dusk: Room 215 - $19.99 Elite Beat Agents - $15.99 Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin - $14.39 Contact - $14.39 Puzzle Quest: Challenge of Warlords - $14.39 Age of Empires: Age of Kings - $10.39 Battles of Prince of Persia - $7.99 Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits - $6.39 Unfortunately, these bargains are only available at brick and mortar locations, so we hope you don't mind throwing on a thick coat and braving the winter weather! Don't forget to bring along the coupon we've pasted past the break.Update: Clarified that this sale is in-store only. Thanks, Joe!
The Twelve (well, thirteen, actually) Sales of GameFly
Video game rental service GameFly has a pretty big year-end sale going on through January 4th for over 30 of its used DS games. Though the carts are all pre-played, each one will come with a new manual and case, so you need not worry about receiving an incomplete set. As usual, we've picked the notable titles out of the bunch and listed them for you, except this time, we've done it in Christmas carol form! On the twelfth day of Christmas, DS Fanboy sent to me: Twelve Diddy Kong racers Racing ($17.99), Eleven Spectrobes for collecting ($15.99), Ten Hoshigamis a-SRPG-ing ($14.99), Nine Planet Puzzles Leaguing ($19.99), Eight Custom Robos a-fighting ($12.99), Seven Sim Cities a-building ($16.99), Six Bombermen a-touching ($22.99), Five of Sonic Rush's golden rinnngggggs ($17.99), Four Mana Children ($14.99), Three Elite Beat Agents ($22.99), Two Mega Man Star Forces ($17.99 each), And a Naruto: Ninja Council 3 ($17.99)! [Via CAG]
Target trialing online sales of pre-owned electronics
Although you may be accustomed to picking up your used wares from locales such as GameStop, Target is hoping that the scavengers of all things pre-owned will stop by its online electronics site, too. The retailer is currently testing online sales of used gizmos, including iPods, camcorders and HDTVs. Reportedly, the company made the call to start selling these goods after noticing that many returned items came back in "perfect working order," but it has yet to decide whether it will continue the business. We also heard that refurbished consoles would be up for grabs, but after running a quick search, we came up empty handed. Still, we'd be awfully careful before we ordered, say, a pre-owned iPod, from Target -- you really never know what you're gonna get.
Rumor: GameStop and EB Games no longer selling new GBA titles?
The current buzz around the Cheap Ass Gamer community indicates that both GameStop and Electronics Boutique, the latter being a subsidiary of the former, are supposedly suspending the sale of new GBA games. Similar to how the two retailers recently converted their dusty GameCube stock, GBA titles that were previously marked as "new" are now considered "used" and are sold at used prices. While this seems like the perfect opportunity to fill in the gaps of our GBA collection without having to spend too much, we are a little worried that this changeover might prompt some stores to gut the new games, throwing away their boxes and manuals to free up rack space. That just ain't right![Via CAG]
DS Daily: The burden of releases
Invariably, we want more games than we can actually buy. We have to make some tough decisions at times, and occasionally, games get left behind. What's your strategy for getting your hands on as many games as possible? Do you do trade-ins or sell used games somewhere, like on Amazon? Do you rely on holiday gift requests to get the games you want the most? Do you rent? Or do you maybe work something out with friends so that you each buy different games (when you can, outside of multiplayer needs) and trade off? The worst option, of course, is going without. Even though we've certainly had moments of that, we still shudder at the very thought of making such agonizing decisions. When you do choose to let a wanted title pass you by, do you try to pick it up later, or just let it go?
GameStop selling used DS Lites at a decent price
GameStop usually sells its used DS Lites for $119.99, only ten dollars less than how much a new system goes for -- might as well buy a new one at that price, right? But for the next week, the video game retailer will be offering the preowned handhelds for only $99.99, provided that you present the above coupon. That sounds a lot more reasonable!Just cross your fingers and hope that your console's previous owner treated it a lot better than these guys did with theirs.
Analysis: Used game prices lowest in November
The internet had brought a wealth of historical pricing data to the fingertips of anyone looking to buy stocks, homes, plane tickets and all sorts of other products big and small. Yet used game buyers have had to rely on intuition and sites like CheapAssGamer to know when to strike for that great deal.No longer. JJ Hendricks, proprietor of online game retailer JJGames, tracked the average sale price of 50 randomly selected games on sites like eBay, Amazon and Half.com. The results (graphed above) show prices generally falling from January through May, leveling off during the summer months, then dipping to their absolute lowest point on Nov. 4. After that, holiday demand sends prices upward again.Hendricks' new Used Video Game Pricing blog promises to look into all sorts of facets of the volatile second-hand gaming market, including the roller-coaster pricing of used Pokémon games and how to make money collecting games. We have a feeling the secret for that last one is going to be having lots of sealed Game and Watch units lying around.
Sell your messed-up DS Phat in Japan
Demand for the DS and DS Lite show no signs of abating. Japanese retailers are sitting on such a goldmine that they can get away with putting stuff like this on the shelves: a scratched, stylus-free, filth-ridden DS, yours for only $100! Box? Instruction manual? Get out of here! Gift wrapping extra. Store takes no responsibility if your kids get beaten up in the playground, or your partner leaves you for someone who knows crap when they see it. We'll take three. Do they come in candy pink?
Circuit City busts out the used games
Cheap Ass Gamer points to Circuit City's new pre-owned games section on the retailer's website. GameDaily reports that an analyst from Lazard Capital Markets is doubtful the 'experiment' (Circuit City has less than 50 used games for sale) will do much to loosen GameStop Corp's grip on the used-games market. In order to be competitive, Circuit City would have increase its inventory of both new and used games, in order to restock its store locations to balance supply and demand; and a sophisticated inventory and pricing system would need to be put in place, headed by a sales team that could accurately appraise trade-ins. "Importantly, Circuit City is not the first 'big box' retailer to test pre-owned game sales, with Best Buy experimenting with used product sales as recently as last year, with limited success according to our checks," says Lazard.[Thanks, Yoon]
GameStop reaching out for your Twilight Princess
Ring, ring ... ring, ring. Have you recently been disturbed by Aeris' dinnertime calls? GameStop's automated insider dialed up Opposable Thumbs to drop a hot tip: Twilight Princess now has a $35 trade-in value -- "if you're finished with it, why don't you bring it to the store and trade it in?"Apparently GameStop, which controls most of the US's used-games market, is squirreling away as many of those one million Zelda copies in circulation as it can, just in time for ... spring? GameStop's spam-calls might indicate that the retailer is not reaching its double-sale quota. GameStop is probably having trouble buying back copies of Twilight Princess (so it can sell them again for a solid profit); likely because consumers are holding on to the game. And so the calls go out.Inside the store is one thing -- but pestering your loyal customers on their phones? That's just squirrelly business practice.[Thanks, 32_Footsteps]
Staff recommendations: Gamecube
Lately, a couple of lists have been speeding through the tubes of the intertron, reminding new Wii-owners that in fact, your new system has all the functionality of one recently passed away: the Nintendo Gamecube. As such, the library of playable games from launch is actually quite large. But how is one to discern the hidden gems amongst such a vast field? Worry not, fair readers: we're here to help.Let's be fair: you're here reading Nintendo Wii Fanboy, for goodness' sake, so you probably know about absolute wonders such as Super Smash Bros Melee, Metroid Prime, and The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. These games, of course, must be played under penalty of death. What follows are fifteen fourteen of our personal recommendations, leading you from the AAA-released to barely known wonders of the little purple box. Most of these games can still be found, used, at many outlets nationwide. Take a look, and buy a game! We believe in you.
Rumor: no pre-owned games for PS3?
According to GamesRadar (who struck out on their last PS3-rumor at bat), Sony might be looking to prevent the sale of pre-owned games by using a software licensing system similar to the one employed in the PC software space. The rumor goes something like this: instead of purchasing the actual game, you purchase a nontransferable license to play the game, and the physical media is just a distribution method (think Microsoft Windows). While Sony does own some patents that might be used to this end, the issue is far more complicated than the technology and motivation behind it. Sure, Sony and most publishers would love to cut off the parasitic used-games industry, but would they do it at the expense of angering both retailers and consumers? Considering the dubious origin of the rumor -- "retail sources" -- and GamesRadar's past inaccuracy, it's far too early to get upset over this one.Next-Gen offers their (similarly skeptical) take on the rumor, getting responses from an expert in retail law and two publishing sources who, though admittedly in favor of such a plan, concede that the story is unlikely.[Thanks, SickNic and Kerina]
