Retailers on the ripoff trail?

[Dyson]

How is it against the law to sell the Wii consoles in bundles only?

[Mikey]

It's a British thing for sure. Here in the UK things are very expensive, and companies like Game love to try and get every single penny out of you even when it's unfair.

[ShadowV7]

When I was in GAME afterwork today there was barely any shelf space for the Wii,had like 2/3 rows of games and that was it.I'm not 100% on this but I think you needed to get 2 games with the Wii.

I'll check next time i'm out,but i'm not to sure when that will be,see what you guys can find.

[Gizmo]

I don't get all the fuss - If they want to sell it only in bundles and increase their software sales, then they can do that. The Wii is selling so much anyway that they will still get a sale that way, once the demand stops being there then they will bring it back down. Supply and demand, basic stuff...

[Mikey]

There's a fuss because it's a scummy tactic. When there was a fuel strike several years ago, some petrol stations put their prices up to take advantage of people, and people boycotted certain stations. This is no different in my eyes. I'm boycotting Game.

[Ashley]

It all comes back to the basic point. We live in a capitalist society wherein everyone is out to make money. If you don't like it start a revolution, but communism will never work because lets face it, we're all products of capitalism now. Would we really want to make sure everyone works equal and is treated equal? Its a down point to our existance, but its life.

 

And boycotting a place isn't going to harm them as much as some people think.

 

 

When I was in GAME afterwork today there was barely any shelf space for the Wii,had like 2/3 rows of games and that was it.I'm not 100% on this but I think you needed to get 2 games with the Wii.

I'll check next time i'm out,but i'm not to sure when that will be,see what you guys can find.

 

How many games are out on the Wii, like thirty? How much space do you expect it to have?

[Pestneb]

 

And boycotting a place isn't going to harm them as much as some people think.

 

very true.

Boycott + word of mouth.

informing they uninformed that you can get accessories for reasonable prices elsewhere, and that there are better places to purchase from will do more harm.

 

for example, the HMV reward card gives back twice what the game reward card does, it is FAR more generous and flexible, and the games and accessories have always been cheaper or equal in price to GAME prices when I have checked.

even factoring in GAME sales etc, HMV often is the better.

for example, I have purchased a wii-mote and nunchuck for £23.98 from HMV.

although admittedly the prices have now gone back up, at GAME the cheapest I've seen that combo for was £45

[Ashley]

very true.

Boycott + word of mouth.

informing they uninformed that you can get accessories for reasonable prices elsewhere, and that there are better places to purchase from will do more harm.

 

for example, the HMV reward card gives back twice what the game reward card does, it is FAR more generous and flexible, and the games and accessories have always been cheaper or equal in price to GAME prices when I have checked.

even factoring in GAME sales etc, HMV often is the better.

for example, I have purchased a wii-mote and nunchuck for £23.98 from HMV.

although admittedly the prices have now gone back up, at GAME the cheapest I've seen that combo for was £45

 

Those are good points. However, how many HMVs are there compared to Games? I know theres over 400 Games in the country, not sure about HMVs and the site does not list the whole lot. Personally the nearest HMV is about fifteen miles away. So theres the convenience factor. Non-"informed" customers (in other words, casualers, parents, gifters etc) are more likely to feel they will be given more attention and receive more knowledge from a specialist, be it Game or Gamestation (whether or not this is true is a different story, its what a lot of people believe). Plus Game's reward card is one of the best, compared to Tescos, Boots and Sainsburys which is about 1% back, whereas Game is 2.5%. I think its just because people spend more at the aforementioned shops and they see the rewards quicker.

 

Looking at our store we do well because; there is no HMV. There is some low-price competition in town (Tescos often the cheapest but Woolies and Argos sometimes). The local Gamestation is a heavy-metal grungy hole filled with freaks (the staff). Teens go in there, but we tend to get the parents more. Plus the staff in our store are all informed and knowledgable. Each store is different, obviously, but I'd imagine many places would have a similar situation so Game will continue to do well. As will HMV, Gamestation and all these other places. As they should do. It would be boring if, as it is becoming, people went to Tescos for everything.

 

Afterthough; plus specialist stores have a wider variety of games and accessories and pre-owned which is a huge margin section for the store.

[Mikey]

It all comes back to the basic point. We live in a capitalist society wherein everyone is out to make money. If you don't like it start a revolution, but communism will never work because lets face it, we're all products of capitalism now. Would we really want to make sure everyone works equal and is treated equal? Its a down point to our existance, but its life.

 

And boycotting a place isn't going to harm them as much as some people think.

 

 

 

 

How many games are out on the Wii, like thirty? How much space do you expect it to have?

 

I respect their right to do it, but I don't respect their choice to do it at all. I'll just keep on with my boycott, and tell people to shop else where online, like http://www.amazon.co.uk

 

I know my boycott won't do much, but I won't be rewarding low tactics.

[blender]

I know my boycott won't do much, but I won't be rewarding low tactics.

 

Perpetrators, collaborators, bystanders, victims: we can be clear about three of these categories. The bystander, however, is the fulcrum. If there are enough notable exceptions, then protest reaches a critical mass. We don’t usually think of history as being shaped by silence, but, as English philosopher Edmund Burke said, ‘The only thing necessary for the triumph [of evil] is for good men to do nothing.’ So god bless Mikey and his little boycott .

[The Tingler]

It is a really underhanded tactic. I mean I wouldn't mind so much if it was just a couple of games, but four games?! £329.99? I also wouldn't mind if you could choose your games. All the titles on the Bundle seem, with the exception of Sonic, to be from launch. Still, at least they're mostly good games and not something like Super Fruitfall like Toys R Us do with their bundles.

 

Yes, when I tried to return a game in perfect condition a few years ago, they had their policy of being able to return it with no fuss. When I tried that, they got really bitchy with me, and I had to bug them about it before I got my money back.

 

As stated, GAME have now changed this policy. They now accept no returns whatsoever unless unopened.

[Mikey]

It is a really underhanded tactic. I mean I wouldn't mind so much if it was just a couple of games, but four games?! £329.99? I also wouldn't mind if you could choose your games. All the titles on the Bundle seem, with the exception of Sonic, to be from launch. Still, at least they're mostly good games and not something like Super Fruitfall like Toys R Us do with their bundles.

 

 

 

As stated, GAME have now changed this policy. They now accept no returns whatsoever unless unopened.

 

Yes, but at the time it was not their policy, and they bitched at me about it..

[Ashley]

Yes, but at the time it was not their policy, and they bitched at me about it..

 

But when was "at the time"? The policy has been in place since October.

[Mikey]

But when was "at the time"? The policy has been in place since October.

 

 

You must have missed what I said. I'm pretty sure I said several years ago.

[Ashley]

You must have missed what I said. I'm pretty sure I said several years ago.

 

I saw that, it was just reading it sounded like you said "Several years ago I tried and then recently I tried again and they moaned". My bad.

[flameboy]

Well its all illegal, the bundling of products that is, they can charge over the RRP technically, but forcing you to buy other things with it is illegal, but they know what they are doing with the Wii in such limited amounts, they want to get the highest attach rate of games to console, knowing that you'll be buying the most games at that time.

 

Go to HMV, they won't do it (altho some of games are a rip off in there).

 

Also on the note of comparing business to facizism let's stop it now, it the capitalist fat cats sat in their fucking chairs made of gold that are taking us for a ride.