Tragic, as the end of being able to go into a shop and buy a new game in the U.K., although honestly I’m surprised it took this long. GAME being absorbed into Sports Direct was one of the most...
Tragic, as the end of being able to go into a shop and buy a new game in the U.K., although honestly I’m surprised it took this long.
GAME being absorbed into Sports Direct was one of the most baffling changes to the high street those years back… I’ll never forget, being based in Leeds at the time, initially having to walk into the pungent realm of Sports Direct, climb upstairs, and spelunk through the men’s underwear section to reach GAME; and then, a year or two later following a further surely malicious relocation and having got directions from staff after an age of confused wandering, to enter a small door on one floor, ascend what seemed to be a staff back staircase for several floors, and weave through a series of intoxicating series of passages and spaces of varying sizes worthy of mention in the Navidson Report, to finally stumble bleakly on the lines of man-sized cages of Charmander and Foxy plushes, great biblical walls of TCG boosters, and a single small shelf with a few Switch games thereon.
End of an era I suppose. Now there are zero physical game specialists (national anyway) left in the UK. Most indies have gone too. CeX is hanging on as the best (what a time to be alive) place to...
End of an era I suppose. Now there are zero physical game specialists (national anyway) left in the UK. Most indies have gone too. CeX is hanging on as the best (what a time to be alive) place to get video games and consoles and other electronics on the high street.
I know we're a geographically diverse bunch in here. What's physical game retail like where you are?
Gamestop absorbed everything in the early 2010s and then bailed out of Ireland during Covid, which means the best retailer of new games and new games hardware is Smyths, a national toy store...
Gamestop absorbed everything in the early 2010s and then bailed out of Ireland during Covid, which means the best retailer of new games and new games hardware is Smyths, a national toy store chain. Tesco also often has stuff in their bigger stores. CeX is also here, but only as a seller of used electronics and games, and that is obviously a problem for them now that the new retailers are out, because where else do used products come from? You can see it a bit in that their PS5 shelves have been cut back and so by stock it goes: PS4, Switch, Xbox 360, 3DS, PS5, and then the combined Xbox One/Xbox Series shelf.
There were reports a while ago about the absolute mess Fraser Group were making of running GAME after they took it over, things like poor distribution of stock so a random outlet store had more...
There were reports a while ago about the absolute mess Fraser Group were making of running GAME after they took it over, things like poor distribution of stock so a random outlet store had more stock of an upcoming game compared to larger stores.
Gamestop is the only big national chain I've seen here in California that only deals with video games. As u/MimicSquid mentioned, general electronics stores and department stores also stock them....
Gamestop is the only big national chain I've seen here in California that only deals with video games. As u/MimicSquid mentioned, general electronics stores and department stores also stock them. I also have come across a fair number of local video game stores that also sell games and consoles. Some specialize in only retro stuff (80s-00s) while others stock all used video games.
Tragic, as the end of being able to go into a shop and buy a new game in the U.K., although honestly I’m surprised it took this long.
GAME being absorbed into Sports Direct was one of the most baffling changes to the high street those years back… I’ll never forget, being based in Leeds at the time, initially having to walk into the pungent realm of Sports Direct, climb upstairs, and spelunk through the men’s underwear section to reach GAME; and then, a year or two later following a further surely malicious relocation and having got directions from staff after an age of confused wandering, to enter a small door on one floor, ascend what seemed to be a staff back staircase for several floors, and weave through a series of intoxicating series of passages and spaces of varying sizes worthy of mention in the Navidson Report, to finally stumble bleakly on the lines of man-sized cages of Charmander and Foxy plushes, great biblical walls of TCG boosters, and a single small shelf with a few Switch games thereon.
I’ll miss you, GAME!
End of an era I suppose. Now there are zero physical game specialists (national anyway) left in the UK. Most indies have gone too. CeX is hanging on as the best (what a time to be alive) place to get video games and consoles and other electronics on the high street.
I know we're a geographically diverse bunch in here. What's physical game retail like where you are?
GameStop still exists in California as the last retailer standing. There's also games and consoles in larger electronics and department stores.
Gamestop absorbed everything in the early 2010s and then bailed out of Ireland during Covid, which means the best retailer of new games and new games hardware is Smyths, a national toy store chain. Tesco also often has stuff in their bigger stores. CeX is also here, but only as a seller of used electronics and games, and that is obviously a problem for them now that the new retailers are out, because where else do used products come from? You can see it a bit in that their PS5 shelves have been cut back and so by stock it goes: PS4, Switch, Xbox 360, 3DS, PS5, and then the combined Xbox One/Xbox Series shelf.
There were reports a while ago about the absolute mess Fraser Group were making of running GAME after they took it over, things like poor distribution of stock so a random outlet store had more stock of an upcoming game compared to larger stores.
Gamestop is the only big national chain I've seen here in California that only deals with video games. As u/MimicSquid mentioned, general electronics stores and department stores also stock them. I also have come across a fair number of local video game stores that also sell games and consoles. Some specialize in only retro stuff (80s-00s) while others stock all used video games.