Does GameStop Promote Microsoft Over Sony?

JMO_INDY
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 10:51:22 PM
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well this is how I see it, any game store can be seen as biased just by your employees. It doesn't matter if it's EB or GameStop. I have ran into "biscuits" in both stores, more prominently in GS than EB admittedly but none the less you can't judge which side a fanboy will be on when you hire them. So really it's a hit or miss situation. The GSs around here really aren't that bad. Wal-mart is a different story. Every one I go into the "tech" guys are wearing X-Box 360 neck band deals to hold there keys and stuff, when I bought my PS3 and PSP in one day there, I got this huge scoff and a mumbled "what an idiot" From the douche bag at the counter. I then told his manager about it, and I went in a week ago and talked to the manager again and he said he had been fired LOL He said he's gotten that from at least two other customers as well.

Last edited by JMO_INDY on 6/27/2010 10:52:12 PM

18 up, 0 down

Deathstriker
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 10:58:44 PM

Owned. The Wal-mart here just want's you to buy something they don't give a damn. Plus the Gamestop is in the SAME shopping center as Wal-mart.

4 up, 1 down

JMO_INDY
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:06:24 PM

Well my Wal-Mart and nearest Game Stop or any major store for that matter is over 44 miles away. So I doubt they have any direct influence on each other LOL

1 up, 0 down

Deathstriker
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:04:02 AM

ROFL

1 up, 1 down

Toxin
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:37:23 AM

My Wal-mart reduced the size of PlayStation games and gave more room to 360 games. I asked why and the guy said Microsoft pays them more.

5 up, 0 down

JMO_INDY
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:48:20 AM

Well mine, it's actually everything else is on the front, the tech section is in the very back of the store and when you walk back there in the front is two is oval shaped counters where a person stands inside the oval and on the outside for one is all cell phones and the other is all cameras, then on your right hand side of the wall is the gaming section. Its starts with Wii, then DS, then 360, then PS3, then PSP, and then finally PS2. Then as you turn around there is a small shelf with all the gaming accessories, once again same pattern. then as you turn around in the same mini-aisle there are the Rock Bands and Guitar Heros, imagine how that order goes.

So another funny story from Wally World, I once went in looking for the PSN cards as they had just remodeled the entires store right? So I ask the guy behind the cell phone island counter. He then calls for another biscuit to help me. And yes he had that damn 360 neck band on. I then proceeded to ask him and the man simply said, IDk where it is. So I walk around the place trying to find it for 5 minutes, then I see another customer actually getting helped by the same guy who had no idea where the PSN cards were. The other customer was brought to that mimi-aisle I talked about and sure enough BAM! All the gaming accessories you could wave a stick at. I then proceeded over there, and asked the guy why he said he didn't know where my item was but he knew damn and good well where the 360 $%#& was. He then told me flat out. "PlayStation and SONY sucks dude, grow up, PS2 is the only good thing SONY has ever made." I was completely shocked at how much of an ignorant prick this guy was being, I didn't know what to say. So I simply asked him, what is your favorite game, and you know what he said? I bet you can guess, it is a pretty common one. Guessed yet? OK i'll tell you now, he said. Now it is a game every X-Bot should have in their library...SCRIBBLENAUTS :D!!!!! Yeah I laughed pretty damn hard myself. Then I slowly walked away with a grin. Good times in Ol' Wally World.

10 up, 0 down

EddPm6
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 9:56:22 AM

see my walmart is quite different because i worked at the MCds inside the walmart. And you hardly ever get a person in electronics that actually knows what they are talking about, so i was actually the guy they would hope was around if a customer had a question. And the sony game section was bigger then MSs bacuse of ps2, psp and ps3. In-fact they actually took away a section of 360 for sony.

1 up, 0 down

Deathstriker
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:46:21 AM

Ya, Indy...my store is kinda like yours its got the cell phone island n stuff, I like to find the biscits and insult them easly, by just asking them what they perfer...so

IF ANYONE HAS SEEN E3 LAST YEAR

I like to just let them talk then I simply go "BAM!...there it is" lmfao and walk away.

If you have no clue what I'm talking about just youtube "microsoft natal e3 fail".

1 up, 0 down

JMO_INDY
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 11:14:43 AM

want to know what failure looks like? BAM THERE IT IS! I didn't know Kinect was so advanced, it even recognizes the latest dance craze...jerking!!! LMAO It's just trying to be hip with the kids, next in the first software update it will add Stanky Leg Support :D!!!!!

1 up, 0 down

laksh
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:21:55 PM

I think JMO_INDY made a good point about not knowing which side someones going to be on when hiring them. Don't know much about gamestop but last year i went into a sony centre lookin at tv's and was chattin to one of the employees and he was telling me the 360 was the better console at this point. I was thinking it was never the better console and wtf is this guy doin here, I had no idea of what to say at this point and pretty much just left.

1 up, 0 down

Deathstriker
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:40:45 PM

He does have a point, and I don't understand why people say it's the better console.

PS3 Win's it all.

Hardware, Selection, Service, Performance (online), Freedom. The PS3 doesn't have cross game chat, but that's it.

The 360 is more of a choice then a win. Some people pick it cause of controller layout (which there IS a mod to have a 360 controller on PS3) and some people stick to 360 because of Gear's and Halo (which ALL MY 360 friend's hate Halo, lol)

1 up, 0 down

Deathstriker
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:45:15 PM

ALSO to make Bin's point if anyone is a REAL gamer here we all know a controller is a way to go. I have a 360 (due to my PS3 dying :( disc drive whent out...had it since DAY ONE of release...orginal 20GB.)

I go to Gamestop and see a Kinnct display. No PS Move...and any REAL gamer know's when you take away the controller...your taking away the game.

1 up, 0 down

dachemists
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 8:41:32 PM

i do understand MS sugar coates everything, theres 2 cases full of garbage 360 games, a few good games, thats why everywhere except walmart, the first round of clearanced games are all 360

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Jian2069
Tuesday, June 29, 2010 @ 4:43:09 PM

"Well mine, it's actually everything else is on the front, the tech section is in the very back of the store and when you walk back....."

The electronics section here is EXACTLY the same except the two counters are rectangular

0 up, 0 down

Deathstriker
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 10:56:10 PM
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I'm with you Ben...same one over here too. They just promote M$ more :|. Like after E3 I go over there and there is 1 out of 4 window's being Sony...the other 3 being 360 stuff. Then when you go in all like, hey what's in here. It's like hey put Sony in a corner and don't even mention a thing...

3 up, 2 down

DemonNeno
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:00:24 PM
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It's a bit of a caliused conversation about PS3s. A while ago, I was at a Gamestop at Village Crossing in Niles, IL on Touhy Ave just west bound of Carpenter Rd (aka, Central st in Chicago and Niles Center Rd in Skokie). The PS3 demo console was down but the 360 was up, with the same game going.

Reason? Unsure. I kidded with the guy about it, asking if the PS3 had a RROD. He immediately jumped the Jasper chipset gun on me, telling me how that's the past 360s but now they perform flawlessly. I kinda stared at him and once again asked why the PS3 was off. "Because it's the same game on the Xbox, why run two when you can just play the game on the console that looks better?"

AC2 was the game. Get this. I was at the counter with AC2 for the PS3 and that new(er)Super Mario Bros for the Wii. I tapped my finger on the box and mentioned this is why. "I wanted to give it shot before I bought it, but I guess I won't now." kid tells me "Oh, we'll it's not supposed to look that different, really."

REALLY?! SERIOUSLY?! I was pissed. I left both games there and walked out. I tossed my coin at Best Buy and picked up a spindle of CDRs while I was at it.

I don't like the attitude. That's the problem with people. I'm dropping over $100 in games and I get sh** attitude? This kid had already rung up the AC2.. For PS3. and gives me that answer? Blah, to hell with you homeboy!

HOWEVER! The Gamestop I mostly visit now is located on Harlem Ave in Norridge or Harwood Heights, one of those two (wierd city limits out that way). Dudes are cool, don't give me now console war bullcrap and, most importantly, most the workers will bend over backwards to get your purchase. Well worth my time!

9 up, 1 down

WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:18:39 PM

Awesome move man, awesome.

0 up, 0 down

Hezzron
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:03:06 PM
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MS and GameStop are both American companies, so maybe they are inclined to scratch each others back for the sake of the homeland economy.

Looks as though that "assistant manager" pushed MS when it came to the company line, but the true gamer in him recognized Sony as the superior source for his entertainment of choice. That's what really counts.

Anyways, I'm rarely ever in a GameStop. I've only bought 3 games there. And I'm certainly never in there long enough to get all chatty with the mole-man behind the counter, so I have no idea what they push.

Last edited by Hezzron on 6/27/2010 11:04:23 PM

6 up, 0 down

BikerSaint
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:09:33 PM
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Ben, you're absolutely spot on!!!!!

I have 5 local EB/GS stores within 8 miles of me, & although the closest one has the least amount of MS sponsored fanboys working there,but they all know not to talk bull by upping MS & downing the PS3 to a customer cause I'll butt right in & set the customer right with the real deal, so Sony becomes the BIG DEAL, and the MS becomes a no-deal.

And those other 4 stores are all totally MS'ed up.

All 5 stores DO prominently display posters & games pertaining to MS though, in their storefront windows and right inside their doorway.
Matter of fact the corporate office just made every store change it's games racks layout, making MS's stuff the very first gaming products you see when you walk in.
Even their in-store TV channel goes on & on with about 80% of MS games,10% Ninty, & 10% for Sony.

1 up, 1 down

FM23
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:11:34 PM

Nice

0 up, 2 down

johnld
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:33:41 PM

the gamestop close to my store has xbox games way at the back. first thing you see is psp/ds then ps3/wii then 360 last.

3 up, 0 down

AcHiLLiA
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:18:47 AM

wow, 5 EB/GS stores within 8 mile radius, that's alot of game stores.

0 up, 0 down

FM23
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:09:40 PM
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Thats the cold heart truth though. Everytime I go pick up a new game (multiplatform), they always try to give my the 360 copy before I even tell them which system I want it for. Very annoying, and when I say "no, no...let me get that for PS3"...their whole cheery attitude turns cold, not ignorant, but they aren't as happy anymore...lol. And I find it odd that alot of Gamestops around L.A. all have employees that seem to only want you to by one thing and not the other. I can't count how many times I hear cashiers tell people that game is a waste of money. Yeah some misguided people need to know information, but instead of telling them the game is wack...offer them another game that will cater to their likings...now thats good business, not these horrible methods I've seen frequently. If I was the boss one word...'Fired'. One half of the employees seem like cool geeks who I personally digg, and the others seem like people I would have problems with if we played together on a basketball team.

0 up, 1 down

Clamedeus
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:20:27 AM

I usually go to Game Crazy for my games. GC is very close and GS is too far.

But when ever i go into GC they know what system i want. So I've never had a problem, but it's only happened 2 times because there was a new guy there.

0 up, 0 down

WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:27:03 PM

When I hit the midnight launch of FFXIII they just assumed I wanted the 360 version. I was like, No, I'm getting the PS3 version with a SINGLE disc.

2 up, 0 down

Clamedeus
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 5:09:04 PM

I'm with you on that World.

0 up, 0 down

jdt1981
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:09:43 PM
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I'm glad I haven't stepped one foot in a Gamestop or EB Games since like 2004. I bought my PS3 and Xbox 360 at Wal-Mart. I buy most of my games through Gamefly.com because I get them at a used price plus a $5 discount on top of that, the rest I buy at Wal-Mart or online at Amazon.com. I don't feel like dealing with biased fanboys who are in M$'s pocket so I avoid Lamestop at all costs.

3 up, 1 down

Milonakis
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:13:17 PM
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Most gamestop employees I know suck. One guy I talked to tried to get me to buy a 360 just to get Gears of War aka "The Most Amazing Game Ever To Be Released". Screw them.

5 up, 1 down

johnld
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:39:05 PM

one of them actually tried hard to delay my preorder of god of war 3 because "God of war 3 will definitely come to the 360 in a few months with better graphics, theres really no good games coming to the ps3 exclusively." just to let you know, this happened in early february. we know a lot of great games came then. i told the guy i wanted some other employee to take credit for my preorder.

4 up, 1 down

Dancemachine55
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:46:04 AM

Really?!?!? God of War coming to 360!?!?!

AND being better!?!?! What a load of BULL!!!

These Xbots and MS fanboys are clinging onto anything they can get. Kinect, COD map exclusives and ESPN. Then there's Gears 3, Halo Reach, Forza 4 (which is a joke compared to GT5) and Crackdown 2. Fable 3 and Mass Effect 3 are coming to PC, so they don't count as exclusives.

As for me?

1. No one outside of the US cares about ESPN on Xbox Live. NO ONE!!! That limits their fanbase by a huge amount.

2. I gave up on COD after MW2 sucked. Such a shame, COD had potential, but Activision cared more about $ than :)

3. I only want Kinect for Dance Central. I love music games, and this dancing game looks perfect for eliminating dance mat madness. Singstar Dance looks good, but its limited to Move controls, not whole body movements.

4. Only want Gears 3 and Halo Reach. Everything else is on PS3 or PC.

Everyone I know, even my friends with 360's, all agreed MS sucked this E3. Only the hardcore games and Dance Central appealed to them. My 1 Xbot friend thought MS ruled over Nintendo and Sony at E3. This is the friend who helped get 360's for all my friends birthdays. YES, he is that insecure and deluded about the console's "epic awesomeness".

Just cos it has Halo and Live, doesn't make it better than the competition. Games count, and Sony takes first place in that domain.

Sorry, ranting.

GS should employ staff who are non-bias. Who love all MS, Sony and nintendo consoles. Then they'd be the perfect person for the job.

P.S.

I did tell one customer at EB who bought a 360 that he's wasting his money and that the 360 is dying. Now who's the fanboy!?!?

6 up, 2 down

johnld
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 5:02:56 AM

its kinda hard to like the 360 though since it breaks so often. but they do have games that interest me but not enough to buy it for myself. gears, sure. halo, not so much. although i did like the idea in odst where the character is just a regular person who cant jump that high in the air with supposedly heavy armor.

1 up, 2 down

Underdog15
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:38:28 PM

@Dancemachine

It's very true about ESPN in other countries. I'm in Canada. I'm a major sports fan. (Enough to major in Phys Ed (also theatre and psych)) But up here in the Great White North, ESPN can only be found near the border (and I just learned today that apparently, Canada's most southern point is more south than the most northern part of California and Navada!)

ESPN is not something that sells here.

0 up, 0 down

SirLoin of Beef
Tuesday, June 29, 2010 @ 10:05:24 AM

I'm looking forward to the ESPN stuff on XBL. Might turn out to be junk and I won't use it but it'll be interesting to see how it works.

As far as GS and Microsoft, this doesn't surprise me one bit. MS can be pretty slimy. Don't get wrong, I love my 360 and have had hours upon hours of fun with it, as I have my PS3; I'm just not that big fan of the company. I'm pretty lucky in that the GS near my house are pretty console-neutral. I've ordered games for both my PS3 and 360 from this particular store and never have they made an unsolicited suggestion that I get one version over another. The only time I've heard them utter which version is better is when they're asked and they're pretty even when it comes to praising one version over another.

0 up, 0 down

Qubex
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:14:18 PM
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I have to admit... even though we do not have a GameStop in Singapore, I have always felt that Sony has gotten the short end of the stick in the US with regards how GameStop employees seem to promote xBot over Sony.

I don't believe these employees are not educated enough on Sony products, I simply think they don't want to be... for what ever insane reason they seem to have...

Q!

"play.experience.enjoy"

*Currently in SinCity, Singapore

2 up, 1 down

johnld
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:41:02 PM

360 fanboys are never or will never be educated enough. they love taking it up the ass when their 360 fails 5 times knowing that their next one will also fail and at the same time praising what a great system it is.

2 up, 0 down

Mornelithe
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:18:12 PM
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To be honest Ben, I hardly ever go to a store to look at anything 'random'. I'm in and out, with a very very specific agenda. I get all my games info online, so shops are simply where I pick up my preorders.

And I pity the employee who tries to throw some MS propaganda my way.

4 up, 1 down

aeron
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:22:09 PM
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I personally think it was an extreme bias...to the point I actually think it was some kind of conspiracy. Now, maybe I'm wrong...But when the PS3 came out, every time I went to a Gamestop (and there were about three or four I went to), the 360 was setup demo'ing a game...and the PS3 was not operational...It was turned off, no game demo'ing...Extremely suspicious.

2 up, 1 down

johnld
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:26:38 PM
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hahaha, its funny to see xbox 360 and modern warfare 2 ads right underneath the PSXextreme logo.

3 up, 0 down

CHAOS THEORY X
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:02:07 AM

I just got redirected to an xbox 360 ad while tryin to access this article, oh the irony...

2 up, 0 down

jdt1981
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:25:39 AM

You guys need to use firefox with adblock plus. The only ad I can see is the blue PS3 give away.

5 up, 0 down

johnld
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 5:04:38 AM

i do use adblock but since psxextreme ads dont bother me, i leave it on open for the site. its just funny to see it, thats all. maybe microsoft has their hands on this too.

1 up, 1 down

WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:33:55 PM

We should thank MS for paying Arnold/Ben to put their crap on this awesome site. Who cares where the money comes from as long as it keeps us ranting :)

1 up, 0 down

The X Factor 9
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:27:59 PM
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Of course Microsoft is promoted over Sony at Gamestop stores...As far as I am concerned, there has been no way for people to pirate PS3 games. Xbox 360 on the other hand...well we know they've been hacked to the point that MS had to start banning people from Live. Gamestop makes their profit on used game sales. Why not buy some used games, copy them, and return them? Of course your sales are gonna look higher. Think of all of the traded in Xboxes and accessories. Gamestop has a LOT more money to make selling used Microsoft products as compared to Sony. Case in point...have you EVER seen a hard drive upgrade sold in a Gamestop? Case closed.

2 up, 0 down

johnld
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:47:20 PM

given that microsoft is now a major player in the console generation, they wouldve used all that money to fix their damn system. but i guess they cant afford to since they cant compete with sony on the exclusives department. none of that timed exclusive crap that microsoft tries to do everytime. I believe the new diet 360 is just another xbox iteration with more cost cutting measures that arent good for the consumers. i mean i heard of a new diet 360 breaking after 2 days, and that video how it scratched the hell off that disc immediately when the guy moved it. i know i did that once with my 360 and it didnt do anything to my disc.

2 up, 0 down

johnld
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:30:26 PM
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i believe they gave out xbox 360s when that guy, dont care about his name, gave a kinect demo on jimmy falons show on how bad it was.

2 up, 0 down

WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:36:01 PM

Kinect will be Microsoft's Waterloo.

0 up, 0 down

DeathOfChaos
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:32:12 PM
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The people who work at the Gamestop I visit are more in favor of the PS3. In fact, they were pissed about how the Lightning PS3 didn't come to America and one of them knew someone who ordered it from Japan. They have their occasional likes for a few XBox Exclusive games, but they love their PS3 much more.

3 up, 0 down

kraygen
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:29:22 AM

Lucky! ;)

1 up, 0 down

Jawknee
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:36:54 PM
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Yup, most stores around me always push MS stuff. They never ask if it want it for PS3. They always assume Xbox.

0 up, 0 down

johnld
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:55:41 PM

yeah, they do that to me even on ps3 exclusive. they actually take their time trying to find it on their shelves. they also talk up the 360 so much once that they convinced a customer to get one. at the end of their praise, they told him that he should get the protection plan for it too "just in case." customer asked why he should buy the plan. employee said that since its a high end machine, units break down "occasionally." i laughed and said i guess a 33% failure rate and knowing that all 360s have the possibility of breaking counts as occasionally. employee quickly changed the subject and started talking about the amount of games the 360 has, halo and gears of war.

4 up, 0 down

Jawknee
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:36:30 AM

Pathetic. SO much money wasted on postage, warranties and protection plans all because MS couldn't be bothered to make ea reliable console.

1 up, 0 down

johnld
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 5:06:20 AM

why should they improve the console anyway? they're trying to hold on to any plus they got on their side. they want to say we sold (as in shipped) more 360s than ps3s. they just keep giving their console away like at the press conference. just once i want to see them try to give a 360 and getting the response "why are you giving me this piece of crap?" and by piece of crap i mean hardware wise. i'll play it but its still a piece of crap until they fix it. and none of that taking out the red LED ring bull****

Last edited by johnld on 6/28/2010 5:09:16 AM

0 up, 0 down

JasperLoons
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:42:56 PM
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I don't know about individual stores, but definitely in their weekly ads. When it comes to multiplatform games, they show the 360 version about 90% of the time (that's just a guess).
I seriously look at the ads every week now just to see if they do it again.

1 up, 0 down

th3_bLy
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:51:07 PM
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I joined just to make a comment =D Anyways, I currently work at a GS and no one in my store is like that. Granted, we all have our favorite consoles, but we tend to talk more about the games available for the consoles. Though, when we make console suggestions I always suggest the PS3 first lol.

7 up, 0 down

BikerSaint
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:13:56 AM

th3_bLy,
Welcome to PSXE.

I'm glad to hear that your GS has broken away to form it's own renegade Black Ops GS Spinter cell!

VIVA THE ONGOING REVOLUTION!!!

2 up, 0 down

WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:52:11 PM

Welcome to the show, always good to hear from an employee.

0 up, 0 down

AntDC
Sunday, June 27, 2010 @ 11:51:15 PM
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It's funny because it just doesn't make business sense to be an employee of a store and boast about how the cheaper console is "better". Here in NZ PS3 tends to get more advertising in store and unlike you guys in the US Sony gets reasonable TV ad time as well. In saying that though the Playstation has always tended to be more successful in European countries...

2 up, 0 down

Robochic
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:05:04 AM
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since one of the gamestops in my mall came under new store management it's done a 100 % turn around, use to have nothing but fan boys for xbox as their employees and everything for Xbox was upfront, now it's totally different went in their and I know the store manager and he fired anyone who promoted one company more than other he required the employees to know ALL companies and the store is Sony on the left, M$ on the right, then nintendo on the same wall as M$ but
the Wii is taking up most of the wall with DS LOL.

But I see where u are coming from Ben I have seen other Gamestops that aren't near my house but in the same city and they are sony haters, so I dont; shop their but I have faith that if gamestop hires more store manager that just have a heart for gaming no matter what company they like or dislike i think they could have higher sales and happier customers.

2 up, 0 down

InBlackestNight
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:05:42 AM
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There is this real winner in my gamestop. He looks like a live action version of comic book guy. One time he was telling a kid (couldn't have been older than 6-8) how much he sucked at punch-out. The kid was just trying to figure the game out. Then when he asked why the ps3 wasn't hooked up the guy told him that the ps3's always quit and it was a piece of crap and they always have a ton of ps3's returned. The poor kid just looked stunned. I mean he was a kid. The employees they hire seem to have no real social skills at all. I remember when Hot Shots Golf came out and I went in to buy it and they didn't even have it on the shelf (it had been out a few days) and they had to search for it. The guy told me "I didn't even know people bought this junk for the ps3" It was almost like they didn't want people to have access to the game. By the way, love the big 360 ad over the comment box. Real nice touch for a ps site.

Last edited by InBlackestNight on 6/28/2010 12:09:45 AM

0 up, 0 down

Mavfan321
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:10:13 AM
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The sad thing is it's not just the retailers it the media there is a blatant Xbox bias on just about all of the biggest sites. It's interesting that they can be so excited about another Halo, or GOW release and when it comes to interesting outside the box stuff (which tends to be on PS3) the reports are more cynical. IGN seriously has constant polls and this is a mock example (hyperbole of course but not too far off the mark.)

How Excited are you for Halo 15?
A.OMG I CANT WAIT WILL CHANGE GAMES FOREVER. B.THIS IS GOING TO KILL ALL.
C.YES!!!
D.Awesome I can't wait.

What do you think of the early screens for The Last Guardian?
A. Cool
B. Huh?
C. Wait this isn't the Halo poll?
D. B and C

4 up, 0 down

sirbob6
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:50:07 AM

I also noticed that at the e3 awards on ign. For example in the best shooter catagory Killzone 3 and Soccom 4 was not even nominated, however gears, halo, and games I have never even heard of were nominated, or in best racer GT5 was beat out by Need for Speed. I mean come on!

Last edited by sirbob6 on 6/28/2010 12:52:27 AM

2 up, 0 down

Mavfan321
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:00:03 AM

I could be wrong but they may have been another site because I know what you're talking about. If it isn't still shows the bias by IGN if it is another site shows the bias exists elsewhere. There is one site where one editor posts PS3 reports with pictures of essentially gay men frolicking on the beach. It's really ridiculous.

0 up, 0 down

Highlander
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:13:53 AM
Reply

ROTFLMAO! Ben, you're asking? I mean, how can you even doubt it? Just about every person posting here has a story about the day they were in GameStop when the drone behind the counter was being biased about the PS3 or even telling outright lies about it in order to get customers to go with a 360 game. How many times have people been asked by a GameStop Drone if they want the 360 version, only to smile broadly, look the drone in the eye and pronounce "There is no 360 version, this is a PS3 exclusive."? Of course many have also heard the drone reply that such and such a PS3 exclusive game (one that's developed by a Sony 1st party) will be coming to the 360.

I don't honestly believe that there is any question. GameStop is biased. Even their website is biased in terms of what products are displayed first.

7 up, 5 down

Underdog15
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:41:18 PM

Not sure why you got so many downvotes... It's obviously true. Especially about people here having stories.

1 up, 1 down

BlackBriar
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:15:11 AM
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GameStop's I know, Push Xbox like its Sexy new system that everyone needs to know about; Are you Serious!?! Both guys and girls employees need a reality check.

0 up, 0 down

sirbob6
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:37:37 AM

A fun reality check is to simply ask them for 5 360 exclusive. They say gears and halo, then they stop for a short period time and look down in shame.

4 up, 1 down

sirbob6
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:21:04 AM
Reply

I have noticed a bias, however it is not overly bad, just a large pyramid of unsold 360s that haven't been touched for over a year and a few biscuits who don't know anything, and I mean anything, however they are fun to "play" with.

Last edited by sirbob6 on 6/28/2010 12:26:25 AM

0 up, 0 down

regular14
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:45:49 AM
Reply

In my gamestop most of us are huge ps3 fans. the one guy who was super pro-xbox had his xbox broken and now is a huge ps3 fan. And one guy loved his ps3 but kept it on over night everynight until the damn thing broke and now is a xbox fan, but fu** that guy he's a di**.

0 up, 1 down

realmadpuppy
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:52:08 AM
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The store Manager and most of the employees are PS3 centric at my gamestop. they have never pushed the 360.

2 up, 0 down

BikerSaint
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:59:59 AM
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After a intense one-sided argument(MY side) with a 360 counter biscuit in the GS store farthest from me(8 miles), he most foolishly decided to try getting even by purposely slipping a 360 disc(and manual too) into the PS3 case I wanted.

Since I was on one of my marathon multi-console games collection hunts, I had about 27 assorted USED game boxes(GB, Xbox, 360, PSP, PS2,& PS3)that I had brought up to the counter, & I still had 4 more GS stores to still check out, so I was in a hurry & didn't watch the a-hole with my usual hawk eye.

Well, I didn't find out what he did till I got back home many hours later, and only after the store had already closed too.

So the very next morning I went back to the store, went right up to him in front of all the other customers, and told him that if he ever tried purposely to screw me with a game disc swap like that again, I would come back in, break that same disc in 1/2 & then use the broken ragged edges to dry shave his face till his zit-filled craters were unrecognizable.
plus, I'd then make him give me my rightful PS3 disc too.

Needless to say, as of that very warning, I've never, ever had another problem with him.
Plus the fact that afterwards, whenever he saw me coming in the door, he would suddenly run into the back room and stays there until one of his other co-workers went back & told him that I was gone.

One day just to further screw with him, I stayed there just hanging around a couple of the racks closest to the back room & after about 35 minutes, he must have gotten antsy & thought I left, cause the back room door slowly opened up a bit& he popped his head out.
Well, I just jumped right out towards him from between the racks with my arms outstretched & I yelled "BOO at the top of my lungs.

His eyes suddenly went wide, & he darted back in, and I swear that I heard a heavy deadbolt click into place.
I then gave him my most maniacal laugh as I finally walked out of the store.

Hmmm, now that I think about it, I've never seen him around since.

Last edited by BikerSaint on 6/28/2010 1:03:36 AM

10 up, 0 down

laxpro2001
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:38:39 AM

haha wow that was an entertaining story! Hopefully you taught him a lesson so he won't screw with anyone else's games.

0 up, 0 down

WolfCrimson
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:39:19 PM

loool! Holy crap Bikersaint, you certainly ain't no saint to that kid! I'm glad you're not, though! XD

0 up, 0 down

ElectricTiTAN
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:16:49 AM
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The Gamestop in my town has some real cool people working there. They never try and push a system on anyone, or recommend you buy the game you want on another system.

4 up, 0 down

piratedrunk
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:28:35 AM
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My EB is actually really good the people there are cleary interested in games from all systems with most actually favoring the ps3. When it comes to the company as a whole however it is pretty easy to see the bias.

1 up, 1 down

ElectricTiTAN
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:34:22 AM
Reply

johnld, I gave all your post in this topic thumbs up simply because your avatar is a 3D Dot Hero Megaman!

0 up, 0 down

DazeOfWar
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:35:03 AM
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I never have any issues with the GS I go to. All the employees play each system and love them all. Hell one time I was in there some guy asked what system the employee liked better out of the PS3/360 and he told him that he didn't have an opinion on it because somebody always wants to argue about it. I also do like that the manager (she) is good looking.

3 up, 0 down

kraygen
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:34:41 AM
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The closest gamestop to me is of a more rare variety. The manager is 360 fanboy who spouts the usual xbot crap, but for some reason he only hires people who seem to know nothing about any video game console.

I've heard employees in there telling people they don't know what hdmi is, so how can they know if the console has it. Ummm where do you find these people.

The manager actually told me not to fill out an application once because I knew too much about video games, didn't make sense to me, but maybe he was afraid I might tell someone to get a ps3.

3 up, 1 down

___________
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:46:09 AM
Reply

yes they do and theres a simple reason for that.
M$ are not tight a$$ed like sony, they actually spend money on advertisement.
i went to the shops today and not only EB but Kmart, Target, toys R us, game, JBHIFI, DSE, myer, david jones, they all had banners and advertisements for the new 360 and kinect.
i never saw any of that advertisement when the ps3 slim came out, nor do i see any for sonys move controller.

if it was not for the game cases sitting on store shelfs you would not even know the ps3 has been released here!
not to mention all the TV adds i have seen for the new 360, honestly every single add break its on.
i was watching the simpsons on fox 8 this morning for 2 hours and saw the add for the new 360 six times!
not to mention the countless emails EB M$ and co have sent me!

thats why gamestop advertises the 360 allot more than the ps3, because unlike sony M$ dont mind spending a little cash.
as the saying goes, you have to spend money to make money!

2 up, 2 down

Snaaaake
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 6:10:17 AM

You do have a point there but we're talking about biased people here.

They're GameStop employee, not Microsoft's.
They got no right to lie to customer's looking for PS3 stuff, not only just bad service they're giving, some extra sale were turned away by those guys.

If I'm the manager of one GS store I'd be pissed to know that my employee is ruining my business, just who's the one that's running the store?

Manager or a regular staff?

Last edited by Snaaaake on 6/28/2010 6:12:06 AM

2 up, 0 down

___________
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 9:57:57 AM

true, though ive never experienced that.
if any of my employees were acting like that, than they would be thrown out the door so fast their hats would spin!

the guys at EB are really friendly there always asking me what part im upto in a certain game, weather i liked it or not things like that.
the guys at game though a different story, there so uncooperative.
once i bought sonic unleashed from them and asked if i dont like it can i bring it back?
he said yes within 7 days with receipt so i did that and they refused to take it back.

there always so lifeless too, its almost like there dead!
today i bought dead space extraction from game, walked up to the counter and the guy just stares at me.
no hi how are you, or how can i help you.
so i said ill take that and pointed to the game, he grabs it pops the disk in tells me the price, and hands me the game once i paid.
as little effort exchanged as possible.
what happened to customer service?

where do they pick up these drongos?
whenever i went for a interview we were always told the first thing you do is greet the customer, if i was to do that where i work id be fired on the spot! and rightfully so!
customer service is everything!
one happy customer = thousands of potential customers.
one unhappy customer = thousands of lost customers.
companies have sadly forgotten that these days, its time they get a harsh wake up call and wake up to reality!

1 up, 0 down

Bjorn77
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:54:05 AM
Reply

Must be something American, I really notice a shift here in Holland. PS 3 game racks are becoming bigger and bigger. Only 2 years ago most stores had a bunch of XboX games and only a few PS 3 games. Now they are about 50-50.

But there is a difference in public though, The XboX rack is visited by young adolescents drooling over shooters and the PS3 rack is for the older gamers.

1 up, 0 down

laxpro2001
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 3:22:27 AM
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Well obviously! Ben I thought this was common knowledge by now. It's true GS promotes MS over Sony. Now we know why.

I wouldn't be surprised if IGN also got some goodies because I used to visit that site and if you clicked on news or a review about a multi-platform game, it would always link you the xbox version.

Now there can be a simple explanation for this like they base it off system sales and we'll never actually get a confession out of them but regardless the reason, its bull sh*t.

0 up, 1 down

Dancemachine55
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 3:33:41 AM
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As an EB Games employee, I ask people what they are looking for and for what purposes before tellling them.

IT'S CALLED CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!!

One guy couldn't decide, so I outlined the pros and cons of both 360 and PS3:

eg. Xbox Live is the best online service, but you have to pay for it. PSN is close to Live, and is free, but lacks cross game chat a party settings. Sony has more and higher rated exclusives, but 360 has the most popular exclusives (Halo and Gears). PS3 has blu-ray and wifi built in. The new 360 Slim now has wifi built in. 360 has Kinect, PS3 has Move. Move is better for hardcore experiences like SOCOM 4, but Kinect is more innovative and casual friendly, like with Dance Central and Kinect Adventures.

What console do your friends have? Do you prefer to play multiplayer fun matches or have a great single player experience? Do you want to use it as a media player and store your videos and music? Do you have a hi-def tv, LCD or plasma?

My dear friends at PSXextreme, you have just been served by a fellow EB Games employee.

5 up, 2 down

laxpro2001
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:33:42 AM

Well you made an extremely good argument for both systems there, leaving personal opinions out and were genuinely trying to help the customer, and by doing that it is truly respectable. It's really nice to see customer service from a gamestop employee.

However we were just not "served" as you claim. You are an out lier. I have been in about 10 different gamestops and 8 out of those 10 have sucked hardcore in customer service. 2/10 had outstanding customer service going above and beyond their call of duty to find me a game. But in reality most gamestops are biased towards the 360.

I'm sorry if you felt like we were attacking you because we aren't. You truly do sound like a very good employee who is well-informed and willing to give the customer the right information to make a purchase that will best suite their needs.

I wish all GS/EB games employees were like you as it would do wonders for the company's reputation.

5 up, 0 down

Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:23:37 AM

I really wouldn't say Xbox Live is the best online service, anymore. Those days are long gone, IMO.

7 up, 1 down

Jawknee
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:13:19 PM

LIVE offers nothing over PSN besides Cross game voice chat.

Which is mostly useless.

6 up, 2 down

kraygen
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:59:37 PM

If I were to try and decide whether xbox live or psn were better for online play, personally I'd go with psn, they have the exact same quality of connection, but psn has a lot less 8-12 year olds cussing like sailors every time they die.

Take quality communication over angry language bile any day.

2 up, 0 down

Highlander
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 3:13:57 PM

I'll pick at one thing you said, Kinect is not more innovative or casual friendly than the PSEye or EyeToy were, and Move includes the PSEye. Therefore it's a bit of a wash.

3 up, 0 down

laxpro2001
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:02:35 PM

I just like how he actually said what features live had over the PSN because most of the time when you hear someone say Live is better, they have no actual facts to back it up with.
Obviously to me cross game chat is not worth the 50 extra you have to pay!

Also as far as Kinect goes, it definitely does seem more innovative and I would describe it as casual friendly since those are the only games your are likely to see for it.

0 up, 1 down

Highlander
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:12:31 PM

@Lax

You're right, Dancemachine was actually being pretty fair and obsessive.

1 up, 0 down

Highlander
Tuesday, June 29, 2010 @ 11:24:44 AM

OK, I'm not sure, but I think that my comment may have been edited. Either that or I have suddenly become dyslexic. I could have sworn that I wrote that DreamMachine was being fairly objective, not 'obsessive'. Two completely different words. Not sure how they can get crossed, unless my browser's spell checker decided that I had so poorly mis-spelled objective that it would substitute obsessive.

Either way, I was not calling DreamMachine obsessive.

0 up, 0 down

xXxSeTTriPxXx
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 3:48:25 AM
Reply

absolutely,every gamestop i go to does this.first off i don't look like your stereo typical gamer(and i do stress stereo typical) i'm the biggest nerd you can meet(and damn proud of it)but with swagger,if you will.i carry myself a Cretan way,so most people couldn't guess i'm a big gamer(either that or they think i play nothing but sports games and fps lol).so when i go into gamestops,it's like they tag me as the guy that doesn't no much about gaming like i'm not well informed on the medium.and every time it's sales pitch after sales pitch for the 360 (you should get this for 360 or the 360 is better because etc)it goes through one ear an out the other because i know what i'm coming for so i'll spend 30 max in gamestop.in alot of cases the game associates don't know wtf there talking about it's funny,because you would think they would hire gamers for the job.sometimes i just want to yell stfu plz at them but it's a job and as long as there not giving me the wrong change i'm cool.but yeah thats my rant,i've always thought this,it's good it's being talked about with in the gaming community finally.very good topic indeed and great read.

Last edited by xXxSeTTriPxXx on 6/28/2010 3:50:10 AM

1 up, 1 down

Deleted User
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 5:34:38 AM
Reply

hey guys whats up?

well my EB/Gamestop witch i have 2 in each side of my local mall are both pretty cool i never run in to any promlems(sorry bad spelling). heack on of my gamestop have there Ps3 games right up in front of the store it goes like this in upfront in the left side of the store are all ps3 and ps2 games on the right sides Wii and DS games and in the back there are the 360.

oh by the way today is my birthday i am 24 years old and i am still a gamer and proud of it.

0 up, 0 down

WolfCrimson
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:50:17 PM

Happy birthday!

0 up, 0 down

phade2blaq
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 6:24:16 AM
Reply

Maybe GS/EB just wants us to buy American ! The U.S. hasn't had a major player in the video game console business since Atari folded !

The video game console business has been for the most part dominated by the Japanese starting with Nintendo and Sega and continuing on with Sony !

Maybe GS/EB is just promoting MS as a way to keep them viable in the game business !

Either way, the proof is in the pudding as the best console available (the PS3) will shine regardless what MS and GS/EB does !

0 up, 0 down

Wage SLAVES
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 8:36:24 PM

That would be a nice sentiment but true American products are typically made superior. Those days are long gone because if you open the boxes of each China is dominating the game industry and everything else..

1 up, 0 down

Mamills
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 6:38:14 AM
Reply

i know what you mean i have seen employees give M$ preference over sony,

the 1 gamestop/EB Near me has cool employees though, last time we had a conversation about how cool 3D Game heroes was. but then a manager started to persuade me to buy Alan wake.

then im like "I don't have a 360"

then she's like "oh we have those for cheap too"

guess whe was just trying to move a unit or 2, but me n the other employee just ignored her n went on talking about how good red dead is going to be

0 up, 1 down

JackC8
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:34:18 AM
Reply

Last time I went to Gamestop, I wanted to buy a "new" game but one of the employees apparently took the disk home and was busy playing it, so they weren't able to sell it to me. They offered to sell me a used copy (which they apparently define as a game that was played by someone OTHER than an employee) for about $5 more than Amazon wanted for a new copy. Plus tax.

If they want to cater to xbots with that sort of fraudulent and overpriced rubbish, be my guest. I've got 19 PS3 games - one purchased from Gamestop, 18 purchased from Amazon.

3 up, 1 down

kraygen
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:01:30 PM

yeah I'm sorry but apparently gamestop doesn't even know what new is. To me, once it's opened, its not new any more, I don't care if anyone has played it or not, you opened, it's used.

0 up, 0 down

dork02840
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:44:47 AM
Reply

i do not support either gamestop or EB that much unless for pre-order or used title. my main source of games now is Newbury Comics in Warwick, RI. they do not always have the newest title but they almost always have them slashed from what gamestop would ask. for example i bought god of war 3 for about 45 about 6 weeks after it came out. it did not drop down to like 40 bucks until the beginning of this month. i got it at a reduced price long before sony slashed the price.

0 up, 0 down

SolidFantasy
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:50:14 AM
Reply

I don't have a Game Stop anywhere near where I live. In fact I think we're down to Walmart as our only VG vendor. I suspect there is one employee there who is a 360 fanboy. He is never stocked to hear me bring up the PS3 it would seem. So I'm always excited to see him there when I go to buy my next game. Just the look on his face to see me putting my money down for Sony and not M$ makes the whole experience that much better.

0 up, 0 down

X_Racer1
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 8:16:54 AM
Reply

I don't know what it is but up here in Canada between 2 towns and almost 10 GameStop/EB Games locations they are all the same, the PlayStation 3/PSP section is always at the front of the store and the employees all seem to know to keep their mouths shut about console wars and fanboyism.

No, oh get that game for the better system or whatever, simply if you ask for it, they look for it in the computer or help you find it. Even helping people who have no idea, they seem to ask questions and not be biased although up here the hiring standards seem to be much higher as most locations are served by staff not in their teens or early 20's and the ones that do have staff that age obviously select good candidates as these people like video games from all platforms in general.

It's because of this I'll still browse a GameStop/EB Games location for the good deals as in Canada, online shopping for games isn't nearly as great as the U.S.

0 up, 0 down

ABUrabad
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 8:45:06 AM
Reply

I went to circuit city stores at Chicago couple of years ago while my to USA (im from Jordan/Amman)
at the day of black Friday ,i asked one of guys who is working there which console to buy xbox 360 or ps3 but i was already fixed my mind at ps3 because im a huge fan of sony ,the guy kept pushing me hard to buy the xbox360 against my own well telling me that the xbox is the right machine to own a ur home for its high reliability
my responce for that was NOTHING,because i was hugely shocked

0 up, 0 down

ABUrabad
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 8:47:26 AM

thanks God i can buy games on ebay without costumes

0 up, 0 down

NoSmokingBandit
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 9:05:39 AM
Reply

It will come back to bite MS on the ass. Trick people into buying junk (hardware-wise. nobody likes a rrod) and it will leave a bad taste in their mouths forever.
Unfortunately though, most americans are idiots and make up a huge section of the market.

Sony will keep selling consoles based on actual virtues like good hardware, diverse games, and insane first-party support and leave their customers happy as can be.

I'd rather have 10 happy customers instead of 100 unhappy patrons, and i'm sure Sony would agree. This is a business where return customers are everything (except the wii, but the wii is an exception to every rule ever). MS may have had the jump by pushing their console out a year too early and by buying up all sorts of games, but in the end people are going back to Sony because Sony at least seems to give a crap about their customers.

1 up, 1 down

The Stig
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 9:28:10 AM
Reply

I dont usually by my games from the main game stores, GAME and GameStation (UK) as they are much cheaper elsewhere. But if I do venture to into one the service is always unbiased and very helpful.

I was in GAME just after christmas, as I had vouchers, and overheard one of the employees talking with a customer about which console to buy. He was very clear on the pros and cons of each, it was great service.

Maybe the problem is mainly in the US, going by the comments/stories people have posted here.

0 up, 0 down

nolan
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:11:15 AM
Reply

Our local Gamestop definitely has a pro-360 slant. I don't think it's Gamestop, but the employees. I actually had one employee ask me why I bought a PS3 over a 360...

But with the XBox 360's install base, you're gonna get that at many retailers. It's not necessarily a bias, but most people are gonna promote what they know.

1 up, 0 down

Alistair
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:20:35 AM
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it's true, if you ask which system you recommend it's always Xbox, Ps3 is the better console.

0 up, 0 down

espey
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:41:31 AM
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From what I know, all the employees working at my gamestop have ps3s. So no worries from me!

0 up, 0 down

Kphoenix
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:49:02 AM
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I would also like to point out that I used to work at Target, and there were a ton of people that would come from gamestop and say some un-true statement about the playstation 3 and by the time I was done sharing them all the facts and that they are in fact getting more in the long run with the ps3, they wanted a ps3 instead of xbox.

I also question the intelligence on gamestop employees as I was asking about Final Fantasy Versus and the manager kept arguing and saying it was a fighting game, I wonder if they just spurt out crap from their mouths and make crap up, because it has completely turned me away from shopping at gamestop.

0 up, 0 down

maxpontiac
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 10:50:32 AM
Reply

Not my Gamestop in town. The guys behind the counter are stictly PS3 users.

I enjoy going in there needless to say.

2 up, 0 down

Arvis
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 11:16:25 AM
Reply

Most of my experiences with my local Gamestop have been pleasant.

Most recently, I put in a preorder for the Gran Turismo 5 Collector's Edition, and the guy behind the counter seemed really surprised.
"Collector's Edition? That exists??" he said.
"Yes, it's listed on Gamestop.com." I said.
"For PS3..." It wasn't a question. It was like he was saying it out loud, to himself. he proceeded to mess around in the computer for a few seconds, then turned to his coworker and said: "Dude! Gran Turismo Collector's Edition!"
"Seriously?" his coworker said.
"Yeah! Day one, man! I don't even care what it includes, I'm getting it."
This made me smile, because I have the same attitude. :)
Then, Mr. Employee turned back to me and said: "Alright, it comes out Nov. 2nd, bet you can't wait!"
"The funny thing is, I'm getting married on Nov. 6th!" I responded.
He and I laughed about that, and then I left with my preorder receipt tucked securely in my wallet.

So, pretty good experience overall.

-Arvis

2 up, 0 down

laxpro2001
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:04:10 PM

well arvis you'll have 4 days to play the hell out of it before your that. Congrats btw!

0 up, 0 down

Arvis
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:18:56 PM

Thank you very much! :)
I was wondering if anyone would notice if I slipped my nuptial announcment into all that.

Admittedly, I'm more excited about getting married than GT. But only just! ;)

-Arvis

0 up, 0 down

laxpro2001
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 6:13:12 PM

lol so thats why I was having trouble making the connection.

well good for you, I'm a little jealous.

0 up, 0 down

Highlander
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:25:51 PM

@Arvis,

Glad to see you have those priorities straight. GT is almost as important, but not quite.

1 up, 0 down

telly
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 11:39:26 AM
Reply

To have an opinion on this would mean I would have to set foot in a Gamestop. Which I have not done in years, and will never, God Willing, do again.

1 up, 0 down

dirdiggler
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 11:52:57 AM
Reply

why go to gamestop when u can get the game brand new shipped to you for 49$ from gamefly..no hassle at all

1 up, 0 down

Highlander
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 11:57:00 AM

Or Amazon, or just cut out the middle man and buy it from PSN (assuming it is available).

Last edited by Highlander on 6/28/2010 11:57:38 AM

1 up, 0 down

Darwin1967
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:05:36 PM

That's how I buy 99% of my games :)...just got RDR for 42.00 brand new!

0 up, 0 down

Nick42
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:02:35 PM
Reply

Being a UK gamer things are a bit different I guess.

Our main gaming chain is called GAME - and like all big chains they talk a load of crap. Their charts are always completely wrong compared to the opinions of the rest of the gaming world and seem to be based largely on what they can easily sell or anything that EA has recently bought out. I make a point of changing the charts to what they should be whenever (on the rare occasions) I go in one.

In terms of the PS3/360 store space though I would say it is pretty evenly spread. I think 360 tends to be closer to the storefront but I may be wrong.

Employee attitude varies in my experience, some are of course the stereotypical fanboys and some just really seem to have no idea about anything they are trying to sell.

Our other main chain of stores is Gamestation and they are a lot better. If anything PS3 gets more space per store than 360 and they are pretty even in their advertising for both systems. Employees there are generally good too and will offer an unbiased opinion on most things.

0 up, 0 down

djbool
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:09:13 PM
Reply

Your right, Ben. I do feel like those Gamestop Bastards love them some 360 more. Not that I'm hating, but I want PS3 more at the front of the store because it's always near or on the back wall at any location I go to.

0 up, 0 down

CaptRon
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 12:59:22 PM
Reply

I agree. It might as well be called MicrosoftStop. I can't tell you how many times I've been waiting in line and the employees are just bashing the ps3 to other customers and hailing the 360. It really makes me sick

0 up, 0 down

CrazyIrishBoy
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:04:43 PM
Reply

TBH, i think microsoft has somehow brainwashed alot of their fans,and when the ps3 first came out sony didnt help with what i thought was a terrible advertising campain, this reinforced mirosofts brainwashing and did NOT help themselves at all.. It sounds farfetched but honestly, when i speak to some peopl that are absolutely anti ps3 and all for xbox, u would think this was the case!

0 up, 0 down

Darwin1967
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 1:59:00 PM
Reply

I live in in the Capital of Microsoft (Redmond, WA). You would think that if there were a major attitude shift in the direction of M$ it would be here. While admittadly, a couple of years ago the attitude was very PRO xbox at any GS, things are a changin. With price drops, exclusives, and a growing library the PS3 is being recognized as a top notch gaming system. No longer do you get the blank stares from employees who wonder if you've been drinking SOny coolaide when you pre-order a PS3 title. In fact, when I recently went to purchase my 2nd PS3, I could not find a single system. When stores checked their SKU's, the closest PS3 system for many was in Montana. I stopped by a GS in my quest and the employee said, "NOpe...no PS3's..looks like most people are getting their tax refunds and springing for the PS3 since they are sick to death of scratched discs and RROD"

Personally, I think each employee is biased by what they have in their entertainment system at home...and given that the xbox saturated the market earlier and the huge price disparity in the early war, the xbox won favor...but things are quickly evening out. I like that Sony lets its system speak for itself.

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NoSmokingBandit
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:24:52 PM
Reply

For the record, my Gamestop happens to be very fair from what i've seen. The guys are always very pleasant and we end up talking about whatever game it is i am picking up that day. When i went in to get GoW3 i talked to both of the employees for a good 10 minutes about how awesome Heavy Rain is.

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BlackBriar
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 2:35:58 PM
Reply

There are better places to buy games, other then GameStop.

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xnonsuchx
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 3:01:24 PM
Reply

I think it's more the individual employees than the companies, but I wouldn't be surprised if there's some 'kickback' from M$ for them to push 360 more. It could also be that Xbots are more inclined to choose such a 'career' (being that solely PS3 owners are almost 10 years older on avg than solely 360 owners...like Wii is for kids, 360 is for tweens and PS3 is for adults).

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Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 3:20:58 PM
Reply

Sorry to those who responded to AudiaK, but he will always be banned immediately for constantly causing problems. As usual, his hypocrisy is hilarious...talking about a flamebait article when the only thing he's ever posted here is crap fanboy bait.

Anyway, gone.

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maxpontiac
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 3:51:02 PM

All good. I should have ignored his post anyways.

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WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:24:19 PM

Bloody cronies

Edit: Why sign up to a site just to bash the article?

Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 6/28/2010 4:28:05 PM

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Jawknee
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 5:24:12 PM

The trolls need to feed.

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Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 5:35:09 PM

They have no lives, obviously.

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Highlander
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:18:17 PM

Could have been a paid astro-turfer.

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Underdog15
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 8:05:36 PM

Aw, I logged on just to see his response to what I said earlier today, too. Ah well. I knew he was trolling, but I tried to be tactful about it.

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WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 4:11:59 PM
Reply

"Microsoft is into giving gifts." Better known as kickbacks.

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DaK182
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 6:42:40 PM

true dat

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FxTales
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 6:33:12 PM
Reply

Any consumer asking an honest question in regard to a console would expect to be given a non bias answer, but that's just it now, the consumers are not aware of the under the table bribes that some of these people recieve. So here they are being fed BS and believeing because they don't know better. The safest thing to do is read up for yourself.

As I don't live in the U.S I can honestly say that here in New Zealand there is little BSing going on in these stores. It really does seem to be mainly a U.S thing.

Mind you the late night news over here really only covered Xbox news from E3. They made out Kinect was this amazing piece of technology.

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laxpro2001
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:12:39 PM

Yes but also it could have to do with the fact that the gaming industry in NZ is in its infant stages. I only saw four people at my uni housing that had a current gen system, and even then, their knowledge was lacking.

2 of them had a 360, one of which used the "PS3 has no games" argument for buying the 360.

Out of the two with the PS3 only one brought his up to uni and the only games he had was Modern Warfare 1 and 2(which I think he borrowed), Far Cry 2, Batman Arkham Asylum, and GTAIV (which IMO SUCKS!!!)

Basically he had this great console but did not have any of the great exclusives that go along with it.

And yea that bothered me how much they praised Kinect and I also saw something about some Wii game in the past month that made me cringe because they put a spin on it making the product seem like this novel idea when it was just another clone of some other wii game.

Also something else that annoyed me about gaming over here is the lack of standard in pricing. I'm not sure if its just JB HiFi but I have never seen such a bizarre range in prices before. Though it seems like GS sets a standard but even so games are way overpriced here even with the conversion rate. NZ$120 > $60

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DaK182
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 6:42:15 PM
Reply

It does seem that way

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THEVERDIN
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:06:49 PM
Reply

The GS that I go to is definitely XBOX slanted. I was once in the store and there was a mother in there buying a PS3 for her son and this employee was trying to talk her out of it. I stepped in and reminded the employee about the failure rate of the 360, and I saw him shrink 2 sizes. The lady left happy with a PS3, and I told her that her son would appreciate it and would have trouble free gaming.

Last edited by THEVERDIN on 6/28/2010 7:07:37 PM

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Jian2069
Tuesday, June 29, 2010 @ 4:47:09 PM

Hell yeah I do that kind of thing all the time. Shutting down the xbots at gamestops is such a good hobby.

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Deathb4Dishonor
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:25:04 PM
Reply

Yea I remember I went to a GS in a mall at New Hampshire and a associate at the register was recommending PS3s to anyone that asked between the 360 and PS3... And once the manager noticed he was doing that he took him off the register and sent him to the backroom and he took the register... When ppl asked which is better between the 360 and PS3, the manager said 360 to a few ppl... F***ing tool

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CharlesD
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 7:37:53 PM
Reply

I have to say that the majority of the GameStops that I have been to certainly seem to be biased towards microsoft and not only do the employees typically reflect that, so does their floor setup. The Xbox pyramid usually towards the front and center of the store, along with the Xbox games lining the walls. You usually find the PS3 games way at the back of the store and all of the little manuals and adds I see in there are specifically aimed at Xbox as well. The employees really tend to try and discourage the purchase of PS3 games and have very little to say in that respect. But when a Microsoft product comes up, they are all happy and willing to go into some depth.

It could be that I have just had bad experiences w. this store, but I certainly have not run into the well balanced and fair opinions that Ben has.

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Jawknee
Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 8:00:38 PM

I noticed many of them dont turn their display PS3's on either. They have the PS3 on but the TV off. The only one thats on 100% of the time is the Xbox.

Funny thing too, the Xbox's always look new while the PS3 look like its been their on display since launch and its still working.

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johnld
Tuesday, June 29, 2010 @ 2:59:41 AM

at least they have the option to turn on the ps3 while their 360 crashed.

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Nasty80
Tuesday, June 29, 2010 @ 1:21:02 PM
Reply

a week before RDR came out i went to gamestop to reserve it. i never went into the 360 area, i was looking a some ps3 games and the guy asked if i needed any help, and i said i would like to reserve RDR. So when i go to pick it up on launch day he hands me a 360 version, i said whoa i need a ps3 version, and he said r u sure. i was like WTF dude just give me my damn ps3 game!! i thought that was a little messed up.

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Jian2069
Tuesday, June 29, 2010 @ 4:49:44 PM
Reply

At the EB that I go to it's not too bad. I'm sure if a family went in there asking which was better they would say 360, but they're not so much as to try to talk people out of buying a PS3.

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Does GameStop Promote Microsoft Over Sony?

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