Top 10 Worst Things GameStop Has Ever Done

The internet is a public place, and it’s a wonderful venue for airing some dirty laundry. Unfortunately for GameStop, that includes ex (and sometimes current) GameStop employees talking crap about the company. Punch in words like “working at GameStop” into YouTube and Google and watch the flood of results roll in. And over at Glassdoor, a website devoted to “ranking” companies, GameStop sits at just a 2.9 out of 5. Most of the complaints revolve around the miniscule pay and corporate BS, but things also tend to get very specific as well. More on that in a bit. But for now, just know that GameStop seems like a horrible place to work.

In April 2012, Monolith Soft and Nintendo’s “Xenoblade Chronicles” was released in the North American market. Unfortunately, very few copies were actually manufactured due to low demand, and GameStop snagged exclusive distribution rights. This meant that if you wanted a physical copy of the game, you had to go through GameStop. They controlled the supply chain, and because they controlled the supply, they artificially inflated the market and sold the game for $90. This earned some controversy within the gaming community, and when Nintendo was approached by Destructoid, they essentially said “Don’t look at us. We didn’t price it that way.”

In 2014, IGN reported on the “secret world” of GameStop dumpster diving. According to them, GameStop regularly throws away old games, accessories, controllers, strategy guides, and store displays. Retail space in small GameStop stores are a hot commodity, and anything that isn’t deemed essential is typically thrown in the dumpster. Some GameStop stores are said to practice a Field Destroy policy, which sees them destroying products to prevent dumpster diving. This includes scratching or snapping discs, shredding guides, and cutting controller cords. However, in a response to a particularly popular YouTube video, GameStop claimed to only throw away already-damaged and defective products. Otherwise, the unwanted products go to charity.

It’s the Circle of Life! But in this case, that’s not a good thing. Back in 2017, Kotaku’s Jason Schreier reported on a new GameStop policy called The Circle of Life. This policy prioritized pre-orders, used game sales, and trade-ins. What it didn’t prioritize was new game sales. If specific stores and employees were primarily selling new games and not hitting their Circle of Life quota, they would be threatened with severe punishment. Due to this, employees were hiding and refusing to sell new consoles, and when a new game went on sale, they would lie to customers about their stock and show them the more expensive used copies instead.

GameStop puts such a large emphasis on used game sales because that’s where most of their profit derives. However, it's how much they buy used games that has sellers fuming. Despite their heavy marketing on used games, the amount of money you’ll get for selling or trading in a game usually only nets you dollars in the single digit margain, (Maybe around $20 if the game is less than a month) in which that same title may later appear on a store shelf for 2-5 times the price they originally bought the game from the customer from. Because of this, many gamers have described Gamestops trade-in market as a ripoff, and a system that pries on the ill informed. Developers have criticized this practice too, claiming that it cuts into their own profits. Basically, no-one aside from GameStops higher ups, like this Used Game Market.

It is not unheard of for GameStop to sell previously opened copies as “new.” When it comes to brand new, recently released games, customers typically received a factory-sealed copy that the employee takes from a security display. But these displays only have so much room. If a game is somewhat older, buying a “new” copy typically involves the employee fishing the disc out from behind the counter and putting it in the empty display case. Yes, the disc itself is technically new, but the case has been opened and the disc taken out. Therefore, the game should not be classified as “new.” This may not bother some, but it’s a scummy, line-crossing business practice to others.

In April 2017, GameStop was notified of a security breach that occured between August 2016 and February 2017. Hackers managed to access customer information and begin selling names, addresses, and credit card info to third parties. Customers who were affected were not notified until two months later in June 2017. In the digital world, it’s hard to blame companies for falling victim to hackers. However, it begs to question why it took two months for affected customers to be told if they were affected. This may not have been enough for hundreds of people to abandon GameStop, but this could have played into their more recent troubles.

Remember when we said that employees were threatened with severe punishment if they didn’t meet their Circle of Life quota? Well that “severe punishment” sometimes entails complete termination. Following Schreier’s article, he was approached by hundreds of GameStop employees, all of whom had their own unique Circle of Life horror story. A common thread between the stories is the persistent threat of termination. Many people reported the fear of losing their jobs, while others stated that they themselves (or people they knew) were fired over the program. One former assistant manager even admitted that his “district leader” fired all the employees from a specific store! Yeah, this company doesn’t mess around.

Selling opened games as new is one thing. But selling used games as new is something else entirely. As reported by Kotaku’s Brian Crecente & Michael McWhertor, GameStop employs something called the “check out” policy. According to them, “Associates are allowed to check out one item of store merchandise for personal use for up to four days.” They do so on the pretense of “evaluating” a game and learning about its contents in order to better inform the customers. GameStop employees and managers not only confirmed this practice to Kotaku, but also stated that these discs often get mixed in with the display copies behind the counter. So, not only can a “new” copy be opened, but the disc may have already been taken home and played.

GameStop made what could have been the biggest blunder of their lifetime during the 2020 pandemic. GameStop claimed that they “enable and enhance [their] customers’ experience in working from home” and were therefore considered an essential service. This decision earned widespread condemnation, and GameStop employees reported that the company was not enacting proper health and safety measures. These “measures” included telling employees to “tape a GameStop plastic bag over [their] hand and arm” while interacting with customers! GameStop eventually caved to the pressure and announced that they would be closing all stores on March 22 - two days after the release of “Doom Eternal” and “Animal Crossing.”