So today at lunch I went and purchased a few new games. Before heading to the store I decided to read some user reviews. One user made a very good point that references a previous post on this blog. If you download a game you don't have a physical item to return to a store if you are dissatisfied, nor can you trade in a downloaded game to a place like GameStop.
Color me crazy, but I had not considered this. For all the great things downloadable games bring to gaming (ease, less packaging, cheaper, etc) I forgot to take this trade in idea into account. I trade in a majority of my games when I'm done with them. And I almost always buy used (cheaper and friendlier to the environment). This idea does add a wrinkle into my argument for the existence of gaming stores.
In the same vein, of used games, I found out Game Crazy is shutting down a majority of its locations here in the Bay Area. This means I had to use up old gift cards. When I visited a local store they had already been pillaged by fellow gamers. Very few good used games were left. If chains that specialize in used games disappear then it's back to the good old days of eBay to find used games and accessories. While this isn't the end of the world, I do hate paying shipping charges. Especially unregulated ones that sellers can inflate to make up the profit margin on their sales. Just another thing to think about with the future of gaming...
No comments:
Post a Comment