Electronic Entertainment Design And Research compares used game trade-in values between GameStop and Amazon.com and finds that brick and mortar is still the way to go.
While direct comparisons between trade-in values at Amazon, who recently entered the used game trade-in business, and retailer GameStop might make it look like a close race, EEDARās Jesse Divnich claims that Amazon doesnāt offer the significant value needed to change the overall market. In fact, when GameStopās various trade-in specials are taken into consideration, the worldās largest specialty video game retailer provides a great deal more value.
āIn scenarios where a consumer either owns the GameStop Edge card and/or trade-ins more than 2 titles that takes advantage of the current GameStop trade-in promotion (trade in 2 games get 10% extra; 4 get 20% extra; 6 get 40% extra), GameStop provides a considerably higher value than Amazon.ā
During last Fridayās midnight launch of Resident Evil 5 at my local GameStop, I actually chatted with several customers about whether or not they would consider trading in their games through the online retailer, and the result was an almost unanimous no, complete with a chuckle and an eye roll from the store manager.
People want instant gratification. On the rare occasions that Iāve traded in a game, itās generally because I donāt have the money right at that moment to pick up something I really want. In those situations, I am not going to be inclined to ship my games away and wait for them to be processed, even if the value were substantially higher. Which apparently it isnāt.
Analysis: Amazon No Threat To GameStop [Gamasutra]
