Time to Learn How to Play Games Fingerless

[Signe]

I saw a post on MMORPG.com about someone in Florida who had to give a fingerprint to return a game at Gamestop.  What?  There's not a lot of concrete info that I could find, but are some references to it, mostly in blogs and forums.  How can this be legal?  Did I miss something about it here?  I couldn't find anything when I searched.  I've never been fingerprinted and don't plan to start now.  Well, unless some copper forces me because I'm busted or something.  I don't give my phone number out at shops anymore, either - have a couple of times in the past - and I won't allow my social security number to be used as any sort of identification.  I don't think that's even legal, is it?  Who would give in to this shit?  I'm shocked and appalled and a little hungry because I didn't eat dinner.  Oh well. 

[Jherad]

http://rawstory.com/blog/2009/06/florida-county-goes-gaga-for-used-video-games/

Pretty messed up.

[Aez]

Florida.

[Samwise]

Gamestop.   

[MahrinSkel]

Yeah, Florida decided used video games were the equivalent of used movies, and extended the Pawnshop rules to them (with lots of encouragement from the publishers, who *hate* used game sales and hoped it would have the same chilling effect on game resale as it did on DVD's).  This county is apparently interpreting the return of a game as a sale of a used game (the store is buying it back by giving a refund).

--Dave

[schild]

Yeah, Florida decided used video games were the equivalent of used movies, and extended the Pawnshop rules to them (with lots of encouragement from the publishers, who *hate* used game sales and hoped it would have the same chilling effect on game resale as it did on DVD's).  This county is apparently interpreting the return of a game as a sale of a used game (the store is buying it back by giving a refund).

--Dave

DC does the same thing, for at least 7 years now. Mostly because of the ghetto and Gamestop's proximity to places where theft is easy (like Wal*Mart).

[MahrinSkel]

It didn't work as well as the publisher's hoped, though.  It worked on movies because most of the places buying and selling used DVD's it was a sideline to their real business, and the little money they made just wasn't worth the hassles.  But GameStop literally would not be profitable without used games, they sell new ones mostly to feed the pipeline and to people who came in for used and didn't find any (and make more from the promotional materials and shelving fees than from the games).  In a business sense, GameStop *is* a pawnshop specializing in used video games.

--Dave

[Sky]

Hey, spikey-haired slacker douchebags need a place to work, too.

[NiX]

In Ontario they require a piece of ID for people to trade in used games. I can tell you from experience, people do not like being asked for government issued ID to trade in a game and they especially don't like it when you start writing down the number on the card. Which in the case of a Health Card is illegal.

[stray]

I believe they require ID here too. Not a big deal to me. I don't really sell many games though.

OTOH I have no prob buying used ones either! If it's actually damaging to publishers, then whatever. Gamestop is one of best businesses around now that I think about it. They doing me a great service by selling, say, a used SFIV for $30 bucks.

[Cyrrex]

They doing me a great service by selling, say, a used SFIV for $30 bucks.

When the new copy is, what, $33?  I do it too, but I don't exactly see it as a service.  The used games should be MUCH cheaper.

[01101010]

When the new copy is, what, $33?  I do it too, but I don't exactly see it as a service.  The used games should be MUCH cheaper.

That is precisely what I was telling my anti-gaming girlfriend when we were shopping for PS3 games for her brother. Why on earth would I pay 42.99 for a game I could get unopened for 49.99? Do these places have to pay royalties out on all their used shit like online music places? That would explain things a bit, but frankly I don't know.

[Cyrrex]

I am fairly positive that they do not pay any royalties, because then the practice probably wouldn't be held in such contempt.  No, I think it's nothing more than them finding out that they can treat these things like commodities and that people will pay something right around 10% less for a used game.

[kaid]

Since gamestops are pretty much in effect a pawn shop I don't see any reason they should not be treated as such. I myself don't buy used games at those places because frankly the discount on anything even somewhat current is so minimal I would rather just pay the extra and get the sealed game that has not been slobbered on or scratched.

[Cyrrex]

What I am having trouble grasping is why, in what is apparently a very profitable market, somebody (an existing chain would have it easiest) doesn't come in and just undersell the shit out of Gamestop.  It seems like it would be fairly easy to pull off, because you could still make big fat margins off of used games even if you sold them at 30%-50% off the new price.

[Signe]

I bet you can catch the hiney flu from their used games, too.  Although the point of me bitching was the finger print thing.  No offense, of course, but only an idiot would let some 17 year old pimply shop clerk finger print them - for a game, no less! 

[stu]

How the fuck am I supposed to play games without fingers?

[Signe]

Get one of those sticks you strap to your head.  

Edit:  Added an s where it belongs.

[Lantyssa]

It only works if you don't have low brain power.