GameStop offering a bit more for trades...yay?

[EricKei]

http://kotaku.com/gamestop-is-overha...ium=Socialflow

Has some interesting comments from GS workers.

TL;DR version: Base minimum trade value going up 20%, simplified pricing scheme for same, but may result in fewer special bonuses for people who routinely trade in a ton of games.

[Mr Hero]

When I did trade ins at various game stores, I didn't just look at the dollar amount my trade in was worth, but also how far that credit would get me at the store. Sometimes lower dollar credit was the best way to go because of the difference between what I trade in and what I wanted to purchase.

So if you ask me, GameStop's new trade prices mean squat if we don't know how this affects the prices of used games.

[EricKei]

If it does not affect the sales price of used games, heck, go for it. If it DOES affect sales prices, I think it would negate any goodwill produced by this (admittedly small) move.

Their prices are *normally* based on "sales price of the new game minus 10% or so" anyway (or five bucks less if it's still selling for $60); once a game has been out long enough that GS has copies coming out of their ears, the sales and trade prices plummet due to that, as well (sales prices drop more slowly, of course) -- q.v. any sports game more than a few months old.

e.g.: At our store in NOLA (best Madden market in the nation), we routinely had 800+ preorders every year, with 200+ people showing up for the midnight release "party." For any other franchise short of Halo, that is simply unheard of. The downside is that, you get more people getting tired of the game sooner, and we will have several hundred copies traded in within the first couple of months PER STORE, rather than the usual dozen or two.

So, uh yeah ProTip for anyone who actually trades in games at GS (rather than at a pawn shop - not that most of them are any better): If you know yer gonna trade in "hot new sports game" anyway -- Wait a few days from release and buy it used for the 10% off (if you trade a lot, there's not much reason not to have the card), so you get it for closer to $50 instead of $60; then, trade it in as soon as practical so you at least get the $22~26 plus 10% more from the card (or more if you get a promo) -- in effect, paying $20 or so for a 3-week rental, rather than damn near $40