Gutted Games

ussjtrunks

Anyone else hate it when game shops take the game out of the seal and store it, I have issues enough paying €50+ for a game if it were sealed but paying those prices for an unsealed copy is annoying

Felexicon

I always just ask for a sealed copy. Never had an issue with getting one

ussjtrunks

HMV and Gamestop seem to sell exclusively gutted games now only Smyths and Argos are safe, still want a copy of One Piece Pirate Warriors as I went into Gamestop saw a copy of it and would of bought it on impulse but it was unsealed >.< + Amazon are out of stock of it

humanji

Why do you have a problem with games that aren't sealed?

aN.Droid

humanji wrote: »

Why do you have a problem with games that aren't sealed?

unsealed game given as a gift would not look right I guess. Also for returns an unsealed game would be harder to get a refund for.

Antar Bolaeisk

Maybe he enjoys slowly unwrapping them, bathing in the crispness of the foil as it crackles in his manly hands, breathing deep the scent of new game smell before gazing on the naked beauty of the defoiled box.

Something I miss with the move to digital distribution (though not the heap of used boxes just lying around afterwards).

humanji

Limericks wrote: »

unsealed game given as a gift would not look right I guess. Also for returns an unsealed game would be harder to get a refund for.

Ah right. That makes sense.

Antar Bolaeisk wrote: »

Maybe he enjoys slowly unwrapping them, bathing in the crispness of the foil as it crackles in his manly hands, breathing deep the scent of new game smell before gazing on the naked beauty of the defoiled box.

Something I miss with the move to digital distribution (though not the heap of used boxes just lying around afterwards).

And that's kind of creepy. Arousing, but creepy.

Mark Hamill

ussjtrunks wrote: »

HMV and Gamestop seem to sell exclusively gutted games now only Smyths and Argos are safe, still want a copy of One Piece Pirate Warriors as I went into Gamestop saw a copy of it and would of bought it on impulse but it was unsealed >.< + Amazon are out of stock of it

Its on PSN for €50 including all 10 DLC sets (normally €3/2 each). Its called the Grand Line version, AFAIR (the regular version is the same price, so don't get caught out). 10.8GB download.

ussjtrunks

10.8GB download

Sweet Jesus lol

Why do you have a problem with games that aren't sealed?

Its the principle really I just dont see a unsealed game as new + in gamestops case they go into a drawer god only knows what kind of damage they could do to the disks.

VinLieger

Stop buying from brick and mortar shops and it stops becoming an issue, specifically gamestop everyone please stop givng them money so they can continue to **** on their customers

godlesscosmos

****wits at most game shops....been in the business 30 years....never had shoddy assistance and surrounded by child evill in numbers....maybe was the new year...feck next year

Dravokivich

Used to work in HMV back in 2006 and this was standard practise then so it's not a new thing. Was generally like this in a lot of places with new/high priced games. The cases didn't have the same slots for security tags.

Some times now it appears stores are provided with display cases, but this doesn't always happen.

There should never be a problem with returning a faulty product if that is the main basis of your concern regarding "gutted games."

Melion

Do people here expect Gamestop etc to put sealed games on the shelves????

folan

Melion wrote: »

Do people here expect Gamestop etc to put sealed games on the shelves????

no. display cases. i tend to be a bit iffy about buying items with their security seals broken.

aN.Droid

Another issue is with online passes or DLC included in the case. All I know is I wouldn't buy an opened slice pan so why should I buy an opened game? ( I know they are two completely different things)

circadian

Non chart titles tend to be gutted. There should be a maximum of two guts meaning two boxes on the floor.

You have 5 copies of Borderlands in store.
3 sealed and 2 guts. Guts go last meaning you don't have boxes on shelves for games you don't have.

Melion

folan wrote: »

no. display cases. i tend to be a bit iffy about buying items with their security seals broken.

And you expect there to be display cases sent out for EVERY game??
Majority of people here have obviously never worked in game retail.

aN.Droid

Melion wrote: »

And you expect there to be display cases sent out for EVERY game??
Majority of people here have obviously never worked in game retail.

Easy enough for them to send a few covers and the store can put them in cases. 30 seconds for for 5 cases. Done.

Melion

Limericks wrote: »

Easy enough for them to send a few covers and the store can put them in cases. 30 seconds for for 5 cases. Done.

So blame the game companies for not sending them out, dont blam the likes of GameStop and HMV for it. If games werent gutted and put on the shelves then the only games on show would be the big releases, it would be EA EVERYWHERE!!!

aN.Droid

Melion wrote: »

So blame the game companies for not sending them out, dont blam the likes of GameStop and HMV for it. If games werent gutted and put on the shelves then the only games on show would be the big releases, it would be EA EVERYWHERE!!!

Store or HQ could easily print a few covers.

circadian

Limericks wrote: »

Store or HQ could easily print a few covers.

There'd likely be a hoo ha over copyright infringement.

aN.Droid

circadian wrote: »

There'd likely be a hoo ha over copyright infringement.

That's true. Didn't think of that.

Melion

And another issue is storage. 20 gutted games take up no space in a drawer when in the plastic sleeves, each drawer would hold over 200 games, compare that to 200 sealed games on a shelf in the "back room".

Its not feasible for it to happen, i dont see why anyone has a problem with it tbh.

circadian

In my experience it's best practice to only have 2 guts of any title. It lessens the risk of someone being annoyed at getting a gut not to mention if the boxes come off the shelves then you don't need to worry about a display case for something you have no stock for.

Must. Use. More. Full. Stops.

Melion

circadian wrote: »

In my experience it's best practice to only have 2 guts of any title. It lessens the risk of someone being annoyed at getting a gut not to mention if the boxes come off the shelves then you don't need to worry about a display case for something you have no stock for.

Must. Use. More. Full. Stops.

2 guts on the shelf?

So you'd only put 2 guts of FIFA 14, PES 14, "Generic big Xmas Title" on the shelves? Would you hire someone to just continuously put them back out on the shelf every 90 seconds or so?

circadian

They're obviously titles that have been sent out with display cases.

Dravokivich

Limericks wrote: »

Easy enough for them to send a few covers and the store can put them in cases. 30 seconds for for 5 cases. Done.

There'd be someone spending an entire weekend sliding out old covers and sliding in new covers with that kind of attitude towards all the items. It only takes about 5 mins to repack a box of games, which are usually in units of 25/50. Much quicker and easier to secure the stock. Which is why it's done.

Melion wrote: »

And another issue is storage. 20 gutted games take up no space in a drawer when in the plastic sleeves, each drawer would hold over 200 games, compare that to 200 sealed games on a shelf in the "back room".

Its not feasible for it to happen, i dont see why anyone has a problem with it tbh.

Those cases will have to be kept somewhere even if the games are repacked separately to'em.

Melion

Dravokivich wrote: »

Those cases will have to be kept somewhere even if the games are repacked separately to'em.

On the shop floor, where they should be.

circadian

All of them gutted?

folan

Melion wrote: »

And you expect there to be display cases sent out for EVERY game??

yes.

Melion wrote:

Majority of people here have obviously never worked in game retail.

no, we're just the customers. though were usually ignored by game retailers now. Gamestop knows best, remember. Sure why would we want new games anyway, have a look in the pre-owned section.

Melion

circadian wrote: »

All of them gutted?

Depends on the game
Years back when i did work in a shop the games used to come in boxes of 15, if we only got 1 box of FIFA then they were all gutted and put straight on the shelf if they were the only stock we had.

Whats the point in gutting 1, keeping 14 behind the counter where nobody can see it? A lot of customers will walk in, if the game they want isnt on the shelf they will leave without asking for it.

Cravez

This is my understanding of the practice of 'Gutted Games' when I worked for a Games retailer years ago. My understanding it was all about merchandising and shelf space.

- If a new game was released and arrived at the store, along with the copies of the game we would receive copies of the game cover. If it was a suspected big seller we would receive more copies of the game covers if it happened to become a chart title.

- With the physical copies of the games, we would gut 2 copies of the game. These acted as the control copies.

- We would put the copies of the game covers into blank DVD boxes and put these onto the assigned shelf spaces, along with these blank copies we would put the boxes of the two control copies on the shelf also.

- If a customer wanted the game, or happened to pick up a copy off the shelf (be it the blank box copy or the gutted control copy), we would give them a sealed copy first.

- Depending on how much the game sells, if all the sealed copies of the game are sold, if someone wishes to purchase the game we then sell them a gutted copy.

The purpose of the gutted copies is that if the game moves shelf and requires less shelf space, eventually the game may perhaps have only one spot on the shelf, which the standard required two copies deep of the game. Eventually the game cover copies are removed so eventually you are left with the gutted copies as the Merchandising pieces for the game, depending on how much shelf space the game has.

Sometimes a game would be sent to the store that is only two copies and has no game covers with it - again why the two copies need to be gutted and put on the shelf as standard for the shelf to require two deep copies of the game.

I wouldn't understand the logic of a retailer who would gut every game they have when availability of copies of the game cover is there.

TheDoc

Michael Cravez wrote: »

This is my understanding of the practice of 'Gutted Games' when I worked for a Games retailer years ago. My understanding it was all about merchandising and shelf space.

- If a new game was released and arrived at the store, along with the copies of the game we would receive copies of the game cover. If it was a suspected big seller we would receive more copies of the game covers if it happened to become a chart title.

- With the physical copies of the games, we would gut 2 copies of the game. These acted as the control copies.

- We would put the copies of the game covers into blank DVD boxes and put these onto the assigned shelf spaces, along with these blank copies we would put the boxes of the two control copies on the shelf also.

- If a customer wanted the game, or happened to pick up a copy off the shelf (be it the blank box copy or the gutted control copy), we would give them a sealed copy first.

- Depending on how much the game sells, if all the sealed copies of the game are sold, if someone wishes to purchase the game we then sell them a gutted copy.

The purpose of the gutted copies is that if the game moves shelf and requires less shelf space, eventually the game may perhaps have only one spot on the shelf, which the standard required two copies deep of the game. Eventually the game cover copies are removed so eventually you are left with the gutted copies as the Merchandising pieces for the game, depending on how much shelf space the game has.

Sometimes a game would be sent to the store that is only two copies and has no game covers with it - again why the two copies need to be gutted and put on the shelf as standard for the shelf to require two deep copies of the game.

I wouldn't understand the logic of a retailer who would gut every game they have when availability of copies of the game cover is there.

The above, I know thats what happened when I worked in a gaming retailer, and also what was organised when I moved working on the supply chain.

If the title is popular it comes with display sheets to be put in blank DVD cases, if its not a massively popular game its gutted.

And I never ever encountered a disc that was damaged or scratched from being kept in the drawers, as a customer or working as a retailer.

circadian

Thanks. I was trying to convey that message but it's hard to do on a phone. Excellent synopsis.

I much rather them being "gutted". That plastic cover can be a right c*nt to take off sometimes!

Mr. K

Antar Bolaeisk wrote: »

Maybe he enjoys slowly unwrapping them, bathing in the crispness of the foil as it crackles in his manly hands, breathing deep the scent of new game smell before gazing on the naked beauty of the defoiled box.

This.

I actually don't buy unsealed games. It came about after I got one or two scratched games, now I don't buy games from HMV or other retailers that gut their games.

After paying so much money, I don't want my games to have been pawed by randomers!

TheDoc

Mr. K wrote: »

This.

I actually don't buy unsealed games. It came about after I got one or two scratched games, now I don't buy games from HMV or other retailers that gut their games.

After paying so much money, I don't want my games to have been pawed by randomers!

I've actually never got a gutted box in recent memory from HMV. Be it DVD or game. I've been buying all my physical games in HMV since they are the cheapest retailer in the country for gaming, and anything I've bought has been in a sealed box.