Game Share Discussion Threads

[uncle arthur] 23/3/2012 16:49

traideMark .its history fella. let it go .

[patricktrfc] 23/3/2012 13:36

TraideMark

Black Ops in our house too...

Keeping a teenager quiet and entertained for 12 months £40?

bargain of the century!!

P

[traidemark] 22/3/2012 16:47

lol, it should do, fishy for game group.

because where a few years ago your average gamer would have a long line of geeky games next to his chosen console, now they can be so good one game will suffice.

this fact was just another nail in games coffin.

[isis] 22/3/2012 16:35

'COD Black Ops' - Sounds Fishy?

[traidemark] 22/3/2012 16:23

Uncle Arthur - 22 Mar'12 - 13:32 - 3962 of 3969


who on gods earth would pay near on 35 quid for a game


-------------------------------------------------------

just about every under 30 on earth and some of the over 30's

new games are usually £40

games are intricate and expensive to produce, the high price tag was not the issue for game, it was the fact the internet and supermarkets undercut them by a few quid that sealed their fate.

also many games are online multiplayers, so you can update the game online, sometimes one game will last you a year if your into it, we talked about this a few months ago on here, both my sons and their mates only really play one game, COD Black Ops.

[loganair] 22/3/2012 14:02

GAME – What Really Happened?

So it now looks like GAME Stores Group is gone and it is a travesty. It is a travesty for all the employees who will be out of work. It is a travesty that the monopolies commission failed to act when they bought out Gamestation. It is a travesty that the very presence of GAME as a brand in the high street destroyed many of the independent game shops. It is a travesty because the shops themselves could have been so much better than they were. Devoid of atmosphere and personality the stores failed to capture the very essence of what it is to be a game shop.

So what really went wrong? Well, dating back to the time when the Rhino Group bought the Virgin Game shops and branded them as the terribly named Electronics Boutique. EB then acquired Game in 1998 adding 86 stores to its 77, although the group was not re-branded as GAME until 2002.

GAME continued to grow and enjoyed a huge market share finally gobbling up its main competitor Gamestation from Blockbuster. It obtained Gamestations 217 stores in the process. Rather than re-brand the stores with the GAME brand Gamestation continued to operate as is. However whereas before Gamestation were a true competitor, offering lower prices than GAME, now prices were brought in-line eliminating the competition in the high street. This move seemed a great idea at the time but it is this move along with a changing market that ultimately sealed GAME's fate. This rapid expansion, when many companies were tightening their belts as the recession began to bite proved too mush of a pill to swallow.

If GAME had thought the purchasing of Gamestsation had secured its place in the high street then it was sorely mistaken. As gaming moved into the mainstream Supermarkets quickly added games to their shelves. Due to the immense purchasing power Supermarkets were able to cut new games cost by massive margins, sometimes even taking losses on new titles to get people in store and to outdo their rivals. GAME simply couldn't compete.

Their only saving grace was the pre-owned market. But poor trade in prices coupled with high re-sell prices meant that GAME was seen as taking advantage of gamers. Then larger stores like HMV and even some supermarkets began to do their own trade-in service again pricing GAME out of their own market.

Another major change in shopping habits took gamers out of the high street and onto specialist internet retail. Less overheads meant more competitive pricing and online retailers like Amazon soon hit the high street hard.

When GAME then ran into trouble and suppliers removed their credit the writing was on the wall. As games companies removed support for the troubled chain, they tried desperately to find a buyer. A brief glimmer of hope came in the shape of OpCapita, who only last year had saved electrical chain Comet, but this proved a false dawn.

Now GAME are in administration after the board yesterday admitted there was no capital left in the business. Whilst the retailer is still trading at present shops are closing and it remains to be seen if anyone will step in and buy the chain in any guise.

[isis] 22/3/2012 14:02

In a 10 Chapter Book?

[uncle arthur] 22/3/2012 14:01

effectively chapter 11

[loganair] 22/3/2012 13:53

bingowing - Woolies also owned it's leases with a book value in the region of £800mln, however in the end the administrators got in the region of £25mln for the ones they sold.

Also by Game putting themselves in to voluntary administration, the current management still have 10 days before the administrators come in to run things which would not have been the case if the banks, suppliers etc had put them into a forced administration.

[bingowing] 22/3/2012 13:41

The funny thing is if they had not suspended on wednesday this would've been flying on further buying by blueShore.

Should'a, would'a, could'a i know.....

[uncle arthur] 22/3/2012 13:38

most i paid for iphone game was 69p for mutant turtle on speed .

[isis] 22/3/2012 13:35

'The Administator'

Coming Soon................................

[uncle arthur] 22/3/2012 13:32

who on gods earth would pay near on 35 quid for a game

[isis] 22/3/2012 13:28

It can't just be the Games Industry. They appear to have Management problems like those Leather Settee Retailers - always the first to go bust when there's a recession.

[uncle arthur] 22/3/2012 13:25

in a word .. ebay

[p o n a] 22/3/2012 13:20

and GMG still failed

[the troll] 22/3/2012 13:04

it's NOT being 'de-listed' Mon 26th, it's merely getting deleted from that particular index to avoid distortion. it'll be de-listed once the administrators have finished up. ( assuming they ever arrive, ie I'm patiently awaiting BS coming trumpeting over the hill along with the 7th Cavalry !)

[yikyak] 22/3/2012 13:03

I'm a retailer.

Any value in the company will be eaten up in administration costs, retail shareholders will get nothing.

As the stock runs dry and weaker stores close it will tier down into more profitable stores

Game will get bought out and the new owner will only be interested in the profitable outlets.

Landlords will be informed the newco will pay only rates only for 12 months at best and to "take it or leave it"

Game will go into administration again in about a year

The process will begin again.

[uncle arthur] 22/3/2012 12:41

crickly lads .where have rampers gone .

[wipo1] 22/3/2012 12:07

Yes game no cash to pay rent,staff tax man,thats why they wanted administration.hence it always pays to DYOR. Dont just follow a fund manager blind and listen to the 12p wallmart stories - It was easy to nip that idea in the bud when you see all the empty retail space why would they want to take on games liabilities and all they shops in a a falling market for games?

[isis] 22/3/2012 11:52

They don't even own the Stock!

[brother petrus] 22/3/2012 11:50

Game over. sympathy for all those caught holding at suspension...