GameStop will start trading retro consoles and games again
The nostalgia market is a growing business in video games, with some companies building entire marketing campaigns based on nostalgia or releasing retro products to make your smartphone look like a Game Boy. Now Dallas-based GameStop Corp is getting in on the nostalgia business by testing out a new program to allow gamers to buy and sell retro consoles and games.
The pilot program will roll out on April 25 to over 250 storefronts in the the New York City and Birmingham areas. The eligible systems cover a timespan going back to the late 1980s with the original Nintendo Entertainment System, as well as multiple systems from the 1990s such as the Super NES, Sega Genesis, PlayStation, N64, and Sega Dreamcast.
“We will bring all of the product back through the Refurbishment Operations Center for inspection, testing and repair,” a GameStop spokesperson told IGN. This will give GameStop time to ensure that the consoles they buy will actually function once they finally start selling them to consumers two months later.
So far, there are no details on what sorts of rates gamers can expect to receive or pay for their systems, but GameStop does not have a reputation for paying a high value for trade-ins.
It is also unclear where the new program fits into GameStop’s “on-going sales transfer initiative,” where the company is progressively shifting away from storefront game sales toward digital content. While buyers can will be able to purchase the retro consoles or games through GameStop’s website or through its web-in-store system, sellers will still have to visit the store to drop off their systems.
By comparison, Amazon Inc’s trade-in program allows sellers to print off free shipping labels so they can then drop the product off at a UPS Store. However, Amazon’s trade-ins cover a smaller number of game systems that fluctuate based on the needs of third-party vendors.
For now, the retro console program is only available in a small number of stores, but GameStop plans on rolling out the program to the rest of the country later this year.
Photo credit: Game Stop, GameStop Enfield, CT. 2/2015, by Mike Mozart of TheToyChannel and JeepersMedia on YouTube #Game #Stop #Gamestop via photopin (license)
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