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Toys 'R' Us buying used games nationwide

Retail chain accepting games for systems from Atari 2600 days to current gen in exchange for gift cards; analysts not expecting big downside for GameStop.

A host of retailers have explored ways to take a bit of specialty retailer GameStop's vicelike grip on the US used-game market, but few have fully embraced the practice. Toys "R" Us today entered the fray in earnest, introducing a nationwide gaming trade-in program that will buy back titles from vintage consoles, as well as the latest platforms. The retailer tested the program in limited fashion earlier this year.

Finally, a place to take all those Intellivision games in the closet.

Finally, a place to take all those Intellivision games in the closet.

Customers will be able to bring in their games (in original cases) and trade them in at the store's guest services desk for gift cards redeemable at Toys "R" Us stores (including Babies "R" Us) and the chain's Web site. In addition to games from the current handhelds and consoles, Toys "R" Us announced the Atari 2600, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Nintendo Game Boy, Nintendo 64, Nintendo NES, Intellivision, and Sega Genesis as being among the list of "more than 25" systems for which it will purchase games.

A Toys "R" Us representative told GameSpot the company isn't taking back hardware for the moment. As for what happens to titles bought from customers, the rep said the games would be delivered to an outside company, which will then re-sell them to retailers across the country.

Toys "R" Us will advertise the nationwide campaign in Sunday newspaper circulars beginning this weekend. The retailer characterized it as the latest example of its expansion beyond traditional toy store businesses. The store now sells a variety of non-toy items, from iPods and digital cameras to netbooks and GPS systems.

[UPDATE]: While the idea of more competition in the used game business might seem bad for GameStop on the surface, analysts weren't terribly concerned. Wedbush Morgan Securities' Michael Pachter told GameSpot it wasn't a huge threat, primarily because, "The core TRU customer is a mom with children under 10, and the core used game trader is a boy 13-18 years old. Not a lot of overlap there."

Electronic Entertainment Design and Research's Jesse Divnich actually believes that competition for used games could take pressure off GameStop.

"Most retailers, at one point, discussed internally about setting up a buyback program within their brick and mortar operations," Divnich told GameSpot. "Because maintaining a positive relationship with publishers was crucial at the time, they feared the repercussions and ditched any buyback plans."

With more players in the used game business, Divnich believes GameStop may wind up on better terms with publishers.

"After all, if most retailers begin to offer a buyback program and publishers had to pick their poison, they would rather see a consumer use the GameStop buyback program, as it at least leaves a chance that the consumer will use their credit to purchase a new title," Divnich said.

Looking further out, the analyst believes the increase in players in the used game business will put more pressure on publishers to better compete with secondary sales of their own games. Digital distribution is one way publishers have found to lock out the used market, but Divnich said publishers are looking harder at deterrents to keep people from purchasing their titles used.

"We have already seen many games include one-time use codes or coupons for downloadable content," Divnich said. "Publishers could expand on that approach. Instead of the DLC being just an additional 'bonus,' maybe it becomes a crucial part of the game. I would not be entirely surprised if one day a game charges $10 for the ability to play online multiplayer, unless of course you buy it new, and in that case comes with a special one-time use coupon to download it for free."

53 Comments

  • obsidianzero

    Posted Nov 1, 2009 10:28 pm GMT

    make more bucks from your games by selling to players on ebay or craigslist or something... and the buyer buying from a person will likely get a better deal that what a store will turn around and charge for it.

    Very crude example: Game X you sell to a store for $3, they sell it for $9, (when it's new for $10)
    Or, you sell the same game to a gamer for $6. You make more money, the new owner pays less. Everyone's happy but the store. I'd lose sleep over that, huh?

  • digital9x

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 5:53 pm GMT

    (Part 4 of 4) If my store has a game that a person wants, and the individual lives in another city, the store in that area simply calls us for the transfer. Software is written for us to create a parcel, scan it, put in the destination store #, finalize it, and out comes the UPS postage with address to be applied to the box. Once the parcel is created, the computer automatically adjusts the inventory in the store. The above are just examples that Toys R Us and Best Buy should investigate before they make it an add-on for their stores. Are they really prepared for that?

  • digital9x

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 5:52 pm GMT

    (Part 3)
    The store's Edge card (discount card) gives you another 10% on each trade. That discount isn't as noticeable unless you trade in a load of games. Best Buy and Toys R Us will have to hire a lead programming team. You see, GameStop stores don't order internally. The computer systems does all of the ordering. It also keeps track of what region sales the most of. In this region, for example (Southeast), Nascar does very well. The computer system will shift quantities of racing type games over to our store from locations that don't do well selling those types of games. That's just one example. Take into consideration all of the various genres of games, and then you will know how complex the programming is to develop that sort of software.

  • digital9x

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 5:51 pm GMT

    (Part 2)
    How does GameStop determine the trade in values of the games? That one is easy. Take the new sticker price, substract 5 dollars, and divided that by 3. That will give you a very close estimate of the trade-in value. Of course, the new games vanish from the "new release area", and are replaced by the newer titles. So, how do you figure your trade in value then? That is easy. Write down the titles of your games, and head to any GameStop. Locate the games in the used section. For each sticker price you see, divide it by 3, and you will have your trade in value. Yeap, just as soon as you trade in your games, and the transaction is done, the price tag label printer spits out the prices stickers to be applied to your trade-ins. Folks working behind the cashiers are there to quickly apply those stickers to your trades, and get them out on the shelves.

  • digital9x

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 5:51 pm GMT

    (Part 1)
    I'm an employee of GS at the moment. Diving into the used game market can be expensive. Folks are allowed to trade in damaged game discs now, but they take a $3 hit per game that is damaged. If I look at the disc, and I wouldn't buy it, I mark it defective. To compensate for the refurb fee (GameStop sends the damanged discs off to get sanded to a re-playable condition), GameStop encourages folks to purchase 1-year warranties on their games. One pays a single dollar per game under 10 bucks, $2 for games between 10-20 dollars, and $3 bucks for anything value greater than $30. The typical customer will never return to claim that warranty, thus, that's money used to pay to get the damaged game discs sanded.

  • BlueFlameBat

    Posted Oct 5, 2009 10:23 am GMT

    You make a very valid point, sakanakami. I've thought of that too and sometimes I buy a game used because the original publisher won't make money off of it when I'm angry at the publisher. This was the case when I bought Kameo for 360 because I was pissed off that it was cancelled for GameCube then the original XBox. I felt like Nintendo, MicroSoft, and Rare were just stringing the consumers along. If I could have bought my GameCube copy of Beyond Good & Evil brand new, however, I would have.

  • sakanakami

    Posted Sep 14, 2009 1:57 pm GMT

    The problem with used games for game publishers is that they see no money from the sale of the used games. When GameStop sells a used game they are the only ones to see any money from the sale. They make on generally make 100-300% profit with every used game/accessory they sell.

  • green_dominator

    Posted Sep 13, 2009 7:40 pm GMT

    Too bad I don't have a Toys R Us where I live, I did but they closed down a few years ago.......
    And what's this about used game sales?? If they lock out games so they can only be played on one system or user then they are neglecting a whole market of people.....
    I'm not freaking rich so I can't just buy any game I want, I have to be smart and choose wisely but I do buy alot of games. Most of my games are used, I have......6 games new 1 of them is XBOX 360 the others are PS2 & Old XBOX......

    The thing about used is, the company who released the game gets their cash for it even in used sales but it's more like they sold the game once then got some extra money off the title....
    I hardly see how this concept is a bad thing.......

  • Dawg9000

    Posted Sep 13, 2009 6:33 am GMT

    Cool. That's the Toys 'R' Us in 42nd st. But if they're gonna start selling Genesis games then count me in. lol

  • D_ustin_basic

    Posted Sep 12, 2009 12:13 pm GMT

    I don't know how Toys R Us is still even in business....

  • Bacob

    Posted Sep 12, 2009 9:24 am GMT

    Lol at the Atari 2600 trade-ins. As if anyone would trade in an Atari 2600 game for 40 cents at Toys-R-Us. I am not going to give TRU anything, Gamestop is the best and will always be the best in used gaming. "With more players in the used game business, Divnich belives GameStop may wind up on better terms with publishers." Yeah, right after hell freezes over. Divnich, let me tell you something, TOYS R US IS A TOYS STORE! THIS IS LIKE WHEN APPLE WAS DOING GAMING. You are not a player in this used gaming market and you are not competition. You will get 10yr olds trading in thier dad's priceless atari console for 2 dollars so they can get a popsicle.

  • necronaux

    Posted Sep 12, 2009 7:44 am GMT

    And are they offering more money in trade than Gamestop, or Bestbuy, or Amazon? Probably not. If you want to get rid of a game, and don't want to bother with eBay, it'll just depend on what store you like better. Is getting cents on the dollar better than just keeping the game or giving it to a friend (or library, youth club, etc.)?

  • Cabal23

    Posted Sep 11, 2009 10:52 am GMT

    And one last point..what happens when people start dumping there stuff off in droves? Do you really think you will be getting such a good deal any longer? Are they really going to give top dollar for Mario 64 after they have thousands? Been there done that and no is the answer. It is a matter of supply and demand, and the supply is going to FAR outweigh the demand with usable consoles next to impossible to locate.

  • Cabal23

    Posted Sep 11, 2009 10:47 am GMT

    @astro_viper

    I would love to know what Willow Video and Crazy Bobs are giving for a trade in on Prototype? These mom and pops store give the same thing as everyone else or they wouldn't be competitive. They are also selling them for the same as everyone else because once again they wouldn't be competitive if they didn't. Go get your dusty games from some overweight guy who hasn't seen his junk since he was a young lad. It is all the same regardless where you. People act like selling used goods is a new concept that GS just figured out. People have been selling their stuff since the dawn of time. Explore how a free market economy works and then come back.

  • Cabal23

    Posted Sep 11, 2009 10:39 am GMT

    This will be hilarious. Wait until they start getting returns on all the games that don't work. As a former employer of GS, I can say they got rid of that stuff for a reason. The defective rate was too high and the bottom line didn't justify the space they were devoting to it. We had half the store filled with bins of SNES and NES game of which we sold maybe a few each week at under $5 a pop. That is certainly not making the most of your available real estate. This will be a failure as consoles that play these games are even harder to come by. I wish them good luck but the writing is on the wall already.

  • jjgator

    Posted Sep 11, 2009 10:18 am GMT

    "The core TRU customer is a mom with children under 10, and the core used game trader is a boy 13-18 years old. Not a lot of overlap there." I think Gamestop is overlooking the fact a lot of people don't like them for their shady business practices. I know I'd probably be more likely to trade in to TRU than Gamestop if I didn't want to keep or ebay some of my games.

  • johnnyBgood99

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 9:23 pm GMT

    @fyreheart

    Simply stated; I agree completely.

  • tawagivercetti

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 7:53 pm GMT

    There is big money to be made in this industry. I'm thinking of doing it myself.

  • no_fan_boy

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 7:14 pm GMT

    "As for what happens to titles bought from customers, the rep said the games would be delivered to an outside company, which will then re-sell them to retailers across the country." Resell them to what retailers? And who has 2600 games anymore, at least ones that work, or a system. Isn't best buy doing the same thing and wal mart trying also?

  • RingCollector

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 6:43 pm GMT

    cool, hope i can get my hands on some good dreamcast games.

  • mastodonfatguy

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 5:49 pm GMT

    i wish i could get my n64 repaired there. i got it from them day one. lol it JUST died. 2 weeks ago.

  • DoctorBedlam

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 4:34 pm GMT

    Cool.

  • jeffv541

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 4:14 pm GMT

    I wonder if they will start buying fire hydrants and gently used curly fries next weekend turd.

  • DFBTG

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 4:05 pm GMT

    Wow, those last two paragraphs are just absolute BS that ultimately screws the customer. If crap like that really starts to become more prevalent, I'm going to give up gaming. Seriously. Oh, and RE5 already has the analyst on paying for online multiplayer (and Xbox Live long before that).

    As for Toys 'R' Us buying, I like it because they're buying PS1 games apparently, but I never go to TRU, and to the best of my knowledge no one in my family does (or has for that matter). Still, I'd like to think the added competition in the selling of games will increase the amount customers get. Although that may, in turn, increase the cost of buying a used game, but, well, I think it'd be worth it (as long as it's not disproportionate).

  • Muteki_X

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 4:02 pm GMT

    Any competition that can keep Gamestop in check will be welcomed.

  • FyreHeart

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 3:55 pm GMT

    @Blueblaze02 - I understand that reasoning. However, it's shallow thinking. The publishers are assuming that I would buy the game new if they prevented me from buying it used, but that's not the case. I simply wouldn't buy as many games. And it can help them further down the line - I now preorder any Bioware game because I trust them as developers (so they get full $), but I only gained that trust from buying earlier Bioware games used. Another aspect of this is that even new games depreciate. I never buy electronic versions of games b/c they sit at $30 all the time, where I might get a sale at the store down the street and get it for $20. I'm a bargain shopper, and tying my hands to try and wring a few more bucks out of me is going to alienate me and backfire on them.

  • puffadell

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 3:39 pm GMT

    might just check into this

  • vampirelich

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 3:14 pm GMT

    @kiramasiki exactly, I can't seem to find any ps1 games in my area, i was kinda hoping TRU would turn around and sell the used games.

  • itsTolkien_time

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 3:03 pm GMT

    I'm not walking into a Babies R' Us to buy my games, or trade them in, for that matter.
    @ Blueblaze - it seriously doesn't affect them much. most games people buy used are ones that are out of production.

  • Blueblaze02

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:52 pm GMT

    @FyreHeart the problem is that everytime a used game is purchased the publisher loses money because the demand for new copy. Instead those few copies keep changing hands until they are no longer fit to play.

  • kiramasaki

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:49 pm GMT

    whose going to be the company selling the games, who cares about the buying aspect of it.

  • payne6705

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:49 pm GMT

    and gamestop will fall muhahahahahaha-wait they are not reselling them? whats the point?

  • wrksux

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:47 pm GMT

    Too little too late. The next generation will mostly be delivered through the internet via download. Can't trade a download for a new one.

  • FyreHeart

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:38 pm GMT

    Publishers need to get over themselves. By attacking purchasers of used games, they are actually going to lose customers. I hope Toys R' Us and a whole host of retailers start offering used games, so publishers learn to profit from it instead of circling the wagons like the music industry has.

  • L30KinG

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:33 pm GMT

    as long as there not as cheap as Gamestop, i would sell games

  • froggut198

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:15 pm GMT

    Nintendo-naut, I was feeling the same way. Why wouldn't they just sell them at their stores? Or at least put them on their online store or something?

  • BanjoMumbo

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:06 pm GMT

    Well this is certainly interesting news.

  • sonictrainer

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:04 pm GMT

    I can understand Toy "R" Us but Babies "R" Us as well?

  • nintendo-naut

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 2:00 pm GMT

    I was excited about being able to buy retro games, but then I read that they're not re-selling them. Forget it.

  • cjasko94

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:56 pm GMT

    I've been kind of done selling my games to these companies. Always getting riped off. And I love my Nintendo 64!! Still have all the great titles! @astro_viper
    Agreed. They're many local games store near me (let me name a few) Exchange, BuyBack$, and Flashbacks. I tend to go to their for the classic titles and so on.

  • atopp399

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:55 pm GMT

    If they aren't going to resell them I will not support it. The whole reason I go to Gamestop once in awhile is for the used games. If I just wanted to sell stuff I would use ebay. I would love it if a nationwide retailer got into the used game business for systems and games older than the Playstation. It was great when Gamestop carried NES, Genesis, and SNES games and Systems.

  • samissleman17

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:50 pm GMT

    toys are us aren't gonna hold anything I'd want, and there aren't many of these anymore.

  • astro_viper

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:35 pm GMT

    hmmm...personally, I'm never fond of retail giants getting into this business. EB/Game Stop is a complete rip-off for used games. Toys R Us did this in the past, as did Zellers, Super Store, K-Mart, and a host of others. They sold used games as a third party distributer of games they recieved from a distributor which was unaffiliated with any of the chains themselves. Balked bad.

    I prefer to leave this territory to the little guys. In my town, there is an awesome place called Willow Video. They have been in this business for over 20 years. Same with Crazy Bobs. You won't find better deals, even on new stuff. Chains are brutal. Better off buying on Ebay or Amazon.

    I hope we won't be bidding agains Toys R Us, cause I dont have their funds...ah well

  • gamesock

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:35 pm GMT

    This actually sounds like a fine idea. As long as they don't overcharge for the used game like Gamestop, I think they will have a chance.

  • KamuiFei

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:32 pm GMT

    That would be great if they redistribute old and new used games and maybe hardware. I get sick of the smug jerks that tend to work at Gamestop, at least in my area. They think they know everything -_-; I kind of grew up into gaming with Toys R Us as the supplier. And I remember Sears in my area always had the newest games back then too. I hope this works out for them.

  • athenian29

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:29 pm GMT

    So, what do they do with the games they buy back? Do they sell them out again?

  • AstroChimp83

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:18 pm GMT

    Sounds interesting, especially if I'm able to buy a used Atari or Nintendo Virtual Boy on the cheap.

  • Balmane

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:10 pm GMT

    That's awesome if you can buy old games and consoles.There's only one Toys 'R' Us in my country luckily so I gotta pray I can get some PS1/GC/N64 and of course the awesome Dreamcast games.

  • FidelSarcastro

    Posted Sep 10, 2009 1:08 pm GMT

    I think this is a great idea spawned outta their need to hopefully turn the company around. I mean for the last few years the company has been floundering, people opting to get their games, toys and whatnot at walmart (I have no idea why). I was and will aways be a Toys-R-Us Kid at heart and I truely hope that it all works out.

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