Rant Game

00dave

Artist formerly known as Ignus
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Obviously we're all aware of how much a bunch of bastards they are after what they did to barrysworld but this is a new complaint.

A few weeks ago I went to into my local branch to buy some previously owned games (I am cheap like that) I picked up GTA4 and fable 2 then went to wait in the queue, for 25 minutes! It seems one of the 3 members of staff didn't want to serve on the counter and decided to keep stocking up the shelves, then another decided she was finished for the day and buggered off home leaving one member of staff to deal with the queue. I finally get to the front and am given a price £4 higher than was labeled on the boxes, with the excuse that it was mislabeled. I was annoyed but didn't want to make a scene and so paid for it and left.
Fast forward to today and just an hour ago I had a browse and picked up gears of war, the price label was £7.99, bargain I thought. So I queued again and despite having only one person in front of me waited 10 minutes, while again one member of staff chatted with his mate (I assume they were friends) and another dealt with a complaint. The one girl behind the counter then tells me it was £9.99. I told her it says £7.99 on the box to which she said it was mislabeled, I then said leave it thats twice now and I'm not having it and stormed off.

Now I'm no legal expert but aren't they supposed to respect the advertised price. In todays case there were 2 price tags on the box so they probably would have used that against me, but surely its the lowest price.

I intend to write a letter of complaint to game about my local branch, mainly just because I want to vent my anger. Anybody else had this kind of problem before, and what was the outcome?
 

Starman

Part of the furniture
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Dec 22, 2003
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855
Not any more it was law until few years ago that the price it was labled/SEL ticket at was the price you paid. But lucky for them that's no longer the case and its now down to managerial discretion. i.e moan enough and they will give you what you want...

Still sounds like crap service and no way would I spent 25mins in a queue screw that.

Anyway I'd personally submit the complaint in writing to

GAME.co.uk
Freepost SCE4702
PO Box 6593
Basingstoke
RG21 6YJ


or you can use their online form, and select Complaints as subject.
 

DaGaffer

Down With That Sorta Thing
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You can't insist they sell to you at the marked price, but if its a consistent issue,then its one for Trading Standards. The two labels is a no-no as well, and GAME's Ops department would kick off with the store manager if they're caught doing that.

I'm sure one of the chaps on here who still works there could give you the name of the Ops Director responsible for that store (I only know the CEO and my replacement in Online on the business side these days).

NB. If you'd asked to see the manager rather than storming off you'd probably have got the lower price.
 

tris-

Failed Geordie and Parmothief
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You can't insist they sell to you at the marked price, but if its a consistent issue,then its one for Trading Standards. The two labels is a no-no as well, and GAME's Ops department would kick off with the store manager if they're caught doing that.

Under the trade descriptions act, pricing was controlled by code of conduct which had legal backing. now most of the trade descriptions act has been scrapped and replaced by the consumer protection from unfair trading regulations, and pricing is 'controlled' under these regulations.
the code of conduct no longer has any legal force behind it, and is merely a guidance that people may or may not follow. there is now no direct legal control over prices in a case like this. it gets complicated to explain it any further than that, but its no longer as straight forward as saying the price displayed is different at the checkout.

the only straight forward legal requirement is that all goods must display a price on or near the product. if you tell trading standards, there is little that would actually be done.
 

DaGaffer

Down With That Sorta Thing
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the only straight forward legal requirement is that all goods must display a price on or near the product. if you tell trading standards, there is little that would actually be done.

Its the dual stickers where you could have a go because its not clear. You can oversticker, but its got obscure the old price fully.
 

tris-

Failed Geordie and Parmothief
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Its the dual stickers where you could have a go because its not clear.

Maybeas you could say it is ambigous despite the requirements of the price marking order. still there is very little trading standards would do.

the local TS for the store would contact the local TS for the head office of game, who would give advice on the issue, who would then feed that back to the shop in question. anything more than that is highly unlikely.
 

00dave

Artist formerly known as Ignus
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Still gonna do it. It actually annoys me that so many people I know are out of work wanting to find work and the store seems to be manned by wasters who have no sense of urgency or customer care.
 

Thadius

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If something is marked up at that price, you cant say squat. However, if you pick up a copy of a game, then find it in the same shop for cheaper, then you can kick up a fuss.

A lot of companies just give it to you at the price it says on the box out of courtesy. My mum bought a paper shredder that was worth 20 quid because it had been marked up wrong(so mum thought she was getting a bargain, till she got to the till). However, Wilkinsons apologised greatly for misleading my mum and sold it to her for the price on the box(which said £6).

Depends on the company, though I never had a problem with Game.
 

DaGaffer

Down With That Sorta Thing
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If something is marked up at that price, you cant say squat. However, if you pick up a copy of a game, then find it in the same shop for cheaper, then you can kick up a fuss.

A lot of companies just give it to you at the price it says on the box out of courtesy. My mum bought a paper shredder that was worth 20 quid because it had been marked up wrong(so mum thought she was getting a bargain, till she got to the till). However, Wilkinsons apologised greatly for misleading my mum and sold it to her for the price on the box(which said £6).

Depends on the company, though I never had a problem with Game.

Nah, not with pre-owned because they argue the price is based on condition.
 

Thadius

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Nah, not with pre-owned because they argue the price is based on condition.
Fair enough if it hasnt got a book/a proper box etc.

but they have tried that stunt with me in game and I pointed out why was that cheaper. Luckily the guy who was serving seemed to be a manager type, so he offered me it for the lower price.

It depends on the staff, like the tale of the staff ignoring Dave is just bad service and the manager should lay down the rules.

but meh, I ain't a amnger or do I work for Game.
 

Chilly

Balls of steel
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Dont buy in game is all I can say. It's a free market afterall.
 

00dave

Artist formerly known as Ignus
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Dont buy in game is all I can say. It's a free market afterall.

Not a lot of choice really. It's the only shop that sells games for reasonable prices nearby. And I don't have the patience to order online these days, although I will be making an effort to avoid game in the future.
 

Thadius

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Not a lot of choice really. It's the only shop that sells games for reasonable prices nearby. And I don't have the patience to order online these days, although I will be making an effort to avoid game in the future.

Amazon is an alright for most games, i keep ordering some classics for my megadrive every couple of months when I feel nostalgic
 

nath

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SavyGamer or Find Games is all I ever use. The first just for random deals and the latter if I've something specific in mind. You do need the patience to deal with deliveries but the prices are almost always much better. Definitely worth it.
 

Ch3tan

I aer teh win!!
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Not a lot of choice really. It's the only shop that sells games for reasonable prices nearby. And I don't have the patience to order online these days, although I will be making an effort to avoid game in the future.


I think you should go complain to the store manager, maybe put it in writing too. If I got a latter from a customer describing that kind of behaviour, especially on two occasions, then there would have been consequences for the staff. The pricing can be forgiven if they apologise, the lack of basic customer service cannot.
 

chipper

Can't get enough of FH
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dont shop at game problem solved they are fuckwits
 

Aada

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dont shop at game problem solved they are fuckwits


All depends on the store I've known the manager in my local store since he was just an assisstant so I get along great with the staff. Sounds like your store is run by people who just don't give a damn.

Can't blame the girl who was finished for going home though if she stayed she probably wouldn't have got paid for it, the pricing is a farce though and I would write a complaint about that for sure.
 

Raven

Happy Shopper Ray Mears
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Most of them are either idiots or students. That's why they are working in game...

Shop on-line, cheaper and you don't have to deal with said idiots.
 

Ch3tan

I aer teh win!!
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You all seem to forget that without GAME stepping in when they did, BW would have died from lack of funding. It didn't work out, but then none of the GSP's of the time did.
 

00dave

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You all seem to forget that without GAME stepping in when they did, BW would have died from lack of funding. It didn't work out, but then none of the GSP's of the time did.

Still a bunch of bastards though.
 

ECA

I am a FH squatter
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I enjoyed game.net, I thought the quality in leagues/servers was much better post-takeover.

It's a shame it didn't work out because the UK has no real GSPs left on the scale of BW/jolt/gamesinferno/wireplay left anymore.
 

00dave

Artist formerly known as Ignus
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I'd like to point out I didn't write that wiki article, but it is funny.

Still haven't wrote my letter of complaint yet. The combination of late shifts at work/ fable 2/ and writers block have come together to thwart me. I do believe that is the first time I've ever used the word thwart in my life.
 

MYstIC G

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SavyGamer or Find Games is all I ever use. The first just for random deals and the latter if I've something specific in mind. You do need the patience to deal with deliveries but the prices are almost always much better. Definitely worth it.
Snap, those plus whenever the purchase site comes up I use the link on Topcashback. Don't get much but it sits in paypal account and gets used when I want shit off fleabay.
 

Bahumat

FH is my second home
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Southend Game are full of fucktards who seem incapable of working with tills. Although the guy who looks like Serj Tankian is good.
 

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