They said over a year ago they were going to refurbish the games that are part of their vintage program. New cases, artwork, etc makes sense. Club Nintendo codes are the only things I'd question.
Getting new cases and artwork seems like a waste if they're looking to maximize profits, and when there are documented cases of the Club Nintendo codes...ehh...
How is there a conflict of interest? Licensed? Right of first sale. The only thing they need to be licensed to do is operate as a store in the city/state they are in. They don't need a license to sell any games, systems, or software. They were selling used copies of the Wal Mart exclusive Rock Band AC/DC a week after it came out. Wal Mart can't do shit about it.
Is GameStop a store or a pawn shop? Is it a standard retailer like Best Buy, Walmart, Target, etc, or is it its own distribution and printing service? There's a conflict of interest when a retailer is also a pawn shop with exclusive rights to sell limited-run games where they are the only ones setting the price in any official capacity.
All the time. See also: their Rocketfish brand. Take HDMI cables, glue your logo on, sell them at 300% markup.
So, Rocketfish was out of stock everywhere, with a limited initial run, and suddenly BB finds a bunch and immediately distributes to its stores? Doesn't sound like it.
Wal Mart has been granted exclusive distribution rights on a few games, including the above mentioned Rock Band AC/DC. They don't sell used because they've never sold used. They don't need to. They have, however, gotten exclusive versions of other products and sold them at a markup compared to other stores.
Walmart doesn't sell used because it's never sold used? Sounds a bit circular. Fact is, it doesn't sell used. Even its premium prices were standard price everywhere else, even for Rock Band. Walmart doesn't sell used games, but it also don't price based on what eBay looks like.
Funny you mention eBay. eBay owns Paypal, so they control both the storefront AND the method of payment for items. Maybe eBay should spin off Paypal first? And it doesn't even make sense why Gamestop should need to spin off their used games business if they want to be a pawn shop.
Sorry, didn't realize that eBay is actually the one selling everything on there, and that there are no people getting rid of bows, canoes, and lawn furniture. eBay is the market. PayPal is the payment method. The people are the sellers. GameStop, however, is the buyer, the seller, the market, and in their used games business, they straight-up control payment (see: the push for store credit rather than straight payout).
It's almost like a retailer can buy something and then sell it for the price they want! I don't see Best Buy, Wal Mart, Target, or Toys R Us purchasing a print run. They certainly didn't try to outbid Gamestop for Xenoblade nor paid Nintendo for a supposed re-print of the game.
Otherwise, under this previous quote, the entire system of store brands is magically decoupled from the reality of supply and demand.
That we only see GameStop doing this should tip you off that GameStop is not, and should not be considered, a standard retailer.
Proof
It's almost like people could have given them back copies with the included materials. I kept all the supplemental material with my Halo LEs, and I certainly would include them with the trade-in if I ever gave them back.
Proof.
For proof, look at what what we saw with Xenoblade. New cases, different from the original run. Manuals in pristine condition. And unused Club Nintendo codes. There's a precedent here, and GameStop has spoken of only two specific games with regards to the "sourcing" additional stock: Xenoblade and MPT. We're seeing similar patterns for MPT. New cases, no steelbooks, new covers...and there's a 90% chance we'll see all fresh inserts, and likely see fresh Club Nintendo codes. You want proof? There isn't definitive proof yet, but we see there's a pattern.
Hey there, chuckles, if GameStop is the only retailer carrying certain games, and can do whatever they want, even to the extent of getting new stock and labeling it used, just to boost their margins, what else would that be, other than making a complete farce of supply and demand?