You can't get all defensive about our comments about GameStop and then state that you have never been to one and they aren't in your country.
We had good game stores. I mentioned Funcoland in my earlier post. Unfortunately most were either bought by GameStop or couldn't compete financially. For me personally, the people working there were never the problem, though I have had heard stories. Like anything else, some workers were good, and others were not.
There were a few major issues I had with GameStop . One was the fact that they would open up brand new games, store the discs behind the counter, and then when you went to purchase a "new" game, they would put the disc in a case right in front of your face. Furthermore, even "new" boxes would have additional labels placed on them [remember, the original wrapping had been removed] with terribly weak paper and aggressive strong and stick adhesive, making it impossible to remove without harming the cover.
One of the ONLY advantages to physical games these days is that it "looks nice" on your shelf, but GameStop ruins that aspect. Another advantage to physical is the ability to sell a used game, but GameStop screwed that up too. In negotiations in general, you shouldn't push to "win" all of the money/benefit or eventually no one will deal with you. Well, when you buy a new game for $60, get $5 back upon sale, and then they put it up for sale in their store for $50, they have taken all of the benefit out of buying/selling used games, so that market dried up for them as well.
This thread did not start as a physical vs. digital thread, but since you brought it up, nearly all of the advantages of physical media have been nullified, especially in case of sloppy, greedy merchants such as GameStop. Once physical games could no longer play direct without install, and they serve as a key only, what is the point?