The Decline of GAME into oblivion

z80CPU

First bought Cannon Fodder and Elite Frontier in GAME for my Atari ST. Then bought Joysticks for my first Gateway 2000 PC. Then GAME closed its stores in Ireland, flagship being in Grafton Street as well as others in The Square Tallaght.

Was in a GAME in Belfast about 18 months ago, noted a Batmobile for Scalectrix on sale - the best of other mainly a selection of Action Figures and other collectables which I don't remember.

Looks like the retailer is circling the drain.

What deals have you got down the years in game?

https://www.eurogamer.net/inside-the-fall-of-game-no-games-no-accessories-instead-we-received-136-zendaya-action-figures

Grumpypants

I was in Belfast in August and was really looking forward to heading to game to browse a video game store.

75% of the shelves were cheap tat like this bobble head things. Small section with new games.

A sad decline alright.

But at the same time I was reading an article recently about a few retro stores that are doing very well and have even taken to stocking new games as demand was still high. People did have to pre order but it at least shows if you sell video games there is a market for it. If you sell crap there isn't.

Doodah7

There used to be a great retro game store at the Busaras end of Talbot Street that had games going way back to NES and Master System. I remember it being chock full of carts and discs. I wonder if it is still there and what happened to all of the stock…

z80CPU

Know the store you're talking about in Talbot Street. PC Games could be traded there back in the day.

McFly85

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886416#Comment_122886416

Still there I think, but it’s got a pretty small selection.

Remember going in there as they even had imports in the PS1 days.

Kimbot

I got a Gamecube with Mario Golf/Luigis Mansion and Viewtiful Joe for around 50 quid in game on dawson street :)

Game also have little outlets in sports direct stores now and some of the stuff is tat but you can get some good bargains.

Kimbot

Gamexchange and Bookmart, I think they are still going on talbot street.

johnny_ultimate

The joy of the video game store was the ability to properly browse and find bargains. Picked up many favourites for a song in Game on Dawson Street or Grafton Street, which at their peak had huge floor space and selection. Hell, even in the 360 / PS3 era, you'd be able to go in and get a new release at a big discount as HMV got aggressive on pricing (they crashed out soon after, perhaps not surprisingly). You still get it a little in Smyths, where they tend to have good sales and discounts.

Alas, those days are long gone. PC was always at the forefront of the game store selection, and the move to Steam slowly chipped away at that until it wasn't really viable anymore to stock boxed PC titles. Gamestop was always the worst of the bunch for pricing, and they were chipping away at the game selection for a decade or more before they finally crashed out. But back in the day, there was a real appeal to going into a proper game shop, having a browse and finding something cool. Small independent shops can replicate that to some small extent, but the glory days of the 90s and 00s are long one.

The laughable shell that is Game in 2024 - cut to the bone by Mike Ashley and his company - may as well not exist given how useless it is. I saw the one in Dublin city centre while in at Sports Direct with a friend and it was a truly pathetic corner, full of junk and barely any games. At least a few people still have jobs out of it.

McFly85

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886596#Comment_122886596

My first Xbox was through a deal with game. Any 15 ps2 titles + €1 for an original Xbox. I had a fair few yearly sports titles with no sell on value with a couple of other bargain bin games I got together and traded them for the Xbox and knights of the old republic. Completely worth it!

Hyperbollix

I do miss walking into a real shop and finding a bargain for pennies. But that is not something that's really happened for many a year now. In recent times, every game shop (even CEX) are charging extortionate prices for ancient titles. Why in God's name would you bother when you can pick up 3 for the same price online. It's a shame but it's just another aspect of retail that online has killed off.

LambshankRedemption

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122894030#Comment_122894030

I have gotten some bargains in CeX, but some prices are crazy. They offered me 80 cent for a Wii balance board, but sell them for 10 euro. That is some mark up.

I know what you mean, the bargain bucket of real gaming or PC hardware shops. When Maplin was around, even their bargain bucket stuff was over priced. In the likes of Game, you'd have a bargain bucket with discs for a quid. It was a total gamble on your side, but some of those discs kept me entertained for hours.

in 1997 I got Harrier Jump Jet in Game for a tenner. The game never worked, but I learned a hell of a lot trying to make it work. Arguably the best tenner I ever spent.

Hyperbollix

Yeah, my last visit to a game shop was CEX. I don't game that much at all now and my console is still a PS4. Back in my day (shakes old wizened fist) consoles used to drop in price years after they first released. I suppose that's another exciting development of these times we live in.

Anyway, I walked past the really extortionate second hand PS5 stock and browsed their big collection of PS4 games. GtA5 is a 11 year old game. €30 second hand. It's now £14 for the premium edition brand new on Amazon. I know you can say "who can compete with Amazon", but €30 for a 2nd hand 11 year old game on a last gen console. Just laughable.

Quigs Snr

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122886603#Comment_122886603

There was another one down there I think because I remember there being two together back in 99/00 and picking up a load of Dreamcast games.

Early/mid nineties, I loved going up to Petes on Parnell Street for c64 games, and then a bit later virgin megastore had a whole floor dedicated to console games.. every megadrive, snes game you could think of. Used to hop off the bus bringing me up for college on a Sunday night and head straight across the quay to it. Electronics Boutique was on Dawson Street I think and Game on Grafton Street.. huge floor space in both.. all games, no merch back in those days. By then I was into the big box PC games more than anything, but there was always bargains there. And of course Gamesworld on Liffey street and the little part at the back that smelled and was full of dirt cheap megadrive games as soon as the PS1 era started.

I cant remember was it electronics boutique on Dawson Street or Game on Grafton street where I bought a brand new Atari jaguar in the bargain bin for £29.99 around 1996.

A golden age. You would wonder… is it the case that CEX sets a floor for the market here in Ireland and everything will drop in price if they disappear ? Or would the fact that there will be fewer retro games in circulation make them rise ?

I am one of the few that loves that CEX still exists. Pricey, yes. But the prices are really designed around trade ins. A collector with their head screwed on can work that system and bulk up their collection pretty cheaply. For all of the fakes, reprinted covers, wrong discs etc, games that have clearly been through a dogs entire digestive system… I would hate to see them disappear.

clsmooth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122894456#Comment_122894456

There definitely was another second hand game shop a bit further down from Gameexchange and Bookmart, it was under the railway bridge. About 25 years ago I bought Zelda OoT after my Junior Cert in there. I used to love heading into both of those places to check out what N64 games they had. Then pop into Easons to have a look at the magazines to see what games were coming out. Enjoyed Arcade and Total Control. N64 magazine was decent too. Couple of great memories of heading into town to buy Perfect Dark and Winback in Electronics Boutique-good times!

Retr0gamer

Arcade magazine was fantastic, pity it didn't last.

Quigs Snr

24 issues… I have most of them and they are in awful condition, because for some reason they are the most reread magazines I ever had. Lot of quality content packed into them for the time. A cut above anything else.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122915524#Comment_122915524

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122915169#Comment_122915169

Think that was called Games zone? I know the exact spot you're talking about. Used to buy snes imports there.

Tom1991

i think it was games zone or something similar literally under the train bridge it was.the bookmart is still there and selling odds n ends.

But yeah guys there in game zone couldn't be any nicer to me as a kid and having us imports that i could play on my chipped ps1 was awesome. Always had some random tat they'd throw our way also. Here your mad for these rpgs heres this and that try it.Probably shaped my taste in games tbh.

Games world in liffey street was also fantastic from memory from tournaments and the staff being sound.Another place wed be hiding in playing the kiosks while our parents shopped in town.

bugs

GameZone indeed. I worked there in college for about a year or more. A great place to work, pay was slim but untaxed, 99% of the customers who came in were great and the owner was a legend. A cowboy operation but in the best possible way.

Mobius2021

With the internet and social media the mystery of games stores are gone. There was always a chance of walking into these shops and finding a bargain or hidden gems. Having console kiosks was cool and some stores even had PCs setup with games running on it. I remember Game Limerick having a PC once with one of the Wing Commander games or maybe Rebel Assault on it.

During the 16-bit era Dunnes used to stock a reasonable amount of games, some older titles for £20. Remember picking up SNES games like Cybernator and The Lost Vikings in there. Quinnsworth (now Tesco) had a big selection - in Tralee they had a separate store next to the main shop that had a combination of games and their Lifestyle sports stuff. Remember SNES, Megadrive, Gameboy and I think Game Gear kiosks there.