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We've all been there, seduced by a good deal, maybe only a few £ cheaper than everywhere else, but it's still less money, isn't it?
But then it comes to release day and the postman comes. Then goes. The next day, the same thing. You see everyone else playing the game when you log in to PSN or XBL.
Of course, retailers do get better and worse as time goes on, so I thought that it's worth sharing your own experiences to build a picture of the best and worst places to go and get a game.
From my experience:
Shopto - Best for delivery, always either on time or a few days early and give you an email to show the game has dispatched. Worst for refunds as once you've paid, the money stays in your account.
Amazon - Rarely an issue with delivery and most of the time on time. Good prices and a price promise to pay less if the game drops in price before release. Also great customer service.
Zavvi/The Hut - Started off great, went into money problems but then bounced back. The Mega Monday and other deals are good value for money, but their delivery times are often way out and I've had to wait days or weeks past the release date to get anything new.
Game - You may scoff, but at least you can walk in and pick something up on the day of release. Also allows for trade-ins, making games that much cheaper and recycling older games. Prices often a bit steep compared to online, though.
Pete_21
The Game Collection - Good price and fast delivery - got game way before launch.
Game/Gamestation pre-orders usually arrive 1-2 days before street date
Zavvi/The Hut are usually considerably slower.
Shopto.net have always been fast in my experience which is handy if there's something you wanted yesterday.
Nin
Amazon - They're pretty good to be honest but I don't like the impersonal approach to buying online. Also their marketplace sellers aren't always brilliant.
Game - Exactly what I don't want from a game store. Dark, expensive, crowded, poorly priced trade ins and impersonal staff.
Currys - Poorly priced, games tend to break for some reason, staff don't know crap
Gamestation - The opposite of GAME, apart from pricing.
HMV - Ahahahaha no.
Dean5
Game shop: Generally quick and easy. You can just stop by, see what's new and pick up any recent game at a reasonable price.
Steam: For organising games, second to none. As far as purchasing goes, it's really convenient if you have time to wait, or have an excellent connection. Generally overpriced in my opinion unless there is a deal on.
Game online / Amazon / Play: I've used all three of these and haven't seen any significant difference. Just pick the best deal and wait for a few days. If you're lucky it'll come through quick.
Alfonse
Steam
But then it comes to release day and the postman comes. Then goes. The next day, the same thing. You see everyone else playing the game when you log in to PSN or XBL.
Of course, retailers do get better and worse as time goes on, so I thought that it's worth sharing your own experiences to build a picture of the best and worst places to go and get a game.
From my experience:
Shopto - Best for delivery, always either on time or a few days early and give you an email to show the game has dispatched. Worst for refunds as once you've paid, the money stays in your account.
Amazon - Rarely an issue with delivery and most of the time on time. Good prices and a price promise to pay less if the game drops in price before release. Also great customer service.
Zavvi/The Hut - Started off great, went into money problems but then bounced back. The Mega Monday and other deals are good value for money, but their delivery times are often way out and I've had to wait days or weeks past the release date to get anything new.
Game - You may scoff, but at least you can walk in and pick something up on the day of release. Also allows for trade-ins, making games that much cheaper and recycling older games. Prices often a bit steep compared to online, though.
Pete_21
The Game Collection - Good price and fast delivery - got game way before launch.
Game/Gamestation pre-orders usually arrive 1-2 days before street date
Zavvi/The Hut are usually considerably slower.
Shopto.net have always been fast in my experience which is handy if there's something you wanted yesterday.
Nin
Amazon - They're pretty good to be honest but I don't like the impersonal approach to buying online. Also their marketplace sellers aren't always brilliant.
Game - Exactly what I don't want from a game store. Dark, expensive, crowded, poorly priced trade ins and impersonal staff.
Currys - Poorly priced, games tend to break for some reason, staff don't know crap
Gamestation - The opposite of GAME, apart from pricing.
HMV - Ahahahaha no.
Dean5
Game shop: Generally quick and easy. You can just stop by, see what's new and pick up any recent game at a reasonable price.
Steam: For organising games, second to none. As far as purchasing goes, it's really convenient if you have time to wait, or have an excellent connection. Generally overpriced in my opinion unless there is a deal on.
Game online / Amazon / Play: I've used all three of these and haven't seen any significant difference. Just pick the best deal and wait for a few days. If you're lucky it'll come through quick.
Alfonse
Steam
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We've all been there, seduced by a good deal, maybe only a few £ cheaper than everywhere else, but it's still less money, isn't it?
But then it comes to release day and the postman comes. Then goes. The next day, the same thing. You see everyone else playing the game when you log in to PSN or XBL.
Of course, retailers do get better and worse as time goes on, so I thought that it's worth sharing your own experiences to build a picture of the best and worst places to go and get a game.
From my experience:
Shopto - Best for delivery, always either on time or a few days early and give you an email to show the game has dispatched. Worst for refunds as once you've paid, the money stays in your account.
Amazon - Rarely an issue with delivery and most of the time on time. Good prices and a price promise to pay less if the game drops in price before release. Also great customer service.
Zavvi/The Hut - Started off great, went into money problems but then bounced back. The Mega Monday and other deals are good value for money, but their delivery times are often way out and I've had to wait days or weeks past the release date to get anything new.
Game - You may scoff, but at least you can walk in and pick something up on the day of release. Also allows for trade-ins, making games that much cheaper and recycling older games. Prices often a bit steep compared to online, though.
Pete_21
The Game Collection - Good price and fast delivery - got game way before launch.
Game/Gamestation pre-orders usually arrive 1-2 days before street date
Zavvi/The Hut are usually considerably slower.
Shopto.net have always been fast in my experience which is handy if there's something you wanted yesterday.
Nin
Amazon - They're pretty good to be honest but I don't like the impersonal approach to buying online. Also their marketplace sellers aren't always brilliant.
Game - Exactly what I don't want from a game store. Dark, expensive, crowded, poorly priced trade ins and impersonal staff.
Currys - Poorly priced, games tend to break for some reason, staff don't know crap
Gamestation - The opposite of GAME, apart from pricing.
HMV - Ahahahaha no.
Dean5
Game shop: Generally quick and easy. You can just stop by, see what's new and pick up any recent game at a reasonable price.
Steam: For organising games, second to none. As far as purchasing goes, it's really convenient if you have time to wait, or have an excellent connection. Generally overpriced in my opinion unless there is a deal on.
Game online / Amazon / Play: I've used all three of these and haven't seen any significant difference. Just pick the best deal and wait for a few days. If you're lucky it'll come through quick.
Alfonse
Steam
But then it comes to release day and the postman comes. Then goes. The next day, the same thing. You see everyone else playing the game when you log in to PSN or XBL.
Of course, retailers do get better and worse as time goes on, so I thought that it's worth sharing your own experiences to build a picture of the best and worst places to go and get a game.
From my experience:
Shopto - Best for delivery, always either on time or a few days early and give you an email to show the game has dispatched. Worst for refunds as once you've paid, the money stays in your account.
Amazon - Rarely an issue with delivery and most of the time on time. Good prices and a price promise to pay less if the game drops in price before release. Also great customer service.
Zavvi/The Hut - Started off great, went into money problems but then bounced back. The Mega Monday and other deals are good value for money, but their delivery times are often way out and I've had to wait days or weeks past the release date to get anything new.
Game - You may scoff, but at least you can walk in and pick something up on the day of release. Also allows for trade-ins, making games that much cheaper and recycling older games. Prices often a bit steep compared to online, though.
Pete_21
The Game Collection - Good price and fast delivery - got game way before launch.
Game/Gamestation pre-orders usually arrive 1-2 days before street date
Zavvi/The Hut are usually considerably slower.
Shopto.net have always been fast in my experience which is handy if there's something you wanted yesterday.
Nin
Amazon - They're pretty good to be honest but I don't like the impersonal approach to buying online. Also their marketplace sellers aren't always brilliant.
Game - Exactly what I don't want from a game store. Dark, expensive, crowded, poorly priced trade ins and impersonal staff.
Currys - Poorly priced, games tend to break for some reason, staff don't know crap
Gamestation - The opposite of GAME, apart from pricing.
HMV - Ahahahaha no.
Dean5
Game shop: Generally quick and easy. You can just stop by, see what's new and pick up any recent game at a reasonable price.
Steam: For organising games, second to none. As far as purchasing goes, it's really convenient if you have time to wait, or have an excellent connection. Generally overpriced in my opinion unless there is a deal on.
Game online / Amazon / Play: I've used all three of these and haven't seen any significant difference. Just pick the best deal and wait for a few days. If you're lucky it'll come through quick.
Alfonse
Steam
If I'm looking for a bargain online, I'll always look at TheHut because they often have the best price. Some great stuff on there (use them particularly for DVDs).
However, you can't really beat Amazon for delivery and the sheer amount of products they offer. I tend to stray away from the likes of GAME, as the prices tend to be steep and anything I can find on there I know I could find on Amazon or TheHut for a lot less.
However, you can't really beat Amazon for delivery and the sheer amount of products they offer. I tend to stray away from the likes of GAME, as the prices tend to be steep and anything I can find on there I know I could find on Amazon or TheHut for a lot less.
And Play? Do they get a mention?
Quite a few online retailers take Paypal these days (GAME group, Zavvi, Shopto, Gameseek, Game Collection, Green Man Gaming) which is always handy if you have any spare funds lying in your account. Flogged some bits on the bay the other week which paid for my Codblops 2 pre-order.
DL wrote:
And Play? Do they get a mention?
The general idea is to add your own with a brief description.
I can always add them to the first post if needed.
And Play? Do they get a mention?
The general idea is to add your own with a brief description.
I can always add them to the first post if needed.
Amazon - They're pretty good to be honest but I don't like the impersonal approach to buying online. Also their marketplace sellers aren't always brilliant.
Game - Exactly what I don't want from a game store. Dark, expensive, crowded, poorly priced trade ins and impersonal staff.
Currys - Poorly priced, games tend to break for some reason, staff don't know crap
Gamestation - The opposite of GAME, apart from pricing.
HMV - Ahahahaha no.
Game - Exactly what I don't want from a game store. Dark, expensive, crowded, poorly priced trade ins and impersonal staff.
Currys - Poorly priced, games tend to break for some reason, staff don't know crap
Gamestation - The opposite of GAME, apart from pricing.
HMV - Ahahahaha no.
Best: Steam
Worst: Everything else
Worst: Everything else
For me, because it takes days to download a game at home, Steam isn't really an option if I'm eager to buy a game.
Also for ordering a game from the Internet, unless you pay the extra for First Class, you're going to be waiting anyway.
When you can just walk to Game in town and pay marginally more then what you would online, it just seems the better option.
I also much prefer looking around a real shop rather then a virtual one because you can just see exactly what is available quickly rather then having to run several searches, which may take you directly to what your looking for, but doesn't really tell you what else is there.
Game shop: Generally quick and easy. You can just stop by, see what's new and pick up any recent game at a reasonable price.
Steam: For organising games, second to none. As far as purchasing goes, it's really convenient if you have time to wait, or have an excellent connection. Generally overpriced in my opinion unless there is a deal on.
Game online / Amazon / Play: I've used all three of these and haven't seen any significant difference. Just pick the best deal and wait for a few days. If you're lucky it'll come through quick.
Also for ordering a game from the Internet, unless you pay the extra for First Class, you're going to be waiting anyway.
When you can just walk to Game in town and pay marginally more then what you would online, it just seems the better option.
I also much prefer looking around a real shop rather then a virtual one because you can just see exactly what is available quickly rather then having to run several searches, which may take you directly to what your looking for, but doesn't really tell you what else is there.
Game shop: Generally quick and easy. You can just stop by, see what's new and pick up any recent game at a reasonable price.
Steam: For organising games, second to none. As far as purchasing goes, it's really convenient if you have time to wait, or have an excellent connection. Generally overpriced in my opinion unless there is a deal on.
Game online / Amazon / Play: I've used all three of these and haven't seen any significant difference. Just pick the best deal and wait for a few days. If you're lucky it'll come through quick.
dean5 wrote:
Also for ordering a game from the Internet, unless you pay the extra for First Class, you're going to be waiting anyway.
Some online retailers do ship pre-orders prior to release date and some do post 1st class for no extra charge. Game/Gamestation pre-orders usually arrive 1-2 days before street date while Zavvi/The Hut are usually considerably slower. Shopto.net have always been fast in my experience which is handy if there's something you wanted yesterday.
Also for ordering a game from the Internet, unless you pay the extra for First Class, you're going to be waiting anyway.
Some online retailers do ship pre-orders prior to release date and some do post 1st class for no extra charge. Game/Gamestation pre-orders usually arrive 1-2 days before street date while Zavvi/The Hut are usually considerably slower. Shopto.net have always been fast in my experience which is handy if there's something you wanted yesterday.
Big thumbs up for The Game Collection, got my Black Ops 2 this morning (3 days before release date!).
EDIT: Will report what it's like later (if the Mrs. allows me to play on it!).
EDIT: Will report what it's like later (if the Mrs. allows me to play on it!).
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