As the focus of sales shift to online and digital becomes more prominent (and more pushed by publishers), the woes of physical retail has become a big thing. Wrap that all up with the current COVID pandemic, and you have nothing but a hard time. The last major video game-focused retail specialty chain, GameStop, has been no stranger to those woes, as they’ve been forced to close multiple stores as well as seen slumping sales. But a new partnership with Microsoft has been announced, and it seems that the retail chain isn’t going down without some fight.

As reported by DOMO Capital, GameStop has entered a deal with Microsoft to share downstream revenue from digital sales on Xbox systems that GameStop sells. While the exact details are not known, it seems as if the retailer will get some degree of revenue on all digital content from whatever systems they sell that will get customers into the “Xbox ecosystem.” That’s obviously the upcoming Xbox Series X and Series S, but presumably would also include any Xbox One or even spare 360 sold, though again, the exact details are not made clear at this time. There are also a lot of questions that aren’t answered now, such as whether Game Pass revenue is counted. Those specific details may very well never be shared.

It’s an interesting move by both parties. GameStop no doubt sees this as a move to heal some of their financial wounds and Microsoft probably sees an opportunity to push their systems to those who still shop brick and mortar. Whether or not it will benefit either significantly remains to be seen, but it’s an inventive partnership all the same.

https://twitter.com/DOMOCAPITAL/status/1316173476777136128?s=20

We’re getting ever closer to the launch of new consoles, and people are no doubt thinking about where, when and how they will pick up these systems. Sony will have the PS5, and Microsoft will have the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, with those preorders going live September 22nd. Well, one retailer is looking to give you several options.

While gaming-focused retailer GameStop has had its fair share of financial woes lately, it’s still as viable as any for those purchases as anywhere else. As reported by VentureBeat, the company has internally looked at offering consumers three options besides straight payment. They are installment plans offered through third-party companies like Quadpay that will let you split your payment plan into 4 payments across 6 weeks, a layaway where you put a system on hold and pay on it for a set period of time, and a rent to own with a third party where you take the system of your choice home and pay the rest over the course of up to 12 months with interest. 

As of now, nothing official has been announced, but at the very least GameStop seems to want to find multiple ways to sell you one of these new systems. The Xbox Series X and S will launch on November 10th. As of now we don’t know the release date for the PS5, but most expect it to be within a similar time frame.

DOOM Eternal is almost here, and with it comes excitement for all those fans that were wowed by the series’ 2016 reboot. The game promises more raw power as you once again step into the shoes of the Doom Slayer in his never-ending battles against demons, with hopes of much more in the future. The game is scheduled to come tomorrow, but it seems if you shop at a certain retail chain, you’ll get it a day early.

Retailer GameStop announced via their official Twitter that, due to coronavirus concerns, they will drop the game one day early (in order to separate the DOOM and Animal Crossing crowds), which would be today. The chain has been criticized for staying open despite government recommendations that non-essential stores close. They have taken measures to address the spread, such as the cancellation of midnight launches, as well as things like this. Obviously, for fans this is fun, but use your judgement about going out depending on where you’re at. It seems this only applies to the North American GameStop chain and not other international brands with connections to it, such as EB Games.

DOOM Eternal will officially release on March 20th for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Stadia, with the Switch version slated to come later this year. You can read our review of the game through here.

To ensure we adhere to CDC-recommended social distancing guidelines, we will be selling DOOM Eternal a day early on Thursday, 3/19 as a safety precaution for our customers and associates. Animal Crossing will release on Friday 3/20 to further help separate the crowds.

— GameStop (@GameStop) March 19, 2020

Between closing stores and tumbling stocks, the once giant video game retailer GameStop is going through some rough times. As brick and mortar stores decline in all areas, specialty stores especially are being hit hard. There’s a lot of ways things are looking bad for the store chain, and just one more is the big slump of holiday sales.

As reported by Gamesindustry, GameStop’s holiday sales for 2019 was down a pretty significant margin. Year to year 2019 was down a whole 27.5% from 2018, bringing in 1.83 billion as opposed to 2018’s 2.77 billion. It’s obviously quite a large drop and considering everything else, it’s not looking too rosy for the company at all.

GameStop is the last mainstream retail chain focusing on gaming left in America. While there’s still a lot of stores remaining open, it does seem like the company is somewhat on the cusp of either disaster or major readjustments needed to survive. Only time will tell.

Once upon a time, GameStop was the gaming empire of America. The company absorbed several others and opened an absurd amount of stores thorough out the country. Now, though, brick and mortar stores are on the decline and the once retailer juggernaut has seen bad news as stocks and sales have tumbled for multiple quarters. Now, they are closing dozens of stores across the country.

You can see the full list of stores through the GSclosing blog, an unaffiliated blog that’s been compiling lists of store closing. The stores will close soon and some are reporting huge clearance sales on both video games and consoles for those who happen to be close to one of the stores being closed.

It’s unfortunate for the many employees who will lose their jobs, but it was an inevitable outcome considering both the decline of retail as well as the overly aggressive expansion GameStop went through over the last decade. While the chain will undoubtedly survive through this holiday season for the next console generation, it’s very well possible it won’t be around much longer.

The retailer chain, GameStop, was once a juggernaut of the brick and mortar space, but time has not been kind to that space and GameStop has suffered a good deal because of it. It’s been constant reports of dipping stocks, and the latest one is no different, unfortunately, as stocks and value continue to tumble downward.

After the third-quarter earnings report, GameSpot’s shares fell to $5.20, which is a whopping 19.51% from yesterday’s closing price of $6.51 a share. Ironically, the actual revenue reported was positive but with an inability to offset overall spending, cutting profits from $558 million to $441 million. It’s a pretty massive drop, even compared to the last few quarters.

With the rise of digital as well as an excessive proliferation of stores, there’s been a lot of worries about the future of the chain in recent years. The company is reportedly looking to renovate stores with more of a focus on social aspects and esports. Whether that will help or not in the long run is anyone’s guess. The store remains the only real gaming focused specialty chain around, and really one of the last specialty stores in general, so it’ll be interesting to see just what the future holds.

It’s no secret that GameStop has been struggling over the last year or so. It’s something the entire brick and mortar retail scene is having to confront in one form or another as consumer’s shift to online and digital shopping. They aren’t ready to throw in the towel just yet, though, as major changes are coming to the retail chain.

In a press release, GameStop revealed they will be partnering with design firm R/GA to change up both the look of their stores and how they’ll be set up. Apparently a big part of the renovations will be focused on bringing esports based areas and dedicating sections of the stores specifically to retro based game. The company has said they plan to evolve with the current trend of digital based subscription services, and this seems to be a way to create a more interactive experience for shoppers that one can’t get online, at least not in the same way.

What these new shops will look like or where they’ll be testing them first wasn’t discussed. GameStop really stands alone as the last gaming specialty focused store chain, and thankfully for them the next generation of consoles will be having physical media. Whether or not they can survive the ever sinking hole of time and change is anyone’s guess, but they’re at least going to give it one last push.

Digital gaming has seen a massive explosion in popularity as this generation has progressed, and with subscription services and cloud gaming looking all set to become the next big thing in the industry, the digital scene is only bound to continue that growth. That said, physical media is still something that customers put a lot of stock in, which is why Microsoft and Sony have both confirmed that the Xbox Scarlett and the PS5 – respectively – will still have disc drives and won’t be going fully digital.

Someone else who’s happy with that decision? The retail chain GameStop- which makes sense, because their business is built primarily on selling physical discs of games to customers. According to GameStop’s chief customer officer Frank Hamlin, both Sony and Microsoft are “keenly aware” that physical media is still very important to consumers, and the retailer chain itself is also very happy about disc drive inclusions in next gen consoles.

“I think both Microsoft and Sony are keenly aware that the consumer needs that optionality,” Hamlin told GameSpot. “We’re very much a believer in helping our customers sell them a physical game when they want it.”

“It’s much like a collectable,” Hamlin said on the value of physical media to consumers. “They like the collectibility and trophy on the shelf. That tangibility is something that’s extremely important for the right game experience. Not giving the customers the privilege of having that is something I think both Sony and Microsoft are aware would be a foolish thing to do.”

Though Microsoft have confirmed that the Xbox Scarlett will indeed have a disc drive, recent reports have also suggested that they’re working on a discless, xCloud-focused streaming box variant, to present as a cheaper alternative to consumers. Read more on that through here.

Physical retail has taken a beating over the last half decade. Even with the majority of people still buying physical goods, the rapid rise of online shopping and streaming has shown that it’s only a matter of time before the field changes. One place that’s been hit particularly hard is GameStop. As the last major specialty shop focused primarily on video games,  services like Game Pass, xCloud and Stadia are going to be a big challenge for the once retail giant. One person putting on a strong face, though, is the chain’s Vice President of Merchandising Eric Bright, who thinks that GameStop can evolve with the changing times.

Bright brushes off worries about these new subscription services in an interview with GamesIndustry, saying that Gamestop, as is, already has such a wide network and presence, it makes it easy to partner with publishers and developers. He also points to the early rise of digital sales not having as major of an impact that many expected as the company began selling digital codes to compensate. He thinks that the company can similarly evolve as new services pop up.

“GameStop is focused on games and gaming culture overall,” said Bright. “Any way that we can look at monetising overall digital sales, we will. You can be assured of that given the fact that we have 65 million members in PowerUp Rewards, we’re no more than a skateboard ride away from 80 per cent of the overall population of the United States, and we have 45,000 of the most knowledgeable game associates, which are basically the distributed sales force for the entire industry, working for us.

“Our partners know that partnering with GameStop on all the new ways of monetisation are in their best interest, so we’re engaging in conversations with everyone as new formats come out. Much like we were able to sell digital and are able to sell digital codes in every single GameStop store and online today, as new subscription models come out and evolve, GameStop will evolve right along with it.”

Bright isn’t wrong, the company still has a major presence and being the only real major specialty shop for video games is a big thing when working with publishers. However, the decline of physical sales and brick and mortar shops are undeniable with that effect being felt on a worldwide scale. A lot of once strong retail lines have either closed or been massively reduced over the last few years, so whether or not GameStop can weather the storm ahead is anyone’s guess.

There’s no real debate that, by and large, physical brick and mortar stores are in a bad spot. With the increasing sales of digital and people choosing to shop online, it’s put those stores on the decline. Maybe no other entity shows that more than GameStop, who have been on the bad side of financial news for awhile now, and it doesn’t look like this year is looking significantly different.

In talking about the company’s Q1 2019 results, we see that global sales have decreased 13.3%  YoY (year-over-year), with net income falling starkly 76% YoY, which includes a 35% decrease of hardware sales, said to be only that low due to stronger than expected Nintendo Switch sales. It comes with a less sharp 4.3% drop in software sale. The only thing that was up was collectibles which saw a 10.5% increase in sales. This includes data of a 13 week period ending on May 4^th.

In some ways, this being an overall down year isn’t totally unexpected. The current generation of consoles is winding down (with the exception of the Switch, which is entering its peak year) and it’s natural to expect a downtime as people prep for new hardware. But this has been a continuous cycle for the company and with retail being reshaped to very digital and internet focused, hard to see a good path forward. It’ll be interesting to see if they can pull the head up in time.