Game Republik — Local services in Austin

Whatever you do, DO NOT take your controller here for repairs now. I don't know if management has changed in the past two years but I had previously sent my Xbox Elite controller in for stick drift and it was fixed with no issues and sent back to me. After another two years of play (Pretty long for an Elite Controller) it started to get some stick drift again, as well as some buttons not responding. So I figured I would send it back to these guys because of the phenomenal job they did previously...

I sent it in, and after about a month I call to see what the status is and they said they had a lot to work on currently, and it would be awhile longer. No big deal, I get it, I'm glad they are busy so they continue to stay in business. About another month goes by without any communication, and finally I get a Paypal invoice for $60. I pay it and wait for my controller...still no communication from them.

The controller arrives and not only was the stick drift worse than when I sent it in, now the back bumpers do not work at all. So I call and leave a pretty snarky voicemail on a Saturday to complain. I will admit it was a bit of a rude voicemail, but no cursing or anything like that.

I get a call from a guy saying how the store isn't even open yet and how he is calling me from his house (being the top tier employee that he is) to talk about my controller...yeah man, that's why I left a voicemail, that's what it is used for. Then he proceeds to go on a 10 minute rant about how Elite controllers are POS from China and how they are such a pain to work on, and how he is so great because he has been soldering for 18 years and plays on an ESports team. And how his $20 LogiTech mouse works fine, ok cool dude...I didn't need your life story but I'm glad I can write your biography now.

So after his rant he says he isn't going to fix it and will just refund my money...ok that's all I wanted because I definitely am not shipping it back to you now.

I take it to a local UBreakIFix, and they tell me the back bumpers don't work because whoever "fixed" it before never installed the cable to connect the back PCB to the main board and it would be $50 to fix, and also the stick drift soldering was so bad they would need to order an entirely new module. At that point it would be cheaper to just buy a new elite controller. Which is a shame because mine was a GOW4 Special Edition, that I have had with me for years now.

All in all, yeah Elite Controllers develop stick drift pretty quickly and are wayyy too expensive for their quality, so I can agree on that...but don't berate your customer for their taste in controllers or how they prefer to play their games.

Simply say you do not fix Elite Controllers because you can't solder/fix them correctly and you will forget to connect all of the cables upon reassembly.

18 years of soldering experience apparently isn't enough.

EDIT: Well, if their response tells you anything, the people running this place are the most toxic part of the gaming community. Resort to name calling and berating. No only are they toxic towards their customers, but also people with mental disabilities apparently? Not sure, how they arrived at the conclusion I would be on the spectrum from asking for a refund about their terrible craftsmanship but, I guess that's how it works at this place. Not only can't they admit they couldn't fix the controller and left out an important cable, but they blame shipping for it.

Their attention to detail is what is hilariously bad. The "Repair Ticket" they commented on this review is from 2018...not even the one I...

My only experience with Game Republik is this one interaction, in a repair capacity. Originally, I tried doing a case swap on an OG NDS. I couldn't get the top part of the clamshell on, plus, when I turned it on, it would short out, turn on, then immediately turn off.

I'd interacted with Game Republik on Twitter, so I decided to try them out.

I dropped off my NDS on March 6, 2019. They told me it would take some time to diagnose and had no idea of cost. "It depends on the diagnosis."

After hearing nothing, I decided to buy another working (cheap) OG NDS off of eBay and asked them to simply put the new shell on the working NDS. No diagnosis, just a straight shell swap.

After hearing nothing, I continued to reach out to them on Twitter and Facebook Messenger, called twice, then finally heard back.

"With third-party shells, they don't always fit, so I'm working on making it fit." I get it - the AliExpress sellers make inconsistent stuff. Still, it took me almost two months to get my NDS back.

They called me right at the end of April (remember, I dropped it off in early March) and told me it was ready. I finally picked it up today.

Pros: the shell fits.

Cons: they broke the hinge on the NEW shell I bought, the top screen doesn't line up with the bezel, the L trigger and B buttons feel super gummy, and they didn't even bother to clean off the top LCD before putting it back in the shell. You HAVE to take the entire thing apart in a shell swap - why not clean it when you have the opportunity?

I know I was dealing with an old console and I know that the third party shell might be a (small) pain, but I expected better for $44 and waiting almost two months.

At this point, I wish I'd saved my money, never bothered trying a shell swap, and just kept a fully functional, clean, snappy button'd OG NDS.

Your mileage may vary but I am not impressed.

RESPONSE (5/4/2019):

Yes, I freely admit I gave you a shorted out system and a completely working system. If you ignore the shorted out one and look at only the working hardware and the shell, it's a shell swap, simple as that.

Yes, I posted a review based off of my experience. I'm not going to apologize for being less than enthused with waiting two months. Reading other people's reviews about your repairs, it seems like I'm not in the minority regarding my experience.

It's also okay to be done doing shell swaps. Post a sign on your door or your website. There wasn't one when I dropped off my hardware.

I am more than happy to talk about it on the phone. I was busy when you called and my phone is on silent. I can also only assume that you are the number that called me after the actual Game Republik number called and said 'Wow thanks"?

Finally, if this many people (especially within a few months time span) all have similar criticism of your repair process, maybe that's...

Dropped off a PSP 2000 on May 3, 2018. They told me it'd take 2 weeks to change the housing case. (Which is what I originally dropped it off for. And also, keep in mind that it was working perfectly fine when I dropped it off). Took longer than 2 weeks, they never bothered calling me back to update me on the status or even letting me know it'd take longer. I had to call back everytime and it was always an excuse "Oh, our tech has 2 jobs and is too busy to work on your console. We need more time...etc." "Oh, turns out your console has liquid damage now and your screen isn't functional but we're working on ordering you a replacement screen." Calls back 6 months later "Oh yeah man, that console isn't functional due to liquid damage." Like seriously? You guys couldn't have at least called me back and let me know what was going on at least? I paid you guys $20 to just change the housing case for me. Not clean out the whole console (inside/out) and mess up my console in the process. I called back today just to complain on how long it's taking and it is now 2-22-2019 and now they're refusing to even put my console back together because of my "attitude" even though that's exactly what I originally paid for and I should have every right to complain at this point. The tech at this location refuses service if he feels like you gave him an "attitude'" or even raise your voice at him or rush him. I do NOT recommend this location if you're trying to fix your console. I'm very unsatisfied with your attitude sir and you need to learn better customer service skills. I get it, you have 2+ more jobs but that's not my damn problem. You need to fix my ** whenever you say you're going to get it done and keep your word. Should have expected me to complain when this so called "2 week repair" is going on to almost a year now and not hearing anything from you guys. But I have the "attitude"? lmao gtfo with your unprofessional a sir. UPDATE So they called me back shortly after I posted this review only to tell me that they left my console out in their lot for whoever wants to grab it due to my "attitude". Yeah Game Republik, very professional. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU DON'T COME HERE FOR CONSOLE REPAIRS. THE TECH IS VERY RUDE AND THEY WILL DISPOSE OF YOUR CONSOLE IF...