GameStop — Local services in Hadley

While the company itself has its flaws, the Mountain Farms GameStop is no slouch. I will admit that for many years I went to the GameStop in the Hampshire Mall (formerly an Electronic Boutique and then EB Games, but years later I feel that I should have shopped at this one way more. With a few exceptions, the staff play games, are passionate and know their stuff. They provide help when asked and don't mind looking things up for you. They are willing to help without being pushy, which is more than some game stores I've been to. The staff are oftentimes just fun to talk to, which says a lot given how standoffish I've seen others who work at other GameStop stores nearby. I wholeheartedly enjoy most times I go in there. Once in a while you find a classic gem for a good price on 360 and beyond.

But there are 2 caveats to the store itself, no fault of the workers; The first is this store becoming a bit more claustrophobic due to becoming similar to Hot Topic in many ways. There is a fairly new emphasis on gamer and media themed clothing and random objects like Five Knights at Freddy's plushes. The second issue is that, this is NOT A RETRO GAME STORE. You will find new games only and some going back only as far as the DS and PS3, which are dwindling quickly. But I've gotten good deals on some older titles in the past and seen one or two rare games.

One of my fondest GameStop memories will be the night of my Kingdom Hearts 3 pre-release, when a worker named Jasmine dressed up as Anna from Frozen in full cosplay, sang a KH-themed parody of the First Time In Forever, and had a sing along of Simple and Clean with 35 other people. There were also free Christmas decorations. It was a heck of a sendoff. That's the kind of stuff that sets this store apart. Some of them LOVE their games and do everything they can to demonstrate it.

Overall this GameStop beats many of its local competitors in retail fundamentals: smiling, courtesy, honesty and kindness. Highly...

So, I was out and about once and thought to myself "Hey, let's go to Gamestop!" I go to the Gamestop, and guess what. It's closed. This was around 1:00 PM, and their hours say it should be open from 12:00 to 7:00. Another instance more recently, when I was hanging out with some friends, and we were going out and thought about going to Gamestop, so obviously, we go. And it's CLOSED. I remember the time very well, and it was 3:42 PM. Remember, the hours say 12:00 PM to 7:00 PM. There were countless cases of this happening, and this isn't even the only thing. I believe the reason that they aren't open when they should be is because of the staff sleeping in, which brings me to my next point, the staff. The staff are no better than an absentminded kindergartener learning algebra. One time, they tricked me into buying the pro membership. Another time, they made the process of buying a DLC for a Pokémon game so confusing that I was unsure about what to do, as they told me I had to buy the both DLC's for both games. And even then, they didn't honor the pro membership they tricked me into buying. 0 stars if I could, I cannot stress it enough, DO. NOT. SHOP. HERE. You will have a...

First of all, if you're planning on buying a console from these thieves, don't. Just order it from Amazon or buy it it somewhere else. They do not accept returns for opened items. Secondly, if you absolutely MUST get a console from them, do the research yourself on it. They will not tell you what comes with it, or more importantly what it doesn't include. The Wii U for example needs WIFI to function, (unless you buy a special part which Gamestop probably won't have), and it does not play DVDs or Blu-Ray. That's not to mention their predatory trade-in policy in which they will exchange new or like-new games for five dollars, then resell those games for $55 (That's $5 below regular retail.) This company is the absolutely worst, don't waste your...