Rate The Retailer

[Gemini-Phoenix]

On a scale of -10/+10 (where 0 is neutral), rate the various major online retailers and give a brief review as to why you like / hate them so much

Here's my nominations, ranked in order of most favourite to least favourite!

The Good +

GAME.co.uk +7 - GAME is my preferred gaming retailer, mainly due to the fact that they have the best exclusives, choice and availability, returns service, and rewards scheme. Ok, so their prices may not be the lowest, and their packaging methods for CE's still leave a lot to be desired, but they are by far the better retailer when it comes to providing games. As much as I have my issues with GAME's packaging, the returns proceedure is quick & painless, & definitely better than some of the competition (Ie, PLAY.com & Zavvi)!

HMV.co.uk +7 - I only usually use HMV for pre-ordering Dvd / Blu-Ray SteelBooks, I do find their service quite adequate. They ship these items in a sturdy box, and they always come 2-3 days before release. They have a decent returns service (which I rarely have to use), and prices are really competative online. However, I have used HMV for pre-ordering some exclusive gaming CE's before, and they generally arrive in good shape, although not always. Returning items is not as easy as GAME, but in contrast their packaging is usually a lot better.

ShopTo.net +3 - I don't use ShopTo very often, and only really bother whenever they have an exclusive CE or a really good sale. Their packaging methods are amongst the worst though, but in their defence they do have some of the best prices and the fastest dispatch time! They seem to have substituted quality service for speed of delivery though. If you want an item fast and aren't bothered about the condition it arrives in, then ShopTo are great! However, if you prefer receiving CE's in one piece, look elsewhere or be prepared to return the item a few times...


Neutral -/+

Game4Game.at - I can't really form an opinion on this company, as I have only used them twice so far. However, I do have two more items on pre-order, so I will be able to form a much better opinion about them in a couple of months

However, so far all has been well. I like their exclusive CE's, although the prices do tend to be a little on the high side, especially when shipping to the UK is concerned, although I don't really hold that against them too much considering the rarity of the CE's they offer. I would prefer it if their website was a little more English-friendly too, although it's not really any hardship to place orders, and it's just inconvenient more than anything


The bad -

Amazon.co.uk -3 - I have to say, everytime I have used Amazon I have been disappointed, regardless of what I buy. Either items aren't what I expected, item arrives damaged, or item doesn't arrive at all! I try not to use them unless I really have to (Ie, in the case of an exclusive), as I know the outcome will be bad. The last few things I ordered were all Dvd CE's which arrived damage, and upon returning them I was told no more replacements were available! Packaging methods are usually dreadful, and to top it off they ship from the Channel Islands, which means a delay in receiving the items you order

Zavvi.co.uk -5 - Again, Zavvi is a retailer I try not to use unless I am forced to. Every tem I have ever bought from Zavvi online has been disappointing, and I find that a lot of the items I have bought from them have been imported from Europe rather than being proper UK stock. Their packaging is poor, and their shipping times are dreadful due to the fact that they ship from the Channel Islands. However, their customer service is amongst some of the worst I have ever experienced! It is exceptionally difficult to actually get anywhere with their customer service team, and they run you around in circles!

PLAY.com -7 - Hardly much of a surprise you those of you who know know me. LAY.com have got to be the worst online retailer by a longshot, and it's any wonder how they managed to win a "Retailer Of The Year" award with such abysmal service! I have nothing but problems when I order from PLAY.com, and I would say that around 75% of my orders in the last 3 years have had issues! I generally only use them for exclusives, but unfortunately for me they tend to get quite a lot of those, so I have no other choice but to order from them. They seem to be able to deliver SteelBooks with no hassle, but where CE's and consoles are concerned they are the absolute worst! Their customer service team is useless (both via telephone and eMail), their packaging methods are virtually non-existent, and their shipping is very slow due to operating out of the Channel Islands!

I liken PLAY.com to paying for a prostitute - You want the pleasure of the sex, even though you know you're going to catch a venereal, but you still keep going back for more...

[gurpswoo1]

GAME/Gamestation/Gameplay:+7.5 All the same company, having a local store makes thing considerbly easier, the fact they have a pHone number, super easy free returns policy makes them my preferred choice.

The only issue I have is that I have to buy 3-4 copies of the smaller editions and return the other 3 in order for them to use a box instead of a jiffy bag.

Game4game.at +7 every item has arrived in perfect condition and in a double walled box, prices of delivery and cost of items however mark it down.

Play-asia + yes-asia + 7: fantastic packaging, although in the case of play-asia many item require additional postage cost. speed is also an issue sometimes taking 3 weeks. Also have to take into account import fees.

HMV + 7 : has a habit of sending items in boxes, even Steel books and normal games. Prices are on the high side for exclusives. Also many of their slip case editions arrive unsealed.

Zavvi/ Hut +5.5: A considerable improvement Over the last 6 months. Many items now arrive in box espcailly the bigger ones. Also have some of the best prices out there. Have started to sell noN UK version of games which is a big no no.

---------------------------------
Amazon -5: what a disaster of the company, no matter how many you order or pay for express or cheap delivery, their cardboard covers just don't cut. At least they have a free returns policy. Stay away unless you order an item that is large.

Shopto.net - 8: many games are not UK, send games in plastic bags, terrible customer service, take months to return and get money back. Order from them and you will regret it.

My memory: -9: company does not know what a box is, send items in plastic bag instead of jiffy bag, even normal games are sent this way. Terrible

Play.com - infinite, there is no number in existence that accurately ranks Play.com. It is one of the worst companies in history. 95% of items arrive damaged. incredibly slow customer service. They do get some very nice exclusive, which really annoys me because it's almost certain to arrive damaged. STAY WAY

[tallkid123]

I'm not from the UK but as I've used most of those retailers, I'll provide my opinions. Gemini, I've instead just used a scale of 1-10 (1 being bad, 10 being excellent) for simplicity.

GAME.co.uk (8) - I've used them a few times in the past and have never really had any problems with them. There were standard delays sometimes with my credit card as I'm an international customer (understandable) but once cleared, items were all mostly sent out promptly and without fuss. I've been happy with their service and their exclusive products (standout was Castlevania: Lords of Shadow LE with God Mask). They are however quite expensive when compared to the competition so I haven't really bought much from them since then. The GAME AUS store has also been quite good to me as they tend to have some awesome deals on occasion but their range is very very limited however.

Ozgameshop/365games (7) - This online retailer has specialised themselves towards the growing video game export market to Australia and for that, I'm quite pleased. They've also come across here as one of the go-to stores for Australian buyers new to importing as all prices are shown in Australian dollars and include free shipping. Those are my good points. One thing in particular I don't like about them is that they refrain from stating what region their products are. I can never tell sometimes if I'm gonna get an NTSC/PAL copy and that really annoys me due to DLC restrictions and also the personal fact that I hate buying any game that's not PAL. I think they've improved since then though. Also, their preorders require you to pay it straight up which can be annoying if you want to cancel your order later but I guess that's the tradeoff when their prices tend to be cheaper than anyone else. Their range is alright from my standards but I think they need to clean up their product list (too many old out of stock CE listings). Their packaging is pretty sub-standard though as some of the PSP LEs I've ordered from them have come to me a little crumpled. I think once again, they've improved slightly in this area since then as well.

Dvd.co.uk (9) - This is probably my favourite online store for obscure games over many consoles. I find these guys tend to stock things that no other store does and add to the fact that they automatically take off VAT for me at checkout, their prices are really awesome for the Australian buyer. I'm also comforted by the fact that everything is PAL and that unlike Zavvi, I can also order books and clothes (i think) if I wanted to. However, their packaging sucks (cardboard boxes, no protection) but I've never had anything come damaged from them which is quite surprising and a relief. It's unfortunate though that they don't supply many CEs but I'll counter this with the fact that I've bought many games I've never heard of previously from them for great prices.

Shopto.net (4) - I hate this store. I've ordered 2 things from them. The Enslaved CE and Goldeneye Bundle. Enslaved CE came a bit crumpled which annoyed me as their packaging wasn't too bad. The Goldeneye Bundle however will be the last time I deal with them. I've never received something with a box that came so badly damaged. And I'm pretty sure from reading elsewhere that such damage did not occur through the post but originated at the distribution centre itself. In some ways, I guess I could say I got what I paid for. This bundle was heavily discounted and as such, I took the bait and received a damaged product for my trouble. Furthermore, their prices are really not that great to me as an importer and I think they've stopped sending their CEs to us as well.

Their website also has the most horrendously terrible layout I've ever had to deal with. I feel sorry for my browser everytime I've had to load it up. I repeat, I hate this store. And was more than happy to mention that repeatedly when they sent me a customer feedback survey a few months back.

MyMemory (6) - I've bought a few obscure items off this store in the past (ironic as games arent their real specialty) but I find little reason to deal with them nowadays. Their packaging is alright (I did have my case for Risen Xbox 360 damaged though) and their prices were great back when they still offered free worldwide shipping (its 2 pounds now though) but most of their obscure games are usually out of stock now and everything else can be purchased cheaply elsewhere. They're probably still a good store but in terms of gaming, just go elsewhere.

Zavvi/TheHut (7) - Their customer service sucks. They've responded to all my enquiries I've made in the past but usually after a week or so. Apart from that though, everything got resolved. In terms of products, this corporation is great. I've bought many obscure games for them at great prices and I love it when their CEs are discounted. I'm patiently waiting for the day when they cut the price of the Duke Nukem Forever: Balls of Steel edition. Their vouchers are also quite worthwhile to use and coupled with their Monday sales, I come back to Zavvi often. NOTE: I mention Zavvi and not theHut. I've bought a few products from theHut specifically but that was when it was on special only through them (the 25th Mario Anniversary Wii CE comes to mind). They did however screw up my Balls of Steel preorder, a blessing in disguise, and their only solution was to cancel my order and have me reorder it again which I didn't. Otherwise, I keep business mostly to Zavvi and stay away from theHut whenever possible.

Their packaging is pretty average. I've never had anything damaged come to me but I do remember when I found a half opened parcel containing my Black Ops Wii Remote on my desk for the world to see (it was received this way). Still, they're a good store so long as you don't have any problems occur. It's a shame they're restricted from posting many of their products overseas to Australia though.

Gamestation UK (6) - I've used these guys once for the MVC3 Steelbook which I bought as a consolation due to there being no PAL CE and how I hate buying anything non-PAL. Item was received in due order and I had no problems. Would I use this store again? No. Reason being their games are overpriced and like MyMemory before, I can just buy the same thing cheaper elsewhere.

Amazon US/UK (7) - As an Australian, most of their products from the US/UK are restricted to me so I can only order certain things (Video game accessories and guides). Buying game guides off Amazon UK has become awesome for me as their super saver shipping makes it really worthwhile to make a large purchase. My first bulk buy (14 or so guides) came to me in the condition that was advertised with little problem but it annoyed me how the whole order was sent inconsistently. As in 2 packages came via courier whereas the rest were sent through standard post. Still, I'll gladly buy some more guides in the future off them when I feel the need. Amazon US has also given me little problem and has made me quite grateful for some of the amazing controllers I've gotten off the site in the past. While I can't relate to buying actual games off Amazon, my orders for gaming related products has gone through with little to no problems.

[The Darth]

The Good

GAME: +9 Never had any bother but I tend to only buy exclusives from them or good stuff on sale.

Gamestation: +9 Once again, never had any bother from them and they do get the odd good exclusive.

Amazon UK: +7 Again, very good but the delivery times often put me off.

ShopTo: +6 Nice fast delivery but awful packaging. I use them if I want the item here yesterday.

Zavvi: +5 Even though the packaging is crap, everything so far has arrived fine. Mind I have heard quite a few horror stories about them.


The Bad:

HMV: -1 Seriously, how slow can one company be. Even when there isn't 10 foot of snow everywhere they are still terrible.

Gameseek: -1 Fast delivery but total crooks. I can buy the same things elsewhere normally and don't have to take out a second mortgage to pay for it.

And not forgetting the ugly:

Play.com: -? Everyones favourite online retailer. There for the morons of society who think that play.com is the only online retailer in existence.I'm not even going to give them a number because they don't deserve it. Packaging = shit. Delivery times = shit. Customer service = shit.

Back in the day they used to be good when they stuck to DVD's. Then some money grabbing clown must have taken over and turned it to crap. Credit cards, clothes, oil changes, you name it they do it all. Unfortunately they aren't very good at any of it. They are basically the Kwik Fit of the online world. Sorry, anyone not from the UK might not know who Kwik Fit are. They are a UK garage that specialise in ripping people off with crap repairs. The customer service rivals play.com in the fact that the staff have the I.Q of a turnip and the looks to match.

[mosavon]

Game.co.uk + 8 - Every pre-order i've ever got from them has turned up on time or early, condition is generally fine and its also convenient for me that i have a store 5 minutes walk from my house so any unwanted items can easily be returned, loyalty system is pretty fair also, overall good retailer :thumb:

HMV.co.uk + 7 - I haven't ordered too much from these, but i did get the helghast edition from them which was fine, i've traded a console and games with them and got fair prices, again they seem to have a pretty fair loyalty system, good experience :thumb:

Amazon.co.uk + 7 - Never had any problems ordering directly from amazon, generally fair prices, easy returns and i cant remember getting anything damaged, mostly positive experiences when ordering from the independent sellers too :thumb:

thegamecollection.net + 6 - Cheap prices, good and quick communication and i like how they state that an item is new/sealed and the region/stock availibility next to the majority of items, packaging wasn't the best in my experience which places it slightly below the big hitters, mainly positive though :thumb:

Gamestop.com + 7 - Really fast service considering im an international customer, reasonably priced item which arrived un-damaged, cant fault them on my first order :thumb:

Play.com 0 - Im staying neutral because i've only ever had 2 items from them, 1 was fine and 1 order got cancelled without notification. i know they have a poor reputation so id only ever order an exclusive or an item at a great price, jury is out :ghey:

Zavvi.co.uk -5 Well what can be said about these guys, virtually every single item i've ordered from these clowns has arrived with some form of damage, if its anything cardboard related then forget zavvi it will get squashed and bashed about, they are very slow and basically ignore any form of communication through there online messaging service, the only good thing which holds them up is the prices...Poor :hammer:

Shopto.net - 10 Alot of people seem to rave about these but i dont know why, my one and only order failed to arrive which i know is down to the postal service but the way they dealt with it was very bad...rude communication and id certainly never order from them again i hate them so much i wish this was a real hammer :hammer:

Game4game.at - 8 After a good start with this retailer (Sniper GW SE) it just went from bad to worse, COJ is one of the worst CE i own, cheaply made and significantly different to what i thought would be a nice item, misleading picture and just a huge disappointment!!!! then we come to Dead Island Treasure Edition, again what can you say when an edition is labelled as "lavish" "handmade" "unique" "numbered" and "COA" it didnt contain either a COA or numbering of any kind...quality again leaves alot to be desired imo, im sure its in there T&C's about content changing etc but i dont think im the only one feeling ripped off here?

Good Thread BTW Gemini :)

[Gemini-Phoenix]

I just want to add a few comments as an addendum to my post, after reading all of your posts and spotting a few issues I forgot to mention

Amazon.co.uk / PLAY.com - Their folded card envelopes are not a patch on HMV's cardboard boxes, and offer very little in the way of protection. Light and cheap, yes, but suitable protection? Definitely not!

ShopTo.net / Zavvi.co.uk - Both seem to have recently picked up the habit of selling European imports to the UK market, something which PLAY.com and Amazon.co.uk have previously been guilty of in the past. Definitely a big no-no, especially where Nintendo games are concerned!

Zavvi.co.uk - For some strange reason they seem to be offering items which were formerly HMV exclusives. Not sure why this is, especially when the very same items are showing up as out of stock on the HMV website...

PLAY.com - Often ship larger items (consoles and CE's) in grey plastic mailing bags, rather than a suitable box! Amazon.co.uk are also guilty of this to a lesser extent

[vhal_x]

Zavvi.co.uk - For some strange reason they seem to be offering items which were formerly HMV exclusives. Not sure why this is, especially when the very same items are showing up as out of stock on the HMV website...


I think this is because Zavvi is online only now, whereas they used to have stores but when they went into administration and lost all their stores, HMV bought over them (at least in Glasgow anyway), so maybe they are connected in some way? Just a guess though. Could just purely be coincidence xx

[Gemini-Phoenix]

I think this is because Zavvi is online only now, whereas they used to have stores but when they went into administration and lost all their stores, HMV bought over them (at least in Glasgow anyway), so maybe they are connected in some way? Just a guess though. Could just purely be coincidence xx

Not entirely true. HMV bought a handful of premises (including the Glasgow store) off of Zavvi, but not the actual business. They only purchased the property, which I believe they then transformed into HMV stores. That is their only affiliation with Zavvi as far as I am aware

The Hut Group actually bought Zavvi (the brand and business). The Hut Group and HMV have no links as far as I know

[vhal_x]

Ahh, damn - there goes my theory :haha:
I always wondered this too...
Maybe a buyer at Zavvi pulled a fly one and bought the exclusives with the intent of selling on, but waited until HMV ran out ? xx

[vhal_x]

The Good +

GAME.co.uk +9 Love GAME, always receive items well packed and in perfect condition. Would've been +10 other than the fact that twice they have updated their system (to do with card details) without informing me, which has then led to my bank declining the purchase (therefore cancelling my preorders!). First they changed the fact that my post code could have a space, now it can't. And now, they've updated it so that for some reason, my billing address was changed to match my shipping address, which lost me my zelda pre order. Luckily they had one instore for me :) So other than that, all great experiences with GAME!

HMV.co.uk +7 Always had preorders early, on at the very latest, on the release date. Love and hate the fact that if you preorder, you get it cheaper than what you would if you buy on release, as it means I always have to preorder things. ALTHOUGH, they only got a 7 because they let me down with the Helghast edition. Paid £100, only for it to be down to £40 within a matter of weeks. Not cool HMV, not cool.

Amazon.co.uk +6 Pretty good delivery times, usually get orders on release date, tend to have pretty good prices. Not much else to say about them?

Zavvi.co.uk +5 Everyone warns people from Zavvi but I seem to have had nothing but good luck from them, items always arriving well packaged and in perfect condition, quite cheap too. Maybe I'm just lucky?

PLAY.com +5 Exactly the same as what I've said above for Zavvi, again - maybe I'm just lucky?

Amazon.com +4 These guys are at the lower end of my positive scale, purely because, I hate the delivery times. I know the items are from the US and the delivery times are to be expected, but on one occasion (okay it was a seller and not actually amazon) I bought the Alien Head CE, and it took over 2 months to arrive. I spent quite a bit on it aswell as it was brand new, and was shitting myself incase I got scammed. Other than that, fairly positive, especially as I have just noticed a nice little refund of customs charges from Amazon as they over charged me for the customs charge when I preordered both the MK editions from them (Kollector's & Tournament).

Neutral -/+

Game4Game.at Got a few preorders scheduled from here, but haven't actually first hand experience what they delivery/item condition upon delivery is like. Spoken to a number of the team on many occasions, great guys (and girls) and due to that, it makes me want to rate them positive, but of course, I'll leave them neutral until I have full info. on what they're really like.

The bad -

None, I've been really lucky so far, although Gamestop pissed me off a while back as I preordered splatterhouse from them, in order to get the splatterhouse mask preorder bonus, only to receive the game without it, and be told I have to fill in a form online - BUT the form was US only. So I couldn't get it. I wish I knew of this fourm then as I could've gotten someone to get it for me then ship it over, but no, I had to sell it on ebay to someone instead. Gutted doesn't even begin to explain how I felt! xx

[scourdx]

I'm from N.America and has different take.

Amazon.ca - (7.5) packaging arrive a week if I use the free shipper. They usually package it with cardboard box. Never had any issue with packaging

Amazon.com - (6) much like the canadian counterpart. Unfortunately they charge a lot for international shipping and custom on top.

Gamestop.ca - (7.5) much like amazon.ca. Sometimes they charge $5 more than other store.

Gamestop.com (5.5) much like amazon.com. Charge a lot for shipping even for little package.

Zavvi.com - (6) although the company is from uk, they ship to canada for free. So i cannot complain. Only thing i agree with other poster their packaging sucks.

Bestbuy.ca - (8) they are great with shipping. If i opt for free shipping, they will send it no more than 4 days.

Futureshop.ca - (8) they are bestbuy sister company. They have the same shipping quality as bestbuy.ca

Playasia - (8.5) playasia has the best place for asian import. Eversince lik sang gone out of business, there is no other import store.

Game.co.uk - (8) not a bad place to order uk exclusive game. Shipping is reasonable and packaging arrives perfectly.