h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

A while ago I bought a new phone. A lot of people know this because I ranted a fair bit about how difficult this was.

Purchasing something shouldn't be that difficult, "here I have money take it!" And indeed if I'd ordered it online that would have been the case. But I wanted to see the phone first, I wanted to test it and make sure that I did want to buy it. So I went down to the store, and found out that to buy the phone there standing face to face with the salesman, in person, flesh and blood, I had to take photo ID along to prove I existed. Whereas at the other end of a telephone cable I didn't. There's something seriously wrong there.

Well, I went out to buy a game this lunchtime. Last week some recommended that I should try playing the Anno series of games. So I did. I downloaded the demo of Anno 2070, the latest incarnation of the series and it looked really good. The game play itself in the demo though was a little "point and click", there was no free reign to see what the game itself was actually like. But I was interested. So what to do then? Fork out £35 for a game I know looks pretty and might play well? No. I obtained a version of it. I installed it, I played it, I loved it. So today I went out to buy it.

I live in Manchester, a large city. I went to three seperate national chain gaming stores and that there HMV. And I was sorely disappointed.

Game Station had 12 PC games in total. 3 were variations of the Sims franchise.
Game fared a bit better, they had 20 PC games.
Bee didn't stock any PC games at all.
HMV stocked 10 PC Games, 5 of which were in a chart. Which does make me wonder how they can justify calling it a chart of top sellers when they sell so few titles.

I've heard arguments about not being able to stock the wide range you can get from online resellers, but surely more than a dozen is practical? I'll be fair to Game Station here, theirs was a small store. Bee was pathetic. Large store, lots of space, not even a single token PC game. Game looked promising, a long aisle for PC stuff, but it was mostly mice and keyboards and headsets and other gaming peripherals for all systems not just PC. But I think the most disappointing had to be HMV. HMV had given over a small amount of shelf space to PC games, and it looked full. However, behind the front game of each stack was just empty cases. Five copies of Angry Birds lined up next to each other, each with five or six empty cases behind them. This was the same for the rest of the titles they stocked. Lots side by side, but all empty cases. Not just no disc empty, no label empty. They were deliberately trying to make it look like they stocked more. They had the space to stock more, but they just didn't.

I think that there's another problem with the high street shown here, they'll see you what they want you to buy, not what you want to buy. When there was a range of shops, they stocked the goods that you'd want to buy. It was how they competed. Now, you don't have a choice in either the shops you can buy from, or the goods you can buy in them. It's another example of how the internet isn't killing the high street, but the high street killing itself.

For the record, I went back to my desk in the office and ordered the collectors edition with next day delivery.

Is the key phrase 'national chain stores'?

Why not look up a few independent retailers? They'd value your custom and treat you as if they wanted you to return.

I'm assuming independent video game shops exist, mind you (I've never been into one).

game retailers do sell a relatively low selection of games I'd actually want to play,
you want an rpg, forget it you can have this annoying sim game or fighting game
you want tactical stuff, have a sports game or this other nonsense...

I'll decide what I want to buy thank-you very much
sometimes even on line if you want something they have relatively low stock of it, especially for pc or even wii sometimes,
it's all about the newest thing out or the next big trend it's not about actually providing a service,
like the guy that comes to ask you if you need any help when you've only just gotten five steps into the store...
then vanishes if you actually need him to get something

or the annoying sales girl who recommends you trade in your slightly older version of a handheld console to get the newest one but doesn't actually know anything about it and tells you the old one will only just cover the deposit on the new...

the high-street is killing itself, and it's not just lack of choice but lack of care

Which high street stores do it corrrectly?

Waterstones. I can always find what I'm looking for,and if I don't have anything in mind I can easily browse for something. The staff are friendly and helpful.

I suppose in customer service there is a fine line between overbearing and inattentive

I'd like a member of staff (especially in big stores like b&q or something like that) to be stationed at a ready to help counter so you can go and collect one as needed

I'm lucky insofar that gaming is very popular in Sweden, and I never have trouble finding what I'm looking for. I just checked one of the main chains and currently four of their stores here in Stockholm have Anno 2070.

When a popular game or a sequel of one is released (usually at midnight local time), people will queue up for hours outside their main store, often dressed up as their favourite character in said game.

The store in question os not far from where I w'rk, and if I know there will be a game release, I like to walk by just to watch the people queueing

I prefer to shop at independents, unfortunately there are no independent game stores in the city of Manchester.

I find Waterstones has become too much like its parent company (HMV) in that the range seems good, but when you delve a little deeper it's still a bit superficial. Lots if space given over to "best sellers" and deities help you if you want something unusual.

Seems like Game group is in a bit of financial trouble.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17336697

Yeah, Game (and GameStation) is doomed. Can't even afford to carry EA or Nintendo titles, and it's going to be gone in a few weeks.

As for your quandry, have you not heard of Steam?

Why would I use Steam?

Saves on having to troop round town looking for PC games.

Hmm, an additional layer of advertising and personal details collection, never actually owning the game but just renting it, and reliant on their company not only still being around for as long as I want to play the game, but them still providing it. Plus the hacker temptation they provide?

I'd rather go and buy a physical copy