Sorry for the lack of blogging recently. This has been due to major changes in my life such as marriage, moving house and starting a new course.
Bur now that I am back, I wanted to discuss a topic that it very close to my heart – gaming.
I’ve been a gaming geek for many years now. My first exposure to gaming was on my brother’s Amega 800 (I think). It was only children’s games but my parents couldn’t get me off it! When my brother moved out, his room was set up so I could easily access it. And before that, I used to harass my brother into letting me watch him play games. He might have found it really annoying but for me, I loved every minute of it. Even now, I still get enjoyable from watching other people play games. Mr Husband – however – finds this to be very weird!
When I got older, I got my own consoles such as the PS1, PS2 and both Xbox Consoles. But even before them, I was happy on my desktop PC playing silly games like Sims or more hardcore games as the Diablo series and Starcraft games. But I also really enjoyed handheld gaming from Nintendo.
But it was through my love of handheld consoles and gaming on the move that introduced me to the GAME stores. I remember well as a tiny store in the corner of a huge shopping centre. I could only go to it when I was on holiday and every time I went there, I was asked to sign up to their loyality scheme. And I couldn’t wait until I was old enough to move away and be able to go to them everyday – Well, I was about 10!
But that excitement of having an place for easy assess to gaming never went away and when I moved away to attend college, I did go into the local GAME store. No longer a tiny store in the shopping centre. It was still shopping centre but a huge store in its own right. It proudly said that gaming was accessibility for all and not just us geeky few.
But of course, the face of gaming had changed over the years. No longer was it viewed as being done by nerdy boys in their bedrooms but more in the family home for everyone. So GAME got bigger and better. It was focused on gaming, but in a different way. In my eyes, GAME was highly respected by everyone and as a gamer, I wanted to support them as much as I could. So, over the years, I’ve been very loyal to them. Most of my gaming needs was brought from there. And I rarely looked elsewhere.
But in 2011, a storm was coming that would shake everyone up. GAME struggled and it was finally put into administration. The business was re-structured to adapt to their needs. But, ultimately, GAME was saved. As a gamer, I was glad to see that it was saved. Whilst some stories had come out about how it had gained its domination came out, it was still respected and a point of knowledge for gaming. But also, so many staff lost their jobs and their staff MADE the store for me. They were friendly and always willing to help you out.
Now for the main purpose of this blog, we need to back track to November 2009. I just got Left 4 Dead 2 after some nagging from friends. I excitedly went home and played it with the husband. However, my 360 died in the process and the next day, I went and got a new 360 Elite. At the time, I took out GAME care, which was an expanded warranty which would kick in after Microsoft’s had run out. Great! I had a back up in case something went wrong. It was 3 years worth of protection and I was more than happy.
At the start of the blog, I said I moved house. Now in the process, something had clearly upset my 360 and now struggles to connect and maintain connection to my wireless controller. And after some investigation by me and Mr Husband, all the symptoms pointed to the console, maybe even the power pack. But it’s ok, I got GAME care!
Very simple then, I’d call the GAME store and tell them about my 3 year GAME care, which would run out in November 2012. Problem very much solved.
But it wasn’t solved. I called them up and told them the problem and about GAME care. I told them it would expire in 2012. The guy said he would investigate it and get back to me. He said it would be unlikely to be in place still, since they only do 2 year GAME care during Microsoft’s warranty period. But that’s not what I got sold. When I pointed this out, it was a case of “not my problem” since the GAME care was with the old GAME not the new GAME. I argued my point and he promised to check with headoffice.
After 4 weeks, I called them up to check what was going on. He checked and their hands were tied. My mis-sold GAME care was invalid now and they refused to help me. But now they are aware that its invalid, even if I took the console in for repair, they would point blank refuse it, even though it was mis-sold to me.
The loyalty I’ve shown to GAME ultimately means nothing to them. They clearly have enough customers that they don’t need me. I’ve tried contacting them on Twitter and I get no response back. It’s clear that they have lost their way. There’s no phone number to contact head office, just e-mail and online chat. Both of which aren’t helpful really. I prefer speaking to someone over the phone or face to face
My response? Well, I wrote this blog and my next move is to cut up my GAME loyalty card. The business has changed so much, whilst it used to be providing a service to gamers in a helpful, friendly manner, it now clearly about making sure profits are high and stuff the consequences.
I do hope that GAME come back from this and begin to improve again. It’s a store I love going to and I would go back to it, if they improved their service again.
Also, I’m welcome for suggestions on how to fix my 360. I really don’t want to have to buy a new one – especially with the rumours of a new console in 2013 or 2014.
