EB Games ripoff Brooksville Florida

For one, you (I am assuming because of your comment and I quote "Against my better judgement, my 12 year old insisted on purchasing a couple new Sims game with his birthday money at EB Games when he could have gotten the same game at the same price at a much more reputable store like Circuit City") that you are calling EB unreputable. Sorry to tell you but they are one of the Top Companies in the Gaming Retail Industry. You don't grow to be a large company like this soley on "ripping people off".

Secondly, I think you may be a bit ahead of yourself stating they are out there to rip you off. The system requirements on most games are right on the outside of the box, usually in at least two places. As a gamer myself, after finding a title I like or want, the first thing I do is look at the requirements.

Next, you can't say this is a company that "Prey's" on the young like ciggarette companies because, as far as I know, they aren't a company that uses a huge amount of advertising. I would hope that as a parent of a twelve year old, you watch what your son purchases (as it very well seems you do). So with you watching over your child, how exactly did they prey on him?

Also, On your comment about not knowing the first thing about copying a game, the clerk does not know you personally and has no way of knowing that you dont. So many people in this day and age do know, so it is hard to find out who is encryption illiterate. You just have to assume all people know how.

Finally, again, as a gamer I can tell you I spend at least $500-$1000 every 6 months to a year to keep my computer up to date and able to run new games and old games that are updating to use new technology (such as MMORPG's) with that being said I can guarantee you that no business computer will ever come close to being able to play most titles efficiently. Especially any prebuilt non-custom computers.

I would also like to add that in no way is this a post to put you down. Instead I would like you to take this advice, In the future just research what you plan to purchase. See if what you have meets the demands of what you plan to purchase. If it doesnt, check the website of the company that creates the software you are purchasing and see if they have any update files that will make them playable on your system and finally find a mom and pop computer shop and have them custom build a beginners gaming computer. These are fairly cheap to build and should last a good couple of years. Eventually you will need to update but if you buy the bare minimums you should be good for another two or so years.

Flav

Good news! The day after contacting EB Games Customer Service Department from inside the store, the manager (who never seemed to be around before) called me and apologized for the problems experienced. He went on to stand behind his products, as a reputable business should, and offered a full refund. This man, unlike his young employee, obviously knew what customer service means.

Thanks, also, to Robert and Sean for proving my point through their comments, as well. Although, Robert clearly did not read my comment very carefully, he proved that a reputable store selling gaming products that are not able to be sampled, as virtually all other consumer products (TVs, stereos, automobiles...shall I go on, Robert), should inquire of their customers the specs of their computer to make sure the consumer isn't buying something they'll need to return because they weren't "up on the latest technology" or technology at all.

Apparently, you guys think that the gaming industry, as is the case with other entertainment industries (movies/records), doesn't need to stand by their products and can just continue to inundate America with products that may or may not be of quality. With respect to the gaming industry and stores that sell their products, they have the power to be leaders by educating their customers as I do in my tax preparation business, Robert, or they can be known as ripoff artists of the "Me Generation" just out to make a buck.

The truth of the matter is that all the stores I originally listed are much more willing to satisfy the customer on the front line rather than have that customer find it necessary to complain to a higher lever of management. Perhaps this level of customer service comes with growth, but, then that is why this site, and others like it, are here. It is painfully obvious that American business, in general, has lost their way when it comes to Customer Service. Maybe they should take some of the millions spent on CEO's salaries and invest a little more in treating their customers more fairly. A happy customer returns and recommends...that is Economics 101.

Thanks, again, to the manager at EB Games for coming through in the end. Hopefully they will learn to satisfy the customer before complaints are made. I know that in talking with this man that he intended to do a better job educating his employees to contact him if he wasn't at the store when a situation such as this came up. Job well done.

I would like you to go to Circuit City, Target, etc. and purchase a video game, take it home, open the game, then try to return it. You will not be able to do that. There is NO store in America that will take the game back after the original seal has been broken.

Here are the specs required to run the Sims 2 (this is what I imagine you buying, please correct me if I'm wrong):

-Processor Speed 1.5GHz

-PC Operating System Windows 98, Windows Millennium Edition (Windows Me), Windows 2000, Windows XP

-PC System Memory 256MB RAM

-PC Hard Drive Space 3.5GB

-PC Video ATi Radeon or nVidia GeForce video card

The last line is where I question your computers reliability. A business computer will not ned an ATi Radeon or nVidia video card, unless you are in graphics design, or use CAD. If you install a game that requires these video cards, and your computer doesn't have one, then the game won't run.

Sorry you feel you were ripped off, but you weren't.

"I explained to him that as with any product sold in America, the consumer should have the right to sample it. Not at EB Games. Wal-mart will, Circuit City will, Staples will...all reputable businesses. (And, no, I don't make a habit of this, but have had to do it once or twice and have witnessed others being serviced in this way)."

WRONG!!! NO store will allow you to take the software home to "sample" it. Some will already have the latest releases loaded in games that can be playes IN the store, but NONE will let you take the game home, open it, and return it for anything other an identical product.

"...considering our computer is brand new and designed for business use with plenty of memory, etc."

Wrong again. A computer set up for business is nothing like a computer needed for games. Games require massive amounts of memory(disc space, RAM, virtual, etc.), a good video card(at least 256MB), etc. Nearly all computers come with a chip for video only. At best, it uses 32 MB of shared memory. Video cards draw upon themselves. Business computers are not gaming computers. Gamers spend thousands upon thousands of dollars to play games. You can get a high end business computer for less than $800.

It seems your idea of a reputable business is one that gives awayit's product. Do you do that with your business? If you do, you'll be out of business very soon.