Best Buy Trade-in Thread 2.0: Please see new thread.

BudzMcGee

BudzMcGee

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At 276 pages and countless request for a new OP, it was time to retire the first Best Buy Trade-in Thread and start fresh. Thanks bh47 for your work in the previous thread (and providing the framework for this one)!

All Promotions are available in-store only, and they DO NOT stack!
Only the 10% Bonus from Gamers Club Unlocked will stack with these offers.
Please read FAQ below before asking questions!

Current Promos:
- 50% Bonus when you trade in ANY game.
Get a 50% trade in bonus when you trade in ANY game. Offer valid 01/01/12 - 01/07/12

- Trade 3, get 30% More.
Trade in 3 games or more and get 30% extra trade-in credit. Offer valid 01/01/12 -03/03/12

- 30% Bonus with any Pre-order.
Get a 30% extra trade-in credit when you pre-order any game. Offer valid 01/01/12 -03/03/12

Link: http://www.bestbuytradein.com/bb/Quo...VideoGames.cfm (click on "Show Promotions available in stores only" on top right)\

Upcoming/Rumored Promotions:
All promos that have yet to appear on Best Buy's site (or in an upcoming ad) are listed here:
None at the moment

Previous Promotions:
Promos that have expired:
- 50% Bonus with specific Pre-order from list.
Get a 50% extra trade-in credit when you pre-order any game from the following list: Halo 4, Mass Effect 3, Bioshock Infinite, Grand Theft Auto 5, MLB 12 The Show, Soul Calibur V, Final Fantasy XIII-2, Twisted Metal, Max Payne 3, Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City and Diablo 3. Offer valid 12/25/11 - 12/31/11

- Trade 2, get 25% More.
Trade in 2 games or more and get 25% extra trade-in credit. Offer valid 11/27/11 - 12/31/11

- 30% Bonus with any Pre-order.
Get a 30% extra trade-in credit when you pre-order any game. Offer valid 11/27/11 - 12/31/11
- 40% Bonus with purchase of any game $39.99 or above.
Get a 40% extra trade-in credit when you purchase any game $39.99 or above. Offer valid 11/27/11 - 12/10/11

- 50% Bonus with purchase of any game $39.99 or above.
Get a 50% extra trade-in credit when you purchase any game $39.99 or above. Offer valid 11/27/11 - 12/03/11

 - Trade 3, get 30% More.
Trade in 3 games or more and get 25% extra trade-in credit. Offer valid 10/30/11 - 11/26/11

- 40% Bonus with any Pre-order.
Get a 40% extra trade-in credit when you pre-order any game. Offer valid 10/5/11 - 11/26/11

- 40% Bonus with Saints Row 3 Pre-order/Purchase.
Get 40% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order/purchase Saints Row 3. Offer valid 11/13/11 - 11/19/11

- 40% Bonus with Assassin's Creed Revelations Pre-order/Purchase.
Get 40% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order/purchase Assassin's Creed Revelations. Offer valid 11/13/11 - 11/19/11

 - 50% Bonus with Modern Warfare 3 Pre-order/Purchase.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order/Purchase Modern Warfare 3. Offer valid 10/10/11 - 11/12/11 (Assuming this means a bonus for purchasing the game after it is released this Tuesday)

- 50% Bonus with Saints Row 3 Pre-order.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order Saints Row 3. Offer valid 11/6/11 - 11/12/11

- 50% Bonus with Assassin's Creed Revelations Pre-order.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order Assassin's Creed Revelations. Offer valid 11/6/11 - 11/12/11

- 40% Bonus with The Elder Scrolls V: Pre-order/Purchase.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order/purchase The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Offer valid 11/6/11 - 11/12/11

- 50% Bonus with Max Payne 3 Pre-order.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order Max Payne 3. Offer valid 11/6/11 - 11/12/11 - This promo seems a little odd and there is a chance it is an error on the site since the game is so far from release.

- 50% Bonus with Saints Row 3 Pre-order.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order Saints Row 3. Offer valid 10/23/11 - 10/29/11

- 50% Bonus with Skyrim Pre-order.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Offer valid 10/23/11 - 11/05/11

 - 40% Bonus with Uncharted 3 Pre-order/Purchase.
Get 40% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order/purchase Uncharted 3. Offer valid 10/30/11 - 11/05/11

- 40% Bonus with Battlefield 3 Purchase.
Get 40% extra trade-in Credit when you purchase Battlefield 3. Offer valid 10/23/11 - 10/29/11

- Trade 2, get 25% More.
Trade in 2 games or more and get 25% extra trade-in credit. Offer valid 10/2/11 - 10/29/11

 - 50% Bonus with Battlefield 3 Pre-order.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order Battlefield 3. Offer valid 10/9/11 - 10/22/11

- 40% Bonus with purchase of Batman: Arkham City.
Get 40% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order Batman: Arkham City. Offer valid 10/16/11 - 10/22/11

 - 50% Bonus with Batman: Arkham City Pre-order.
Get 50% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order Batman: Arkham City. Offer valid 10/9/11 - 10/15/11

 - 30% Bonus with Rage or NBA 2K12 Pre-order/Purchase.
Get a 30% extra trade-in Credit when you pre-order/purchase Rage or NBA 2K12. Offer valid 10/2/11 - 10/08/11

- Trade 4 get an extra $20 Trade-in Credit.
Get $20 trade-in Credit when you trade 4 or more games (Current gen games only (no PS2) and $5 minimum for each game). Offer valid 10/2/11 - 10/08/11 **** This promo was cancelled early due to technical issues. There have been issues with this promo not working on some stores' systems or simply not even being available, the issue seems to be related to disc-only games (or any game that is typed rather than scanned) so plan accordingly. The $20 extra is once per trade-in, meaning 4 games or 123 games it will only be $20 extra per transaction. So if you want to trade in 8 games, do it in two separate transactions. ****

- 50% Bonus with Rage or NBA 2K12 Pre-order.
Offer was valid from 9/25 to 10/01/2011.

- 40% Bonus with Gears of War 3 Purchase.
Get a 40% extra trade-in credit when you pre-order/purchase Gears of War 3. Offer expired 10/01/2011

- Trade 3, Get 30% More.
Trade in 3 games or more and get 30% extra trade-in credit. Offer expired 10/01/2011

- 40% Bonus with any Pre-order.
Get a 40% extra trade-in credit when you pre-order any game. Offer expired 10/01/2011

 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BEST BUY'S VIDEO GAMES TRADE-IN PAGE

Check most up-to-date TIV using BB's Video Games Value Estimator.

Check which BB stores do trade-ins here.
In-store trades are now done at the Trade-In Counter at the Gaming Dept.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

F.A.Q. Best Buy has a short FAQ here.

How does the get **% with pre-order bonus work?
The percentage is based on the final total of your entire trade in, so if the trade in is $100 and there is a 50% bonus your final gift card value will be $150. After trading in your games, the employee SHOULD then sell you the pre-order for $5.

How much is a pre-order at Best Buy?
Pre-ordering at Best Buy cost $5, in fact, you aren't supposed to pay any more than that (and most employees won't let you if you ask). Yes, you can use the gift card you just received from your trade-in to purchase the pre-order.

Can I cancel a pre-order and keep the bonus?
Yes, the trade-in and the pre-order are completely separate transactions. Nothing will prevent you from returning to the Best Buy canceling the pre-order and receiving a refund. Some users have claimed that they were flagged for doing this multiple times though and were denied, so be aware of how many pre-orders you are cancelling. Also keep in mind the obvious facts that this is not how the program is intended to work and over abuse will negatively affect the program long-term. Lastly, returns are tracks on a personal level by a third party. (Read: try not to cancel a bunch of pre-orders)

Do I have to cancel the pre-order at the same store where it was made?
No, this can be handled by any BBY. Don't be surprised if you get a customer service employee who says otherwise though.

Can I pre-order once and get the pre-order bonus on my next trade-in as well?
YMMV. Officially, the answer is no, but there is nothing that actually requires the employee to sell the pre-order in order to apply the bonus so if your blue shirt is in a friendly mood they may be willing. Doesn't hurt to get to know the employees at your store. That said, expect that you will have to pre-order another game and be surprised if you don't.

Can I combine a 3 games for **% and a pre-order for **% bonus?
No. Bonuses do not stack, and you must pick one or the other. The only bonus that stacks with other promotions is the 10% you receive if you are a Gamers Club Unlocked member.

How do I become a Gamers Club Unlocked member and get the 10% bonus?
Any video game section employee should be able to set you up with the GCU membership. It cost $15 and comes with a year subscription of @Gamer magazine. It will also get you a 10% bonus on trade ins and 10% off of used games (Make sure to point it out to the blue shirt doing your trade-in though as it is easy for them to skip, and they are still new to it). It can take 48 hours (or more) for GCU to show up on your Reward Zone membership.

Can I use my Best Buy gift card to purchase Amazon Kindle Gift Cards or Visa Gift Cards?
Yes, although some employees may not be aware of this and incorrectly refuse to do so. Visa Gift Cards have a $200 limit and a $6 activation fee. Amazon Gift Cards are available in $25, $50 and $100 depending on your store selection. IL does not sell Amazon Gift Cards. Yes, Kindle Gift Cards are good for anything on Amazon.

The value on the site doesn't match the store, why?
Sometimes the page may not update immediately. This is fairly rare though. The store's trade-in values are definitive though, so what they say is what you get. 99.99% of the time they will match up.

The value on the iPhone app is way off, why?
The app sucks for updating values (and some games simply don't show up), don't rely on it.

The game I want to trade isn't on the site, what gives?
While rare, there have been some games recently not showing up in the online estimator. You can always check in-store to see if the price is in their system and simply not online, but that is unlikely to be the case. When Best Buy doesn't have a game on file they can offer $1 as a generic SKU, but that's it. New releases appear to be added on Tuesday evenings. Many new releases are taking upwards of a week or more to be added to the site.

When do trade-in values update?
No one knows for sure, but major updates seem to come on Sunday and Tuesday nights (or at least have in the past). Sometimes an update will happen randomly, such as when GameStop has an advertised sale for a game well below Best Buy's trade in price.

What will be the TIV of Game X tomorrow/next week / next month/ etc
Nobody knows.

If I locked in a trade online, and the value drops, will I still get the locked in value when I mail it in?
Yes. You will get the locked in TIV as long as the item is received within 14 days of you locking it in (and the item is in the condition you described it as).

Can you lock in the price online then trade it in-store?
No.

Is there a limit to how many games I can trade in?
Officially, Best Buy only accepts 3 copies of a game, per system (i.e. you could trade in 3 copies of a game for Xbox, 3 copies for PS3 and 3 for Wii). This is for sure the online policy, but it varies in stores. Some people have reported being banned for trading in more than 3 copies of games, others have done so frequently without issue. Obviously it is YMMV, but do so at your own risk.

Can I trade game disc only, or do I need the case and manuals, too?
Best Buy accepts disc only games (for the same value as complete games). The trade in will take longer though as the employee will have to look up the games individually.

Can I trade in games that say "Not for Resale" on the back?
Yes, since the only thing that matters is the disc. Some employees will fight this though, and in that case, just trade the game in as disc-only.

Does Best Buy accept game hardware?
Currently Best Buy only accepts various versions of the Nintendo DS in store, but word is that will change soon.

Does the **% bonuses apply to game hardware?
No, games only.

When I do a in-store trade, I am asked: to be fingerprinted, to have my photo taken, how much I weigh, etc. What's the deal?
Pawn shop laws regulating trade-ins and resale of used goods varies from state to state or city to city. It is not Best Buy's rule, and varies from store to store depending on where you live. At a minimum you'll likely need a state ID.

I went to a store to do a trade-in and they asked for a Best Buy receipt. WTF?
Some stores are required to have receipts to accept trade-ins, again this is due to local Pawn shop laws and could vary from city to city. You can always check if the store(s) near you require a receipt on Best Buy's trade-in site.

Can I trade sealed games?
Yes. You must present your receipt for the sealed games you are trading in. It is ok if the purchase was made from another store. You do run the risk of drawing extra attention to yourself as trading in sealed products is often a sign of theft. Do not be surprised if this is questioned by an employee, or you are asked to leave, open the items and return.
 
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I haven't done a trade-in for a long time since the BBY TIV tanked. I did a test and the guy just input my phone number and told me I am good. He didn't asked my drive license and I double he proceeded till the banned screen showed up. Does anyone know if the driver license has to be input to see if I got banned?
 
Is Best Buys policy to give less for games without a cover? I want to trade in LBP2 since I got the special edition but I hate the cover. I would give them the special edition cover but i'm sure that would confuse things even more.
 
Went in this afternoon to flip Warhammer and was told by both the gaming department employee and the general manager of the store that I needed to wait till after the return period to trade in any games. I have done same-day flips like this all month and have made abunch of credit doing so. Every time I've done this, I've been completely up-front with them about what I was doing and though I had a good relationship with the store since they didn't have any issues with my trades in the past. Immediately called corporate when I left the store and was basically told that the reason the manager gave was bogus, but that he didn't really need a valid reason since the tradein rules state that they can refuse to accept a tradein for any reason. I always understood that to apply to suspicion of theft, but apparently there's wide latitude for them on that. So, I'm essentially blackballed for tradeins at that store. So, be wary of doing too many trades at a single store.
 
Also, I have never gone over the three per title limit and they never even bothered to scan any of the games so the issue wasn't related to the actual gaming system but just institutional at the store.
 
yeah i keep pushing the limits. im still not banned, but i picked up 5 rdr's and 3 spacemarines for 65ish. then kept a spacemarines and a rdr and flipped the rest for like 100. so 2 free games and 30ish credit. woot.

the gaming supervisor was giving me the eye when the girl was doing the trade in for me, cuz i think he saw me buy/pickup all the games in the morning, but he said he was happy for the preorder and that i need to flip more. i was busy talking to the girl about how she should party with my wife and i. haha. she said her husband would probly be down but she's gotta be drinkn first. lol, wtf, i just want my flip money. omg
she asked if i wanted my receipt, and i said to her of course i do so i know not to go over 3/limit, lol.

iv cancelled like 3 bonus orders, and lately when i pick up amazon credit i have them exchange one of my preorder slips for 5 off, iv done this a few times and im still good, so idk...

i tried for the ff13 flip, but my gamestop was all out. oh wellz. exchanged my cursed crusade for el shaddai 20 each since amazon has cursed crusade for 20. i am a sucker for bad co op games...
 
[quote name='te619']Has anyone actually received a reason for getting banned or been able to get the ban lifted?[/QUOTE]

Not yet. I was going to email them but lost the ban notice paper they printed out for me. Would you have the best buy trade in email address that pops up when you get the ban notice?
 
[quote name='Donut2922']Not yet. I was going to email them but lost the ban notice paper they printed out for me. Would you have the best buy trade in email address that pops up when you get the ban notice?[/QUOTE]

No I don't have anything. At 1st they offerred to give me a number, then I had my husband do the trade, so they cleared it out and didn't give me anything.

I did write a letter, I'll post if I get any kind of response...
 
[quote name='jetsaredim']Went in this afternoon to flip Warhammer and was told by both the gaming department employee and the general manager of the store that I needed to wait till after the return period to trade in any games. I have done same-day flips like this all month and have made abunch of credit doing so. Every time I've done this, I've been completely up-front with them about what I was doing and though I had a good relationship with the store since they didn't have any issues with my trades in the past. Immediately called corporate when I left the store and was basically told that the reason the manager gave was bogus, but that he didn't really need a valid reason since the tradein rules state that they can refuse to accept a tradein for any reason. I always understood that to apply to suspicion of theft, but apparently there's wide latitude for them on that. So, I'm essentially blackballed for tradeins at that store. So, be wary of doing too many trades at a single store.[/QUOTE]

Brilliant, just brilliant
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']Aren't some of those games coming out at the very END of 2012 or even later though? I know GTA V is fall of 2012 sometime at least. It seems kinda weird to have it on the list.

Mind ya, the values of the few games I'd probably get rid of to them from my personal collection have all tanked to where other places are offering 2-3x those amounts even before any bonuses.:whistle2:#[/QUOTE]

Go on...
 
[quote name='donut']Brilliant, just brilliant[/QUOTE]

Do you contribute in any way other than saying the same thing? At least the third time I have seen you just post this. Bad troll, stay under your bridge.
 
After my previous incident at my local store, decided to trek out to a store a few towns away so I could at least get rid of the 6 games I'd just purchased for a system I don't even have (360). Got all the way through the trade only to find out that I'm banned as well.

I really don't get this. Have I been taking advantage of the system? YES, but I'm working within the rules they set out (no more than 3 of a title, etc.). Has anyone been able to get a hold of someone at the "ban line"?
 
[quote name='confoosious']Damn donut, newbs are calling you out!

Newbs and flippers have taken over CAG.

:whee:[/QUOTE]

lmao well, at least we see all the brilliant lazy lurkers "popping in" that aren't having their "abuses" handed to them on a silver platter....
and hopefully those with their "heads in the cloud" that used to brag see it too...
but meh, they most likely don't....
 
[quote name='jetsaredim']Went in this afternoon to flip Warhammer and was told by both the gaming department employee and the general manager of the store that I needed to wait till after the return period to trade in any games. I have done same-day flips like this all month and have made abunch of credit doing so. Every time I've done this, I've been completely up-front with them about what I was doing and though I had a good relationship with the store since they didn't have any issues with my trades in the past. Immediately called corporate when I left the store and was basically told that the reason the manager gave was bogus, but that he didn't really need a valid reason since the tradein rules state that they can refuse to accept a tradein for any reason. I always understood that to apply to suspicion of theft, but apparently there's wide latitude for them on that. So, I'm essentially blackballed for tradeins at that store. So, be wary of doing too many trades at a single store.[/QUOTE]

This is beyond stupid. I mean, it's one thing to admit to employees you are on good terms with that you are flipping some gamestop games, you still shouldn't if at all possible but it isn't the end of the world if you do because you aren't ripping them off, but to tell them flat out that you are buying games with their credit and then selling them back at a profit is just plain dumb. Almost as dumb as doing that in the very same store, on the same day, and apparently the same shift. Of course they are going to say no to you, and of course they are going to flag your account. This blatant abuse is the type of shit that makes them drop a TIV for a game from $12 to $2 just because of a single one day sale.

Anyway, all in all happy with Best Buy today. Got Warhammer Space Marine for $10 and a Best Buy on my way back from my parents place showed an instore stock for the Dead Space 2 CE for Windows, managed to get it priced matched for $5. Just want the plasma cutter and other stuff so I didn't really care what system it was on.
 
[quote name='jetsaredim']Went in this afternoon to flip Warhammer and was told by both the gaming department employee and the general manager of the store that I needed to wait till after the return period to trade in any games. I have done same-day flips like this all month and have made abunch of credit doing so. Every time I've done this, I've been completely up-front with them about what I was doing and though I had a good relationship with the store since they didn't have any issues with my trades in the past. Immediately called corporate when I left the store and was basically told that the reason the manager gave was bogus, but that he didn't really need a valid reason since the tradein rules state that they can refuse to accept a tradein for any reason. I always understood that to apply to suspicion of theft, but apparently there's wide latitude for them on that. So, I'm essentially blackballed for tradeins at that store. So, be wary of doing too many trades at a single store.[/QUOTE]

lets describe what you just tried to do.

Proceed to eat. Then proceed to shit where you're eating. Then complain that there's shit and they should pay you for letting them know about it.
 
So, ah, OK... I made some trades today and am still not banned. So yay?

Anyway, I wasn't aware that the 50% was for specific titles (too busy to read every thread here), so I was going to preorder some 3DS game. Then when I found out about the promo I decided on Halo 4 for the bonus. Then the guy forgot to do my preorder at the end ;).
 
So now that the visa cards are gone any ideas on how to dump all my BBY gift cards?
rather not sell itunes cards. lol
 
[quote name='jdb18']So now that the visa cards are gone any ideas on how to dump all my BBY gift cards?
rather not sell itunes cards. lol[/QUOTE]

visa cards are gone? i haven't been a bestbuy since i was banned. Didn't think they'd get rid of them.
 
[quote name='DudeImGodly']visa cards are gone? i haven't been a bestbuy since i was banned. Didn't think they'd get rid of them.[/QUOTE]

I wasn't able to find any on christmas eve. So either they were sold out at my store or they pulled them.
 
Some Best Buy around me stated that they got a memo from corporate to pull all Visa gift cards, but there's a couple Best buy that still sell them, so YMMV on whether they give you that bullshit or not, just try a different store.
 
[quote name='chingychink2005']Some Best Buy around me stated that they got a memo from corporate to pull all Visa gift cards, but there's a couple Best buy that still sell them, so YMMV on whether they give you that bullshit or not, just try a different store.[/QUOTE]

Yea none of the best buys in my area have them. Sucks too cuz i wanted to use up all of my credit but what can you do? Can't even get the prepaid amex cards at amazon so now all my store credit is stuck at those places. If you happen to see one would you please post the sku.


PS. Is there really a secret trade in thread?. Cuz I may know a flip or two. lol
 
any chance you would be able to get the sku for them if you see one? This way I can just ask them to look it up and see if any BBY in my area have them
 
Well, I found out today that I got the banhammer at Best Buy for trading in. If someone is keeping stats, here's my story:

1) LOTS of trade ins (a lot of flips - probably made over $700 credit there since November). Mostly 1-2 per title though. Almost all credit used to get more games (couple of Christmas gifts in there).
2) No cancelled pre-orders (still trying to get my $100 gift certificate for the pre order 5 - not fun).
3) No Visa or Amazon or any other kind of gift cards purchased with my trade in credit with the exception of one Best Buy gift card purchased for a relative.
4) Traded in more then 3 Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood for the Xbox 360. The guy there actually helped me trade them in (in two transactions). I might have traded in more then 3 of 1-2 more titles ( totalling 4-5 each) during the Blockbuster flips recently.

The folks at my BB are always helpful and they were surprised it happened. The manager gave me a number to call (from the store) and was ready (I believe) to help the trade get through anyway if they wouldn't un-ban me. I just said I'd call from home and took it like a man (I may have cried in my car =).

Anyway, if you are wondering if you can trade in more then 3 of the same title and be okay, don't! It doesn't matter if the system will let you do it.
I'll post this on the other thread, too.
 
[quote name='paulwekiva']Well, I found out today that I got the banhammer at Best Buy for trading in. If someone is keeping stats, here's my story:

1) LOTS of trade ins (a lot of flips - probably made over $700 credit there since November). Mostly 1-2 per title though. Almost all credit used to get more games (couple of Christmas gifts in there).
2) No cancelled pre-orders (still trying to get my $100 gift certificate for the pre order 5 - not fun).
3) No Visa or Amazon or any other kind of gift cards purchased with my trade in credit with the exception of one Best Buy gift card purchased for a relative.
4) Traded in more then 3 Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood for the Xbox 360. The guy there actually helped me trade them in (in two transactions). I might have traded in more then 3 of 1-2 more titles ( totalling 4-5 each) during the Blockbuster flips recently.

The folks at my BB are always helpful and they were surprised it happened. The manager gave me a number to call (from the store) and was ready (I believe) to help the trade get through anyway if they wouldn't un-ban me. I just said I'd call from home and took it like a man (I may have cried in my car =).

Anyway, if you are wondering if you can trade in more then 3 of the same title and be okay, don't! It doesn't matter if the system will let you do it.
I'll post this on the other thread, too.[/QUOTE]

Your activity sounds exactly like mine except that I'm not banned (yet). I traded in at least 5 or 6 assassins creeds though. I also traded in several other BBV games more than 3, but no more than 3 in one transaction.

I traded in 1 game at Best Buy yesterday just to see if I was banned and it I wasn't yet. I stood behind the counter and watched the computer screen just to make sure the BB employee didn't override a ban without me knowing or something. I felt like a dick making the BB employee go through the whole trade process just so I could trade 1 game for a couple bucks, but it was worth it. I guess I've been extremely lucky so far and I won't take that for granted.

I feel for all you guys who got banned, especially if you didn't even trade much. If I get banned and a good flip comes around, my mother says she'll try to help me out by trading to Best Buy for me. :lol:
 
Traded today - 4 games using the B2G1 new and Warhammer. Not banned. I only have cancelled one preorder. The other couple, I've just eaten the 5 bucks. Everything went fine and I turned 30 of BB gift cards into a $75 gc in a few minutes.

I've probably traded $700 or so and went over 3 on a couple...
 
[quote name='crazedracerguy']Traded today - 4 games using the B2G1 new and Warhammer. Not banned. I only have cancelled one preorder. The other couple, I've just eaten the 5 bucks. Everything went fine and I turned 30 of BB gift cards into a $75 gc in a few minutes.

I've probably traded $700 or so and went over 3 on a couple...[/QUOTE]


Well, banhammer for me as well. I have traded in over $1000 yet have proof that I haven't gone over 3 on more than one game, and that was on a different tradein accout. JD3 from toysrus. I found out that the second triple was put on the duplicated account that a best buy blue shirt accidentally created when I signed up for unlocked. Has anyone had success just creating a new account or anything. I don't even want to flip anymore. I just hate being banned for "suspicious" activity even when I have put over $8000 on my bb maatercard this year and over $3000 was in store or online at bestbuy.
 
[quote name='dealsthatkills']Well, banhammer for me as well. I have traded in over $1000 yet have proof that I haven't gone over 3 on more than one game, and that was on a different tradein accout. JD3 from toysrus. I found out that the second triple was put on the duplicated account that a best buy blue shirt accidentally created when I signed up for unlocked. Has anyone had success just creating a new account or anything. I don't even want to flip anymore. I just hate being banned for "suspicious" activity even when I have put over $8000 on my bb maatercard this year and over $3000 was in store or online at bestbuy.[/QUOTE]

You're only banned from trades.

While you are in the clear, they getting rid of people who exploit the system.

Let run a simulation of this.

They're are at the very least 100,000 individual people trading in games. Assume only 5% of these people are flippers. That's a 5000 people who are going into the same pool of games. Assume they're 30 extremely profitable titles that are getting a TIV of approx. $30 after a 50% bonus.

Now cut the people who flip games who know about the 30 titles in half.

2500 people.

Each person can trade in 90 games.
Now lets say they all honor the no more than 3 per system rule.
225000 titles because 2.5% of the trading population flipped games.
Comes out to $900/per person
$2.25 million in damage done because of 2500 people who followed the rules but exploited the system.



That's if everyone follows the rules.
Which I sure as hell didn't.

And these numbers are small. Consider how many page views this thread gets a day i wouldnt be surprised if there weren't at least 10,000 people in the know.
 
That's a pretty flawed example. The first problem is that you're using a 30 dollar base. Most flippable titles get FAR less than that. If they get a bunch of $30 titles, they'd probably be OK, as titles like AC:R or Modern Warfare 3 will be easily sold, unlike the shit-tons of copies of, say, AC:B which they would have gotten during the BBV sale early on, which was getting something like $13 in trade after bonuses. Those will be sitting there for a looong time. Bottom line, flipping has hurt BB far less than BBV, which has royally screwed up time and again.

Obviously, BB has SOME sort of reasoning and methodology to who they're banning - we just don't know what it is.
 
[quote name='crazedracerguy']That's a pretty flawed example. The first problem is that you're using a 30 dollar base. Most flippable titles get FAR less than that. If they get a bunch of $30 titles, they'd probably be OK, as titles like AC:R or Modern Warfare 3 will be easily sold, unlike the shit-tons of copies of, say, AC:B which they would have gotten during the BBV sale early on, which was getting something like $13 in trade after bonuses. Those will be sitting there for a looong time. Bottom line, flipping has hurt BB far less than BBV, which has royally screwed up time and again.

Obviously, BB has SOME sort of reasoning and methodology to who they're banning - we just don't know what it is.[/QUOTE]
One thing I'd definitely consider as being a possibility for the bannings is whether or not people were cancelling out of the pre-orders they did to get the trade-in bonuses. If you were cancelling out of those en masse, each one of those counts as a return in BB's system. So maybe the people running the trade program for BB share data with the company keeping track of peoples' returns and THAT is what's triggering the bans.

Folks who have returned a majority of their pre-orders they did to get the bonuses should try buying and returning an item to see if they're also banned(for 90 days) from doing returns.
 
You are completely neglecting the fact that many games we trade in only fetch in nominal amounts. How many people traded in uncharted 3 for 19 with a %20 bonus? For the most part much like gamestop they are ripping ppl off with the big sellers and will be selling used games at ridiculous prices (which ppl will buy) and don't even get me started on how many issues there were with the buy 5 get $100 rz cert bs that stopped many from getting their games cheaper elsewhere (and not paying them due to some stupid comp problems). You really think these great sales will last once they have a huge backlog of used games?
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']One thing I'd definitely consider as being a possibility for the bannings is whether or not people were cancelling out of the pre-orders they did to get the trade-in bonuses. If you were cancelling out of those en masse, each one of those counts as a return in BB's system. So maybe the people running the trade program for BB share data with the company keeping track of peoples' returns and THAT is what's triggering the bans.

Folks who have returned a majority of their pre-orders they did to get the bonuses should try buying and returning an item to see if they're also banned(for 90 days) from doing returns.[/QUOTE]

I picked up 8-10 of my pre-orders (and kept them), but the 2 pre-orders I returned, I used my husband's ID. I was banned, but they let him create an account and trade.

I really would like to know exactly what the issue is. The cashier said, "maybe they are worried about theft, but I know you guys are buying stuff in here all the time." I kinda wish they would just say that. I would be happy to show the majority of the reciepts I have (some are older games... who know where the receipts for those are lol)
 
[quote name='jdb18']You are completely neglecting the fact that many games we trade in only fetch in nominal amounts. How many people traded in uncharted 3 for 19 with a %20 bonus? For the most part much like gamestop they are ripping ppl off with the big sellers and will be selling used games at ridiculous prices (which ppl will buy) and don't even get me started on how many issues there were with the buy 5 get $100 rz cert bs that stopped many from getting their games cheaper elsewhere (and not paying them due to some stupid comp problems). You really think these great sales will last once they have a huge backlog of used games?[/QUOTE]
Nominal amounts? What kinda games are you trading in? Virtually every game I've traded into them has had to have a MINIMUM value of at least $7-8 and there had to be some decent promo going on(like 50% more for a pre-order of a select group of games) before I would even consider trading them.

Games drop in value, both in MSRP price and trade value, VERY quickly now. So you have to beat them day one and trade them in the next day if you wanna get the most for them. Even waiting a week may mean you get 20-50% less than if you blew through the game and dumped it quick.

But it's been said before and I'm saying it again now. Complaining about BB(or GS) dumping tiv's down to nil is futile. They're a business and they're in business to MAKE MONEY. If they're still paying $25-30 for a game BEFORE bonuses that they've been selling for $30-40 already how do they make any money?

They're not some cash/credit genie out to give you a ton for your stuff while you decide if you even wanna get rid of it. This is why those of us who do flip games only buy stuff we may not even play and do so at much cheaper prices so we should at least break even.;)
 
*yawn* it'd be nice if everyone here is complaining about bb just stopped buying from bb in general..problem solved. it'd make it much easier for those of us who are happy with bb to get in on the deals. speaking of which, 2.5 hrs to go..
 
[quote name='technicalstylez']*yawn* it'd be nice if everyone here is complaining about bb just stopped buying from bb in general..problem solved. it'd make it much easier for those of us who are happy with bb to get in on the deals. speaking of which, 2.5 hrs to go..[/QUOTE]

+1

Go complain about BB on the BB forums. That way, someone might give a shit. Nobody here can help you.
 
The bannings are not from cancelled preorders. I am banned and preordered over 10 titles this year and didnt cancel any of them. 3 I didnt pick up, but I never canceled them to get my money back. I know stupid on my part, but I really didnt care. The bannings are more then likely for trading in more then 3 of a title. And I dont mean in one transaction, but more then 3 of that title within multiple transactions. I assume you are only allowed to trade in a game so many times no matter how many transactions you do it in.
 
I've said it before and ill say it again, I've been told by BB gaming people who actually know what they're talking about, that they ban based on returned pre orders. Whether this is store specific of nation wide I don't know. Also flipped FF13 and Prince of Persia today so I know I'm not banned.
 
[quote name='KtMack23']I've said it before and ill say it again, I've been told by BB gaming people who actually know what they're talking about, that they ban based on returned pre orders. Whether this is store specific of nation wide I don't know. Also flipped FF13 and Prince of Persia today so I know I'm not banned.[/QUOTE]

Isn't that an oxymoron?

In all seriousness, I doubt anyone at BB knows what they're talking about and it's just speculation. The third party company they hired are banning people for whatever reason and I think it's the over 3 limit as this is the only one they can see and control.

I am guessing they don't have access to BB's return db and they don't know what you buy (visa, kindle) so they can't base on that.

It sounds like they just match up Drivers License ID + more than 3 of a title = ban.

Maybe you need to violate the rule more than once. Who knows. But logically, they can only ban on what they see.
 
[quote name='KtMack23']I've said it before and ill say it again, I've been told by BB gaming people who actually know what they're talking about, that they ban based on returned pre orders. Whether this is store specific of nation wide I don't know. Also flipped FF13 and Prince of Persia today so I know I'm not banned.[/QUOTE]

well keep on saying it, but it isnt true.
 
[quote name='confoosious']Isn't that an oxymoron?

In all seriousness, I doubt anyone at BB knows what they're talking about and it's just speculation. The third party company they hired are banning people for whatever reason and I think it's the over 3 limit as this is the only one they can see and control.

I am guessing they don't have access to BB's return db and they don't know what you buy (visa, kindle) so they can't base on that.

It sounds like they just match up Drivers License ID + more than 3 of a title = ban.

Maybe you need to violate the rule more than once. Who knows. But logically, they can only ban on what they see.[/QUOTE]

I meant to say they seem like they know what they're talking about lol. I know I've never gone over 3 (but I've done 3 on almost every game I've traded in) and I haven't been banned. But I also haven't canceled a bunch of pre-orders. But One things for sure, don't shoot the messanger! I'm just repeating what I've been told to try and help solve a piece of the mysterious puzzle that is Best Buy.
 
I was banned as well, stayed within the rules, never traded in more than 3 of a title and I did cancel two pre-orders, so I am thinking it was that. No worries tho, if I need to flip can always get the girlfriend to do it.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']Nominal amounts? What kinda games are you trading in? Virtually every game I've traded into them has had to have a MINIMUM value of at least $7-8 and there had to be some decent promo going on(like 50% more for a pre-order of a select group of games) before I would even ..[/QUOTE]

I would consider nominal as in 7 or 8 bucks before promo. Just about any game has a chance to sell used if it's under 20 bucks, and that wouldn't kill their profitability numbers. Their top trade ins right now are MW3 and AC:R at 19... Which gets like 29.30 after bonus and unlocked. It would still have a selling chance at 44 or 39 used, since there are plenty of idiots that don't know that ubi titles drop like rocks.

I don't have any idea why they ban (what methodology they use), but it looks like many of us have done the same things and half are banned and half aren't (yet).
 
[quote name='crazedracerguy']I would consider nominal as in 7 or 8 bucks before promo. Just about any game has a chance to sell used if it's under 20 bucks, and that wouldn't kill their profitability numbers. Their top trade ins right now are MW3 and AC:R at 19... Which gets like 29.30 after bonus and unlocked. It would still have a selling chance at 44 or 39 used, since there are plenty of idiots that don't know that ubi titles drop like rocks.

I don't have any idea why they ban (what methodology they use), but it looks like many of us have done the same things and half are banned and half aren't (yet).[/QUOTE]
True. I kinda wish they would pull a GS and offer up a 'guaranteed trade value' promo, where a select list of titles are either $25 or $30 w/o needing any sort of percentage bump promo to get them to those amounts. Now that would be sweet, since I imagine the list would be populated by mostly new-ish titles and I have a TON of those right now.:D;)
 
[quote name='KtMack23']I meant to say they seem like they know what they're talking about lol. I know I've never gone over 3 (but I've done 3 on almost every game I've traded in) and I haven't been banned. But I also haven't canceled a bunch of pre-orders. But One things for sure, don't shoot the messanger! I'm just repeating what I've been told to try and help solve a piece of the mysterious puzzle that is Best Buy.[/QUOTE]

No cancelled pre-orders, all pre-orders paid in full - still banned.
 
[quote name='Backlash2332x']Do you get an email notifying you if you've been banned? Or do you just find out when trading stuff in?[/QUOTE]

you just find out....the person helping you kind of stares at the screen for a bit, tries hitting some keys, and then calls for a manager ... =).
 
[quote name='Backlash2332x']Do you get an email notifying you if you've been banned? Or do you just find out when trading stuff in?[/QUOTE]

I traded some games last night and something popped up on the screen that I have to call certain number and it would not let it go through gift processing. I saw two option on the screen, override and cancel. I asked the guy to override it for me and he did. Does it mean that I'm not banned anymore or it only works for that day only?
 
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