Reduced Price Guide Thread XIV (FAQ in 2nd Post)

Dark Rider

Dark Rider

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The Reduced Price Guide FAQ/OP has been moved to the SECOND post. Read this first!
[customspoiler="Disclaimer"]
All credit goes to IAmTheCheapestGamer, floormat, and guinaevere. They ran this thread for years, and I can safely say we would not have penny guides here without them. Thanks for your work!
[/customspoiler]

Private message me if there is something incorrect or needs to be changed in the non-wiki pages.
Below is two years or so of guide drop info. If you want to see the full list, please refer to the third post of the Reduced Price Guide Thread XIV that can be found HERE.​

Note that date may be of confirmation, and not of drop.

CE/SE/LE=HARDCOVER GUIDE
Red=Gamestop drop
Blue=Best Buy drop
Pink=Toys R Us drop

 

Recent Drops (Last Six Months)

Dropped 3.23.16 at GameStop

Game Stop 1 Cent

Assassin's Creed: Syndicate

Assassin's Creed: Syndicate CE

Just Cause 3

Halo 5 CE



Dropped on 3.26.14
 

Gamestop

Battlefield 4

Disney Infinity

Grand Theft Auto V

Remember Me

Super Mario 3D World

Dropped on 2.26.14

Gamestop 

Assassin's Creed IV: CE

Battlefield 4 CE
Grand Theft Auto CE

Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds CE

Skylanders Swap Force CE

Wonderful 101

Dropped on 2.14.14

Toys'R Us

Rage
Tekken Tag Tournament 2
Mass Effect 3

Star Wars The Force Unleashed II

Dropped on 10.31.13

Gamestop 
 
Animal Crossing
Assassin's Creed 3
Borderlands 2 LE
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
Cheat Code Overload: Winter 2013
Codes & Cheats Vol. 1 2013
Dead Island Riptide
Diablo III

Disgaea D2

Elder Scrolls: Skyrim Legendary
Epic Mickey 2
Final Fantasy XIII-2
Halo 4
Hitman Absolution
Injustice: Gods Among Us

Injustice: Gods Among Us LE
Last of Us

Last of Us LE
Lego City Undercover
Madden 25
Mario & Luigi: Dream Team
Ni No Kuni
Pokemon Black & White 2 Pokedex
Resident Evil 6 LE
Resident Evil Revelations

Wind Waker LE
Dropped on 9.25.13

Gamestop
Army of Two The Devils Cartel
Dead Space 3
Metal Gear Rising Revengence
Star Trek
Super Mario Bros. Wii U
Epic Mickey 2 Limited Ed
Halo 4 Limited Ed
Hitman Absolution Limited Ed

Dropped on 9.04.13

Gamestop
 
Call of Duty Black Ops II CE
DMC: Devil May Cry
Dishonored
Tomb Raider

Tomb Raider CE       
 
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[quote name='strait edge follower']I went to gs today and I found out that the halo anniversary guide dropped to 9.99. Rage and the dragon age 2 standered edition guide are also at 9.99. I'm getting all 3 scanned once a week untill they get pennied as its only a matter of time for those 3. Anyone found new drops yet ?[/QUOTE]

jesus man, you can burn your self out like that! thats some dedication. I used to love going out, but just too discouraged now. I do try to pay attention to any trends, but nothing really has been out of place except the destroy order a few weeks ago and the subsequent re-organizing..
 
[quote name='strait edge follower']I went to gs today and I found out that the halo anniversary guide dropped to 9.99. Rage and the dragon age 2 standered edition guide are also at 9.99. I'm getting all 3 scanned once a week untill they get pennied as its only a matter of time for those 3. Anyone found new drops yet ?[/QUOTE]

Nothing dropped off the site and I haven't heard anything from my sources. So don't burn yourself out, there's normally no more than 1 drop a month at GS except around holiday, the fact we had 2 this month(albeit small) I wouldn't go looking for another one until April personally.
 
[quote name='Ultragamer']Nothing dropped off the site and I haven't heard anything from my sources. So don't burn yourself out, there's normally no more than 1 drop a month at GS except around holiday, the fact we had 2 this month(albeit small) I wouldn't go looking for another one until April personally.[/QUOTE]

I'm not burning myself out lol. The gs is right by my home and I'm always walking by it so its no big deal to me. Hopefully your sources have more to report soon :)
 
Is it ok to ask the GS employee to print out a copy of Guides they have in-store / storage? Or are they not allowed to do that?
 
[quote name='CAGkrazy']Is it ok to ask the GS employee to print out a copy of Guides they have in-store / storage? Or are they not allowed to do that?[/QUOTE]


They used to hand me print outs of all the PS2 games they had in stock, so I don't see why not. Of course I wouldn't rely on it as accurate if you get one.
 
[quote name='Invicta 61']They used to hand me print outs of all the PS2 games they had in stock, so I don't see why not. Of course I wouldn't rely on it as accurate if you get one.[/QUOTE]

I see. Thanks! I'll probably try one of these days. Probably try when they don't have much people inside the store... hehe!
 
[quote name='Slim Gatsby']Tagged![/QUOTE]

And I removed them. Let's not be an asshole. If you want to hate on forum members, you can do that somewhere else.
 
[quote name='detectiveconan16']I finally saw a copy of the Final Fantasy XII guide with the slipcover at Gamestop. I'm surprised that they really haven't gotten rid of it yet, and it was already worse for the wear.[/QUOTE]
Unfortunately it was one of a few items that slipped through the markdown schedules at several retailers:)ps2:Mark Of Kri at Kmart being the other one that I remember) while everything else around the same age as it was being marked down and/or pennied out.
[quote name='Dark Rider']And I removed them. Let's not be an asshole. If you want to hate on forum members, you can do that somewhere else.[/QUOTE]
What kinda tag(s) did you remove, if I may ask? I assume they probably had something to do with ME, eh? Either way, I thought that people only posted 'tagged' to subscribe to threads rather than using the drop down menu at the top of the threads and subscribing that way?
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']
What kinda tag(s) did you remove, if I may ask? I assume they probably had something to do with ME, eh? Either way, I thought that people only posted 'tagged' to subscribe to threads rather than using the drop down menu at the top of the threads and subscribing that way?[/QUOTE]

That's what I thought. I didn't even think to look at the tags.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']Unfortunately it was one of a few items that slipped through the markdown schedules at several retailers:)ps2:Mark Of Kri at Kmart being the other one that I remember) while everything else around the same age as it was being marked down and/or pennied out.

What kinda tag(s) did you remove, if I may ask? I assume they probably had something to do with ME, eh? Either way, I thought that people only posted 'tagged' to subscribe to threads rather than using the drop down menu at the top of the threads and subscribing that way?[/QUOTE]

[quote name='Tsel']That's what I thought. I didn't even think to look at the tags.[/QUOTE]


You know what, I apologize. He may not have been the one who tagged things. I was just assuming as he posted that when I saw them.

Using tags such as "BBY ruined" "IATCG ruined BBY" will be deleted. However, people are welcome to add appropriate tags. Also, feel free to rate the thread. (Better be 5* :D)
 
[quote name='strait edge follower']Are people still hating on my friend iatcg ? Lmao get a life people. Don't worry dude I got your back :)[/QUOTE]
People are always gonna bitch about something. You shoulda seen when I first found out about pennied guides. The hauls I had(20+ of one guide many times) and all of the bitching that people did in this thread about my hoarding. Those were amusing times.:booty:
 
Hey Cags this may be YMMV but my Best Buy store has a bunch of guides on clearance.
$9.99 Hardcover (all CE's):
BF3
TES: Skyrim
FFXIII-2
Gears of War 3
Uncharted 3

$4.99 Softcover:
BF3
Saints Row 3
..i forget the rest of the paparbacks :/. The only thing that sucks is they decided to put a HUGE C on colored paper and taped it to the plastic. Good luck getting it off while still keeping it sealed. Not 100% sure if it's a universal drop or not.
 
This at Best Buy or Gamestop? I ask because the Saint's Row 3 guide has a DLC code in it(or a way to get a code by buying the book), so that'd make it worth it just for the code alone.

Actually that Skyrim one would be worth it too. My one buddy is messing around in my copy of the game now and I'm sure that guide would help out immensely.

If the sale's for BB, maybe I'll have to see if my local store is doing the same sale.
 
[quote name='enemyofusall']Hey Cags this may be YMMV but my Best Buy store has a bunch of guides on clearance.
$9.99 Hardcover (all CE's):
BF3
TES: Skyrim
FFXIII-2
Gears of War 3
Uncharted 3

$4.99 Softcover:
BF3
Saints Row 3
..i forget the rest of the paparbacks :/. The only thing that sucks is they decided to put a HUGE C on colored paper and taped it to the plastic. Good luck getting it off while still keeping it sealed. Not 100% sure if it's a universal drop or not.[/QUOTE]

Oh wow thanks for this potentially great info ! I'm going to bestbuy tommorow to check this out
 
[quote name='Tsel']He said Best Buy lol.[/QUOTE]
Yeah. I just noticed that.#-o Hopefully this is chain wide, since I will likely pick up the Skyrim guide and maybe even the Saint's Row 3 one if the offer for the DLC code with it is still good.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']People are always gonna bitch about something. You shoulda seen when I first found out about pennied guides. The hauls I had(20+ of one guide many times) and all of the bitching that people did in this thread about my hoarding. Those were amusing times.:booty:[/QUOTE]

Yep. Who was the guy who made a chair out of them? I know it wasn't you, but I do remember a guy doing that.

[quote name='enemyofusall']Hey Cags this may be YMMV but my Best Buy store has a bunch of guides on clearance.
$9.99 Hardcover (all CE's):
BF3
TES: Skyrim
FFXIII-2
Gears of War 3
Uncharted 3

$4.99 Softcover:
BF3
Saints Row 3
..i forget the rest of the paparbacks :/. The only thing that sucks is they decided to put a HUGE C on colored paper and taped it to the plastic. Good luck getting it off while still keeping it sealed. Not 100% sure if it's a universal drop or not.[/QUOTE]

Sounds YMMV. Who knows? Maybe a new tactic to actually get something other than credit for their guides?
 
[quote name='Dark Rider']Yep. Who was the guy who made a chair out of them? I know it wasn't you, but I do remember a guy doing that.[/quote]
That could've been me at one point, since I used to have 600+ sitting here.:cry: I sold them in bulk to the one local game shop. Most of them weren't worth squat on the open market anyway and the local shop still has about 2/3's of the cluttering up their back room.:lol:
Sounds YMMV. Who knows? Maybe a new tactic to actually get something other than credit for their guides?
Click to expand...
I can still remember during the Genesis days when guides were $9.99 to $14.99 at MOST. Now the lowest priced one is $19.99 and we have guides going for $39.99 or MORE on the high end.

This is for information that's mostly readily available on the internet as it is.
[quote name='strait edge follower']Im going to so hoard those skyrim guides and pick up an uncharted 3 for myself if this is chain wide[/QUOTE]
If the Oblivion guide is any indication, I would hold off on hoarding the Skyrim guides. There were at least 3-4 versions of the Oblivion guide and ONLY the last one(GOTY edition one) is really worth much nowadays. I know. I had about 10-12 of one of the first editions of the Oblivion guide.
 
The shrinkwrap they use on guides really isn't as flimsy as you might think. All you'd have to do is use a fingernail and get one corner of the tape on the colored paper up and then slowly peel it up.

But either way, I believe the Skyrim guide out now is a SECOND edition and says so on the front cover someplace. So from a collector's standpoint, I doubt they will gain much value.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']The shrinkwrap they use on guides really isn't as flimsy as you might think. All you'd have to do is use a fingernail and get one corner of the tape on the colored paper up and then slowly peel it up.

But either way, I believe the Skyrim guide out now is a SECOND edition and says so on the front cover someplace. So from a collector's standpoint, I doubt they will gain much value.[/QUOTE]

That is correct. Originally the printing was very limited, and the guides were gaining value very quickly. Then they printed A TON of second editions and inflated the market. They aren't worth much anymore.
 
[quote name='Dark Rider']That is correct. Originally the printing was very limited, and the guides were gaining value very quickly. Then they printed A TON of second editions and inflated the market. They aren't worth much anymore.[/QUOTE]

Darn it :( oh well I guess ill wait for the inevitable goty edition guide when I get the game. Hopefully it will have value like my wonderfull borderlands goty edition guide has
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']The shrinkwrap they use on guides really isn't as flimsy as you might think. All you'd have to do is use a fingernail and get one corner of the tape on the colored paper up and then slowly peel it up.

But either way, I believe the Skyrim guide out now is a SECOND edition and says so on the front cover someplace. So from a collector's standpoint, I doubt they will gain much value.[/QUOTE]

next time I go there I will check it out and see if it says 2nd ed. anywhere. Yeah maybe, idk. I tried in store and it wasn't working out too well.
 
[quote name='Dark Rider']Yep. Who was the guy who made a chair out of them? I know it wasn't you, but I do remember a guy doing that.
[/QUOTE]

I had a guide throne, but I didn't make a pic. I think I still have over 1,000 guides eventhough I have probably only bought 20 in the past 2 years.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']The shrinkwrap they use on guides really isn't as flimsy as you might think. All you'd have to do is use a fingernail and get one corner of the tape on the colored paper up and then slowly peel it up.

But either way, I believe the Skyrim guide out now is a SECOND edition and says so on the front cover someplace. So from a collector's standpoint, I doubt they will gain much value.[/QUOTE]

The Second Edition of the Skyrim CE guide has a large "SECOND EDITION" on the lower-right front cover. You really can't miss it if it's there.

Of course, I have no idea if there were any actual changes beyond putting that on the cover.
 
[quote name='slowdive21']I had a guide throne, but I didn't make a pic. I think I still have over 1,000 guides eventhough I have probably only bought 20 in the past 2 years.[/QUOTE]



Good luck if you ever move.
 
[quote name='Romeo']Good luck if you ever move.[/QUOTE]

I keep them at my parents house. ;) When I plan on playing a game I go there and pick up a guide.
 
[quote name='slowdive21']I had a guide throne, but I didn't make a pic. I think I still have over 1,000 guides eventhough I have probably only bought 20 in the past 2 years.[/QUOTE]

This could be the best episode of Hoarders... EVER.

I don't mean any offense.
 
[quote name='enemyofusall']Hey Cags this may be YMMV but my Best Buy store has a bunch of guides on clearance.
$9.99 Hardcover (all CE's):
BF3
TES: Skyrim
FFXIII-2
Gears of War 3
Uncharted 3

$4.99 Softcover:
BF3
Saints Row 3
..i forget the rest of the paparbacks :/. The only thing that sucks is they decided to put a HUGE C on colored paper and taped it to the plastic. Good luck getting it off while still keeping it sealed. Not 100% sure if it's a universal drop or not.[/QUOTE]

I ran across this same situation last summer with the Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II CE. A hand-written price tag was applied to the front with $9.99 on it. Someone here said it was because they had an over abundance of stock and this is how they reduced stock. Ended up being YMMV.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']That could've been me at one point, since I used to have 600+ sitting here.:cry: I sold them in bulk to the one local game shop. Most of them weren't worth squat on the open market anyway and the local shop still has about 2/3's of the cluttering up their back room.:lol:

I can still remember during the Genesis days when guides were $9.99 to $14.99 at MOST. Now the lowest priced one is $19.99 and we have guides going for $39.99 or MORE on the high end.[/QUOTE]


Know what that's called? Inflation. Got it memorized?
 
[quote name='enemyofusall']Hey Cags this may be YMMV but my Best Buy store has a bunch of guides on clearance.
$9.99 Hardcover (all CE's):
BF3
TES: Skyrim
FFXIII-2
Gears of War 3
Uncharted 3

$4.99 Softcover:
BF3
Saints Row 3
..i forget the rest of the paparbacks :/. The only thing that sucks is they decided to put a HUGE C on colored paper and taped it to the plastic. Good luck getting it off while still keeping it sealed. Not 100% sure if it's a universal drop or not.[/QUOTE]

I think this is the way that BB should sell guides on a normal basis. It makes more sense to drop the prices down incrementally over time (i.e. $39.99 -> $29.99 -> $19.99 -> $9.99) the same way they do with videogames. Many customers hold off buying games when they are $59.99 and wait until they are on sale for $39.99, $19.99 or lower.

I understand that they don't want to cannibalize their market, but the information in guides is available online for free. For completionists who like to hunt for in-game collectables, there are interactive online maps that are in many ways easier than using guidebooks.

I guess my point is it was stupid to try to sell a CE for $34.99 for a few months and then drop it straight to $.01 :) unless this was a specific stipulation mandated by all of the publishers.

[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']

I can still remember during the Genesis days when guides were $9.99 to $14.99 at MOST. Now the lowest priced one is $19.99 and we have guides going for $39.99 or MORE on the high end.

This is for information that's mostly readily available on the internet as it is.
[/QUOTE]

I remember back in the day when you could buy a videogame for a nickel. And our videogames were kick the can, stick ball, and eating lead paint chips. These were our games and we were happy to have them dagnabbit.

:p

[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']People are always gonna bitch about something. You shoulda seen when I first found out about pennied guides. The hauls I had(20+ of one guide many times) and all of the bitching that people did in this thread about my hoarding. Those were amusing times.:booty:[/QUOTE]

Haterz gon' hate. Life is too short for all that hate. Even if you find the "Deal of the Year" every year for the next decade, people are still going to bitch about some dumb you might have done.
 
[quote name='Lord Izanagi']Know what that's called? Inflation. Got it memorized?[/QUOTE]
Could you say that with a lil more sarcasm and as more of a douchebag next time? Thanks.;)
 
[quote name='Romeo']Just checked with my local best buy, prices are still MSRP in the guides mentioned yesterday.[/QUOTE]

full MSRP at mine too. sounds like store specific clearance.
 
Man, what a haul.

2x The 3rd Birthday
2x Killzone 3
1x Little Big Planet 2

Lost a nickel. Hahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahaha.

Anyway, this was all at Best Buy. I went to about 6 Gamestops and got nothing. Everyone seemed to know about what to do with the penny guides at Gamestop. They seemed to know specifically not to sell them. I hate Gamestop. And as for what the jugheads at Best Buy had to say about the guides. "It's a penny? Yeah, must be one of those clearance prices." Oh really.

Oh, and Aya Brea is
 
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[quote name='SonictheHedgehog1337']
I guess my point is it was stupid to try to sell a CE for $34.99 for a few months and then drop it straight to $.01 :) unless this was a specific stipulation mandated by all of the publishers.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, seems really stupid for them not to drop by $5-$10 at a time to sell more. Logic states that as price goes down, sales usually go up.
 
[quote name='SonictheHedgehog1337']I think this is the way that BB should sell guides on a normal basis. It makes more sense to drop the prices down incrementally over time (i.e. $39.99 -> $29.99 -> $19.99 -> $9.99) the same way they do with videogames. Many customers hold off buying games when they are $59.99 and wait until they are on sale for $39.99, $19.99 or lower.

I understand that they don't want to cannibalize their market, but the information in guides is available online for free. For completionists who like to hunt for in-game collectables, there are interactive online maps that are in many ways easier than using guidebooks.

I guess my point is it was stupid to try to sell a CE for $34.99 for a few months and then drop it straight to $.01 :) unless this was a specific stipulation mandated by all of the publishers.[/QUOTE]
:applause:I would likely buy more guides at the discounted prices as opposed to waiting like I was for them to penny and trying like hell to find them once they did. Five or ten bucks for a guide(especially one as thick as Skyrim's) and I'd be sold.

What's worse is what happens to millions of these and many other items every day due to corporate mandates, where they end up joining the millions of unsold E.T. cartridges in their own respective landfills.

While I have learned to respect that retailers do get some sort of credit for somehow proving they did destroy product they said they destroyed, I still think it's a majorly asinine and wasteful process.
 
How exactly do these penny guides work? Do you just go to the store and have a handful of guides scanned or do you have some kind of system that shows the price drops for you?
 
Damn, at first I thought he was asking how to find out which guides are on clearance. Time for some sleep!
 
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[quote name='Lord Izanagi']How exactly do these penny guides work? Do you just go to the store and have a handful of guides scanned or do you have some kind of system that shows the price drops for you?[/QUOTE]
For a while the penny guides would show up as $.01 on the Best Buy website. But we mainly rely on people who work at BB and GS for information on drops. Although I remember someone mentioned a while ago that you could use the wish list feature on Gamestops' site and put every guide they have in stock on that wish list. When those physical copies of guides get deleted from the wish list, then it's a safe bet that they've pennied in store.

Beware though as some guides have a listing for the digital version listed on GS.com besides the physical version.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']For a while the penny guides would show up as $.01 on the Best Buy website. But we mainly rely on people who work at BB and GS for information on drops. Although I remember someone mentioned a while ago that you could use the wish list feature on Gamestops' site and put every guide they have in stock on that wish list. When those physical copies of guides get deleted from the wish list, then it's a safe bet that they've pennied in store.

Beware though as some guides have a listing for the digital version listed on GS.com besides the physical version.[/QUOTE]

We really havent rely on people who worked there for a while now. It is really people going out and scanning stuff.
 
Last penny guide I found at my Gamestop was the CE Battlefield 3 guide. It was the manager so he wrote "not for sale or trade" all over the front cover, but it was free so I can't really complain! Plus it cleaned off pretty well with alcohol. xD
 
Not sure if there is anyone from the Kalamazoo area on here but if there is, I just saw a Halo Reach guide stashed under one of the guide racks here at Best Buy. Everything else has been picked over/pulled.
 
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