Why are so many used games disc only?

[steve_k]

I went to a used game store and was disappointed by how many used games were missing the original cases, artwork, and manuals. I prefer my games to be complete and will not even consider a game if it is missing the original case and artwork. I often will turn down a game if it is even missing the manual. There were so many great games for sale for very low prices at the game store that would have been a no-brainer had it not been for the fact they were disc only. Even if they were complete, they would have been the same price. Whether the game is complete or partial makes no impact on the price in these stores. The price of the used game is the same regardless.

Do people throw away cases and manuals when they buy a new game? I can't imagine buying a new game, breaking the seal, putting the disc in my system or perhaps a CD wallet, and then throwing the case, artwork, and manual into the trash can saying 'well, I don't need this anymore!'

Maybe it's because game stores give people the same credit for used games whether they are complete or partial. If people get the same credit regardless, they can just keep the cases and manuals for themselves. They can sell them to another store or put them on Ebay for even more money, hence increasing the total value of their trade-ins.

If used game stores offered a tier pricing system, being a set price for a complete game and a lesser amount for disc-only when buying used games from the general public, maybe more people would bring in complete games. It could be as simple as a percentage, say 75% trade-in value for a disc-only game where as a complete game gets full trade-in value.

It just irks me when I find a used game I want for a great price only to see it is disc only. I refuse to pay the same price for a disc-only game as a complete game and it really irks me to have a disc-only game missing a case and artwork in my video game collection.

 

[Kerig]

Because Gamestop doesn't care.

 

[Fragems]

Gamestop is a big part of it, but there are also plenty of careless people who break/damage or misplace their cases. Usually I avoid disc only games because if the original owner lost or destroyed the case then they usually didn't treat the disc much better .

There are also plenty of people filpping games to GS and other retailers without policies based on completeness then selling the case/manual/artwork separately online for a few extra bucks.

 

[Krymner]

Stolen games are also a reason for disc-only games. Its easier to just walk out of a retail store with a disc than it is a complete package. Stealing from Redbox has also become an issue within the last couple years.

But I do understand the need to price disc-only games differently than complete ones. There's a place here in my town that deals in used games, and usually a disc-only game is priced exactly the same as the complete version, and I'm like WTF? 

 

[steve_k]

It sounds completely logical to offer less for an incomplete game as opposed to a complete game. I don't understand people who lose game cases and manuals. Even when I was a kid, I took care of my stuff. I did not keep all of my NES boxes because they were made of cardboard and fragile. Today, cases are made of plastic and durable. Besides, discs need storage more so than cartridges. Cartridges could be stacked on top of each other without worry. You never heard of a NES cartridge that would not play because of a scratch. All you needed was a dust sleeve. I kept those, and I was only about 8 years old. Why can't people keep cases today? It just seems irresponsible to me.

The value of everything else is contingent on condition. Baseball cards, rare coins, old comic books, so why not video games? I think the same rules apply to video games, but Gamestop chooses what rules they want to follow and what rules they do not want to follow. I think avid game collectors feel the same way I do and refuse to buy games in poor condition.

Because Gamestop's standards are so low, they set low standards industry-wide. A smaller non-franchised video game store has no incentive to hold higher standards because Gamestop keeps the bar so low. If their completion does not challenge them to ensure quality, what incentive do they have?

I personally take pride in having nice things. Apparently used video game retailers just don't understand the concept.

 

[stringycupps1]

Gamestop is a big part of it, but there are also plenty of careless people who break/damage or misplace their cases. Usually I avoid disc only games because if the original owner lost or destroyed the case then they usually didn't treat the disc much better .

There are also plenty of people filpping games to GS and other retailers without policies based on completeness then selling the case/manual/artwork separately online for a few extra bucks.

This. I flip to GS then will sometimes keep the case for when I re-buy the game from GS at a much lower price in the future or to sell on eBay. I make $7 to $10 on first party Wii U and 3DS cases on eBay after fees and shipping. For XB1 and PS4, you really only can sell the case if there is some sort of DLC included (if there isn't, I'll let GS have the case with those games).

From my experience, the average person shopping at GS just wants to play the game and doesn't think about the need for a case (digital games don't even have a GS-made case)

 

[G1Burgertime]

There's also people who just don't care. One individual on another site I go to LOVES to brag about putting the disc in a binder and tossing the "garbage" in the trash. He hates collectors, and loves to get people upset over what he considers a childish mentality of ownership.

Annoys me when I'm looking on Amazon for a used game, and if the prices start at $10, you can almost guarantee that you'll be hitting the middle 20s or the 30s before you find a description that says "Like new. Includes instructions and manual".

 

[Mattiful-Joe]

Yeah - I'm always amazed at how many games are disc-only, though I understand why companies like Gamestop get rid of them, too, because of just the limited space available.  The amount of PS2 cases they must have thrown out years ago was probably enough to fill a football stadium.

I do think companies should start instituting rules for trading in games without cases and manuals.  It only makes sense since buyers prefer to have them.

That said, I've reached a point where for older games, I'm okay getting them without the case/manual - as long as it's priced reasonably or at a great deal.  When Gamestop liquidated its PS2 games a while back, I was able to grab a lot of games at amazing prices.  Cases and manuals don't matter when most of the games are under $2