The Blockbuster Thread XXV: June 25th - July 1st, 50% off used games $19.99 and under

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Welcome to the Official CAG Blockbuster/Gamerush video game deal thread.

June 25th - July 1st, 50% off used games $19.99 and under

See here for the deal: http://www.blockbuster.com/stores

There used to be a coupon to print for it, but now stores should have the bar code to scan at the register.  If not, show them their own web page (above) and maybe they will figure it out.

See BlockbusterGuy's thread for a list of titles eligible under (and commonly found at BBV) for the promo:

http://www.cheapassgamer.com/topic/310423-blockbuster-video-4th-of-july-sale-bogo/

Coming July 2nd: B1G1 free on games $29.99 and under

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Note that anything below here might be out of date. To be honest, I have no idea if Blockbuster even takes games for trade-in any more!

What is this thread for?
The primary function of this thread is to discuss current trade-in and sale promos, post any trade-in values you have obtained, and discuss new and used game selection and availability. Please post trade-in values with the date of the trade (or quote) and system.

It is also permissible to discuss system availability, credit issues, etc. As long as it is related to game trades or sales at Blockbuster it is generally OK to discuss it here.

Unlike more tightly focused clearance threads, it is OK to discuss more general Blockbuster issues here as well as trade requests as long as they are kept to a minimum (and usually just during specific deals).

What is this thread NOT for?
Please do not discuss the flipping of games from one Blockbuster store to another should another such opportunity arise (through trade-in deals). It is one thing to "play the market" with trade-in values from one chain to another (BBVto Amazon to EB) - free market buy low/sell high and all that. But taking advantage of loopholes in a single store's policies/promos is frowned upon and has, in the past, led to trade-in bans from BBV.

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Blockbuster Game Trading Info
- You must sign up for a trade account in addition to your regular Blockbuster account
- You must sign up for a new trade account at every store you wish to trade at, even if using the same main account
- Trade-in credit will be placed onto your store account
- Credit on store accounts can only be used at that one store
- Clerks at one store cannot see your trading/purchasing history at another store via your account
- Depending on state law you may or may not get sales tax added to your trade-ins (and thus get more than normal). You will always be charged sales tax where applicable on purchases.

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Current Trade-In Deals
There are no trade-in deals at this time nor have there been for a very very long time. They did however just recently cut down all their trade-in values to Gamestop-like levels (but without deals to make them more appealing as at GS).

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Trade-In Values

Trade-in prices are usually universal at Blockbuster, but can be wildly different at franchise Blockbuster stores. Used game prices change on Monday. We are not currently sure when trade-in values get updated but a few years ago it used to be on Mondays. Any quotes given in this thread may thus be good through Sunday of the current week. If you want to be sure to get the same value another CAG has reported then do your trading by Sunday as the price may drop on Monday.

Also note that many stores will no longer accept video games without cover art. This is the official policy for DVD trade-ins but apparently many clerks will confuse the two and not allow it for games either. Just beware that it might be a hassle if you have a disc-only game to trade.

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Links to previous Blockbuster/Gamerush Threads (dating back to June 2005!):
1 (by no means the first one but the earliest that can be found - check it out for some drama)
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

 
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[quote name='aircobra']I tried trading in Child of Eden but it wasn't in their system. Had no problem with Hunted though.[/QUOTE]

I had no problem trading one in on Friday.
 
After going to a few stores that all knew about the sale this past week (all where I live, southeaster Michigan), I ran into my first problem today out of town (Goshen, IN). The cashier saw I had two games for $19.99, and told me the sale was only for games $14.99 and under. I explained how the other Blockbusters I went to allowed any two games with the cheaper ($14.99 and under) game being free. He asked his manager, who said that "they were told" not to allow higher priced games. I still got a few cheaper ones, but left with fewer games than I would have otherwise.
 
[quote name='NickNorman'] I explained how the other Blockbusters I went to allowed any two games with the cheaper ($14.99 and under) game being free. He asked his manager, who said that "they were told" not to allow higher priced games. I still got a few cheaper ones, but left with fewer games than I would have otherwise.[/QUOTE]

That's some great business sense there. You'd get the free game either way, but if they let you buy a $19.99 or $24.99 game they get $5 or $10 more than they would have otherwise. And those games will get reduced to $14.99 later, anyway, and then will go for half price at the next B1G1 so it makes way more sense to let them go for $24.99 or $19.99 + free $14.99 game now than to exclude them from the sale.

[quote name='pimpster4183']Will Splaterhouse automatically change in the system tomorrow or do I have to wait for my store to manually adjust it?[/QUOTE]

The latter - it is a quick thing, but they need to accept the changes on the computer. I had to wait for one store to do that with NBA Jam on Tuesday and it just took a few seconds. The tricky part is how to tell them you know about the drop while they don't ;).
 
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[quote name='doubledown']so, what are the best flips to best buy?[/QUOTE]

Somersaults, right through the front doors. :D
 
[quote name='hawaiiboy']
thats also a crock. in case anyone missed it. starting 9/12 anyone with a giftcard can go into a store and "redeem" that giftcard for 5 free movie/game rentals. it doesnt matter what value is left on the giftcard as each one you turn in will get you 5 free rentals. another option if you dont have a store near you or just dont want 5 free rentals is to redeem it for 2 months of bbv online service 2 out at a time. if you want the online option you need to contact customer care (1-800-406-6843) and they will walk you thru the process. i believe you have to mail the giftcards somewhere and then they will send you the 2 month free offer.[/QUOTE]

This is probably a really really stupid question, but I guess I should ask just because "it doesn't matter what value is left on the giftcard." I have lots of Blockbuster gift cards that are completely empty. Will they qualify for the 2 month free offer?
 
This is probably a really really stupid question, but I guess I should ask just because "it doesn't matter what value is left on the giftcard." I have lots of Blockbuster gift cards that are completely empty. Will they qualify for the 2 month free offer?
Click to expand...

i dont know as my DM didnt have an answer during our conf call. i would assume that they would have us swipe the card just to make sure there was something on there but i'm not sure. i hope to get a clear answer on this sometime this week and i'll keep you updated.
 
[quote name='hawaiiboy']Price drops effective monday 9/5 also the last day of the b1g1 sale

:ps3:
Dragon age 2 $24.99
F1: 2010 $19.99
Gran turismo 5 $34.99
Little big planet 2 $29.99
Portal 2 $24.99
Shift 2 unleashed $24.99
Splatterhouse $14.99
Transformers war for cybertron $14.99
Wwe smckadown vs raw 2011 $19.99
Move start the party $14.99
Move fight lights out $14.99

:360:
Dragon age 2 $24.99
Lego star wars III $29.99
Test drive unlimited $14.99
Two worlds 2 $19.99
Www smackdown vs raw 2011 $19.99

:wii:
Call of duty black ops $24.99
Epic Mickey $14.99
Guitar hero warriors $14.99
Kirby epic yarn $14.99
Www smackdown vs raw 2011 $14.99[/QUOTE]
So Test Drive Unlimited 2 ps3 is not dropping? What is its current price (ps3)?
 
[quote name='hawaiiboy']i dont know as my DM didnt have an answer during our conf call. i would assume that they would have us swipe the card just to make sure there was something on there but i'm not sure. i hope to get a clear answer on this sometime this week and i'll keep you updated.[/QUOTE]

And my question is since GCs have been invalid since, what, April, how do they even know what's on them? I mean, if they can see what's on them why don't they just honor them?

Because I have several and some may have a few pennies but I have no idea and am not sure how I can even check them except to bring them all in. But I just assumed they wouldn't be able to provide balances since they don't take them. I guess once the offer goes live I'll just have to try bringing some in. I'm pretty sure I drained them all a long time ago though - I've been burning cash at BBV for a few years now which was unheard of in the heyday of 2005-2006 ;).
 
[quote name='doubledown']so, what are the best flips to best buy?[/QUOTE]

Epic Mickey, Splatterhouse for PS3, NBA Jam, Singularity. There's some 6.99 Wii shovelware games but the names escape me right now.
 
[quote name='io']And my question is since GCs have been invalid since, what, April, how do they even know what's on them? I mean, if they can see what's on them why don't they just honor them?

Because I have several and some may have a few pennies but I have no idea and am not sure how I can even check them except to bring them all in. But I just assumed they wouldn't be able to provide balances since they don't take them. I guess once the offer goes live I'll just have to try bringing some in. I'm pretty sure I drained them all a long time ago though - I've been burning cash at BBV for a few years now which was unheard of in the heyday of 2005-2006 ;).[/QUOTE]



Could be a bankruptcy issue. In other words, maybe the Court allowed them not to honor them as part of the purchase/bankruptcy bailout. I'm speculating, but it is possible.
 
Yesterday, I finally stopped by 3 out of the 4 stores in my area. I found alot of copies of Bulletstorm and some Dead Rising 2 but nothing to pair them with. I was mainly looking for guides but was only able to find LBP2 for $5. One store didn't have guides at all and another only had 4. Oh well, I really wasn't expecting much since I went so late in the sale. I'll stop by the last store later on today and see what I can find.
 
[quote name='emg28']Yesterday, I finally stopped by 3 out of the 4 stores in my area. I found alot of copies of Bulletstorm and some Dead Rising 2 but nothing to pair them with. I was mainly looking for guides but was only able to find LBP2 for $5. One store didn't have guides at all and another only had 4. Oh well, I really wasn't expecting much since I went so late in the sale. I'll stop by the last store later on today and see what I can find.[/QUOTE]
I found the LBP2 guide at a further off BBV store last week and it was in mint condition, except for the top right corner on the front cover, which was MIA.

There was about an inch or so of the cover and the first page behind that missing completely.

If not for that I would've likely bought that and a couple games from the BOGO at that store.;)
 
HB, new release games for BB are tuesday is that correct? i used my internet skills, but for some reason i thought i read in this thread someone saying they liked BB because they get their releases early. can you confirm that its tues or later? hoping to pick up dead island, but i am worried dont games usually have SOME reviews before coming out? like a shit movie they keep em from the critics to avoid poor sales...
 
[quote name='bajingo']HB, new release games for BB are tuesday is that correct? i used my internet skills, but for some reason i thought i read in this thread someone saying they liked BB because they get their releases early. can you confirm that its tues or later? hoping to pick up dead island, but i am worried dont games usually have SOME reviews before coming out? like a shit movie they keep em from the critics to avoid poor sales...[/QUOTE]

Not all games do and depending on your opinion of IGN they gave the ps3 version an 8.0 :)
 
At my store, Epic Mickey & Kirby still rang up at $19.99. They said they are waiting til the 6th to acknowledge the pricedrops since they thought today was the last day. Guess its a good thing the sale doesnt end til the 12th.
 
I just got back from my local BBV. The super nice manager was working. The new drops weren't stickered but I brought them to the counter anyway. He tried to tell me "they aren't eligible..." yadda yadda because they were marked at $20, but I told him they dropped in price today. He scanned them and it reflected the $20, but then he went to the other computer to update/accept the price changes and all was hunky dory.

As far as new releases are concerned, bajingo... I did see a stack of Resistance 3 behind the counter. There were a couple other games on top but I couldn't make those out.
 
[quote name='bgame2']Could be a bankruptcy issue. In other words, maybe the Court allowed them not to honor them as part of the purchase/bankruptcy bailout. I'm speculating, but it is possible.[/QUOTE]

It's an unsecured debt, the whole point of bankruptcy is that you are wiping out debts (particularly screwed are people with unsecured debt), and it would have violated the bankruptcy court rules for BBV to "pay" that debt by letting you redeem your gift cards. The bankruptcy trustee then ultimately decides what the creditors get, and in this case we get "coupons" for these free services -- it could have just as well been nothing, but I'm sure BBV likes this better than paying us nothing, since it gets us in the store.
 
Just got back from a BBV store in Madison, WI trying to buy Transformers: WFC, and the sales guy said that it scanned for $19.99 and that I have to pay that price. I told him that it was supposed to drop today, and he wanted to know where I heard it from. When I told him that I heard it from this forum, he just said, "Well, it's scanning for $19.99, so you will have to buy it at that price." I didn't. I don't know why these newer price drop are not in their system.
 
[quote name='Investor']Just got back from a BBV store in Madison, WI trying to buy Transformers: WFC, and the sales guy said that it scanned for $19.99 and that I have to pay that price. I told him that it was supposed to drop today, and he wanted to know where I heard it from. When I told him that I heard it from this forum, he just said, "Well, it's scanning for $19.99, so you will have to buy it at that price." I didn't. I don't know why these newer price drop are not in their system.[/QUOTE]
They have to accept the updated prices. If they didn't, then the games will still be ringing up what they were last week.
 
...crap. do you think they'll have accepted the updated prices by 5pm? I get off work then and was gonna swing by to snag mickey and kirby...i hate the hassle of knowing more than the employees when I go.
 
[quote name='super_dawn']...crap. do you think they'll have accepted the updated prices by 5pm? I get off work then and was gonna swing by to snag mickey and kirby...i hate the hassle of knowing more than the employees when I go.[/QUOTE]

Just tell them another store had the price lower, so there must be a price drop they need to accept. I do it all the time except the times when I remember the price wrong. lol
 
[quote name='DerClaw']It's an unsecured debt, the whole point of bankruptcy is that you are wiping out debts (particularly screwed are people with unsecured debt), and it would have violated the bankruptcy court rules for BBV to "pay" that debt by letting you redeem your gift cards. The bankruptcy trustee then ultimately decides what the creditors get, and in this case we get "coupons" for these free services -- it could have just as well been nothing, but I'm sure BBV likes this better than paying us nothing, since it gets us in the store.[/QUOTE]


Exactly. I just was not informed enough about the timeline of BBV's bankruptcy to do anything more than speculate. Also, any payments to "creditors" can be taken back by the bankruptcy trustee. So as it pertains to io's question, it could have been a complete mess if BBV allowed people to use their GCs without the Trustee's blessing.
 
I got a friendly cashier this past Saturday and he told me the price drops weren't to take affect until Tuesday. I didn't know if I should believe him or HB.
 
[quote name='JAlbertL']I got a friendly cashier this past Saturday and he told me the price drops weren't to take affect until Tuesday. I didn't know if I should believe him or HB.[/QUOTE]

I wouldn't be surprised if some did that to keep people from buying those games until after the B1G1, but the sale got extended so they should be dropping them any way.
 
So does anyone know the price of test drive unlimited 2 ps3?
Sorry to bump an old question, but it wasn't answered and I have to drive a very long distance to get there today.
 
Ugh, looks painful out there today (getting the correct new pricing that is). I am going to head out to some stores and try my luck anyway. I have more time today than I will later in the week.
 
3 of 6 stores I went to today had games correctly priced; 3 had correct prices on the new drops but they weren't updated in the system. One of them did a manual correction and the other two took an extra minute to verify the drops after I asked about it. Pretty good customer service at these stores, compared to others' reports.

I was also able to pair an Epic Mickey with Shadows of the Damned (PS3), which was $29.99. I was happy about that.
 
[quote name='publikdefender']so does anyone know the price of test drive unlimited 2 ps3?
sorry to bump an old question, but it wasn't answered and i have to drive a very long distance to get there today.[/quote]

$14.99
 
[quote name='arnoldhead']Went to a couple stores, neither of them had the correct prices nor would they bother to update them.[/QUOTE]

I just tell them I have a friend who works at another store who told me about the price drop. Just be real polite; if you can get them to check it only takes about 20 seconds and then all the prices are updated.

Had to do that at both stores I went to today. The female employees are usually nicer about it; some of the the men can be a-holes and refuse to even check. Just picked up enough to flip so that the games I kept were effectively free. Both had a bunch of Epic Mickey and Kirby left.
 
[quote name='thenurseryan']$14.99[/QUOTE]

I believe that is wrong; the 360 version dropped to 14.99, the PS3 version is still 19.99.
 
Anyone know the email for blockbuster's customer service? Or somewhere else I can complain? I went today to get Transformers and Kirby and the guy working first told me the sale only applied to games 14.99 and under. I asked him if he could just try and ring it up and see what happens. He refused to do it. After saying that I've bought games over 14.99 before he finally agrees to call his manager who then tells him that I'm right. Then the games both ring up for 19.99. So this time I ask him if he can go into the system and accept the new prices. He asks me how I know that and if I work for blockbuster. I tell him that I don't but I know about price drops and the procedure from the internet. He then starts ranting about how I don't work there so i don't know and I'm wrong. I tell him that I was right about the games over 14.99 and ask if he can just check to see if there are any price updates available. He refuses and claims he can only sell the game for what it rings up as and that I'm wrong and starts yelling at me to get out.

I left and went to the next closest blockbuster who also didn't have the prices updated but gladly updated them and I was in and out with both games in 5 minutes. Normally I'd just let it go, but the guy was so rude
 
so if i understand this right

i can buy one get one free but the free game has to be under 14.99?

the blockbuster i went to most of their prices were over 14.99 used or does this sale also apply for new games too?
 
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