Best Buy

Rumor Best Buy plans overhaul of Gamers Club Unlocked program – 2 year subscription required and other requirements

If you’re an American gamer who enjoys trading in games, chances are you’ve enrolled in Best Buy’s Gamer Club Unlocked program and enjoy the numerous benefits. For only $15.00 a year, the program allows you %10 discount on all pre-owned purchases and %10 additional trade-in credit as part of the (arguably) worthwhile perks.  The program is similar to GamesStop’s trade-in program, but, given that Best Buy allows you to spend your store credit on any item online or in-store, the benefits of trading in there becomes far more apparent. However, recent rumors of changes to the program (along with technical difficulties where no one has been able to renew a subscription for the month of October) have led to potential fears that the program is undergoing drastic changes. This morning, a moderator of the CheapAssGamer forum has unearthed some news concerning the program, and it’s not looking like Best Buy is doing anything to assuage the fears of gamers.

While some of the perks mentioned in this post seem appealing, keep in mind the exorbitant amount of money that’s required to merely break even given the program’s new standards. Keep in mind that these are rumors until confirmed by Best Buy on November 10th:

  • Had I known this was new info, I would have taken a picture of it. But here are the highlights from memory:
  • Membership is $120 for 2 years
  • GAMER magazine ends in May
  • 20% off new game purchases (and this is specifically called out as justification for the increased cost of the membership)
  • 10% extra on trade-ins (as before)
  • 10% off used games (as before)
  • Double RZ points on game purchases (as before)
  • B2G1 used game coupon provided after signup (as before)
  • Coupon for a discount (50% I think? Don’t remember exactly) on a game guide provided after signup (as before)

While the 20% off new game purchases seems like a good deal initially, you will need to buy 10 games at full price to justify the savings. While quite a few of us will purchase that many games at full price, releases like Rayman Legends (a fantastic title) prove the new system can be worrisome when they are available for $40 one month after initial release. I have personally experienced numerous issues with the program over the last two months, lending further credence to this rumor.

We’ve reached out to Best Buy for confirmation of this rumor and will update this post when we receive a response.