Wholesale Video Games

Strength In Numbers

You want games? Lots of games? Well, then wholesale video games is what you're on about, brother. It's more than just getting thousands of copies of one game. If you're patient and open to opportunity, you can get good games from wholesalers for fractions of the original prices.

Time Is The Revelator

The video game industry is a lot like the bookselling industry. "What have you done for me lately" and "Flavor of the week" are the key mantras. Last year's top seller is this year's cut-out. Even games that came out 60 days ago lose their sheen rapidly on the retailer's shelf.

There are several reasons for this.

One, technology is rapidly shifting under the games. Innovations can make a great game look dated and ugly in no time.

Two, competition is always throwing new options at consumers. If you're a game publisher, and your top-notch Wild West shoot-em-up game doesn't make it into Junior's hot little hands in November, chances are good that your rival's Wild West shoot-em-up will have your shelf space and your revenue in December. Retailers know this, and they're seeking to move units and clear space as quickly as possible. The losers and laggards go out and the new games come in.

Three, as a game publisher, you're often your own worst competition. That's right. Two months after you finish a game, you probably look at the developer and say, "Hey, we did alright. Let's play two." After all, the assets, personnel, and marketing are already in place for the first game. Why not sequelize?

This is good thinking, but it destroys the value of the first game. Who wants "Ubermensch" when "Ubermensch II: More Uber than Ever" is out? So this thinking only reinforces the existing paradigm - the pattern in which new games become old dogs very very quickly.

Working The System

If you're an ordinary gamer, you probably don't want a hundred copies of last month's big hit. But there are wholesalers who do truck in this particular market, and a budget-savvy gamer should be aware of them.

(Similarly, such a gamer should be aware of our article on Discount Video Games. See a few more links below.)

These wholesalers buy the aging game inventories from stores where gamers usually go to buy their entertainment.

Some of them are small operators who buy lots and resell them on Ebay, Half.com, or Amazon.com. As many can tell you, though, unethical sellers are fairly common, and if you choose to buy via auction or small wholesaler, make sure you check the seller out thoroughly and inspect his or her ratings and reviews.

Others, however, are fairly significant players. Most notable are GoGamer [1] and of course, Overstock [2]. GoGamer sells new games, but they feature a mailing list with seasonal specials on older games at surprisingly low prices. And Overstock, as you might guess, is the grand-daddy of buying big lots of products that are discontinued, or no longer trendy, and selling them to the public at a discount.

So... wholesale isn't just for warehouses. Keep your eyes and ears open, and you might be able to drag down a hot deal on a game that's still spicy enough to keep your gaming nights warm.