Comments on: Sent home from EB Games…

By: EB Gamer

EB Gamer — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 23:29:42 +0000

As gamers we love to hate on EB Games, but admit it, we get a total kick out of walking into a store with so many games all in one place!

By: Steve

Steve — Wed, 07 May 2008 23:27:43 +0000

I’ve seen this happen in person with God of War 2 at EB. The EB clerk acted like some kind of overlord with sooo much power over his customer.

I’d love to see an angry customer’s reaction when a busy EB clerk mistakenly thinks the kid in line behind the customer is with him and gives the customer attitude refusing to sell the customer the game because the clerk claims that he doesn’t know that he’s not buying the game for the kid he’s “with”.

I mean how will this stop boolegging video games? People usually learn so if this happens once, next time the kid doesn’t come up to the till. In light of this I see it as completely ineffective.

So it’s ineffective and runs the risk of angering a customer. Wow, I’d venture to say the head office idiot that came up with this has never worked in an EB store and is not a customer of EB.

The bottom line is that the buyer was of age. What a stupid policy. Granted I wouldn’t want a kid to play GTA IV, but this isn’t he way to stop it.

By: Ryan

Ryan — Wed, 07 May 2008 23:27:10 +0000

Actually, in some states it is illegal. It would vary from state to state, but I know for a fact that in Illinois that selling or buying an M rated game for minor lends to a misdemeanor and up to $5,000 FINE. Read http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/94/HB/09400HB4023.htm for the full description. So, not only can the guy buying for “himself and brother later” (love the way he tried to get around that) the clerk could be fined that much. There’s nothing wrong with protecting younger kids from getting this content, and I can understand the anger in being refused. Go back later and get it, have the clerk hold it for pete’s sake. Everybody wants to bitch cuz they don’t get their way these days, they don’t take time to think this actually effects more than them and overall this is done for protection.

By: Sojiro

Sojiro — Wed, 07 May 2008 22:41:52 +0000

I am an employee of GameStop/EBGames. In fact I am a manager of one of the stores. Too many people are not aware of how close our government is to regulating the sale of games just like alcohol. Our policies currently state that if we believe that a person is purchasing a “M” rated title for a minor and cannot prove that they are the minor’s parent or legal guardian then we may refuse the sale. If we do sell the game regardless of how old the purchaser is and that person gives it to a minor, said minor’s parents get all pissed off and run back to the store or our home offices we get fired. If the government regulates the sale of “M” rated games then not only do we get fired, we get fined or tossed in jail. The point has not been missed at all in fact it needs to be elaborated even more, that “clerk” couldn’t tell if that was his brother or someone the kid “shoulder tapped” out on the street on in the mall to get him the game. There is no surpassing the law here or discrimination, just a so called “clerk” at the very least protecting his job and at most ensuring that a kid he doesn’t know is not exposed to potentially harmful content.

By: Ureval

Ureval — Wed, 07 May 2008 21:55:35 +0000

Awesome. Anyone who disagrees with this is either A)under 17 or B)a negligent parent or relative.

There is a line that the government has placed to protect children, a line that parents should be putting down themselves. Its also a line that many people are obviously ignoring and the effects are obvious.

If you dont believe me go play COD4 or GTA4 and see how many times you encounter some kid who calls you a fa^&ot ni%&er, just cause hes online and can get away with it.

By: Bill

Bill — Wed, 07 May 2008 21:49:28 +0000

The same thing happened to me at EB when i went to buy Farcry, I was 17 at the time but i didnt have my i.d. and i was with a friend who looked even older than me and he still wouldnt sell me the game

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 07 May 2008 19:50:08 +0000

funny you should post this, right after last xmas, i was in an ebgames with my brother 15 at the time, and he wanted to buy some game that was rated M, they asked for ID and refused him the sale, so as i was standing right there, my brother gave me the game and the cash and i purchased the game for him, all this happened right infront of the clerk. basically the exact opposite of what you just described.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 07 May 2008 19:24:12 +0000

It’s not the stores responsibility to to make sure every mature rated game they sell is not played by a minor but their responsiblity they every game they sell is not SOLD to a minor. It is every adult indivduals responsibilty that any mature related material whether it be alcohol, videogames, porn, movies, whatever not be put in the hands of minors. The clerk was wrong and should have sold the game to the older brother because he is an adult. Also the older brother is wrong in the notion that after he finishes the game that he going to let his little bro play it.

By: lol

lol — Wed, 07 May 2008 18:46:24 +0000

lol

By: Ellimist

Ellimist — Wed, 07 May 2008 07:02:00 +0000

I think this is a good and bad thing. if it was you paying fine they should have let you buy the game but if it was your brother then they should have denied him buying it. its good to see someone taking into account the rating but they may want to look at how they proceed to give it to customers.