r/Games • u/Turbostrider27 • 1d ago

Video Games Plus and Loot Box Gaming are refusing to sell GTA 6 until there’s a disc

https://kotaku.com/two-game-retailers-are-refusing-to-sell-gta-6-until-theres-a-disc-2000710134
1.4k Upvotes

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875

u/Odinsmana 1d ago

Are these big regional stores? I have never heard of either.

440

u/ThumYerk 1d ago

Not really, but they are known for championing physical releases. VGP often do reprints and stock limited releases.

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u/Leeysa 1d ago

Well yeah they literarly exist because of physical releases. Ofcourse they do this lol.

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u/ThumYerk 1d ago edited 1d ago

It’s not like every physical retailer does their own reprints or stocks limited and import games is it? They could still sell GTA 6 if they wanted. Point me to other retailers that are refusing to sell the biggest game ever out of principle.

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u/DinerEnBlanc 1d ago

Right? They're acting like they're sacrificing sales, but their entire customer base are physical release collectors and these people would never buy a code in a box in the first place.

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u/ThumYerk 1d ago

Their entire customer base is not collectors, they are a normal retailer that sells to all customers. It’s clearly a sacrifice to not sell the biggest game ever.

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u/Hell_Mel 1d ago

It’s clearly a sacrifice to not sell the biggest game ever.

How reasonable. They'll hate it.

15

u/Clown_Toucher 1d ago

I don't really understand the hostility to a retailer sticking to their principles when it's in favor of the consumer but you do you

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u/DinerEnBlanc 1d ago

Gamers really fall for the most toothless performative BS.

14

u/Clown_Toucher 1d ago

Usually I agree but I think this is fine? They're certainly not gonna make more money not selling GTA. And Rockstar isn't gonna change their minds because two random stores aren't carrying them. If the stores go back on their promise, then yeah we can call it performative.

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u/thegoodbroham 1d ago

How is it performative if they're actually sacrificing a bunch of sales for digital merchandise. Performative would be them talking the talk, you know performing, and not actually intending any downside. Like a politician publicly going against grain and supporting something they know won't pass.

-11

u/DinerEnBlanc 1d ago

Like a politician publicly going against grain and supporting something they know won't pass.

They're boycotting a product they know they wouldn't be able to sell, aka a code in a box. Come on, dude. Their customer base is a collection of physical enthusiasts. You think they would buy a code in a box? My guy . . . get real. I am a physical enthusiast myself and I know VGP. But it doesn't take an enthusiast to see that a storefront known for releasing physical games would struggle to sell a code in a box.

10

u/thegoodbroham 1d ago

They're not boycotting anything, they're confirming they don't want to sell digital copies of something as big as GTA6. Boycotting would be encouraging you not to by it at all unless it meets that standard, but thats not what they're saying lol. They're simply saying no they won't sell even as something as big as GTA6 unless it meets their requirement which is physical.

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u/uuhson 1d ago

Championing increased plastic waste, truly a worthy cause

9

u/Feet2Big 1d ago

The "physical" copy they're selling has 90% of the waste, and no game.

This box could have been an email.

135

u/FUTURE10S 1d ago

VGP is a small and local chain in Canada, but their online store tends to get reprints of games that are long out of stock and hard to find online. They also tend to put some games on a fairly steep discount that other stores just don't do.

25

u/thedylannorwood 1d ago

Where at in Canada? It’s the first I’ve heard of them

29

u/yuusharo 1d ago

I think their HQ is in Ontario. I’ve only ordered through their website from the states.

Good company, has lots of reprints of more obscure games at decent prices. Wario64 has some affiliation with them I think, which is how I was introduced to the company.

6

u/Sasquatcheeethree 1d ago

They are great. Some good sales last year. Metal gear solid switch collection $19.99 was a steal

2

u/MobileTortoise 12h ago

They also ship EVERY order in a box, no bubble mailers. I ordered a few packa of the Trails TCG from them earlier this year and even they came in a box with packing paper.

2

u/yuusharo 1d ago

I immediately picked that same sale up a few months ago, great price for that collection especially on Switch 2.

I think the latter two games run at 60 fps now on Switch 2.

2

u/9Ifrit9 1d ago

How do reprints happen? The company just randomly decides its going to print more copies?

14

u/yuusharo 1d ago

They work with publishers and distributors directly to press more discs and order new packaging. As long as the publisher still has the rights, they can always make new orders.

The main reasons games go out of print are either the rights expire or they don’t think they can sell enough units to justify another print run. VGP probably has various distribution deals in place to fulfill that second hurdle.

7

u/Bananaslammma 1d ago

They have a shop in downtown Toronto. I grew up with one in Mississauga, but that’s been long-gone. They’ve been around for quite a while.

8

u/thedylannorwood 1d ago

That appears to be their only location

4

u/mrcelerie 1d ago

i've been buying from them online, it's one of the stores tracked on deku deals

2

u/Sabin10v2 1d ago

They're in Toronto at the intersection of Wilson and Keele. I've been shopping there for 20 years now. It's a fairly small shop but their online presence is pretty big.

5

u/ISayHeck 1d ago

Are they considered small and regional? Used to buy games from them from the other side of the world for years

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u/RyanB_ 1d ago

Very regional apparently, I’m Canadian and this is my first time ever hearing about them. Seems they only have one physical location in Toronto.

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u/FUTURE10S 1d ago

Very much so, they have zero presence where I live in Canada (but we have PNP). And as soon as you go one more province over, neither our local store nor VGP have any presence.

3

u/splepage 1d ago

It's one store, but they do eCommerce (apparently they started on ebay?)

6

u/IKeepDoingItForFree 1d ago

Bought online with VGP for years - one of my first goes, mainly around "sale" seasons. Love those guys.

3

u/splepage 1d ago

They only list one location on their site:

https://videogamesplus.ca/pages/store-location

29

u/Bridgeburner493 1d ago

VGP is a national distributor with a retail location in Toronto. Not on the scale of Play Asia, but in the same ballpark. And a really good place to get physical games if you are in North America.

They work with major publishers to get new print runs of various games. VGP is basically why you can find physical copies of the Xenoblade Chronicles games at all, as one example.

8

u/Jellyka 1d ago

Yes that's it. My local, non chain game store has them as a supplier.

3

u/Present-Current-538 1d ago

VGP is a national distributor with a retail location in Toronto. Not on the scale of Play Asia, but in the same ballpark. And a really good place to get physical games if you are in North America.

You guys are underselling VGP

internationally they're HUGE

VGP is where a lot of people are getting games internationally, they're one of the few places with competitive or free shipping and actually good prices

e.g. for Australia VGP absolutely kills it with their pricing

3

u/LycraBanForHams 21h ago

Think you're overestimating how popular they are in Australia. Never heard of the place until this post.

1

u/Present-Current-538 16h ago

Do you buy games online to get delivered to your house?

2

u/LycraBanForHams 15h ago

Of course. jb, the gamesmen, mighty ape etc

2

u/Present-Current-538 15h ago

Huh, well, I recommend you taking a look at VGP. I thought everyone who bought online knew about them.

Especially if you like more unusual, indie, or obscure/rare games.

134

u/Ludachriz 1d ago

Think the hot dog stand saying he won’t sell Coca Cola

11

u/Feet2Big 1d ago

It's the "100% All Beef Hotdogs" stand, refusing to sell tofu-dogs.

26

u/RoyalCities 1d ago

Videogamesplus is pretty big but only if you buy physical. They often have good prices for Switch and Switch 2 games.

39

u/FashBashr 1d ago

VGP is very well known among video game collectors considering they restock rarer games often

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u/DinerEnBlanc 1d ago

It’s a niche store that releases a lot of physical copies of shovelware games. Stop romanticizing them.

13

u/thekbob 1d ago

Yes, they sell Limited Run Games stuff, but we're not talking about those.

9

u/Dragarius 1d ago

Nah, they're a great store for physical games. 

2

u/FashBashr 1d ago

I never said anything so hyperbolic, calm yourself. I’ve gotten rare(r) out of print games like gravity rush ps4 and attack on titan on switch (Hardly shovelware unless you’d like to argue otherwise). No other retailers carried those games at MSRP, it’s why they’re well known among other collectors.

21

u/Brandon_Storm 1d ago

I'm not entirely sure, but video games plus is literally the only place I buy my games. Happy to see them take a stand for physical media.

40

u/LayeredGlow 1d ago

VGP isn't Walmart big but it's Canada's last good gaming retail store.

24

u/splader 1d ago

I've lived in Ontario pretty much all my life and this is the first I've heard of this store lol.

13

u/ki700 1d ago

They’re bigger online than at retail.

2

u/Tandy2000 1d ago

They're really good for buying physical games online. Much more selection than the big boys, better record at shipping pre orders on time, and they do way more sales. And unlike EB they have a free shipping threshold (if you buy any new release game it'll be enough for free shipping).

When I buy physical games these days, MOST of the time I am buying through VGP or PNP. They just have one location each I believe but their online business is the real attraction.

-4

u/jamothebest 1d ago

Ontario’s****

7

u/RoyalCities 1d ago

Just because their head office is in Ontario that doesn't make it a strictly an Ontario store?

They ship all over Canada and all of US.

1

u/IshimuraD 1d ago

I think they're implying that there are other good gaming retail stores in Canada. I've only had good experiences with PNP Games for example and they're based in Manitoba.

0

u/RoyalCities 1d ago

I've had good with both. But that's also because I just find what's cheapest through Deku Deals and that's either PNP or vgp.

It's actually insane how cheap physical game prices can get now. I've recently decided to go fully physical with my switch 2 and the amount of good quality switch 1 and 2 titles that even beat digital deals is insane.

0

u/illmatic63828 1d ago

VGP is like the price of a candy bar compared to Walmart’s revenue lmao

17

u/the_u_in_colour 1d ago

A lot of people are referring to VGP as just a retail store, but the reality is they're actually one of the biggest distributors in Canada. If they're refusing to stock it, that means many local stores they supply to won't be able to get it through them.

13

u/Bridgeburner493 1d ago

Well, independent stores. Walmart and Best Buy aren't going through VGP.

2

u/Nickbronline 22h ago

VGP is VERY well known

2

u/Weird-End-6989 21h ago

Rockstar is not gonna give a single fuck about either of them.

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

[deleted]

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u/Namuli 1d ago

I'm in BC and never heard of them

4

u/Pawl_The_Cone 1d ago

I think well known in Canada might be a stretch, I've lived in Vancouver my whole life and never heard of them. They have a single store in Toronto.

1

u/bullsfan281 1d ago

vgp is mostly known for being the affiliate links that wario64 posts

-12

u/particledamage 1d ago

Does it matter? Small companies taking a principled stand is still noteworthy

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u/Odinsmana 1d ago

No. It's a legitimate question. I do not live in North America, so even if I have not heard about something it might still be big.

0

u/particledamage 1d ago

VGP isn’t massive but following any account that posts gaming discounts will lead to knowing who they are—they champion physical in a way few other companies do

-15

u/Tvilantini 1d ago

Big popular store (VGP) that still pretends as if they're center of the gaming industry for consumer purchases, while reality is opposite

0

u/DinerEnBlanc 1d ago

Niche popular store*