The project will kick in next year
As the biggest game retailer in the US, GameStop has strongly opposed the idea of downloadable content, as it should have, since it's its natural enemy. Despite the support of the concept from both developers and publishers, GameStop has stood firm in its decision to stay clear of the DLCs. Well, not anymore. It seems like it's trying to signal some sort of cease-fire, as it plans to take part in the DLC distribution after all. During the BMO Capital Markets 17th Annual Digital Entertainment Conference, the company announced that it started exploring its possibilities of tackling the idea of downloadable content.
n the past, it backed down little by little, accepting the thought of downloadable PC games through its website, but it's not ready to do so for any of the consoles. Chief Operating Officer for GameStop, Paul Raines, said that, "A large market for full game downloads is not imminent in the short term." But the company seems to be ready to give up on the full-out war, and is willing to accept negotiations. The main problem it saw was that full-game downloads for the consoles were impractical, considering the available Internet connections. But add-ons are, now, a different matter.
"It's clear to us from our research that full game digital downloads will move slowly, but we are optimistic about the possibilities of downloadable add-on content and episodic content," Raines added. "We do believe...that the add-on downloadable market with smaller file sizes will grow." He then detailed the company's plan of introducing its new offer to console users. Gamers will receive information about DLCs for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 games from GameStop sales associates, and then they'll be able to purchase them, in stores.
So, basically, gamers will come all the way down to the store, pay for the DLC with either common currency or trade-in credits, and the content will then be added to their PlayStation Network or Xbox Live account. The problem that GameStop will face, and a big one at that, will be of convincing gamers to purchase their items from it, and not directly from the PSN or XBL. This is going to be a rather large mountain to climb, considering that the big advantage of an online purchase is that it simplifies logistics for the buyer, bringing the desired object right to one's doorstep and removing the hassle of actually getting to the store.
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