Circuit City video game clearance not very impressive (so far)

With retailer Circuit City giving up the ghost, The Ledger’s Kyle Kennedy decided to check out some of their game clearance items and came away less than impressed.

Bargain hunters be warned, you may hear of sales touting 30 percent off deals. First, 30 percent is not a lot considering this company is going out of business at the end of March 2009. Second, the sale items are actually reduced “up to 30 percent.” Ah, the sneaky little phrase “up to.” It’s one of the go-to phrases in the world of fine print, right up there with “results not typical.” The majority of games, systems and peripherals are only selling at a 10 percent discount.

I went to my local Circuit City and realized quickly why I have never purchased a game there. A large number of the games are so overpriced a 10 percent discount is still a ripoff. I found Ninja Gaiden II still going for $39.99 at Circuit City, a full $10 above competitors including Best Buy. This was far from an isolated incident. Circuit City didn’t seem to get the memo that PlayStation 2 games should be getting discounted a lot faster these days. Ratchet: Deadlocked, a 2005 PS2 release, was still marked at $39.99. Just about any game store would provide a better deal.

The 10 percent discount prices would save you about $6 on new next-generation games, but then so would your average coupon, a decent sale or any reasonable value trade-in. Check back in March 2009. Maybe then Circuit City will be somewhat serious about this liquidation.

Read [The Ledger] Also Read [Gamertell]