Summary
Pokémon, specificallyPokémon TCG, has arguably never been more popular than it is right now.Prices are seemingly skyrocketing everywhere, as card shops and retailers can’t keep up with the demand and scalpers run roughshod. Recently,there was even an arrest of a thief who nabbed $300,000 in stolen cards.
That said, not everyone is as jazzed up about Pokémon, including GameStop employees, who took to Reddit to air their grievances against campers and scalpers who waited overnight for a chance to purchase some cards.
Never Have Thin Pieces of Cardboard Ever Been More Popular
Over on the r/GameStop subreddit, employees and customers did not hold back in their assessment of Friday’s most recent release of stock.
Before stores even opened, people were camping overnight, including holding spots in line with lawn chairs.One employee noted how there were 22 people outside their store at close, including one person who began holding their spot at 4:00 p.m. for a release that was happening at 10:00 a.m. the next day.
“We had 5 at my store, 18 hours before drop… insanity,“one employee wrote in response.
Bear in mind that the reason things have come to a head is thatGameStop recently amended its purchase policies to get rid of Pokémon preorders, hoping that it would stop scalpers from pre-purchasing a store’s alloted stock ahead of time. However, all that’s done is force people to wait outside.
It doesn’t help that not only are people camping, but they’re also having friends and family cut in line,as shared by one customer who was on the unfortunate end of such a situation. It also doesn’t help that GameStop seemingly endorsed the campers, by writing a post that said the company “salutes” them.
The rest of the sub is filled with similar horror stories and complaints. It all paints a picture of a product currently in disarray, with seemingly no relief coming to employees or to those who simply can’t afford to wait in line.
