As a gamer who has always tried to own physical copies of games, I buy from a lot of retailers and have experience with most places that UK customers can choose from. As my good deed for the year, I thought I’d compile a summary of my various experiences with places I either buy / have bought games from and how they compare to each other, along with others I am aware of. I will generally check all of these before buying any physical game.
All opinions stated are solely my own.
Argos – I recommend using click and collect depending on stock in your local branch as you can find an Argos pretty much anywhere. Delivery is not really viable as costs more than most alternatives.
Curry’s – If you are preordering an upcoming game, Curry’s will generally offer the lowest price and free delivery. They offer a discount code on the website but often times an additional 5% off can be secured if you amend at checkout (Try GAME15 instead of GAME10 instead if the latter is what’s advertised). Only downside is they tend to use DPD who will require a signature to deliver, and fail the delivery even if the consignment will fit through your letterbox.
Curry’s also run offers on PSN credit codes up to 15% off, which is always worth checking if you’re in the market for a digital purchase. I find they aren’t competitive at all on anything other than preorders.
EE – Never bought from but prices can be competitive.
GAME – Rarely has competitive prices and £5 delivery on all orders is ridiculous. Shop in store if convenient, avoid online. I don’t understand how they’re even still operational despite their best efforts to push their customer base towards other retailers.
GameCollection – Very competitively priced on select older games and are open about the fact their deliveries can take a while. Safe to use if you aren’t in a hurry.
Hit – Often as cheap or cheaper than Curry’s but only use Royal Mail so deliveries regularly take longer than advertised. Customer service ability is lacking and borderline confrontational when I complained about a game delivery which arrived a week late.
HMV – I’ve no experience with buying games here as they are not trying to compete for sales of them.
John Lewis – No experience as none of the prices I’ve ever seen have been competitive.
PSN store – Digital games aren’t as rigidly expensive as they used to be so checking the price of whatever game you want on the store is definitely worth doing. It’s an obvious point but do keep in mind that as games purchased here cannot be resold or returned, if you have the option to buy a physical copy of a game for a similar price as it is on the PSN store (including delivery charge), always buy physical!
Shopto – Historically quite hit or miss but have been reliable in my experience for the last few years. Similar to Curry’s they often have deals on buying digital credit so always check here before buying anything direct from the PS store.
Very – No experience but prices are usually a little more than most other places.
If I’ve missed somewhere you buy games from (who are a retailer and accessible in the UK), let me know and I’ll do my best to add them on.
Disclaimer – All opinions stated are that of the author, Alexx, and do not represent purchasing advice on behalf of Respawning UK.