So the release of Grand Theft Auto V happened, and went off without a hitch, but as I sat in my car with a good friend of mine waiting for a line that extended from the front of our local Gamestop to the street corner roughly a block away, I began to think to myself if this load time of waiting is all worth it.
I worked at Gamestop for some time, and every single midnight launch for a triple A title got me excited to work the event. From the buzz of the crowd to the plethora of swag that we gave out, and if you were lucky my hot lady cowerers would dress up as characters from the game. All this with the chance of the red bull girls coming out to fake interest in the guys for an hour or so. It had me pump for the nights events. The lines were always long, but with all that was going on the people didn't seem to care one bit. Plus at the end of the night you left with a triple A game. It was a geeks version of hitting up the club, having drinks with everyone, then leaving with the hottest girl there. At the GTA 5 launch I finally saw what is was like from the other side.
I arrived at my local store ready for the festivities to begin, but not seeing anything happening from afar. As I got closer I realize that actually nothing is going on. No lights, no balloons, no snacks, not even one cosplayer on deck to take my attention away from the fact that I have to stand in a very long line and wait for a highly anticipated game. I held out hope for the red bull girls but to no avail. It seemed the night was going to be filled with nothing but waiting. So I decided to check out other venues to see if I just picked the wrong place to wait. I drove one exit down the freeway to the next Gamestop to see what was happening, but just as the borefest that I left from, this Gamestop had nothing but, from what I can only assume, a mixture of geeks and gangsters lurking in a poorly lit area outside of the store. On top of that the line was just as long as the previous Gamestop. Of course being the cautious person I am I left the scene of that future crime waiting to happen. So I was zero for two on the night, and decided to look to a whole new company, Best buy. I didn't hold high hopes for Best buy so arriving there, what I saw was actually pleasant. Although there were no flashing lights or event girls dancing around, the line was very small. It seemed you could get you game the quickest at this venue, and I was a little envious because I had pre ordered my copy at Gamestop, which now was my only choice since it was paid off with trades. So back the long loading screen line I went.
The night dragged on as I waited in my car for my game. The line moved slowly and I was bored out of my mind. It really made me take a long look at my life, and I didn't want to do that. I wanted to get my game after enjoying a celebration of its release, but that was not to be. I finally received my game at about one in the morning, and left feeling unsatisfied. I'm not sure if its Gamestop's responsibility to offer a great experience at these releases anymore, but when I worked there it sure felt like it was, and now with digital downloads just around the corner, is it even necessary for me to venture out to these “events”. After the GTA 5 release I'm left split. Part of me says yes, and part of me says no, but the part that says yes will always win, but next time “yes me” will be smarter and do research at the venue just to see if the I should even show up. Cause after that night I felt like a geek that hit the club up, got drinks spilled on me, waited in line for the bathroom, then went home with the hottest girl in the club.
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