Jhuard wrote:
Hi there--I am a manager for Best Buy and the length of the midnight opening does depend on how many people show up. If we are open at 12a and not a sole is in sight, we will stay open for about 15 minutes and then close. The best way to ensure you will get a new game is to pre-order it! That way we know how many people to expect on a given night.
Personally as a customer I take issue with that policy and here is why. If Best Buy states they will be open from 12am to a certain time, then regardless of who is there at 12am, the store should remain open until the time originally stated. If a customer isn't there at 12am, they should be penalized for it. You have to take into consideration perhaps tha a customer is on their way, or maybe they work nights and get off at 12am or shortly thereafter, etc. If Best Buy is going to do a midnight launch for a game, the best thing they can do is inform people ahead of time the times they will be open, and stick by it regardless if one person is there or one hundred people are. Gamestop is just as guilty as this as well, but if Best Buy wants to compete with Gamestop, perhaps being one step ahead of them and actually staying open for a solid half hour regardless or one hour will make for happier customers and perhap pull some over Gamestop.
I have been to several midnight launches and most have gone off very well and quite professional at the stores I frequent. Sure, some have been considered "flops" for some stores, but that happens. For Gears of War 2, a store here was expecting a ton of fans to show up, but heavy rains and cold weather resulted in 11 people in line when the doors opened. It just meant more swag for those who showed up, etc.
But in the end, word should come down from the high office that if a store does a midnight launch they have to guarantee to be open during the times outlined on their website or posted in their store. Even if a store is open for a half-hour, that would mean more people would plan on being there and lined up. 2 hours for a midnight launch is overkill, unless it is a major launch like for a new console model, etc. 30-minutes to 1-hour is fair. Yes, I realize there are employees who are being paid to be there, but generally they don't need many, perhaps half a dozen, but that is the nature of doing midnight lauches.
