GameStop is Leaving 1 Major Country

GameStop customers in Germany should be aware that the retailer is leaving the country permanently in the near future. The shutdown will limit GameStop‘s presence in the EU even further, with the retail chain already having closed or sold numerous EU stores.

GameStop’s last many years have been tumultuous. The gaming retail giant had ups and downs for much of the 2010s, but in 2019, the company experienced a massive net loss, and the COVID-19 pandemic impacting 2020 forced stores to shut for an extended period of time. Then, in 2023, GameStop completely exited Ireland, closing all stores and even shutting down its Irish website.

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Now, something similar is happening with GameStop and Germany. According to Gameswirtschaft, the number of retail locations in the country had already dropped from 200 to roughly 70, but those remaining stores will be completely shut down “as early as January 31, 2025.” It would seem the store doesn’t have a concrete date for the closures yet, but fans shouldn’t expect them to linger once the holiday season has ended. It’s not clear at this time if GameStop will shut down the online component of its business in Germany.

What Happens With GameStop Purchases and the Company?

At the moment, GameStop is still accepting online pre-orders in the country for games that come out February or later. While there’s a strong likelihood that these orders will end up being canceled, it also begs the question as to whether all pre-orders prior to that date will still be honored. This may indicate that GameStop will continue selling games to Germans online, but it remains to be seen.

Unfortunately, it’s estimated that 500 employees will be losing their jobs due to the GameStop shutdowns. GameStop has been losing its footing in the EU, with the only open locations still owned by GameStop being in France and Germany. The Italian branches of the store were recently sold to a third-party, which will be rebranding the shops in the future and already did so with GameStop’s Swiss locations.

As internet speeds and connectivity become better, more gamers are buying their games online, and skipping physical copies for digital ones. This ease of purchase has led to brick-and-mortar game stores seeing fewer visitors, and even online shops selling fewer physical copies of games. GameStop has made an effort to branch out to additional kinds of retail, like buying and selling Pokemon card singles, retro games, and focusing on collectibles, but it remains to be seen if it will be enough to keep the company going as the industry shifts.

GameStop

Date Founded

January 1, 1984

Headquarters

Grapevine, Texas, United States