GameStop is reportedly looking to overhaul the design of its stores and turn them into hubs for the gaming community.
GameStop had previously confirmed that they are looking to overhaul the design of their stores as part of a reboot of the brand. However, there was really no indication of exactly what that meant besides a vague reference to an interest in turning some stores into venues where people could hold parties and similar events.
Now, though, a video posted on the Facebook page for a GameStop store in Oklahoma may give us a closer look at what these new GameStops will look like. As some have noted, the new store design has more of a natural (almost retro) feel than current stores. Everything also appears to be much cleaner and well-organized, but this is also likely at least partially a by-product of the fact that customers haven’t really had the chance to come in and rummage through everything.
The real story is the variety of amenities located in the store. We see a couch in front of a large TV that seems perfect for competitive play of modern games, a place where you can apparently buy food, and (maybe most interesting of all) several older TVs that are apparently designed to allow you to play retro titles. There’s even a table in the middle of the retro area that looks perfect for tabletop and card games.
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While GameStop says that not every one of their new stores will look like this, it’s pretty clear that the company is in need of some kind of facelift GameStop has been struggling across the board lately. After massive layoffs and massive revenue drops, GameStop is clearly looking for a way to remain relevant in the modern age
Will it work? Well, board game cafes and similar stores seem to be doing okayish these days, and there’s certainly still a burning desire for retro gaming experiences. However, with cloud services like Stadia and Microsoft’s xCloud project threatening to expedite the extinction of video game retail stores, you’ve really got to wonder if GameStop is going to be able to stay afloat.
Matthew Byrd is a staff writer for Den of Geek. He spends most of his days trying to pitch deep-dive analytical pieces about Killer Klowns From Outer Space to an increasingly perturbed series of editors. You can read more of his work here or find him on Twitter at @SilverTuna014.