Yesterday, the Internet was set ablaze by rumors of a potentially industry-changing new program that GameStop is said to be unveiling this holiday season. For the unaware, a supposedly leaked poster made the rounds yesterday, claiming GameStop was set to introduce arental program called Power Passthat would allow customers to pay $60 in exchange for unlimited access to the store’s library of used games for a six month period. If such a program exists, however, GameStop employees have not been made aware of it.
We reached out to a few differentGameStopsto see if any employees had been told about the rumored game rental program. As some may expect, all three employees we spoke to denied the existence of such a program. “I don’t know anything about that,” one employee said. “They haven’t said anything to us if it’s real or not.”
Another GameStop employee we spoke to was surprised to hear that such a rental program was even rumored. He did a bit more digging for us, and said that there was nothing in his store’s systems indicating that such a program is going to be introduced. This is telling, as with GameStop’s big holiday sales season right around the corner, one would imagine that stores would be prepped for the game rental program, if it indeed exists.
Whether or not the above poster has been faked has been the source of some debate. If such marketing material does exist, it’s somewhat surprising that GameStop stores haven’t received any yet. Then again, it’s possible GameStop stores are well aware of the upcoming Power Pass rental program, but are denying it as that’s what they’ve been told to do by corporate.
We won’t know for sure if GameStop’s game rental program is legitimate or not until GameStop itself offers some definitive answers. However, it’s easy to see how the game rental program would make sense for the company.GameStop closed 150 storesearlier this year, and with digital sales increasing, such a program could ensure that the company stays relevant in the years to come.
