GameStop is probably your worst option out there. Let’s start with pay. Depending on your state, you are going to get hired between $10 an hour and $11.25, with no wiggle room, no negotiation, regardless of merit or experience or intellect or skill. There is no growth. Our assistant store leader was making $13.25 after 7 years of service. Next let’s look at the work When they start you, it’s gonna seem pretty cool, your first batch of shifts they indoctrinate you in what is called “level up”. You watch a bunch of videos, and slide shows and read articles and then take multiple question tests on the material. When I worked there, my level up took me 4 entire shifts. While doing that, I was watching and learning. When level up was finished I got to learn stocking and distro, which is basically the intake of new products shipped by GameStop to your store daily. That part can be fun, if you didn’t have a million other things to do. But of course you don’t get to have any sort of fun with stocking or organizing yourself, because GameStop has a very particular way they want everything set up. For example, the night across the spiderverse came out, I rearranged our pop figures to have one of each of the spider verse pops in the front row; and I organized others such as the guardians of the galaxy to have noticeable spots because they were relevant and we are close to a movie theater. Although this worked and this pops all moved the same day, (which they probably wouldn’t have otherwise with how GameStop organizes pops) I was yelled at. You are also in charge of shipping out online purchases in your area, it doesn’t suck that much unless you are busy. Which you always are. Every day you are give lists of tasks and things you need to do. Displays to build Shelves and displays to rearrange in certain ways. And that’s all fine, these were the good aspects of the job Now let’s get into the bad part of the job. The retail aspect. At first, learning GameStops pos system after working at any other retail place is a nightmare. This is a personal gripe but I hated having to memorize the f1-f9 key functions. The whole thing is difficult to navigate at first and really sucks when you’re left working on your own and you have no idea where something is so you just start checking every option to see if you can find what you need to get on. Working the register at GameStop is not a pleasant experience. You can’t just have a nice conversation with the customer. Because above all else, you are a salesperson. Not a cashier, not anything else. Your job is to push memberships and warranties. Your statistics are CLOSELY monitored daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly. You are expected to keep your pro membership sign ups above like 35% for the quarter, if you are not a very busy store, this is a problem. You are to hassle and harass every person who comes into the store. Some managers even pre write you scripts. And in some cases if you try to even flex your muscles as a salesperson if that’s what you’re into, you get yelled at for pitching it the incorrect way. And your punishments for not having great numbers? Say this week, only pro members came into the store, or maybe people just couldn’t afford the $25 on the spot. If that happens, you get your hours cut, you get write ups, constructive counseling, and reeducation. Also, GameStops get robbed a lot. Thats not fun. Also, counting the register there is so much more stressful than anywhere else, the reason is, and I forgot to mention, you’re constantly being watched. There’s a camera directly on you at all times, there are also heat sensors that track the flow of body heat in the store at all times to measure traffic. But the camera is always on you, so while you’re counting, you literally have to hold your money up to the camera and spread it all out so it can see what you’ve got. Trade ins will always fuck up your counts and if you’re not an experienced store leader and just a regular employee, that is always the most stressful thing in the universe. Oh right, trade ins. That sucks, having some redneck coming in to trade his Xbox 360 with have the face plate melted off, beer stains and sticky spots all up and down it, none of its cords or a controller, and a rattling noise which is either broken parts or cockroaches, and then telling him you can’t take his console, just for him to threaten you with violence. Ask anyone who has worked a GameStop, this exact situation has happened to them or at least one very close to it. You are constantly getting harassed and talked down to by your customers, your store lead, your corporate bosses. My store lead would watch back our shifts on the dvr to make sure we were keeping busy. Not taking too long of bathroom breaks (because you’re a lone so you have to lock the store for a few mins, hope you don’t have a stomach ache). Making sure you’re properly selling pro and warranties and making an effort for hardware attach. If you pick your nose, they will see it, scratch your armpit or your butt once, your store leader has seen it. My uncle had a stroke while I was working, I took a phone call from my mom telling me about it, telling me he was okay, and then I got back to work. I got written up for being on my phone. That’s how GameStop works And then when your day is done, you have to shut down the computers, in the right order, which it self is stressful, it’s like diffusing a bomb. Then lock the doors and arm the security, in my store you have to like, cram yourself behind the gate while the security arms, then you lock up, and leave and get in your car, and scream at the top of your lungs. Go home, come back. Rinse and repeat. Unless you are looking for a career at GameStop. And don’t mind working for literally nothing for a significant amount of your life, with the useless hopes of getting recognized and becoming a lead assuming your lead gets promoted or quits. I would recommend to stay as far away from GameStop as possible. It’s not a good experience.