For a while now, Amazon has been dipping its toes into offering enticing deals to gamers on launch dates. Before, any video game purchase was 20% off as long as it was made within the first two weeks of launch. This was, of course, an exclusive benefit to Amazon Prime members. But now, Reddit users have discovered Amazon has quietly updated its terms to remove a few choice items from the ongoing deal.
Reddit user voneahhh posted their discovery, which states, “Offer does not apply to certain video game products such as toys to life, collector’s editions, and product bundles including but not limited to console game bundles and accessory bundles.” This is kind of a huge deal! The effect on toys to life stuff is debatable, as the genre seems to be on the decline anyway. However, that 20% makes a world of difference when it comes to collector’s editions. Those things can start around $70 and shoot up to well over $100; any little bit taken off that counts for a lot.
Furthermore, I find myself wondering what defines a “collector’s edition” in Amazon’s terms. Sometimes a game will have a limited initial run that is treated like a collector’s edition, but runs at the same price as the eventual standard shipments. Will those be included, effectively messing with the discount for a game’s full launch? That’s just off the top of my head, but something I’ll certainly be paying attention to.
This comes after a noticeable increase in Amazon Prime difficulties, including a horrifically botched Switch launch that left many pre-orders (mine included) unfulfilled over the launch weekend. Competitors like Best Buy, with its bi-annual subscription service offering a 20% discount on any video game, are being talked about more and more. Sure, Amazon Prime is more general-purpose and has tons of other benefits, but in terms of video games, things appear to be oddly unstable right now.
Source: Reddit