GameStop has been offering the Edge card for a few years now. It’s just a $15 discount card that gets you 10% off on used game purchases and 10% more on used game trade-ins, along with a year-long subscription to Game Informer magazine. Ever since it was launched, it’s been a simple, boring program.
That could change in the coming months, when the Edge card might evolve into the PowerUp card. The PowerUp card is a rewards program GameStop is currently testing in certain markets. Cardholders collect points from buying and trading in games and systems, which they can redeem for gift certificates, merchandise, and other gamer swag. The card also lets customers enter sweepstakes, participate in store events, and receive regular marketing materials from GameStop.
The PowerUp card will come in two flavors: Regular and Pro. The regular card is completely free, while the Pro card will cost $14.99 per year, the same price as the Edge card. Both cards will accumulate points for rewards, and the Pro card will have all the additional benefits of the original Edge card: 10% off used games, 10% more for trade-ins, and a year’s subscription to Game Informer. The Pro card will also offer a 250-point bonus at enrollment, and add 10% bonus points from all purchases and trade-ins.
The only hitch is the alleged point-reward structure GameStop is planning. GameStop will give players 10 points for each dollar spent on new games and consoles and 20 points for each dollar spent on used games and consoles and received when trading in games and consoles. According to Kotaku, rewards start to kick in at 4,000 points for a $5 off coupon, and can go all the way up to 40,000 points for an Xbox 360 controller or Turtle Beach headset. So even if you maximize your points by only going through used games and trade-ins, you’ll need to spend/trade $1,818 to get a new controller, or $181 to get a $5 off coupon. Hopefully GameStop will loosen its purse-strings and ease its rewards structure when the PowerUp card goes national in the next month or two.
Stingy rewards or not, this is a good change from the Edge card. It takes away nothing from the already present system and adds some (admittedly small) benefits to customers. If you don’t want to participate in the rewards program, you don’t have to. If you want to participate, you can do it for free. If you want your 10% off and Game Informer subscription, you can get it for the same price. It’s not the worst change a games retailer has made.





