GameStop is closing hundreds of stores as the physical game era fades

[midian182]

The takeaway: GameStop could be going the way of Blockbuster sooner than expected. Hundreds of the once-iconic retailer's stores are closing or have already closed in 2026, and almost 600 outlets were shuttered in its fiscal 2024 year.

Like many brick-and-mortar video game stores, GameStop has struggled as the number of buyers opting for physical games over digital downloads keeps shrinking. Its stores have been closing and worker numbers declining for years now.

GameStop said it expected that more stores would go the same way in fiscal 2025 as the 590 that were shuttered in fiscal 2024, which ended in January 2025.

GameStop has permanently closed in Coolidge Corner, along with locations in Braintree, Burlington, Chestnut Hill, East Longmeadow, Holyoke, Lunenberg, Malden, Methuen, N. Dartmouth, Peabody, Raynham, Stoughton, Waltham, and Westfield. pic.twitter.com/TBu6OF8Otc

– Only In Boston (@OnlyInBOS) January 8, 2026

According to an unofficial blogspot post collating the closures, 435 more stores have closed or are in the process of closing.

Reports claim that stores in Ohio, Illinois, New York, Kansas, Kentucky, Connecticut, and Minnesota will close this month, with more being added to the list almost constantly.

In its December SEC filing, GameStop called the closures a "comprehensive store portfolio optimization." The decision on which stores to shutter was based on individual performance and market conditions.

GameStop said it operated 2,325 stores in the US in early 2025, and an estimated 3,200 stores globally in early 2025. Those numbers will be a lot lower now, especially internationally, where the company said it plans to close a significant number of additional locations.

The firm has been trying to stay relevant by upgrading its e-commerce platform to handle digital downloads, merchandise, and exclusive editions, and shifting more sales online as it closes physical stores, which are increasingly positioned as hubs for in-store pickup and community events rather than just traditional retail. It's also partnered with publishers to sell exclusive game editions and collectibles. There were also its ill-fated crypto and NFT experiments.

Been going to this GameStop for over 12 years. Sad to see it go. All the best to the guys Jose, Nick and more. Check them out before they close on the 8th. This is the 18th av location in Bensonhurst Brooklyn. pic.twitter.com/hV8NxgESUO

– Brooklyn Games & Arcade (@ArcadeBrooklyn) January 3, 2026

But the digital push has yet to pay off. GameStop missed analysts' expectations with its third-quarter revenue of $821 million in December – it was expected to generate $987.3 million. Revenue from hardware and accessories, which include pre-owned games, was down 12% during the quarter.

Closing 20-30% of its stores since the start of 2025 means a lot of GameStop staff have lost their jobs. It's especially jarring when the company's board just announced it would be offering CEO Ryan Cohen up to $35 billion in performance-based stock options, contingent on significantly raising the company's market cap and earnings.

Consumers' move to digital downloads for console games is reshaping the physical retail world. UK video game giant GAME is also struggling. It phased out its pre-owned trade-in and sales business in early 2024.

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GameStop is closing hundreds of stores as the physical game era fades

 

[Neatfeatguy]

I think Gamestops biggest mistake was deserting the retro gaming. Once they stopped taking older games and systems and reselling them and simply focused on the last one or two gens, they cut their self right out of the business. Any gamer could see the writing on the wall, too bad Gamestop ownership couldn't.

I have seen a couple of retro game stores popup in my area and they're always busy. Gamestop, they're never busy anymore. Once the PC market left the physical media I stopped visiting the stores since there were no more PC games to find there. The only time I've since been in a Gamestop was when I got both my kids their own Switch Lite about 6 years back.

Speaking of retro games, just got my hands on a SNES and about 20 games for it. Been playing them and I need to see if I can find copies of games I really enjoyed on the system from my younger years.

 

[VitalyT]

Gabe Plotkin must feel vindicated now, as he was right to short GameStop all along, just got unlucky to catch the sickest squeeze in the history of finance, against a herd of chancers.

If you don't know what's this about - check out the movie "Dumb Money".

 

[Theinsanegamer]

None of this should surprise anyone. GameStop was never healthy, the short squeeze only prolonged their life a few more years. Physical sales decline every month, and trading in games is a dead end now.

 

[Megalomaniac]

Gamestop's business model has been failing for a while.
It was the Reddit shortsqueeze that pumped their stock up during an obvious pump&dump followed by a rug pull, but circumvented by corrupt government. I warned people to stay away from it but many of them put money in it knowing how corrupt the system was.
They closed over 590 stores in 2024.
Between downloaded games, DLC, trading on Ebay, Amazon and several other websites - including Facebook marketplace, the writing was on the wall.

You can get game consoles and hardware with a side of beef or chicken from Walmart, Target, Costco, BJ's, Sam's Club or several other stores. Nintendo products were really their last hope but even Nintendo is moving towards DLC. They should have known the end was near with the advent of STEAM.

 

[CrisisDog]

I will miss the good ol’ days of GameStop where I could buy discs for my GameCube and an Ethernet adapter for PSO. But my local DiscReplay has a bigger selection of everything now, so that is where I usually start looking when I want a physical copy…

 

[amghwk]

I missed the days of going to not only game stores, but even to malls near the electrical section where they sold boxed games.

Those days, especially during DOS era, the boxes were big with paper manuals.

I missed holding the manuals and holding the physical floppy disks and CDs.

Falcon 3.0 manual looks more like a full telephone directory, in terms of the thickness. Worth every penny spent.

 

[FaTaL]

In its December SEC filing, GameStop called the closures a "comprehensive store portfolio optimization."

some dipsht phrase for saying you're a timex watch in a digital age.

 

[MaXtor]

Does no one look at financials anymore? GameStop has been profitable since 2023. They're closing unprofitable stores, reducing liabilities, reducing costs, while increasing profit. They're gradually transitioning to new business models.

They've raised billions of dollars through share offerings which they've invested into treasuries and are now earning tens of millions of dollars of profit on each year. They launched the beta of Power Packs in 2025 which is essentially an online trading card casino (that is consistently selling out of cards). Even their retail operations are now profitable.

2018 -$673M
2019 -470.9M
2020 -$215.3M
2021 -$381.3M
2022 -$313.1M
2023 $6.7M
2024 $131.3M

2025 so far (Q1,Q2,Q3) $290.5M

2025 Q4 doesn't end for a month, but the year is tracking to be their highest net profit year of all time (circa 500M). The CEO takes zero pay and just laid out a performance based stock option salary (similar to Tesla's in 2018). GameStop has a market cap of about 10 billion. The CEO will only profit from his investment as the market cap increases by 10 billion dollar increments (all the way to 100 billion dollars).

But, by all means. Continue ignoring the financials and spreading negative news, and I'll continue accumulating cheap shares of an overlooked and undervalued company.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

Does no one look at financials anymore? GameStop has been profitable since 2023. They're closing unprofitable stores, reducing liabilities, reducing costs, while increasing profit. They're gradually transitioning to new business models.

They've raised billions of dollars through share offerings which they've invested into treasuries and are now earning tens of millions of dollars of profit on each year. They launched the beta of Power Packs in 2025 which is essentially an online trading card casino (that is consistently selling out of cards). Even their retail operations are now profitable.

2018 -$673M
2019 -470.9M
2020 -$215.3M
2021 -$381.3M
2022 -$313.1M
2023 $6.7M
2024 $131.3M

2025 so far (Q1,Q2,Q3) $290.5M

2025 Q4 doesn't end for a month, but the year is tracking to be their highest net profit year of all time (circa 500M). The CEO takes zero pay and just laid out a performance based stock option salary (similar to Tesla's in 2018). GameStop has a market cap of about 10 billion. The CEO will only profit from his investment as the market cap increases by 10 billion dollar increments (all the way to 100 billion dollars).

But, by all means. Continue ignoring the financials and spreading negative news, and I'll continue accumulating cheap shares of an overlooked and undervalued company.

>undervalued
>worth twice what it was worth during the heyday of used games and physical sales

This is why apes are completely divorced from reality.

 

[guillejp]

Does no one look at financials anymore? GameStop has been profitable since 2023. They're closing unprofitable stores, reducing liabilities, reducing costs, while increasing profit. They're gradually transitioning to new business models.

They've raised billions of dollars through share offerings which they've invested into treasuries and are now earning tens of millions of dollars of profit on each year. They launched the beta of Power Packs in 2025 which is essentially an online trading card casino (that is consistently selling out of cards). Even their retail operations are now profitable.

2018 -$673M
2019 -470.9M
2020 -$215.3M
2021 -$381.3M
2022 -$313.1M
2023 $6.7M
2024 $131.3M

2025 so far (Q1,Q2,Q3) $290.5M

2025 Q4 doesn't end for a month, but the year is tracking to be their highest net profit year of all time (circa 500M). The CEO takes zero pay and just laid out a performance based stock option salary (similar to Tesla's in 2018). GameStop has a market cap of about 10 billion. The CEO will only profit from his investment as the market cap increases by 10 billion dollar increments (all the way to 100 billion dollars).

But, by all means. Continue ignoring the financials and spreading negative news, and I'll continue accumulating cheap shares of an overlooked and undervalued company.

Intriguing definitely, but look at the stock, and don't rationalize against the trend, or on a losing story. The social consensus is already set. Hard to learn life advice too. Get out of it.

 

[MaXtor]

>undervalued
>worth twice what it was worth during the heyday of used games and physical sales

This is why apes are completely divorced from reality.

As purchasers of GameStop's convertible notes, BlackRock and State Street disagree with you as they've given GameStop billions of dollars in interest free cash at a 30% premium betting that the price of the stock will appreciate substantially by 2030/2032.

I'm a day trader turned long term investor. 2021 was a great year for volatility trading the stock. Since then, buying leaps has been incredibly profitable. Now, I hold both shares and leaps. If there's another gamma squeeze, I'll sell and buy back when the price drops back down.

Now, follow the herd and buy some AI stocks. Maybe they'll find a way to become profitable, eventually. Although, the continued and consistent insider dumping of their stocks suggests even they expect the bubble will burst.