GAME suspends refunds and Reward Card scheme [Update: Store closures]

GAME officially entered administration today, with no sign of a buyer. The move comes after poor sales during the 2011 holiday season, as well as gaming publishers refusing to negotiate with GAME in order to secure more favourable deals. GAME has taken to Facebook today to inform customers of the moves the company is planning to take moving forward.

GAME say that administrators aim to keep the company trading while they try and find a new owner, and have listed nine changes the company aims to make. Some are temporary changes, while others are permanent.

Some are to be expected, such as intermittent access to GAME's website. Others, however, will most likely leave a bad taste in customers' mouths. For example, all refunds and exchanges have been halted: anyone who has purchased anything from GAME recently won't be able to return the item to get their cash back. Ouch.

Pre-order deposits also won't be refunded, but most importantly, GAME's own Reward and Wallet schemes have been suspended. You won't be able to redeem any points you've accrued on your Reward card, and you won't be able to access any funds loaded onto GAME Wallet. We can't imagine customers will be happy with these changes, especially if you have a lot of Reward points stocked up that can no longer be used.

Update: MCV has a list of GAME and Gamestop stores that will be closed:

GAME

Croydon

Bristol Cabot Circus

Bath Southgate

Milton Keynes Midsummer Place

Coventry West Orchards

Norwich

Bromley

Exeter

Plymouth New George Street

Bournemouth Commercial Road

Birmingham Palisades

York

Liverpool

Telford – both stores

Manchester Arndale – both stores

Burton-on-Trent

Birmongham Fort

Canterbury

Falkirk

Stevenage

Blackburn

Glasgow Buchanan Galeries

Reading Oracle

Basingstoke

Barrow

Bridlington

Weston Super Mare

Stockton on Tees Wellington Square

Newcastle

Edinburgh Ocean Terminal

Edinburgh Princes Street

Stirling

Portsmouth Cascades

Cardiff Queen Street

Dorchester

Gloucester

Preston St George's Centre

Slough

Glasgow Sauchiehall Street

Isle of Wight

Northampton

Galway

London Victoria

Sittingbourne

Dublin Dundram

GAMESTATION

Birmingham New Street

Sutton

Enfield

Bromley

Llaneli

Sunderland

Norwich

Great Yarmouth

Taunton

Ilford

Cumbernauld

Coventry

Hyde

Bournemouth

Brighton

Liverpool

Shrewsbury

Stafford

Leicester

Skelmersdale

Perth

Halesowen

Walsall

Gainsborough

Harlow

Dumbarton

Cannock

Kettering

Stockton on Tees High Street

Salisbury

Hartlepool

Stevenage

Nuneaton

Cheltenham

High Wycombe

Glasgow Sauchiehall Street

Hastings

Long Eaton

Leamington