Welcome to the Canadian Deals & Discussion thread. Here, we go full consumer on video games because in this industry you can put a price on art and right now that price is usually $79.99+tax which none of us want to spend. Please share deals you find here. We will often also stray off topic to other topics that affect us as Canadians. Usually this will be somewhat related to the topic of gaming or deals and it's fine, hold on to your butts, the thread will get back on track in time.
Thread title suggested by Arthois, logo by Kaiyo, original thread by Firestorm.
Thread title suggested by Arthois, logo by Kaiyo, original thread by Firestorm.
If you're looking for limited edition items or want to know right when new deals are posted, it's highly recommended you join our Discord Server and set up the appropriate notifications. Most of our members have been able to get SNES Classics, Switches, and whatever other item they need with this setup. This thread is still awesome for normal sales and advice from other Canadians, but if you're posting deals here anyway, be sure to give the Discord Server a shout too!
The Canadian Gaming Deals ERA Discord Server (V3):
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Current Discord Features (as of 11/12/2018):
- Landing/Welcome Page with Detailed Rules, FAQ, and Layout
- 5-Minute Member Delay & Auto-Role
- Custom, User-set Notifications (Divided by Console/Theme/Hunt)
- Provincial Rank/Role notifications (For retail store offerings in your area)
- Full mobile support & push notifications.
- Friday Game Nights w/ Voice Chat Support
- General & Spoiler Channels for Discussions
If anyone has any suggestions or feedback, please contact us through discord or reply to this post.
Please remember to read the rules in #welcome and the latest server updates in #news-and-updates before posting & discussing deals on the server. If it's a local deal or you're looking for something, try to say what city!
Here are some sources for Canadian Gaming Deals that we've found across the internet. Feel free to suggest more so we can populate this list with resources for everyone.
- Lbabinz on Twitter
- A useful source of recent and upcoming deals for us Canadians.
- Flip
- Apparently an official trade-in value calculator for Best Buy
- RedFlagDeals
- The largest Canadian deals website.
- GameDealsCanada Twitter Feed
- No_Style puts pretty much everything in this thread into a Twitter feed.
- GameDealsCanada Facebook Page
- If you'd rather follow on Facebook, you can Like No_Stye's page
- Toronto Community Thread
- The local Toronto community is strong here.
If you're in Metro Vancouver...
In Out Parcel in Point Roberts is probably the most used service. You can set it up to use lockers so you don't even need to deal with a person. It's $3.75 per package and you have 2 weeks to pick it up with 24/7 access. When you sign up you're given an address to use. Very simple.
Shoppers Drug Mart
A store you wouldn't think sells games but does. The deals to be had are using their PC Optimum Program. You can earn and redeem PC Optimum points for almost everything (except prepaid cards and subscriptions). You earn 15 points per dollar spent at Shoppers Drug Mart. At 10,000 points, you can redeem for $10 off at Shoppers and other Loblaw's stores (Superstore, No Frills, Your Independent Grocer, Loblaws). You can redeem up to 500,000 points ($500) in one transaction.
That said, it's best to call your store in advance to see if it sells games, as your mileage may vary on if yours does or not.
20x Events
You need to make a purchase of $50 before tax, but you will earn 300 points per dollar. This equates to 30% of your pre-tax purchase back in points. So if you buy a $500 PS4 Pro, you will get (15x20x500) 150,000 points ($150) which you can use in a future transaction on essentials such as controllers and games. Oh and groceries too, if you're into that.
Bonus Point Events
These are usually 25,000 points ($25) for a $75 purchase or 45,000 points for a $125 purchase. The ratios are slightly better than a 20x event (33% and 36% back in points), but only if you spend to the threshold. These promos are usually best for one $80 game, for example.
Bonus Redemption Events
You can redeem at above the normal redemption rate at these events. Usually it's 60,000 for $75 (extra $15), 130,000 for $175 (extra $40), and 250,000 for $350 (extra $100). 20x is usually better, but you have to redeem your points sometime. Again, redeem as close to the threshold as possible. So the highest tier would be best for a Switch, for example.
Family & Friends
While no substitute for your real family (us fine folk on Resetera and Discord), these events (usually on a Tuesday) offer 20% off a regular-priced item. Again, 20x the points is better but if you can stack with a points offer or prefer to pay less money out of pocket, then this deal is for you.
Walmart
Especially during E3, their pre-order and sale prices can be the best in the country (low bar), and Amazon usually matches them. The catch is that you can't change your order, address, payment, or cancel an order 30 minutes after placing it. (Oh, and that they like to charge and refund your card for pre-orders. A side effect is that refunds can take a while.)
Amazon.ca
Pales in comparison to its US brother, but they match most sales and promotions. You can sometimes get lucky with random price drops that will stack with E3 promotions but their shipping is awful. You will not receive your game on Day 1 so if that's important to you don't bother. Prime is now dead to those buying games, so don't expect any added value if you're a prime-member. Avoid unless you're buying full price anyway and don't mind shipping delays.
Best Buy
The only trade-in alternative (chain-wise) to EB. Don't trade in games there. They are the other option from Amazon for E3 and, in 2015, Black Friday offered 30% off all pre-orders. Recently their promos have been significantly worse. You'll get the game Day 1 in most cases if you're in a major city but their order management on the web leaves much to be desired.
The Source
Clearance games can drop to under $5. Website ships to store for free. Their eBay site has decent stuff.
Indigo
Games are exclusive to their website. Free shipping to stores but it's very slow. Sometimes has coupon sales that also apply to consoles.
EB Games
There is no price matching or protection here so be wary of purchasing anything at full price unless you have to. Their trade-in promos in the last year have been solid around console launches. Don't trade in games if there's no promo.
EB Games also offers trade-in deals every Thursday, often doubling Values - so wait and watch their emails/flyers!
Staples
They sell games on their website, but seem to have abandoned it at the store-level.
Superstore
They only seem to sell consoles and controllers during special events now, but they'll offer gift cards and no tax.
Toys'r'Us
Yes it's still around. Sometimes they have coupons, so it's worth checking.
E3
During E3, Walmart, Amazon, and Best Buy usually have pre-order deals on all the games announced at the show. You aren't charged until they ship and can cancel at any time so it's a good idea to pre-order! These range from 30% off to $20 off each title. Check this thread at E3! At this point it's the only time people buy games.
Black Friday
Black Friday and Boxing Day have similar deals and it's usually a chunk off popular games from major publishers in the year. It's not something really worth waiting for.
Boxing Day
It's basically online shopping on Christmas Eve now.
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