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With the rise of digital downloads, buying physical copies of games at GameStop brick-and-mortar stores has become less of a necessity for many gamers. The trend has hit the retailer hard, and it is reportedly closing a significant number of its US stores.
As Polygon reports, citing a blog that tracks these closures, GameStop will shut down over 400 stores this year. The blog maintains a state-by-state list of locations on the chopping block, and it gathers its data from GameStop employees and the retailer's own store locator. The list updates regularly, and as of publishing, it names 471 stores spread across more than 40 states.
The store closures are part of GameStop's cost-cutting measures. In an SEC filing last month, the retailer said that it had shut down 590 stores in 2024 and was anticipating the closure of "a significant number of additional stores in fiscal 2025." The fiscal year ends on Jan. 31, 2026.
As of February 2025, GameStop had 2,325 locations in the US. The SEC filing and reports of further closures indicate a reduction of around 20-30% of its physical stores.
Notably, last week, GameStop pledged billions in stock options to CEO Ryan Cohen if he could increase the company's market cap from its current $9.3 billion to $100 billion. When Cohen took over as CEO in 2021, the market cap was at $1.3 billion. Some of his attempts to resurrect the company include selling physical trading cards and investing in Bitcoin.