In 2008, Americans spent $11.6 billion on boxed video games. By 2025 that number was $1.5 billion, an 87% collapse. And the chain of events that emptied the aisle started with the thing gamers loved most about it, the trade-in counter. Publishers made $0 every time a used copy changed hands. GameStop built an empire in that gap, buying your copy back for $15 and selling it again for $35 while the studio that spent four years making the game got nothing on the resale. The used counter was…