GameStop employees have the benefit of learning about new releases ahead of the general public, but they may want to keep that information to themselves. Per a recent report from Kotaku, Nintendo had a GameStop employee fired after the company learned he had leaked its latest system, the Nintendo Switch – OLED Model – The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Edition, ahead of its official announcement, which occurred on March 28, 2023. The employee, “Mike,” says he had the system pre-ordered but “won’t be able to afford it anymore due to lack of a job.” Complementing the news is a final trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom that Nintendo released today ahead of the game’s May 12 release date.
From a Kotaku report:
Mike said he immediately confessed, but maintained he wasn’t aware it went against the company’s social media policies. The district manager took their keys and placed them on suspension, saying the final punishment could vary between a first-offense write up and termination. It ended up being the latter. And the now former employee thinks Nintendo is to blame.
When their store manager called on April 11 to deliver the bad news, he said the supervisor told them “off the record” that Nintendo had forced the company’s hand, demanding the employee be terminated over the leak. Mike shared the allegation on the Tears of the Kingdom subreddit shortly afterwards writing, “Hopefully all of you were able to get your switch pre-orders in as now I will not be able to get mine.”