• GameStop may be the largest video-game retailer, but it’s a dying one, and it’s been that way for years.
• The COVID-19 pandemic shot a much-needed jolt of life into GameStop as people sought at-home entertainment.
• An online forum sent GameStop’s stock price through the roof, shaking up the US financial system in the process.
• Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Two years ago, GameStop was quickly deteriorating, ready to become a mere relic of the video game retail era.

The gaming retailer, the largest in the industry, began to flail within the past decade as game developers turned toward creating digital versions of their games. Customers went from camping outside stores to be the first to snag the new version of “Call of Duty” to downloading or streaming it online from their homes. 

Read more: Some GameStop store employees are getting investing questions from customers and they’re in the dark about how to handle it

Here’s how GameStop was merely a dying brand two years ago, found a temporary safety net during the pandemic in 2020, and has evolved into a full-blown “meme stock” that has sent earthquakes through the traditional American financial system.