There's some real cheapass scumbags out there.

[helava]

Went to Target to get Ninja Gaiden tonight. Ended up with a case, with three sheets of folded blank paper and a scratched up CDR inside. The case had been carefully opened, had the sticker reapplied, and then re-shrinkwrapped.

Target refused to give me a refund, because I can't prove *I* didn't take the disc out and replace it with garbage.

So. If you're out there, you worthless sack of s**t, I hope you die.

seppo

[spoo]

Assholes!! I am going to look over every new game I buy twice now.

[Scrubking]

Is this thread a deal or a request?

[LV-426RS]

sounds like a deal....







for the guy that screwed him over

[Naughty_Insomniac]

Scrubking cracks me up! I swear, I think it's the combination of your cynical personality and that stupid cow ... makes me laugh every time! :lol: :mrgreen: :P

[Prometheus]

sounds like a deal....







for the guy that screwed him over

Yah, that sucks man. = /

[Quackzilla]

Just open it at the register, man.

Or get revenge:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2992316650&category=19 257

Someone on ebay is selling 2 pounds of cow shit and will ship annonymously to gift addresses.

[JimmieMac]

Getting fucked over by other people is what seperates us from the animals.

[evilmax17]

I want to know what the papers said. "Sorry I screwed you over"?

BTW, if you brought it back on the same day, they should've given you a refund. The first rule of thumb is to trust the customer, especially if they're back right away. They should've at least given you a giftcard.

[guessed]

That really does suck. You should have told the CSR to try to prove that he didn't do it. After all, the game came from his store, so he had plenty of opportunity. I know that wouldn't have helped any though. I'd go back to Target, try again, and if they still give you a hard time about it, get the corporate contact info and write to them. It could be a waste of time, but it might be worth a shot.

You might even want to try contacting Tecmo, and telling them you bought the game, but it didn't have instructions or a game disc in it, just the case, and ask if there is any way they could replace it. I think that is even less likely to work, though. Good luck.

[MadFlava]

Also, you can try threatening them that you will file a police report that target sold you a defective item and will not replace it. I'm sure they will just give you a new copy of the game and not want to take this any further.

[Quackzilla]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2992316650&category=19 257

Just send them the poop!

[magilacudy]

I didn't think that was possible. I returned Metal Arms new and sealed to EB and the manager opened up the game and checked if everything was inside. I thought that was ridiculous at the time, but I guess that sort of thing is more commonplace than I realized.

[WhipSmartBanky]

Part of me finds this funny in that "HA-HAH </nelson>" sort of way, but that really sucks, man.

Someone went to an awful lot of trouble to defraud Target on that.

[doraemonkerpal]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2992316650&category=19 257

Just send them the poop!

LOL!


also, contact the bbb and let them know. they might help you out.

[dtcarson]

It was probably internal, most retail losses are internal 'shrinkage.' But I could see an average person doing that too, as long as he had access to a shrinkwrap machine. I'd be surprised if the person I returned a product like that to, opened it to 'check.' [since it was sealed.]
I don't know how much of a stretch this would be, but there's a federal law, I believe, that states something has to work as it's claimed to. It doesn't have to work *well*, or as you want. I think it's called implied warranty of merchantability, or something. If you went back and tried again, then spoke to Corporate and/or Tecmo, you could then try that--you bought a product, not marked as-is, and represented as new, which does not in ANY way work as it's supposed to.
That 'you might have done it yourself' is a cop-out--I've returned broken things before, and no one has ever refused saying 'You might have done yourself.' They should at least have replaced it with the same title, and not accused you of being a crook.

[evilmax17]

I think it's clever that they put a disk and paper in, to compensate for the stuff in the case. Indiana Jones style...

[JimmieMac]

I think it's clever that they put a disk and paper in, to compensate for the stuff in the case. Indiana Jones style...

That's what I was thinking. The guy standing there with a hand full of paper trying to guess what it feels like when it's back in the box.

[neopolss]

Here's advice from someone who got scammed. I bought a harddrive from best buy which someone apparantly swapped, resealed, and returned. Take it back the same day ASAP! Next, remind them that you are a customer and that you are right. Next, if they refuse, remind them that they are in fact accusing *you* of stealing and calling you a liar. Remember that line. Next ask for the corporate number or customer service number and call IN FRONT OF THEM. Remember to repeat your statements to the customer service about their refusal is an accusation of wrongdoing. Also remind them that you are currently standing in their store and each customer is hearing the conversation. If they still refuse, leave, never come back.

[cruster]

Gotta agree with all the advice above - especially considering that Target, in my experience, has usually been pretty reasonable. You probably just got a CSR who was having a bad day. I would go back there, ask again, and take it to a manager. I can't imagine they'd think that you were stupid enough to bring back three pieces of paper and ask for a new copy - what would be the point? You're not asking for credit or a different game, just what you paid for...

[coolsteel]

This reminds me of back when I worked at Sears, someone returned a sealed n64 game so we thought nothing of it. So then that same copy gets sold to someone else and they bring it back, what was actually inside the package? Paper, nickels and a few rocks shaped like an n64 game, I tell you I haven't seen anything like it before or since, they got the exact shape and weight down perfectly.

[Mr Unoriginal]

I think the only reasonable thing to do at this point is to get your hands on a shrink wrap machine, buy all of their games and then return them all "sealed"

[Theenternal]

DVD's and CD are difficult to get a good professional looking replacement seal. The best thing to do is open them carefull, its not that hard to do. And save the dvd wrapper then you can put it back in there and add some light glue to reseal it. BTW go back to target and raise H@ll

[PsyClerk]

I'm not trying to make light of the situation, but I think it would have been funny if those sheets of paper had crude drawings of ninjas on them.

Anyways, just go back and, as posted above, raise hell. Make a scene if they stand firm and get a manager involved. Don't go off on the grunts working a register, though, save that for management. That's what they're there for.

[Theenternal]

I'm not trying to make light of the situation, but I think it would have been funny if those sheets of paper had crude drawings of ninjas on them.

HAHAH!

Actually if you are younger, bring your Dad or your Mom, make a little scene they will give in.

[GizmoGC]

Xbox seals are hard to break and reseal, PS2's are really easy since thereon the top. I really think you might be screwed, especially since its a new title, and the chance of someone buying it and returning it are pretty slim in less then a week.

[jkam]

I not that long ago returned a sealed gameboy game to Target. The lady ripped open the plastic and I was like that was weird...also thought it was stupid. Now I understand why.

[Freshwillis]

A similar thing happened to me with warioware at target. I took the empty box back and they exchanged it with no problems.

[dtcarson]

I'm not trying to make light of the situation, but I think it would have been funny if those sheets of paper had crude drawings of ninjas on them.

Anyways, just go back and, as posted above, raise hell. Make a scene if they stand firm and get a manager involved. Don't go off on the grunts working a register, though, save that for management. That's what they're there for.

I agree with this--having been on all three sides [aggrieved customer, powerless clerk, and management] this is absolutely right. If the clerk treats you rudely, then that's definitely their fault and you should call them on it [with the manager], but wacky things like this situation, they probably have never/rarely run into, and most likely don't have authority to do anything anyway.
Not to mention, being a loud pushy jerk to anyone, clerk or management [not saying you were, just in general], usually results in them thinking 'I'm damned if I'm going to bend for this jerkass customer.' You can be tough, demanding, but still courteous, and that's what gets the best result.

[Theenternal]

Im very interested to see how this turns out, let us know your results

[nelsed]

Well crap.. that really sucks...

But remember if that stick is carefully reapplied... someone had to use their hands to do it... I'd be getting ready to dust that thing for prints... and have target cross reference any gaiden returns in the past 2 weeks and nail the bastard....

50 bucks is a rip... of either target or you.... get some police action involved...

Of course this person probably doesn't have a record... but you never know.

[elprincipe]

I want to know what the papers said. "Sorry I screwed you over"?

BTW, if you brought it back on the same day, they should've given you a refund. The first rule of thumb is to trust the customer, especially if they're back right away. They should've at least given you a giftcard.

Ah, but this is Target. Their first, second and third rules on returns is screw the customer.

[helava]

Well, I went to the Target by my work the next mornind, and told them that I was sent here by the other Target. The CSR's told me I could only exchange it at the original Target. I asked to talk to the manager, so when the manager came over, I explained the situation, told her that I understood that this wasn't anything *they* did wrong, but that I was sick of getting dicked around by Target corporate, and she exchanged it on the spot.

So, it worked out in the end, more or less. Way more of a pain in the ass than it needed to be, but ah, well.

seppo

[bmulligan]

This is a good reaon to pay for everything by credit card. More often than not, when a retailer tries to screw you simply state you will have the CC card company remove the charge. All it takes is a written letter of explanation to the CC company and they will immediately remove the charge pending an investigation. Usually just the threat of this sways the retailer that you mean business and will usually get them to capitulate. More often than not, the comsumer wins these complaints, so they are typically more willing to comply at the point of sale than have to deal with their accounting department superiors and extra busy work filling out forms.

[wookieballz]

I always open my games right at the store where I bought them, and make sure I check the game, the manual, and the case thoroughly before I even get into the car. You can never be too careful these days, with retailers that repackage old games as new and jackholes who mess with your game before returning it.

[bob_the_goon]

I worked at TRU during the 16 bit era, and we had a rash of returns of genesis and SNES games that were cleaning kits rewrapped in the original boxes. They figured out it was one individual, but weren't smart enough to open returned games to check. They demanded drivers lisence info instead and never did catch the guy.

[sman113]

I fyou go to target and make a stink about it they will exchange it. Make sure to talk to a manager. a customer service rep is supposed to say no, b/c if you were a lying person you will likely take no for an answer the first time. However if you make a stink about it, they likely will replace it.

I also think its a good idea to call tecmo. Often they replace bad disks and it costs them virtually nothing since you already paid for the game. Just tell them your situation and i bet they would send you a new one. Target corporate the same way.

You could always sue. They say you cant prove that you werent the one who did it, but they also cant prove you were the one who did.

Oh and its not really law that stores have to make exchanges b/c often times in the instruction manuals there are pages that say contact publisher for defective disks and not the retailer. So target could be assholes and say its not their problem. Talk to the manager, though, and they usually are pretty good about it.

I've returned games at best buy before that looked re-shrink-wrapped (like some microsoft first party games that have that shitty wrapping) and best buy opened it to make sure it was legit. Then of course i see them in the back of the C.S. desk reshirnkwrapping it. Shit happens, and it sucks. Guaranteed there is more than just that one N.G. in the target case w/out a game in it so be careful if you go back to the same one.

[Ivanhoe]

sure might of been internal
but also could of be external too.

a guy buys ninja giaden returns it after he takes out game and reshrink wraps it.

At bestbuy we dont open up new games when they are returned
they just go right back on the shelf (less they look like a fake wrap job)

so ya its possible . and we have made returns like this before a guy buys a cd and its a cdr when he gets home.

or buys a game and its a cdr when he gets home.


no way to prove it either way for the store or customer
I would just open up the game as soon as your walking out of the store or somthing to be extra safe :(

[toona]

Same kind of deal happened to us from Target. We bought an Xbox Live kit with the headset and 12 months. Opened it up and the 12 month card had been removed from the plastic package inside. Target did a lot of checking and questioning but did return it for a new package. Now someone out there is operating on a 12 month subscription that they got for nothing......

[Cracka]

yes i sure am....




jk

[toona]

[yes i sure am.... ]

Aha!

[KingDox]

Yeah, This happend with me at CC. I got Operation Flash point with a cd case but no CD and no serial card. I went back the same day(a pain in the ass) but I got a new copy. They made me fill out a form, I'm guessing so that know I'm not pulling a scam.

My buddy works Security at Target. This thing with swaped cds happens ALL THE TIME. He tells me that usually they put aol cds in the cases.

Guys, always be sure to open your games in the parking lot.

[Mr. Anderson]

I think it's clever that they put a disk and paper in, to compensate for the stuff in the case. Indiana Jones style...

When my mom confiscated my copy of Vice City, I just found it and put an old demo disc in it and took the original disc out to play it, so when she shook it or picked it up, it felt like it was in there. Of course, she could have just opened it, but luckily she didnt'.

[wubb]

There was an article in the Washington Post (I think) about this exact scam. A guy had bought a digital camera for his kid's class and when the teacher opened it up she found a neatly taped together camera-shaped mass of screws and bolts. Again Target refused to give them an exchange or refund. (But at the end of the story it says Target gave the school a new camera - after learning a newspaper article was going to be written of course.) I think they interviewed a cop who said there are gangs that do this.

Really sucks that you were nailed by this. Glad they ended up doing right by you in the end.

[ultimanecat1]

I must admit that I have done this very scam myself...or, at least something very similar.

When I originally bought a PS1 WAY back in the day (not too long after it came out), I got it with Resident Evil and a memory card. It played Resident Evil alright, although with some odd sound glitches (dialog from another scene would play sometimes instead of the correct dialog). In any case, the system was spotty as all hell in playing anything else...only about half the games on it would load and play consistently; others would just freeze at the loading screen.

I didn't buy anymore games for it for awhile...when I finally got some more games, they wouldn't work. After all this time, I finally realized that I got a malfunctioning PS1. Now, unfortunately, this was after the 90 day warranty period. So, I went to CC, bought a new PS1 with cash, and then just stuck my old one back in there and returned it.

In general, I don't feel too guilty about it. Apparently, enough bad PS1's were produced in those early days (and this "scam" done so often) that it forced Sony to produce a training booklet about "How to accept returned Playstations". For the PS2, I knew better and just waited for Sony to release a later model that wouldn't die after a year of use.

[MaxBiaggi3]

Usually, it's pretty simple to tell when you're getting a repackaged game. The factory plastic seal is thicker, tougher and harder than the stuff store shrinkwrap machines used. The factory plastic is also neatly folded at the top and bottom edges while the store shrinkwrap binds to itself all around the edges of the case. If you're buying an Xbox or PS2 game, you can look for the "tamper proof" seal, but as we've seen, that's no guarantee that it's still factory sealed. Still if the seal is broken or missing beneath the plastic wrap, you know for sure that something is wrong.

[Theenternal]

My playstation was the first big thing that I bought when I got my first job. 200+60 for 3 games, and the system ended up crapping out on me less than 2 years later. It eventually led me on the path of repairing many, many other broken playstations.

[doraemonkerpal]

wow, that sucks. i bought mine about a year after it came out and it's been perfect ever since :)

[neopolss]

I actually did this once for a PS2. The emotion chip burned out and I couldn't afford another $300 then, so I went to Target, bought one, and swapped. Now since they scan the UPC codes on the model, I had to switch the PS2 covers. I also had to open the bottom of the box so as not to damage the seal, then super glue it back together to achieve that factory look. Yes, I know it was wrong, but I've also heard of numerous problems with Sony support. Working in the retail business anyway, my company just sent damaged items back to the vendor for credit, so I didn't feel too bad.

[Theenternal]

My friend tried doing the replace the faceplate scam with a burner back when they were way more expensive, he tried trading his 4x for an 8x and it worked... then he tried a year later swapping the plate on his 8x for a 16x, cut the glue on the bottom of the box glue thing. Then took it to Best Buy and they opened it and took it to the back of the store to test it. He just walked out :lol:

BTW I got 2x burner back in highschool in 1998 it cost me treefitty. 350.00 for a 2x It still works takes 40 mins to burn a cd. I obviously don't use it anymore though I gave it to my friends church.

[Snake2715]

There was an article in the Washington Post (I think) about this exact scam. I think they interviewed a cop who said there are gangs that do this.

This has got to be the funniest thing I could have heard all day.

Seriously like it takes a gang to do something like this. This is such a great area to go to for a laugh.

I had heard of people getting screwed over the same way.

No just imagine this.

That person/gang member :lol: had typed up a really impressive line of bull like:

CONGARTULATIONS

You have just purchased the 1st Ninja Gaiden to come off our presses. Please call (310) 944-5005 to claim your limited edition NINJA GAIDEN XBOX.

Please use reference #1D0U0M0B04SS

And shoved it in the box it would have been that much more funny. Think the target people wouldnt want to return it due to them thinking it was a promotiona nd TECMO wouldnt know what the hell you were talking about.

I can just picture it now... :shock:

[fieldkillah]

Once I bought NHL hockey for game gear from media play and when I opened it up there was nothing inside the box. I went back and they said that they accidentally wrapped the box of the game that was inside the demo game gear, the worst thing is they said I could have the game from the demo machine for the same price, I said no of course because seriously, who wants to pay full price for a game that has been running for 12 hours a day non-stop for months.

[mrtoki]

There was an article in the Washington Post (I think) about this exact scam. I think they interviewed a cop who said there are gangs that do this.

This has got to be the funniest thing I could have heard all day.

Seriously like it takes a gang to do something like this. This is such a great area to go to for a laugh.


Actually, being from L.A. I don't find the cop's statement funny or surprising at all. Gangs always come up with ways do simple little scams but in such mass quantities that they make hundreds of thousands of dollars.

[Snake2715]

I never said it wasn't true or its not possible. I don't live in Cali I have only visited and my Father-in-Law there.

I just think it was pretty funny. The comment had no statements to back it up and it seemed like the easy way out. Kind of like everyone in the media trying to blame video games for violence.

Also I am glad the whole deal worked out and he ended up getting his game.