Failboat.

[lothar]

I bought Warcraft III Battlechest from Gamestop months ago when it was being sold for $19.99 as a gift for my friend.
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2062145&highlight=warcraft

I just opened the box for the first time while packing because I'm traveling abroad tomorrow to see him and there's nothing there but bunch of manuals and strategy guides.

I am at a shock. I feel foolish for not checking it immediately after I bought it 4 months ago.

Has this ever happened to anyone here?
I don't buy new games often from them so it's never happened to me. I only buy used games from there on old gen systems(I don't have any of the current systems). Everything else is either Amazon or Steam for me.

In fact, the only brand new games I've bought from Gamestop the past 5 years is Warcraft III Battle Chest($19.99) and Unreal Anthology($2.99)

 

[manimal]

Are the codes in there?

 

[Schadenfroh]

Happened to me with Half-Life 1, everything but the CD and license was in there. Shrink-wrapped as well, thankfully I discovered it while returning from EB. I check all the boxes I buy now.

 

[lothar]

No.
Nothing but Manual and Brady Games strategy guides.

Interesting tidbit on what was in the box:
a.) Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos Game Manual
b.) BradyGames Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos Battle chest guide
c.) BradyGames Warcraft III: Frozen Throne chest guide
d.) Some product catalog from Blizzard

Why isn't there a Frozen Throne Game Manual? :hmm:

 

[lothar]

Happened to me with Half-Life 1, everything but the CD and license was in there. Shrink-wrapped as well, thankfully I discovered it while returning from EB. I check all the boxes I buy now.

How is it possible for it to be shrink-wrapped with the CD not being in it?
I was under the assumption the game developers put on the shrink wraps or is it something Gamestop does themselves?

Hmm...Maybe I should check my Unreal Anthology that I got for $2.99 since it's shrink-wrapped as well, but I think I'll leave that honor to my friend. Don't need to be disappointed for a second time.

 

[zerocool84]

How is it possible for it to be shrink-wrapped with the CD not being in it?
I was under the assumption the game developers put on the shrink wraps or is it something Gamestop does themselves?

Hmm...Maybe I should check my Unreal Anthology that I got for $2.99 since it's shrink-wrapped as well, but I think I'll leave that honor to my friend. Don't need to be disappointed for a second time.

Anybody can shrink wrap anything. You can do that at home. All you need is some shrink wrap and a heat gun and yes, people at Gamestop can and do re-shrink wrap things. I used to work there so I know.

 

[lothar]

http://www.threadmeters.com/mLMDPH/My_Battlechest_didnt_come_with_any_discs/
Seems to be a common occurrence.

Maybe it's just better to eat the loss up on this one.
If I were to go to the store and explain to them, I would probably be given the "evil eye" look given it's from 4 months ago.

 

[Elcs]

I had this in GAME (UK store) once with coincidently, a Blizzard pack.

Starcraft + Broodwars, Diablo and Warcraft 2 Battle.net edition pack. No DVD's in any of the boxes when I purchased it so went back the next day and got it all sorted.

4 months down the line.... not sure what you can do there.

 

[simonizor]

You should send an email to blizzard with some pics of the box and it's lack of contents. I'm pretty sure they'll give you valid cd keys so you can just dl the game off of their online distribution.

 

[Spg]

Anybody can shrink wrap. I bout a cd/dvd drive from compusa years ago that was shrink wrapped and sold as new. When I got home and it did not work I manually ejected the tray and found a hockey game cd stuck in the drive. I gave the manager at the store a hard time and he said I was lucky that he did not charge me a restocking fee to return it.

 

[Elcs]

I gave the manager at the store a hard time and he said I was lucky that he did not charge me a restocking fee to return it.

You are lucky that my keyboard still works

I read that and spat out my mouthful of tea in a fit of laughter at that.

 

[Sureshot324]

Anybody can shrink wrap but games generally also have a seal which isn't so easy to replace. Was the seal missing/broken?

 

[Wyndru]

Damn, that sucks. I'm opening anything I buy from them at the counter from now on.

 

[zinfamous]

Damn, that sucks. I'm opening anything I buy from them at the counter from now on.

a better strategy would be to avoid GameStop altogether, no?

:hmm:

 

[Tristicus]

a better strategy would be to avoid GameStop altogether, no?

:hmm:

No.

 

[shortylickens]

Hard to feel pity. Gamestop sucks balls.
You should have hit up walmart or Target. Better prices and if you get fucked (which is unlikely) they take care of you.

 

[Wyndru]

Hard to feel pity. Gamestop sucks balls.
You should have hit up walmart or Target. Better prices and if you get fucked (which is unlikely) they take care of you.

Strange, I've always had better deals from gamestop than walmart or target. I know they beat target almost every time, because our gamestop is right next door to it, and I usually check both before buying.

 

[xCxStylex]

I have had multiple Blizzard Battlechests, SC, D2, War3, and WoW and in fact, still have the boxes.

I don't believe any of them are shrinkwrapped. They're all sealed with that non-removable plastic "circle" sealer thinger, if anyone knows what I mean. Yes the SC2 collector's edition is sealed, but none of the battlechests are.

This means that some mother fuckers shrinkwrapped it themselves.


I kind of knew that it was possible to re-shrink wrap items, but fuck, it's still shocking to me that people actually do this shit. It's terrible what I've read in this thread. Sorry to hear, and especially since it's been 4 months later, you're kind of SOL, that really sucks. It's even too late to open a dispute with your CC, but hopefully it was an inexpensive lesson learned :[

I bought Warcraft III Battlechest from Gamestop months ago when it was being sold for $19.99 as a gift for my friend.
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2062145&highlight=warcraft

I just opened the box for the first time while packing because I'm traveling abroad tomorrow to see him and there's nothing there but bunch of manuals and strategy guides.

I am at a shock. I feel foolish for not checking it immediately after I bought it 4 months ago.

Has this ever happened to anyone here?
I don't buy new games often from them so it's never happened to me. I only buy used games from there on old gen systems(I don't have any of the current systems). Everything else is either Amazon or Steam for me.

In fact, the only brand new games I've bought from Gamestop the past 5 years is Warcraft III Battle Chest($19.99) and Unreal Anthology($2.99)

 

[dfuze]

Figures that 1 of the 2 PC games they sell would screw you over like that.

I agree with the others, with 4 months of lag you probably have no discourse. I would at least contact the corporate office and complain as I doubt the kids at the store would be able to do anything. It's worth a try.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

No.
Nothing but Manual and Brady Games strategy guides.

Interesting tidbit on what was in the box:
a.) Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos Game Manual
b.) BradyGames Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos Battle chest guide
c.) BradyGames Warcraft III: Frozen Throne chest guide
d.) Some product catalog from Blizzard

Why isn't there a Frozen Throne Game Manual? :hmm:

If I remember right the manual for that was held in the cd case.

 

[blurredvision]

Anybody can shrink wrap anything. You can do that at home. All you need is some shrink wrap and a heat gun and yes, people at Gamestop can and do re-shrink wrap things. I used to work there so I know.

There's a difference between a professional shrink-wrap done at a production facility and heating up thin plastic to shrink around a box. If anybody can't tell the difference immediately upon looking at the boxed product, you should probably quit buying stuff, period. If you go into Gamestop and a new product you want to buy has their amateur shrink-wrap job done to it, I would avoid it at all costs.

 

[akugami]

I have had multiple Blizzard Battlechests, SC, D2, War3, and WoW and in fact, still have the boxes.

I don't believe any of them are shrinkwrapped. They're all sealed with that non-removable plastic "circle" sealer thinger, if anyone knows what I mean. Yes the SC2 collector's edition is sealed, but none of the battlechests are.

Yeah. I bought a copy of SC Battlechest and it had the round plastic safety seal. Definitely a case of someone opening it up and then removing the games and then shrinkwrapping it.

There's a difference between a professional shrink-wrap done at a production facility and heating up thin plastic to shrink around a box. If anybody can't tell the difference immediately upon looking at the boxed product, you should probably quit buying stuff, period. If you go into Gamestop and a new product you want to buy has their amateur shrink-wrap job done to it, I would avoid it at all costs.

I think the problem is that people are caught off guard by this. Lots of people know that stores have shrink wrap machines. It's just that when you head to a store and buy a new game you expect a new game when the shrink wrap is still on it.

On a separate note, I believe Gamestop used to sell "new" games which were already opened boxes.

 

[blurredvision]

I think the problem is that people are caught off guard by this. Lots of people know that stores have shrink wrap machines. It's just that when you head to a store and buy a new game you expect a new game when the shrink wrap is still on it.

My point is that it's extremely easy to tell the difference between the molded plastic a machine puts on a game case/box that is tight-fitting and folded/glued neatly on the top and bottom and the hatchet job the teenager Gamestop employee did with a big roll of plastic and a hair dryer. If you see a box that was obviously fixed up by a Gamestop employee, then there's usually a reason for it.

 

[xCxStylex]

I think you're right. I remember reading both news articles as well as employee's accounts on forums about Gamestop let employees open games, take them home and play them, and then re-wrapping them and selling them as "new."

I just didn't put 1 and 2 together >_<


I don't think that's appropriate for online games with cd keys though, who knows if the damn gamestop employee stole the key so you get screwed when trying to play online also.

I think the problem is that people are caught off guard by this. Lots of people know that stores have shrink wrap machines. It's just that when you head to a store and buy a new game you expect a new game when the shrink wrap is still on it.

On a separate note, I believe Gamestop used to sell "new" games which were already opened boxes.

 

[lothar]

I'm back from my 3 week vacation and I wanted to clear up some misconceptions.

I'm not sure where people are getting the idea that I said the game was shrink wrapped. It wasn't. It had an oval seal that I broke into half.
But then...again I didn't check to see if someone had tampered with the oval sticker. It could be that they removed the seal carefully and put it back or I was simply too excited to open the box and never took notice.

The "shrink-wrap" part was an off-topic discussion and had nothing to do with my situation.

I have had multiple Blizzard Battlechests, SC, D2, War3, and WoW and in fact, still have the boxes.

I don't believe any of them are shrinkwrapped. They're all sealed with that non-removable plastic "circle" sealer thinger, if anyone knows what I mean. Yes the SC2 collector's edition is sealed, but none of the battlechests are.

This means that some mother fuckers shrinkwrapped it themselves.

See comment above.

Yeah. I bought a copy of SC Battlechest and it had the round plastic safety seal. Definitely a case of someone opening it up and then removing the games and then shrinkwrapping it.

See comment above.

a better strategy would be to avoid GameStop altogether, no?

:hmm:

False.
Unless of course if you can post a link to other retailers selling Warcraft III: Battle Chest for $19.99 which Gamestop was doing so at the time.

http://www.google.com/products/cata...ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CCkQ8wIwAg#scoring=tp
eBay doesn't count.

Believe me like I said before, I haven't bought a new game from Gamestop in years. I only bought from them on this occasion due to this deal.
I only go there for their $9.99 or less bargain bin used games that I can't get for cheaper elsewhere.