This Nintendo Switch Scam Is Bigger Than We Thought?

[@KartKing4ever]

Imagine someone buys a game to keep sealed for 30 years and then it's just one of these.

[@LeonSKennedy7777]

Honestly, I’d be upset

[@i3lia7mad]

Honestly, I’d be upset too

[@pandorin2348]

With my luck. It would happen to me 💀

[@XRISEandSHINEX]

😂

[@zach177]

If your crazy enough to keep a game sealed for 30 years than you kinda deserve it

[@mistahtom]

The bigger scam is buying a legit case thinking you’re getting a physical cartridge and finding a download code

[@eliv.1033]

If you zoom to look at case though it tells u if it's a physical cartridge or a download code. Though most of the time it would be a game from ubi soft.🤔

[@mistahtom]

@ Darn zoomers and your young eyes

[@princess_niya2407]

That’s not really a scam considering that it literally lets you know on the box that there is no cartridge just a download code

[@mistahtom]

@ It’s a scam. People agree with me.

[@KartKing4ever]

@@mistahtom It's not necessarily a scam on the Switch. On Xbox, however, for example, I got Indiana Jones for Christmas. I put the disc in, 500kb file that pointed to the store where it downloaded all 130gb. THAT... feels wrong. There is no indication on the box. Nintendo at least tells us when the physical is worthless.

[@DubsBrown]

So this is where all those loose cartridges sold on eBay come from.

[@jere439]

Sadly that isn't true anymore because of how easy it is to buy a replacement cover art along with empty cases

[@thezx5795]

well that's also people tryna milk it for everything it's worth by selling cases individually

[@GXShade]

One of my friends will buy a game then throw out the case. It does not matter if it is optical media or a cartridge; he will throw out the case.

[@Gatefan1565]

That and burglaries from homes and vehicles.

[@glitchin1233]

Yea it's not super nefarious like some ppl are implying. Majority of games bought are bought by ppl that don't care about a case and will throw it away.

[@MCastleberry1980]

Back when I worked at Target, this kind of stuff is exactly why we opened DVD, Game cases, etc when being returned, even if they looked unopened. It wasn't uncommon for people to buy things, take the disc, then re-seal them and try and return them.

[@Fidelis1776]

Happened at Walmart as well.

[@Rodville]

And why when I was at walmart we had to scan the UPC, serial number on the box and the serial number on the console. It was sad how many times the serial numbers didn't match.

[@pandorin2348]

Its the world we live in 💀 errrr bodys tryna pull a fast one.

[@audiooddities9982]

Yeah, when I worked at Target, and we sold a digital camera, we had to show it to the customer because we had a few returns where the customer had taken the camera and returned a rock in the box.

[@xTheUnforgettablex]

So once someone returns a video game at Target, what do Target employees do with the returned video game and what if it appears new? Also, what do Target employees do with returned consoles? Do they check the returned consoles? What do Target employees do when video games (even those that look sealed) and video game consoles are returned to the store? Thanks.

[@JMLRetroRoom]

It’s not that bad. Just use a flashlight. Once you see the cartridge pins you’re good. You can even see from the edge of the case. All this can be done while it’s sealed. I checked the games I got for my daughter this way before Christmas.

[@snakemaster7]

My sister bought Pokemon Sheild for her son for Christmas from Amazon and the case was sealed. He opened it up and it was empty. Could believe it.

[@gligarguy4010]

As it always goes, the first few cases are real, but then people start clout chasing when they learn how many fake internet points they can get on Reddit for this and make up cases.

[@happyspaceinvader508]

I don’t know… I kind of believe almost anything can happen in the USA. The idea that you pick up a sealed copy of a $60 item from the shelf and take it to the counter has already blown my mind.

[@fermp3690]

Much more likely they are doing it to hope they get money back from a game they bought and sold. I won't believe this until Nintendo themselves say it's happening at the factory level. People do crazier things for less money. Or it could even be for a brief moment of fame on Reddit but that's even more crazy.

[@AltCutTV]

Yeah.. For some reason I now hear about the eye thing IN products for profit only a while after some meme about putting eyes ON products for laughs. 🤔

[@daveescobar2965]

@@fermp3690you’ll believe it when it happens to you. Then you’ll deal with a bunch of victim blamers like yourself who will never believe you. Humans are the absolute worst and will stop at nothing to get ahead

[@kamronlynch]

This is why I don't use reddit anymore. I tried to sign into my 7 times, then it kicked me out, and everything has just gone all blank and shit like that. I regret using that app, smh. 🤦🏾‍♂️🤦🏾‍♂️

[@Mario123007]

This is probably why some store they will recommend you to let them open the game for you to make sure of the cartridge is in there or not, especially with used games.

[@QuantumConundrum]

This is done almost universally in Japan,at least at the game stores I went. Interesting but it makes sense.

[@MERCHIODOS]

If the game is a pre owned game the store would have the disc or cartridge behind the counter.

[@pandorin2348]

My best buy does this. They also did it when i bought the ps5.

[@Mario123007]

@@QuantumConundrum exactly, even in used item stores in Japan like book off, hard off, surugaya etc, most of the time the actual cartridge wouldn't be in the box, you give the cartridge box to the store counter and they give you the cartridge. No way someone will smuggle Google eyes likes this.

[@Mario123007]

@@MERCHIODOS some stores locks actual new games behind the counter as well. The games on the shelves are just for looks or you grab the Boxart and give to the counter.

[@kraidur8693]

If buy ANYTHING from Walmart make sure the product is actually in the box before you leave.

[@brundeasie_OG]

When I worked at GameStop a guy came in and bought a brand new PS2 game that didn't rattle. Needless to say he came back and was worried we wouldn't believe him that there was no game in the case when he opened it.

[@JG0NE]

4:22 "Glad I opened it before I went back home." Image clearly taken at home. Probably happened once or twice to someone and then other people just try to replicate the images for likes and comments.

[@TheShinySamurottVT]

Could be they meant home after Christmas, that way they can have their family member that gifted it to them return it and get a new one.

[@shirayukinobunaga9424]

Unironically this is why i buy games at gamestop, I can see the employee's put the cart/disk in the case

[@Rhiorrha]

Somebody (Sun-ut9gr) in previous comments claimed I'm lying when I say they remove the games from the cases, then put them in when you buy them.

[@JeskidoYT]

granted sometimes the employees don't do that for online orders

[@TheKayasto]

that's only for used copies and the final "new" copy they have in stock.

[@MachineDJP]

Sadly, this is nothing new. Over a decade ago, I purchased a new, sealed Wii game from Walmart. Opened at home and found the game disc had been removed and replaced with a blank CD-R. Took it back and had it replaced. The common denominator seems to be Walmart with all these instances.

[@EwingFYM]

I bought watch dogs for ps4 for like 5$ on clearance. opened it in the car and it had no disc 😂 went back inside they said couldn’t do nothing sense they didn’t witness me opening it

[@NetflixForeign]

Are you SURE it was factory sealed? If it was there's a bigger problem than Wal-Mart, someone at the factory is doing it. If that is wrong and Wal-Mart has access to that kind of equipment then they should get in MAJOR trouble.

[@MachineDJP]

@@NetflixForeign There was nothing about the packaging that indicated it was tampered with. My guess is someone purchased the game, carefully took out the disc and replaced it with the blank CD-R, resealed the undamaged wrap, and then returned it to Walmart as unopened. They got their money back and a free game. Unknowingly to Walmart, they just placed it back on the shelf for resale as new since it appeared to be unopened.

[@lewisgrant7622]

I don’t live in the us but heard certain stories and what a coincidence that it happens at Walmart of all places. Something seriously suspicious is going on at that store. Although I have had my own issues with certain stores/shops

[@ZappoNinja]

@@MachineDJPY’sure it wasn’t shrink wrapped? Because it isn’t easy to convincingly reseal a game after unsealing it. Both look and feel very different

[@noelsilva8887]

Damn so now we have to open the games at the store to see if the game is in there? Just like when you order food and you check to see you got everything. 😂😂😂😂

[@HearMeLearn]

I mean like he said in the video if you just shine a light at the bottom of the case you can check to see if the cartridge has the teeth. if it doesn't then it's a scam box

[@MERCHIODOS]

Most of the cases (pun intended) on reddit bought these for Christmas, you don't want to open an item that you bought as gift for someone

[@dmo848]

Yuppers

[@Crylhound]

My brother once worked for Nintendo of Europe and he said that the foil was probably carefully opened in order to replace the cartridge. At Nintendo itself, this would not be possible on the production line, unless someone took the case off the production line before foiling, replaced the contents and placed the case back on the production line so that it could be foiled.Note that he worked there during the Gamecube era. Logically, things might be different today (especially since Nintendo of Europe has also changed location years ago).

[@Fidelis1776]

I worked at Walmart in the US. People would just go to stores that resold DVD's and CDs and use the machine to wrap them up again. Yes, that means that the people that worked in those types of stores were in on it.

[@UndeadCollector]

@@Fidelis1776 In most cases they have not the same foiling machine like Nintendo uses to mass producing. In EUR we have a Nintendo tear strip for easier open the Game, and this is hard to fake. The foil arround is not glued but sealed with heat. So if any Sealed Game you see have a bad quality, it's mostly resealed. And if anyone is really curious about original Sealed stuff, there is plenty of Information on YT. And if ppl actually collecting Gaming stuff, this should be on the list to learn to be prepared. :3

[@Shimazaki00]

The worst about this is that those stolen cartriges, could be dumped to be distributed on pirated sites, and them they sell those cartriges separatelly and everyone would be banned for mutiple games using the same cartrige ID.

[@paper_gem]

These types of scams happen all the time. There are a lot of scumbags. My uncle got scammed before. A scumbag sold him two empty camera boxes for $900. When I was in high school, I knew this piece of garbage that "successfully" returned a Dreamcast box without the Dreamcast of course.

[@blazeupe]

This happened to me a few years ago. Went to target and picked up splatoon2 for my friend as a Christmas gift. It was sealed in cellophane packaging and looked completely normal. He opened it and it was empty. Went to target and explained the situation-they gave us a replacement and had us open it in front of them to make sure it was in there. I think it was a return that wasn't thoroughly checked and got put back on the shelf. Ever since that experience, I inspect every physical copy to make sure the cartridge is in there. I guess the scam is evolving

[@PiccoloNK]

I remember when something like this happened to me. I bought saints row 2 as a teen from Walmart, I got to my car and popped it open and it was a empty case. I took it back immediately and got the dirtiest look from the store clerk.

[@dmo848]

Same on call of duty world at war but it was pc cd rom

[@jasondiorio2382]

Keeping games sealed is dumb. Waiting 10 years to make 100$ is crazy. Games were meant to be played. Collect something more valuable to make money.

[@Revster]

The last of the physical stores in the UK almost all do this, it’s practically the same as a used store where they’ve got the case out and they only have codes behind the counter because they either don’t get the cartridges anymore or they ordered so few of them that they sold out almost immediately

[@Cookiedon15]

My cousin bought Diddy Kong Racing on N64 at Target back in the day. When he got home, he found a piece of wood where the game should be. He did take note that the wrapping was loose. He was able to trade it out, fortunately, but the take away from that was to check new games to avoid the situation

[@zachtwilightwindwaker596]

I heard of cases where the console box was filled with rocks.

[@lobonegro1567]

And also a banana☺😂🐵🐒

[@ThaexakaMavro]

Once, I purchased the Crash Bandicoot at Walmart for PS4, and thief stole the disc by cutting the middle of the shrink wrap. Thank goodness the clerk believed me. Try explaining that to the clerk without looking like a thief. It's frustrating.

[@zlac]

Try explaining that to a clerk while looking like a thief!

[@logancrow9979]

I bought a Lego set that was a return, I didn’t know tho it was just on the shelf no markdown or anything. But someone gently pealed back the seals, opened all the bags, removed the minifigures, resealed the bags then returned it. People scam everything

[@Fidelis1776]

Try doing it when you work there! Luckily a new manager had the same issue at his old store, but they were using machines from CD Warehouse to reseal.

[@ramiroabreu4633]

I agreed with you and when is a used game forget it .

[@dialga4688]

Since they need to unlock the games for you, couldn't you just ask them right there if you could open it and inspect it? Even if you need to wait until after purchasing it they could see you weren't the one to do it.

[@NEVERKNOWSBE5T]

This has been a problem for a long time but has only really just come to light. I have been selling on ebay for over 10 years and one thing I've seen since the 3ds days is listing of loose cartridges of brand new games that have either just come out or are releasing in a few days. Most of this listing will have 10+ loose cartridges for sale less than MSRP again sometimes days before it releases. As someone who buys liquidated/returned good pallets for the purpose of reselling to make a bit of an income (my dad and his friends got me into it with them) Yeah I've been burned by empty game case or games just been swapped for cheaper games and I assume it's people either from the warehouse or store level as I've seen it a lot over the years. The one that made me laugh was when I opened up a box full of 3DS games and every cartridge was replaced with brain age training for the DS with badly printed labels stuck on them, yeah I had to test all 19 copies and every time it was brain age which in hindsight is quite funny honestly. I've never seen resealed games with googly eyes so that's a first but I can 100% believe this to be happening and true as the second hand loose cartridge market is a thing that exists on ebay and you'll see games come out or are due out in a few days, no box, multiple copies and are been sold £10-£20 cheaper than MSRP and when you do what I do and connect the dots yeah it's the sad reality of the state of physical games media.

[@barryblitzuk]

Imagine 30 years from now, when someone buys up a sealed, graded copy of a legendary Switch game... Paying thousands for shrodinger's googly eye... 😅

[@Thinkseen]

Listening to this with headphones I can hear your family in the background

[@smgofdvld]

I thought it was someone outside 😅 it wasn’t just me

[@FieryAnubis]

This is why I buy my stuff from specialized stores and not places like Walmart. Every time I hear about stuff like this, empty discs, and even hollow controllers in a few cases, it seems to be Walmart or a random store like that.

[@Supermanohman]

All I have in my town is 1 best buy and Walmart about 15 miles away in the same shopping center. I heard both are ending physical games soon so all I'll have are ebay and amazon since I don't use gamestop

[@sws212]

9 out of 10, they're buying from the same suppliers. Walmart gets more of the press because most people buy Walmart or Amazon. Specialized stores are just less likely to be in the news.

[@Fidelis1776]

GameStop gave me an empty case before. Happens everywhere.

[@pandorin2348]

“sPeCiaLiZeD sTorEs”🤓 You mean a gamestop?

[@Supermanohman]

@pandorin2348 be kind to people on the Internet

[@SrtRacerBoy]

I purchased that Wii U Star Fox game from Walmart. It was Factory Sealed, and the main Game disc was missing. I almost didn't go back to the store for an exchange out of embarrassment knowing nobody would believe me.

[@savaget2058]

What about the embarrassment of how bad the game is? 😂 The main franchise we haven't seen really any kind of follow up on the Switch is StarFox. That game absolutely tanked the IP.

[@SrtRacerBoy]

@savaget2058 that was unknown at the time. I purchased on or very near launch date

[@SrtRacerBoy]

@savaget2058 I remember not playing much more than 20 minutes of it.

[@Oceanandskylinevidss]

At least it happen to star fox zero. 😅

[@thegundampilot01]

That happened to me once with a John Wick Blu-ray. The guy at Best Buy practically laughed at me when I came back to exchange it

[@BlueBARv5]

This story is kinda scary to me because i currently own about 20ish Switch games i have not opened yet and got most of them from Walmart, i can't check them now because im away working in another state but when i get home im going to investigate 😂

[@ezg8448]

This happened to my friend many years back. He bought a sealed gameboy advanced game but the cartridge was missing. He called Nintendo and got a replacement sent out to him for $15 CAN.

[@4ksandknives]

This happened to me in the past. This is why ebgames and gamestop put the games into the cartridge AFTER or DURING purchase

[@ryantakahashi9130]

That wasn't why they did it per se. They did it mostly to stop people from just grabbing it off the shelf and dashing. Most of the stores were rather small back in the day, so getting to the exit quickly was trivial. It wasn't like stealing from Walmart where it would take so long to get from the electronic section back to the exit. The other sneaky benefit was that it forced games to now be "used/open", which was great for their trade in program later down the line. At some point though, they stopped taking out discs completely. At least all the ones I used to go to, they either came sealed out of locked drawers/cabinets, or they had someone go in the back and bring it to you.

[@GiuseppeGaetanoSabatelli]

Someone probably invested in a shrink wrap machine. Buy games with cash, pull the cart and rewrap, and return with receipt, and Walmart will pretty much accept the return with no issues.

[@NetflixForeign]

What idiots are they hiring? No way in heck as an employee am I accepting a shrink wrapped item vs. factory sealed unless it was an over sized limited edition that HAD to be shrink wrapped.

[@joemck85]

If you see shrink wrap, it's been tampered with. Nintendo uses cellophane and you can see the Y-shaped folds at the ends. It's quite difficult but possible to open the end without tearing the cellophane, slide the case out, replace the cartridge with the eye, slide it back in and seal it with a heat gun.

[@NetflixForeign]

@@joemck85 This is what I am saying. I always look for factory sealed, never buy shrink wrapped unless it is one of those LE's where it isn't possible to shrink wrap to begin with.

[@OGYouTubeEnjoyer]

So the scam is basically buying a game, taking out the cartridge and replacing it with googly eyes and plastic and returning being all "Huh there was totally googly eyes in here and and not the game" Too many of these lame fake things on the internet these days. Social media is cancer.

[@TheGimGamer]

I believe it’s probably a single group of people that are buying a bunch of switch games as a “gifts” then repacking/resealing them and returning them back saying they decided against it, and then reposting loose carts online

[@bugg6597]

My girlfriend works at Walmart and stocks all kinds of stuff and she always tells me about this super powerful flashlight they use on games, it will blast right though the box art and case allowing you to see if there is a real disc or cartridge in the case. You can’t always tell exactly what is on the disc or cartridge, but there is a check they are supposed to do and yes that would be caught with a light. It’s thin and the eye would pop out

[@crasheffort]

This must be how on eBay game carts without cases will come up for sale for new games almost immediately. Like who buys a game, throws out the case, and then sells the game in a day or two.

[@haroldasusus4684]

I don’t think that’s the situation. A lot of people simple throw out their cases and then they end up back in the used market.

[@jesusramirezromo2037]

Nah, That's kids I've seen games that are only a few months old be sold without a case, kids and normie parents throw out the box thinking it's packaging

[@haroldasusus4684]

@@jesusramirezromo2037 I think you are overestimating the intelligence of the average American. A big reason is that not everyone wants to dedicate a shelf to games and since they are cartridges you don’t risk damaging them loose like a disk

[@Planag7]

I wanted to do it within a day or two are probably people who take them and dump them online or personal "backups" It was most certainly a thing with Dreamcast

[@JzLyfe]

Usually they will pirate said games and either use them for personal use, probably give them out to friends or sell them, can't forget about posting said files online for rom setups. You can find plenty of switch games ready to use for emulation which is crazy. But Nintendo is cracking down on switch roms be available.

[@jjminor]

It happened to me once, I think maybe a year ago at Christmas. I opened the game and saw the black plastic but no googly eye. I returned it to the Walmart and luckily they took it back. It was a clearance game so it was only $20 so maybe that helped. I started shaking the cases from there on out, but watching your video was the first I heard of the googly eyes. This was in Raleigh, North Carolina.

[@GamersInHellOnYt]

Since i bought a switch for my mom too, Buying digital has saved some money since the second switch only needs internet connection. So the only games ive had to buy two of are the co-op ones we play together..

[@kaliek5281]

I havent had the googly eye issue but...In the past I bought a brand new 3DS game from GameStop, still sealed (FF3 Remake in release day). Got home, opened it...and no game cart inside. This thing waa factory sealed and there was no game. Gamestop told me to call Nintendo, Nintendo said "Thats not possible, the games are weighed when packaged. Call GameStop" and they kept me going in a loop like that. Thankfully the manager at the store knew me well enough to know I wasnt scamming them, and got her District Manager to allow her to give me another cart.

[@bradhaley8432]

Considering that my local Walmart has had a theft problem since they first opened up in 2007, I'm not surprised by this video. I've personally seen customers go in and open up chips bags,blu-ray/dvd cases,soda boxes,toy boxes, and boxed frozen meals in front of employees and said employees walk up to the opened product after the customer has left and they seal back up said product and then put it back on the shelf to be sold.

[@PipeGuy64Bit]

That sounds like a health violation waiting to happen with the chips, soda and frozen meals

[@bradhaley8432]

​@PipeGuy64Bit, I know, right?. I've stopped shopping at my local Walmart 10 years ago when I realized that they had no intention of stopping said theft problems and I've been advocating for other people not to shop there as well. So far the only 2 things that haven't been affected by the shoplifting problem since day 1 at my local Walmart have been: 1. Video games that are locked away and require an employee to get for you. 2. Boxed TVs.

[@RocketGameCorner.]

I purchased one of the the Digimon switch games off Amazon and when I opened the cardboard envelope the game's seal had been sliced down the side and the cart removed. Ofc, being Amazon, getting that resolved in any way that could be considered good customer service was an impossibility. So, I always go to a brick and mortar store for games nowadays. There's always going to be bad actors wherever money can be made, but you can at least have a rapport with staff and some goddamn accountability with a physical store that actually cares if it gets your custom.

[@castroh19]

Great now i have to open the game infront of the clerks before I leave

[@jeffro9252]

You don’t though. It will never happen to you.

[@matthewhammond9575]

Take a high powered flashlight like Jon mentioned

[@ei..]

​@@jeffro9252 I never thought it could happen to me yet my copy of tears of the Kingdom was missing on release. Didn't have googly eyes, but there was a piece of black painted wood in the slot.

[@mikeuk666]

​@@ei..cool story

[@patg108]

@@jeffro9252 until it does

[@journeyman1343]

This actually happened to be at a Walmart with animal crossing new horizons, and then when I went back, they thought I was joking, but they pulled out another copy and that copy was empty and they pulled out like two more and they were all empty still sealed too

[@ba45742]

I bought a shrinkwrapped copy of Mario vs Donkey Kong at Walmart and got it home to find the case was completely empty with no cart. Walmart gave me a lot of grief when I brought it back trying to exchange it for a usable copy

[@Dangic23]

It’s a scam on PS5 and Xbox. You buy a physical disk, but still need to download 100GB when you insert the disk.

[@arootube]

The very first Switch game I bought was MK8D, the last copy I could find in my town. I got home, opened it up, and it was just an empty case. I really didn't think they were gonna believe me at the returns counter and from then on I opened my games in the parking lot. Seeing a googly eye looking back at me would have just been hilarious.

[@BackNTheBox]

I got Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection at Walmart three days after release and it had the googly eye. Package was sealed and looked untouched. I called the store right away after getting home and let them know I would be back in shortly. The manager handled it. I don’t buy physical much anymore and sucked to get scammed when I did. Especially from a big box store. I thought at the time there would be a gifts under the tree with no game.

[@HotSoupMusic1]

This happened to me way before the switch came out. When the Vita was slowly dying down, I bought a physical cartridge from Walmart. Took it to my car and opened it. There was nothing in there. So I went back inside and told them I wanted a refund. They didn't believe me and told me to get a new game instead. So I did and the store clerk opened it just in case. The game was missing as well. She opened a few more only to find out that a bunch of the games were gone. I live in Minnesota. This happened a few years ago way before the switch came out. So I think it dates even further back.

[@tacooty]

When it comes to physical vs. digital, I’ve heard of far more cases where people have completely lost access to their games digitally as apposed to physically. If you get an empty game case just return it. But if you get banned from steam or Xbox your library is gone, it they can just take the game away from you any number of reasons. Or your account can get hacked and you lose everything. I think digital games have their place but I will always prefer to get physical if that’s an option, and I hope it remains an option.

[@WS6xxStarscreamxx]

I bought Breath of the Wild today for my nephew. Luckily it was in there. This sucks. The rise of dishonest people has hit an all time high

[@SP-nv1sg]

I had a similar experience with Kirby and the Forgotten Land. Was seemingly fully sealed, but no cartridge in the box. This was in Germany so not just a Walmart issue!

[@UchihaSatzuki]

Where exactly? 😮

[@SP-nv1sg]

@UchihaSatzuki I'm not certain, but it was either from Amazon or Mediamarkt. It was bought as a gift for me.

[@JaneTheDoe-id2vx]

when i was a kid i bought pokemon the movie 2000 soundtrack only to find out the disc wasnt in the case when i opened it in the car. me and my father went back and they would only give credit, i learned to always check the cases before leaving the store

[@StormsparkPegasus]

This has been happening for as long as games and game consoles have been sold. I remember seeing this back in the Sega CD/Genesis days. This type of theft normally happens at the warehouse or distribution center, not often at the retail stores. And not just with gaming, I've seen it done with small appliances (think blenders) too. Always open it before you leave, no matter what you buy.

[@vensakarakorwien5768]

You actually see that the policy of Gamestop, where you cannot return a game to be considered sealed makes more sense. Also them having all sealed games behind counter.

[@LateGamerToo]

A completely different situation but a few months back I bought a “new” game from GameStop….ordered it online. It was an older title that I really wanted. I paid too much obviously but they sold it as new. I received it and there was absolutely no package seal of any kind. It came in the case but the case definitely looked used. First and LAST time I will ever buy from GameStop.

[@vensakarakorwien5768]

@@LateGamerToo Yeah so that one, Gamestop is known for that part. If they have last display copy and I guess for whatever reason it was returned to the central warehouse or shipped from a specific location, then it will be that new open situation. And I do understand that part is very unfair if customer does not know about it. It seems that they do not have a system in place to detect and recognize such copies in the store and to alert customer about it. Of course if you walk into Gamestop and they only have such last copy of the game, you can decide to buy or not to buy it like that. On the other hand you can have Amazon lottery, there you can at times receive a game from a different region that what you were ordering. That is also a thing.

[@shadowdouglas450]

For digital games you do not own your game and can be gone without notice.

[@sanrasuzumaki942]

Nintendo has a way to avoid this scam, keep an opening to see the cartridge.

[@thegerm574]

I collect Nintendo Switch consoles I don’t understand why Nintendo no longer puts a Nintendo branded seal on the box’s especially with digital codes now being put in boxes. I remember what the days when Nintendo game boys and original NES systems had seals. Even PlayStation one and two games and some consoles had specific fuels. Even the Xbox and Xbox 360 head seals on the games. Not sure why they didn’t bring that back.

[@t4nk3d402]

best thing about buying all digital is if you lose access to your account you lose all your games with it.

[@MysticTree44]

As much crap as I give Gamestop, at least they securely store the games and you SEE them put the cartage in the case

[@JackCarrollDrums]

Plot twist - next time a publisher removes a downloaded game from your console due to licensing issues they will replace it with a digital googly eye!

[@Vercalos]

I remember one time, back when I worked for a department store that sold a very limited selection of video games(back in the Wii era, I think?), I remember someone had bought a copy of some iteration of _Just Dance_ only to come back with the case empty saying that they'd got it home and it was empty. I was skeptical. I offered them an exchange for the exact same game, and offered to open it up for them to be sure that the game was actually in the case. So I took the game out of the keeper case(a security device that is supposed to prevent anyone from just opening the case and taking the game), opened it up, and the disk for the game I just took from the shelf was also missing. I offered them a refund at that point and eventually discovered that every copy of the game we had had been stolen with the empty cases left behind in their keeper cases. I don't know what ultimately happened with that particular investigation.

[@industrialcream]

this makes me glad eb games australia has empty game cases on the shelves and locked drawers full of the physical cartridges/discs only store staff can access. it doesn't change the fact their prices are usually bad, and that they're owned by gamestop...

[@sistertia35]

My Walmart doesn't even allow game returns so,,, I was surprised other Walmarts are accepting the returns? Customer service always turns them away when trying to return a game so our store never sells used or returned games

[@AndrewO83]

Is this just in America right now? I have a sealed copy of Dragon Quest 3 HD only because I haven't got around to playing it yet. I'm in Australia though and I always go to EB Games. 9 times out of 10, the games are never sealed and they keep the carts in a locked draw behind the desk. This time I chanced upon a sealed copy. I'm so tempted to open it but I do see the black ridging of the cart through the side of the case (I see why they do the black plastic around the edges), on the side you open the case. The googly eye ones don't have black ridging on the right hand side. I also checked for the 'teeth' of the cart and I can see them fine, but used a light anyway. I think I'm good! I'm so paranoid now about future sealed games

[@meikahidenori]

The only sealed games you'll find in Australia are ones that have download codes. They're actually pretty diligent even in stores like Cash Converters to make sure they ONLY buy games off people if the game is inside & is the correct one. The only time you should worry is if it's Ebay or Amazon, but it's really damn rare. Never had a issue with local Ebay sellers since usually the games are old and for systems most have sold on.

[@koztech]

"you can see the teeth on the cart..." Until they start 3D printing that too...

[@syedwahab2021]

Seems like someone is buying them, reselling them the loose carts on ebay, replace the game with googly eye, reseal, and return at Walmart. The employee probably doesn't know anything about factory seal and takes it back because there is plastic around it so it couldn't of been opened. Meanwhile the customer isn't to blame because you would expect people to do their jobs and not get fooled by this stuff

[@alexandermuniz2531]

I bought Nier Automata on Switch through Amazon a while ago and held onto it sealed for just under the amount of time the return window’s for, and when I finally opened it there was just a wood chip painted black inside where the cartridge was supposed to be. I was so glad I still had like 2 days to return the darn thing but Amazon sure fought back on that

[@germanomani2105]

Thankfully it’s not as common on Amazon. Walmart on the other hand 💀

[@papiloteBoy]

I bought xenoblade chronicles 3 from walmart during the summer. Didn't get around to opening it until last month. All that was inside was a couple pieces of black foam where the cartridge is supposed to be. Couldn't return it since it was passed the return period.

[@coolguyjoel1017]

I worked at GameStop, and trust me I would sometimes forget to put the game in the case😅 it happens

[@chaossmith3864]

One time they put the expansion disk instead of the game lol

[@masamasa1815]

This did happen to me a few years back with Skyrim for switch. No googly eye just an empty case. Weird thing was that it was perfectly sealed. Walmart did believe me and gave me a new copy.

[@krisc1684]

People can always reseal them. No one's gonna check to see if it's sealed as per Nintendo guidelines. They just see a plastic wrap and accept the return. Which is fair, I wouldn't go through the trouble lol.

[@heyayay]

Like 6 months ago I returned a game to Walmart and the clerk checked it by holding it up to the light. She said they had to check cause it was common for brand new games to get returned without a game in em.

[@viviorko]

Of course because people will try and rip off retailers.

[@sixstrng]

I bought a copy of ratchet and clank on ps2 once when I was a teenager and all it had in it was a CD-RW. I went back and tried to get a new one but the lady at Walmart thought i was trying to scam her. i haven't shopped there since.

[@anonamatron]

Here in Taiwan they always open the game up at the game shop to let you see it, and some shops keep a Switch there to pop games in to show they work too. I've always hated this because I want to "unbox" it myself, but it would prevent this situation from screwing the customer.

[@gamingguru2k6]

Issue with that is compromising a factory sealed product. If they strongly suggested you to open it after purchase to help verify your purchase, then that could work in the states.

[@ButtonBasherBW]

In Australia it goes the other way. Many stores here store the CD/cart in locked drawers and will put them into the case on the counter in front of you. Sure, we don't see wrapping here but it avoids this situation completely.

[@meikahidenori]

​@@ButtonBasherBWthe only time I've seen wrapped cases here in Australia is if it has a download code. It makes sense because there's nothing to really pinch. Most resellers are careful with buying off customers too, only taking physical if you have everything inside it. They lock them in glass cabinets too to prevent stealing that way also.

[@Wolf_in_a_Cup]

I had this issue when i bought paper mario months ago, except it was just the black pieces of what was a foam of sorts from what I remember not hard plastic, no googly eye in it. Walmart gave me a bit of a hassle but luckily did allow me to exchange it in the end. considering it was a birthday present and my family couldnt afford to waste that money or replace it, it at least worked out..

[@chasingred8351]

This happened to me when I bought Fable at Walmart, got home exited to play it, and nope, no game and I did remember the tape being “loose” at the time of opening it. Took it back and they almost didn’t give me another copy until another worker mentioned I was not the first to return with the same problem. Ever since then, I always check! 😂

[@WhoNeedsNormal]

My Uncle got a sealed game that was just empty altogether

[@Diablo20069]

Well shit I have 2 sealed games from Christmas, I guess I need to open them now.

[@MissFoxification]

This has always been an issue, from gaming magazine CD's to those bought in stores. Remember the old crystal CD cases? You can pop those open by pulling the hinges outwards with fingernails, the tamper seal is on the other end of the case. If CD keys were inside the case they could be copied/taken as well.

[@craftymulligar]

Think it was circuit city bought a cd burner or such it was someone's old cd player with headphones the package was all plastic wrap. Was able to return it no problems. But why did i hear someone say oh I got an new such and such game console never opened. Would you wonder if it at least work.

[@JaceFuse]

I hate when I buy a game and it has something almost as bad as a googly eye; a piece of paper with a download code printed on it..

[@TheHOOfan1]

I have no sympathy for Gamestop getting scammed by people claiming they forgot to put the game in the box. This is the company that let their employees open a game, take it home, play it, then sell it as new.

[@delta_cosmic]

2024 the year where everyone scams.

[@CasualSpud]

Mo Money Mo Problems... can't be scammed if you can't afford it to begin with

[@coreymckee4844]

This news happend right at the end of 2024. So its only going to get worse in 2025..

[@cyxceven]

So, every year.

[@Onion_Knights]

2025 probably worse

[@Saincisco]

I got bought a fake NES classic from Walmart, back when it was slightly rare and hard to find in a shelf, all of the sudden the Walmart I visit daily because part time, suddenly had one, when I got it and opened it like a regular customer, it turned out to be fake, and they didn't even put the right plugs to turn it on back in the box. I had no choice to return it, and not say anything to the customer service , afraid of not getting that money back, so I don't know if they just put it back on shelf for another victim. Nobody asked me anything after, I was good to go.

[@LocksLifeLove]

If you're buying a game physically for yourself it doesn't hurt to open the seal after you've bought it in the store to confirm. If you're buying for a gift to someone else ... go go forensic detective.

[@mecharidley]

One of the perks of being all digital is not having to deal with this nonsense.

[@nintendians]

that's why you don't buy stuff off the streets and store should check if people really return the whole thing before giving back the money. scammers should riot in life.

[@PatrickVogt314]

... had two Switch games from Amazon Germany, which were similar but not quite like that (with the plastic "thingy" and the eyes). I ordered two titles in September (Oddword: Abe's Odysee New'N'Tasty and Asterix & Obelix XXL-Collection (Asterix is a famous European cartoon character). Once I opened the (shrink-wrapped) game, no cartridge was inside. The shrink wrap was already opened a few centimeters on the right (which happens sometimes). My guess is: somebody opened the shrink wrap on the right of the case just enough that there is a small gap (while still being shrink-wrapped), used some paper clip to lose the cartridge inside the case, and "shook" the cartridge out of the keep case (... and then returned it to Amazon with the reason "oh mistake, didn't want to order it, but it is still shrink wrapped). I guess you would need to practice it a bit, but in my opinion, this should be how I ended up with a shrink-wrapped game, where the cartridge is missing. After thát, I started to investigate the shrink wrap on the right side of the package before I even try to open the game.

[@patg108]

To walmart workers, a question? Does anyone know if Walmart reseals games that have been opened? Or Buys from shady retailers online that may provide them with a product that looks identical until opened? These would both be plausible reasons as to why this happened to so me people. Resealing a game to make it look new should be illegal for retail stores that won't show you the media inside. Otherwise people would have to open their retail copy of a game right there in the store in front of the clerk just after purchasing it to verify that its legit and not a fake or wrong game or empty case. Which during holiday hours could be a big hassle

[@patg108]

its probably not all that widespread of a issue though. And the other way to prove it is to record opening the package and/or game. and submitting that as evidence in the case of it being wrong for what it is

[@Zkyo63]

I've seen this scam several times now, it's sadly pretty common in my area. I work at the returns counter at Walmart, and I've seen it at least 10 times in the last couple years, black strips of foam stuck in to look like a cartridge. I haven't seen the googly eye yet. I've gotten into the habit of opening any switch games i buy at the register immediately after buying, so that it's on camera, and I've personally gotten one. Apparently one time we tried to exchange a copy of Mario Kart 8, but all six copies we had on hand in the lockup also had foam instead.

[@TheHardStyleLife]

Australia doesn't have any Walmarts 😂😂😂 it's not hard to tell if something fake

[@meikahidenori]

In Australia it's rare to buy a sealed copy of a game unless it contains a download code. You typically must go to the counter or electronics counter (in places like Big W or JB HI FI) and they put the carts in. Even in second hand stores as they will not sell/purchase a game off you for resale without proof it's inside (they typically lock them in cabinets too to prevent theft.)

[@AmyGrrl78]

I remember when something like this happened to me back in 1997. Bought a copy of Atomic Bomberman for PC. We got several blocks away from the store when I opened the box so I could read the manual on the way home, and the Jewel Case and CD was completely missing. We turned around and got a new copy of the Game.

[@Blitterbug]

Dunno what's going on over in the US; in England the factory shrink wrap will always be there. Not the shoddy, wrinkled store-applied shrink wrap with melted seams but the real stuff - totally clear, smooth cellophane, no crinkles, with the thin black or white pull line embedded in it.

[@MA_KA_PA_TIE]

Open the game in store right after paying in front of the cashier who checked you out.

[@Rhiorrha]

Question: why the F does Gamestop tamper with the cases and remove games in the FIRST place??

[@Sun-ut9gr]

@@KnowThyWeakness This is dumb and not how they do business. Reported for misinformation

[@biblemandelaeffect]

used games only

[@Faustcoolio]

Empty cases are on the display shelves.

[@Ashrazan]

My guess is theft prevention. It actually came in handy when someone stole the case but I still bought the game.

[@Ashrazan]

​@@biblemandelaeffect I have had them do it with a new game. I thought it was weird. Could have been their last new copy so I got the display case. All the dlc codes still worked.

[@danielruiz3176]

My store doesn’t sell open copies of video games. So when the guests bring them back, we have a hard time believing them. We still do the return but for store credit. Then we just defect the case out of the system.

[@KarnmasterGaming]

I had this happen to me on Easter. Bought Mario Maker 2 for my son in January because it was on sale. Held it until Easter. He opened it and all it had was the black foam pieces in it. I went back to the store I bought it from and it took over 30 minutes to convince them to replace it. It was insane. I feel for all these people dealing with this.

[@Mowkade]

Back in the day, I would open all disk based game purchases right there at the register in front of the cashier just in case the disk was cracked or otherwise damaged. Because most places had a zero return policy on disk based games, especially for PC.

[@itskdog]

What happened to the boxes on display having had the discs or cartridges removed and stored in a drawer at the till? (Or at customer services at a supermarket)

[@SuperMikeKaos]

It’s easy to re seal the game at retail, most stores have a table in the back with a heat gun and the plastic, resealing damaged boxes and plastic wraps was a daily task for me… 30 seconds to do this I’d imagine…