Piracy

[Mr_Furious]

That's another reason why I don't like to buy used games from retail chains.

[Clash!]

I also noticed this on copies of GBA Yoshis Island, all the copies of it thatb they had at GS (and it was like 10 copies) all had that white box, I wondered by that was and why Marker was drawn over it. If someone is going to buy it, why not sell it? I am sure Nintendo would rather you throw it away then sell it though, but thats just Nintendo.

[MechDeus]

Wow, you just noticed this? Stores have been doing this with videogames, VHS tapes, DVDs, CDs, and cassette tapes (all witnessed first-hand) probably since each format came into being. It's common practice, I'm not really surprised in the slightest. Those copies are often sold to other places as well, so it usually benefits more then one company in the end.

[Diff-chan]

The shitty thing about this is that if you, personally, were to do this (get a free game as a reward and trade it in, return it, etc.), its grounds for immediate termination. And, you know what - thats a good policy. I agree with it. But why us proles who actually work in the store cant do it while the higher-ups do Ill never know. But its bullshit.

[Wilykat]

I've accidentally purchased a bootleg GBA game before. When Super Mario Advance 2 first came out, I bought an import copy from somebody on eBay. It looked convincing in the auction pictures. As well as when I first glanced at the actual package. But then I noticed that the box cover had a slightly blurred artwork. The big tipoff was that the cart didn't have the NINTENDO copyright on the pins like a legit game. Oh, and the save function didn't work. Lame.

Thankfully, I was able to get refunded on it. But now I'm sorta wary of buying JP GBA games off eBay outside of trustworthy sellers I've bought from before.

[Matt]

Originally posted by diffusionx
The shitty thing about this is that if you, personally, were to do this (get a free game as a reward and trade it in, return it, etc.), its grounds for immediate termination. And, you know what - thats a good policy. I agree with it. But why us proles who actually work in the store cant do it while the higher-ups do Ill never know. But its bullshit.

Then just sell it on Ebay, or walk down the street and dump it at another chain's store. Company rules never make sense anyhow.

Real piracy is bad for the companies, since they can lose sales revenue from thousands of copies at once. But so few promo copies are given out that reselling them is just a drop in the bucket. The reason why it's never enforced is that it just doesn't matter very much.

We used to get games like this at my store all the time, mostly from local magazine writers selling us their review copies.

[burgundy]

Reselling something marked "Not for Resale" isn't illegal. It's really none of the manufacturer's business what you do with their product after its out of its hands, unless there's some knd of agreement to the contrary.

Selling opened items as new is more of a grey area, but unless a store specifically touts and item as new and unused, it's probably in the clear. Shrinkwrap isn't legally indicative of anything, and plenty of stores sell open box product for the same price as new.

[Mzo]

I said...
I buy games wherever they're sold at fair prices and in good condition.

Then you said...
Reason #37,173,529 not to shop at GameStop or EB.

So far this month at EB, I've bought Ikaruga ($39.99) and Wario Land 4 ($19.99) brand new, and will receive a $20.00 gift certificate in the mail. I bought Onimusha 2 ($14.99) brand new, Mark of Kri ($9.99) brand new and Skygunner ($16.99) brand new. I could say more, but I'm stopping with just April.

I don't know how I can keep shopping somewhere where they're constantly raping me so blatantly.

[Captain Vegetable]

Originally posted by burgundy
Reselling something marked "Not for Resale" isn't illegal. It's really none of the manufacturer's business what you do with their product after its out of its hands, unless there's some knd of agreement to the contrary.

Selling opened items as new is more of a grey area, but unless a store specifically touts and item as new and unused, it's probably in the clear. Shrinkwrap isn't legally indicative of anything, and plenty of stores sell open box product for the same price as new.

Well, I guess I'm wrong then...but it's still disheartening.

[burgundy]

The UPC thing might be fraud...but I'm not really sure. Bottom line is that retail outlets are generally bound by their own policies - the law lets them get away with quite a bit. Most stores are consumer-friendly because they feel it helps sales, not because they have to be.

Bottom line: caveat emptor.