He found that if he wrapped it with saran wrap and popped in the toaster for a couple seconds it was close enough to trick WalMart into thinking it was sealed.

I picked up my truck from the shop today there was a Gran Turisimo game box behind the seat with no game. It was for PS2. I have an xbox. I am still scratching my head.

I stepped in some redneck shit the other day.

@ouiserboudreaux: Then, you probably don't play online or play with anyone who would be an enthusiast.

@thrid001: Yeah, it's usable, but you can't play Tiger Woods 05 or Madden 07 online anymore. They turn the servers off. If you want the newest enhancements and want the ability to play the game online, then it really does have a shelf life.

@Scatter: It won't be the same game. The roster at the beginning of the season is different after each week of the season.

ive never tried it but im fairly convinced you could return an item from another store if you really wanted to. buy something at target for a lower price then return it to walmart for a bit of profit lol...soo wrong but hey at least they are easy to deal with in that respect.

@lotussix: I'm not blaming the op in this case, I'm just making a general comment.

1. Sometimes the OP is at fault. That is life, that is the way it is. Ignoring it with a "don't ever blame the op" rule isn't going to make it any less true.

That being said... you ONLY blame the op when it's the OP's fault.

In THIS case, the OP is entirely faultless. The onus falls upon the retailer to make sure they are giving the customer the RIGHT merchandise, if they do NOT, then the onus is on THE RETAILER to MAKE IT RIGHT.

Simple as that.

As it's been stated SO MANY TIME here.. he's a kid. Leave him alone. He wanted the game NOW and he should have GOT his game NOW. I'm sure he doesn't need some condascending "holier than thou" attitude making him feel shittier than he already does, so cut out the "I'm an adult, so I'm smarter than you" attitude and let the kid enjoy his childhood. The world is hard enough to live in already.

*Gets off his soapbox*

get it fingerprinted

@the-wanderer: Cotton-eyed Joe.

Walmart made a mistake - they are the issue here. Stop ragging on the OP.

I understand that they're not perfect, but in my experience, I haven't had any problems with them. And there ARE some stories of Walmart doing a good thing.

In this case it's a little unfair to point the finger directly at Walmart. They returned a game that looked unopened and had no reason to believe it wasn't legit. If they didn't let the first guy return the game then they would probably be villified for that.

It's a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation.

It's sad that you have to be cautious enough to check this sort of thing. Buying from a store like Gamestop would be better because they either give you a shrinkwrapped game (So you know it's been unopened), or, if it's the last copy, they'll put the game in the display copy.

And there's nothing wrong with buying Madden after football season. You do know that sports games tend to go down significantly in price after a few months right?

Besides, he didn't have an Xbox until recently, so the point is moot.

I apologize for this... but that story is pure gold.

@VRWC:

And like wise you should also grow up. This type of irrational & juvenile banter on your part towards the consumerist is no better than what your accusing them of doing.

Just take a deep breath and relax.

This sort of stuff happens all the time at big corporations like Wal-Mart & Target. From the article I have come to the conclusion that the person who swapped the disc probably bought it elsewhere. With the return policy being as such that a reciept is not required for an exchange it leads me to belive the scammer had Madden 2009 for a long while, purchased a different game and swithced the wrapping. This is all speculation on my part obviously.

Also, the majority of 360 games simply have a regular plastic shrink wrap like video stores used to do. You just put the casing in the plastic wrap and heat seal the bottom edge then take a heat gun to the shrink wrap so it's tight on the casing. All of that can be done with simple reynolds wrap and a hair dryer. The only other thing you need is the security stickers along the top, bottom and side. The PS3 & Wii games are wrapped in a different manner and have tight corners like you would do on a christmas present.

I found blank cd's in both cases. However I had no problem in returning them as I pointed out that other copies of the same movies were in factory wrapping and you can see the obvious differences. I got an exchange for the same movies...this time in the correct factory sealed wrapping.

Needless to say, I now open any and all media before leaving the store to make sure I got what I paid for.

I do have to say this about Target customer service, they were more than willing to help and were very understanding/courteous.

• Either an outside criminal or a store employee opened the package, lifted the original disc, replaced it with a blank, defaced the package and returned it to the shelf for sale (despite the added risks the time and preparation needed to conduct these steps would take), or that ....
• A person unknown with access to shrink-wrapping equipment and/or original EA box seals returned the box as presented in "new" condition for a refund, or that ....
• A person unknown presented the box as opened but defective in hopes that the clerk would not notice the missing disc and the fairly obvious defacement of the packaging, AND that ,,,
• The clerk or clerks who accepted and handled the box post-return it did in fact, fail to examine the package AND defied policy in returning defective items to the shelves for sale.

Again, all of these things are, I suppose, technically possible, but they stretch the imagination.

On the other hand, the simpler explanation of good old fashioned consumer fraud doesn't require any such leaps. Stores wouldn't have security guards and surveillance equipment if people didn't come in to their stores and try to steal their stuff, so let's not make the patently false assumption that corporations are always out to cheat and consumers are always innocent. Sometimes, not infrequently, it's the other way around.

As for the argument that the "victim" in this case isn't likely a scammer because he's a kid ... I am making a leap myself here, but I'm going to guess the author of this post, Carey, isn't a parent. Kids, even good kids, are known from time to time to do stupid, sorry things that their parents wouldn't expect. I rather doubt, then, that Carey has never faced a child pleading with great intensity that the dog broke the lamp or that going to excessive lengths to explain how soda bottle fell over by all itself, or well, you get the point.

And while, as a father myself, I want to believe the poster's defense of his child, I do note that in this case, the claim is that the child used his own money for this purchase.

Under the trust but verify doctrine and without accusation but only supposition, I would suggest that unless the parent watched the disc being opened fresh from the store, which the posts indicates is not the case, perhaps he or she needs to do a little internal investigating before turning sights on Wal-Mart.

What is the original source?

The actions of these few is what causes Walmart to lock the games in cases. It's also what causes GameStop to open every game and put empty cases on the shelf, only providing you the game when you've paid for it. Funny how Consumerist has a vendetta against GameStop too.

@CheritaChen: I second that. Most of the time I feel compelled to respond to idiots in kind, which in turn makes me look like an idiot.

While it's ultimately an issue of self control, I wouldn't turn down any tools that might help me to that end.

@kathyl: Have you been paying attention? Ever since they dropped the moderation squad, blaming the OP has returned in full force. :P

I own hundreds of games and have been buying them for years. Not once have I opened a disc in the store, and not once have I ended up with some blank disc or other miscellany.

Incidentally, I've never made myself look like a retard by insisting on opening my game in front of a cashier while holding up the entire line either.

Do you also read the first chapter of any books you buy to be sure the literature has not been tampered with?

Opening your purchases in the store is not only ridiculous, I am positive it is frowned upon by the stores. Simply because the level of scams someone can run by doing this are astounding.

There have been stories here and there of walmart doing the right thing, but they are always ignored. the comments never tally beyond 20.

Instead we get amazing comments from people that assert, "I would never purchase anything from wal-mart because they treat their employees like crap..." "...on the way out I told the hag working at the front door to leave me alone"

Yes, boo to walmart for treating their employees like crap and yay to holier-than-thou consumerist poster who calls walmart employee a hag.

Makes a whole lotta fuckin sense doesn't it?

He Ein2015 - have you seen the South Park where 'smug' begins polluting the entire town due to all the people driving hyrbids that think they are better than everyone else? Just asking since there is a plume of smug several miles long coming out of your ass.

Most likely your copy of Spore never left the shelf at fry's, but some key gen out there generated your registration code. In which case it has nothing to do with Fry's, and there is nothing they could have done to prevent it.

Knowing that EA would have replaced your code with the inner ring number provided, I tend to not believed your story.

What?? I have a library of hundreds of movies and video games, and not once have I ever opened my purchase in the store to "verify" it. Are you guys serious? Is there some sort of unwrapping booth in the front of the store, or am i expected to just stand in line and open it right there in front of the cashier while everyone in line waits on me? Come on now, that is straight up ridiculous to suggest.

@the-wanderer: It's the Georgia Satellites' version of Keep Your Hands to Yourself in a constant loop.

Wait. You're not a kid.

Good god, people. The kid wanted the game. And not everyone need the 'updated rosters' every freakin' year. Especially a kid who may not want to get the same Christmas present year after year. I bet the kid will get more value out of that game than you who tell him he won't. The kid will play that game longer than you will. And he'll probably enjoy it and appreciate it more.

PS. Some of you are WAY off topic here. I really don't care if this kid purchased Madden 03. What game and when he purchased it has no relevance on weather or not he received a swapped game.

@the-wanderer:
George Bush must certainly be missing his favorite mix tape. "Honkey Tonk Badonkadonk" is his jammmmmm.

Read up on the other more legitimate Walmart fuck-fests to see what I'm talking about.

While your at it, do some research to see how Walmart hurts our economy and kills competition.

And then when you're done sucking the Walmart cock, while your mouth is still full of semen, tell me why Walmart is so amazing that you'd make this ignorant vomit of a comment.

Walmart is a horrible company that takes every opportunity to blame the consumer, call the cops on its customers, and hire the worlds most ignorant employees. Prove me wrong, please.

(Hopefully this response isn't too explicit for the Consumerist taste. If it is, feel free to devowel it or delete it.)

Second: Don't use the kid as a pawn in so idiotic guilt trip. If the manager won't exchange the item then smile, go into the store buy a real copy of the game and one or two other things you want on your credit card, then go home and file a dispute on the second purchase. The credit card company will reverse that charge which gets you the copy of the game you paid for plus whatever else you got to compensate your for wasting your time.

Seriously, 90% of the things on this website are just people crying about stuff they could easily deal with themselves if they'd just think a little bit.

When my options are pay $70 for the game during the season or 1/2 of that by being patient and waiting a few months I think that i'm fine with waiting. It'll be the same game when I eventually buy it at a discount.

I'm not saying that RBI Baseball is the same as MLB '09 (cause RBI is much better) because that is a huge jump, but if you honestly truly wanted to get the most out of a sports game you would play each an every team all the way through the end or draft every player or paint faces or whatever the hell goes on in sports games these days.

What do you do, pick your favorite team and play it a thousand times, then make your own team with all the best players and expect some challenge?

You might as well eat that money with a stick of butter and it would be the equivalent of the amount of time and money and weight gained by playing every Madden game for 10 years.

The difference between your analogy and the reality of it is that you are stupid. Not everyone has money to eat with sticks of butter every year just because "it's the thing to do with Madden games, because that's what EA wants me to think. They even added new commentary this year so I'm gonna go spend $60 and eat some more butter."

It's still Walmart's fault for selling him a bad product. Whether or not it's feasible for them to check every video game before selling, it's ultimately their responsibility to ensure that the product they are selling is what they say it is. The fact that Walmart got scammed is a separate issue.

The message isn't that WalMart is evil; they seem to be trying to rectify the situation. The issue is that it's silly to scold the OP for not noticing the disc swap when WalMart, the retailer that stocked the game and took his money for it, didn't notice either.

That's some redneck sh!t.

Based on what data?

@Canino: hey don't forget the gays.. as a white male that's the only card i can play when i'm crying at the mechanics to get a deal on my car repair..

I don't now about having the kid cry.. but allowing him to express his dismay is the right way to go.. people need to see that it's real.. not just another number, not just another scam

and to those berating the consumer (a young kid in this instance), he will likely have this game for a couple of years and it will serve him well in the time. if he saved up christmas money to buy it he will probably not get madden 2010 at all.

imo, the best time to get sports games is never when they first come out but two months after the newer version comes out when they drop to about $12 used. one or two new nailed on useless features and an updated roster are not worth an extra $50 and cellophane wrapping

1.) He's dumb for not checking it
2.) He's stupid for wanting it
3.) He should be taught a lesson anyways and this is the time to teach him that lesson, suck it up

Call me crazy here but if that isn't arrogant snobbish BS, I'm the Queen of freaking England.

First layoff the holier than though you should have checked it BS, the last thing any happy kid should have to deal with is worrying they have gotten ripped off. I don't care about the whole 'well its the way life is'. That is a BS excuse.

Next the whole don't get it cause the gameplay isn't 'the way it was meant to be played anymore', for goodness sake, its a kid.... your not making the kid smarter, you are talking down to the kid. That'll teach'em real good...... *sigh*

And the final point is just that geek trait that everyone really hates. The rub it in your face I was right stuff. So what if you are right, its enough to not have the game/product, don't need Captain Obvious statements' like that.

Right, because all Wal-Mart Store Managers are required to read The Consumerist each day before they go about their duties for the off chance that something is posted about their store. /sarcasm ;-)

This is Carey jumping the gun on a story that could have waited to be posted on tuesday after the OP visited the store.

I buy video games at Walmart all the time, and STILL I go over the entire little package to make sure it hasn't been tampered with.

As soon as I've paid for it, I take my pocket knife and OPEN IT UP IN FRONT OF THE CASHIER. I explain to her that I have to make sure we BOTH agree there's a real disc inside. Once done (takes 30 secs) I leave.

#2 - this really shouldn't be such a big frackin deal. Walmart replaces nearly anything that's broken, even stuff that's perfectly ok but the wrong size, wrong color, etc. If worried about being scammed, start requiring photo id for returns, and if someone brings in more than one video game like this - TELL 'EM TO STOP SCAMMIN'!!

Otherwise, Walmart should honor the American code of putting the customers first. *snort*

It was a joke, so I stand by my point that your reaction is kneejerking.

So I guess my advice is, if they don't believe you, is to explain how absurd it would be for you to scam that way. Why would you write Redneck Shit on a cd, involve your kid, and go through all the bother just for a videogame. Ask them to check the security cameras and they can see that you did indeed buy the cd there. Tell them if you were really into ripping off videogames you wouldn't even go into the store, you could buy a bootleg for a $5 or download them yourself.

I wonder what the "Cid" on the disc is. (Look closely, it's upside down by "SHIT")

How strange.

@aguacarbonica: That's a tad melodramatic.

I agree, getting your kid to cry for not getting his way is a tad melodramatic.

And I haven't seen anywhere that the kid was accused of anything yet...

they shouldnt return anything. that would prevent this!

He's a KID. What if he wanted this game, and didn't want the new one when it came out? What if he only gets video games from holiday or birthday money?

I think the biggest factor here is that again, he's a kid. What's the big deal? Are you going to tell a kid, "sure, you got Christmas money, but you're going to have to wait 8 months to use it because we're trying to teach you a lesson."

And he couldn't have looked on Craigs List - the kid had a gift card. What kind of lesson are you teaching a kid if you say you'll pay for a used game off CL in cash, and won't take the kid's gift card as repayment. I mean, fair is fair, the father should've taken his kid's gift card if he was going to buy the game by cash on CL - then he would've been the "irresponsible parent spoiling his child."

@Smashville: wouldn't now be a good time to educate, then?

@VRWC: You're right. WalMart really does suck.

They could've checked merchandise before restocking.

@damitaimee: don't we all, as consumers, want to get the most for our money?

on games that don't have a one-year shelf life, i would say that getting it months after release isn't as big of a deal - but sports games DO have a shelf life. unfortunately, there is not a linear decline in price in relation to time with these games, rather this is a sharp drop off once the game is bordering the obsolete. i think i recall madden 08 going for $20 or $25 about a month or two before 09 was released. madden 08 now goes for less than $10 on ebay including shipping.

i don't have the biggest collection of games (around 10 on ps3), but they are mostly ea sports games with the one year shelf life. i do have a tendency to buy my games on or near release dates so i can "fully" enjoy them. i'm just saying that he's not going to get as much out of it as someone who paid the same price (walmart still selling it for $59.74) five months ago.

Example: Me
$60/12 months = $5/month average cost to own the game

Example: Scammed Kid
$60/7 months = $8.57/month average cost to own the game

someone is thinking something like "it's only $3.57, stop being so full of yourself, buddy" but the OP is paying 71% more to own the same game.

He might as well start paying $1.71 for McDoubles and $17,100 for a new Nissan Versa.

Things like this are bound to happen at a multi-billion dollar corporation. The OP seems to be nicely taking it up with the store. It's a bit premature for everyone to get up in arms since the store hasn't had a chance to respond yet. Maybe I'm naive for expecting more from commenters.

And so did the consumer. So should Walmart spend five minutes examining every return with the utmost scrutiny? You know if they had done that we would hear you screaming about how Walmart makes it difficult to return goods.

You cannot have liberal return policies and strict return policies at the exact same time. You cannot examine every item but expect everything to be accepted as is at the same time.

The wrap job fooled both me and my manager, the game really did look like it hadn't been touched, there was no scotch tape or other obvious signs of tampering.

Whoever did it, they did a good job on the re-wrap.

just because YOUR LIFE becomes ruined by not having the game at the 'right' time, doesn't mean that others are in the same boat.

he has every right to buy madden 09 and not 'FULLY' enjoy 'CORRECTLY.' he also has every right to buy the 09 version even though the 10 is coming out soon.

OH WELL

It seems like if you were opening them that it would seem even more suspect to the cashiers. Its not an issue with other items as for most big electronics they open it and verify the contents in front of you.

If this is such a big problem and its happening all the time and retail stores are unwilling to swap out a copy of a game from some innocent victim who bought it there then stores need to have an official policy about games and dvd's where you do not get the product that you pay for and then post the policy in the electronics department so everyone knows before they buy games.

Does anyone actually open movies and games in the store? That seems like impractical advice to me.

@mythago: since when do any of my posts say that craigslist is a bad thing? i believe in bartering.

now, i would not buy a laptop from craigslist, but a video game. sure.

When I was working at Office Depot I remember someone returned an "unopened" computer, where they had broken the tape on the bottom, and lifted most of the individual components (memory, cpu, hdd). I was so mad because they called me to reshelve it and I IMMEDIATELY knew that something was fishy. Was so angry at the lady at the counter for taking it back w/o checking with me first. 99% of the time this is just lazy, uncaring return employees.

I also recently bought a vacuum cleaner from Wal-Mart that had been swapped. Fortunately, they were very understanding and immediately swapped it out for me. Was the last one and I had to pay a little more but was better than getting taken advantage of.

Turns out that the registration code was already registered. The game doesn't require the disk to be present to run, so someone had bought it, installed it, registered it, and then returned the disk to Fry's. EA wouldn't give me the full address so I could send the jerk a note, but suffice to say that by the time EA's support was able to give me an answer, it was too late to take it back for a replacement.

I looked at the packaging, and it was really well put back together; looked intact, and there was no indication from Fry's that it had been returned at all.

Lesson learned: don't buy stuff from Fry's.

WTF is it with Consumerist and Walmart? I'm honestly curious from where this irrational and juvenile hatred of Walmart has sprung? Perhaps you're just shilling for someone?

Walmart didn't steal this poor kid's present -- the scammer that swapped the disc and returned it did. If it was so cleverly re-sealed that it looked unopened, it's completely unreasonable to blame Walmart for not noticing it.

And to be fair, who's to say that the kid didn't swap the disk? Or the parent? It wouldn't appear likely at first glance, but how's Walmart to know? If the previous customer played the return-game, what's to say that the author of the email to Consumerist couldn't do the same thing? And in either case, Walmart is not to blame -- in fact, Walmart is an actual victim here, too.

I'm hoping that they replace the disc for the child. Blaming Walmart, however, for the underhanded actions of an amateur or professional thief is not only idiotic and juvenile, it's part of the problem we have in the country today of blaming those with deep pockets instead of the actual perpetrator of the crime.

In fact, I'm willing to bet that if Walmart does come to the rescue here, Consumerist would still find some way to bash Walmart. If you really wanted to support the consumer, you'd put blame where blame is due and stop your bitching and whining about companies that might not be as irrationally liberal as you want them to be.

Grow the f**k up, please.

Listen, one of two things happened here. An individual employee of the store took the disk and replaced it with a blank one thinking nobody would notice. This is a case for the store's manager.

Conversely, this could have happened BEFORE the case even got into Wal-Mart's hands. In this case, I can see how it's completely logical to expect each Wal-Mart store to open every item they have to see if it's actually what it's supposed to be.

Either way, this should be handled on the store-level. Just because most of y'all hate Wal-Mart doesn't mean they're out to get you. I know I don't fool myself into thinking thinking I'm a better person for not shopping at Wal-Mart.

It's a lesson I decided to learn, instead of trying to get my money back from a place that obviously doesn't care enough to check their own items on return.

I was in a WalMart with my gf returning something she purchased and didn't want. A guy was there returning one of those above ground inflatable pools. He opened the box and pulled the pool part way out on the counter. It was full of dirt and ripped. Apparently someone bought a new pool, stuffed they're old one in the box and returned it. The item was just put back in stock instead of being checked first. I did also consider for a moment that this guy was the one who did it and may also have been trying to pull a scam himself.

Either way it just goes to show that some people suck..

@kathyl: he would have been better off saving it and getting madden 10 when it comes out this year.

That's a tad melodramatic. If a young kid is being accused of scamming, isn't the best counterargument a physical reaction that indicates distress and not guilt? I don't see what this has to do with being a woman or a minority. Innocent kids often cry when they are accused of doing something wrong or they are being denied a Christmas gift. If I accused a kid of cheating on a test, and he immediately cried and said he didn't do it, I think I'd try harder to find out if he actually did.

"Blame the OP" has gone out of style here, in case you weren't aware.

@jusooho:

i was just saying that the consumer should be more aware when making purchases.

a) buy the game you want to buy so you get more value out of it. it's a game that gets released every year around the same time. you aren't getting the full value of the game when you basically missed the progression of the players during the season.
b) if he couldn't play the game until sunday anyway, i am sure there was a retail outlet open between the time of OP's purchase and time the game was played.
c) i think that they would be better off by buying the game (even though the game itself is the same all around) where the fraud level may be less. dare i say it -- best buy & gamestop prolly would not have let this happen.

and... your post has two b points. i really can't take your criticism of my post seriously because of that.

I bought games from Target that had loose wrap that looked really bad, but the game inside was fine and it really was new because there were no save files on the game.

Your best defense is to make sure that all copies of the same game you are buying have the same identical shrinkwrap, if you spot one copy of Madden 09 that has different shrinkwrap than the others, avoid that one. This doesn't always work though because sometimes there will only be one copy left or they won't let you check all the games in the case for the same type of wrap.

This is actually an issue with store policies more often than not. In many cases you may never look at the actual item before it enters the bag. Since they have to remove it from the glass case and which they take to the electronics counter to check you out, while the whole time you may have never even touched it.

This might have been a very good reseal job, the one ringing it up didn't notice, these people apparently did not without closer inspection.

The disks have weight, and actually enough to be noticed if lacking.

We've caught this happening several times (unfortunately after the original return, but before they try to sell it).

Notice the reseal, weigh it (got to love postage scales we have for sending stuff out), open it and document it.

Ultimately, the problem is with the way the returns are being handled. crack the case open in front of the customer, ask them to bring the proper disk back for a refund/enchange.

I suppose there's a good reason I don't work doing returns...

This is amazing because I actually bought a copy of "Redneck Shit" a few weeks ago and inside it the disc was Madden '09. I was a little bummed because The Cracker Barrel wouldn't replace it for me.

If I was the 'swapper' in this case...why even bother swapping...the disc doesn't 'rattle' or add appreciably to the weight so why not just remove the disc and return an empty case?

@lotussix: so your answer for this consumer who has an issue is

a) don't buy the thing you wanted to buy

b) at the time you wanted to buy it

b) at the store you wanted to buy it

not very useful

...play up the fact that he's a kid and an unlikely scammer. Michael should return to Walmart, receipts in hand, and let them see the disappointment on his son's face. If the manager isn't as helpful as she sounds and insists that the kid is a scammer, well, we wouldn't stop him from crying

So, the advice from Consumerist is to what? Play the "kid" card? Use every emotional trick in the book to get your way?

Is this just for kids or does it also go for women and minorities?

"If you don't get your way, just turn on the waterworks, honey. And you over there, be sure to let them know you're black."

I thought this site was about consumer advocacy and fair business practices, not petty emotional manipulation.

@seamer: Search engines don't read the image. The image is not on the landing page, but you have to click through to see it.

@the-wanderer: redneck shit of course!

"Music from the Sons of the South", or "Hillbilly Country Jambaroo" both lack the truth "Redneck Shit" has in spades.

@mythago: yes, i do watch football when it's on during the season. but football is on two (or three) days a week during the season. And if it's on a Saturday or Monday, you only get the one game.

anyway, it's fun to play during the season as the game updates rosters. if the player plays well, his stats increase. if he plays poorly, his states decrease. you are pretty much getting half as much gameplay as the online servers for madden 09 are off when madden 10 is released.

it would have been cheaper (and prolly less headache at this point) if he would have checked craigslist. someone out there is selling their copy of madden 09.

or you can just stop shopping @ walmart.

I'm confused here. So far the store has been polite and understanding. There has been no information that a) they did this on purpose or b) they're going to deny the return.

Why should this be immediately escalated to the CEO? Don't you think a problem should occur before an issue is made over it? I dislike Walmart a lot. In fact, I never shop there but even I feel that haven't done anything wrong yet.

In fact, by going directly to the CEO you'd only be limiting its usefulness when a real issue does come around. Remember the boy who cried wolf?

How did Walmart spot the problem and not act? That's just speculation not fact.

I could just as easily say it came from the factory like that and EA knew it and chose not to act. Or perhaps it was the delivery guy?

If the guy missed the scotch tape it's very likely the person who processed the return missed it. Doubt there's a conspiracy here.

I do hope however that his kid can get the game exchanged.

The issue isn't that the consumer failed to spot the problem - the issue is that WALMART did, and put this on its shelves for sale. Wouldn't surprise me if this were an employee helping himself to store merchandise.

[consumerist.com]

i am sure you have bought xbox games before. they are all pretty standard in how the packaging looks. if anything was questionable, i would have spoken up at the point of sale.

i doubt this is a scam, but for goodness sakes, please take a look to make sure the packaging hasn't been tampered with. would you notice this on say... a bag of chips?

also, madden 09 is a great game. it's a shame that you are buying it WHEN THE FOOTBALL SEASON IS PRETTY MUCH OVER. Maddenoliday - celebrate it.