The gamer, the game and one lousy postal service...

[Kikoskia]

I bought a game off eBay. Thunder Force II. The eBayer I bought it from assured me it would get to me 'within 1 to 2 working days' and that it was 'cart only but in good condition'.

Then, 5 days later, it comes in the post.

In a tiny little package that has already been opened. Not only that, but there was a huge chunk taken out of the top of the cartridge boxing. Oh, and part of the connectors on the bottom has snapped. I have tried to see if this game will work. It doesn't. It's dead.

And that makes me miffed. I doubt it was the seller trying to sell me a defunct cartridge. I think instead that it was a combination of the postal service not taking even the slightest bit of care with my product and the seller for not packaging it properly; there was no bubble wrap, nothing to cushion it, no nothing. Just the cartridge in a bubble wrap-less bag.

I've messaged him concerning the condition that I recieved the cart in and what I believe caused it, but I am unsure as to what he is going to do about it. I presume he's going to do nothing. -_-

[Joe Redifer]

That's a bummer, man. To me it almost sounds like the box got run over.

[Kikoskia]

It looks like it did. It won't work, the connectors are just plain buggered. Hopefully though, me and the seller will come to some sort of agreement. I do not want to give him negative feedback if I can help it.

I guess the only perk is I only paid him £2 for it. It's not like I had bought some exspensive.

[16bitter]

How did you pay?

[Kikoskia]

Paypal. Most secure way.

[Obviously]

This happened to me before with a DVD. Some sellers are cool about it and will refund your money if you return it. Don't underestimate the power of human kindness... or the desperation if you give them a negative feedback that they want withdrawn.

[Kikoskia]

I would rather have an explanation about it first. If he is able to explain it, then we cam go from there.

The only problem is that it'll probably cost me almost as much as it did to buy the game as it did to send it back... If you look at it like that, I am unsure if there is too much point.

If we are able to narrow down that it is the postal service that is at fault, then I cannot direct the blame at him really...

[16bitter]

Isn't the seller at the buyer's mercy with PayPal? Just take the money back.

[Kikoskia]

Again, I would rather get an explanation and see if we can sort something out before I do something like that. I am sure me and the seller can come to some form of understanding.

[16bitter]

Well, if it was me -- and you, of course, are not me -- I'd simply take the money back from him. He packaged it poorly and you ended up with a product that was useless -- i.e. that would be a breach of description and thus contract.

Any or either way, I hope it turns out for you. If push comes to shove, my advice is take the money back and buy a copy from another seller. Hopefully one who is more reliable.

[Kikoskia]

If he can offer me a refund or compensation, that is good.

However, taking money back isn't as easy as that. You need a file a claim with Paypal to get it back. That takes time.

[Drixxel]

Unfortunately the "poorly-packed item" is one of the just another of the hazards of online buying.. packing materials cost that little bit extra, and that turns away some sellers. Always read the negative entries in seller feedback!

That is some serious damage your copy of Thunder Force II picked up en route, though. For the cart's connectors to get a thrashin' while inside case.. yeah, being run over isn't out of the question. There must have been some fiendish combo of crushing and rolling involved.

Anyways, checking the sellers feedback should give you some idea of what to to expect of him or her in the case of disaster, as they've probably dealt with something similar in the past. If they haven't replied yet regarding your concerns, well.. either they're genuinely unable to respond at this time, or they may be unwilling to do anything until you threaten to leave negative feedback. If you can prove to the seller that the game really was fubar'd by the postal service, I don't see why they would refuse you a refund of some persuasion. You may not even have to return the game to them seeing as they couldn't possibly hope to sell it again.

[Melf]

At least it's nice to know that the USPS isn't unique in the world.

I hope you at least get a refund though. That seller really screwed up by not securing the package.

[Kikoskia]

Got contact from him. It's all smiles from here though.

He has asked that I send him the cartridge in question back. He is offering a full refund to my paypal account and even to pay the postage and packaging for sending it back. He seems to think the postal service is after him, I seem to agree as this isn't the first time he's had this happen.

So yes, a good start. I will send it off to him and then we shall see what happens from there. But so far it is looking good. :)

[Drixxel]

It's good to hear things be jammin'.

I wish you better luck with any future efforts to secure yourself a copy of ol' Thunder Force II!

[David J.]

I dunno how rare the PAL release is, but the US release is very common. Good luck. Just looking at this thread reminded me that I am a dunce and I looked over a stack of Genesis games with boxes the last time I was at the almighty game store an hour away, why? They had a boxed copy of Thunder Force two. Maybe in a month I'll go back after I get some more money..