Pinoy PlayStation

I'm not sure if anyone else has noticed this, but Datablitz have this stupid practice of slitting through the factory seal of the copies of video games that they sell, so they can insert security tags into them. I understand that they have security concerns, but surely there are other approaches where they don't have to compromise the quality of the product they sell to us. As paying consumers, we deserve better treatment. We pay good money for the games and it's only right that we get them in the best condition they can be. I've raised this issue straight to them via email before but I never got any response, and obviously, they've never really done anything about it.

I'm not sure what people's views are about this, but if this is something that you think should be fixed, I hope you could let them know that this isn't ok. Always ask for new stock of any game that you're buying from them.

They won't listen. They have protocols and no matter how inconvenient, impractical or down-right insulting it is, they won't change it as long as it works for them. Their policies aren't flexible.

They don't really care about customer satisfaction, all they care about is getting the money. That's my opinion though, there's some who loves DB, maybe there are some branches that actually have humans manning them.

Di ko na pinapansin yan. From the start kasi i know DB will not change their policy. DB isn't owned by a single person/proprietor. DB is owned and operated by group of individuals. So kung may makaunawa sa concerns nating consumer, di agad aakysunan yun, more likely pagbobotohan pa yan. After all iniisip kasi nila, "Whatever we do, sa atin pa rin sila bibili eh. Malakas pa rin tayo". They're very confident.

The only way to get DB to listen to you is by hoping that you post it on some Facebook wall and you get enough support from outraged customers.

Their return policy is universally being shi*t on and they still don't give an eff.

Just go to Itech, or some other retailer, you don't need to hassle yourself by thinking you can change the way they do business.

people still buy from DB? its a piece of #@*^ store tbh.... mga sabaw pa mga tao dyan wala silang kaalam alam sa mga binebenta nila...

I didnt notice this. All I know is when I buy something, the cashier will ask me if they can open the case to check the disc, and I just say no. And so far, all are sealed when I get home. But then Im from Cebu, and the stocks are straight from the cargo box.

sweetmisery wrote:I didnt notice this. All I know is when I buy something, the cashier will ask me if they can open the case to check the disc, and I just say no. And so far, all are sealed when I get home. But then Im from Cebu, and the stocks are straight from the cargo box.

This has been my experience as well, but the last new game I bought from DB was NBA 2K15 (I think). So I don't know if they changed anything with regard to their policies recently.

Anyway, I've been buying games from DB since 2010 or so, and they have not done anything that will make me reconsider this. I've heard the horror stories, but until I do experience something similar, I'll continue to patronize.

grayfox17 wrote:people still buy from DB? its a piece of #@*^ store tbh.... mga sabaw pa mga tao dyan wala silang kaalam alam sa mga binebenta nila...

Your right. That's why most of the time when I buy in DB I just look for the game myself instead of asking.
Nakasanayan talaga na bumili sa DB, mas mahal kasi sa iba like TK, Astroplus. Minsan, may tinatanong
ako about DLC and whatnot, kung ano ano sinasagot sakin.

@topic
I guess yes they have their own protocol. But, it's supposed to be customers that are always right.

Baka depende sa branch. I've been buying from DB since like forever, and even moreso when they opened a branch here in Santa Rosa, Laguna back in 2009. wala naman akong nakikitang security tags sa loob.

grayfox17 wrote:people still buy from DB? its a piece of #@*^ store tbh....

Yes. In my case, a 10 minute BIKE ride to a DB branch beats a 45 minute drive to the nearest iTech branch.

ron_bato wrote:The only way to get DB to listen to you is by hoping that you post it on some Facebook wall and you get enough support from outraged customers.

Their return policy is universally being shi*t on and they still don't give an eff.

Just go to Itech, or some other retailer, you don't need to hassle yourself by thinking you can change the way they do business.

I ranted a bit about this on my own Facebook wall before, tagging their official Facebook page in the process, but it sadly didn't spread outside my first degree social network. Perhaps I don't have people in my network who care enough to pass it around. I wasn't really expecting it to go viral though, which is why I sent them an email directly, hoping they'd listen.

I was hoping that by sharing my thoughts here I'd get support or even just insights from people who (should) actually care.

Nowadays, I go to iTech/Game One Gadget first. It's just that sometimes, DB has better deals, and iTech/Game One don't offer some sort of price matching; I've seen Dragon Age 2 still selling for around PhP1,800 in their shelves. So the alternatives aren't as reliable either. I would go as far as getting my games from Play-Asia if only the Bureau of Customs isn't run by greedy devils. Damn, even courier services like FedEx are gouging consumers here in our country. Amazon used to be another option for me, but thanks to port congestion, it's not anymore.

sweetmisery wrote:I didnt notice this. All I know is when I buy something, the cashier will ask me if they can open the case to check the disc, and I just say no. And so far, all are sealed when I get home. But then Im from Cebu, and the stocks are straight from the cargo box.

Some of the slits they make are quite inconspicuous; you'd only notice them if you actively look for them. However, it can also be that their branches in Cebu don't engage in such questionable practice. In my case, here in Manila, I always ask for new stock whenever I buy things from any of their stores so that I get them new. If they don't have fresh copies in stock, I take my business elsewhere.

here in Cebu, they don't open the plastic seal and insert a security device

Dec0de022 wrote:just out of curiosity, but what does the secuirity tag look like? marami na akong napuntahang branch ng DB but di naman sa lahat may binili ako nagwindow shopping lang. kaya so far I've only bought items from moa, atc and festival and never kong napansin yung tags na yan ang nasa isip ko factory sealed pa siya kasi may nakikita na word na "Sony" printed on the plastic (or PS logo ba yon ?).

There are many types of security tags, but I think DataBlitz use the square RFID tag (check the link since the image is a little too big to attach). That's what they're inserting into the boxes so they have to slit through the factory seal, which is think is stupid. iTech/Game One Gadget, at least, invest a bit on replica boxes that they display in some of their stores.

Ah yes.. that Anti-theft stuff DB is using oo.. Nasa loob ng case. Sila lang ba game store na may ganun style? How about game stores abroad? ano anti-theft device nila na kinakabit?

deathzero23 wrote:Ah yes.. that Anti-theft stuff DB is using oo.. Nasa loob ng case. Sila lang ba game store na may ganun style? How about game stores abroad? ano anti-theft device nila na kinakabit?

These security tags are quite widely used around the world. If I remember correctly, I've had some games shipped from Amazon (US) with these things inside but with factory seal still intact.

I bought a few games from Hong Kong Records when I was there last year. What they do is put their games inside another clear wrap together with security tags. When you go to the check out counter, they break the outer seal open to get the security tag out. It actually shocked me at first because I thought they tore through the factory seal without my consent, but thank goodness it wasn't case.

In one store in Taipei I went to, they just display the games on the shelves for people to look at. Some games are placed on shelves behind the counter, but they didn't really have any security devices stuck to the games themselves. They probably have security cameras around (the store was a bit more spacious than average video game stores there) but they don't mess with products they sell.

I also visited some video game stores in Osaka some months ago. I didn't get any games, but I bought a memory card for my Vita and few other video game accessories. What they do in the store I went to is display boxes about the size of a DVD case with print out of the products on them. So when I wanted the Vita memory card, I took the corresponding box from the shelf to the checkout counter, and the person behind the counter took the actual memory card from their stock. Many stores there do the same thing for video games.

So, yeah, there are smarter ways to secure goods without compromising their condition.

That's odd. I recently bought a PS3 game from them and they removed the seal with me watching. They have been doing that since I started doing business with them (boxed PC games more than 10 years ago).

Is this for PS4 games only?

I'll be buying 2k16 from datablitz trinoma. So I'll definitely observe as well. I may not be as observant as Randal, so it may have just slipped past me.

jsnepo wrote:That's odd. I recently bought a PS3 game from them and they removed the seal with me watching. They have been doing that since I started doing business with them (boxed PC games more than 10 years ago).

Is this for PS4 games only?

Nope, they do this for all the console games they sell... at least the branches I've been visiting. I opt out of their "disc checks" when I buy games from them because I don't think there's any point in that, especially nowadays when video game discs are quite scratch resistant (yey, Blu-ray!). Some of their people are quite sloppy in unsealing the discs too, cutting them with blades without much care (it's not theirs anyway, right?). I personally like keeping my physical copies in the most mint condition as possible, so I'm quite particular about the way other people handle them. However, I also think that any of their customers doesn't have to be as obsessive (I don't think I am that obsessive, though) as I am to deserve the copies of their games in the best condition they can be. At the grocery, we often see warning labels on products that tell us, "don't accept if the seal is broken."

I've been buying games from them for years now but it was not too long ago that I've started seeing them doing this. Since I noticed the practice becoming prevalent, I haven't done much business with them. I remember a few years ago, I found a North American copy of Xenoblade Chronicles in one of their stores. I bought it but whey I got home, I discovered that they made a slit on the case so they can insert their security tag inside. It was so bad that the blade tore through the actual plastic cover of the box; I could see it even if I hadn't removed the factory seal yet. I immediately called them and requested for a replacement. Remember that the game had limited print run in the US because it was GameStop exclusive. Luckily, after waiting for a week or 2, they found a fresh copy that hasn't been tampered with.

I opt out of the disc checks too. I don't want them to open the game. Hindi ko rin pinapatanggal kung aluminum security thingi na nilalagay nila sa loob ng box.