Déjà Vu All Over Again:  GameStop!

I was pressed into service today because Chris was too busy clubbing baby leopard seals. So today's content features an item that likely doesn't appeal to many of our readers, and for that I apologize. However, the narrative surrounding the item may trigger nightmares for some of you that were collecting figures in 2008. I'll get to that in a minute, but first here's the story on the item itself.

The upcoming Black Series Clone Trooper (501st Legion) Electronic Helmet, I assume, appeals to very few of you reading this. For me, it's a must have, and frankly it's long overdue. So when it was officially announced at Celebration Japan, I was thrilled. Contributing to the excitement was the news that it would be available in less than a month, so it would be as close to instant gratification as we can get in this hobby these days.

I read the press release from Hasbro's PR firm that I found in my inbox the other day. The first sentence to catch my eye was this kick to the crotch:

Fans can purchase the highly anticipated STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES CLONE TROOPER (501ST LEGION) ELECTRONIC HELMET at select GameStop locations on Star Wars Day—May the 4th—when stores open

At first, my brain must have gone into defensive mode like an armadillo, because the only thing I saw was that the word "GameStop" was a link, so I clicked it to pre-order the helmet. Getting to the product page, I saw the helmet was unavailable for pre-order, with this explanation:

Mark your calendars! This popular item will be available exclusively in stores on May The 4th. Don't miss out - shop in person to grab yours!

OK, annoying, but not too terrible. There is a GameStop location about 4 minutes from my house, and I should be readily available to stop by on that day. So I went back to the press release and re-read the previous sentence, and I caught the phrase "select GameStop locations".

Throat punch.

Ugh! It seems the helmet will not be available at all GameStop locations. Fortunately, their website gives a handy dandy list of stores that will carry the helmet. Problem solved. Thanks for reading folks, have a great day!

Nah, I just made that up. Of course there's no such listing! So I have no idea if my local GameStop will have the helmet, or if I have to travel around town like a schmuck. And how many will be in each "select" store? Do I have to wait in line before it opens to make sure I get one?

Continuing to read the press release, I see this gem:

During this special one-day event to celebrate a galaxy far, far away...., fans who purchase the new helmet at select locations will also receive a FREE 501st Legion challenge coin as a gift (while supplies last).

Ok- so there is a special 501st themed collectible coin that is available with it. Like the helmet, this coin is a must have for me. It's free with purchase of the helmet, WHILE SUPPLIES LAST.

Groin kick

So even if I stumble into a store that was given a supply of helmets and manage to score one, that's not a guarantee that I also get the free coin, because supplies may not have lasted? What does this mean? A store that carries the helmets might get 10 of them, but only 3 coins? And are we sure that GameStop will honor this announcement? Or will they be selling the coins separately to people who ask for them, or giving them away to their friends, or just keeping them for themselves as soon as they arrive in the back room?

So this is where many of you may be getting flashbacks. This is eerily similar to the 2008 release of the GameStop Exclusive Stormtrooper Commander from The Force Unleashed. If you remember this, I'm sorry for triggering PTSD. If you're not familiar with the story, you can read the full review of that figure HERE. Below is the summary of the exclusive figure "offer" as I had reported at the time - which turned out to be one of the worst debacles in the 30 years of the modern Star Wars line.

The plan seems to be that the figure will only be available at GameStop locations that will be open for the midnight game release. These locations seem to be a small percentage of total GameStop stores. After that, it gets more dicey. Here’s what we’ve heard from around the web: Play the fun game below to predict the result of a visit to your participating GameStop location. Choose one item from Group A and then one item from Group B, or bypass both and select an option from Group C:

GROUP A:
1) reserve your game for a $5 deposit
2) reserve your game by paying in full

THEN

GROUP B:
3) Your figure will be held for you when you pick up the game
4) Your figure is handed to you right there
5) A figure is not guaranteed. You must be in line by midnight and hope there are enough figures left by the time you go to the register

OR

GROUP C:
6) You can purchase a figure for a price, independent of purchasing the game
7) You can purchase a case of figures for a price, independent of purchasing the game

We’ve heard of every one of the above happening. Earlier today, my wife reserved a copy of the game by paying in advance (full price) and she was handed a figure on the spot. She was told they had only 10 left out of an original allotment of 30. I tried my luck a few hours later, and was denied a figure. I was told I had to be in line by midnight, but that there were only 8 left. After I told him I knew someone who had gotten a figure earlier in the day, he told me they had been making a mistake, and weren’t supposed to give away the figure until the midnight event. So I went back to the same store later for the midnight release, and was 5th in line outside the door. I got a figure, but it was the last one, because there were only 5 figures left in the store at that point, and a lot of people were left out. About 4-5 days after the promotion, these figures were commonly going for around $40 on the secondary market.

Here’s to hoping Hasbro re-releases this figure in some other format in the future, so that every collector has an opportunity to get one.

Cold sweats? Yeah, me too. Maybe this won't be a big deal. When I expressed my terror to Chris, he told me to put on my big boy pants and stop complaining like a [expletives deleted]. (This coming from the guy who threatened to quit the hobby because IG-12 didn't have paint on his thighs.) But he made the point that I live in a major US metropolitan area, and should have no problem acquiring what I want. That's all well and good, but the above account of the Stormtrooper debacle from 2008 took place in North Jersey, part of the biggest metro area in the US. Sure, I eventually got what I wanted, but it was a spectacular hassle. If I have to wait in line outside a GameStop for more than 13 seconds, I risk death by heat stroke here in Phoenix.

Wish me luck, and luck to those that will be going through the same experience.

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