Be Warned...bad seller

[Danno]

http://www.orphanvideogames.com

 

I ordered from these guys two things. a complete in box Atari 7800 Summer Games and a 2600 Stargate.

 

Their Customer service is horrible. I orignially sent an email to request these games back in March. About a week later, I got a reply saying "please fill out our online order form to expedite your order."

 

LOL. Expedite. LOL.

 

So I immediately filled out the orfer form which was a cheesy Perl script that was completely unsecured (thankfully they didn't request any sensitive info).

 

I waited ANOTHER week, and sent an email asking what the hell was going on with my order.

 

3 days later I received an "invoice" which was made using Microsoft Word's Invoice template, and took all of 30 seconds to create. They also finally gave me an email address to Paypal my money to.

 

I waited another week and a half, and I finally received a paypal email saying my order had been shipped.

 

It gets here, and the 2600 Stargate I ordered, ended up being a PAL format version, which won't work in my 7800, and the Sumer Games cart was in good shape, but the box looked like it was found in a dump, box swollen and creased and dented and faded, and the instructions all creased and mangled.

 

and it took a month to get here.

 

And now - I asked to exchange the PAL Stargate for something that works, and I get no response.

 

Man, I really hate scumbags like this.

[holygrailvideogames.com]

I am sorry to hear about your bad experience. They have bought things from me in the past on eBay and paid very fast. I had good experiences with them as a seller but I can see why you aren't happy.

[Danno]

I am sorry to hear about your bad experience.  They have bought things from me in the past on eBay and paid very fast.  I had good experiences with them as a seller but I can see why you aren't happy.

844308[/snapback]

 

It's too bad. They seemed like polite enough people, and the price on these games wasn't bad at all.

 

It just irks me when you have to send 3 or 4 emails to get one response, and something that should take a week takes a month.

[Lord Helmet]

This thread might be better suited in the marketplace forum

[orphanvideogames]

I would like to take the time to clear things up here on this string that the user "Chopper Commander" had to say about us.

 

His order was filled promptly and was delayed only by his own delay in paying. " The alleged "Cheesy Perl Script" is only a questionaire for requesting items from us. No secure info is requested on it. Payments aren't made on it, that is done via PayPal if you choose to pay with a credit card or money order if mailed.

 

If he really wanted to tell the truth, the Stargate cartridge he sent back to us wasn't the same one we shipped to him with his order. The front label on the one he sent back has a split down the center of the seam of the cartridge. We got duped taking it back and refunding him when he played us with a "switchy".

 

The game was tested before it left us on a non-PAL system and didn't have a a "cheesy" letter "P' that looked like it came off a strip of an electrician's ID labels for curcuits.

 

And when you asked for another Stargate cartridge for exchange and we told him we didn't have any others and we offered a refund upon return of the game, you told us to refund the funds which we did promptly via PayPal.

 

We have all the dates with emails and invoices which just don't seem to click with his message here.

 

And with someone who likes to use words like "S--mbags" to try to get his word across, it just shows us how low some people will get to think they can badmouth others. This hobby has alot of great people in it, we made loads of friends along the way and are greatful for that. Well I guess to can't please them all.

 

In the end, We like to say thanks for giving us the time and space here to give us a chance to tell our side. Oh and by the way Chopper, nice to see that when you spelled "S--mbag" it was one of the words you spelled right ! Next time copy, and paste into MS Word and use spell check LOL.

 

Thanks everyone and happy gaming.

 

orphanvideogames

[Danno]

I would like to take the time to clear things up here on this string that the user "Chopper Commander" had to say about us. 

 

His order was filled promptly and was delayed only by his own delay in paying. " The alleged "Cheesy Perl Script" is only a questionaire for requesting items from us.  No secure info is requested on it.  Payments aren't made on it, that is done via PayPal if you choose to pay with a credit card or money order if mailed.

 

If he really wanted to tell the truth, the Stargate cartridge he sent back to us wasn't the same one we shipped to him with his order.  The front label on the one he sent back has a split down the center of the seam of the cartridge.  We got duped taking it back and refunding him when he played us with a "switchy". 

 

The game was tested before it left us on a non-PAL system and didn't have a a "cheesy" letter "P' that looked like it came off a strip of an electrician's ID labels for curcuits. 

 

And when you asked for another Stargate cartridge for exchange and we told him we didn't have any others and we offered a refund upon return of the game, you told us to refund the funds which we did promptly via PayPal.

 

We have all the dates with emails and invoices which just don't seem to click with his message here.

 

And with someone who likes to use words like "S--mbags" to try to get his word across, it just shows us how low some people will get to think they can badmouth others.  This hobby has alot of great people in it, we made loads of friends along the way and are greatful for that. Well I guess to can't please them all.

 

In the end, We like to say thanks for giving us the time and space here to give us a chance to tell our side.  Oh and by the way Chopper, nice to see that when you spelled "S--mbag" it was one of the words you spelled right !  Next time copy, and paste into MS Word and use spell check LOL.

 

Thanks everyone and happy gaming.

 

orphanvideogames

857105[/snapback]

 

People - this is absolute crap.

 

I originally emailed them to place an order for these two carts on March 27th. I received an email back asking me to "fill out the order form please" on April 3rd, which I did.

 

And then I waited. and waited.

 

In fact - here's the email Maria sent on April 13th, appologizing for not getting back to me on my order for nearly 2 weeks:

 

Hi Dan

We apologize for the delay in the reply to your email. We have been having problems with our computer system and most of our emails were lost.

 

I personally checked our stock and we do have both games in stock. I have attached an  invoice to this email.

 

Please use order reference number # 2013

Your total including, USPS Priority Mail Shipping is $18.00

We accept Money Order and PayPal (www.paypal.com) for credit card payments. They are fast and secure . Our PayPal address is [email protected]

 

We ship with USPS and package and test everything with care before shipping and provide you with the USPS tracking number so you can keep an eye on your order coming to you.

 

If you need any other info ,or have a problem with the Excel file or any questions what so ever, please email us back!

 

Thanks again for visiting the site !

Mark & Maria Poklemba

www.orphanvideogames.com

 

I submitted payment on April 13th, the same day I received the email and Maria "accepted payment" from her paypal account 3 days after I submitted it on April 16th. The package was them shipped on April 22nd.

 

The Stargate cart the sent me DID NOT WORK. I assumed it was PAL because it was rolling the screen. Turns out after talking to a few of the resident experts here, that the cart was just plain bad. I sent it back asking for an exchange, they offered me a refund, but did NOT offer me an exchange, even though their site listed them as having more of the same game in stock. And then these people tried to pull the old switcheroo saying "that's not the cart you bought from us."

 

THIS IS ABSOLUTE BULLSHIT. The only other Stargate cart I have ever owned in my entire life is the one My mother threw out over 15 years ago. I have ABSOLUTELY NO REASON to lie to you people.

 

Chad Schell and CPUWIZ here can attest to my Prompt payment and willingness to work with REPUTABLE dealers. I've spent well over $400 on Atari equipment and games in the past 2 months since I recently styarted collecting again. My Ebay profile speaks for itself - 100% good reputation. Not a Single purchase of a Stargate cart from anyone else.

 

As I told Maria in my email to her - I can't believe they would nickel and dime me like this over a $5.00 Atari Cart. I should have just let her keep the $5.00.

 

And it's really petty when a retailer hasn't a leg to stand on to defend their own HORRIBLE customer service, so they resort to playing "Spelling Nazi" on a Message board. Maybe if YOU could read, you'd realize that my username here is NOT Chopper Commander. Maria - I suggest you grow up.

Edited May 18, 2005 by Danno

[Philflound]

I don't know Danno, but I think this was just a deal gone sour with problems on both ends. In defense of Maria, she is new to the system and saw Chopper Command in the box and didn't realize that was a title for posts rather than your user name, which is above it, so don't knock her for it.

 

I've dealt with Orphanvideogames several times over the past 4 years, both as buyer and seller and have never had a problem with them. In fact, they are only 15 minutes from me and I've never offered to meet with them. I like their product and their service, so from my standpoint I am a happy customer and would gratefully purchase from them again in the future. In fact, I'd like to try and buy some bulk from them if they have it. Maybe I'll drop them an email.

 

So Danno, you may have gotten a bad experience, maybe the cart was damaged on the way back so that it looked like it wasn't the same one, but if you got back the money, then it isn't too bad. They could've just stiffed you altogether if they were really rotten. As for the condition of box and manual, if there was no photo on their website, which it looks like your purchase was made like that instead of ebay, then you should have either requested a photo, or asked for the condition.

 

I don't have Stargate, but I do have Defender II. If you'd like it, I'd part with it for $10 shipped. LMK. It's my only copy for sale.

 

So both of you just shake hands and call this a wash.

 

Phil

[Danno]

Phil - I'm glad they provided you with good service. I'm sure this was all a big misunderstanding on Both sides. Admittedly, when I order something online and don't hear back on my order status within a week, I tend to get impatient. But unfortunately, this is the price of doing business on the internet. If you burn someone, eventually, it'll come back to you.

 

As I said in my original post, they seemed like polite enough people. And their Prices were pretty darn good. And yes - to their Credit they did refund me the money, after an exchange of emails that nearly mirror this thread.

 

I was more irked about the fact that it took much longer than it should have, but she did apologize for that, sort of.

 

Even with all that, I would have been fine with all of this.

 

But when she tried to accuse me of shipping back a different cart instead of the one she sent me, sorry, but that's where I draw the line. Then she comes here and tries to use attacks of my grammar skill as some sort of proof of what? That's just petty.

 

As far as your offer - it was very kind, but not necessary. I recently bought a Cuttle Cart 2 and am EXTREMELY happy with it, so I can play either Stargate or Defender II (I know, same game) any time. I bought the CC2 basically to avoid confusion like this, or having to deal with the blatent rip-off artists on Ebay.

[yuppicide]

Some parts of their website are very outdated.. one page says it'll be online 11/07/04 and it's still not online yet.