CNN Staffer Learns First-Hand The Perils Of Buying A Game System
CNN has a story from staff writer Krysten Peek about her ordeal while waiting to get her hands on a Nintendo Wii. I had a similar experience when I waited outside of Best Buy and was the last person to get a Xbox 360 Pro. Here’s a snippet of the story and be sure to read the rest.
We all know the new Nintendo Wii is the number one present to give this holiday season. You’ve heard the stories of those who camp out in front of stores the night before shipments come in, or those who pay double the cost on eBay. It’s obvious that people will do almost anything to get their hands on this hot new item.
I found myself waiting for a Nintendo Wii one late afternoon. A massive shipment had just come in that morning and the line didn’t look too unbearable, so I decided to wait and try my chances at getting one for my boyfriend. Since it was a little late in the day, I knew the odds were against me, but for some strange reason, I was feeling optimistic.
I didn’t see any other women in line and I didn’t bother talking to the guys around me. All of them were way too serious about this; full of anxiety and tension. I had never felt so out of place in my life. It seemed like each one of their lives depended on whether or not they got this game system. Their eyes were fixed on the front of the line. No one knew how many were left. We were all just hoping the last box would be ours.
After about 2 hours I was near the front of the line. Could this be it? I could see the pile of white boxes dwindling down. My heart sunk. I started to get nervous. Why didn’t I come earlier? I couldn’t imagine getting this close and not getting one! That wasn’t even an option anymore.
Lines, anger, police … A Wii story [CNN]
[via GoNintendo]
Super Timsy
Posted to Video Games on 17 December 2006
· Comments (6)
Other stuff like this: cnn, madness, nintendo, wii
yeah in all honesty, people really suck when they want something. They will kill, steal, whatever. And they think they are somehow DESERVING of the product. How dare they is all i can say. What right do they have that says they are owed a product, a material good? Working in retail, especially gaming, you really see just how bad people will get and how self righteous they think they are. Those people, in fact, dont even deserve the air they breath, let alone a Nintendo Wii or PS3.
The lousiest part of Wii mania is that most of those guys who were waiting in line for the Wii (and who tried to steal it from her on the way out of the store) were probably the same guys who lined up for the PS3, expecting a big payday out of reselling it. With Wii prices averaging $475 on ebay, how could they not?
What pisses me off if that the people in the line think a GIRL is not deserving of a Wii or won’t know how to play. That is damned sexist. Ask my boyfriend, I do better on Resident Evil 4 than he ever did. A girl can and will whoop your ass in video games. Some of the men in that story need to learn that lesson.
no some of the men need to get laid… i’m not really surprised by this… and i’m sure all of those guys are in their 30s and still live in their parents basements… thats crazy that they were attacking her like that as she was leaving the store
That’s insanity!
My Wii experience was a lot better than that. All of the other people in line were cool. We just hung out, talked, waited for the vouchers to be handed out. None of the really hardcore freaks to be found. lol Interestingly enough, there were also no scalpers in line. It was all college students buying for themselves or parents buying for their kids.
Do the details of this story seem shaky to anyone else? (Aside and including the fact that there are no verifiable facts in the story.)
No vouchers? Late afternoon by the time the systems sold out? “2 weeks left of shopping” was a week that zero retailers in my major metropolitan area (although not New York) received shipments.
I dunno, but the whole thing seems rather nebulous and tailored exactly how a “young female gets last wii” fantasy would play out in one’s imagination.
/me shrugs