Recall info for SSVS AES

[finngamer]

I feel your pain in having the lessened fatalities, but considering that nearly 1 month has passed since you ordered and no complaint was received until now, it is safe to say that your return would fall under this category:

I ordered and received the correct product, but changed my mind - If we have completed our job flawlessly on our end, but you change your mind due to customs fees, didn't like game, or any other personal reason, you will be charged a 20% restocking fee for returns under this category. Understand that we cannot be responsible for customs fees charged by foreign governments, but we always try to help our customers out by declaring low values for overseas orders. Return freight and liability will be the responsibility of the customer.

Many of us were just waiting for the official word, see? And, 1 month later it arrived.

And the official word says, that your purchase, even when fixed, won't be the item that SNKP originally advertised.



I'm not saying I'd necessarily want the full refund, but this is something that needs to be discussed.

 

[Viewpoint]

Taken from the recall instructions page:
“all shipping charges (see details below) will be covered by SNK PLAYMORE.”
”For this recall, you will be reimbursed (by courtesy of SNK Playmore) for your shipping cost when sending your return to Neo-Geo.com.”

SNKP is basically covering all shipping charges related to this recall.

I'll be damned. At least they are doing this right. It's kind of ironic also at the same time. For a lot of older Neo gamers when Samurai Shodown 1 came out on home cart we had to literally eat the loss of no blood, finishing moves ect ect.

Now with this version it seems that a moderate amount of complaints actually have yeilded something. Of course some of you might remember when Last Blade 2 came out for DC U.S. and it was also fully censored as well. We all thought Agetec had done this but it turned out SNK themselves had censored the U.S. release of this game.

I've never fully understood how things can be so fucking backwards in the U.S. & Japan equally. The Japanese have no real issues with sex & Violence in their cultrure but some game companies feel that they have a need to censor Videogame for the U.S. market simply because they think U.S. gamers will probably sue their asses.

Mortal Kombat for the SuperNES system was a fine example of that. The Big N had pressured Midway to 'Tone down the violence' in the home release. Sega however didn't seem to care as much about this issue as well.

Throughout the years I have seen things come & go and I to be honest the game being censored for the U.S. release *Last Blade 2 also anyone?* was something I had sadly expected.

SNKP willing to absolve the problem tho I did not expect. As much as I'm not fond of how they've treated the Neo these days, this actually gives me more respect for them then I had for SNK.

*reads up*

Wow this is probably the longest post I've made at this site in almost over a year.

Where has the time gone?

Anyways tho back to the subject, SNKP doing this is a good thing. There are a lot of faces here I really don't know anymore but, if you guys really love the Neo then I welcome you with open arms. I've always been a hardcore advocate of play your games 1st and display them 2nd which I know a lot of people *FTL for example* here will disagree with me but I have to give Simone credit for his love of the system even if I still think he's a biased elitest prick.

Guys,
Treasure this home cart not as a last farewell but as a reminder that the Neo*Geo has stood strong & tall with the best the market has thrown its way.

SNK/Playmore for what you guys have done with this last homecart, You have my respect and thanks. I wish you well in whatever future endeavors you choose to follow.

Regards,
Derek Work

 

[rudekid]

So the sticker is going to get damaged, i thinks this whole thing sucks and total refunds given to people who want them, as you were not supplied with the real deal when you purchased the cart just a crippled version.

 

[Electroman]

Question for Shawn- Since the JP insert artwork was available for public viewing AFTER the release, we had no idea how it would look during the preorder stage. After we all got our preorders filled (mine was a US version), we got to see how glorious the JP insert was. There may be some of us that wished we got the JP version instead. What would your recommended course of action be if I wanted to obtain a reprogrammed JP version? I realize that we are to only ship the actual cartridge, and leave the case at home but if there is any way possible that I could obtain the reprogrammed JP version of SS0S at the same time I do this recall that would be really cool. I know that this of course breaches SNKP's wishes of sending the cart back but since these recalled carts are going to you first, maybe a swap could be done? JP to ENG or ENG to JP, dependant on what the customer wanted.

If not, then I may have to sell off my reprogrammed US SSVS for a reprogrammed JP SS0S sometime down the line.

Thanks!
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Reprogrammed SSVS AES with a slightly creased sticker should be worth more than a minty new SSVS with no fatalities at all. I take comfort in this. I will certainly get my homecart fixed. I think it will be kind of a neat conversation piece too. Tall props to Shawn for doing his best to make all this to happen.

But... really makes me wonder why SNKP didn't just release another version of SSV? Samurai Shodown V Final anyone?

 

[lemonflav]

NCS is taking them back as well.

Dear NCS Customer,
>
> SNK Playmore is recalling the Samurai Spirits Zero Special (JPN)
> and Samurai Shodown V Special (USA) home cartridges for reprogramming.
Playmore
> will add a modified version of the fatalities back to the cartridge
> and address a number of bugs caused by the removal of the fatalities
> in the production of the cartridge.
>
> Although the recall is voluntary, we do advise that all customers
> send back their cartridges for the reprogramming service provided by
> Playmore.


we have to send them back by the 10th.


So again, are the fatalities removed completely or just locked? I don't know if I want to send my cart back so I can get back some jazzed up cart with the sticker all funky.

 

[k'_127]

Shawn, I'm really glad with all the efforts that the Neo Store and SNKP are putting on this issue. just wanted to say thanks for that. I had 0 interest on the game before, but now, and as I promised before, SSVS is on the top of my things-to-buy list. I'm sorry to hear that we won't get the uncensored fatalities, but SNKP actions are understandable (to me at least).

I'll start saving money from now, and postpone buying the other games that I was interested in. hopefully, I'll be able to afford buying a copy before all the carts get sold out.

thank you for all your efforts.

 

[evil wasabi]

So again, are the fatalities removed completely or just locked? I don't know if I want to send my cart back so I can get back some jazzed up cart with the sticker all funky.

I'm pretty positive that they just locked the violence setting to 1.

 

[Verbatum]

Man, I'm not sure what to do. Part of me wants to keep the Falwed cart as a piece of Gaming history. At the same time, I would really like the fixes, even if the Fatalities are Dumbed down. Actually, I would like to see what they plan on doing. Many of them could stay intact, in that they aren't that bad, but who knows. I think it would be eaiser for all of us if we could see what SNKP has in mind.

 

[NeoGeo Hunter]

Its freakin sad man, I mean we pay some $350 or more SSVS, and talk about recall the s***head SNKP will ONLY reprogramed with a LESSED fatalities what crap! period. Just because some crazy kid killed another classmate! in Nagasaki Japan(like killing don't happen nowadays). So there you goes neos fans all we going to get is no so complete fatalities what a bastards. So for my furious expression at least that how I feel man.

 

[Amano Jacu]

I'm glad I am MVS only so all this drama barely affects me... I'll eventually buy the MVS version when/if is cheap enough.

This is really a dilemma, if the unibios indeed can fix the unfixed carts but not the fixed ones. Specul... (sorry, I meant "collectors" ) will have some fun.

I agree that people should be entitled for a full refund (minus shipping costs) even having passed a month, this is a special case. Or people that want a refund can just keep the game and try to sell it in the future

 

[ResO]

I'm so confused right now.

So now after realizing they fucked up, Playmore is still not going to restore the homecart to the equivalent of the MVS version of the game??? Honestly, what’s the fucking point? I’m not really that angry, I guess I’m just…”done”. Why is Playmore trying so hard and paying all this extra money just to still be yet to satisfy the customer? I understand that the recall is giving you more of an arcade experience with Samurai Shodown V, BUT STILL NOT THE ARCADE EXPERIENCE. It’s not like they are saving any money on this recall by setting the violence-level to their modified 2.5 instead of the STANDARD arcade setting of 3.0 .


I guess all I really have to say now is: Thank you for the recall Playmore, but fuck you for still not knowing how simple it is to not disappoint your small group of customers. If they can’t even handle a tiny cult market, how the fuck do they plan on appealing to a much larger demographic of PS2 customers?? How fucking hard is it to not modify data? Seriously, how fucking hard is it to not do any work? Just a simple copy and paste job. How the hell do you fuck up a copy and paste job? Modern science can’t explain what triggers an aneurysm in the human brain, but Playmore seems to have solved the riddle. Jesus fucking Christ! God damn it! Aww fuck! I could just rant for hours on this same, very easy to understand point. Maybe Playmore gets a tax write-off by hiring the mentally impaired to be in charge of their consumer relations department. I just don’t know anymore. I really was excited about this recall, I honestly truly was. It sucks that it has to boil down to the fact that I’d rather drink a cup of my own piss before I’d give my favorite video game company a single penny from my next paycheck. Fuck me until I love you Playmore, fuck me ‘till I love you…
.

 

[Shawn]

What if I want to order the original version with the bugs and missing fatalities?

SNKP asked us not to ship any of the remaining stock so that they could be returned to Japan for reprogramming. However, it is understandable that some may prefer their cartridge to be in top condition without cart sticker creasing. You can order the original English or Japanese version SSVS now, but understand that you would not be able to return this cartridge for reprogramming.

What would your recommended course of action be if I wanted to obtain a reprogrammed JP version?

Trading versions at this point is not an option. You were given the choice when you preordered/ordered. Also for those who preordered, up until the very day of shipping you were permitted to change version at no cost.

I agree that people should be entitled for a full refund (minus shipping costs) even having passed a month, this is a special case. Or people that want a refund can just keep the game and try to sell it in the future.

Very few (if any) stores will accept returns of used video game software that was originally purchased as new after 30 days. Besides, this really is a non-existent issue since to this very day the NeoStore has NEVER received a refund request for SSVS AES (either version).

Regardless, I am offering the partial refund under category 2:
I ordered and received the correct product, but changed my mind - If we have completed our job flawlessly on our end, but you change your mind due to customs fees, didn't like game, or any other personal reason, you will be charged a 20% restocking fee for returns under this category. Understand that we cannot be responsible for customs fees charged by foreign governments, but we always try to help our customers out by declaring low values for overseas orders. Return freight and liability will be the responsibility of the customer.

 

[Eliza]

Its really hard to accept this from a customers stand point but after looking at things from SNK-Ps point of view they really do have a "credible" reason to tone done the Fatalities...I have the cart and we are still thinking about wether or not to send it back to NCS...I work for a very large Lan-Shop that offers a number of games that are in a way violent...(not to mention DOOM III is right around the corner)...We recieved our share of flack from teachers and parents asking us to "police" younger customers from playing these games...and believe me its very hard to keep tabs on everyone...The desicion of Snk to tone down the fatalities are better than not having them at all...I had a short chat with a Japanese friend of ours and asked him what he thought about the "censorship" thing...He simply said it was a "moral" responsibility on the part of the company to address issues that may have been a source of extreme violence on the part of the youth...However in light of the organizations commitment to fullfill customer satisfaction a "compromise" was in order...hence the "lessened fatalities"...I know we are all grown-ups and seeing a man sliced in half would not turn us into cult crazy slicing and dicing freaks but we are just a part of a picture(big or small) and not its whole...Snk may have looked at things from a "macro" perspective and thought it best to give both and often conflicting worlds (Morals vs Customer Satisfaction) a good rub on the shoulders...I really believe Snk wanted to give us everything but considering the atmosphere surrounding the titles release it had to compromise...a very good case of "GOOD GAME BAD TIMING"

 

[Makismo]

OK, I don't want a glitchy game so I went a head and sent the game back to you. Please let us know when to expect the game to get back into our hands. I think that it is silly to dumb down the violence in the game since it is an adults only system but hey, I am just a Neo Freak who knows nothing compared to Playmore - right?

 

[William_Hung]

Shawn- Will the neostore ever carry SSVS japan mvs kits?

 

[Shawn]

Shawn- Will the neostore ever carry SSVS japan mvs kits?

SNKP is not expected to be releasing SS0S MVS for US market. Released for Japanese market only. No plans to stock this MVS version until price falls below $500. Sorry about that.

 

[finngamer]

I agree that people should be entitled for a full refund (minus shipping costs) even having passed a month, this is a special case. Or people that want a refund can just keep the game and try to sell it in the future.

Very few (if any) stores will accept returns of used video game software that was originally purchased as new after 30 days. Besides, this really is a non-existent issue since to this very day the NeoStore has NEVER received a refund request for SSVS AES (either version).

EVERY single one of the pre-orderers was more or less disappointed with the game. So if you have NEVER received a refund request, that really settles it. People really were waiting for the official word.

There was actually talk of this on some threads; that people were wondering about a full refund, but didn't want to bother you while you were talking to SNKP. And why would they have wanted a full refund? The verdict was still out. NOW it's finally in. NOW it's time to start thinking of returning the game.

 

[HYDEMe]

Few more questions

1) Shawn, will you be opening the remainder of the games you have in stock and removing just the carts to send to SNKP? Or will you be sending them back whole? Reason I ask is I'd rather you open and set aside the cases/manuals than someone at SNKP who may not treat it as gingerly.

2) What are the chances of getting SNKP to provide replacement label stickers so we can remove the creased one and replace it with a new one? Is there anyway to even order just the label even if for a minor cost?

3) Will the technically "new" carts (unsold and removed from the case to ship to SNKP) be mingled with the consumer returned carts that are "used" ending up in a lottery of carts that gets divied back irregardless of previous condition? In other words, if people don't put name labels on, could they receive a "new" cart (that was previously unsold) in return, or will previously unsold stock be returned and sold as such? I wouldn't want to buy a cart that someone else owned and didn't take particularly good care of. It's sad enough knowing someone elses fingers will touch the cart before me :/

I think I can handle the seal being broken (carefully) but any damage past that needs to come from me during violent play sessions

Thanks again Shawn -

 

[finngamer]

One more question (just to satisfy my curiosity):

When negotiating/talking to SNKP, did you attempt to isolate the US version? So that the US would be totally unlocked? I can see why they won't want to have different fixes of the Jap version, but ALL US carts would be a different matter.

 

[gmw]

Asking Shawn for a full refund on this is misdirected, unfair, and unthinking - I imagine that this entire situation has financially hurt Shawn the hardest of any of us (buying one cart at a few hundred dollars is nothing compared to sitting on an entire run of them). To the people asking for it - direct your anger at SNKP - if you want to pursue a 100% refund, you should take it up with SNKP themselves. Doing otherwise is basically asking Shawn to take a bullet for everyone.

The fact that SNKP is offering even this limited fix at all is incredible and pretty much unprecedented. I'm completely shocked and amazed that they've done this, and it's going to make me purchase the cart just as a gesture of support. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

 

[finngamer]

Asking Shawn for a full refund on this is misdirected, unfair, and unthinking - I imagine that this entire situation has financially hurt Shawn the hardest of any of us (buying one cart at a few hundred dollars is nothing compared to sitting on an entire run of them). To the people asking for it - direct your anger at SNKP - if you want to pursue a 100% refund, you should take it up with SNKP themselves. Doing otherwise is basically asking Shawn to take a bullet for everyone.

I hate to pursue this because A) Shawn is a great guy and B) I don't even know if I'd want a refund, but I just think this is an issue to be addressed. The bottom line is naturally where it has been bought from. If it's from the NeoStore, seek refund there, Not from SNKP. If Shawn would like a full refund, he would go to SNKP.

But he's not going to. He'll get the whole run fixed and most likely sell them out in 2-6 months. And this'd include the copies that were refunded. (likely not too many of them anyway)

 

[buster_broon]

i emailed you on Friday Shawn explaining my dilemma and now its too late

what is going to happen to my copy i bought new from the neo store??? (via rotphungte)

i explained i am in the UK armed forces (Royal Navy) and i am onboard and i sail tomorrow for 24 days, so i wont be able to meet the deadline which i find unfair, cant even get it tonight as i live almost 50 miles away and the ship is under sailing orders and even if i could get it we cant send/receive post

since military satellites cost a bomb (£8 a minute) i cant get access to the internet too find out if i am stuck with this lemon???

this sucks - if this was sorted out sooner than it has been i would have been able to send it off

is there any other decent outcome for members who cant meet the deadline???

fucking annoyed now - gave those idiots at snk/playmore far too much of my money for them to basically rip me off for 359usd

 

[Verythrax]

i emailed you on Friday Shawn explaining my dilemma and now its too late

what is going to happen to my copy i bought new from the neo store??? (via rotphungte)

i explained i am in the UK armed forces (Royal Navy) and i am onboard and i sail tomorrow for 24 days, so i wont be able to meet the deadline which i find unfair, cant even get it tonight as i live almost 50 miles away and the ship is under sailing orders and even if i could get it we cant send/receive post

since military satellites cost a bomb (£8 a minute) i cant get access to the internet too find out if i am stuck with this lemon???

this sucks - if this was sorted out sooner than it has been i would have been able to send it off

is there any other decent outcome for members who cant meet the deadline???

fucking annoyed now - gave those idiots at snk/playmore far too much of my money for them to basically rip me off for 359usd

Wait the the unibios fix, man. You will be glad in having the bugged cart.

And it's going to be rare, so sell it later.

 

[Makismo]

Asking Shawn for a full refund on this is misdirected, unfair, and unthinking - I imagine that this entire situation has financially hurt Shawn the hardest of any of us (buying one cart at a few hundred dollars is nothing compared to sitting on an entire run of them). To the people asking for it - direct your anger at SNKP - if you want to pursue a 100% refund, you should take it up with SNKP themselves. Doing otherwise is basically asking Shawn to take a bullet for everyone.

The fact that SNKP is offering even this limited fix at all is incredible and pretty much unprecedented. I'm completely shocked and amazed that they've done this, and it's going to make me purchase the cart just as a gesture of support. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

No offense dude but you sound like a lapdog. How is it misdirected, unfair, and unthinking to want a refund for a defective product? Playmore should damn well fix the game that they messed up. They should give us extra gifts for our trouble. They should also give us what we paid for which is a complete game. I don't see why a girl in Japan slicing up her school should effect our game in a whole different country. I will not support Playmore in the future because of this. It doesn't matter though because the Neo Geo is dead now. I hope that this company in England can make some good games but from what I have seen - it probably won't happen.

 

[gmw]

Snipped moron-ologue

It's a good idea to read and understand the posts you're "critiquing." I'm in agreement with you (weirdly enough):

1. SNKP should do everything they can to satisfy annoyed customers.
2. Shawn and the Neostore aren't responsible for a stupid development decision.