OK, this is a little convoluted, so read as far as you want
First up, Zack & Wiki was in a 2 for £30 deal at Gamestation, which seemed too good a deal to pass up. It was with the second game in the deal I got some problems. Still new to the Wii scene and we didn't have a race game, the lad spots sonic riders. With Zack being £30 elsewhere, I thought we'd give Sonic a punt.
Anyways, Sonic Riders didn't load past the remote warning screen at home so I took it back on Monday. The staff member had a quick look at the disk, which admittedly didn't look in bad shape, had a fertle under the desk and supposedly produced another disc and said try that one. I left the shop thinking, did he just give me back the same disk?
You may want to skip to the questions at the end if you find customer return stories boring
Well, you know what happens next, yep, Sonic fails to get past the remote warning screen and I see red and go straight back to the shop, regardless of the 20 minute drive!
The drive gave me time to calm down and think of the possible scenarios:
- I received the same disk back

- Gamestation has a bad batch

- Sonic doesn't work on my Wii
Anyway, by the time I got to the shop, I just wanted my money back and not get into any arguments. Fortunately, the store manager served me this time. I explained the second return and requested my money back. He explained I'd only get a tenner back, as the 2 for £30 wouldn't stand so I'd effectively pay the full £20 for Zack.
Fair enough, but he just wouldn't let it lie and wanted to test the disk I was returning citing certain games can highlight duff Wii lasers as a reported problem. I said I was not interested in getting in a tit for tat argument if it worked on the store Wii, I just wanted a refund. He said no worries, you can still have your money back even if it works on the store Wii.
With that said, I thought I'd play along and voice stronger opinions if it was shown that their staff had given me my original duff disc straight back. He puts Sonic in the store Wii and Bingo, it fails. I mentioned that I thought I may have been given the same disc back but didn't want to make false accusations, but the manager then asked who served me. The lad who had served me timed it perfectly and I pointed him out.
He denied handing me the disc straight back saying i'm not <another staff members name>, implying this has happened in the past

He was asked which disc was swapped and the one he highlighted was tested. It worked! Well, I explained my disgust and asked for the full game price refund of £20. The store manager admitted something odd was going on now and offered a split of £15 refund, which I accepted.
But again, he wasn't letting things lie and tested a 3rd sonic riders. This failed in the same place as mine and the manager stated a possible bad batch and that it could still be a genuine mix up and I may not have received the game I'd brought back. I agreed that the staff member may be off the hook but re-iterated that I'd been dealt 2 duff copies of the game and would like the agreed £15 back. He honoured this and I think all parties, including myself, were reasonably happy with the outcome.
So, some questions:
- Should I have played my face when I suspected that the staff member was handing me the same copy? I only suspected, I didn't see for definite.
- Are some games susceptible to failing on certain Wiis due to a laser issue as stated by the staff?
- On a budget of £20-25 quid, what Wii racing game should I get?
Thanks for your patience