BestBuy Failed History [Archive] - SUBSIM Radio Room Forums

Snowman999

04-04-07, 01:39 PM

The BestBuy.com listing for the game contains this copy:

"You open your eyes from a brief slumber to see the cold gray ceiling of the U.S. Gato naval submarine. You've been away from your friends and family for weeks in pursuit of the invisible enemy. The year is 1940, and World War II shows no signs of slowing. Out of nowhere, like the roar of thunder in a storm, you hear an explosion that seems to be coming from all angles. Immediately following is a high-pitched siren and a call from the Captain to man your battle stations. This is where your years of training pay off and as you run to the bridge, adrenaline and instinct take over. Do you have it in you to destroy the enemy before it destroys you?"

Anybody see a problem here?

So, being that way, I sent a nice e-mail to the webmaster:

"Questions or Comments: PC game Silent Hunter IV: Wolves of the Pacific marketing copy on the site states that the USN was at war in 1940.
Please don't add to the historical illiteracy of the US population in this manner. December 7, 1941 used to be taught in school . . ."

Got back a nice non-answer: " I am Marvin with Best Buy Customer Care.
I apologize for any inconvenience you have experienced related to the PC game Silent Hunter IV: Wolves of the Pacific.
Best Buy strives to make each experience you have with us positive and as fun as possible, and we are disappointed if we don't live up to that expectation. Our Web Site Support team is constantly tweaking and updating the site to give you the best possible online experience.
Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns at 1-888-BESTBUY (1-888-237-8289). We look forward to your next visit to one of our stores or to www.BestBuy.com (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/www.BestBuy.com).
Sincerely,
Marvin
Best Buy Customer Care Team"

Of course, the listing hasn't changed a bit.

So, I sent back another: "Hi Marvin:
Thanks for replying. But, I see that the listing for the game is still incorrect. Change 1940 to 1941. That's all. It seems like a small thing, but it isn't to us submarine vets."

I expect to be ignored this time. Sigh.

Avatar

04-04-07, 01:42 PM

LOL, sounds like you got some pre-written answer email. what is ironic is that it's from customer care.

mookiemookie

04-04-07, 01:44 PM

Man, that's bad...

I bet "Marvin" is the network name of one of the computers they have all rigged up to generate form letters. :roll:

Snowman999

04-04-07, 01:44 PM

Avatar

04-04-07, 01:46 PM

my brother walked out on a sale there because the salesman wouldnt sell him a tv until he was forced to get the extended warranty.
he didnt get the tv.

edit: new idea for Mad Magazine, "Worst Buy."

simpsons episode... "why dont we call it 'everybody hates raymond.'"

Snowman999

04-04-07, 01:59 PM

my brother walked out on a sale there because the salesman wouldnt sell him a tv until he was forced to get the extended warranty.
he didnt get the tv.

BB HQ is here in the Twin Cities and I shop at the flagship store in Eden Prairie, about six miles from the corporate campus. The heavy suits use that store to test all sorts of merchandising and for media reports (like Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving) so it's lavishly staffed and incredibly clean. Also huge. In general I like BB, but you're right, the extended-warranty scam is out of control. I know the employees get spiffed for selling them and get dinged if they don't push them, but come on . . . I recently bought an alarm clock there and had to say "no, thanks" four (4) times on an extended warranty! The thing was $19. (The clock, not the warranty.)

SteamWake

04-04-07, 02:26 PM

Best Buy strives to make each experience you have with us positive and as fun as possible, and we are disappointed if we don't live up to that expectation.

Funny, dont most stores strive to be as negative and aggrivatting as possible :doh:

A date that will live in infamy.... indeed.

AVGWarhawk

04-04-07, 02:29 PM

Arrowhead2k1

04-04-07, 02:38 PM

Watch the movie Idiocracy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiocracy

That's where we're heading folks! ;)

wetwarev7

04-04-07, 02:40 PM

The Best Buy inattention for detail and history is just about typical of todays society. And this is just the tip of the ice berg that has invaded society. I'm not throwing everyone in the same basket but a large amount only care about the cell phone , their next sexual encounter and dinner.:shifty: I also throw in SH4 and my next patrol:rotfl:

What is 'sexual encounter'? Is that in SHIV? I only get missions to patrol certain areas, or to deliver supplies. Is it a mod or something? :hmm:

AVGWarhawk

04-04-07, 02:42 PM

The Best Buy inattention for detail and history is just about typical of todays society. And this is just the tip of the ice berg that has invaded society. I'm not throwing everyone in the same basket but a large amount only care about the cell phone , their next sexual encounter and dinner.:shifty: I also throw in SH4 and my next patrol:rotfl:
What is 'sexual encounter'? Is that in SHIV? I only get missions to patrol certain areas, or to deliver supplies. Is it a mod or something? :hmm:

Good one:rotfl::rotfl:

Got a great belly laugh out of that one:up:

Platapus

04-04-07, 02:48 PM

The Best Buy inattention for detail and history is just about typical of todays society.

This is not over until we say it is over!

Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?

Hey I am on a roll

AVGWarhawk

04-04-07, 02:58 PM

The Best Buy inattention for detail and history is just about typical of todays society.
This is not over until we say it is over!

Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?

Hey I am on a roll

That is great man! Animal House....classic:up:

Audie

04-04-07, 02:59 PM

Also, the USS Gato (SS-212) was not launched until August 21, 1941. Her keel was laid in October of 1940.

sigh...:cry:

davejb

04-04-07, 03:25 PM

I'm not throwing everyone in the same basket but a large amount only care about the cell phone , their next sexual encounter and dinner.

Hey man, I've already eaten - give me a call!

(Sorry, I really couldn't resist that, it works better if one of us is female but it's the punchline that counts)

wetwarev7

04-04-07, 03:27 PM

I'm not throwing everyone in the same basket but a large amount only care about the cell phone , their next sexual encounter and dinner.

Hey man, I've already eaten - give me a call!

Not to be off topic again, but....:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

AVGWarhawk

04-04-07, 03:28 PM

Hello sailor:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::o

Kapitan_Phillips

04-04-07, 03:45 PM

I cant get this little fella out of my head whilst reading this thread:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/cb/Marvin_%28HHGG%29.jpg/180px-Marvin_%28HHGG%29.jpg

"I would thank you for contacting Best Buy, but you probably wont listen so I wont bother. I'm so depressed" :arrgh!:

E.Hartmann

04-04-07, 03:48 PM

Marvin is the US verison of your german friend from SH3....

XanderF

04-04-07, 04:07 PM

The BestBuy.com listing for the game contains this copy:

"You open your eyes from a brief slumber to see the cold gray ceiling of the U.S. Gato naval submarine. You've been away from your friends and family for weeks in pursuit of the invisible enemy. The year is 1940, and World War II shows no signs of slowing. Out of nowhere, like the roar of thunder in a storm, you hear an explosion that seems to be coming from all angles. Immediately following is a high-pitched siren and a call from the Captain to man your battle stations. This is where your years of training pay off and as you run to the bridge, adrenaline and instinct take over. Do you have it in you to destroy the enemy before it destroys you?"

Anybody see a problem here?

Several.

- As noted, the year is wrong. 1940 is right out. Her first war patrol was in 1942 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Gato_%28SS-212%29)
- US Gato? What's that? A pronoun?? Surely, it's "USS Gato"?
- "call from the Captain" could be phrased better. While it's true that, by tradition, the commanding officer of a ship would be referred to as 'the Captain', she was never commanded by anyone higher than Lt. Commander in rank. It's iffy, though, the statement is certainly acceptable in most context.
- "Your" battlestation when under attack is on the bridge? REALLY? Going to be a little wet up there when under 150 feet of water, no?
- I'd complain about "invisible enemy", too, as that would imply this is a sub-vs-sub game. Which it, of course, isn't. You want to use "elusive"? "evasive"? "illusory"? All valid more-or-less. INVISIBLE, though? Not really, no.

Sailor Steve

04-04-07, 04:14 PM

I worked briefly in a call center for Barnes&Noble.com, and I feel sorry for Marvin. We were not allowed to be personal; all e-mails had to be answered with a form letter. After I got one that ended "...and don't send me another %&$#ing form letter!", I followed the rules and sent him a nice form letter, and then I quit.

rascal101

04-04-07, 05:24 PM

Not ironic at all. Thats what customer care means, ever read Orwell's 1984, its corporate double speak, the less service you get the more gushing will be the name of the department charged with ignoring your problem.

In a few years time, when they ignore their customers completely they will call it 'Customer Love'

LOL, sounds like you got some pre-written answer email. what is ironic is that it's from customer care.

GoldenRivet

04-04-07, 05:43 PM

XanderF

04-04-07, 05:48 PM

LOL, sounds like you got some pre-written answer email. what is ironic is that it's from customer care.
Well, I'm not a customer yet. Target will have it some day, maybe when the second patch is done.

Maybe Marvin is a Martian?

yeah im sure target will be glad to sell you a copy,

but isnt target owned in france and doesnt support veterans and all that?

at least thats what the e mail a vietnam marine sent me said.

Internet Rule #1: If you read it in an email sent to you by a friend, it's almost certainly a lie. For example, the one you just mentioned (http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/t/target-viet.htm)

Browse around that site and www.snopes.com (http://www.snopes.com) for more good times. You'd really be surprised. Honestly, a solid 99%+ of the "true stuff" and "must take action emails" sent around are complete bunk that just gets propagated due to its sensational nature.

luft

04-04-07, 07:47 PM

Sounds like typical Best Buy CS response. After calling the BB twice and just letting the Games Dept. phone ring for 10min a rep finally answered. I checked to see if they had SHIV in stock I had to spell out SILENT HUNTER FOUR three times so she could enter it in her inventory computer to check availability. The second BB the guy never even heard of Silent Hunter before and didn't know if they ordered it.

peewee

04-05-07, 08:50 AM

This was my e mail to Best Buy...

Questions or Comments:

Please do something about the information given
to your employees. For two weeks now, I have been trying to obtain a
copy of the PC game 'Silent Hunter Wolves of the Pacific' by
Ubisoft.When I went to your Cedar Rapids store last week, they had never
heard of it and couldn't find it on their computer (even though I had no
difficulty finding it this website). Today 3/30 I phoned your Dubuque
store to be told 'it doesn't come out until 1/4. The game ACTUALLY came
out TWO WEEKS ago..... I would get it from Walmart (who have it in
stock) if it wasn't for the fact that I have a Best Buy gift card to use
up.........I guess I'll just have to wait until you guys get yourselves
organised

This was their totally inept and pointless reply...

Thank you for contacting Best Buy via email. I'm Sonia with Customer
Care.

We realize it can be frustrating when you do not receive the service you
expect, and we are disappointed we did not meet your expectations when
you tried to get a copy of the PC game "Silent Hunter Wolves of the
Pacific" at the Cedar Rapids store. We do apologize for the service you
received, and we have filed a complaint on your behalf. Best Buy strives
to provide our customers with the highest level of service, convenience
and selection. We value receiving your comments so we may use this
feedback to improve the shopping and service experience for all our
customers.

For information on product availability at a specific store, we
encourage you to contact your local Best Buy store, or visit us online
at Best Buy.com

totally misses the point that 'information on product availability at a specific store' was my original complaint.......................what a bunch of crap.

In the end I bought it at Wal Mart

Platapus

04-05-07, 09:54 AM

The second BB the guy never even heard of Silent Hunter before and didn't know if they ordered it.

I went to my local Best Buy a few weeks ago to ask about SH4. They said that not only did they not have it in stock, they were not even planning on ordering any copies:shifty: . How can a computer section not order at least a few copies of a brand new game?

We have two best buys in my general area and neither of them are well stocked with computer games. I guess customers are not buying the extended warantee on computer games like they used to. :know:

Snowman999

04-05-07, 11:03 AM

- US Gato? What's that? A pronoun?? Surely, it's "USS Gato"?

"U.S. Gato naval submarine"?

I blame BestBuy for having incorrect info on thier Web site, but I doubt they wrote it. In past lives I've been a marketing manager and wrote lots of "beauty copy" for packaging, point-of-sale collateral, etc. Retailers take it and use it; they don't know enough about the product to write their own, nor do they want to pay to do so. That's what vendors are for.

But that presents the question--who did write it? The phrase above is one a non-native English speaker might use, not understanding that "naval submarine" is redundant given the context, or the difference between U.S. and USS.

Did Romania write this? If so, the 1940 gaffe seems incredible. (Dates work in any language.) Did Ubi HQ? Did an advertising agency? We'll probably never know, but the odds are it was internally generated. Just one more swing-and-a-miss on the launch.

spock1898

04-05-07, 11:43 PM

You know, at stores like Barnes & Noble, employees are required to read so many books per month. You'd think at a store like BB they would require employees to do their research and check out sites like Gamespot or IGN on a regular basis for news.

1940? What should we expect from an educational system whose government regulation doesn't even make history a nationally tested subject?! (insert sarcastic sneer here... sorry, future teacher who is extremely dissatisfied with the Bush administration's educational policies) I believe it was Thomas Jefferson who said something to the effect that an uneducated majority is the worst enemy of democracy. I think my grandpa would cry if I asked him what it was like being a tail-gunner in a TBF flying patrols from NAS Pensacola in 1940!!!! As much as the History Channel can overdo it with WWII stuff sometimes, parents, sit with your kids and watch it at least once a week, and grandparents, smack those kids if they don't know when WWII or Korea or Vietnam was.

EDIT: Schweet, I'm not a bilge rat anymore!

Platapus

04-06-07, 05:17 AM

You know, at stores like Barnes & Noble, employees are required to read so many books per month. You'd think at a store like BB they would require employees to do their research and check out sites like Gamespot or IGN on a regular basis for news.

I think it is a bit unrealistic to expect a minumum wage kid at Best Buy to take the time to learn the "history" of every video game they sell. They problaby have enough stuff to learn keeping the inventory straight. Frankly, I think they are more motivated by the commissions they can get from stuff.

CruiseTorpedo

04-06-07, 07:14 AM

You know, at stores like Barnes & Noble, employees are required to read so many books per month. You'd think at a store like BB they would require employees to do their research and check out sites like Gamespot or IGN on a regular basis for news.

I think it is a bit unrealistic to expect a minumum wage kid at Best Buy to take the time to learn the "history" of every video game they sell. They problaby have enough stuff to learn keeping the inventory straight. Frankly, I think they are more motivated by the commissions they can get from stuff.

Exactly, most of them working at BB just want a paycheck, not a history lesson.

Immacolata

04-06-07, 09:42 AM

LOL, sounds like you got some pre-written answer email. what is ironic is that it's from customer care.
You mean customer dontcare. Thats what it is for 99% of big businesses today.

Platapus

04-06-07, 11:10 AM

You mean customer dontcare. Thats what it is for 99% of big businesses today.

And who's fault is this?

Ours.. really. We, the customers are to blame.

Big business feels they can get away with crappy customer service because we continue to purchase their products even though we get crappy customer service. If the company is getting our business anyway, it would be illogical to expect a company to change.

Now if we were to do two simple things we can make a difference

1. Stop doing business with the specific company
2. Let the senior management of the chain know that
a. We are stopping doing business with their company
b. The reason why we are stopping doing business with their company
c. What it would take to get us back as customers

If we all did these two simple steps, we can help instigate change in big businesses.

However, if all we do is bitch on some internet forum and still buy stuff from there, we are sending the big businesses a clear message --- their current way of doing business is just fine.

So putting my money where my mouth is (after first removing my foot) I choose to do the following

1. I stopped doing business with Amazon.com (I have issues that extend past SH4 with this company)

2. I located the regional management offices and I wrote them a letter.. .not an E-mail but a good old fashioned letter just like adults do, informing them that I am no longer going to use their services, why, and what they can do to get my business back.

Now I am only one guy, but I feel that taking the time to send a real letter that is calmly and logically written should have some effect on the management. Perhaps I am not the only one who has written to this company.. I will never know, but I know that I did my small part to fix the problem.

Come join me. If you are mad as hell and you ain't gonna take it any more than let's do something about it

davejb

04-06-07, 11:50 AM

We've got the industry we paid for, really. Back in the early 80's a computer game here in the UK cost from £5 - 8 approx (mostly at the 5 end - ie $10-15 or so). It was written, sometimes in BASIC, by a teenager/young male adult who devoted long hours after school/work/at weekends to produce their pride and joy. It was marketted via small ad, or might be published 'properly' by one of a small number of companies that sprang from the ground, often run by amateur programmers with an entrepreneur bug.

By the later 80's we'd got glossy companies like Microprose churning sims out like mad, you had to have glossy ads, programming had become a team sport (small teams, still occasional big titles from 1 or 2 man teams - eg 'Elite'). Prices were now around double, £10-15 ($20-30).

Fast forward and we get more and more 'professional marketting', the programmers have gone from being the stars to simply being a tool that management hire and fire - 20 years back you bought a game saying 'here's a new Sid Meir, this'll be good'. Programs are now done by significantly sized teams, on the plus side the cost of a program hasn't kept pace - I paid more for some Microprose titles 15 years or so back than I did for SH4.

That's what our buying power has caused to develop - we want better graphics etc and more polished products, but lower prices (or at least no increase), and the publisher has to shift large numbers to make a profit... pile 'em high, sell 'em cheap is unfortunately unlikely to sustain a healthy simulator market.

Funny thing is, I don't think it's nostalgia at work when I say that many of the old programs contained as much entertainment value as the modern stuff - we're suffering from the effects of having our expectations continually increased.

Werewolf13

04-06-07, 11:55 AM

And who's fault is this?

Ours.. really. We, the customers are to blame.

Big business feels they can get away with crappy customer service because we continue to purchase their products even though we get crappy customer service.

Big business can get away with crappy customer service because customer service is no longer KING. Price is KING! It is really that simple. Consumers now a days will accept poor customer service to get a better price.

The reality of the world today is that places with the lowest prices also have the lowest paid employees. What they get is snot nosed kids still in HS who don't know customer service from Adam and adults too stupid, too lazy, too apathetic and/or too incompetent to get anything other than the minimum wage job they're in at Best Buy, Circuit City, Walmart, Target, K-Mart etc.

You get what you pay for and if you want low price you're going to get customer service comensurate with what you pay.

kylania

04-06-07, 02:00 PM

At least you *could* get the game from Best Buy. I orderd the super edition from Ubi.com and STILL haven't received it nor any amount of help from their customer service. I'm about 12 hours away from reversing the charges based on fraud.
:down:

Faamecanic

04-06-07, 06:57 PM

Man, that's bad...

I bet "Marvin" is the network name of one of the computers they have all rigged up to generate form letters. :roll:

Nah... Marvin is actually some Pakistaini guy with a name like BuPu or something.

Dont you just love it when you call a farmed out tech support line (ahem dell ahem) and the guy on the other line says <in my best Indian voice> "Hello my name is Bob how can I help you> :roll: