30 Years After Nintendo's "Operation Midnight Shipping" And Console Launches Are Still Fraught With Danger

Wo. That last one is scary

These delivery guys should be fired and go to jail. Amazon should know who delivers the products in which area, that can't be to hard and to tell the customers to wait for it to maybe show up eventually is dumb.

@BTB20 A big part of the problem I think is that it's the holiday hiring rush so Amazon probably still needs the manpower so maybe he got hired without great screening. Either way, I agree about firing instantly!

Wow. That's just terrible. It makes really glad I decided to not try and get a ps5 for a year or two, even that decision was because I finally got a ps4.

Heh. Interesting karma.

A terrible thing to happen. People work to enjoy life and get the things to make them happy. To have some thief take it before you have even sen it is aweful.
If your expecting a new console or anything like this which is high profile in th e news then you should have your phone ready .
If you see the delivery guy pull up and not get out , take pictures of the van or vehicle. If he delivers a parcel , you take a picture of him. and his van . Make him wait till you have opened the parcel on the doorstep. to check items.

These people should be prosecuted to the full and serve time. And never get a job again where there in contact with valuables.
If you can and you find you have been scammed. Restrain the guy and call the Police.

But taking pictures of the delivery guy and van is good at least you can prove who he was. Awe so annoyed about this. So sad .

Never buy consoles on launch. Unless you desperately need to play new FIFA or a bag of rice.

A similar thing happened to me when I ordered a laptop from Amazon. They sent me a box of cereal. Amazon kept calling me a liar and saying they had delivered the laptop, they refused to refund me. They only relented after I posted the story to Reddit and got thousands of views and hundreds of comments. I would never order an expensive item from Amazon again in the UK. They are scummy.

@LaytonPuzzle27 while yes the rioters when they do riot need to be stopped, and yes we have seen them steal TVs and expensive stuff, that's not what is happening here. It seems that the case here is that the delivery guys are the thieves.

@Preposterous exactly. There are so many bugs in a new console (though I would have caved and bought one if they weren't gonna let me transfer my ps4 games to the ps5 later). Not to mention waiting a year or two will get you the 'updated' one like when the switch released the model with the better battery.

I always get new consoles from Nintendo’s own store (not sure if there is Play station equivalent) or GAME. They use Royal Mail who have a better rep. Argos also use their own deliverers. I don’t know what the price differences are like but would be worth it for the reliability.

Sweet new Nerf gun Ant!

I'm Jealous.

@Preposterous I need to play Brown Rice XIII now!!!

funny. I never knew of “operation midnight shipping.”

also, I’m proud to say that I’ve never used Amazon! when it comes to console launches, I always do pre-order and pick up from store on launch day.

I never buy anything expansive from Amazon. Too high risk with low-life employees within the delivery chain. I, myself, wouldn't even steal a pen from my place of work.

@Scorpagion unfortunately it is too common. I don’t trust anyone to deliver expensive electronic items to the front door. I try to buy from John Lewis and have it delivered to local waitrose.

@theriku260 I think the switch v2 has the same battery. It’s the battery life that’s better

Holy moly 😱😱😱. These stories are quite sad to hear

Edit: I do have a similar story, though not with anything nearly as expensive or through Amazon (though it involved an Amazon product). A couple of years ago, I ordered a Fire Stick for my MIL from Best Buy as Christmas present (it was on sale). We just happened to be on our way home from a day out when it got delivered. Literally maybe a 6 minute difference from the notification and when we pulled up to the house.

Make a long story short, the package had been clearly ripped open and the Fire Stick stolen. But not just opened and stolen. The entire package has been tampered with. It looked almost patched together from pieces of other packages. It was bizarre. I'm pretty certain to this day it was the UPS driver who did it. My neighborhood is filled with nothing but senior citizens. So I doubt it was a neighbor. I guess it could have possibly have been someone following the truck. But why not just take the entire package? Luckily (after a few weeks of back and forth with UPS and Best Buy) I was given a refund and able to buy it from elsewhere. But it certainly made me very weary of situations like this in the future.

This is nuts and reminds me of something you’d expect from robbin season (name for the time before Christmas in Atlanta when robberies exponentially increase). This seriously sucks for people dropping $500 on this stuff :/ I used to work customer service retail and remember having to check returned consoles after hearing stories of people taking PS4s or XB1s out of the box and replacing it with something equal in weight before successfully returning it

Yeah just had a DVD player go missing and replaced with something else.
It all so happens to me December last year as well
They are obviously they are been swapped
so they keep the more expensive item to sell or keep for them selves

NEWSFLASH: The world is full of terrible people!

Who knew?

This is getting to be a bigger problem where I live as well. My friend had 2-3 games stolen in the mail. I have never gotten anything stolen, but the packages have sometimes been teared open by someone.

OBVIOUSLY this sucks and no one wants it to happen to them, but these people throwing Twitter tantrums and asking what they do are just ridiculous. Anyone who has ever used Amazon knows how to file for a replacement/return/refund or contact customer service and spoiler alert, it's not by tossing a random tweet into the void with no real pertinent information. There's a fancy little button on their Amazon order page to report an issue or ask for a replacement: use it.

Goes both ways. I remember we had to escort UPS after a few drivers were attacked and robbed during the ps3 launch (don’t get me started on the wii launch) and someone tried to rob a store I was working at on PS4 launch day. The sad part is those gamestops had low crime rates otherwise. That being said, I hope any thieves are fired and prosecuted. It’s usually the drivers. Way too hard to do that in the warehouses. You can but you are on camera and checked that you don’t have personal belongings (like a bag to smuggle) on the floor. Worked at gamestop, FedEx and Amazon for years.

that bag of rice seems mad fun^! then the bag say time well spent heheh yea playing with the rice instead of the ps5 i thing i would get locked up for assalt on a amazon driver

I know stories like this are in the minority but it doesn't half make me wary or ordering consoles from online retailers.

Then again it only seems to be an issue with newly launched in demand pieces of tech be it consoles, graphics cards or phones. When there is plentiful stock you never really see this.

Should be fairly easy to track down the culprits for these though so the police can charge them if they're not too busy investigating mean messages on the internet.

I ordered from ebay in the past and had my package arrive completely empty (had been cut open then taped back together, the knife marks were very obvious under the tape). At least these guys are getting "something" XD.

the joys of zero hour contract delivery workers & lax receipt standards due to covid. all sorts of packages are just being left outside houses or delivered to the wrong person. or stolen!

I invested in a video doorbell after neighbours had packages stolen.
Unfortunately that wouldn't help if the delivery drivers are tampering with them in the van

This is part of the reason why I am happy to wait until the dust settles down before I buy one of these next gen consoles.

This while situation reminds me of when I ordered some new house phones, the package got lost for about a week, and when it finally got delivered it looked like it had been repackaged. I got my house phones but I also got an opened box for an Apple Watch that someone else must have ordered... of course there was no watch in it but I did get a free USB power adapter out of it.

Had a similar situation happen at Walmart when the NES Classic was still being sold. Had to shop for Easter, saw they had 5-6 in electronics, so I asked if they could leave one up front. They did. I finish shopping and ask for the system to pay for it. They say it was already picked up. Turns out some guy watched me ask them to hold it in the front of the store, bought ALL the other ones, then went up front and bought mine. I'm still livid, cause that was going to be a mother's day gift since the original Super Mario Bros is one of her favorite games. And if I ever find out who did it, I'll probably go to jail for the rest of my life.

@Deltath
I think it's more a case of seeing how many are experiencing the theft. It's easier to prove to a retailer when there are a number of posts saying the same thing.

I'm willing to bet Amazon checks twitter when they are trending.

If We can find a way to attach pre orders or brought consoles with specific serial numbers that are embedded in the console and not on the outside of the console to a specific buyer when they purchase.. we will catch the Theives or most likely confiscate the product and interrogate the ones who is caught with the system that does not belong to them via serial number.. and if it was brought from a seller.. It will lead back to them.. but then there is the what if you brought one from an original buyer later on?? Would the serial numbers matter then?? Well I would say it wouldn’t then becuz Sony should have something on there platform that a customer would hit or check a box to say it’s been sold.. so when let’s say I buy a used one, that serial number belongs to me now and I would go into Sony platform and register the serial number to my name instead.. and so on and so on.. so Sony just need a large database of serial numbers to link purchasers to there purchase.. And have back up console system on hand just in case something like the shenanigans behavior Like the one up above happens. And as far as the thief they would be caught red handed weather they deliver the package or not.. plus fired or repercussion.. I say if it’s on the truck, it needs to be delivered no exceptions.. but hey I’m just trying to solve the problem or look for a solution instead of Not doing anything..

@k8sMum Maybe you don't use Amazon, but you don't have to prove anything. They'll replace or refund anything sold by Amazon (which all PS5s shipped by them are). It doesn't matter if it never arrived, it was stolen, it was the wrong item, etc. You could get a PS5 in your box and claim it never arrived and they'll refund it. If you make too many claims in a calendar year though they will get suspicious and could suspend your account, but otherwise they'll just replace/refund it.

I am an Amazon prime member and have ordered tonnes of stuff off them over the years with no issues at all, ordered both the Wii U and Switch again with no issues, these are isolated instances and some of these claims do not seem to ring true, after all there is a massive trail from Amazon, or any delivery company for that matter, it's not difficult for Amazon to work out when a package was shipped and which driver delivered it.

And if these people have ha their PS5 consoles stolen report it to Amazon, don't create a look at me drama on Twitter, one o f the main reasons I have no Twitter or Facebook accounts, just a sad state of modern times.

Let's hope a some of the many scalpers hoping to sell their consoles on ebay at extortionate prices, have their consoles stolen, poetic justice and instant karma.

I myself have had several problems with missing and absent products these last few days.

Nothing as expensive as a ps5 though, but still pretty inconvenient when your package gets returned to the seller for unknown reasons, or it arrives empty.

"Dubbed "Operation Midnight Shipping", the plan was concocted by Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi and his right-hand man Hiroshi Imanishi after the former got wind that the Yakuza were planning to steal shipments of the Super Famicom before they reached stores."

So this is what Majima was up to shortly after the events of Yakuza 0.

Wow, only console I’ve ever ordered from Amazon was my Switch and that thankfully made it. Guess the UK hype for it wasn’t as big at the time.

This all sounds like a real organised operation as the drivers would have to know which packages were PS5s. Probably QR code slash was the “sign”.

(In reference to the first picture) I can’t believe the Nerf of these guys.

Rat *****
Unbelievable.
Will never forget a co-passenger/co-deliverer of the delivery guy from GLS stealing my moped's license plate. He came prepared as he knew exactly to cover his face in front of the camera. It was the only person who walked under my carport in 24 hours after noticing I was not home. As seen on camera, he was not carrying my parcel and remained there for almost 10 min and then walked away again stepping into the delivery van. What was he doing there for such a long time? Taking a piss? It could not be considered evidence as you could not see him committing the actual crime. But we all knew what happened.

What is happening in the UK? I guess that this is what you get for lowering labour cost and job security.

Also, porch pirates? Does tracked shipping not exist in English countries?

@Oh-Please-Goron Their PS5 got nerfed.

Well at least no one got shot while waiting in line this year like what happened in the ps3 launch.

Would love to see this made into a heist film.

@Damo The very first thing I said in my post was "OBVIOUSLY this sucks and no one wants this to happen to them" so I think I made it evident that I wouldn't like it. Still, though, unless they're making special changes just for PS5, it doesn't matter if something is out of stock, you can still request a replacement. I've had many out of stock items stolen from my front door, because my apartment building is notorious for porch pirates and Amazon has always allowed me to request a replacement. Sometimes it takes a while, which absolutely sucks and it's definitely frustrating, but the process isn't difficult or confusing. People are acting like they don't know how to contact Amazon support.

It just takes time. And if for whatever reason they aren't doing that as you say, because there aren't any, what good is it to ASK them on social media? I'm not saying you can't talk about it, but people are contacting them in social media asking them what they're supposed to do. If the only thing Amazon can do is offer them a refund and that OBVIOUSLY can't be done on social media, why are people asking on Twitter?

Just seems to me they're pretending to ask what to do, but in reality they're trying to get attention, not an answer, as they likely already contacted Amazon support. Seems silly to me is all.

Lessons are don't order expensive items from Amazon and just be patient and wait until you can walk in and buy. Kind of makes you wish for the good old days/ways of getting a new product. Have any people who have experienced this managed to get a refund or replacement? Also why has this not happened with the new xboxes as no mention has been made of this?

@NovaPrime yes tracked shipping does but it means nothing when you cant sign for an item due to covid. A friend of mine waited all day for his ps5 at the window of his house tracking the delivery by number of stops away. Yodel turn up outside his house, go to the back of the van, driver gets back in his van and drives up the road 200 yards, notification of delivery pings on my buddys phone saying its been delivered and received. Luckily enough my mate was out his door on the way to his car the moment the yodel van pulled off. He got his ps5 but the driver had torn the label off the box. Funny how he knew what box it was without a label on it when confronted.
We get hundreds of deliveries every week at my work all supposed to be signed for but because of covid they just ask for a name now.

@BTB20 I wonder what they're paid in the UK. People paid what they're worth tend not to steal.

The problem is in a lot of cases the customer lies and claims they didn't get the item when they actually did. Then you compound that with lowlifes in the delivery chain and the one's left holding the bag are the seller of the item. I work for a company that does direct internet sales and see several reports a week of items not showing up. In most of those cases, they file a chargeback with paypal or their bank and never contact us. When we contact them they act shady when we ask why they didn't bother to contact us directly, so we can help them and almost everytime end up hanging up the phone because they just got caught.

We had a few people on our street who weren't in, so their parcel containing PS5 was THROWN over the fence into their garden

Not being funny here, but Amazon deliveries have been "random person in a random vehicle" for a few years now and whilst I haven't personally had an issue to date, it genuinely does look and feel a bit dodgy. I don't think that's unfair to say. That's not to say they actually are dodgy - obviously the overwhelming majority of deliveries are fine, but compared to Royal Mail deliveries, full employees, in uniforms, in marked vehicles - there's a huge difference here clearly.

Seems to me Amazon are in the business of hiring anyone, paying them very little, making them provide their own clothes and vehicle to boot, and then guess what? You don't get the best quality do you!

Happened to me with the series X.
Royal mail said I refused the delivery, and the day after that I moved from the address.
Contacted the bank disputing the whole situation and got my money back. Now I have to wait if Game will try to get them back.
Very very fishy stuff.

@Damo And yet the very first tweet says quite clearly "Where can I get help?" directly to @AmazonUK. Reading his tweets, he is indeed trying to contact customer service over Twitter.

Wow Should of known people like stealing..

@Damo To be fair, I did say "Just seems to me they're pretending to ask what to do, but in reality they're trying to get attention, not an answer, as they likely already contacted Amazon support." Why couch it in the pretense that he's seeking help from customer service when in reality he's trying to rally the internet hordes?

It’s pretty wild that these reports are coming from the UK and not the USA. Then again, I get the impression that every carpenter in England has had their van wiped clean on multiple occasions, whereas that’s not really as much as an issue here.

@theriku260 Hey! My comment I posted has been deleted. My right to free speech has been violated.