Phony Madden 07 voucher aims to break street date

by James Ransom-Wiley { Aug 10th 2006 at 11:25AM }

We were recently (and anonymously) sent this peculiar voucher, claiming to have the power to break Madden 07's street date. Is this a magical gift from EA to its preferred customers ... or simply a desperate attempt to hit the virtual gridiron a few days earlier than the rest of us?

Dear amateur forger guy,
Props for the concept, but dude, you really shoulda run the fine print through spell-checker: "Participating stores incluse..." Who are you trying to fool here?
Sincerely,
Joystiq.com

So if you should happen upon this coupon, know that it's a waste of your time -- but also know that some retail chains (read: Target and Wal-Mart) have a history of (unknowingly) breaking street dates, with or without a voucher. Good luck.

Tags: EA, Madden 07, Madden07, voucher

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

EntityOne @ Aug 10th 2006 11:38AM

Another red flag:

"The voucher authorizes the owner of any participating store..."

Keyword: owner

Now, I'm not American, but these stores are corporate, and not franchised, right?

cringer8 @ Aug 10th 2006 11:39AM

Also, when "participating stores" is mentioned, they do not give a short list of retailers. It just means that some stores won't comply and that's their right.

This is terribly inaccurate.

Another giveaway is the font selection. No self-respecting designer would use that font. Unless they’re putting together a funeral program.

KBeat @ Aug 10th 2006 11:40AM

I guess that's what you get when a fourteen year old is allowed to play with Photoshop. Incluse?? Too funny.

Ethan @ Aug 10th 2006 11:48AM

that would be funny if it was actually real, and then you guys missed out on getting it early, and since you didnt get it, EB found out and never sent you one again. Hey, who knows, they could just have really bad spelling over there.

SuperChuck @ Aug 10th 2006 11:55AM

I'm a little curious what the barcode scans as at the "participating" stores...

goverland @ Aug 10th 2006 11:56AM

Misspelling, no large company would due that. Now what was the expiration date of my Xbox Diamond card again!

TheH2s @ Aug 10th 2006 11:56AM

Who cares about breaking street date anyhow? Is anyone really going to buy Madden 2007? :)

Markster @ Aug 10th 2006 11:57AM

Although spelling errors are pretty good indicators of forgery...
It's not always the case.
http://www.joystiq.com/2006/04/05/embarrassing-xbox-live-diamond-card-typo/

Also:
It reminds me a bit of this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Snakesonaplane1js.jpg

Sam @ Aug 10th 2006 11:58AM

I also like "The owner of this cupon is to present this voucher at the time of purchase".

"is to" instead of "must"

I think amateur forger guy was going for:
"Cupon must be presented at the time of purchase", but all the excess words make it sound goofy.

Felix Andrews @ Aug 10th 2006 12:01PM

Enjoy your egg-chasing. The rest of us will be playing some good games instead.

32_Footsteps @ Aug 10th 2006 12:10PM

Another tip - coupons and vouchers are required by law to have even a miniscule monetary value (the infamous 1/100 of a cent). This is actually due to a variety of coupon fraud that took place during the post-Reconstruction days before the turn of the 20th century. A brief mention of it is here:

http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_329c.html

So it's definitely not a legal item, and I think EA is up enough on their laws to avoid such a simple error.

goverland @ Aug 10th 2006 12:18PM

#11 It does state coupon has no monetary value. And because it is only involves a early release it has no monetary value.

crYm fYtr @ Aug 10th 2006 12:34PM

the barcode won't scan as anything b/c it's not a bar code

http://www.upcdatabase.com/itemform.asp

32_Footsteps @ Aug 10th 2006 12:36PM

OK, Groverland, let me make this a bit more clear.

All vouchers, coupons, and the like are required by law to have even a miniscule monetary value. This one does not - it specifically says "no monetary value."

If this was an actual voucher, released by EA, then EA would be liable for breaking the law in regards to coupons, and be subject to fines (you won't go to jail for such a thing, but you'll pay a pretty penny).

Therefore, the fact that it has no monetary value means one of two things. Either EA is really lazy and stupid, or this is an utter fake. Considering the level of stupidity and laziness that would be required, I'm heavily suggesting in my post that this is 100% fake.

natedog4983 @ Aug 10th 2006 1:12PM

It may not be legit but i wonder what the chances are of some idiot at walmart or target, who i'm sure could probably care less when madden comes out, honoring this thing and giving you the game. Maybe just remove the barcode and present it. Never know

goverland @ Aug 10th 2006 1:36PM

32_Footsteps, trading stamps (aka coupons, vouchers) that deal with a transaction to receive merchandise, service or cash sale must, under most state/country laws declare a face value. This is not a monetary transaction (if it turns out to be legitimate) and wouldn't fall under the sale of merchandise regulations on trading stamps requiring the disclaimer based on cent or fraction of cent.

Still it would be a nice marketing idea and even if not legitimate, I'm sure a lot of stores would honor it.

RP @ Aug 10th 2006 1:53PM

That's a pretty cool font, buddy! I didn't know they made Print Shop anymore! Can you make me a nice banner on your dot matrix printer?

ben @ Aug 10th 2006 2:03PM

Walmart and target really can break street release dates. I remember I got pokemon silver a full 5(five) days ahead schedule.

32_Footsteps @ Aug 10th 2006 2:36PM

Ah, but the stamp in question is being traded for a service (in this case, the right to obtain a game before anyone else). A trading stamp is defined as such when it entitles the bearer to a deal on a good or service (not just goods), and thus this is a stamp and must have a value as defined by law.

Thus, legally, such a voucher, if real, would need a cash value.

b00ga @ Aug 10th 2006 3:35PM

All UPC barcodes include a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) (the numbers printed below the barcode). Part of the GTIN is a GS1 number assigned to the company making the product. The last digit is a check digit.

GS1 let's you search for a GTIN and they will give you the company info. If you search for the coupon GTIN, the GS1 site tells you the check digit is wrong. If you correct it, you get no results (meaning there is no company associated with the GS1 id number).

Go here to search for yourself: http://directory.gs1.org/gtin

ben @ Aug 10th 2006 4:22PM

And to top it all off, this is the most fugly coupon I have ever seen. Hell, groceries typically have prettier coupons. I know EA seems pretty indifferent to customers, employees, and making good games, but at least they air on the side of decent design. :)

goverland @ Aug 10th 2006 4:29PM

32_Footsteps you're misinterpreting the definition of services as it relates to trading stamps and a sale of merchandise or service. That voucher does not fall under the sale of services and therefore is not subject to trading stamp regulations. But that's what lawyers are for to sort out interpretations of laws and regulations.