Gulag Joe | 590 Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 I've noticed quite a few sealed PS1 and PS2 sealed games that look to have tiny holes drilled into them. Some games still have the security strip on them but just the packaging has a hole in it. What does this mean and could they still be graded as sealed despite the hole? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloves | 12,269 Administrator · Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 They're promo, demo, or won through a contest. This was done primarily to prevent people from taking them to stores to return them for refund. I believe they can still be graded as sealed, but I think they ding you on condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sumez | 3,165 Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 Does the hole go through the barcode? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fcgamer | 5,015 Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 If they were used for those purposes highlighted above, they should be graded under a promo category imo, instead of with the regs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fcgamer | 5,015 Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 If they were used for those purposes highlighted above, they should be graded under a promo category imo, instead of with the regs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bearcat-Doug | 5,124 Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 6 hours ago, Gloves said: They're promo, demo, or won through a contest. This was done primarily to prevent people from taking them to stores to return them for refund. I believe they can still be graded as sealed, but I think they ding you on condition. I don't think they count the drill holes against the grade. It seems like they just note it on the back of the label. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gulag Joe | 590 Posted October 21, 2020 Author Share Posted October 21, 2020 3 hours ago, Sumez said: Does the hole go through the barcode? I've come across a few with the hole through the barcode, but have seen many more with the hole drilled through the top left corner of the PS1 case or bottom right corner of the PS2 case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RH | 5,226 Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 41 minutes ago, Gulag Joe said: I've come across a few with the hole through the barcode, but have seen many more with the hole drilled through the top left corner of the PS1 case or bottom right corner of the PS2 case. I was about to mention this. There are some holes that look like a saw cut them and they have a square shape to them. I've only seen these on the top-left, hinge side. I've never seen them at the bottom. Drilled holes into the bard code, or even have the barcode punched on the paper insert, before being placed in the case, are other variations I've seen of making standard released, demo copies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
austin532 | 469 Posted October 23, 2020 Share Posted October 23, 2020 The ones that were drilled through the barcode will have damaged manuals as well. Thankfully by the PS2 era they just hold punched the barcode before sealing the game. IMO a promo copy doesn't add any more value to the game. It's exactly the same game you would find at a retail store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sumez | 3,165 Posted October 23, 2020 Share Posted October 23, 2020 If promo copies suddenly end up being worth more than retail releases (and given the collector landscape I wouldn't even be surprised at this point), I sure have a bunch of crap I'm gonna dump on you guys XD 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RH | 5,226 Posted October 23, 2020 Share Posted October 23, 2020 6 hours ago, Sumez said: If promo copies suddenly end up being worth more than retail releases (and given the collector landscape I wouldn't even be surprised at this point), I sure have a bunch of crap I'm gonna dump on you guys XD With the exception of games with special labels or stickers, I doubt that will happen if it's just a bunch of hole punches because that can be replicated. I still wouldn't get my hopes up, but these are basically untagged NFRs, so who knows. The NFR market is crazy, so I guess it's not impossible. It also depends on how common this practice was. Nintendo was very explicit about their NFRs with different front-labels, and slapping tracking labels on the back if their carts, so they are quite distinguishable. A cut in a jewel case isn't anything special though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grondorr | 50 Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 I recently acquired a GBA game with a hole drilled through the UPC. I didn't know what to make of it because the seal is definitely legit (not H-seam, but one of the ones with the geometric patterns of tiny holes) and it was sealed AFTER the UPC hole was made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leonemesis | 44 Posted October 25, 2020 Share Posted October 25, 2020 Personally I wouldn´t waste time with promo copies of PS1 and PS2 games, much less grading them. Most collectors don´t like them (me included) and I really doubt they will ever sell for more than sealed retail copies. Despite being rarer, it is like other users mentioned, the manual or inserts inside may be damaged, as well as the horrible hole on the outside sticking out like a sore thumb. The purpose of having sealed games in the first place is to own them in the best condition possible, so a promo game with a hole in it goes against that idea. Anyway, just my my 2¢. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sumez | 3,165 Posted October 26, 2020 Share Posted October 26, 2020 On 10/23/2020 at 2:23 PM, RH said: With the exception of games with special labels or stickers, I doubt that will happen if it's just a bunch of hole punches because that can be replicated. I worked as a reviewer during the PS2 gen, so almost all of them are either the super-thin jewel cases with a disc print similar to budget re-releases, or the ones that have that yellow "promotional copy not for resale" banner printed across the corner of the box art. It's "unique", but it really shouldn't be worth anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oracleoflosangeles | 36 Posted November 15, 2020 Share Posted November 15, 2020 Hi All, So, they aren't all promos. When buying games through employee stores the games are often drilled. This is common with Sony and EA games but the games are absolutely no different than retail. I know, I worked in the industry and bought several games like these. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sumez | 3,165 Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 Most promos are no different from retail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Code Monkey | 2,145 Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 How do you drill through a disc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloves | 12,269 Administrator · Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 7 minutes ago, Code Monkey said: How do you drill through a disc? With a drill. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Code Monkey | 2,145 Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 24 minutes ago, Gloves said: With a drill. The disc would shatter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrWunderful | 2,932 Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 On 11/15/2020 at 1:31 PM, oracleoflosangeles said: Hi All, So, they aren't all promos. When buying games through employee stores the games are often drilled. This is common with Sony and EA games but the games are absolutely no different than retail. I know, I worked in the industry and bought several games like these. Thanks! This is where most of them come from. A while back I bought a few hundred sealed ps1/ps2 games from a sony employee. All were bought from employee store. All had holes punched through insert, not the entire case. Sold them all for normal “eBay” value sealed games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sumez | 3,165 Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 18 hours ago, Code Monkey said: The disc would shatter. Put a piece of tape over both sides of the disc before you drill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TDIRunner | 2,912 Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 23 hours ago, Code Monkey said: The disc would shatter. Not if you use the right bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Code Monkey | 2,145 Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 5 hours ago, Sumez said: Put a piece of tape over both sides of the disc before you drill You can't put tape on a sealed disc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeuceGamer | 35 Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 (edited) Sorry for the bump but I’ve gotten a few sealed PS3 games recently and instead of the normal hole punch, they have a cut in the barcode that goes all the way through to the artwork. Are these also promo copies, giveaways, etc... or something else? I don’t believe it’s normal damage. I see mentioned above that those with hole punches are noted when graded and doesn’t harm the grade. I assume that games where they are cut like this would affect the grade since it’s damaged, even if it was intentionally done by the Publisher, retailer, etc... Edited January 29, 2021 by DeuceGamer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid | 448 Posted January 31, 2021 Share Posted January 31, 2021 Not mine but I figured it fits the topic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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