darkSpyro

someone reported 15th at tru someone reported traps at tru tomorrow and someone reported nothing wave 4 related in the systems at tru so anybody got any idea!?!?!

DONT need another topic for whats already in the last one !! SAME ANSWER !!

I hate to start an argument but this is different so people can post info directly and people can get info directly rather than through a topic not even meant for it

"Sprock",

NO biggie ! I would say there is ABSOLUTELY NO CONFIRMATION of anything regarding WAVE 4 !

The WAIT is on !

I went to my TRU and the guy checked in the back for me and he said they didn't have the Easter skylanders in yet but he had a box dated for the 3rd. I asked him if he could look in it for me and he did. He said there where no new skylanders just new traps. So I am going tomorrow to get wave 4 traps I pre ordered from best buy to and got an email saying the release date changed to the 8th. So I think wave 4 will be out sunday.

http://www.amazon.de/Skylander..._rhf_gw_p_img_3
here it says 13th

I'm in the US.

Just left ToysRUs, opened the new trap boxes and it was the remainder of wave 3 ie snakes, totems, etc.. There was 2 KAOS TRAP in each box. I bought ALL 4. Lol. I gave one away to a kid looking in the swap force clearance to force his parents to buy him trap team by telling them how hard it is to find a kaos trap. It WORKED. .He was happy. In conclusion, for what I saw in those trap deliveries was wave 3 and kaos.

Great. I was just there and no Easter stuff. Didn't ask about traps.
If the Wave 4 items come out the 8th, or 15th, that's fine with me because they're (TRU Fullerton) slow when they open because people are either at work or in church. Mine opens at 10 AM, so I should have no problem getting everything at once for Wave 4.
Right now, just interested in Easter stuff and Wave 4 figures.

Nothing is due for release on the 8th now. Blackout's release date has been changed to the 22nd.

Same thing at my TRU. Wave 3 traps were there with Kaos trap, but no easter or wave 4 traps.

One thing that really disappoints me is that no one has reviewed or demonstrated anything in wave 4. Not even Skylandersgame has done anything yet and they tend to be ahead with upcoming waves and demonstrations.

Quote: GhostRoaster617

One thing that really disappoints me is that no one has reviewed or demonstrated anything in wave 4. Not even Skylandersgame has done anything yet and they tend to be ahead with upcoming waves and demonstrations.

They seem to put all of their energy into the launch timeframe. IIRC, it was dying down around this time last year too.

I don't know exact dates and can't speak for TRU, but for my store, it is my understanding I will be receiving some sort of shipment on a weekly basis in March starting this week or next (although it might be limited to less than what was ordered due to Activision allocating items and the dock strikes in California). Activision has confirmed to me that traps, cores, and triple packs will be Wave 4. The trap masters will be a mixture of Wave 3, 4, and 4.5. I have no idea what when they are shipping what on the trap masters, but I am hoping it will be Wave 3 early in the month, and Wave 4 later in the month.

Again, I don't know when they are shipping what, but I expect it to start happening soon. Once it starts, it is my understanding there will be regular restocks (although again, supplies at each restock may be limited due to the dock strikes).

Is the dock strike 'over'?
- Unreall

Actually I take that back, I do have some rough dates:

Based on what I was told, Trap Masters are supposed to be shipping out at the beginning of next week, and then there will be weekly shipments around Friday of each of the last 3 weeks in March (I think that is when they are leaving the warehouse, not when they will get to me). The end-of-week shipments should include traps, cores, trap masters, and the Easter figures. However, the trap 3 packs and light and dark packs will not be restocked until the very end of the month (maybe even in April).

Again, that doesn't give any certainty because shipping take time and we are at the mercy of the warehouse. However, I am expecting to have new stuff by the 3rd week of March.

Quote: Unreallystic

Is the dock strike 'over'?
- Unreall

I have no idea. I was told that Activision is going to limit (i.e., "allocate") shipments among retailers throughout March, in part due to the strike. I think that even after the strike ends, they may need some time to catch up with the backlog of orders that has been piling up. That may change at some point, but that is what I have been told for now.

Quote: BP

I don't know exact dates and can't speak for TRU, but for my store, it is my understanding I will be receiving some sort of shipment on a weekly basis in March starting this week or next (although it might be limited to less than what was ordered due to Activision allocating items and the dock strikes in California). Activision has confirmed to me that traps, cores, and triple packs will be Wave 4. The trap masters will be a mixture of Wave 3, 4, and 4.5. I have no idea what when they are shipping what on the trap masters, but I am hoping it will be Wave 3 early in the month, and Wave 4 later in the month.

Again, I don't know when they are shipping what, but I expect it to start happening soon. Once it starts, it is my understanding there will be regular restocks (although again, supplies at each restock may be limited due to the dock strikes).

4 and 4.5? Hmmph, looks like they'll probably have one assortment full of Thunderbolt & Short Cut, and another one will be a mix of the harder to find characters from each Wave (Blastermind, Wallop) with some Short Cut and Thunderbolt mixed in.

Quote: BP

I don't know exact dates and can't speak for TRU, but for my store, it is my understanding I will be receiving some sort of shipment on a weekly basis in March starting this week or next (although it might be limited to less than what was ordered due to Activision allocating items and the dock strikes in California). Activision has confirmed to me that traps, cores, and triple packs will be Wave 4. The trap masters will be a mixture of Wave 3, 4, and 4.5. I have no idea what when they are shipping what on the trap masters, but I am hoping it will be Wave 3 early in the month, and Wave 4 later in the month.

Again, I don't know when they are shipping what, but I expect it to start happening soon. Once it starts, it is my understanding there will be regular restocks (although again, supplies at each restock may be limited due to the dock strikes).

As you own your own store and are the only retailer I've seen who has even tried to get dates and information out to us, please, where is your store and how do I give you my money? You definitely deserve it more than the retail monoliths who have just stood buy and shrugged their shoulders as people with money in-hand have been banging on their doors.

Quote: Matteomax

4 and 4.5? Hmmph, looks like they'll probably have one assortment full of Thunderbolt & Short Cut, and another one will be a mix of the harder to find characters from each Wave (Blastermind, Wallop) with some Short Cut and Thunderbolt mixed in.

And, based on how well Activision reacts to fans' stock demands (when they react at all), look forward to the Kaos Trap being the new Water Trap, lol!

-Doug

I agree, Darkchylde. BP's the only one on top of things in regards to Waves 3 & 4.
The major retailers, which I patronize often, are causing me to lose patience with their ineptitude on how to run things knowing they have customers with money in their hands.
Wouldn't be surprised if we end up worse than AUS/NZ because of these dock strikes.
I would have rather seen professional sports go on strike rather than dock workers. We don't need professional sports, but we need dock workers to not only ship our Skylanders, but they export and import food from other countries.

Quote: Insane01

I agree, Darkchylde. BP's the only one on top of things in regards to Waves 3 & 4.
The major retailers, which I patronize often, are causing me to lose patience with their ineptitude on how to run things knowing they have customers with money in their hands.

Honestly, at this point, TRU is pretty much the only retailer who really gets my money. I'll buy exclusives from other retailers, but at this point in the game, that's about it. GameStop used to be a close second, but then they had their issues with Trap Team with never getting stock in when they said they would, allowing you to preorder certain figures and then blowing the launch dates by several weeks, the situation they caused by selling all of the Skylanders Day stuff well before that day...it goes on an on. Since Activision ships stock directly to each TRU location, the best they can know is that they're supposed to be getting stuff and know a date when they're allowed to put it out on the shelf (if it's street dated), but past that, they're left with nothing to go on. Apparently Acitivision doesn't bother to provide any of the stores buying their product with tracking to help them know when they'll have it in-hand. If I did that in my job? I'd be fired in a heartbeat. And yet we put up with it. (sigh)

-Doug

I just can not wait until I can get my hands on a Short Cut. It feels like I've been waiting ages for him.

Agreed darkchylde(Doug)...i just hope they include some Wave 3 Traps in the shipments....because i have only found the Air Snake. And yeah i hope the Kaos Traps turn in to the new Water Traps...lol.

I, Darkchylde, also do majority of my Skylanders shopping at TRU.
The one I go to (Fullerton, CA) know me well enough to put them aside for me.
Wrote my list of Wave 4 & Easter Items, then gave it to one of the employees I know..
Then I check this site, Ghostroaster.com & myskylanders.de, as my primary sites for info. I don't rely on Skylander YouTube channels that much, though some are quite reliable.

Quote: Insane01

I agree, Darkchylde. BP's the only one on top of things in regards to Waves 3 & 4.
The major retailers, which I patronize often, are causing me to lose patience with their ineptitude on how to run things knowing they have customers with money in their hands.
Wouldn't be surprised if we end up worse than AUS/NZ because of these dock strikes.
I would have rather seen professional sports go on strike rather than dock workers. We don't need professional sports, but we need dock workers to not only ship our Skylanders, but they export and import food from other countries.

You can't blame the retailers for not knowing when items will come in. Even BP doesn't know, exactly (depending on shipping times). He only has more information than a big box store because he is directly working with Activision. The employees you talk to in stores definitely have nothing to do with ordering and shipping. That's several levels above them. Someone at TRU (probably sitting in an office somewhere) may know an estimated time when they may be shipped to them, but they couldn't possibly know how long it will take to get to their warehouses or the stores. With many of the street dated items, I'm sure they get them way in advance so they know they will have them in time. But with this strike and delays in shipments, it's almost impossible to know anything, even at that level, not less the level of the individual stores themselves.

So, apparently the UK is getting Wave 4 Trap Masters tomorrow.

Wow, Activision is seriously giving the US the back seat. I wonder why.

Quote: obidawsn

Quote: Insane01

I agree, Darkchylde. BP's the only one on top of things in regards to Waves 3 & 4.
The major retailers, which I patronize often, are causing me to lose patience with their ineptitude on how to run things knowing they have customers with money in their hands.
Wouldn't be surprised if we end up worse than AUS/NZ because of these dock strikes.
I would have rather seen professional sports go on strike rather than dock workers. We don't need professional sports, but we need dock workers to not only ship our Skylanders, but they export and import food from other countries.

You can't blame the retailers for not knowing when items will come in. Even BP doesn't know, exactly (depending on shipping times). He only has more information than a big box store because he is directly working with Activision. The employees you talk to in stores definitely have nothing to do with ordering and shipping. That's several levels above them. Someone at TRU (probably sitting in an office somewhere) may know an estimated time when they may be shipped to them, but they couldn't possibly know how long it will take to get to their warehouses or the stores. With many of the street dated items, I'm sure they get them way in advance so they know they will have them in time. But with this strike and delays in shipments, it's almost impossible to know anything, even at that level, not less the level of the individual stores themselves.

As many people as have asked and complained for as long as they have about this, word has had more than enough time to reach the ears up upper management of any such retailer. No, we shouldn't take out our grievances on local clerks and managers, but we should be able to hold the company responsible for never issuing any kind of statement (even "We don't know, Activision isn't telling us") to either inform people when these sought after items might be available again or even just confirm that they're listening to and care about our concerns.

Having worked in customer facing positions for many years, I've heard people try to tell me many things were "poor customer service" when they didn't get what they wanted. Ignoring a customer's concerns and doing nothing to address them definitely is poor customer service; providing an answer, even if it's "I don't know, the manufacturer hasn't told us", definitely isn't.

As people get deeper and deeper into these games and collecting all of the characters, accessories, etc., the more emotionally tied to it they are. It's what keeps us buying these things year after year, even in years when the same old characters get released again and again. The fact that none of the major retailers has shown any sign or made any statements that they've tried to get some sort of update from Activision removes any "get out of jail free" card you think they might have or deserve.

Word does go up through the chain of command when people ask the same questions over and over and again when they complain. The year that Masterpiece Soundwave came out and TRU didn't have him, within about 2 hours of opening their phones went from their standard greeting message which would allow you to speak to someone within the store to a pre-recorded message which would hang up on you when it finished playing. It stayed that way all week. Someone at HQ clearly got the message when many, many stores suddenly called in saying, "People want this, we don't have it, when is it available?!" The message had an apology about the currently available stock being limited and gave an approximate timeframe when it would be available again. Why TRU, for instance, hasn't stepped up and given the same kind of blanket corporate message to their stores is beyond me and more inexcusable the longer the silence drags on.

-Doug

Quote: Matteomax

So, apparently the UK is getting Wave 4 Trap Masters tomorrow.

Wow, Activision is seriously giving the US the back seat. I wonder why.

Didn't US got both the first two Waves on Day 1?

Europe got it almost a month and a half later.

They are probably just re-balancing the releases.
They should have done it since the beginning, sure, but since they didn't, they are trying to fix it.

Quote: Drek95

Quote: Matteomax

So, apparently the UK is getting Wave 4 Trap Masters tomorrow.

Wow, Activision is seriously giving the US the back seat. I wonder why.

Didn't US got both the first two Waves on Day 1?

Europe got it almost a month and a half later.

They are probably just re-balancing the releases.
They should have done it since the beginning, sure, but since they didn't, they are trying to fix it.

While a nice idea, I'm pretty sure Activision isn't quote so benevolent. I'm pretty sure all of the wave 3 restock, Easter skylanders and wave 4/4.5 stuff for the US is tied up in the dock worker's strike in Washington/Oregon/California. As many ships are starting to just sail for the other side of the country, it should be resolved pretty shortly.

-Doug

US getting wave 2 on day 1 too is probably more about the US Toys R Us demanding some kind of big exclusive perk other then legionaries etc.

Quote: darkchylde28

Quote: Drek95

Quote: Matteomax

So, apparently the UK is getting Wave 4 Trap Masters tomorrow.

Wow, Activision is seriously giving the US the back seat. I wonder why.

Didn't US got both the first two Waves on Day 1?

Europe got it almost a month and a half later.

They are probably just re-balancing the releases.
They should have done it since the beginning, sure, but since they didn't, they are trying to fix it.

While a nice idea, I'm pretty sure Activision isn't quote so benevolent. I'm pretty sure all of the wave 3 restock, Easter skylanders and wave 4/4.5 stuff for the US is tied up in the dock worker's strike in Washington/Oregon/California. As many ships are starting to just sail for the other side of the country, it should be resolved pretty shortly.

-Doug

Could easily be.

After all, I don't really know how shipments work, in the US (don't even know how they work here in Italy, so... ), I was more like speculating, than anything else.

However Wave 4 Cores should arrive around the same date, both in Europe and US, 20th/22nd of March.

I checked out several sites, including skylanderscharacterlist.com, and it looks like 3/22/2015 will be the date that Wave 4 will likely to be released.

I wonder if stores would be locked out from sales until 3/22 or will they be available early. The official release date has passed, so I imagine stores are free to put them out as soon as they receive them. These boards will be filled with posts of people success, or failures, in getting the figures from various stores.

Never know, but I'm waiting.
Looking forward to this wave, Buuzer posted videos of Thunderbolt's paths. My prediction for the path to chose was "I of the Storm" because damage is extremely high.
Curious about the others as well (except the Minis, which I already have their larger versions).
This wave may be a refresher from the somewhat disappointing Wave 2 & 3 ( disappointments: Head Rush & Blastermind), yet I am curious about the cores as well.

Quote: darkchylde28

As many people as have asked and complained for as long as they have about this, word has had more than enough time to reach the ears up upper management of any such retailer. No, we shouldn't take out our grievances on local clerks and managers, but we should be able to hold the company responsible for never issuing any kind of statement (even "We don't know, Activision isn't telling us") to either inform people when these sought after items might be available again or even just confirm that they're listening to and care about our concerns.
...Why TRU, for instance, hasn't stepped up and given the same kind of blanket corporate message to their stores is beyond me and more inexcusable the longer the silence drags on.

To be fair, stores like TRU, Walmart, and Target manage huge inventories of items, and Skylanders are usually a miniscule fraction of those items. With the waves, series, variants, and differing assortments of figures, it is really, really hard to keep up with. The reason I know so much about the waves and shipping is that I am a huge fan and collector, so I watch shipments like a hawk and get just as frustrated as you all about not being to find figures (which leads me to get impatient and bug people). I also like to get figures as soon as I possibly can, because as soon as they go on Amazon Prime my experience is that be becomes much harder to move inventory without selling at a loss. However, if you get your standard retail worker who (1) likely isn't as big of a fan, and (2) doesn't directly deal with ordering or inventory (which is usually handled by some combination of a manager and a POS/stock system), they probably don't know what or even who to ask.

Quote: GamerDrone

I wonder if stores would be locked out from sales until 3/22 or will they be available early. The official release date has passed, so I imagine stores are free to put them out as soon as they receive them. These boards will be filled with posts of people success, or failures, in getting the figures from various stores.

This is just my opinion, but I don't think there is going to be any sort of a lock out. These are going to be regular shipments (not promotional shipments that TRU and others get that are timed to coincide with ads). I think as soon as the figures come in, they are going to be on the shelves.

If my shipping intel is right, wave 3 or 4 Trap Masters are going to start shipping out early next week, and they will start appearing stores after a delay for shipping (likely in California, because those stores are closest to the warehouses). There are supposed be additional shipments around the end of each of the next 3 weeks (roughly, around the 13th, 20th, and 27th) with traps and cores, so again, I anticipate that they will start appearing after a delay for shipping.

The wild card is that I have no idea how the big retailers handle inventory. It could be that Activision ships directly to individual stores, or it could be that Activision ships to a central facility owned by the retailer, who then doles the boxes out to the retailer's stores. The shipping delay will be longer with the latter than with the former.