darkSpyro

Yes, I'm going there. Get your popcorn or whatever. I'm really just curious to see how people manage to define what is and isn't ok for an employee to purchase considering their role in the market.

Activision gives special edition figures to it's employees that are not available to paying customers.

I don't have any issue with this.

Activision employees sell their special editions on the secondary market

I don't have any issue with this.

buying an activision employee special edition on the secondar market

No issues.

A store allows employees first access to rare figures.

I don't have issues with this ...I don't see it as any different then what Activision is doing. However, if I'm store manager, I'd be a little concerned about customer reaction. I'd actually strongly consider pulling all of these out of boxes myself, buying them, and using as rewards for employee of the month or something of that nature. Again, not something I'd want customers to know about.

An employee finds a rare figure in box, but is not required to put on shelf since supply is good. He calls up his Grandma/friend/associate who comes up and buys the figure after "wink wink" asking to see what's in the boxes. Hours later Grandma gives the figure to her adorable Grandson.

I don't see it as a problem, but does seem ridiculously unnecessary.

A store allows employees first access to rare figures, but said employee has to pinky swear that they won't sell it on the secondary market and cherish it forever.

Well no, but should an employee follow the employee honor code and not resell it? Not in my opinion.

buying a rare figure from a store employee

No issues for me.

A Store knows that there supply is lower then expected demand, but they let an employee buy up all or most of the stock anyway.

I hesitate to call anything immoral, but if I'm a store manager, I don't allow this. I fire any employee that breaks this rule. As a customer, I don't shop at any store that allows this or other scalpers to deplenish inventory to the point where bread and butter customers are cut out like that.


And for bonus:
I'm a customer or employee who knows that a normal figure is in decent supply at my store of choice, but only for a limited time and/or not so readily available around the US (or other markets). I buy up a good chuck of stock with the thought of selling to the secondary market at a time and/or place where I can charge more.

I'm actually glad this happens. I missed quite a few releases in SA and Giants, and was able to complete my collection(s) through this market.


I'm a customer or employee who knows that a normal figure is in decent supply at my store of choice and online. I purchase a bunch of these and sell on the secondary market hoping my customers don't know that it can easily be had at retail price .

I don't like this practice at all. Taking advantage of the naive doesn't provide any value or service to anyone....no.

So, as long as the item in question benefits you...you're ok. Ironically some of the actions you don't approve actually help others who may actually have limited supply or a lack of stores in their area.

Bottom line--what we THINK means nothing. As long as no rules/laws are broken...it's all fair game.

I don't like the variant hunt the way it is. The only way I think a completely random rare variant in a standard store shipment would be 'fair' is if there was some sort of blind pack element involved. In other words, if all Skylanders were sold with no way to actually see the figure until you purchase and open it. You'll know which one you're buying by the packaging but no way of knowing if it's variant or not. I don't think this is an ideal solution necessarily, but the way it is now just allows too much employee poaching. This is not the employee's fault, but rather Activision's because this is how they choose to distribute these.

What I do like is when a variant is announced and specifically sold as such (Best Buy's Metal Sprocket, Jolly Bumble Blast, etc). Toys R Us Gill Grunt is another example of something I find acceptable, something I can work towards and know I can actually get. Maybe if Activision had some sort of Online Rewards program that allowed you to be rewarded with variants would be nice as well. Redeem your UPC or even the unique ID on the sticker and gain points. Use points to buy figures.

Something else that sucked was the Quickdraw Rattle Shake Frito-Lay mess. I tried for so long with no luck. I just don't like the random aspect when it comes to collectibles. Oddly enough, I'm okay with random when it comes to blind packs though because that's the nature of the beast.

Actually, my 2nd to last point stated I'm glad that items in low supply in one area get served through the secondary markets. Yes, this helped me, but I wouldn't think that make me hypocritical. Not sure why you're painting me as such.

And I agree that everything's fair game. However, if this a store that has practices that makes it difficult or unpleasant for me to shop there, then I don't want to shop there. I don't see that as any different that your statements (and I paraphrase), that if they problems you see with the game and franchise don't get resolved, you won't be continuing to version 4....and that's all good with me.

I can see both sides of it, but I'll relay a story.

Early in Disney Infinity I was trying to collect all the power discs, especially the rare ones which are hard to find. (At the time I didn't know there was a 'cheat' where if you rub the package a certain way you can find the rares)

So I stop by a Walmart on my way home. I'm just sorting of looking at all the stock when the employee says to me "Are you looking for the rares?". I say something like "yeah, sure". And in a non-pleasant way says something like "too bad, I already took them all".

And that pissed me off. It's not that I might still get one, it's that I absolutely had 0% chance of getting one. I bought nothing from that Walmart, and I won't ever buy anything from that Walmart.

Another thought:
I often go with my son to the various stores that sell Skylanders hoping to find something new/special. If I know for certain there's a 0% chance of getting something, I'm not going to that store. I'm not spending money on what I was hoping for, and in the case of a Game Stop or TRU, I won't be buying any of the other usual crap my son gets me to buy. That store loses money when Employees 'take the good stuff' even before it hits the shelves.

So, coming from the employee he's pretty happy. But from that managers standpoint, he/she should be angry. They're in business to sell, and upsell, all the products in the store. Just because someone searches for 1 thing, it doesn't mean they won't spend a lot of cash on other items.

I'll ask everyone here that goes on Skylander store visits regularly .... Would you still go to that store if you KNEW that the employees would take the rares right off the bat? 0% chance?

Per your questions:
1) I don't think any employee (or shopper) should be able to buy mass quantity of items and resell them elsewhere. It ruins the chances of others to enjoy the product. It's a loss for the Retailer and the Customers. (see above)
2) I think it's fine if they grab 1+ of something when there's plenty of stock.
3) All employees should always get discounts on products, that's a common perk
4) There should at least be a window from when a product is unboxed and shelved (not hidden) until an employee purchases it. Call it 24 hours. If a rare is on the shelves that long and nobody finds it, then I think it's at least more of a fair game.
5) As for those that say "its part of the job", I disagree. My job has access to financial information, would it be 'ok' if I took your Social Security Number and did something with it? It wouldn't be 'illegal' of course, but .....

The chase variants are stupid. Its as plain as that. Its something rare that they intended to use to get people combing the stores and be excited about in the lull between waves. Its a failure though because the odds, while bad enough as they are due to the rarity, are compounded exponentially by the fact that the majority of retail employees know about these so they never make it to the shelf. The same goes for trade show exclusives at events that aren't open to the general public. The only good thing to come out of those is when a smaller website admin actually gets access to the event and uses the item in a giveaway to promote his/her site. Otherwise its just another item that is loosely meant for the consumer but never makes it to them except at insane eBay prices.

Chase figures and rare variants don't benefit anyone other than those looking to make a quick buck on the secondary market. Activision, Toys for Bob, Vicarious Visions, etc., they don't get any benefit from the secondary market. I've said before they need to abandon the chase variants and start a figure of the month club. Charge us $20 for a variant each month by taking preorders then ship em out. We're happy because we get cool figures without having to fight in the aisles and check stores day after day. They get some extra guaranteed money without having to sit on endless stock, they just crank out how ever many get ordered. Its a win win.

-Grishnaar

As a game stop employee i have no problem with cherry picking. Its a perk of the job. but my manager has a limit of 1 per employee. Example, last year they released Polar Whirlwind at GS. i got one, but only one. same with pumpkin eye brawl. now if they sit out for a week and we still have them fair game. I love the Chase Variants. Its part of the Hunt.

Quote: OimakKamio

I love the Chase Variants. Its part of the Hunt.

That seems to conflict with what you said before though. You love the hunt, but now I know to never go to your store as there'd be no chance I'd ever get it.

Quote: Xerxxees

Quote: OimakKamio

I love the Chase Variants. Its part of the Hunt.

That seems to conflict with what you said before though. You love the hunt, but now I know to never go to your store as there'd be no chance I'd ever get it.

That was my thought after reading that. Hunt? Really? If it makes you feel better calling it that.

The best course of action is to pretend the chase variants do not exist. Simple as that. Odds are against anyone finding one, let alone the whole suite of them. Your store has to get the right case out of 150 (most stores may only get 10-20 cases TOTAL for a wave), THEN it has to make it to the shelf without being noticed by an aware employee, THEN you have to be there at exactly the right time, THEN you have to find it first. I've been hunting Skylanders, and often do a look over stock in a store, even if I'm not in need of anything and I've never seen ONE. I've helped employees open numerous cases and I've never seen ONE. The odds of finding one are astounding.

If you do win the Skylander lottery and get lucky, enjoy it, give it a place of honor in your collection - but stop with considering it necessary to obtain these for your collection to be "complete". If it's that big of a deal, EBay is literally the only way to go - along with a hefty wallet.

Now as far as employees taking one, I have no issue with the morality in that. Retail sucks, the pay sucks, the hours suck, and it wears on you. It's a small perk, and even if you take it straight to EBay, it's a small bonus for putting up with everything else. Have at it as far as I am concerned. If you treat customers well, do your job and have a good attitude, then enjoy the perk. In fact, I have one employee at TRU that has gone above and beyond for me and I flat out told him about chase variants, and suggested that he should pick one up for himself to resell if he ever found one as long as it doesn't violate store policy. All the times he has held stuff for me, looked all over in cases, told me about stuff coming up and all with a smile on his face - he deserves it.

Now, I DO take issue when employees go overboard with it and start skimming shipments of anything at all that is even remotely worth something. Like the guy that had the employee tell him he bought all the Stink Bombs. Or the guy above that had an employee tell him he skimmed all the rare Disney packs. Part of this is bluster, some people are jerks and people that skim that much off the top will eventually have it catch up with them. If you grab one every once in a while, even if your store has a policy against it (15 min delay or something) only the most straight arrow manager would really give you grief. When someone grabs all the new ones in a shipment and buys them at employee discount, that kind of thing is tracked, and it will be met with repercussions. All it takes is a customer complaint to the store manager, and they can look that up. If he sees that employee bought a dozen packs right after they came in, then there will be questions to be answered. Retail managers aren't paid much either, and the last thing they want is to deal with an employee taunting customers. If the manager likewise doesn't seem to care, then shop somewhere else, and maybe file a report with the home office.

I just don't get people like those employees, what possible purpose could it serve to taunt customers? Only bad will come out of that. They aren't going to appreciate your resourcefulness. If you are going to be a douche, at least have the courtesy to keep it to yourself.

Quote: OimakKamio

I love the Chase Variants. Its part of the Hunt.

It's as much of the hunt as finding Bigfoot is if you are a deer hunter.

Quote: Xerxxees

I can see both sides of it, but I'll relay a story.

Early in Disney Infinity I was trying to collect all the power discs, especially the rare ones which are hard to find. (At the time I didn't know there was a 'cheat' where if you rub the package a certain way you can find the rares)

So I stop by a Walmart on my way home. I'm just sorting of looking at all the stock when the employee says to me "Are you looking for the rares?". I say something like "yeah, sure". And in a non-pleasant way says something like "too bad, I already took them all".

And that pissed me off. It's not that I might still get one, it's that I absolutely had 0% chance of getting one. I bought nothing from that Walmart, and I won't ever buy anything from that Walmart.

I would do the same, just because of the employees attitude. I don't have a problem if the store itself has no rares because employees already purchased them. I don't consider there much chance of getting a rare anyway.

Quote: Xerxxees

Another thought:
I often go with my son to the various stores that sell Skylanders hoping to find something new/special. If I know for certain there's a 0% chance of getting something, I'm not going to that store. I'm not spending money on what I was hoping for, and in the case of a Game Stop or TRU, I won't be buying any of the other usual crap my son gets me to buy. That store loses money when Employees 'take the good stuff' even before it hits the shelves.

So, coming from the employee he's pretty happy. But from that managers standpoint, he/she should be angry. They're in business to sell, and upsell, all the products in the store. Just because someone searches for 1 thing, it doesn't mean they won't spend a lot of cash on other items.

I'll ask everyone here that goes on Skylander store visits regularly .... Would you still go to that store if you KNEW that the employees would take the rares right off the bat? 0% chance?

Yes, I am ok with that. I'm referring to chase variants here, not HTF items that just haven't been put out in enough stock yet. Again, I don't see much difference between 0% chance and 0.001 chance (or whatever it is)

Quote: Xerxxees

Per your questions:
1) I don't think any employee (or shopper) should be able to buy mass quantity of items and resell them elsewhere. It ruins the chances of others to enjoy the product. It's a loss for the Retailer and the Customers. (see above)

I don't think this always ruins the chances if there is enough stock locally. The store needs to decide how many to allow for sale, and they often do.

Quote: Xerxxees

2) I think it's fine if they grab 1+ of something when there's plenty of stock.
3) All employees should always get discounts on products, that's a common perk
4) There should at least be a window from when a product is unboxed and shelved (not hidden) until an employee purchases it. Call it 24 hours. If a rare is on the shelves that long and nobody finds it, then I think it's at least more of a fair game.
5) As for those that say "its part of the job", I disagree. My job has access to financial information, would it be 'ok' if I took your Social Security Number and did something with it? It wouldn't be 'illegal' of course, but .....

I don't think your example in #5 is really very apples to apples. There is nothing you could with my SS# that wouldn't be damaging or an invasion of privacy. Employees buying rare items isn't damaging you and I don't think people have a right to the opportunity to buy something. You may not want to be a patron of a store that allows that to happen, and there's nothing wrong with that either. I draw the line with a store that doesn't maintain it's stock do to employee and scalper purchases, but that's me.

Quote: defpally

The best course of action is to pretend the chase variants do not exist. Simple as that. Odds are against anyone finding one, let alone the whole suite of them. Your store has to get the right case out of 150 (most stores may only get 10-20 cases TOTAL for a wave), THEN it has to make it to the shelf without being noticed by an aware employee, THEN you have to be there at exactly the right time, THEN you have to find it first. I've been hunting Skylanders, and often do a look over stock in a store, even if I'm not in need of anything and I've never seen ONE. I've helped employees open numerous cases and I've never seen ONE. The odds of finding one are astounding.

If you do win the Skylander lottery and get lucky, enjoy it, give it a place of honor in your collection - but stop with considering it necessary to obtain these for your collection to be "complete". If it's that big of a deal, EBay is literally the only way to go - along with a hefty wallet.

Now as far as employees taking one, I have no issue with the morality in that. Retail sucks, the pay sucks, the hours suck, and it wears on you. It's a small perk, and even if you take it straight to EBay, it's a small bonus for putting up with everything else. Have at it as far as I am concerned. If you treat customers well, do your job and have a good attitude, then enjoy the perk. In fact, I have one employee at TRU that has gone above and beyond for me and I flat out told him about chase variants, and suggested that he should pick one up for himself to resell if he ever found one as long as it doesn't violate store policy. All the times he has held stuff for me, looked all over in cases, told me about stuff coming up and all with a smile on his face - he deserves it.

Now, I DO take issue when employees go overboard with it and start skimming shipments of anything at all that is even remotely worth something. Like the guy that had the employee tell him he bought all the Stink Bombs. Or the guy above that had an employee tell him he skimmed all the rare Disney packs. Part of this is bluster, some people are jerks and people that skim that much off the top will eventually have it catch up with them. If you grab one every once in a while, even if your store has a policy against it (15 min delay or something) only the most straight arrow manager would really give you grief. When someone grabs all the new ones in a shipment and buys them at employee discount, that kind of thing is tracked, and it will be met with repercussions. All it takes is a customer complaint to the store manager, and they can look that up. If he sees that employee bought a dozen packs right after they came in, then there will be questions to be answered. Retail managers aren't paid much either, and the last thing they want is to deal with an employee taunting customers. If the manager likewise doesn't seem to care, then shop somewhere else, and maybe file a report with the home office.

I just don't get people like those employees, what possible purpose could it serve to taunt customers? Only bad will come out of that. They aren't going to appreciate your resourcefulness. If you are going to be a douche, at least have the courtesy to keep it to yourself.

I pretty much agree with all of the above. To add to this let's just face the fact that a manager at a store might reprimand an employee for taunting a customer (and rightly so) and then the taunting will never happen again. The employee will still find a way to get first dibs and as long as they are a good employee otherwise a Manager will be happy to have a rewarded employee as long as customers don't catch wind of it. 99% of employees are smart enough not to taunt a customer. The other .9% are smart enough to never do it again if their manager receives a complaint. The other .1% are not good employees worth keeping around.

Quote: OimakKamio

As a game stop employee i have no problem with cherry picking. Its a perk of the job. but my manager has a limit of 1 per employee. Example, last year they released Polar Whirlwind at GS. i got one, but only one. same with pumpkin eye brawl. now if they sit out for a week and we still have them fair game. I love the Chase Variants. Its part of the Hunt.

yea the point is there is usually only 1 of the rare variant anyway

I think the biggest problem isn't that employees are taking the special figures or even new stock. It's that there's so little of it that it sort of becomes unfair for those who aren't employees (or have friends/family members who are)

In effect, yeah its understandable that employees can get first dibs on the stuff. They decided to work there and that's fine. Like a little bonus of sorts. However, a very VERY easy fix is to put MORE of them out. Chase figures seem too small in numbers to be fair. At least one in say..every 5 boxes would allow employees to get what they want, and allow collectors/fans to buy them too. As for new stock, putting out 1 or 2 in a box is totally unacceptable and has been since SSA. They still haven't fixed this problem with shipments, and it's something that could easily be fixed by simply putting more in a box and then sending out previous waves/whatever.

Quote: blueruckus

The only way I think a completely random rare variant in a standard store shipment would be 'fair' is if there was some sort of blind pack element involved. In other words, if all Skylanders were sold with no way to actually see the figure until you purchase and open it. You'll know which one you're buying by the packaging but no way of knowing if it's variant or not.

Bad idea. In this scenario, people are aware of the existence of rare variants, but are forced to buy multiple times the same figure, hoping to get the variant. Also, what if the figure has a bad paint or is broken? The person can only notice that after unpacking?

Quote: spyroflame0487

I think the biggest problem isn't that employees are taking the special figures or even new stock. It's that there's so little of it that it sort of becomes unfair for those who aren't employees (or have friends/family members who are)

In effect, yeah its understandable that employees can get first dibs on the stuff. They decided to work there and that's fine. Like a little bonus of sorts. However, a very VERY easy fix is to put MORE of them out. Chase figures seem too small in numbers to be fair. At least one in say..every 5 boxes would allow employees to get what they want, and allow collectors/fans to buy them too. As for new stock, putting out 1 or 2 in a box is totally unacceptable and has been since SSA. They still haven't fixed this problem with shipments, and it's something that could easily be fixed by simply putting more in a box and then sending out previous waves/whatever.

But that defeats the whole purpose and excitement of what a chase or rare figure is. Its (I'm guessing) so exciting to find a figure that not very many people will ever see or have, its how collecting works. I wish everyone could have a Glitter Hot Head or Snowderdash but it wouldn't be special anymore. Like I said before, its like winning at an event you spent months practicing for and everyone gets the same exact award as you. I didn't really want to comment on this but as a consumer I don't see how working in the store entitles you to this kind of "perk". In my opinion its the downside. Your perks include discounts, dental plans, free fries at McDonalds, that kind of stuff. Your job is to help the consumer get what they want. I like and also thought the idea of a 24 hour floor time before its up for grabs by an employee is a great idea. It seems to only be fair for people that it benefits or will benefit if they come to a similar dilemma. Does it stink for the Skylander fan who works at Walmart and finds a Super Chase figure, yes but again, I believe its the downside for working for a store that sells something you want.

The worst offender here is Activision - they ultimately decide how many chase variants get made and they haven't fixed the numbers yet even after three years.
Ultimately it's their fault for making so few that supply can't meet demand, so the prices skyrocket, so whoever opens the box in the backroom gets the "prize."
If they made more (even as little as DOUBLE the amount), more people would be able to buy them, demand would drop and so would the prices. They would still be rare/demanded enough to not clog shelves (like some store variants on a per-store basis).

I just want to say I greatly agree with your second-last point.

Hunting here (Australia) frustrates me a lot because we get things late and our stock is painfully low... It's really nice when I do, rarely, get the oppurtunity to get some money back for it when I have an extra of a rare figure lying around or we get something first and I can sell it for easy profit which I can use on more Skylanders. (For the record, I won't clear the shelves- I always leave at least one figure there.)

Call me "scum" but just because I do one bad thing that alone doesn't make me a bad person- it's why I try to avoid generalising "scalpers" as all nasty, old guys who don't care about kids and just want a quick buck! I don't even make that much profit from this, really, but opportunity is knocking and such, so why not? It's a good "reward" for putting up with waiting ages and ages for new waves to appear, and rushing to stores and constantly calling when I hear any hints about a new release because of our terrible stock.

P.S. Chase variants stink.

Quote: Okaps

The worst offender here is Activision - they ultimately decide how many chase variants get made and they haven't fixed the numbers yet even after three years.
Ultimately it's their fault for making so few that supply can't meet demand, so the prices skyrocket, so whoever opens the box in the backroom gets the "prize."
If they made more (even as little as DOUBLE the amount), more people would be able to buy them, demand would drop and so would the prices. They would still be rare/demanded enough to not clog shelves (like some store variants on a per-store basis).

But they are chase figures! they aren't the main characters. The main Characters have enough to at least meet most demand, but they make those chase figures for a little bonus. Its a good thing. Its like making more money, everyone wants it, everyone needs it (unlike skylanders) but the more money, the less its worth. Thats why aluminum is so much cheaper than say Diamonds or Silver. Ive never had or have seen a chase figure, and I'm ok with it, its their decision and we should be at least grateful we get a chance, as small as it is, to find one. Unless of course an employee gets it before you find one

Quote: Kartoonkid91

But that defeats the whole purpose and excitement of what a chase or rare figure is. Its (I'm guessing) so exciting to find a figure that not very many people will ever see or have, its how collecting works.

Well sure it's exciting to find a special one. I've collected lots of things over the years, and in at least every single series I've collected, I've found lots of chase figures from just random browsing. (One of my personal favorites is the 2 Ultra Ben figures I found from the Ben 10 series hahaha)

My personal problem though is that it seems that whatever the rate of the chase ones is very, very, very small. Even just doubling that would probably allow more to show up in the stores. Now I'm not saying to have one in every box, but...I mean I'm not even sure what the rate is for chases in Skylanders. I thought we knew what it was for SSA, but I believe it was changed. (and then there's still ones popping up like the Crystal Whirlwind too)

Alternatively, (and one of my favorite points to bring up lol) is they should go with the Hot Wheels model and have "Collector Days". Partner with a store and have openings where a person gets a case of figures to open. It's done though a simple raffle system and the store could have other fun things to do like posters or whatever. The person that opens it gets first dibs and can take whatever, the leave it for everyone else (and then eventually the leftover stuff gets put on the shelf)

Again, it just seems like the amount of people publicly finding them is small. Not many users on here have found them at least from what I've seen over the last few years. Yet we've seen a lot being sold online and, assuming the worst, they're either employees or scalpers who took the chance from someone else to get it. I've yet to find a chase figure in any of these games and while I don't particularly mind, it's definitely a point that I think should be addressed going forward for more games.

Quote: OimakKamio

As a game stop employee i have no problem with cherry picking. Its a perk of the job. but my manager has a limit of 1 per employee. Example, last year they released Polar Whirlwind at GS. i got one, but only one. same with pumpkin eye brawl. now if they sit out for a week and we still have them fair game. I love the Chase Variants. Its part of the Hunt.

The discussion (as I see it) pertains to rare variants like glitter Hot Head or gold Chop Chop. I don't consider Polar Whirlwind or Pumpkin Eye Brawl to be the issue here. They are comparatively easy to find. When employees take the truly rare figs for themselves, that just sucks for everyone else. But since my career path took me on a bit higher track than retail America, I won't ever see one of those rare figs, and I'm fine with it.

Quote: spyroflame0487

Quote: Kartoonkid91

But that defeats the whole purpose and excitement of what a chase or rare figure is. Its (I'm guessing) so exciting to find a figure that not very many people will ever see or have, its how collecting works.

Alternatively, (and one of my favorite points to bring up lol) is they should go with the Hot Wheels model and have "Collector Days". Partner with a store and have openings where a person gets a case of figures to open. It's done though a simple raffle system and the store could have other fun things to do like posters or whatever. The person that opens it gets first dibs and can take whatever, the leave it for everyone else (and then eventually the leftover stuff gets put on the shelf)

Well I really appreciate you not jumping on me for my opinion and for not being sarcastic when responding, it's very refreshing. Im sorry if I came off defensive, I think I let the hostility that can come from certain users of forums to change my writing style to protect myself.

I like that idea though, the Collector Day!

Quote: Himewad

Quote: OimakKamio

As a game stop employee i have no problem with cherry picking. Its a perk of the job. but my manager has a limit of 1 per employee. Example, last year they released Polar Whirlwind at GS. i got one, but only one. same with pumpkin eye brawl. now if they sit out for a week and we still have them fair game. I love the Chase Variants. Its part of the Hunt.

The discussion (as I see it) pertains to rare variants like glitter Hot Head or gold Chop Chop. I don't consider Polar Whirlwind or Pumpkin Eye Brawl to be the issue here. They are comparatively easy to find. When employees take the truly rare figs for themselves, that just sucks for everyone else. But since my career path took me on a bit higher track than retail America, I won't ever see one of those rare figs, and I'm fine with it.

I am with you there i took a higher path also went in the military then got after my time was up and then went to school for a Business majors yes majors i have 3. Opened my own business ran that for awhile. now i can just sit at home and enjoy everything with my kids. In the beginning SSA it was much easier to find rares heck we found many silvers and golds and i mean many. the kids and i used to play a game called geocaching so we was driving all over the state and through 100 of towns while we played so we would stop in a gamestop or somewhere and we would see these figures and we started seeing these ones that were silver and gold. At that time employees didnt really know what they were or if they were special so i bought all the ones we would see just because they were different. Now that everyone and everybody knows what to look for it is harder. But oh well i will keep 1 set of my silvers and 1 set of my golds and trade the others for the ones that i cant get now.

I think the whole purpose of making the chase variants visible (not hidden by the packaging), is so that people that are interested in them keep visiting the stores and looking for them, thereby increasing the chances that they will make more activision purchases.
It would be cool if they increased production on them though (maybe one every 3-5 cases). Making it easier to find as well as cheaper on e-bay.
I have been visiting stores and browsing the skylander sections probably 200+ times a year since SSA first came out and I have only seen one chase variant which I bought. (Stone Zook). I have also been at every new wave and game release and have looked in 100's of new cases and never have seen a chase variant (the one I bought was on top of one of the cardboard giants displays that was wrapped in plastic and rolled out for some release or sale I don't remember. Strangely enough, out of all the cases that were already split open, but not shelved, I have never seen an empty spot in a box where it looked like an employee had already picked through it.