Posted in: Card Games, Games, Magic: The Gathering, Tabletop, Wizards of the Coast | Tagged: , , , , , ,

Wizards Of The Coast Shrinkwrap Sold By 3rd Party Vendors – Beware

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For years, the Wizards of the Coast shrinkwrap was a major sign of authenticity for their sealed product. If a booster box of Magic: The Gathering cards or Pokémon cards didn't have the logo-etched shrinkwrap on it, it was deemed to be tampered with and therefore potentially tampered product. However, some light has been shed upon a new practice by third-party vendors to actually sell shrinkwrap with Wizards of the Coast's logo on it, thereby contaminating the entire process.

The listing for fake Wizards of the Coast shrinkwrap, from a third-party vendor.
The listing for fake Wizards of the Coast shrinkwrap, from a third-party vendor.

This entire practice casts doubt on all booster boxes not sold directly by Wizards. This shrinkwrap can and likely does make its way into the vendor pipeline on Amazon, where according to at least one source, like items are consolidated into crates with each other. What this means is that even if you buy from a reputable vendor, you might get another vendor's counterfeit or tampered-with product. Therefore, for the time being, it is best to aim to buy straight from the source, if possible. If that isn't feasible, buy your Magic: The Gathering cards from your local gaming store, and even then, perhaps try to stick to single cards where possible.

This practice does not just hurt consumers, either. This hurts not only stores that aren't specifically buying directly from Wizards of the Coast (and that's a lot of stores), but also sites that sell this inauthentic product. A rudimentary search for the shrinkwrap leads us directly to one site where the wrapping is listed as for decorative purposes only but then is listed alongside a tutorial for how to use it in a practical way, complete with YouTube link (obviously, we are not about to link that here, nor will we link the listing overall).

What do you think about this sketchy practice by third-party vendors to promote false or tampered Wizards of the Coast products? Let us know in the comments below!

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Joshua NelsonAbout Joshua Nelson

Josh Nelson is a Magic: The Gathering deckbuilding savant, a self-proclaimed scholar of all things Sweeney Todd, and, of course, a writer for Bleeding Cool. In their downtime, Josh can be found painting models, playing Magic, or possibly preaching about the horrors and merits of anthropophagy. You can find them on Twitter at @Burning_Inquiry for all your burning inquiries.
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