Highlights

  • An Xbox gamer buys Riders Republic, but it arrives in an anti-theft case.
  • Retailers use special cases to prevent theft, but they are supposed to be removed at the time of purchase.
  • The gaming industry moving towards a digital future may make physical cases a thing of the past.

An Xbox gamer recently purchased a $5 copy of Ubisoft's Riders Republic, but it arrived while still in the plastic security case. Big box retailers like to lock their games in special plastic boxes that are designed to be unlocked using a specific tool. These anti-theft devices help companies stop potential shoplifters from stealing Xbox games and other products, though they aren't always 100% successful.

Even with security cases, people have been known to steal games from retailers. Five years ago, a man was arrested after allegedly stealing video games from Walmart, and was sentenced to 60 days in jail and one-year probation. On the opposite end of things, sometimes people have legally purchased a game online from retailers like Walmart, only for the game to arrive while still in its plastic anti-theft case, causing an annoying inconvenience.

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This happened recently to Reddit user phamjonny1991, who seemingly purchased a $5.00 Xbox copy of Riders Republic, a 2021 sports game developed and published by Ubisoft. Riders Republic earned mostly positive reviews at the time of its original release, but like many sports games, its value has dramatically diminished over time. Regardless, phamjonny1991's copy, which appears to have been purchased from Walmart based on the image, arrived while still in the anti-theft box.

Game Arrives While Still in Plastic Anti-Theft Case

This isn't the first time that a video game purchased online from Walmart has arrived while still in its anti-theft box. Reddit user SavageDarkside found themselves in a similar situation a few years ago. They purchased the PS4 version of Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection, and it arrived while still in the plastic security case. In the comment section of their post, they revealed that they were able to get the case off using magnets, so perhaps phamjonny1991 can do something similar with their copy of Riders Republic.

Eventually, anti-theft cases like this will most likely become a thing of the past. It's no secret that the gaming industry is marching to an increasingly-digital future, with some big-name games skipping out on physical versions entirely. There have been multiple reports of retailers moving away from physical media or at least scaling back the space dedicated to things like DVDs, Blu-rays, and video games. Once physical video games stop being sold in stores, gamers will likely stop running into these kinds of situations.