Retro Game Consoles Reportedly Stolen In Literal Highway Robbery
The CEO of the company behind some of the best retro consoles on the market has announced on their website than an entire shipment of units, due for release all over the world, has been stolen in a robbery in the UK.
Andrew Byatt, whose Blaze Entertainment makes the excellent Evercade VS, has written the statement to not just keep fans in the loop, but to particularly address those customers who pre-ordered one of the units (in this case the Evercade EXP Limited Editon handheld) that has been reportedly stolen, and as such are unlikely to get the consoles they’ve paid for until replacements can be manufactured.
Byatt says that “in the early hours” of December 6 a truck “carrying Evercade EXP Limited Edition stock was subject to a suspected targeted robbery”, and that while “nobody was hurt in this criminal act”, the stolen units had been intended “for despatch to all UK, USA, and rest of world customers”.
European customers are unaffected, as are those buying the regular edition of the Evercade EXP, since it was only the limited edition units that were stolen. Byatt adds that they’re currently working with British police, and are “hopeful of recovering the stock”, but in case that doesn’t pan out they have already begun the process of manufacturing replacement units.
To compensate those whose are now going to have to wait for their orders, Byatt also says that they’re creating a “Heroes” list “which will be added to our EXP console credits, thanking those people that stuck by us at this time”. Since the consoles were only available for sale on their official site, and are now sold out, Byatt is reminding people that any units turning up for sale elsewhere are “likely stolen goods”.
The full statement is below:
Dear Evercade customers and fans, I’m writing to inform you of some very sad news. In the early hours of yesterday morning, a lorry carrying Evercade EXP Limited Edition stock was subject to a suspected targeted robbery. Nobody was hurt in this criminal act, but a theft of our Limited Edition stock was carried out. This stock was moving between warehouses for despatch to all UK, USA, and rest of world customers – all of the stock was taken in this terrible, possibly organised attack. EU stock was not affected and has arrived in Funstock’s European warehouse successfully. Since learning of the crime, we have been tirelessly working behind the scenes, liaising with the Police, evaluating the situation, and defining a plan of action that we can communicate to our customers and fans as accurately and as quickly as possible. This is especially devastating for our most committed fans who supported us with their pre-orders for our special Limited Edition version of the Evercade EXP. We feel this impact keenly and are determined to not let this situation overshadow the excitement around our new product launch. This is an unprecedented situation in the history of Blaze and Funstock and we deeply sympathise with all our fans and customers who are the victims of this theft. We at Blaze are hugely frustrated and angry that this has occurred, and with these products so close to release the timing could not be worse. We have shared all the information, including evidence of theft, with the UK Police and we await news of their investigations. Whilst we are hopeful of recovering the stock, we expect this to be challenging and time consuming. We are working hard on making this right for Limited Edition customers. Please be aware that the EXP Limited Edition could only be purchased from Funstock.co.uk and is no longer on sale. Any other sources are likely stolen goods. What happens next? I have immediately started production on replacements for this stock at our factory and we will endeavour to get these into your hands as fast as humanly possible. We recognise that this will be disappointing for our customers and as a mark of our gratitude for their patience while we remanufacture the goods, we will be creating a list of “Heroes” which will be added to our EXP console credits, thanking those people that stuck by us at this time. We will also add a screen protector set into the reproduced goods and Funstock will include a 20% off voucher on a future order. We firmly believe that the customers of Blaze and Funstock are victims here and we apologise for the impact this event will cause. We hope all our customers can join us in condemning the actions of these criminals and ensuring this event will not be allowed to stop our enjoyment of the classic gaming experience that Evercade provides. Yours Sincerely, Andrew Byatt CEO Blaze EntertainmentThanks Vincent!
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