The market rules thread must be deleted and Steven Seagal is the MAN.

[lantus360]

Was this deal made through the forums? I don't remember seeing a sales thread.

you still mad you missed the photoshop cloning when you inspected the cart ?

 

[Takumaji]

I understand that letting BRANDI talk about this scam isn't in the best interest of the "Let's-welcome-Tonk-back" crew

Woah, dude, what the fuck are you talking about?

I never had a problem with hearing what all sides involved in the drama have to say, especially when it comes to people who were directly involved and can actually shed some light on the many dark spots of the case like BRANDI.

You and Chuck have some gristle to chew, and that's all fine and dandy but please don't lump us together with the scamming bastards that stand behind all this shit just because we have different opinions on TonK's return.

 

[Rot]

Is this still going on?

LOOK lads... decisions have been made... and TBH... lines in the sand have been drawn...

I MAY or MAY NOT like it... but that's the way it's going to be for now...

xROTx

 

[evil wasabi]

LMAO. This is amazing

BRANDI is probably the only member here who can really do something about this shit. I understand that letting BRANDI talk about this scam isn't in the best interest of the "Let's-welcome-Tonk-back" crew but come on, try to be more subtle next time. This is ridiculous

It's hard to believe that you missed the most viewed MMAO sale thread in the history of this place. It's weird considering that the OP made pretty damn sure that everyone sees it by posting it in the general section. His epic sale pitch probably got you confused but if you read it carefully, I'm sure you'll realize that it wasn't really a discussion thread



Don't get me started on quoting all this shit again because you know I will

Okay, fair enough. Tonk posted that there was a copy of the game.

Still does not establish he had any intent to defraud anyone.

 

[Electric Grave]

LOL



Great work, really

P.S. It was 20k to be precise..

20k, 30k, 10k, 5k...doesn't make a difference, still laughable as fuck, thanks again for inspiring coryoon with this supercollector shenanigans. Please spend more money on carts with questionable authenticity. I like it when supercollector expectations fall to the ground and end up with a Peter Parker face. Priceless, you can't put a number on this feeling.

Jealous much? ME?! OK Maybe but only 'cause I'd put that money to good use (Indonesia weekend extravaganza) but still funny nonetheless.

 

[Dr Shroom]

is the fun back yet?

 

[Electric Grave]

The fun never left, we're just adding to it.

 

[CORY]

Woah, dude, what the fuck are you talking about?

I never had a problem with hearing what all sides involved in the drama have to say, especially when it comes to people who were directly involved and can actually shed some light on the many dark spots of the case like BRANDI.

You and Chuck have some gristle to chew, and that's all fine and dandy but please don't lump us together with the scamming bastards that stand behind all this shit just because we have different opinions on TonK's return.

I don't have anything against Charlie as a person. I actually love the guy. His trolling skills are out of this world. I just can't let retarded shit like this happen to this place. I just can't.

I understand why it's hard for BRANDI to talk about this. Everytime he talks about the scam, he gets this kind of questions. This is ridiculous. As if all the hate he gets for being that "rich kid" wasn't enough, he also can't share his experience without his words getting questioned or simply called "some hearsay". If you really care about what happened to him, you should listen to him when he talks about his transaction. You should listen to him when he says that TonK just kept saying that the game was real and the source was verified. And maybe you should also listen to him when he says that TonK isn't the man you think he is and that he handled the transaction in a very shady way by hiding fundamental informations.

Let's forget about the midleman clusterfuck and stay focused on BRANDI's transaction for a minute here. This transaction happened through these forums. The game was listed as the real deal. TonK just kept saying it was real. He also said that the source was verified but just kept refusing to give any information about who the source was. BRANDI didn't buy his game from DavidG. He said that he would have never bought the game if he knew that DavidG was the source considering his background. He bought TonK's personal copy after the last part of Geddon's report was posted. The game was real. The hype was there, check out the posts, even Shawn and FTL posted back then. There was no warnings, no "buyers beware", no "buy this at your own risk" messages. TonK just kept saying AF3 was real and Geddon backed his words. The doubts BRANDI still had left at the time went away at this moment. This was before the reveal. BRANDI didn't know that DavidG was behind the game. He was told by one of the most -if not the most- trusted member of these forums -which also happened to be his friend at the time- that the game -a historic find that just sold for more than Kizuna and Ultimate 11- came from a verified former SNK employee. He just pulled the trigger.

You're one of the smart people here Tak, I think it's time for you to open your eyes. I know some people think I'm way too invested in this and that it must be personal for some reason so let me just quote this post made by someone else, someone you know personally.

I was pretty sure that this was a full on scam before, but I learned a bit more as time went on. It's a lot more gray than black and white.

But the opposite has happened: There's absolutely nothing gray left.

Here's just one example posted by TonK one year ago, when he was acting as the voice of DavidG because the latter wouldn't reveal himself:

What's getting to me is the fact that you are saying its unfair to show images of, until today, a non-existent game's manual because NGF demands proof.

Fuck them.

Nobody else does, they trust me and Geddon_jt.

Adol says its the same as the copy he saw.

This game has been researched by lots of people.

It's real.

And that's not out of context, here's the meat of the original post:

I first saw pictures of this title in late Janurary. I didn't believe it. I knew for sure that this guy had just made the game himself and even asked him about it. He said that wasn't the case and that he had purchased it directly from SNK back in 1995.♥

I said that I wanted to inspect the game with my own eyes, I also asked him how many he had. He said he had found 2 copies and that he thought he may have 1 more. We worked out a deal that would allow me to acquire both of them. I cannot state what the terms were in how I came into ownership of these 2 copies. But he sent me one. When I first looked at it, I thought it was fake. Only because there was no way I could be this lucky in owning the rarest and most expensive game that ever graced the Neo-Geo library. Upon further inspection, I knew that it was real, but needed an expert to see it and make a report on it.♥

That is where John Thacker comes in to play. I shipped him a copy of the game after sending him pictures. He said that it looked real, but until he saw it personally, there was no way to tell for sure. Once he received the game, he immediately called me and said it was 100% real. He couldn't believe it himself, but it was definitely a real title. He did extensive research and scrutinized the game after he gave his initial response. Expect his report very soon.♥

So with confirmation that it was real, I reached out to a collector and told him this exact story. He didn't believe me, but was willing to listen. Once John and I were in agreement that this game was real, I worked out a deal with this person. I actually got back from the Pittsburgh airport not too long ago. That is where we met and made the deal. It sold for more than Kizuna or Ultimate 11. So this is without a doubt, the rarest Neo-Geo home cart to exist.♥

I'm very grateful and excited to bring this long lost title out of its hiding place to share with the Neo-Geo community and the rest of the gaming world.♥

I hope you guys are just as shocked and excited as I am.

There are also a few other surprises that I'm working on with this individual, they will be announced once we're both ready.

In closing, I do have another copy available for sale. This will be sold to a serious party who is interested in owning a piece of history. Terms will be arranged once the offer is accepted. You must understand that acquiring this game will not be cheap. All non-serious offers will be ignored. I'd prefer to keep it in the United States.♥

Thanks for reading and trusting me to bring you this historic find.

- Michael DiCioccio

There's nothing there with "buyer beware" or "this might not be real" or any of these attempts to re-frame or restate was was said.

Chamane, Brandi, and whoever else relied on this stuff. Now in the back of their minds, there could've been some fears over their authenticity, but the hype that was going on was nothing like how those attacking the victims of this fraud are framing it now.

EDIT: added DavidG's own description of getting AF3:

Aero Fighters 3:
At the time Sonic Wings 3 was being made for production, I had already ended my time with SNK. I did keep in contact with many of my friends and colleagues. I also requested to be called when any new games come out for purchase. I got the call saying Aero Fighters 3 was available and I bought several copies (as I did with many of the games I bought). I didn’t think anything of the title at the time because if I got the call, the game had to be selling in retail locations. I never questioned it or did I double check to make sure, it wasn’t anything different from any other release. I got the call in late December 1995 and took delivery in January 1996. I remember playing one of the games for a short time before putting it back in the box. It was kept at my house for a while before moving it to storage. When ng.com came around with its master list is when I first noticed the title wasn’t there. I have been told it was once on the list but I don’t recall ever seeing it there and I will be honest, I never really looked closely. During a move I did come across AF3 again and this time I did do some research on how much the game would be worth and I came to the conclusion it was $800US. At the time this was a very high cost of a home cart but I wasn’t in need of the money and I didn’t want to part with anything in my Collection... so I let it be.

Again, nothing buyer beware about any of this.

Also, let me quote this message pointing out that what BRANDI was saying wasn't just some hearsay. It also happened live on the forums.

I second that.

But there where counterfeits (e.g. paintings) that fooled even some studied experts for years, so maybe someone took a lot of effort to make a lot of money (nearly 100.000 $ for the 3 copys?).
Did you check the identity of the seller? Has he really been an SNK employee? I mean, maybe he had some corporate ID cart or maybe Nightmare Tony knows him etc.? Something to back up his statements?

And I don't doubt you (as you should know) but to become deceived is not a privilege of the dumb, it may hit everybody.

Yes, he is verified.

I've personally backed up all of his statements.

This guy has a TON of shit that nobody can possibly own unless they worked for SNK.

His identity is precious - you think he needs this shit storm?

You guys will be convinced, trust me.

So in conclusion, was DavidG directly involved in BRANDI's transaction? No. Who was the owner of the game? TonK. Who was the seller of the game? TonK. Was there a middleman? No. Did TonK knowingly sold a counterfeit? Maybe, maybe not, the answer to that question doesn't matter at all. Read my following answer to Wasabi's post.

Okay, fair enough. Tonk posted that there was a copy of the game.

Still does not establish he had any intent to defraud anyone.

As you know already, this is irrelevant to the real problem here. Unknowlingly selling a counterfeit doesn't prevent you from getting called out about it and certainly doesn't allow you to keep the money and tell your buyer to fuck off.

I mean, if you really think such thing is Ok, you should add this rule in the market rules thread:
- It's OK to scam people as long as you "unknowinlgy" do it. You won't be banned nor get your market privileges removed for it. Oh and you can keep the cash as long as you bring the fun time back

 

[Jon]

I'll just add, it's very interesting to read Jason Young/DavidG's posts. He obviously had a very elaborate story he planned to tell Mike and the buyers.

He's a very good example of a pathological liar.

Jon

 

[CORY]

I'll just add, it's very interesting to read Jason Young/DavidG's posts. He obviously had a very elaborate story he planned to tell Mike and the buyers.

He's a very good example of a pathological liar.

Jon

Yes he is. He isn't that smart though. I remember Wasabi catching him shooting his foot pretty bad. In an answer to TonK, DavidG said that if this went to court, TonK would be accountable for every dollar he took. He litterally lelt zero possibilities of the games being real. One of the best epic fail I've seen on here

 

[Jon]

Yes he is. He isn't that smart though. I remember Wasabi catching him shooting his feet pretty bad. In an answer to TonK, DavidG said that if this went to court, TonK would be accountable for every dollar he took. He litterally lelt zero possibilities of the games being real. One of the best epic fail I've seen on here

Yes, I remember that. It was right after Mike and one of the mods (ironically, via Kennyboy) found out who he really was.

Just curious, you remember this post:

Once again, every buyer was made aware of the risk beforehand. They knew what they were getting into and took the responsibility when they made the payment. Everyone knew there were no refunds and to err on the side of caution, I did do my due diligence and held unto the funds sent for a 90 day period (just in case a buyer wanted to return their game right away). A lot of time passed by and everyone reported that they were satisfied with their purchase. TonK/Mike was acting in the best interest of both parties (Me and the Buyers). He clearly provided all of the necessary information and the buyers still proceeded with their purchase. TonK is not responsible for any of this debacle.

Dude can't even figure out who he's loyal to.

Jon

 

[CORY]

Yes and I also remember why he posted it, he was scared as shit

The best part is how he went from "I'm a former SNK employee, the games are real and I'll prove it to you all very soon" to "every buyer was made aware of the risk beforehand."

 

[Takumaji]

I don't have anything against Charlie as a person. I actually love the guy. His trolling skills are out of this world. I just can't let retarded shit like this happen to this place. I just can't. [snip]

I'm aware of what went on between "DavidG", TonK and what has been posted on the forums. I'm also aware of most of the info that has been passed back and forth behind the scenes, and this is what makes me watch the whole thing in a new light. I wish some of the people who have something to say would step forward and spill the beans, this hide and seek game that still goes on really gets on my nerves.

 

[evil wasabi]

Did TonK tell Brandi to fuck off, or did he immediately reach out to Brandi when things got fishy, and offer to make things right, only to be rebuffed? Brandi chose to let things play out and see where the chips fell because, like many, many members, he wished the game to be real.

Does that miss the point? Does it miss the point that the buyers didn't want to get refunds when TonK realized the games might be fakes, and reached out to all of them to make things right?

Tell me how many scammers do that?

Then after everyone pans TonK, they expect him to turn the other cheek and be like "yessir, right away, sir."?

I don't think we live on that planet anymore.

 

[evil wasabi]

I'm aware of what went on between "DavidG", TonK and what has been posted on the forums. I'm also aware of most of the info that has been passed back and forth behind the scenes, and this is what makes me watch the whole thing in a new light. I wish some of the people who have something to say would step forward and spill the beans, this hide and seek game that still goes on really gets on my nerves.

TonK hasn't been posting the emails from the buyers because despite all the shit he has taken from the forums, he's not going to let it change him and aikido everyone under the same bus they have thrown him under.

 

[Takumaji]

TonK hasn't been posting the emails from the buyers because despite all the shit he has taken from the forums, he's not going to let it change him and aikido everyone under the same bus they have thrown him under.

Yup.

I hope all the info will be made public one day.