eBayer wants $15000 for Darth Vader Wii

Yeah, just about anything gets ratcheted up a couple levels on the fantasmical scale if Darth Vader makes a cameo, but seriously, $15,000 for a Dark Side Wii? To be frank, this auction has spoof written all over it, but whatever the case, redferndesign is offering up a "limited edition" (one of four, supposedly) Wii system with a red CD input LED, an all black motif, Darth Vader imprinted on the side and a pair of black Wiimotes / nunchucks. Also of note, the Wiimote pictured must be one of the rarest ever, particularly when you consider the previously nonexistent "x" and "y" buttons and the rectangular power switch. Even if the console (alone) is indeed modded up, there's no way anyone in their right mind will cough up that much coin, but why not hit the read link and have a laugh at his / her expense?

Update: Just as we suspected, this one's a fake -- but humorous, nonetheless.

[Via Technabob]

[CubeGuy Posted Dec 9th 2007 3:10AM]

They didn't have to shop the controller. It was going to come in a plethora of colors. I want my blue Wiimote, dammit. =/

[Garst Posted Dec 9th 2007 4:12AM]

What's eBay's policy on fraud? I smell lawsuit, and not just from crapy director Mr. Lucas. I'm sorry, but I fell asleep every time I tried watching one of his movies.

[AlexKnutson Posted Dec 9th 2007 5:43AM]

Well...I mean.... it does offer free shipping......

....

[Silic0nJ3sus Posted Dec 9th 2007 7:59AM]

We now have proof that this is a fake.

http://www.decalgirl.com/browse.cfm/4,6555.htm

Please refer to the chrome stand. The chrome clearly reflects the leather sofa or chair the photo was taken on.

On the "Darth Vader" Wii, that exact same chrome base with the exact same reflection is show...only mirrored. It's Photoshop.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 10:40AM]

nice find.

that chrome base 'shopped with this black wii:

http://www.xecuter.com.au/images/wii_case_black.jpg

[Roberini Posted Dec 9th 2007 8:32AM]

That's probably half of what he/she is going to end up paying Lucas Arts when taken to court for unauthorized use of trademarked brands.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 11:09AM]

@ John Cavanagh
Wow, nice find on that Chrome Wii on the couch :-D I hope the user gets burninated.

You get 3 gold stars and a cookie. Pwned.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 11:32AM]

And remember, up to $200 buyer protection from PayPal! (lol)

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 11:52AM]

not THAT black wii case, but this one complete with red led lit drive slot!

http://www.abconsole.com/product_info.php?products_id=707&language=en&osCsid=9cdef64f4569f35b3f69ca6ceec0ad5f

along with the stand from a chrome case, and a darth vader vinyl, possibly for another console cut to fit. Has everyone checked to make sure its not Ugandan Dollahs ?

Black Wii case with red LED - $50
Chrome stand from some case - $20
Crappy Darth Vader Vinyl - $10

Idiot who thinks ANYONE would be fooled - PRICELESS

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 12:00PM]

If someone buys this one, I might sell the other two.. :D

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 11:58AM]

Engadget can't spell "Vader" in their tags.

[Dahk Posted Dec 9th 2007 6:25PM]

http://redpoll.pharmacy.ualberta.ca/vadar/

They're obviously talking about the Volume, Area, Dihedral Angle Reporter.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 12:30PM]

Check out this other thing they manage to jack the price up on:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190160799697

I swear, who would pay $200 for that?

[rpanman Posted Dec 9th 2007 6:36PM]

LOL Funny you guys put this up, I just reported this yesterday to ebay, Lucasarts, and Nintendo for possible fraud!
:-D
Thank You for Your Report (Community Watch) (KMM276236161V22092L0KM)
"We will review the listing(s) you have reported for violations of our
Authenticity Disclaimers Policy. We often rely on members like you to bring such violations to our attention."

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 7:46PM]

i prefer the beauty and the beast costume he sold!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 7:58PM]

I emailed the seller, enquiring about the "Wiimote" and its... shall we say, unconventional looks, and whether it is a Vinyl sticker on the side or not.

Reply :

Dear *******,

Hello, Thanks for your interest. Pictured is the "revolution" remote from the show. This unit comes with the standard wii controls (black) and it is hand airbrushed. Thanks!
- redferndesign


Mmmm ok buddeh...

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 9:00PM]

For all you critics out there, and there were quite a few, we have removed the auction from ebay, as per LucasArts policies regarding using the likeness of vader.
No, they will not be suing us, as we complied with thier request.

However, this item was not a fake, it was a mod, and only a mod, produced by redfern design with airbrushed vader artwork.

It is true the auction photo was just a representation of the actual item. This was done because the actual item was sealed. Actual photo's of the item were offered to qualified buyers. As for the control, the auction photo represents the "Revolution" control, a protoype from the tradeshow. It was as close an image as we had to represent the, gloss black control that is not readily available to the public, included with this kit.

In any case, all interested parties, and there were several, were given full disclosure regarding the items validity.

So everyone can return to thier normal lives now. By the way, some of you took this very personally. Remember, everything on Ebay is relative. 15k for a wii?... How about the 28k grilled cheese or "ghost in a jar." Yeah, and I'm the crazy one.

- S

[I forgot my password Posted Dec 9th 2007 9:40PM]

[b][i]"Originally designed and built to promote the release of LucasArts "Unleash the Force" game, on the Wii in Spring 2008."[/b][/i]

So it's real - the description and photos are just fake.

[ZeroCorpse Posted Dec 10th 2007 1:42AM]

The problem is that you lied about the origin of the item, making it seem like it was a sanctioned, officially-licensed Star Wars item, and not a mod done by some guys with some airbrushes and a few hours on their hands, with no contact from LucasArts OR Nintendo.

I mean, *I* could airbrush Vader on stuff, too. I'm not going to run around trying sell that stuff for 15k by pretending that it's a tie-in to some marketing campaign that has nothing to do with me or my mad airbrush skills.

People aren't upset that you made a cool mod. They're upset that you tried to gank some naive Star Wars collector out of $15,000 by lying about the item's pedigree. At the very least, you played fast and loose with the concept of "new, sealed in box", considering that you opened the box, modified it, and then returned it to the box. Once you open it and spray paint on it, it's no longer new.

Colorware is bad enough charging $400 for a paint job. You were trying to run a scam using someone else's intellectual property and a big fat lie, and you got caught. You'll probably still profit off of this item, but your ethics leave a little to be desired when you come out of the gate offering an item for such an outrageous price in an effort to make people think they're getting something that LucasArts commissioned.

This fad of people slapping Star Wars mods of various items online for high prices has got to stop. Whether it be sticking a Wii in an old AT-AT toy, or burying an iPod into an remote-controlled R2-D2, it's just cheap and ultimately worthless to collectors. Concealing the fact that such a thing is a mod is just shady. You knew what you were doing when you posted it.

The difference between your item and haunted pancakes or ghosts in jars is that ghosts don't belong to someone else. If you invent a ghost character and use it to sell your junk, that's YOUR intellectual property. If you steal someone else's character and slap it on your junk to stimulate a high-priced sale, that's essentially fraud and plagiarism, or at the very least counterfeiting.

You can bet that if you didn't pull the item, Lucas would sue your ass off. However, there's no one to sue you if you'd sell a ghost.

As I said, more power to you. Next time pick a mod theme that doesn't belong to George Lucas or 20th Century Fox.

If you weren't trying to cash in on the Lucas property and the "exclusivity" of this item, then why the high price? Your airbrush skills aren't anywhere nearly worth the $14,750 labor charge.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 9th 2007 10:48PM]

there are dumb enough people out there to fall for it... check out his last item sold, and the price:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190160799697