Square Enix has started a collaboration with the bubble tea chain Gong cha. The aim of the campaign was to reward some bubble tea drinkers with special goodies for Final Fantasy XIV. However, the scarcity of the merchandise has been exploited by scalpers, who are now reselling the free goodies on eBay.
What kind of campaign is this? Visitors of Gong cha have been able to scoop up two special goodies since July 17, 2024, when purchasing three specific bubble teas:
- A code for a free mount named Porxie King when a customer orders three bubble teas at once
- A keychain based on the design of the bubble tea and a mascot from the MMORPG
However, the goodies are more limited than initially assumed. We have already reported to you how difficult it is to get one of the codes. The Gong-cha shops are only available in a few countries, and even in the stores themselves, there are only a few codes available.
The limitation of the codes has prompted some scalpers to take action. They have grabbed as many of the free codes and keychains that come with the bubble tea as possible, and are now perhaps making profits by reselling them on eBay.
Final Fantasy XIV recently received its new Dawntrail expansion:
Scalpers are asking for 110 euros – just for the mount
What are the traffickers up to? To obtain the code, customers need to spend around 14–18 euros for three bubble teas. Some scalpers saw this as an opportunity to make quick money and offered the code for more money on eBay.
The most expensive listings we have currently seen are at 110 euros (via eBay). For 120 euros, we found a complete package that includes all three keychains on eBay. Even with the currently cheapest offer of around 20 euros, the eBay seller could still pocket a few euros in profit.
Terms like “rare” or “limited” also suggest to buyers that they would be acquiring an extremely rare mount. This increases the incentive to buy.
A reddit user writes that they observed a person ordering 48 bubble teas. Afterward, they allegedly threw all the bubble teas in the trash and left with 16 codes for the mount. This shows that the person was only after using the codes to make a lot of money.
Since the campaign runs until August 28, there is a chance that even more such dubious offers will appear on eBay. If you want to try your luck yourself: From Germany, the nearest locations are in Belgium and Strasbourg (France).
If you can’t get the cute mount, at least there is a chance to get a cute outfit in the game. But be careful with coloring, so it doesn’t turn into a nightmare: A new outfit in Final Fantasy XIV should actually be cute – causes nightmares in the right color
