My first Cave kit: Ibara Kuro "brand new" with no serial number...?

[Platypus Stan]

So I just bought my first Cave kit and it was my first order from Fujita as well.  I was actually interested in a few used PCBs they were offering, but I requested pictures five times and got nothing.  Wasn't too eager to buy expensive used stuff sight unseen, so I figured I'd just go with the Ibara Black Label kit since something listed as brand new should be a safe bet.  Here's what I got:

• First thing I noticed: no black label sticker on the box.  Not a huge deal, I've seen black label kits without stickers before. (Never for Ibara though... Anyone else?)
• Second thing was that the box looked a little beat up for brand new.  Nothing too bad though and this could be attributed to the customs inspection.  It looks like they decided hacking through the bubble wrap with a dull machete would be more fun than simply unwrapping it.
• The contents were in good shape, but had definitely been shuffled around.  I'm guessing instruction sheets for these kits don't usually come tucked into the side of the box along with the flaps.  Again, this could've been done by customs so I wasn't upset.
• But then I got to the actual PCB and noticed there was no serial number sticker:

Has anyone seen this before?  I've seen the Fujita stickers on used boards, but are they in the habit of opening up brand new stuff to slap their stickers on there?  And what's with the green circle?  Also, there's no trace whatsoever of any residue or scratch marks anywhere, it just looks like there never was a serial sticker.  The ones I've seen on other newer Cave boards don't look like they would be easy to remove...

Anyway, none of this really bothers me too much since I'm not a collector and just want to play the thing, but on the other hand... I'm not a collector.  I don't plan on keeping this forever, and I'm worried that this will make it harder to sell since the most likely buyers would be collectors that are a lot pickier than me.

Hence posting here.     Any thoughts from the experts?

[EOJ]

-No sticker on the box is to be expected at this point. The stickers were only on the first batch (and I think the small reprint last summer that came with the posters).
-No sticker on the PCB is strange. Never seen that before, and I've owned a lot of Cave PCBs. Maybe it's something new? They're just trying to get rid of old SH3 boards, and don't bother to put stickers on them anymore?
-Seeing a "Fujita" stamp on the back of the PCB is strange. Again, never seen that before.

Anyway, if you like it try Muchi Muchi Pork next. It's a much better game.

[Platypus Stan]

They gave me the impression they were down to their last couple kits from stock they bought a while ago, but there was a bit of a language barrier so who knows.  And it did come with the poster which arrived damaged too.  Looks like someone didn't notice Yumi's uber kawaii "DON'T SCRATCH!! DON'T HIT!! PLS HANDLE WITH VERY CARE!!" note and decided to use the tube for an impromptu game of baseball or "destroy the schmuck's poster" or something.

And MMP was actually my first choice, but it's become pretty hard to find lately.  I'm sure I'll have more than enough to pick up a Pork kit after selling my ultra rare stickerless Ibara BL. 

[Megalixir]

My Futari had that sticker on the front, but not on the back. It was brand new, so yeah, they open them just to put their logo on.

[SuperPang]

Its for warranty purposes after they test it, most Japanese suppliers do this. I've often noticed their score in the table.

[skykid]

I have that Fujita sticker on something too. I wouldn't worry about the serial not being there too much - it's the right board, and as long as you aren't too pissed about the box condition, just enjoy your game man. 

Looks like someone didn't notice Yumi's uber kawaii

Uurrgh... 

[Platypus Stan]

Relax, the kawaii thing was just a stupid joke.

Also, I just got some clarification from Fujita.  This kit was from a recent order of theirs and they got the last of AMI's IBL stock, so the assumption is that they just didn't bother with serials at that point.

And I didn't mean to give the impression I was upset or anything, I was just curious about the missing serial since I'd never seen that before.  The only thing that bothers me is the damaged poster, but I remain hopeful that I'll survive that tragedy as well.

[EOJ]

Let me clarify: the Fujita sticker on the PCB is not weird - it's on every one of their PCBs they sell. The red Fujita STAMP (next to the Cave inspection stamp, on the back of the PCB), is what I found weird, as I've never seen that before.

[skykid]

The only thing that bothers me is the damaged poster, but I remain hopeful that I'll survive that tragedy as well.

They just re-printed this at the recent Matsuri, so surviving the tragedy will cost you a nominal fee these days.