I think if you get banned from EA, you will lose access to every game you have purchased?
BestBuy is not going to raid your home and take back everything you bought from them I think. Besides they only stop you from returning again in 90 days.
Did they give you a reason why? This is the part that completely irks me with what EA is doing. If EA says that people can request a refund on the game as part of their official statement, it should completely blow up in their face if they turn around and start denying refunds based on "their discretion". I hope this whole thing turns into a gigantic PR nightmare for them.
You are now ready to chat with Luke.
Luke: Thank you for contacting EA support, my name is Luke, how can I help you today?
you: Hello, I'd like to request a refund for SimCity as I haven't been able to play it
Luke: Ok im sorry to hear that, can i ask what the issue your having is?
you: Whenever I try to play the servers are down, and the few times I've gotten in I have lost my progress after getting disconnected
Luke: Ok im sorry but we are experiencing issues with the server at the moment and we are hard at work to fix this as soon as possible so that you can play again.
you: I understand that it is something that might be resolved in the future and I would consider revisiting the game, but right now it is unplayable
you: I purchased it yesterday and I've gotten nowhere with it
Luke: Im sorry but we are working on fixing it as soon as possible, im afraid i can only suggest waiting until the server issues are fixed, you can keep up to date on the latest updates on our help site and social media feeds such as twitter.
you: I was told to request a refund by the community manager on the forum. I understand from the terms that it is not normal policy, but they say it can be done in exceptional circumstances
you: As the game cannot currently be played, I feel that should apply
Luke: Ok can i ask how you purchased the game?
you: I purchased it on origin.com
Luke: Ok i will need to transfer you to our Origin team then and they will be able to assist you with your refund, would you like me to transfer you through now?
you: Yes, please
you: Thank you
Luke: No problem, there may be a wait in the queue but i will transfer you through now.
Please wait while we get this chat session where it needs to go.
You are now ready to chat with Shane.
Shane: Thanks for contacting EA Help, EA Games Support! My name is Shane. Could I start by getting your name and email address please?
you *** ***
Shane: Hi ***, how can I help you?
you: Hi, I was transferred here by another chat agent. I'm not sure if the previous transcript is available to you but I was told it was to assist me in processing a refund for SimCity
you: I purchased it from Origin.com yesterday
Shane: I can see your previous chat.
Shane: I understand you are unhappy with the game because of the servers being strained at present.
you: Yes, that's correct. I am unable to play it
Shane: I do understand and at present many people are having the same issue as yourself. We are currently working hard to have this issue resolved as soon as possible so that you will be able to play.
you: I understand that, but as I discussed with the previous agent, Luke, I have not been able to enjoy the game at all since purchasing it. While I understand that refunds are at your discretion, he indicated that you would be able to help me with that
Shane: Unfortunately refunds are not at our discretion. We cannot offer a refund in relation to this issue. This issue is being worked on and it is very unfortunate that it has affected so many people, which we cannot apologize enough for. We are hoping to have this issue resolved shortly so that you and everyone else affected by this will be able to play the game.
you: I am aware that other players have been able to get a refund
you: Per the policy I was directed to previously, they can be given in exceptional cases
you: Paying $60 for a game that cannot be played is an exceptional case
Shane: Did you purchase a digital download version of the game?
you: Yes, it was a digital download from origin.com
Shane: We are not able to offer refunds in this circumstance. I do understand that it is a very serious issue, but it will be resolved soon and you will have full access to the game.
you: I'm sorry, but that really is not acceptable. The product is entirely broken
you: I would be happy to repurchase it at a later date if it becomes usable
you: I've also been kept waiting for quite awhile specifically so that you could help me process a refund.
you: The terms state "EA reserves the right, however, to offer refunds under exceptional circumstances at its sole discretion."
Shane: I am sorry for the delay, we are trying our best to get to everyone as quick as possible. Yes but it these circumstances we can not offer a refund. A fix is being completed on the servers and it should be up and running within the next few hours. I can complete troubleshooting with you to speed up your connectivity to assist you with gaining access to the game if that's ok with you.
youN o, I will take the matter up with my bank. Thank you
Shane: Again I am very sorry and the issue will be resolved soon. Is there anything else I can help you with today?
you: Is there a supervisor I can talk to?
Shane: We don't have supervisor escalations through chat, however we do have a supervisor system through our phone support. The number to call is The number to call is 866-543-5435
Yea, this whole "at our discretion" thing is what's not sitting well with me for this SimCity cluster. What makes this guy different from other people who have been able to get their money back for this game? Unless of course the guy has actually been able to play the game the entire time and just decided he didn't want it anymore. That's a different thing altogether.
You do a chargeback if the merchant won't offer you a refund.
Somebody mentioned what would happen with an open boxed game from a shop, well you'd get a refund or replacement if the disc was faulty.
Buyer beware
I agree but my position is just as Valve doesn't always offer a refund they also don't always limit customers to one lifetime refund. Its at the discretion of support. We have already seen a couple in this thread state they have received more than one refund from Valve.
Are you using "offer" in the usual contract law context? Because the offer to give a refund isn't an expression of the willingness to enter into a contract and likely isn't binding even if said "offer" is accepted before it is rescinded. Even if it was, this kind of general offer that isn't directed at anyone in particular likely isn't binding anyway. If I understand US terminology correctly, this seems more like a gratuitous promise and the applicable doctrine would be promissory estoppel.I am in my third year of law school and in the U.S. they can't rescind an offer after it has been accepted.
I would have agreed with you that they are entitled to some time to remedy the problem but since they specifically offered to refund anyone who asks for one, they are obligated to do so.
this guy lost me when he said the game/back end was the problem. As if he would know. That sounds like a typical forum child.
Yea I agree with that. I think we are disagreeing on semantics hehe.I guess it depends on a case-per-case basis. Just going by my experience where he explicity stated that refunding is at Valve's discretion and they are under no legal obligation per their TOS.
You're in for a scare?
because they don't feel like it more or less
I will give the number a try when my phone finishes charging (I expect another long wait), but I'm not hopeful
FYI for those in the US you are much better off having EA call you back. Within Origin select help like you would contact chat support but instead slect call back.
This.Keep buying DRM-heavy games GAF. Just keep doing it.
Keep buying DRM-heavy games GAF. Just keep doing it.
Keep buying DRM-heavy games GAF. Just keep doing it.
Keep buying DRM-heavy games GAF. Just keep doing it.
Absolutely. That's why I started the sentence with "it's shit", a statement that obviously shows my full support.
Well, software is inherently faulty, since only space agencies can have so thorough QA that it nabs all the errors (and not even they have a 100% success rate). Maybe it's just a simple bug like being able to fall through the world at some points, or maybe it's a bug that stops your progress or eats your save. This imo falls somewhere in the middle, since while it obviously is currently not allowing you to play the game, it is time specific.
Now this isn't that great of an analogy since this is not planned, but if you purchase an MMO subscription and attempt to play at maintenance, do you get to claim that the game is broken?
I would have agreed with you that they are entitled to some time to remedy the problem but since they specifically offered to refund anyone who asks for one, they are obligated to do so.
Not to mention there is a perfectly good argument that the product is inherently defective
Its a digital sale theres no refunds on digital items once installed.
Its like that everywhere. Unless its a smartphone app then you have 15 mins lol.
Deal with the problems or just dont play the game.
See, it's that shit right there that irritates me.
Are publishers really disrespecting gamers to the point that some of our own peers in the community are expected to justify shit like this? We're just supposed to take it lying down?
EDIT: If I were in this situation, I wouldn't give a single damn about the Origin account. If I wanted my money back for a defective product and had to resort to a chargeback, and EA threatened to ban me, they could keep that fucking account...
Always online, too bad their servers aren't.
Fuck digital downloads. Seriously.Shane: Did you purchase a digital download version of the game?
you: Yes, it was a digital download from origin.com
Shane: We are not able to offer refunds in this circumstance
Keep buying DRM-heavy games GAF. Just keep doing it.
Totally worth losing all of your EA games over not being able to play your new game for a few days.
EDIT: If I were in this situation, I wouldn't give a single damn about the Origin account. If I wanted my money back for a defective product and had to resort to a chargeback, and EA threatened to ban me, they could keep that fucking account...
Totally worth losing all of your EA games over not being able to play your new game for a few days.
Because it's not like Steam is a better service anyways...
/sarcasm
EDIT: If EA wants to treat paying customers like this, then what they're essentially saying is "Deal with it, we don't care what your problems are. Just give us more money!" In that case, I don't care how many EA games I purchased over the years. If they don't care about me as a customer, then they must not care for my past, present & future business with them. That means there would be no longer a need for the Origin account...
This. I don't care if people think I'm "old fashioned" but I love my games on physical media, such as a disc or card. The only one I find acceptable is GOG, which is completely DRM free. I don't even use the highly praised Steam due to their restrictions.Fuck digital downloads. Seriously.
This. I don't care if people think I'm "old fashioned" but I love my games on physical media, such as a disc or card. The only one I find acceptable is GOG, which is completely DRM free. I don't even use the highly praised Steam due to their restrictions.
People are going to keep supporting this and this is what they're going to get. I don't want to blame consumers in general although, because I do believe there were people out there who bought this without knowing what they might be getting into.
Maybe one day always online will be possible when Internet becomes as accessible and reliable as electricity and when servers are more than capable of handling the loads I can accept this. Maybe.
Keep buying DRM-heavy games GAF. Just keep doing it.
This. I don't care if people think I'm "old fashioned" but I love my games on physical media, such as a disc or card. The only one I find acceptable is GOG, which is completely DRM free. I don't even use the highly praised Steam due to their restrictions.
People are going to keep supporting this and this is what they're going to get. I don't want to blame consumers in general although, because I do believe there were people out there who bought this without knowing what they might be getting into.
Maybe one day always online will be possible when Internet becomes as accessible and reliable as electricity and when servers are more than capable of handling the loads I can accept this. Maybe.
I got that. The DRM is the problem here. Still, I prefer physical copies as opposed to DD's. Exception would be things like GOG, where I could backup my digital downloads to physical devices and play them years later.Physical copies of Sim City don't work, either, and stores don't normally give refunds for opened software, especially PC games.
Vote with your dollars should be GAF's slogan.
The most maligned, whipped consumer I've ever seen is a gamer. If someone releases a shit movie, for the most part it's box office will tail off quickly from word of mouth.
Congrats on your perseverance.because they don't feel like it more or less
I will give the number a try when my phone finishes charging (I expect another long wait), but I'm not hopeful
update: phone call worked. refund successful
I think that's standard practice when a customer threatens to call the bank to refund/block a transaction. Wasn't there an email from a steam rep threatening a guy to do the same floating aorund?
"Of course we can always go ahead and ban your account, locking away all your steam games... do you want us to go ahead and do that?" /paraphrase
I don't exactly recall what the context was, don't quote me on it.
I hope EA gets fined 1 billion USD
And we wouldn't get away with this argument for an MMO, because there are inherent characteristics of and defects in the infrastructure. And in defence you could point at any MMO there is and they have the same problems.
Different for single-player games (or single-player modes of games) requiring an always-on connection for some reason other than the customers enjoyment of the product and that isn't always there. Because there are zillions of single-player games out there that work perfectly fine (and probably this one too with minor modifications) without.
There's a requirement added to the game that has the sole and deliberate function from the customers point of view of making the experience worse: not as described, not fit for purpose, faulty.
It's certainly worth a go.
However in this case it isn't a problem with the user. The product they've sold is faulty, so they should be giving refunds and legally have to in some countries.Physical copies of Sim City don't work, either, and stores don't normally give refunds for opened software, especially PC games.
The most maligned, whipped consumer I've ever seen is a gamer. If someone releases a shit movie, for the most part it's box office will tail off quickly from word of mouth. Games? You can release shit with microtransactions, heavy DRM, bugs, and all kinds of shit and you'll still get apologists who give them cash.