Tuesday, November 14th 2017

EA Makes it Tougher to Cancel Battlefront 2 Pre-orders

EA is under fire for predatory pricing of DLC and add-ons for its upcoming "Star Wars: Battlefront 2" release. Gamers complain of the company effectively pricing it above $80 just to play as Darth Vader, and giving game reviewers a faster in-game content unlock progression, compared to paying gamers, misrepresenting the product. Pre-orders of the game can be cancelled and so gamers took to Reddit, and other forums, to distribute links to the pages on EA's website that let you easily cancel your pre-order. With pre-order cancellations gaining traction, EA pulled out its bag of dirty tricks.

The publisher has reportedly changed the way you cancel pre-orders. Instead of simply clicking on a web-based form to cancel your pre-order and get the reference number to your refund, you now have to speak with a sales agent via chat to cancel your order. Trouble is, that the process is bogged down by too many people trying to cancel their orders (due to a finite number of agents), and thus EA has effectively made it impossible for everyone who pre-ordered to cancel. Only those who can endure the long agent waiting queue to chat with an agent, can cancel their pre-orders, as the November 17 release-date (beyond which you can't cancel pre-orders), looms closer.
Source: Reddit
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58 Comments on EA Makes it Tougher to Cancel Battlefront 2 Pre-orders

#27
neatfeatguy
For those that don't want to cancel, but still wish to refund the game, just wait until it releases:

You may return EA full game downloads (PC or Mac) and participating third party titles purchased on Origin for a full refund.

Send us refund requests within the following timeframes:
  • Within 24 hours after you first launch the game
  • Within 7 days from your date of purchase
  • Within 7 days from the game’s release date if you pre-ordered
Link to refund/cancelation info for Origin
Link to actual refund page

On the other hand, couldn't folks just request a charge back from their bank or CC company and just bypass EA and their dick-ish move?
Posted on Reply
#28
FreedomEclipse
~Technological Technocrat~
Jim Sterling (thank God for him...) has been watching this whole thing unfold quite slowly.


To summarize what EA/DICE have done so far to calm the people coming at them with pitchforks.

-Cut down the needed credits to unlock heroes such as darth vader and luke skywalker by 70%

-Nerfed credit rewards for some missions. Some that offered 20000 credits per completion now only offer 5000

- Implemented a limit on the amount of credits that can earned in offline arcade mode per day before you have to stop playing for a few hours or carry on playing but not receive any credits.

And finally.... as we've all heard, EA have hidden or buried the refund button on battlefront 2 preorders.

In other words EA have done absolutely nothing about the game apart from hiding or burying the refunds button.


EA will 'continue to monitor' the situation and move the goal posts tweak the game as required. which means absolutely nothing as youre still at the mercy of EA/DICE and they can move the goal posts however they please.

EA being EA and proving how insidiously an aids infested cancerous tumor they can be to the industry.

F**k EA.
Posted on Reply
#29
deu
neatfeatguyFor those that don't want to cancel, but still wish to refund the game, just wait until it releases:

You may return EA full game downloads (PC or Mac) and participating third party titles purchased on Origin for a full refund.

Send us refund requests within the following timeframes:
  • Within 24 hours after you first launch the game
  • Within 7 days from your date of purchase
  • Within 7 days from the game’s release date if you pre-ordered
Link to refund/cancelation info for Origin
Link to actual refund page

On the other hand, couldn't folks just request a charge back from their bank or CC company and just bypass EA and their dick-ish move?
Technically they can call it fraud: If they have made attempts to contact the company and they have not responded with 2 days then atleast procedure is that you can call fraud (though that require to permanent block the card and get a new one.) That is the procedure in Denmark at least :0
Posted on Reply
#30
dozenfury
EA are weasels, don't get me wrong. But I am struggling a bit to buy the game reasons given leading to all the cancellations. It's not $80 to unlock Vader, it just could take that much to outright buy him rather than earning him by gameplay. And faster unlocks for reviewers are kind of needed for a grindy/progression game, because otherwise many reviewers would never reach that higher content to test. I don't see either one of those things as something that should cause outrage, and the credits needed to unlock have all been reduced along with loot box changes. You can buy the base game, not the Deluxe edition, and never spend another dime and unlock everything through gameplay. So those complaints seem like a bit of an overreaction to me.

On the other hand, the shady actions making it harder to cancel pre-orders are the thing I see as a real reason for outrage.
Posted on Reply
#31
TheDeeGee
I do hate EA, but this also serves people right who keep pre-ordering games.
Posted on Reply
#32
nickbaldwin86
I wish people would stop giving their money to EA. I stopped and will not play EA Titles just because of this.
Posted on Reply
#33
the54thvoid
Super Intoxicated Moderator
By Vaders shiny black crotch.....

EA smells of evil rod.
Posted on Reply
#34
Slizzo
btarunrEA is under fire for predatory pricing of DLC and add-ons for its upcoming "Star Wars: Battlefront 2" release. Gamers complain of the company effectively pricing it above $80 just to play as Darth Vader, and giving game reviewers a faster in-game content unlock progression, compared to paying gamers, misrepresenting the product. Pre-orders of the game can be cancelled and so Gamers took to Reddit, and other forums, to distribute links to the pages on EA's website that let you easily cancel your pre-order. With pre-order cancellations gaining traction, EA pulled out its bag of dirty tricks.

The publisher has reportedly changed the way you cancel pre-orders. Instead of simply clicking on a web-based form to cancel your pre-order and get the reference number to your refund, you now have to speak to a sales agent via chat to cancel your order. Trouble is, that the process is bogged down by too many people trying to cancel their orders (due to a finite number of agents), and thus EA has effectively made it impossible for everyone who pre-ordered to cancel. Only those who can endure the long agent waiting queue to chat with an agent, can cancel their pre-orders, as the November 17 release-date (beyond which you can't cancel pre-orders), looms closer.



Source: Reddit
Holy fucking shit. This is lower than low.
Posted on Reply
#35
Darmok N Jalad
dozenfuryEA are weasels, don't get me wrong. But I am struggling a bit to buy the game reasons given leading to all the cancellations. It's not $80 to unlock Vader, it just could take that much to outright buy him rather than earning him by gameplay. And faster unlocks for reviewers are kind of needed for a grindy/progression game, because otherwise many reviewers would never reach that higher content to test. I don't see either one of those things as something that should cause outrage, and the credits needed to unlock have all been reduced along with loot box changes. You can buy the base game, not the Deluxe edition, and never spend another dime and unlock everything through gameplay. So those complaints seem like a bit of an overreaction to me.

On the other hand, the shady actions making it harder to cancel pre-orders are the thing I see as a real reason for outrage.
Seems like they could find another way to help out the reviewers if that is the issue. Give them limited special access to the full game or something. I think EA is reaping what it has sowed here. If this was the first controversial move they made, I could understand, but sadly they have a reputation now, and they are going to have a hard time shaking the bad corporate image. It probably won’t bankrupt them, but like the anti-trust MS of the 90s can tell you, it can totally change their position of influence.
Posted on Reply
#36
KainXS
They also actually seem to have made it so that if you make too many credits playing the game you have to wait 3 hours to make more credits after this -_-.


from boogie's video clips.twitch.tv/AdorableTenderCrowLitFam

I don't know why people don't learn their lesson and stop buying EA's shit man, I know that some don't know any better but those who attack them then turn around and buy it . . . . . really.
Posted on Reply
#38
examen1996
OK, i just made this account only to say this.
Don't worry guys, I've been in the same situation with the refund of my Battlefield 3 limited edition(back in the day).
The thing is , the support team from ea is very nice and unlike the firm they represent they are not trying to f*** people over.

I hope everyone will have the same experience that i had .
Good luck
Posted on Reply
#39
lexluthermiester
And this is surprising to anyone, how? People have asked why I have boycotted EA. Here you go folks..

There is however a much simpler solution then calling/chatting with EA. Call your bank or card company and either cancel the transaction, dispute the transaction once it happens or cancel the card. There's always more than one way to do things..
Posted on Reply
#40
Darmok N Jalad
lexluthermiesterAnd this is surprising to anyone, how? People have asked why I have boycotted EA. Here you go folks..

There is however a much simpler solution then calling/chatting with EA. Call your bank or card company and either cancel the transaction, dispute the transaction once it happens or cancel the card. There's always more than one way to do things..
Going through your bank doesn’t send the right message, and cancelling a card is another inconvenience. Also, if you do this, you take on the appearance of “yet another irresponsible customer” that they have to protect themselves against. That’s not to say that the options you suggest aren’t necessary at times or that they are inherently bad, but unless you communicate your reasoning for backing out of your preorder, they won’t learn much, and quite possibly will assume the worst. I think the lesson more than anything is to not preorder, especially from companies with a disappointing reputation.
Posted on Reply
#42
lexluthermiester
Darmok N JaladGoing through your bank doesn’t send the right message, and cancelling a card is another inconvenience. Also, if you do this, you take on the appearance of “yet another irresponsible customer” that they have to protect themselves against. That’s not to say that the options you suggest aren’t necessary at times or that they are inherently bad, but unless you communicate your reasoning for backing out of your preorder, they won’t learn much, and quite possibly will assume the worst. I think the lesson more than anything is to not preorder, especially from companies with a disappointing reputation.
Those are very good points. I use Privacy.com now and canceling a card is literally a click away. After the Destiny2 nonsense I decided a better solution was needed. But you are right about the pre-order thing. It seems GameStop still has another edge..
This is a thing;
Jump to 8:20
Seems clear why people are cancelling their preorders.
Posted on Reply
#43
MasterACC
fk this disgusting company.

EA is worthy of the title of the worst company in america.
Posted on Reply
#44
Gmr_Chick
Man...this whole thing just keeps getting worse and worse. I went from REALLY wanting to play this game (for the single player campaign) to not wanting to go anywhere near it in less than a week. I've known EA blows as a company, but this just takes the cake.

I will say this though, were it not for the fact that they own The Sims franchise (which I :love: to death) I'd stay away completely from EA. The Sims games are the only EA games I play nowdays -- I gave up on their NHL series after NHL 10 on the PS3 and never looked back. Damn thing was unbalanced and buggy as hell, would lock up all the time.

*waits for the flames*
Posted on Reply
#45
Melvis
Try this crap in Australia and the ACCC will be on there ass
Posted on Reply
#46
FordGT90Concept
"I go fast!1!11!1!"
There's one word that explains what EA is doing: "whale." Here's an article about it from 2013: Chasing the Whale: Examining the ethics of free-to-play games. Whales aren't just in free-to-play games any more. Case in point, Star Citizen catapulted to whatever millions it is at now largely because of whales buying lots of expensive, time-limited ships.
Posted on Reply
#47
ebivan
Well, EA is not a likeable company, we all experienced that at some point in time, right?


But on the other hand, why would anyone preorder a game in times of steam, uplay, origin access etc?
I mean, why give people your money based on biased preview and promotional videos? Wait for the release, read some articles and then decide weather to buy or not...?
An exeption may be Indie/Crowdfunded games, where the actual completion of the game depends on backers. But why would anyone give a multi billion publisher any money in advance?
Posted on Reply
#48
Capitan Harlock
ebivanWell, EA is not a likeable company, we all experienced that at some point in time, right?


But on the other hand, why would anyone preorder a game in times of steam, uplay, origin access etc?
I mean, why give people your money based on biased preview and promotional videos? Wait for the release, read some articles and then decide weather to buy or not...?
An exeption may be Indie/Crowdfunded games, where the actual completion of the game depends on backers. But why would anyone give a multi billion publisher any money in advance?
People that are brain dead zombie for the HYPE and stuff like that.
Posted on Reply
#49
Gmr_Chick
ebivanBut on the other hand, why would anyone preorder a game in times of steam, uplay, origin access etc?
I mean, why give people your money based on biased preview and promotional videos? Wait for the release, read some articles and then decide weather to buy or not...?
^ This :clap:
Posted on Reply
#50
Athlonite
lexluthermiesterAnd this is surprising to anyone, how? People have asked why I have boycotted EA. Here you go folks..

There is however a much simpler solution then calling/chatting with EA. Call your bank or card company and either cancel the transaction, dispute the transaction once it happens or cancel the card. There's always more than one way to do things..
This is exactly what you should do
Posted on Reply
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