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Game Retailers' Return Policies Criticized
Thanks to GamersWithJobs for their opinion piece discussing the allegedly harsh return policies for videogame retailers. According to the author, "There is no reasonable reason... why a [non-defective, but unwanted] product in such condition should not be returnable, and any retailer who refuses such should not be burdened with customers or money." However, as a forum reply points out: "...if the policy on returns is too liberal, game stores will turn into free game rental outlets for people who don't want to pay for software." Have retailers been changing policies, and where does the balance lie on this subject?
I was about 13 years old, and bought Zelda: 4 Seasons (or something like that) for my Game Boy, I beat it in like 2 days and wondered why I had spent all that money.
So, I got my mom to take me back to K-Mart, presented my receipt and the game, in it's packaging, but obviously opened. They asked my reason for returning it and I simply told them I was unsatisfied with my purchase, they gave me my money back and that was that. I remember feeling quite good about myself on the ride home.
How things have changed...
Cloud City Digital: DVD Production at its cheapest/finest
So, return it, get the shrinkwrapped copy, then return the shrinkwrapped copy for a refund.
Easy.
Steven V.
I patented screwing your mom. But it got revoked for "prior art."
Would it be alright if I bought a book, read it, didn't like it, and returned it? The words are in my head-- I've consumed it, so can I return it? Can I vomit up a consumed cheeseburger and demand my money back from McDonald's?
I don't see that the retailers have a choice. You installed the game. You have the CD key. If the publisher didn't implement restrictive copyright protections (also whined about), then you have it and can continue to play it.
There's a rental industry. There are demos. What do you want, exactly?
Wait for the reviews, buy warily, and remember which companies screwed you with a bad title. Don't buy from them again.
#19845
If you pick up a used game, try it and hate it, return it within 7 days for a full refund. Of course if it is defective the same rule applies.
They do this with the console games at least. I'd buy a lot less games if this wasn't the policy.
For NEW games they'll buy it from you at a used price, which is ok (75-25% depending on the age of the game, and number of used copies), but it would be better if they would have the same policy of the used games for the new.
You can lose something that is loose, so tighten the loose item so you don't lose it.
Ive dropped some money on some really crappy games, and to be honest, I probably would have asked for a refund. Blood Wake for the X-Box for one example, I new within hours that I didnt want it, but was stuck with the purchase.
HMV in my area recently began their no-return policy on opened products to combat rampant burn & return customers (I am a good friend of the General Manager, who spoke of customers who repeatedly puchased 10+ cds to return the next weekend). Reasons like this justify these policies quite well in my opinion.
Lax return policies for games with online play can be a slap in the face for second round purchasers, imagine buying StarCraft or the like, just to get kicked off line frequently because your CD-Key is used elsewhere.
I think we are left with two equally distastefull alternatives.
- Exchanges only on defective merchandise, no refunds, no exceptions
- DRM Crusted software, store can confirm through online database that software has been removed from your system, and that you are no longer a rightfull owner.
paul reinheimer
Simple solution
You can return any game, for any reason but if it isn't for the same game (i.e. its a case of "I don't like it") You can only swap for a different game once, after that, your second title like it or not is yours no exchanges except in cases of defective games and even then it can only be for the same product.
On Wall Street they say "buy low, sell high" On the pad we say, "buy high, sell high" Isn't that somehow better?
If you open the real CD, you can't return the game. If you only open the demo, you can return the game. That way, if it doesn't work on your computer for some reason and you don't feel like waiting for the patches, you can return it.
Game stores could stop people from buying and returning games just to play the demos by providing extra demo CDs, or by giving store credit instead of cash in exchange for a returned game.
Of course, the problem is that it's up to the game publishers to implement this and who knows if they'd be up for it.
If you were so unsatisfied with the game that you returned it for a full refund, why did you finish it? Seems you enjoyed the product, and just didn't pay for it.
I fail to see the difference between your situation and going to a movie and afterwards ask for your money back because it was only 2 hours long.
On the other hand, I think it should be law that they demonstrate a game to you before you buy it.
Temple of Elemental Evil (Troika Studios/Infogrames). Infogrames is notorios for its copy protection (using SecuROM), which prevented plenty of players to enjoy games like Neverwinter Nights. ToEE doesn't fare much better; if I didn't have two computers, I wouldn't be able to play it as the CD doesn't like my CD-RW drive.
Homeworld 2 (Sierra). Upon contacting Sierra tech support, I was told that it was my responsibility to get a compatible CD drive. All the hardware requirements on the box mention is a 16x CD-ROM, and not even the readme file mentions any other CD-ROM requirements. So how am I supposed to know whether my CD-ROM is compatible without opening the box and trying to install the game?
I have pretty much stopped buying new games, limiting myself to independent titles downloadable from the Internet and the occassional adventure from The Adventure Comnpany. As such, I can talk only about these two recent examples. However, there are many more instances when a game doesn't run at the stated hardware requirements. That is something one can find out only by opening the box and installing the game. In such a case, your solution would simply lock gamers into an endless cycle where they are unable to return a game that doesn't work.
I have worked retail for many years. The buyer has no automatic right of return: the rights vary from state to state.
The Attorney General's webpage for your respective state will usually provide you with the most accurate information.
Neopets - the best free game on the Int
If the box is not open, you can return it.
If it's not, you can exchange it for the exact same game.
The problem with this is that you can return the opened copy for a copy that is closed. Then just have your buddy turn around without the reciept and return it for a refund.
I've only done this once and it was because the game destroyed my c:\ drive (ahem... myth II).
Only once have I had a retailer actually open the copy that was given to me in exchange. I immediately understood the reason why.
I overheard a clerk at GameStop explaining to a customer why their return policy is so great: you can return new games (with-in 7 days I believe he said) and they will give you your money back. Sounds great right? The problem is, they repackage the returned games at the store and re-sell them as new (after all, they are basically new, he said). Some people might not have a problem with this, but I sure do. If I'm paying for a brand new item, I want it to be BRAND NEW. If I didn't care, I would have picked up a used copy for less. Keep this in mind the next time you pick up your "brand new" copy of the latest release.
I recently bought myself a copy of Black & White. It was on a special and I picked it up for (the equivalent of) $9. It didn't work -- the copy protection doesn't like my system.
So I returned the game to the store, but got the "guilty until proven innocent, which is impossible to prove" treatment. That's a good time to accept the $9 loss and cut it there ... but I didn't.
Over the next week I spend around 12 hours fiddling with my system, downloading cracks, downloading emulators, downloading patches, in the vain hope of getting the damn game to work. And you know what? I've come to accept that the only way I'm going to get it to work is to cough up $1000 for a new computer.
Even if I had tried a demo version (is there one?) I couldn't have known that the copy protection on the real product would break it.
i-name =twylite [http://public.xdi.org/=twylite], see idcommons.net