No Man's Sky Refunds!

[TidusZ]

Steam, Sony, and Amazon are quietly offering refunds regardless of playtime.

I'd recommend getting in on this asap.



http://www.inquisitr.com/3458500/no...egin-issuing-refunds-regardless-of-play-time/

https://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/4zxfon/sony_steam_and_amazon_issuing_full_refunds_for_no/

seems lots of people are having luck getting refunds through sony and steam despite 10+ hours played


http://www.onemanslie.info/the-original-reddit-post/

list of inconsistencies between advertising and finished game

 

[Sabrewings]

I'm still in the process. The automatic system will reject you outright as this isn't a policy change. You have to open a ticket to be reviewed by a person, and even then it isn't as absolute as that article makes it out to be.

My ticket has been open almost 24 hours and no response yet.

 

[TidusZ]

It does appear that the people having success through steam are including comments about missing features and such... But this clearly isn't just a few people being lucky, lots of people are getting refunds

 

[Stg-Flame]

I thought it was already well-known that if you submit a support ticket and make a good case for a refund, Steam will honor the refund regardless of playtime.

 

[Elcs]

I thought it was already well-known that if you submit a support ticket and make a good case for a refund, Steam will honor the refund regardless of playtime.

Usually as a one off only. I didn't keep the response of if I did I couldn't find it... but prior to the whole refund policy I bought one of the Transformers games, made me wickedly motion sick pretty quickly and Steam's response seemed to suggest that this is your once and only.

They may be a bit softer since they have the 2 hour thing and the whole Early Access thing too.

 

[master_shake_]

Lol.

That is all

 

[shortylickens]

It took me a lot less time than 2 hours to realize it was junk.
But in any case I hope this is a lesson to the developer you cant release crap and charge 60 bucks for it.

 

[PrincessFrosty]

I'm going to say something that I suspect a lot of people won't like, but here goes anyway. I hope they don't refund you lot.

Seriously, the number of people warning you (including myself) up to launch about the hype around this game, and the dubious claims by developers, there was information all over the place, this culture of pre-order and day one purchasing as well as flat out belief in everything developers say and relying on paid reviewers rather than honest community members genuine feedback. I think we're seeing a critical mass here of gamers doing this and it's really annoying because it breeds more and more of it and it's starting to just be a headache. People NEED to be stung by bad decisions so they have a reason to stop this behaviour and start thinking critically instead of rushing head first in to hype trains while chanting "the hype will be real this time..." *Crash*

But in any case I hope this is a lesson to the developer you cant release crap and charge 60 bucks for it.

Yeah, they can, and they did, and a bunch of people will request refunds but the majority of people will wait for patches for promised fixes and then lazily forget about it, and it will just confirm to the rest of the developer world that gamers act like sheep and not to worry about a few refunds, you can take that out of your immense profit you got from lying. And then the rest of us all get to suffer as the next new wave of devs get ready to do this because it still works and no one has learned a damn thing.

 

[Zenoth]

I fully support the refunds system, and I definitely wish that everyone asking for it will receive it if they're admissible for it.

However, it's always laughable that with every so-called 'crap' releases all of a sudden the situation seems to be new. Is it just me or a lot of people have very short-term memory? What about being charged full price for absolute clearly-unfinished garbage like Rome 2, or the PC version of Arkham Knight? Have people forgotten about those already? Fun fact: Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing was actually and of course legally sold (let that one sink in for a moment). How about the 'deceptive' advertising by our beloved CD Projekt RED for The Witcher III and its "controversial graphics downgrade" drama? People forgot that one too? We might as well also start discussing the mess-for-various-reasons that were The War Z, Dragon Age II, Aliens: Colonial Marines or the more recent Tom Clancy's The Division. I could also easily add Destiny in there. Should I continue? Heck, why not going all the way back to the Atari 2600 days?

However, of course, right now bashing No Man's Sky is the latest trend, and it's going to stay there until the next big one steals the show. The only real power that we gamers have against deceptive / false / deliberately-misleading advertising and arranged / scripted "tech demos", presentations and previews is to ultimately demand a refund. It is, literally, The. Only. Practical. Immediate. Thing. We. Can. Do., period. There are no laws, no 'police', no regulations that monitor game developers and/or publishers and their "advertising practices". And, by the way, being able to get a refund to start with is very new, and was way, WAY overdue. How many years have we been digitally-sold such atrocities without being able to do a single thing about it? Except do some of those occasional and clearly desperate 'petitions' online? Just as a reminder, Steam's refunds started in June 2015, while Origin had their 'Great Game Guarantee' system introduced in August 2013 (however, DLCs, games from third-party publishers and promotional products were at the time and probably still aren't "eligible for a refund" to this day). I'm not sure about the other distribution platforms out there, but those two big boys in the market only started to do it that recently.

Hopefully, developers and publishers will learn, and realize that we do now have some power. Then again, considering that refunding games (at least online, via Steam and Origin) has been here for 3 years on Origin and one on Steam, but seeing that publishers and developers still do that BS to us; clearly means that the message Does. Not. Get. Across. So I'm not sure what else it'll take to wake 'em up, lest having actual nations-wide regulations and laws to keep them checked and in the ranks. And if they were to attempt anything remotely deceptive they'd pay a very salty price as a first warning. The ultimate penalty would be nothing less than the complete dismantling of the development studio. I'm not joking. It should be actually illegal and punishable by law to basically fuck us up in the ass like that, while they laugh their way to the bank to get our hard-earned money. As of now though, the absolute 'worse' that can happen to them are the refunds. So I am completely supporting the refunds system, especially when - undeniably - there's been false / deceptive / misleading advertising and promotional campaigns for a game.

Now, I for one DO actually like No Man's Sky enough "as is" to keep it, and play it regularly. However, I cannot objectively deny that either Hello Games or Sony (or both) deliberately misinformed / over-hyped (via false advertising) their game knowing that it wouldn't be "like that" (like in the interviews, in the preview videos, etc) at launch; but of course wouldn't straight up tell us that it wouldn't be the case prior to release, obviously to ensure that game sales wouldn't be compromised in the slightest measure.

In other words, they (both HG and Sony, in NMS's case) deserve at least some of the backlash that's going on right now; not the least part of which are the refunds that consumers should have the undebatable right to ask for.

 

[DigDog]

I hope this is a lesson to the developer you cant release crap and charge 60 bucks for it.

you say this, but you know it's not gonna happen. everyone wants to ride the hype, because without hype you don't make the money.

 

[shortylickens]

you say this, but you know it's not gonna happen. everyone wants to ride the hype, because without hype you don't make the money.

Im not talking about Hype. Im talking about Crap.
Fallout 4 was hyped beyond belief, and of course they delivered a less than stellar experience. But at least the game itself was complete. You could play it and they had everything they promised to have,

 

[Linux23]

They denied me twice. Just tried for the third time hoping I get a human to review my refund request. Wish me luck.

 

[aigomorla]

this will probably be a very big blow to hello games.

 

[zerocool84]

It's called waiting for reviews before you buy. It's like watching a crappy movie and not waiting for reviews and wanting your money back. Part of the reason why I didn't pre-order this, too much unknown. The gaming community today is such a bunch of self entitled babies.

 

[Sabrewings]

It's called waiting for reviews before you buy. It's like watching a crappy movie and not waiting for reviews and wanting your money back. Part of the reason why I didn't pre-order this, too much unknown. The gaming community today is such a bunch of self entitled babies.

Personally, I'm not seeking a refund because it's "crappy" per se. It's not what was presented in videos and demos, not by a long shot. If it had been presented as it exists, then I probably wouldn't have paid $60 for it and waited for it to fall. There was a lot of willing deception going on, so I'm refunding out of principle.

Whenever I see the videos, even on the Steam page, I think "I'd love to play that game." But, that's not what was delivered to customers.

 

[Triloby]

In this day and age, there's very little reason to actually pre-order anything. You're not going to get a better deal with pre-orders and whatever bonuses they throw at you. That, and the lack of confidence that the developers will release their game without having to worry about any major issues like performance drops and common bugs/glitches on your end.

When you also consider the many stories and cases of hype ruining certain video games, No Man's Sky is just another one of those stories among the rest.

 

[aigomorla]

It's called waiting for reviews before you buy. It's like watching a crappy movie and not waiting for reviews and wanting your money back. Part of the reason why I didn't pre-order this, too much unknown. The gaming community today is such a bunch of self entitled babies.

sometimes this can hurt you..
like in the division, they patched a ton of stuff which left all the pre order people ahead of the late adopters only to get fed on in the dark zone.

Ie.. google bullet king exploit...
everyone was doing it, and then taking that gear off to the dark zone to massacre the people who waited, and massive took a very long time in balancing the dark zone which still isnt balanced IMO.

 

[zerocool84]

Personally, I'm not seeking a refund because it's "crappy" per se. It's not what was presented in videos and demos, not by a long shot. If it had been presented as it exists, then I probably wouldn't have paid $60 for it and waited for it to fall. There was a lot of willing deception going on, so I'm refunding out of principle.

Whenever I see the videos, even on the Steam page, I think "I'd love to play that game." But, that's not what was delivered to customers.

Tons of games do that and so do movies. Suicide Squad recently did that. The previews we were shone showed it as a different movie. Wait for a review and you know what you're getting into with anything.

 

[Sabrewings]

Tons of games do that and so do movies. Suicide Squad recently did that. The previews we were shone showed it as a different movie. Wait for a review and you know what you're getting into with anything.

Yes, yes, lesson learned. The one time in the last ten years I preorder a game (not counting kickstarters/early access) it turns out to be a shining example of why not.

Doesn't change they have done wrong, and to not pursue a refund is to let them get away with it.

 

[thejunglegod]

If you're looking at a refund to ANY game, then you've jumped the gun. With the kind of advertising they do at events like E3, gasmescom etc. it is always wise to watch a few gameplay videos, reviews etc. before buying a particular game. I believe no one should be entitled to a refund unless the game is completely broken. For example; Arkham Knight for the PC.

 

[JimmiG]

The mantra "Don't pre-order games" doesn't really apply, because you can always get a refund within the first 2 hours of playtime, no questions asked. The problem is when you've played for more than 2 hours, regardless of whether you pre-ordered or not.

The problem with NMS in particular is that it's a slow, grindy game, so you have to play for much more than 2 hours in order to realize how much of what was promised or hinted at is missing. People kept pressing on, hoping the game would somehow transform, before eventually giving up and putting the game away in frustration after 20, 30 or even 40+ hours. That was not quality time spent enjoying the game, it was time wasted in frustration, waiting for the promised content to manifest.

Here's an excellent video explaining why the marketing for No Man's Sky (and marketing includes interviews etc., not just trailers) is probably illegal:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jz1oFNUZ-P0
It makes some excellent points without the usual "OMG Sean is a liar!!" hyperbole.

 

[DigDog]

Im not talking about Hype. Im talking about Crap.
Fallout 4 was hyped beyond belief, and of course they delivered a less than stellar experience. But at least the game itself was complete. You could play it and they had everything they promised to have,

yes, i get that. that's not what i'm saying.

look at it from the perspective of the developer. the game is in development, and the internet generates a massive hype. you KNOW you gonna make money, what do you do, start to downplay it, say that some features will probably never make it into the game? or do you ride the wave?

you need hype to sell. every product is hyped to some extent, some more and some less; you can't advertise a product as being "meh" and expect people to buy into it. they did what every other developer, or rather, what every other business does, and they just happened to be more successful than others, because *randomness of the internet* , because *spaceships are cool*, because *survival!*, so they did what every good company does when they are in this situation - they lied.

Come on, they are Hello Games, not EA, not Sony, not (other famous developer) but a small bunch of new developers who were already spending their earnings before the game was released, because they could not believe their luck as to what awesome results they got from the hype-o-matic 3000.

If you want to blame someone for the excessive hype, blame all the bloggers, youtube videos, videogame magazines, who make a living out of hyping every possible chunk of ... that comes across their desks and doesn't look the same way it smells.

I'm almost sorry for the guy, i might have lied too if i found myself in the same position; it's not easy when you feel that everyone has these great expectation off of you, to say "i'm not the guy";

And Steam is refunding everyone, so who cares. But really, making all this fuss about a developer who lied .. what about mass effect 3's endings? what about stalker, all three of them, being unplayable through crashes and save corruption? what about the tons of indie games who are completely broken ? what about the people who paid $20 for a Pay to Play, only to have it go F2P the next day? Man, the list goes on, with game over game over game of broken features, terrible optimization, incompetent coding, bugs, glitches, exploits, crashes, server overload, Battlefield's horrible netcode, Assassin's Creed's people falling through the geometry, Sony server crash, Batman's framerates, RAGE's textures, DUKE NUKEM!!

 

[ImpulsE69]

I'm going to say something that I suspect a lot of people won't like, but here goes anyway. I hope they don't refund you lot.

Seriously, the number of people warning you (including myself) up to launch about the hype around this game, and the dubious claims by developers, there was information all over the place, this culture of pre-order and day one purchasing as well as flat out belief in everything developers say and relying on paid reviewers rather than honest community members genuine feedback. I think we're seeing a critical mass here of gamers doing this and it's really annoying because it breeds more and more of it and it's starting to just be a headache. People NEED to be stung by bad decisions so they have a reason to stop this behaviour and start thinking critically instead of rushing head first in to hype trains while chanting "the hype will be real this time..." *Crash*

I'm going to disagree with you on one major point. I think it is better that people buy the game and refund it. Why? Because if they didn't buy the game, the publishers would take the 'oh people pirated it' way out. It's become so normal and there is no way to prove or disprove their claims. At least this way there is genuine criticism that can be linked to monetary trade. The real issue here are the apologists, which has gotten VERY bad in the last few years. I agree people should do a bit more due diligence and quit being so blindly hyped about things.

 

[Sabrewings]

If you want to blame someone for the excessive hype, blame all the bloggers, youtube videos, videogame magazines, who make a living out of hyping every possible chunk of ... that comes across their desks and doesn't look the same way it smells.

I'm almost sorry for the guy, i might have lied too if i found myself in the same position; it's not easy when you feel that everyone has these great expectation off of you, to say "i'm not the guy"

No, I'm not going to blame the media. They hyped up based off what was shown. Even if they went a little far, that doesn't excuse sitting in interviews and outright lying about what you just showed or what the game will have. It's either lying or gross incompetence to not communicate that features once touted won't make it into the game. I don't feel sorry for them anymore.

 

[HOOfan 1]

No, I'm not going to blame the media. They hyped up based off what was shown. Even if they went a little far, that doesn't excuse sitting in interviews and outright lying about what you just showed or what the game will have. It's either lying or gross incompetence to not communicate that features once touted won't make it into the game. I don't feel sorry for them anymore.

I agree

The hype began with Hello Games, and Sony. Why would anyone have hyped the game if it weren't for the features that Hello Games said would be in the game? I don't feel sorry for them at all. They had plenty of opportunities to rein in the promises they were making and make the world aware that they were not going to be able to deliver everything they promised on day one.

The expectations were set by Hello Games, and specifically Sean Murray, not the media. The media didn't invent features, they hyped the features Hello Games said would be in the game.

If anything I saw more articles leading up to the release of No Man's Sky questioning what the game would actually be, instead of trumpeting it as the next revolution in gaming.

The entire ire about game footage being leaked out wasn't about spoilers, because there really isn't anything to spoil, other than the fact that the "endgame" is probably going to go down in history as one of the most anti-climactic endgames in history.