I am never preordering a Bioware product again

[kingsab]

To the OP, interesting story...

 

Sadly I work retail and the other day I had a customer who INSISTED that when she purchased product A, she was suppose to get a $5 gift card. With hundreds of promotions every week, I'm just not able to familiarize myself with every last one. Needless to say, the customer was being less then cordial with me about it. So rather then just give it to them, I went to the shelf and grabbed the sign and brought it back and showed it too her.

And the customer was partially correct, they were suppose to recieve a $5 gift card when they PURCHASED 2 of product A, not just one. She of course apologized and went on her way.

The lesson you should take away from this story is read the whole sign and not just part of it. I preordered my game Dec. 13th knowing very well that my chances of getting in 5 full days was slim. But I'm not attacking BioWare for the choice I made. INSTEAD, I'm kicking myself in the butt asking myself why I didn't preorder it earlier.

So just take a deep breath, calm down and learn to read the whole sign. The only one you have to blame here is yourself.

 

 

 

I work retail too, I understand this type of ****. However, this type of stuff usually stems from some type of misleading or poorly worded advertisement from the corporate entity. As is the case with this. As a retail employee that has been the victim of these poorly worded promotions, I assume you at least understand where the frustration on the part of the customer comes from when they feel they have been mislead.

[Jeordy]

I'm complaining because what was said was not made clear on the places where it mattered the most, which would be the pre-order pages for the game.

 

 

If the pre-order page would have said something like "* Early access invited will be tiered and doled out based solely on when you pre-ordered, so pre-ordering now is sorta pointless", I would have jack to complain about, but it wasn't. It was "PRE-ORDER FOR EARLY ACCESS"...."THANKS FOR THE MONEY, HEY FYI, YOUR ACCESS WILL BE AT OUR DISCRETION."

 

I'm sure they are sorry for not spelling out the exact details for your tiny mind but on the pre-order page it did say something along the lines of "Early access granted based on order of redemption".

 

You have no valid complaint, you are only making yourself look like a foolish child throwing a tantrum for not getting his way. Just be happy you are going to get early access at all. Even if it was only 1 day prior to game launch that would still be one day more then all the people who did not pre-order. You didn't pay anything extra to pre-order the game, you paid $5 up front, then $55 when the game actually launches, totaling $60, the same amount to buy it in store after launch. So what exactly is your complaint?

 

You only stand to gain by pre-ordering and lose absolutely nothing vs if you had simply waited and purchased in-store on the 20th......... By the way you are complaining and saying the pre-ordering was pointless it sounds like you had to cut off a limb and send it in just to get the right to pre-order or something.

[torotacoman]

*Fanboy Repellent sprayed on* I feel ****** about it too, but w/e tomorrow I get to play on a server with lvl 40+'s (cuz my buddy rolled there yesterday). The dumbest thing about it was they didn't properly relay the information about 5 day staggered EGA to retailers because when I preordered at gamestop they literally had a sign that said "preorder now and get early access" (I assumed it would be like most others in MMO history and be equal to all--A safe and logical assumption I might add based on the history of other games). Of course I was wrong and the only way to know the truth was to either order the game digitally or check this website/forums which is something I intentionally avoided because I didn't want to watch, read, or see any spoilers of any kind even if by accident.(Aside from looking up trailers on google I wanted to remain in the dark...mainly to get the most out of the game when it was available). So basically as punishment, even though I preordered on July 25th and Gamefail (Gamestop) provided me with no preorder code nor did I know I needed one, I had to wait months for my #%@#ing code and didn't get it till Dec 9th so the pvp server I roll on I'll have the joy of being ganked(and probably corpse camped) by neck bearded mouth breathing forum trolls that had the preorder code intell that are probably already close to level 50...so AWESOME!

[senkaxx]

1. Pretty sure you're a troll, but I can't sleep, and I am bored.

 

2. No one here cares .. Literally no one.

 

3. Bioware doesn't even have your money yet. They don't get it until you get your pre-order, which if I remember correct for most of the world isn't until this morning.

 

4. If this is a "lottery" system then you have a poor concept of what a lottery is.

 

5. When you Assume you make an *** out of me an you.

 

6. They didn't promise you anything they said "UP TO 5 days" which was extended to 7 days so that could mean 0 days.

 

7. They will more than likely get everyone in tomorrow.

 

Thank you SO much for simply and clearly writing down all my thoughts on this matter :D

[dragnmastr]

You know what I want? I want them to have the infrastructure in place to be able to support the amount of preorders they sold. They knew exactly how many preorders they sold and how many copies they sent to stores. You don't sell more licenses then you are capable of supporting, that's unethical. The 20th will be a fiasco like you have never seen once the store bought copies start trying to log on, mark my words.

 

Every single service you pay for, overbooks their infrastructure. Every last one. Cell towers in a given area can accommodate MAYBE half the residents that are serviced by said cell tower. The same is true for cable internet and dsl. The same is true for your localities POLICE FORCE. This is called hedging your bets. The companies hedge their bets and try to keep their bottom line profitable by betting when people are going to be logging into servers and other activities. "Mark my words". LOL. You know they are opening new servers daily, right? God forbid a company is more successful than they anticipated.

[ReiperX]

I'm complaining because what was said was not made clear on the places where it mattered the most, which would be the pre-order pages for the game.

 

 

If the pre-order page would have said something like "* Early access invites will be tiered and doled out based solely on when you pre-ordered, so pre-ordering now is sorta pointless", I would have jack to complain about, but it wasn't. It was "PRE-ORDER FOR EARLY ACCESS".."OK, TAKE MY MONEY(says I)".."THANKS FOR THE MONEY, HEY FYI, YOUR ACCESS WILL BE AT OUR DISCRETION."

 

Front page, it talks about preordering and playing, and says read more... (its a link)

 

Scroll to the bottom (not hard to do, and its where everyone puts their legal stuff)

 

*Customers who redeem their Pre-Order Code at the Code Redemption Center prior to launch will be able to pre-load the Star Wars: The Old Republic Game Client before the official Game launch. Pre-loading the Game does not grant you access to the Game. Pre-Ordering the Game only allows you access to the Early Game Access period and your Color Crystal. Early Game Access may be up to 7 days. The length of your Early Game Access depends on the date and order in which you redeemed your Pre-Order Code. In order to continue playing the Game after the Early Game Access period, you must redeem your official Game Product Registration Code at the Code Redemption Center.

[Moriya]

I'm a bit disappointed by how they handled this. It feels very unfair to be sitting here waiting while other people are playing -- and this is magnified when I watch videos of people playing on empty servers. There's a two hour video of a girl playing who literally saw maybe five people the entire time.

 

The people calling us whiners and whatnot are just obnoxious and probably got in, which by nature makes them biased. At the same time though, I'm not one of the people particularly enraged by this, just stating my opinion here. I haven't really lost any faith in BioWare, but I'm not so blinded that I'm going to act like this doesn't feel wrong to me.

[IBJammin]

I'll be preordering ME3 for sure.

 

This is a diversion from their core strengths as far as I'm concerned.

[kingsab]

I'm sure they are sorry for not spelling out the exact details for your tiny mind but on the pre-order page it did say something along the lines of "Early access granted based on order of redemption".

 

You have no valid complaint, you are only making yourself look like a foolish child throwing a tantrum for not getting his way. Just be happy you are going to get early access at all. Even if it was only 1 day prior to game launch that would still be one day more then all the people who did not pre-order. You didn't pay anything extra to pre-order the game, you paid $5 up front, then $55 when the game actually launches, totaling $60, the same amount to buy it in store after launch. So what exactly is your complaint?

 

You only stand to gain by pre-ordering and lose absolutely nothing vs if you had simply waited and purchased in-store on the 20th......... By the way you are complaining and saying the pre-ordering was pointless it sounds like you had to cut off a limb and send it in just to get the right to pre-order or something.

 

huh? I gain nothing if I egt into early access later than someone else?

 

 

Explain how exactly I gain or lose nothing when someone else has a 5 day advantage in an MMO?

 

 

I love all the kiddies calling me a troll for speaking my mind about a poorly presented advertisement.

 

 

I would also REALLY love for all the people telling that that this information as readily available to point to WHERE it was readily available for people who didn't follow these forums, or Bioware's twitter, or whatever, religiously. I want it pointed out where it said that it would be like this on the product purchase page.

 

 

You kids would do bad in retail, which is probably why you all still live in your mom's basement, you would get eaten alive dealing with customers.

 

 

And I appreciate someone actually taking the time to link it instead of just being the stereotypical WoW garbage that is likely to kill this game's community, but it sadly still did not say anything like that on Origin, which is where I ordered it from.

Edited December 16, 2011 by kingsab

[Jeordy]

I'm a bit disappointed by how they handled this. It feels very unfair to be sitting here waiting while other people are playing -- and this is magnified when I watch videos of people playing on empty servers. There's a two hour video of a girl playing who literally saw maybe five people the entire time.

 

The people calling us whiners and whatnot are just obnoxious and probably got in, which by nature makes them biased. At the same time though, I'm not one of the people particularly enraged by this, just stating my opinion here. I haven't really lost any faith in BioWare, but I'm not so blinded that I'm going to act like this doesn't feel wrong to me.

 

Why should it be wrong? Like many other things it life the EA is given on a first come fist served basis. Would you be saying it was wrong if you went to the Apple Store on iPhone 4s launch day an hour before they closed and they told you they were out of iPhone 4s's and you couldn't buy one? Had you pre-ordered in July, you would have gotten in on the first day....

[ChuangTzu]

I'm a bit disappointed by how they handled this. It feels very unfair to be sitting here waiting while other people are playing -- and this is magnified when I watch videos of people playing on empty servers. There's a two hour video of a girl playing who literally saw maybe five people the entire time.

 

The people calling us whiners and whatnot are just obnoxious and probably got in, which by nature makes them biased. At the same time though, I'm not one of the people particularly enraged by this, just stating my opinion here. I haven't really lost any faith in BioWare, but I'm not so blinded that I'm going to act like this doesn't feel wrong to me.

 

You can't get fairer than first come first served.

[Moriya]

Why should it be wrong? Like many other things it life the EA is given on a first come fist served basis. Would you be saying it was wrong if you went to the Apple Store on iPhone 4s launch day an hour before they closed and they told you they were out of iPhone 4s's and you couldn't buy one? Had you pre-ordered in July, you would have gotten in on the first day....

Not a great comparison the start because virtual space on what I imagine to be a very, very, very large and untapped amount of bandwidth and servers BioWare has available can't be compared to a physical, manufactured item of limited quantity. Let's get real here.

[Hotte]

I'm a bit disappointed by how they handled this. It feels very unfair to be sitting here waiting while other people are playing -- and this is magnified when I watch videos of people playing on empty servers. There's a two hour video of a girl playing who literally saw maybe five people the entire time.

 

Did the video also show the local time? Or date? Maybe the video was made at 2am.

Do you know that? I don't but what I DO know is that the servers are PACKED. Do youself a favour and have a look at the server status at peak hours in your region. And then tell us again, that the servers are empty, I dare you.

 

So, without being there, and experiencing it, you have no idea, what you are talking about, and you're as much biased as we are, because you want in, which I can understand. But don't make false claims without knowing all the facts, please.

[kingsab]

Why should it be wrong? Like many other things it life the EA is given on a first come fist served basis. Would you be saying it was wrong if you went to the Apple Store on iPhone 4s launch day an hour before they closed and they told you they were out of iPhone 4s's and you couldn't buy one? Had you pre-ordered in July, you would have gotten in on the first day....

 

 

 

 

Why should something that is in no means a limited quantity be on a first come first serve basis? How is that justifiable at all to have something with an infinite quantity be rationed?

 

 

To ensure server stability? Obviously not! The servers are unstable no matter what, BECAUSE IT'S THE LAUNCH OF A BRAND NEW MMO. THE AMOUNT OF PLAYERS WILL HAVE LITTLE OR NOTHING TO DO WITH THE FIRST FEW HICCUPS THE MMO EXPERIENCES.

 

I've played every new big MMO since EQ1. None of them have done this type of ****, they've all had rough spots, but they've all turned out OK after a week without alienating 50% of their customers who pre-ordered!

Edited December 16, 2011 by kingsab

[TaiRei]

I wonder if the OP would even play as often as needed to surpass the 'neck-beards' that are power leveling as we post.

 

These types of players will always exist.

[Smegghed]

huh? I gain nothing if I egt into early access later than someone else?

 

 

Explain how exactly I gain or lose nothing when someone else has a 5 day advantage in an MMO?

 

 

I love all the kiddies calling me a troll for speaking my mind about a poorly presented advertisement.

 

 

I would also REALLY love for all the people telling that that this information as readily available to point to WHERE it was readily available for people who didn't follow these forums, or Bioware's twitter, or whatever, religiously. I want it pointed out where it said that it would be like this on the product purchase page.

 

 

You kids would do bad in retail, which is probably why you all still live in your mom's basement, you would get eaten alive dealing with customers.

 

 

I have been in retail management for 20 years. I don't live in my parents basement, I support myself quite well. Your tantrum is getting more ridiculous since others don't agree with you.

 

I also preordered in July and saw every bit of info the last few months about how the early access worked. I did just as they said and entered my code when I got home that night after preorder. The fact is, you made a poorly informed decision. And because you don't get what you want, you're not going to preorder from them again. That's your right as a consumer.

 

The end.

[shayen]

these posts make me lol. Immature.

 

Yes someone who preordered 6 MONTHS sooner than you get better treatment! Obviously. No, they didn't know they would be getting early access at the time either. But they made the investment in the game.

 

Also, NO ONE PAID $5 EXTRA TO PREORDER! If anyone read the recipt it said $5 preorder fee, but subtracted $5 from the cost of the game.

 

Edit: And I didn't preorder till december 12th, i'm waiting for my early access and THRILLED it looks like it will happen tomorrow or the next day, still a few days early

Edited December 16, 2011 by shayen

[Jeordy]

huh? I gain nothing if I egt into early access later than someone else?

 

 

Explain how exactly I gain or lose nothing when someone else has a 5 day advantage in an MMO?

 

 

I love all the kiddies calling me a troll for speaking my mind about a poorly presented advertisement.

 

 

I would also REALLY love for all the people telling that that this information as readily available to point to WHERE it was readily available for people who didn't follow these forums, or Bioware's twitter, or whatever, religiously. I want it pointed out where it said that it would be like this on the product purchase page.

 

 

You kids would do bad in retail, which is probably why you all still live in your mom's basement, you would get eaten alive dealing with customers.

 

 

And I appreciate someone actually taking the time to link it instead of just being the stereotypical WoW garbage that is likely to kill this game's community, but it sadly still did not say anything like that on Origin, which is where I ordered it from.

 

Clearly you didn't comprehend my words, I will attempt to dummy it down even more...

 

I saying you do stand to lose anything by pre-ordering vs. not pre-ordering. And I'm discussing your initial complaint that pre-ordering the game was pointless because you didn't get into EA right at the start. The people that pre-ordered before you, got in before you. Would you be complaining if the game had actually launched back in July, but you didn't purchase it until December?

 

And for the direct link you wanted:

http://buy.swtor.com/us/ (The main pre-order page)

 

Notice the line a little bit down a ways:

The order in which you redeem your Pre-order Code is the order in which you will gain Early Game Access before the game’s official release. So don’t wait and pre-order now!

[Moriya]

You can't get fairer than first come first served.

Same as above, this way of thinking doesn't really apply to the situation we're in.

[ChuangTzu]

Why should something that is in no means a limited quantity be on a first come first serve basis? How is that justifiable at all to have something with an infinite quantity be rationed?

 

 

To ensure server stability? Obviously not! The servers are unstable no matter what, BECAUSE IT'S THE LAUNCH OF A BRAND NEW MMO. THE AMOUNT OF PLAYERS WILL HAVE LITTLE OR NOTHING TO DO WITH THE FIRST FEW HICCUPS THE MMO EXPERIENCES.

 

I've played every new big MMO since EQ1. None of them have done this type of ****, they've all had rough spots, but they've all turned out OK after a week without alienating 50% of their customers who pre-ordered!

 

I can just see the steam coming out of his ears. LOL

[Jeordy]

I can just see the steam coming out of his ears. LOL

 

Word, and I dig the quote in your sig.

[ChuangTzu]

Same as above, this way of thinking doesn't really apply to the situation we're in.

 

Yes it does. It's bw's game and they made it so.

[Leggomy]

To sum this thread up the op is saying he didnt do his research and that is everyone else's fault but his.

[ChuangTzu]

Word, and I dig the quote in your sig.

 

Thanks.

[Jeordy]

Same as above, this way of thinking doesn't really apply to the situation we're in.

 

Ummm, yes it does. His main complaint is that it's "unfair" that people who pre-ordered sooner got into EA sooner... Pretty much exactly corresponds with that way of thinking.....