Our readers are already intimately familiar with the anti-consumer behavior that won EA its second gleaming Golden Poo trophy in a row. One issue that we haven’t heard a lot about, though, is the continued suckiness of the current generation of “The Sims.” You know, that other Maxis title. [More]
gaming
Watch Out For Photocopied Fake Discs In Your Local Redbox Kiosk
By 12.17.12
Ian was annoyed. He sent us this photo while on hold with Redbox to complain. “Some jerk replaced the disk in the case with a paper photocopy so the return code could still be read,” he wrote. Well, that’s an evil trick. And not foolproof: Redbox knows who had their discs out at any given time, and also happens to have their credit card numbers. Once Ian got through, he explained what happened, and also how Redbox tried to make this up to him. [More]
Halo 4 Bonus Downloadable Content Says It Works One Way, Actually Works Another
By 11.8.12
With Misty’s order for the Halo 4 Xbox console and a limited edition of the new game, she got a bunch of codes for downloadable content to be used inside the game. In previous editions, some of that kind of content was available to all users of the console it was downloaded to. But no matter what the restrictions actually say, for Halo 4 the content is restricted to the gamertag that downloaded it. She didn’t want one account to hog all of the good stuff. [More]
I Used To Work At GameStop, Now I'm Never Shopping There Again
By 8.28.12
We often hear from people who vow that they’ll never shop at GameStop again after one last straw of a terrible shopping experience. They’re usually not ex-employees, though. Marisa used to work at GameStop. It was a while ago: before, she claims, staffers were encouraged to sell quite so aggressively. Advanced sales techniques and even exceptionally good interpersonal skills aren’t required for employment at GameStop, or so we hear. Marisa’s experience annoyed even someone who used to spend hours in the store, though. That says something. She’s all irrational and expected staffers to know something about games. [More]
Why Doesn’t Sony Playstation Network Want My Money?
By 6.13.12
Jonathan’s sons sometimes want to buy downloadable content for their Playstation 3 games. He’s perfectly happy to buy this content for them, because he’s a nice dad like that. Unfortunately, his money is no good at Sony. He uses his credit card to add $10 to his virtual wallet. Then the same card won’t work immediately afterward. Neither will a different card. [More]
Microsoft: The Person Using Your Stolen Xbox Totally Didn't Commit Any Fraud
By 5.1.12
Ashlee’s house was robbed last Thanksgiving, and the culprits were never caught. They replaced the stolen items, and life went on. Until her Xbox Live account signed on using another console. The same console that had been stolen, whereabouts now unknown. Maybe the identity or location of the person now using Ashlee’s Xbox could provide valuable insights into who robbed their house five months ago. Microsoft wasn’t interested in helping, and determined that the new owner’s use of her account and attempt to use it to buy points weren’t fraudulent. Well, that’s good to hear! [More]
Report: Next Xbox Coming In 2013, Will Be 6 Times More Powerful Than 360
By 1.25.12
Microsoft is reportedly prepping its follow-up to the Xbox 360, with plans to start mass-producing the console’s components by the end of the year and release it in October or November of 2013. [More]
Yes, There Is Such A Thing As Bad Publicity
By 12.27.11
This week, a massive customer service clusterfracas swept the gaming world, then the rest of the Internet. It involved a game console controller that was late in shipping, a a marketing firm in over its head, a popular webcomic, the unholy wrath of the Internet hate machine, and one humble customer who just wanted to know whether he was going to get his gadget by Christmas or not. What did we learn here? That there is such a thing as bad publicity, and that sometimes people on the Internet actually are who they claim to be. [More]
Microsoft Thinks You Stole $67.50 From Your Own Xbox Account
By 12.15.11
In recent weeks, we’ve heard from quite a few Xbox Gold customers who report that points have been stolen from their accounts, but Microsoft doesn’t seem terribly concerned about it, or about stopping the account breaches. Today’s example: reader Jesse, who loaded several cards on his account before a move, for some reason assuming that the points would be safer in his account (in the cloud!) than packed for his move. Not so. Someone spent those points on content that Jesse never downloaded, and Microsoft isn’t giving him those points back. [More]
Microsoft Has Different Instructions Every Time I Call About My Brand-New Broken Xbox
By 12.2.10
Peter tells Consumerist that in early November, he purchased a new Xbox 360 with Kinect. His new system didn’t waste any time–it started breaking down that very night. Bringing it back to the store wasn’t an option, since he had transferred all of his licenses. His only choice was to contact Microsoft for repairs or a new box. [More]
Read Fine Print Or GameStation May Own Your Soul
By 4.16.10
Forget about those unreadable termsheets that come with your credit-card bills and warn you that your home is on the line if you miss a payment by 30 seconds. If you really want to experience the worst consequence of skipping the fine print in a customer agreement, head over to Gamestation.co.uk. The web retailer has an “Immortal Soul Clause” in its terms, and now owns the souls of over 7,500 customers. [More]
Your Wife Doesn't Know Which Console You Have So Best Buy Sells Her Non-Refundable XBOX Live Card
By 2.16.10
Reader Bang’s says his wife wanted to surprise him (on Valentine’s Day) with a game. She didn’t know what console he had so she asked Best Buy for some help. They said he “probably” had an XBOX and sold her not only a game, but a non-refundable XBOX Live subscription. When the couple tried to exchange the purchase (he actually has a PS3), they say they were told the game could be swapped but they were stuck with the unopened, unused XBOX Live card. [More]
Target Wants To Scan Your ID When You Buy M Rated Games? Say No.
By 2.11.10
It annoys some people that Target wants to scan their ID when they buy an M rated video game. Well, guess what? We’ve heard over and over that they don’t actually need to scan it. All they need to do is type your birth date into the computer. They’ll tell you they have to scan it — but if you hold your ground like reader “Wuuu” you can escape without being scanned. [More]
Mass Effect 2 Shopkeeper Makes Fun Of People Who Buy Expensive Cables
By 2.9.10
Mass Effect 2 is an awesome game that you should buy immediately. In addition, it also offers solid electronics buying advice in the form of an alien shopkeeper. [More]
World Of Warcraft Pushing "Care Packages" Over Restoring Hacked Accounts
By 1.8.10
WoW.com reports that instead of restoring hacked accounts, Blizzard employees have been instructed to push “care packages.” If you accept the care package, your case gets closed and no restoration of items will occur on the account, although you still get to play your character. The care package contains 2,500 gold, 2 Emblems of Frost and 10 Emblems of Triumph for every day you’ve waited. [More]
DragonCon Kicks "Looking For Group" Booth Because DragonCon Was Rude To Them
By 12.11.09
The staff of the annual DragonCon fantasy gaming convention seem to have decided to roleplay as Level 55 Lesser Jerks. Popular RPG parody webcomic “Looking For Group” says they’re not invited back this year because last year DragonCon staff moved their booth to a crappy part of the hall without notice, and then the staff were rude about it. Here’s the story of The Quest For The Steaming Brown Pile Of Subhuman Customer Service Goo Epic Fail: [More]
