Nixzilla said:
If you buy a game[Dragon Age Origins for exsample] used would you exspect it to have the dlc it says on the box is included or is it obvious it wouldnt have it? the reason I bring this up is because of a lawsuit being done against gamestop http://ps3.ign.com/articles/115/1153698p1.html
I personaly think its obvious that there wouldnt be any free dlc in a used copy. Your thoughts?
Sorry if this has already been done.
Well, I think Gamestop is going to get their rears rightfully handed to them. To be honest, the laws as they exist in the US are slanted towards consumer protection, something I agree with, as it's unreasonable to assume that everyone is going to carefully research every purchuse they make before they buy something. Someone who buys something on impulse because it catches their eye, is still entitled to protection against fraud.
As a pretty serious gamer I'm aware of the situation with "Project $10" and similar programs but a lot of people probably aren't, especially with all the casual gamers flooding the market, and people who only buy a few games a year might not have run into this before as it's still fairly recent. I tend to agree that Gamestop has a responsibility to make it clear that the products are being sold incomplete, similar to buying a board game with some of the pieces missing... the game might still be playable if you improvise, but it's something the person making the purchuse should be informed of.
I'll also be honest in saying that I think the game companies themselves should probably be slammed as well to be honest. I don't think the details on the DLC and the codes are explained well on most boxes to begin with. The codes being single use items can influance someone's desician to buy a game, especially if it affects their abillity to trade that game in afterwards.
Truthfully I think we need to see a LOT of laws greatly limiting all of this digital distribution and download stuff. I think it's become a sort of rot within the industry on a lot of differant levels, a sort of catalyst for the worst human behaviors in business accross a large spectrum.
More than the "codes" I am increasingly becoming annoyed with games that you purchuse in a store but actually just have the disc connect you to STEAM to download a digital copy, or which won't operate without online activation. Any mention of this (if it's even there) is hidden in fine print that is easy to miss (and there are laws about fine print, and deceptive packaging). I, and a lot of other people, who prefer a "disc in hand" so we can own our own purchuse are pretty much getting screwed even when buying physical media due to it being dependant on digital downloads or internet connectivity.
So basically, I'm cheering for Gamestop to take a major hit, and I'm hoping we see some serious action taken against the game companies themselves. Starting with lawsuits, and ending with some much tighter, much more consumer-friendly legislation. Right now I think digital downloads/online activation/DRM is something that legitimate consumers need to be protected from. The damage done to legitimate buyers, and what it's costing us, is far greater than any damage pirates may or may not be causing.
