possible refund / withdrawl of sale strategy

[blockerdave]

looking at the manual, the warranty states the following:

505 Games S.r.l warrants to the purchaser of this product that the
product will be working as described in this instruction booklet for
180 days from the original date of purchase. If any problems in the
use of the product arise within 180 days of the original purchase,
the retailer where you obtained the product will either repair the
product or provide a replacement, at the retailer?s own discretion,
at no cost for you, subject to the following procedure. The limited
warranty (a) does not apply if the product is used for commercial
purposes and (b) does not apply to product malfunction arising
from accidents, improper or incorrect use, or electronic viruses.
This limited warranty does not affect your statutory rights as
a consumer according to the applicable law in your country of
residence.
RETURN WITHIN 180 DAYS: Any warranty claims should be
addressed to the retailer from which you obtained the product.
You should return the product to the retailer along with your
original receipt and explain the problems you experienced during
the use of the product. The retailer may either repair, or replace
the product at their own discretion.

(my bold for emphasis)

clearly, the game is unplayable and does not work as described.

it also states that the retailer should fix or replace, two options that are clearly unavailable in respect of a digital download. therefore, steam may well refund and if they receive enough complaints they may withdraw it from sale.

my approach would be to email steam, quoting this paragraph and link to the youtube videos, pointing out that the game clearly does not work as described - it is actually impossible to play any game properly, and 79C has mentioned a bug where with a certain bowler the batting controls would not work (i.e. do not work as described) - and ask what they will do in the absence of repairing or replacing being a viable option. get anyone you know who has bought the game to do the same.

 

[whiteninness]

Exactly what part of the game does not work as described? I can see no lies in the manual, except if you want to criticise subjective descriptions like "authentic".

 

[blockerdave]

Exactly what part of the game does not work as described? I can see no lies in the manual, except if you want to criticise subjective descriptions like "authentic".

79Cs bug is the main one, since the batting controls do not work as described.

you're right that the most egregious lies are not in the manual, but still I would push the semantic arguments... you simply cannot "play" any of the formats described, because of game-breaking bugs.

I'm not saying it'll work, but I think you've got a better chance that way than saying "this is crap, I want my money back"... had I been stupid enough to buy this junk, this is the approach I'd be taking.

 

[whiteninness]

What did 79 say about the batting controls?

 

[blockerdave]

What did 79 say about the batting controls?

that in one game, with one bowler only, the controls just didn't work. all other bowlers were fine, but one came on and the batting controls wouldn't respond. that's obviously not "working as described"...

having not played it, I can't say if there are others, but had I bought it I'd be checking.

 

[AngryPixel]

Isn't the broken logic regarding the basic fundamental rules of cricket is a reason enough? I mean we bought a cricket game but the game where wicket is awarded to the catcher is definitely not Cricket.

 

[Lee1981]

Who gives a crap

If your dumb enough to buy this piece of crap even though we all knew it was gonna be pants then you deserve everything you get

 

[whiteninness]

Who gives a crap

If your dumb enough to buy this piece of crap even though we all knew it was gonna be pants then you deserve everything you get

I don't think that people care too much about their personal $20, but merely want to make a statement to the developers and publishers that this isn't good enough. That is also protecting future people against wasting their money on this tripe.

 

[AngryPixel]

Exactly, Even i didn't bought this piece of crap. I waited for Matt's review and then decided against buying, By "we" in previous post i meant people who bought it.

 

[79cricket]

What did 79 say about the batting controls?

I was playing aus vs eng and playing as the mighty aussies when chris tremlett was bowling the run button stoped working for some reason, i remember pressing the button like 10 times. That's my new Xbox 360 control for DBC 14 next month right ross.

PS I thought the bug wen't away but chris was taken off for like 5 overs but when he came back it was there. Lucky for me hitting 4s are easy in this game.

----------

Who gives a crap

If your dumb enough to buy this piece of crap even though we all knew it was gonna be pants then you deserve everything you get

A good laugh mate.

 

[Biggs]

Not wanting to get into technicalities here, but you're unlikely to get any refund... here's why:

...at the retailer?s own discretion

Case closed.

It's $20. If you paid that thinking you were going to get a quality cricket game, you're ludicrously insane in the brain. This is why we can't have nice things... people will buy any old shit then demand money back knowing full-well they're not paying for a quality product.

Complain about the game? Totally fine. Spread the word and tell others not to buy it? Please spam away... Demand refunds for a game you full-well knew was going to be terrible? Get off my lawn...

 

[blockerdave]

Oh i consider it very unlikely anyone would get a refund, though possible. (the warranty was only for replace or repair) but hoped enough complaints might force withdrawal, as it seems to have been withdrawn it's moot i guess.

thankfully, i didn't buy the game. was just a suggestion for the others...

 

[Biggs]

I think anyone who genuinely wants their $20 back should do a bit of self-reflection first. Or go spend an extra $35 on a nice christmas treat for themselves...

 

[BigAntStudios]

There is Legislative and Common law in Australia that would protect and over ride any EULA in this situation.

The "reasonable persons" test would apply and a reasonable person would say that the goods are not fit for the purpose they were intended as per the relevant Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Acts, and that therefore the parties should be reset to their positions prior to the transaction, that is that the consideration should be returned to the purchaser and the goods to the vendor.

Unless of course you also want to add a civil writ for damages due to the "pain and suffering" endured throughout the process of playing the game

 

[Biggs]

There is a similar law in NZ as well, but again, it's $20... the goal here isn't to get money back but protect other less-on-to-it users into being duped into this product. The end-game here is to make sure it doesn't get an in-store release so it's not shitting on any alternate products that may or may not be introduced into the market that may or may not be better. If you catch my drift. You spends your money, you takes your chances. Write it off as a charitable donation if it makes folks feel better, but the goal is to send a message to developers that we deserve better. Cricket deserves better.