Valve now officially support refunds on Steam

Started by Huw the Poo, June 02, 2015, 01:47:29 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Print
Go Down Pages1 2
User actions

Huw the Poo

June 02, 2015, 01:47:29 PM
Announcement and details

Wow.  It's about damn time, but fair play to them - they're absolutely doing the right thing here.  Sounds like it's going to be automated, too.

sandman2575

#1
June 02, 2015, 01:53:33 PM
Cool news!  And seems like a pretty brilliant move on Valve's part. By removing the risk of buying a game you're slightly worried you may not like, they're bound to make sales they wouldn't otherwise make. Sure it means they'll have to make refunds they otherwise wouldn't have to, but on balance they must be betting that the profits from 'take a chance on this' sales > refunds.

14 days to refund if less than 2 hours played.  Seems reasonable to me. 

RedArgo

#2
June 02, 2015, 01:55:26 PM
I wish it was only the 2 hours rule, I could refund 2/3 of my library.

sandman2575

#3
June 02, 2015, 01:58:17 PM
Quote from: RedArgo on June 02, 2015, 01:55:26 PM
I wish it was only the 2 hours rule, I could refund 2/3 of my library.

;D
True, that.

Rayfer

#4
June 02, 2015, 02:55:20 PM
Quote from: sandman2575 on June 02, 2015, 01:58:17 PM
Quote from: RedArgo on June 02, 2015, 01:55:26 PM
I wish it was only the 2 hours rule, I could refund 2/3 of my library.

;D
True, that.

Yes, very true!!!

Freyland

#5
June 02, 2015, 03:03:19 PM
Bonus goodwill points:

"We do not consider it abuse to request a refund on a title that was purchased just before a sale and then immediately rebuying that title for the sale price."

steve58

#6
June 02, 2015, 03:11:32 PM
Quote from: Rayfer on June 02, 2015, 02:55:20 PM
Quote from: sandman2575 on June 02, 2015, 01:58:17 PM
Quote from: RedArgo on June 02, 2015, 01:55:26 PM
I wish it was only the 2 hours rule, I could refund 2/3 of my library.

;D
True, that.

Yes, very true!!!

Amen, brother!
Government is not the solution to our problem—government is the problem.   Ronald Reagan
The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.   Thomas Jefferson
During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.   George Orwell  The truth is quiet...It's the lies that are loud.   Jesus Revolution
If you ever find yourself in need of a safe space then you're probably going to have to stop calling yourself a social justice warrior. You cannot be a warrior and a pansy at the same time   Mike Adams (RIP Mike)

Martok

#7
June 02, 2015, 03:25:02 PM
Sounds good.  And I agree the 2 hours, 14 days policy seems reasonable. 




Quote from: Freyland on June 02, 2015, 03:03:19 PM
Bonus goodwill points:

"We do not consider it abuse to request a refund on a title that was purchased just before a sale and then immediately rebuying that title for the sale price."
I read that as well.  Good on them! 

"Like we need an excuse to drink to anything..." - Banzai_Cat
"I like to think of it not as an excuse but more like Pavlovian Response." - Sir Slash

"At our ages, they all look like jailbait." - mirth

"If we had lines here that would have crossed all of them. For the 1,077,986th time." - Gusington

"Government is so expensive that it should at least be entertaining." - airboy

"As long as there's bacon, everything will be all right." - Toonces

Huw the Poo

#8
June 02, 2015, 03:30:35 PM
Well, let's give it a shot.  I bought Interplanetary 13 days ago and have a total of five minutes of "play" logged, because it absolutely will not work no matter what I try.  I've submitted my request and will report here when the decision is made.

By the way, refund requests may be copied to the developer in question, apparently.

steve58

#9
June 02, 2015, 05:30:20 PM Last Edit: June 02, 2015, 05:32:04 PM by steve58
...hhhmmm, at first glance/read, the new refund policy sounds/sounded superb, but this RPS article does bring up some good points...getting/selling trading cards ASAP then get a refund, review bombing, etc  :-\  ...maybe some quirks for Steam to work out.
Government is not the solution to our problem—government is the problem.   Ronald Reagan
The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.   Thomas Jefferson
During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.   George Orwell  The truth is quiet...It's the lies that are loud.   Jesus Revolution
If you ever find yourself in need of a safe space then you're probably going to have to stop calling yourself a social justice warrior. You cannot be a warrior and a pansy at the same time   Mike Adams (RIP Mike)

JasonPratt

#10
June 02, 2015, 06:39:07 PM
Huw, you couldn't get Interplanetary to work? I haven't had any problems with it, but I haven't played it since around the time you bought it either -- I wonder if I should check to see if it was broke in a patch!
ICEBREAKER THESIS CHRONOLOGY! -- Victor Suvorov's Stalin Grand Strategy theory, in lots and lots of chronological order...
Dawn of Armageddon -- narrative AAR for Dawn of War: Soulstorm: Ultimate Apocalypse
Survive Harder! -- Two season narrative AAR, an Amazon Blood Bowl career.
PanzOrc Corpz Generals -- Fantasy Wars narrative AAR, half a combined campaign.
Khazâd du-bekâr! -- narrative dwarf AAR for LotR BfME2 RotWK campaign.
RobO Q Campaign Generator -- archived classic CMBB/CMAK tool!

Huw the Poo

#11
June 03, 2015, 12:41:52 AM
Well, bear in mind I'm playing on Linux while, I assume, you're playing on Windows?  Apparently they've had issues with a combination of Linux and Radeon before.  I regretted buying it as soon as I did anyway, even before I discovered it won't work on my PC; I bought X Rebirth a day later and have been playing that game non-stop.  I certainly won't miss Interplanetary from my library.

Huw the Poo

#12
June 03, 2015, 10:51:44 AM
Well, they definitely copy in developers.  I haven't had a decision made on my refund yet, but suddenly the devs of Interplanetary are suggesting a "fix", which is to remove my Catalyst driver and install the open source version.  Uh, how about no?

The suggestion was made in a thread that I linked in my refund request (to prove I'd tried to get the game to work).  Other people who have reported successful refunds seem to have had theirs within a couple of hours, whereas mine has been ongoing for nearly 24 hours now.

Valve seem to be giving the developer a chance to fix the game before they refund my money.  Interesting.

sandman2575

#13
June 03, 2015, 11:46:28 AM
Quote from: Huw the Poo on June 03, 2015, 10:51:44 AM
Valve seem to be giving the developer a chance to fix the game before they refund my money.  Interesting.

Am I the only one who finds Steam's description a little misleading then?

"Valve will, upon request via help.steampowered.com, issue a refund for any reason, if the request is made within fourteen days of purchase, and the title has been played for less than two hours. "

"*Issue* a refund for any reason" doesn't sound like it should be subject to review, by the developer or anyone else. It doesn't say "Consider a refund for any reason."  "Issue" sounds like:  if you meet the criteria -- bought within 14 days with less than 2 hours playtime -- you get the refund. Period. 

I liked the sound of what I thought I was reading.  Hearing Huw's experience, I'm less psyched about this new policy...

Huw the Poo

#14
June 03, 2015, 12:24:02 PM
Yeah it is a little misleading in that case - assuming this isn't all just a huge coincidence anyway - however I'm not angry or anything.  From Valve's and the dev's point of view, I bought the game because I wanted to play it, and was prevented from doing so by a fault.  It's in everyone's best interest to get the game working rather than just blindly issue a refund, I guess.  I can't say I blame them but they could do with being a bit more honest about it.
Print
Go Up Pages1 2
User actions