Telltale Games

Alex IDV · 09/26/2011, 12:32 pm

I'm not a fan of EA either. Some of their products are nice (Harry Potter 1 & 2 come to mind), but I certainly don't like EA itself.

Zeek · 09/26/2011, 12:46 pm

I feel the same way about Disney. I like their products, but their company is really ugly in their wheelings and dealings.

gamer247 · 09/26/2011, 01:24 pm

This has happened before and they eventually ended up restoring the person account http://www.pcgamer.com/2011/03/15/dr...nned-forumite/

Chyron8472 · 09/26/2011, 01:37 pm

that teaches me not to actively visit EA related forums for fear of ticking someone off and getting access to my BioWare games locked.

Zeek · 09/26/2011, 03:01 pm

That article suggest, or at least implies, that I need to make customer service aware that my account has been banned from the entire library. This won't end well for me.

Zeek · 09/26/2011, 04:50 pm

Turns out the Dragon Age case was a different case entirely. He purchased a game and found out because of a comment he made previously, he wasn't allowed to play it on the day of purchase, making his transaction one that would impact EA directly (selling him a product he assumed would work but did in fact did not.)

What's going on with me is simple: You get a ban from one title, you lose access to all the online services EA offers to you no matter what titles you own. If it has online features, they are locked down.

So, yeah, I guess that means I can't play Spore until Friday, nor can I buy DLC from The Sims 3 Store until then as well.

Though I will admit, I'm laughing at the idea of banning me from buying their product.

MusicallyInspired · 09/26/2011, 05:45 pm

I don't understand DRM. Lawyers need to GTFO. Games are for fun. DRM is not fun. I will not buy a game with such intrusive DRM. Never have. Never will.

Zeek · 09/26/2011, 06:15 pm

This isn't really about DRM, though. Yes, that was part of yet another major critique against EA and how they make their games, but at the end of the day, it's clear that unless you play Madden, which has an exclusive NFL license that can lose if they fail to represent the NFL at a level that satisfies football fans, they don't care about what you think about their DRM, their banning, Origin's EULA making it okay for them to install spyware, etc.

MusicallyInspired · 09/26/2011, 06:33 pm

At the end of the day, if you say something out of line on a forum, the admins have the power and rite to terminate your ability to play a game. That's what I'm against. That's one of the many repercussions of this garbage infecting the video game industry.

Chyron8472 · 09/26/2011, 06:42 pm

It occurs to me that Steam is set up such that a user's Steam account and forum account are separate (even requiring separate passwords). I don't have rose colored glasses for any particular company, but it doesn't strike me that Valve would do something like EA has done.

Zeek · 09/26/2011, 08:39 pm

TTG wouldn't do what EA has done. If they ban people form the forums or commenting on the blog, why would they ban them from buying their products?

Zeek · 09/26/2011, 09:06 pm

Also, I will say this about TTG's community. You guys seem more level-headed. I've been posting this topic around on other sites I go to in order to get a better, well-rounded perspective on the situation, mostly to clear up my own confusion. It seems a lot of people are missing the point and are calling me an ass, saying that I deserved the banning.

They seem to be missing the point entirely that it was a developer's decision to ban me for criticizing them, and not a forum moderator.

Ironically, they've resorted to the same language I was reportedly banned for using.

MusicallyInspired · 09/26/2011, 09:22 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chyron8472

It occurs to me that Steam is set up such that a user's Steam account and forum account are separate (even requiring separate passwords). I don't have rose colored glasses for any particular company, but it doesn't strike me that Valve would do something like EA has done.

Valve is the only AAA game developing company I support anymore.

Alex IDV · 09/26/2011, 09:32 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by MusicallyInspired

Valve is the only AAA game developing company I support anymore.

Sorry for asking possibly stupid questions, but what is a "AAA game developing company"?

Chyron8472 · 09/26/2011, 09:38 pm

AAA. "Triple A." Meaning very good at what they do.

I hesitate to give their support staff the same rating, since Civilization 4 (and its expansions) have had duplicate entries in Steam for the Mac versions for well over a year now.

MusicallyInspired · 09/27/2011, 07:28 am

Triple A. As in not indie. Big developing/publishing company.

PecanBlue · 09/27/2011, 08:48 am

Wait, let me see if I have this right. EA banned you from your online account, which, if you have digital games bought, you can no longer access them? Or did they just ban you from any type of online activity, including in their games?

Either way, man that's p. awful. It's a little rude to call someone an idiot, but it's still not worth a banning of a paying customer who is rightfully upset. Have you tried talking to a higher-up, basically anyone better than a forum mod who doesn't seem to be making the point clear anyway? If they're ignoring you, I highly suggest bringing this to the attention of someone other than us.

Zeek · 09/27/2011, 10:50 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by PecanBlue

Wait, let me see if I have this right. EA banned you from your online account, which, if you have digital games bought, you can no longer access them? Or did they just ban you from any type of online activity, including in their games?

Either way, man that's p. awful. It's a little rude to call someone an idiot, but it's still not worth a banning of a paying customer who is rightfully upset. Have you tried talking to a higher-up, basically anyone better than a forum mod who doesn't seem to be making the point clear anyway? If they're ignoring you, I highly suggest bringing this to the attention of someone other than us.

Both, actually. Spore I have a hard copy of, but I also registered my copy of The Sims 3 with them and discovered that when I got banned, I can't launch my game without going through a backdoor. There is an in-game log in for online features in The Sims 3, but when I attempted to sign on with that, it acted as if I never created an account. What I'm ultimately locked out of with this banning in my Sims 3 game is access to their DLC Store and uploading created content to my studio on their website.

With Spore it's pretty clear. I'm banned, no new content for your game until the ban is lifted. That means that if I play that game in Offline Mode, once the game has used up all the content it currently has to populate my save game, that's it. I'll be running into empty planets, possibly even given repeat missions/Adventures because the game can't download any new content for me.

I even tried to access my Origin account to check if EA did the biggest dick move they could do and cancel my pre-order and delete my remaining balance from the bank (which they can do according to the EULA). I can't even see that info. The only info I can see is my account settings, and naturally because of the ban, I can't update/change that info.

I've tried to appeal that, but I couldn't talk to a higher authority because you can't get any higher than an actual game developer. All I've been told is that if my EA account gets hit with the ban-hammer, you lose all online features and services. And if your game is like Spore that requires an online connection for one reason or another? You're SOL.

Like I said earlier, I've shopped this story around, and all I've been told is that I'm wrong, I was justifiably banned, and I deserved everything that has happened to me. EA did what they are suppose to do when dealing with "jerks like [me]" because of the language I used to critique them in my post.

Speaking of which, I don't know if I mentioned this or not, but I was able to trick the forum and found the thread with the post that got me the banning. EA apparently deleted the post. There's no empty post box or a message from a mod where I posted saying "This message has been deleted." It's as if the post never happened. And the thread was locked because the majority of the posts in the thread that were still kept were saying the same thing I did. Most of them saying that EA should have took the faulty demo down and be held responsible for their error in this marketing effort for Pets.

I've finally reached the point where I've stopped caring. It took me two days, but I'm here now. If they don't care about me as a player and consumer, then I just don't care about them and their game.

Now someone recommend me a God game that isn't made by that company or any of the companies they own that can run on a 9 year old machine. If not, I'll go back to RCT3.

PecanBlue · 09/27/2011, 03:57 pm

That is actually pretty damn ridiculous and I would advise leaving a review of some kind at least, people need to be aware of this stuff. (though really I think there aren't many people that aren't aware EA could be the Satan of game companies at this point) More Awesome Than You sounds like a good forum to at least report your experience, but really it's like preaching to the choir over there, though it can still potentially add some hefty fuel to the fire for EA.

Also, what people told you you "deserved" the ban? Is it a specific forum that you wouldn't mind naming? It's kind of hard to believe anyone out there is really that much of a raving fanperson that they overlook a game company taking away someone's paid-for service "because they can." (really from what I am hearing that's pretty much what it is, since an upset customer calling the developers names after their own mess-up is like the typical routine for big companies)

PS. RCT3 is a fun game, so's Zoo Tycoon 2 in other ways. I was thinking of trying Minecraft soon since everybody talks about it forever, but I don't know if it's really considered a God Game. I actually enjoyed the older Zoo Tycoons and RCTs as well, and older Sim Cities. (4 might still have that EA aspect connected to it)

Scnew · 09/27/2011, 05:13 pm

What did you actually say?

The Dragon Age 2 forums are, or at least were when the game came out, chock full to the brim of negativity and insults towards the developers. I can't imagine it wouldn't have made the vidya-game news sites if they'd been banning folks left and right at the time.

09/26/2011, 09:38 pm	#35
Chyron8472 Killer Walrus Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Tulsa, OK, USA Posts: 4,150	AAA. "Triple A." Meaning very good at what they do. I hesitate to give their support staff the same rating, since Civilization 4 (and its expansions) have had duplicate entries in Steam for the Mac versions for well over a year now. Last edited by Chyron8472; 09/26/2011 at 09:42 pm.

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09/26/2011, 12:32 pm	#21
Alex IDV Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 183	I'm not a fan of EA either. Some of their products are nice (Harry Potter 1 & 2 come to mind), but I certainly don't like EA itself.

09/26/2011, 12:46 pm	#22
Zeek Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 2,127	I feel the same way about Disney. I like their products, but their company is really ugly in their wheelings and dealings.

09/26/2011, 01:24 pm	#23
gamer247 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 130	This has happened before and they eventually ended up restoring the person account http://www.pcgamer.com/2011/03/15/dr...nned-forumite/

09/26/2011, 01:37 pm	#24
Chyron8472 Killer Walrus Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Tulsa, OK, USA Posts: 4,150	that teaches me not to actively visit EA related forums for fear of ticking someone off and getting access to my BioWare games locked.

09/26/2011, 03:01 pm	#25
Zeek Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 2,127	That article suggest, or at least implies, that I need to make customer service aware that my account has been banned from the entire library. This won't end well for me.

09/26/2011, 04:50 pm	#26
Zeek Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 2,127	Turns out the Dragon Age case was a different case entirely. He purchased a game and found out because of a comment he made previously, he wasn't allowed to play it on the day of purchase, making his transaction one that would impact EA directly (selling him a product he assumed would work but did in fact did not.) What's going on with me is simple: You get a ban from one title, you lose access to all the online services EA offers to you no matter what titles you own. If it has online features, they are locked down. So, yeah, I guess that means I can't play Spore until Friday, nor can I buy DLC from The Sims 3 Store until then as well. Though I will admit, I'm laughing at the idea of banning me from buying their product.

09/26/2011, 06:15 pm	#28
Zeek Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 2,127	This isn't really about DRM, though. Yes, that was part of yet another major critique against EA and how they make their games, but at the end of the day, it's clear that unless you play Madden, which has an exclusive NFL license that can lose if they fail to represent the NFL at a level that satisfies football fans, they don't care about what you think about their DRM, their banning, Origin's EULA making it okay for them to install spyware, etc.

09/26/2011, 06:42 pm	#30
Chyron8472 Killer Walrus Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Tulsa, OK, USA Posts: 4,150	It occurs to me that Steam is set up such that a user's Steam account and forum account are separate (even requiring separate passwords). I don't have rose colored glasses for any particular company, but it doesn't strike me that Valve would do something like EA has done.

09/26/2011, 08:39 pm	#31
Zeek Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 2,127	TTG wouldn't do what EA has done. If they ban people form the forums or commenting on the blog, why would they ban them from buying their products?

09/26/2011, 09:06 pm	#32
Zeek Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 2,127	Also, I will say this about TTG's community. You guys seem more level-headed. I've been posting this topic around on other sites I go to in order to get a better, well-rounded perspective on the situation, mostly to clear up my own confusion. It seems a lot of people are missing the point and are calling me an ass, saying that I deserved the banning. They seem to be missing the point entirely that it was a developer's decision to ban me for criticizing them, and not a forum moderator. Ironically, they've resorted to the same language I was reportedly banned for using.

09/27/2011, 08:48 am	#37
PecanBlue I warned you about stairs Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Not telling, I don't want rocks thrown at my house Posts: 743	Wait, let me see if I have this right. EA banned you from your online account, which, if you have digital games bought, you can no longer access them? Or did they just ban you from any type of online activity, including in their games? Either way, man that's p. awful. It's a little rude to call someone an idiot, but it's still not worth a banning of a paying customer who is rightfully upset. Have you tried talking to a higher-up, basically anyone better than a forum mod who doesn't seem to be making the point clear anyway? If they're ignoring you, I highly suggest bringing this to the attention of someone other than us.

09/27/2011, 03:57 pm	#39
PecanBlue I warned you about stairs Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Not telling, I don't want rocks thrown at my house Posts: 743	That is actually pretty damn ridiculous and I would advise leaving a review of some kind at least, people need to be aware of this stuff. (though really I think there aren't many people that aren't aware EA could be the Satan of game companies at this point) More Awesome Than You sounds like a good forum to at least report your experience, but really it's like preaching to the choir over there, though it can still potentially add some hefty fuel to the fire for EA. Also, what people told you you "deserved" the ban? Is it a specific forum that you wouldn't mind naming? It's kind of hard to believe anyone out there is really that much of a raving fanperson that they overlook a game company taking away someone's paid-for service "because they can." (really from what I am hearing that's pretty much what it is, since an upset customer calling the developers names after their own mess-up is like the typical routine for big companies) PS. RCT3 is a fun game, so's Zoo Tycoon 2 in other ways. I was thinking of trying Minecraft soon since everybody talks about it forever, but I don't know if it's really considered a God Game. I actually enjoyed the older Zoo Tycoons and RCTs as well, and older Sim Cities. (4 might still have that EA aspect connected to it)

09/27/2011, 05:13 pm	#40
Scnew Fighter of the Night Man Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 956	What did you actually say? The Dragon Age 2 forums are, or at least were when the game came out, chock full to the brim of negativity and insults towards the developers. I can't imagine it wouldn't have made the vidya-game news sites if they'd been banning folks left and right at the time.