I’d like to discuss the PlayStation Store’s not great refund policy

Deleted member 19293 · May 13, 2020

So earlier tonight, I purchased Control on the US PSN. I played for maybe three hours total. I don't think it was that much, but it's largely irrelevant. I'm really not digging the game at all.

I thought about trying to get a refund for it. Every other storefront I can think of that is an origin point for purchasing software (not a reseller) provides some method of refunding purchases. But Sony does not. This is kind of stupid, and there's no good reason they don't offer this.

krae_man · May 13, 2020

Sony's refund policy is the most anti-consumer that is allowed by law in whatever jurisdiction you are in. They don't even seem to be willing to create some form of standard refund policy to prevent legislation even more consumer friendly than they would like.

It would be really nice if governments everywhere would get cracking on creating better laws because a lot of companies(Sony's not the only one) are taking advantage of them being asleep at the wheel when it comes to this stuff.

Having said that, a "satisfaction guaranteed" refund policy required by law is not something I think is necessary. Lets start with allowing refunds of preorders and legally mandated refunds when games ship as broken piles of garbage. Than we can worry about coming up with a universal trial system with time limits or whatever.

Z-Beat · May 13, 2020

Their refund policy is that you can only refund it within 2 weeks of purchase if you didn't download or play it unless the game is straight busted, right?

Lant_War · May 13, 2020

I bought Xenoverse 2 by accident, played 15 minutes and they told me to fuck off because I'd already downloaded the game. It's fucking garbage.

Deleted member 19293 · May 13, 2020

Z-Beat said:
Their refund policy is that you can only refund it within 2 weeks of purchase if you didn't download or play it unless the game is straight busted, right?

You pretty much nailed it.

reclaimerzzzzz · May 13, 2020

krae_man said:
Sony's refund policy is the most anti-consumer that is allowed by law in whatever jurisdiction you are in. They don't even seem to be willing to create some form of standard refund policy to prevent legislation even more consumer friendly than they would like.

It would be really nice if governments everywhere would get cracking on creating better laws because a lot of companies(Sony's not the only one) are taking advantage of them being asleep at the wheel when it comes to this stuff.

Having said that, a "satisfaction guaranteed" refund policy required by law is not something I think is necessary. Lets start with allowing refunds of preorders and legally mandated refunds when games ship as broken piles of garbage. Than we can worry about coming up with a universal trial system with time limits or whatever.

Sony does have a standard policy now and also allows cancelling preorders, even subscriptions.

PlayStation Store cancellation policy

www.playstation.com

bender · May 13, 2020

If you call support, you may be able to refund the purchase. They do allow a one-time refund of a purchase if you aren't satisfied with as a courtesy. Just be sure this is what you want to use that option on as they'll deny future refund requests outside of cancelling pre-orders.

Dealing with support is a PITA and the whole experience is a black eye for Sony. I wish they'd catch up with the competition.

Z-Beat · May 13, 2020

ProfessionalBastard said:
You pretty much nailed it.

Yeah, some kind time limit of play would probably be better. I think that's what steam has but I could be wrong. The only game I ever had refunded on Steam was The War Z (now Infestation Survival Stories) which was not only busted, but a straight up lie that was updated with pay to win content as you played (permadeath respawn went from like 10 minutes to an hour unless you wanted to pay money), and it caused such a shitstorm at the time that Steam was effectively doing no questions asked refunds

Lant_War said:
I bought Xenoverse 2 by accident, played 15 minutes and they told me to fuck off because I'd already downloaded the game. It's fucking garbage.

You accidentally bought, downloaded, then played 15 minutes of Xenoverse 2?

adj_noun · May 13, 2020

In my ideal world everybody would have a variation on Steam's policy. I love that thing.

Abylim · May 13, 2020

Z-Beat said:
Their refund policy is that you can only refund it within 2 weeks of purchase if you didn't download or play it unless the game is straight busted, right?

And even then, good luck. Bought ufc 2 ages ago, game kept corrupting my saves over and over. I talked to sony about it and they said they don't recognise the statements EA had made about the bug as enough to issue a refund. Even though ea had said they were working on a patch to fix it, I needed EA to outright say in an email to myself or sony that the game was unplayable to get my refund. That's what sony told me to do.

A fucking joke. I could not play this game through no fault of my own, and I had to get the publisher to admit it was broken to get a refund.

Lant_War · May 13, 2020

Z-Beat said:
You accidentally bought, downloaded, then played 15 minutes of Xenoverse 2?

I went to buy FighterZ, accidentally got Xenoverse 2 instead and decided to check it out a bit, yes :P

https://www.resetera.com/threads/je...getting-a-refund-in-psn-are-ridiculous.89044/

RisingStar · May 13, 2020

My biggest issue with their refund system is apparently your account is flagged for requesting a refund and you could potentially get banned. Is this still true?

Domcorleone · May 13, 2020

It's the worst by far. I remember going to buy Persona 5 and when I got to my cart I noticed that I had Detroit in my cart as well from when I was going to purchase it during a sale. I removed detroit and just bought Persona but when I completed the purchase I got an email confirmation for both Persona and Detriot. I called them the next day and said it was a mistake and a glitch with their system. They guy said he could only do pan credit and eventually I said okay. Never got the credit, got hit with a fraud attempt warning and was forced to keep Detroit at full price.

I almost broke my PS4 that day.

bender · May 13, 2020

Z-Beat said:
You accidentally bought, downloaded, then played 15 minutes of Xenoverse 2?

It's possible. I bought a Far Cry Primal and some other game on accident while using my PS4 controller on my Steam Link. Whoops.

Domcorleone · May 13, 2020

RisingStar said:
My biggest issue with their refund system is apparently your account is flagged for requesting a refund and you could potentially get banned. Is this still true?

Literally what happened to me. Its insane. If I had twitter I would have contacted Shu directly.

Z-Beat · May 13, 2020

I think the most lenient a refund policy has ever been was ironically that one that Gamestop used to have where it was a 10 day satisfaction guarantee, so you'd walk in, buy a game, beat it, return it, buy another game, and repeat, and that's why it doesn't exist anymore.

Lant_War said:
I went to buy FighterZ, accidentally got Xenoverse 2 instead and decided to check it out a bit, yes :P

https://www.resetera.com/threads/je...getting-a-refund-in-psn-are-ridiculous.89044/

Ah

bender said:
It's possible. I bought a Far Cry Primal and some other game on accident while using my PS4 controller on my Steam Link. Whoops.

It's not the accidental purchase that got me, it was the playing for 15 minutes

bender · May 13, 2020

RisingStar said:
My biggest issue with their refund system is apparently your account is flagged for requesting a refund and you could potentially get banned. Is this still true?

I think if you do a charge back with a credit card, you could get banned as a security precaution. If you do get a refund, they definitely flag your account and will deny future refund requests.

Vic20 · May 13, 2020

Their website is absolute garbage, I can't even pass the captcha check.

dom · May 13, 2020

ProfessionalBastard said:
So earlier tonight, I purchased Control on the US PSN. I played for maybe three hours total. I don't think it was that much, but it's largely irrelevant. I'm really not digging the game at all.

I thought about trying to get a refund for it. Every other storefront I can think of that is an origin point for purchasing software (not a reseller) provides some method of refunding purchases. But Sony does not. This is kind of stupid, and there's no good reason they don't offer this.

Steam with one of the better refund policies around, you'd not get that refund b/c you played 3 hours.

Deleted member 198 · May 13, 2020

Basically just be grateful they allow refunds now

bender · May 13, 2020

Z-Beat said:
I think the most lenient a refund policy has ever been was ironically that one that Gamestop used to have where it was a 10 day satisfaction guarantee, so you'd walk in, buy a game, beat it, return it, buy another game, and repeat, and that's why it doesn't exist anymore.

Ah

It's not the accidental purchase that got me, it was the playing for 15 minutes

Had PSN download speeds been better, I'm sure I could have booted the game on accident just as easily as I managed to blindly navigate the store and purchase two games. :p

RisingStar · May 13, 2020

Domcorleone said:
Literally what happened to me. Its insane. If I had twitter I would have contacted Shu directly.

Blows my mind how this is still a thing. Doesn't Europe by laws now require Sony to refund without a hassle?

bender said:
I think if you do a charge back with a credit card, you could get banned as a security precaution. If you do get a refund, they definitely flag your account and will deny future refund requests.

What I don't understand is even if they try to change it going forward, what seems to be the blocking point here? It just makes it sound like PSN's infrastructure is built off of sticks and stones. How the hell credit card charge backs okay to ban you? Shit.

Agent_J · May 13, 2020

Coincidentally, today I requested a refund for Legend of Dragoon (been watching Kyle Bosman's streams and have been craving a good JRPG) because I bought it under the wrong PSN account. All it took was a chat. I did download the game and play it for about 16 minutes, too. Maybe because it was only $6 they didn't care?

Qwark · May 13, 2020

Their policy does suck, but come on... you played it for 3 hours.

DFG · May 13, 2020

This is why digital only on consoles are trash and I ignore anyone who brings it up. I buy physical and I can easily return it without hassle. Fuck Sony

Jawmuncher · May 13, 2020

To this day i'm still amazed that Customer Support refunded me my PSN credit when I accidentally bought Darkstalkers PS3 when it was fluctuating as it became a PS+ game (Was listed as free but charged me in cart). I wonder had it not been credit, if they would've told me no.

Brutalitops · May 13, 2020

One of many reasons I don't buy digitally on PSN

coopolon · May 13, 2020

ProfessionalBastard said:
So earlier tonight, I purchased Control on the US PSN. I played for maybe three hours total. I don't think it was that much, but it's largely irrelevant. I'm really not digging the game at all.

I thought about trying to get a refund for it. Every other storefront I can think of that is an origin point for purchasing software (not a reseller) provides some method of refunding purchases. But Sony does not. This is kind of stupid, and there's no good reason they don't offer this.

Not that I disagree that sonys refund polic is terrible, but steams policy is 2 hours right? Same with Xbox. So you wouldn't have gotten a refund at any of the major stores after playing three hours then deciding you don't like it.

bender · May 13, 2020

RisingStar said:
Blows my mind how this is still a thing. Doesn't Europe by laws now require Sony to refund without a hassle?

What I don't understand is even if they try to change it going forward, what seems to be the blocking point here? It just makes it sound like PSN's infrastructure is built off of sticks and stones. How the hell credit card charge backs okay to ban you? Shit.

Not to dispute the infrastructure being built off of sticks an stones but it makes some sense to ban the account if a charge back happens as that would indicated fraudulent activity and the ban would prevent more fraudulent charges from occurring.

During the PS3 era, I contacted support twice in a day via their chat client and was somehow IP banned from using that chat client for the next two years or so. I had to disconnect my phone from wi-fi and use my wireless cellular IP to talk to chat moving forward.

coopolon said:
Not that I disagree that sonys refund polic is terrible, but steams policy is 2 hours right? Same with Xbox. So you wouldn't have gotten a refund at any of the major stores after playing three hours then deciding you don't like it.

Is the XBox policy live now? I know when it was first touted it was in beta so not every console had the refund option. Contacting support for refunds resulted in similar results to Sony.

Foot · May 13, 2020

Bought Uncharted Collection and found after less than an hour that Uncharted 1 made me INCREDIBLY motion sick. They wouldn't refund it because I had already played. I don't want three games I can't play without having to lay down for the rest of the day, god damn!

Brutalitops · May 13, 2020

Qwark said:
Their policy does suck, but come on... you played it for 3 hours.

I can get a refund for a change of mind at EB Games anytime within 2 weeks even if I played 50 hours. Yet for the same game on PSN (at full RRP) I would be screwed

Qwark · May 13, 2020

Brutalitops said:
I can get a refund for a change of mind at EB Games anytime within 2 weeks even if I played 50 hours. Yet for the same game on PSN (at full RRP) I would be screwed

Then buy all your games physical. Digital ain't going to offer you that, sorry.

Fiel · May 13, 2020

They use to have 1 hour trial on game back on ps3. it seems didnt do too hot for them.

I agree that Sony refund policy is very bad and be there so it has some kind of it just enough to float above law coming after.

DFG · May 13, 2020

Brutalitops said:
I can get a refund for a change of mind at EB Games anytime within 2 weeks even if I played 50 hours. Yet for the same game on PSN (at full RRP) I would be screwed

People thinking anti-consummer policies are the norm really annoys me. Physical will always be better for that alone.

nilbog · May 13, 2020

A Sony CSR threatened to ban my account once after I accidentally purchased Dragon Age DLC through the game's menu that I already owned via preorder.

Dick move by them for sure.

Deader2818 · May 13, 2020

Brutalitops said:
I can get a refund for a change of mind at EB Games anytime within 2 weeks even if I played 50 hours. Yet for the same game on PSN (at full RRP) I would be screwed

In the US, once you open media, you cant return it.

Brutalitops · May 13, 2020

Qwark said:
Then buy all your games physical. Digital ain't going to offer you that, sorry.

They could rather easily offer a refund after a number of hours time played, as some digital storefronts already do. They charge a premium over physical already it's the least they could do

Deleted member 19293 · May 13, 2020

domthybomb said:
Steam with one of the better refund policies around, you'd not get that refund b/c you played 3 hours.

Qwark said:
Their policy does suck, but come on... you played it for 3 hours.

Well, I didn't quite make it to three hours. But it's largely irrelevant. Their policy is pretty terrible as is.

dom · May 13, 2020

ProfessionalBastard said:
Well, I didn't quite make it to three hours. But it's largely irrelevant. Their policy is pretty terrible as is.

It's not irrelevant as you'd be making the same thread if they had the same policy as the others.

Deleted member 19293 · May 13, 2020

domthybomb said:
It's not irrelevant as you'd be making the same thread if they had the same policy as the others.

Respectfully, I disagree. It's likely be a thread about how I wasn't liking Control. But the horrible policy of the PSN store deserved the thread instead, I thought.

HaremKing · May 13, 2020

I can't really think of any major digital storefront where you'd be able to play 3 hours of a game and then return it for a refund. That said, I agree that digital storefronts in general are very anti-consumer.

Eggman · May 13, 2020

I don't think you should be entitled to a refund after playing a game for 3 hours.

All consoles have the same refund policy.

I don't know of any retail stores that allow you to fully refund games after opening and playing them.

Thiago · May 13, 2020

RisingStar said:
My biggest issue with their refund system is apparently your account is flagged for requesting a refund and you could potentially get banned. Is this still true?

This is kind of hard to believe.

DemiOrpheus · May 13, 2020

support gave me a refund on siege after I found the difficulty curve to be a little much

they stressed that it was a one time gesture and they only did it because I had low play time

this shit needs to be regulated but after the EU ruled in Nintendo's favor on pre-orders it's gonna be hard to break that precedent

defaltoption · May 13, 2020

It really sucks yea, this is the type of stuff though that only gets better with a large pr disaster or if the company is "losing" and they need to get good pr.

Sony needs a kick in the ass for everything to do with their crappy store experience.

TheYanger · May 13, 2020

Qwark said:
Then buy all your games physical. Digital ain't going to offer you that, sorry.

Digital does offer you that everywhere else, that's the whole point. You'd know if you'd used any ecosystem besides the playstation one.

DFG · May 13, 2020

Eggman said:
I don't think you should be entitled to a refund after playing a game for 3 hours.

All consoles have the same refund policy.

I don't know of any retail stores that allow you to fully refund games after opening and playing them.

I'm glad stores here don't think like you.

Tryptobphan · May 13, 2020

I don't have a problem with their refund policy. I think it's stupid when someone just buys a game, tries it out, and they don't like it, then ask for a refund. Do your research, buy the game, enjoy it or not.

I've refunded Destiny 2. I bought the game by accident because I checked out instead of continuing to shop and finalize my decision. I didn't download it. I asked for a refund and Sony obliged. I didn't think they would, but they did. Their policy seems fine with me.

Qwark · May 13, 2020

TheYanger said:
Digital does offer you that everywhere else, that's the whole point. You'd know if you'd used any ecosystem besides the playstation one.

No it doesn't. Which ecosystem allows for 3 hour returns?

nath999 · May 13, 2020

Brutalitops said:
I can get a refund for a change of mind at EB Games anytime within 2 weeks even if I played 50 hours. Yet for the same game on PSN (at full RRP) I would be screwed

Isn't Ebgames a failing business? You can't do that at any other retailer. And I am pretty sure you can only do that on used games.

I’d like to discuss the PlayStation Store’s not great refund policy

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