For the sake of keeping this thing PC, i shall try to *-out as much as possible of the bad bits... no promises besides that... that being said: WTF! i went to the shop and bought the Forza 3 LCE (limited collector's edition - for those not in the know). This is supposed to include a Keychain (who cares), a 2GB Memory stick (handy, but essentially - who cares) and extra cars and a FM3 Premium theme... now THAT'S why people like me buy a collector's edition. Get home, open the box, start playing the game. Then, last week sometime, i decide "right - where do i get all the good stuff i paid extra for?". Browse the FAQ on the FM3 page, and find out that i should've gotten redeem code cards with my copy of the game (which i didn't). So i browse the forums. They all suggest going back to the shop and demanding the cards. I do that, and get faced with a blank look... they dind't get any cards... So i decide to contact T10, and i actually get a response. Something in the lines of "Sorry - MS don't bundle the redeem codes with LCE's going to non-live-enabled regions of the world" WHAT THE F*** IS THE POINT THEN? South Africa doesn't get access to extra cars, etc (bad enough that all those that have live gold membership have to get it with fake addresses and imported MS points) for a limited edition that they pay a f***ing premium for? So all we get (for R/N$100,- extra) is a keyring that noone gives a sh*t about, R40,- worth of memory stick that's SLOW (BTW), and a big box with magnets? No VIP status in the storefront, no extra cars, no theme, etc... all because us jumping through f***ing hoops for live access isn't good enough? Wow... MS really f***ed up this one... badly... and i am PISSED at them right now (and i normally appreciate MS products)... this is one of the shittest moves they could've pulled... m*********s Turns out i am not the only one either... this from the FM3 forums:
erm...that's how i access live anyway... the issue is i need those f***ing redeem codes. And i am unwilling to buy the game a second time...
You are already aware that your country doesnt support Live so it would be reasonable to assume that you wouldnt have recieved something that relies on the Live network to download. You should have done your homework mate.
well, the NXE theme was given out for free because there was a snafu with the codes. as for the cars, i can't help you there.
i disagree. While i was aware of the fact that i'd need internet access on my xbox to get the extra material, nowhere did it say that the content of the collector's edition is subject to Live availability in the region. They're seeling me the EXACT same game, without any warning, for a price premium. No MS disclaimer, no Turn 10 warning, nothing. Think of it this way: They sell you launch day tickets to the next OMG-Movie of the century for 100 quid. The tickets say "Free popcorn, coke, strippers and a Merc" in big letters. When you get there, they tell you "Oh no... sorry.. .that was only for people in Angola" You'd be pissed, wouldn't you? Then if someone came along and said "Mate... you don't get that model of merc here", you wouldn't give a f*** either, would you? The fact is, you paid a premium and got shafted by the man without prior warning... a.k.a. surprisebuttseks. I'd be happy if they had included the codes and said "well - you need live gold membership to get this"... that'd be fine (i don't have live GOLD for lack of availability here)... but just NOT INCLUDING an essential part of what is marketed as the LCE is equivalent to facef***ing me.
I don't really think that's a fair way of looking at it.....there should have been a warning that it is dependant on Live availability.
even here? http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/games/offers/033f0003-0000-4000-8000-00004d53084d?cid=SLink shows up as free for me. in fact it's been downloaded to my xbox already
There is mate (at least there is on uk versions) Now it says that it is a download card so it is obvious that it will be downloaded from live. Now on the rear of all xbox live games there is a disclaimer that live is not available in all countries. Im not saying its right, personally I think it sucks but if I lived in a country where live wasn't available I would not have bought a game solely on downloadable content.
Fod: Wuill have a look there when i get home. xbox.com is blocked here. The announcement from MS/Turn 10 of the LCE said: So far, i have not had problems with downloading ANY free DLC. Not with Forza 2, not with any game i tried with... I have a Live online (silver) profile, and that should really be good enough. My packaging doesn't have the sticker on, mind... I am still going to log a call with MS telling them that it's false marketing to announce **** like that and then imposing a restriction that's discriminating on geographical region alone. f*cke them in the neck.
QFT. If Live isn't available in a country then it's reasonable to assume that any content that relies on Live will not be available. It does suck that MS can justify charging the same premium but for less content, all I can say is - there is one born every minute!
So you're saying it should be natural to assume that if i am on holiday (for example) in South africa - me being, a German citizen, and i buy FM3 here, that i get shafted, just because i wanted to buy early. Look - i'd have no problem if they had the coupons in the box and then said "Not available in your region". That'd mean there's a way around... that'd mean that (in the hypothetical scenario above), i could go home and get the content there no probs. but instead of doing that, they literally PUNISH everybody that paid (mind - the same f**** price everyone pays worldwide), just because you bought it in the wrong f*** country. Fun... What's next? Release Halo 4, and sell the game here, but you can't actually play it, because you bought it in a d*ckhead country? Or rather - you can buy the box, but htey neglect to tell you that due to the fact that the game has tight LIVE integration they are leaving out the actual f*cking disc? It's not so much that they're doing it that gets to me... it's HOW they do it, and based on WHAT REASONING.
Fair point, but that being the case, why sell a (more expensive) version of the game with DL content in a region which requires live access to obtain? They shouldnt be selling the game in the first place, I dont think Bentanat can be blamed for being a bit pissed off. God knows I would!
m$ get around this by bundling memory sticks and the likes so you are getting more than the standard version. I would be pissed off also but then again I wouldnt have bought the game in the first place.
The point is that all of this only got out on Release date because of Pissed off clients... before that there was no mention whatsoever of this f*ckup.
On the back of the box it says "check if your region supports xbox live" or something to that effect. Did you check the back of the box... nooo!
To me this either sounds like the fault of the purchaser or the fault of the shop. It's not MS' fault tbh.
Not just SA/NAM complaining either... Greece, South America, Eastern Europe. Seems to me it was an MS decision when it comes to all not-officially-live-supported territories. The fun i am having right now entails looking through the responses people on the Forza forums got. They all seem to be along the lines of "It is impossible fo you to have Live in your countrys" (yes - they did spell countries wrong)... Even to people that have Gold subscriptions they import...
