Don't Like Prey - Return it on Steam

FrgMstr

FrgMstr

Just Plain Mean
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So there has been quite a bit of discussion about the Prey demo being a console-only release. And we are not the only ones that felt like the game was telegraphing suckage by doing so. So much in fact that Arkane Studios talked specifically about Prey being optimized for PC so as to not be a series of unfortunate incidents like Dishonored 2. AusGamers has a quick bite of information on its site that quotes Raphael Colantonio, Co-creative Director at Arkane Studios, suggestion that there was no PC demo due to ArKane Studios not having the resources to cover both a console and a PC demo.

It's just a resource assignment thing. We couldn't do a demo on both the console and on the PC, we had to choose.

He went on to point out that Prey does not really need a demo release as Steam users can easily return the game if they have not played it for more than 2 hours.

And besides, PC has Steam. Steam players can just return the game [prior to playing] 2 hours so it's like a demo already.

However, Steam's refund system is in no way meant to be a "demo system" for games. It seems as those this puts Arkane at Raphael Colantonio a bit at odds.

"You’ve requested a bunch of refunds recently. Please keep in mind that refunds are not a method for trying out games. If we think the refund system is being misused we’ll decline to grant future refunds."


If you have never used Steam's refund system, it has worked in the past for me, however I think I only ever used it once. But if you were not aware that you can "return a game on Steam," now you know.

Colantonio goes on to talk about Prey not being a PC port and makes sure to point out that it is not using the same game engine as Dishonored as well. And he points to bad luck and bad timing being issues as well. The more I hear about Prey, the less excited I get. I think I am going to stand back and let some of you guys be guinea pigs and keep my hard earned cash clutched tightly in my cold untrusting fist this time around. Pre-order my ass.

Here is a look at what I might be missing, but I am just not feeling it. Prey is set to launch on May the 5th.

Check out the video.
 
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I call bullshit on the lack of resources. The consoles are pc-like enough that I don't buy it as an excuse.
 
:rolleyes: What is with all the recent excuse/apology malarkey from these companies? :yuck:

I guess the console peasants get to point the finger at the PC Master Race and pull a tee-hee-hee this time. :meh:
 
It really looks like a generic bioshock, with your prototypical in ear guidance, and strange post modern / sci fi unfold as you explore setting. I haven't read about the story much yet, but you never know if they've penned a gem until a full play through. A lot of the control issues with aiming on a controller with weapons needing to hit fast moving targets will be remedied on PC with KB/Mouse so at least there's that. I used to play multiplayer with the original which was really a fun experience for clan matches so there's a bit of nostalgia however this looks like a shadow of that former MP glory.
 
Buy it for full price on Steam so you qualify for a refund, or roll the dice elsewhere at a discount.
 
oldmanbal said:
It really looks like a generic bioshock, with your prototypical in ear guidance, and strange post modern / sci fi unfold as you explore setting. I haven't read about the story much yet, but you never know if they've penned a gem until a full play through. A lot of the control issues with aiming on a controller with weapons needing to hit fast moving targets will be remedied on PC with KB/Mouse so at least there's that. I used to play multiplayer with the original which was really a fun experience for clan matches so there's a bit of nostalgia however this looks like a shadow of that former MP glory.
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But don't forget, you can turn into a coffee cup. So there's that....
 
played it on my ps4pro, it was interesting but I don't know if that is one of those games I would finish or not. Didn't like the shooting feel to it though. I don't really enjoy the shooting where you have no scope or ADS and you just move the center screen crosshair over the target.
 
Steam is actually pretty relaxed with their return policy as well. I have played a game for 4+ hrs and just told them that at least half of that time was "trying to get the game to work".
 
just because it's not using the same engine as Dishonored 2 doesn't mean it's not going to have the same or worse issues...CryEngine should theoretically have less issues but you never know these days
 
Steam will warn you if you return too many games...saw this post on Steam and just thought i would make you all aware.

This was the message Steam sent a user requesting a refund..."You’ve requested a bunch of refunds recently. Please keep in mind that refunds are not a method for trying out games. If we think the refund system is being misused we’ll decline to grant future refunds."


https://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/1/598199244885640951/
 
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Seems like a pretty slimy business tactic to encourage customers to buy their game and return it so the DD platform takes a hit. I don't agree with that at all.

If they want to stand by and guarantee their product, they should offer the refunds themselves, not encourage the refund through its distributors. I can't think of any other product(s) that says, "you'll just have to try it out yourself and if you don't like it, just return it to Target".
 
ricson said:
Steam will warn you if you return too many games...saw this post on Steam and just thought i would make you all aware.
https://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/1/598199244885640951/
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it's the same with anything you buy...if you abuse the system you will get your rights taken away (whether you are legitimately returning items or not)...return too many shirts to Macy's they will deny your refunds...if you return too many TV's to Best Buy etc etc
 
polonyc2 said:
it's the same with anything you buy...if you abuse the system you will get your rights taken away (whether you are legitimately returning items or not)...return too many shirts to Macy's they will deny your refunds...if you return too many TV's to Best Buy etc etc
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I think it was more of a courtesy FYI from ricson rather than a complaint.
 
Cmustang87 said:
Seems like a pretty slimy business tactic to encourage customers to buy their game and return it so the DD platform takes a hit. I don't agree with that at all.

If they want to stand by and guarantee their product, they should offer the refunds themselves, not encourage the refund through its distributors. I can't think of any other product(s) that says, "you'll just have to try it out yourself and if you don't like it, just return it to Target".
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They may have a deal arranged though. I know with the company I work for, we have some deals worked out where we eat every return and shipping costs. They may have it set up with steam to bill their account for all refunds within that time frame.
 
polonyc2 said:
it's the same with anything you buy...if you abuse the system you will get your rights taken away (whether you are legitimately returning items or not)...return too many shirts to Macy's they will deny your refunds...if you return too many TV's to Best Buy etc etc
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I completely agree, my post was aimed more at the response from Steam "Please keep in mind that refunds are not a method for trying out games. "
 
Cmustang87 said:
If they want to stand by and guarantee their product, they should offer the refunds themselves, not encourage the refund through its distributors. I can't think of any other product(s) that says, "you'll just have to try it out yourself and if you don't like it, just return it to Target".
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isn't that the way it works for most items?...you always return it to the place you bought it from, not to the manufacturer
 
Darunion said:
They may have a deal arranged though. I know with the company I work for, we have some deals worked out where we eat every return and shipping costs. They may have it set up with steam to bill their account for all refunds within that time frame.
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That's possible, but this type of thing isn't normally encouraged/condoned by the manufacturer. Like - returning to the store is generally the implied expectation, but it seems goofy for a manufacturer to tell you "try it out and if you don't like it, just simply return it!"

Companies that normally offer money-back guarantees are done through themselves or another brokered company, etc - sometimes there's even notes inside packaged boxes that tell you NOT to return to the store (boxed furniture being common).
 
polonyc2 said:
isn't that the way it works for most items?...you always return it to the place you bought it from, not to the manufacturer
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Generally yes, that is the implied expectation - I posted a moment later than you on #20 above. So we crossed paths here. Curious to your input.
 
Hard to imagine it being difficult to let you download the first 10% of a game for free...
 
Cmustang87 said:
That's possible, but this type of thing isn't normally encouraged/condoned by the manufacturer. Like - returning to the store is generally the implied expectation, but it seems goofy for a manufacturer to tell you "try it out and if you don't like it, just simply return it!"

Companies that normally offer money-back guarantees are done through themselves or another brokered company, etc - sometimes there's even notes inside packaged boxes that tell you NOT to return to the store (boxed furniture being common).
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Agreed, this is an anomaly for how this usually is handled. I have no experience with the side of digital distribution of goods and the logistics of it. Maybe this is really easy to do, maybe they are just being dicks to steam. I am curious to know.
 
polonyc2 said:
it's the same with anything you buy...if you abuse the system you will get your rights taken away (whether you are legitimately returning items or not)...return too many shirts to Macy's they will deny your refunds...if you return too many TV's to Best Buy etc etc
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Yep I use to abuse GameStop return policy when I was a kid. I bought games and returned them after I beat them within their 10 day return window. After a bunch of times they banned me from doing it. I had to get friends to do it for me afterwards!
 
Cmustang87 said:
That's possible, but this type of thing isn't normally encouraged/condoned by the manufacturer. Like - returning to the store is generally the implied expectation, but it seems goofy for a manufacturer to tell you "try it out and if you don't like it, just simply return it!"

Companies that normally offer money-back guarantees are done through themselves or another brokered company, etc - sometimes there's even notes inside packaged boxes that tell you NOT to return to the store (boxed furniture being common).
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it isn't encouraged by the manufacturer because they don't want to deal with the hassle of a bunch of returned merchandise...returning items to the place where you bought it from is the way it works for the majority of retail items...repairs are almost always done through the manufacturer directly but other then that returns, replacements etc are always through the retailer...so I don't think anything is wrong with Steam offering the refunds themselves...imagine the hassle of going to each different publisher to process refunds for games?
 
Darunion said:
Agreed, this is an anomaly for how this usually is handled. I have no experience with the side of digital distribution of goods and the logistics of it. Maybe this is really easy to do, maybe they are just being dicks to steam. I am curious to know.
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I think they are just being flippant with the actual concern - which is a shame. If there's no structured deal with this, then Steam should call them out on it because it will cost them resources and credit card fees, etc. I dunno - just one of several reasons why it seemed slimy at face value.
 
polonyc2 said:
it isn't encouraged by the manufacturer because they don't want to deal with the hassle of a bunch of returned merchandise...returning items to the place where you bought it from is the way it works for the majority of retail items...repairs are almost always done through the manufacturer directly but other then that returns, replacements etc are always through the retailer
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I don't think you are fully grasping what I'm trying to convey here. When was the last time a company that manufactures a said product just instructs its customers to return to the store if they aren't happy with it? Of course the automatic assumption would be for me or you to go back to Lowes, Walmart, Target, etc. and just return it, but the company that makes the product doesn't tell you to take it back if you don't like it.

You are kind of forcing the hand of the retailer to honor a return policy they may not agree with, and speaking on their behalf - which I think is unfair.
 
At best, this game is a 6. It will have launch issues. This company has not had a bug free release on pc. So yeah. Like Kyle said. Pass until patched and discounted plus boredom.
 
Cmustang87 said:
I don't think you are fully grasping what I'm trying to convey here. When was the last time a company that manufactures a said product just instructs its customers to return to the store if they aren't happy with it? Of course the automatic assumption would be for me or you to go back to Lowes, Walmart, Target, etc. and just return it, but the company that makes the product doesn't tell you to take it back if you don't like it.

You are kind of forcing the hand of the retailer to honor a return policy they may not agree with, and speaking on their behalf.
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you're not forcing the hand of a retailer because every retail store has their own separate return policy...Best Buy is 14 days etc...whether a retailer agrees with a policy is irrelevant, it's the law...I don't understand your point about a manufacturer instructing customers to return items to the retailer...it's implied...what difference does it make if the manufacturer is or isn't telling a customer what to do with a product they no longer want

so I don't think anything is wrong with Steam offering the refunds themselves...imagine the hassle of going to each different publisher to process refunds for games?
 
polonyc2 said:
so I don't think anything is wrong with Steam offering the refunds themselves...imagine the hassle of going to each different publisher to process refunds for games?
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If they offered up a "try and if you don't like it, return it" system - you bet your ass I would take every one of them up on it. EA already does this with Origin - but they have that privilege because they are distributing and selling their OWN games. Steam's refund policy is NOT for trying games and returning if you dont like it.

Steam will flag your account if you request returns at a higher rate than normal. This loops back to my original point - if the Prey publishers would like people to try it for free*, then they should offer the refund themselves.

*purchase of game at full retail price required
 
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Cmustang87 said:
If they offered up a "try and if you don't like it, return it" system - you bet your ass I would take every one of them up on it. EA already does this with Origin - but they have that privilege because they are distributing and selling their OWN games. Steam's refund policy is NOT for trying games and returning if you dont like it.

Steam will flag your account if you request returns at a higher rate than normal. This loops back to my original point - if the Prey publishers wants people to try it for free*, then they should offer the refund themselves.

*purchase of game at full retail price required
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Origin's return policy is pretty much the same as Steam...you just get 24 hours of play time versus Steam's 2 hours...I don't think Origin explicitly states that you can use their return policy to demo games...it's pretty much the same policy as Steam...

http://store.steampowered.com/steam_refunds/

https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/account/returns-and-cancellations/
 
I tried the demo of Dishonored 2 on PS4. While I really liked the premise, I *hated* the huge dead zone in the controller and the crazy limited FOV. Everything looked zoomed in and no amount of fixing would make the controls responsive. Horribly crippled game that made me really cautious of anything from that developer.
 
Steam's refund policy is not for trying games you're on the fence about. Some devs got their shit confused. The refund policy is for people who feel they were cheated by the purchase because they think they didn't get what was advertised.
It's not a demo system. As returning a Tv set to a store isn't about you trying out different tv sets, to choose the one you want. It's about returning something that didn't turn out to be as expected, but you definitely wanted to buy it before you saw it.
 
There was an add with Prey and Vega, so I want to see if this game has the ability to max out modern PC and really crank the graphics. Look forward to a [H] review if it indeed has good graphics post launch.
 
M76 said:
Steam's refund policy is not for trying games you're on the fence about. Some devs got their shit confused. The refund policy is for people who feel they were cheated by the purchase because they think they didn't get what was advertised.
It's not a demo system. As returning a Tv set to a store isn't about you trying out different tv sets, to choose the one you want. It's about returning something that didn't turn out to be as expected, but you definitely wanted to buy it before you saw it.
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Return policies are an insurance system so technically I'd agree. But who hasn't used Steam's return policy like a demo system? I've not done it a lot but have on occasion and I think it's perfectly natural. But of course a demo would normally preclude the need to do this.
 
heatlesssun said:
Return policies are an insurance system so technically I'd agree. But who hasn't used Steam's return policy like a demo system? I've not done it a lot but have on occasion and I think it's perfectly natural. But of course a demo would normally preclude the need to do this.
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I haven't. If I buy a game I'm definitely interested in it. I'd feel bad about buying something I don't even know I want. The insurance is just there for a way out if I make a big mistake.
But I'm not buying games on steam anyway. They charge 60€ for it. When I can pre-order most games for half that on either cdkeys or gmg. Even if one of them turns out bad I'm still no worse off. And I'm not that bad at choosing games that every second one I buy turns out crap.

And I definitely wouldn't feel comfortable buying something on steam and return it and then buy elsewhere cheaper.

So no I never used it to demo games, Even in the one case when I returned a game I felt like an asshole for doing so.
 
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