DEAD: Half-Life 2: The Orange Box for about $17

[IEC]

Question
I receive a message stating I cannot play because my game was registered with a CD Key that is not available in my territory?

Answer
If you are receiving the message that the game is not available in your territory please contact the retailer you purchased the game from to return the game.

This is B$ from Valve, because their selling point for Steam and Steam-based games is that you can buy the game, associate the game with an account, and then play ANYWHERE on ANY PC with an Internet connection. Their region distinctions are artificial. There is nothing in the ToS which prohibits you from buying the game in one country and playing in another (except maybe the "God" clause which gives them the supposed right to deactivate/terminate anything for basically whatever reason they feel). Anyways, lots of angry people on fatwallet as well:

http://www.fatwallet.com/forum...eadid=772041&start=300

Valve is going to get some nasty phone calls... and maybe a few letters from attorneys...

 

[JBT]

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner

Question
I receive a message stating I cannot play because my game was registered with a CD Key that is not available in my territory?

Answer
If you are receiving the message that the game is not available in your territory please contact the retailer you purchased the game from to return the game.

This is B$ from Valve, because their selling point for Steam and Steam-based games is that you can buy the game, associate the game with an account, and then play ANYWHERE on ANY PC with an Internet connection. Their region distinctions are artificial. There is nothing in the ToS which prohibits you from buying the game in one country and playing in another (except maybe the "God" clause which gives them the supposed right to deactivate/terminate anything for basically whatever reason they feel). Anyways, lots of angry people on fatwallet as well:

http://www.fatwallet.com/forum...eadid=772041&start=300

Valve is going to get some nasty phone calls... and maybe a few letters from attorneys...

agreed. I don't see how they can take away a game. Sure I can see them not activating anymore, but those of us who have already been playing all the sudden uprooted and having to go back to where we purchased asking for a refund is bunk...

 

[JBT]

Just got my $24 refund back via paypal from seksun.

 

[ajchun]

i just got my refund from seskun. i hope they don't lose out too much on this because of valve.

 

[duzytata]

Dammit. I just beat portal, I was replaying though Half Life 2, and I wanted to fire up some team fortress and bam. All the games registered to my Steam account are gone. They should not be doing this to paying customers. They'll be getting an angry phone call from me. Now it appears my Steam account has been banned as well. I can't log in or anything.

edit Valve's contact information:

Text

 

[Navid]

Hi!
Valve (Steam) has stopped accepting CD KEY from Asia.
We will refund the amount back to your credit card.
We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused.
Warmest regards,
www.zest.co.th

 

[IEC]

.

 

[tvdang7]

does the ecrater.com link still work?

 

[Pwntcomputer]

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner
I got a full refund as well. I hope these guys weren't too badly hit by Valve

Valve, big F*#ks to you.

I know. How dare they create an awesome package and ask full price!!!! WTF is wrong with them? Closing that glitch in the system.....what were they thinking?

 

[murderburger]

The keys they sold were legal. There was never anything in the Eula or Tos about keys being region specific. This was not a glitch but a change of terms after the fact. I didn't pay for CS:source, what if Steam suddenly took that game away from my "games" list because I got it with Half Life2 rather than paying retail price for it. I can understand why customers are angry.

This is not much different than traveling to a foreign country and buying a pc game they don't sell in the US market. So you can't consider it a glitch. I might have also purchased from these sites but I kinda figured Steam would screw them somehow, so I waited. Thank god for procrastination.

 

[IEC]

.

 

[Elixer]

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner

Originally posted by: Pwntcomputer

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner
I got a full refund as well. I hope these guys weren't too badly hit by Valve

Valve, big F*#ks to you.

I know. How dare they create an awesome package and ask full price!!!! WTF is wrong with them? Closing that glitch in the system.....what were they thinking?

It isn't a glitch. It's like buying a PC game legitimately from another country and then having them invalidate your key after the fact because they don't like that you paid less than full retail price. Never mind that the ToS never prohibited it. Of course, at CC and a few other B&M places you can get it for ~$37... still $13 less than Valve wants for a digital copy over Steam... Steam should be LOWERING distribution costs, not selling for MORE than a retail box.

Also, GTFO out of this thread. Rubbing salt in peoples' sore spots isn't a good way to make friends... and shows your level of maturity.

More or less, Valve is doing what the MPAA has been doing for a long time. Region coding. They just didn't bother to tell anyone about this.
It is pretty pathetic of Valve to do this in a manner which screws people who never knew about this. They should have said from this day on, we have region coding.

Steam has (and always will be) pretty much MSRP. They say if they go lower, then retailers will get "mad". Even if the retailers don't carry the game anymore, it is still higher priced on steam, than say Gogamer,
isgust;

 

[IEC]

Originally posted by: Elixer

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner

Originally posted by: Pwntcomputer

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner
I got a full refund as well. I hope these guys weren't too badly hit by Valve

Valve, big F*#ks to you.

I know. How dare they create an awesome package and ask full price!!!! WTF is wrong with them? Closing that glitch in the system.....what were they thinking?

It isn't a glitch. It's like buying a PC game legitimately from another country and then having them invalidate your key after the fact because they don't like that you paid less than full retail price. Never mind that the ToS never prohibited it. Of course, at CC and a few other B&M places you can get it for ~$37... still $13 less than Valve wants for a digital copy over Steam... Steam should be LOWERING distribution costs, not selling for MORE than a retail box.

Also, GTFO out of this thread. Rubbing salt in peoples' sore spots isn't a good way to make friends... and shows your level of maturity.

More or less, Valve is doing what the MPAA has been doing for a long time. Region coding. They just didn't bother to tell anyone about this.
It is pretty pathetic of Valve to do this in a manner which screws people who never knew about this. They should have said from this day on, we have region coding.

Steam has (and always will be) pretty much MSRP. They say if they go lower, then retailers will get "mad". Even if the retailers don't carry the game anymore, it is still higher priced on steam, than say Gogamer,
isgust;

I can get the Orange Box for $42.69 shipped after tax from CircuitCity.com

There's just something horribly wrong when a B&M/online store sells for $10+ less than Valve does shortly after release. Call me a cheap a$$, but I don't like paying retail for anything. Comes with the territory when you're in college I suppose.

 

[AMDZen]

Well I had the same problem, luckily I got my refund

 

[Schfifty Five]

All you people angry at Valve, do you think maybe it's possible that all those CDKEYs were stolen somehow? If that were the case, then Valve would NOT be making any money and all the $17 or $24 you guys spent would be pure profit to the people who stole those games/CDKeys.

If that is true (which I have aboslutely no idea), then I would side with Valve for trying to stop people from buying shady deals.

 

[you2]

It is possible they were stolen but very likely not.

 

[motoxpress]

Not to mention the fact that you are getting # games for the price of one at $50. Come on, stop your whining.

-mx

 

[you2]

The problem is how valve bundle things - portal+ep2 is only worth $10 or $15. But you can't find them in a retail package where they might be discounted. You can only obtain them from valve website where they cost $30+ for 8 hour of game time. I had hoped they would come out with the so call black box then just wait a while for a decent deal. Anyways - i for one am passing on ep2/portal (I already have ep1/hl2 and no interest in tf2). Value is a relative thing - I purchased ep1 for $10 @ cc but alas will be unable to do this for ep2.

 

[dehemke]

I am really getting tired of products being offered at different prices in different parts of the world when artificial means are used to prevent the entire globe from benefiting from the lowest cost. I don't care whether its video game keys or prescription drugs, it is teh suXXor.

 

[tvdang7]

Originally posted by: dehemke
I am really getting tired of products being offered at different prices in different parts of the world when artificial means are used to prevent the entire globe from benefiting from the lowest cost. I don't care whether its video game keys or prescription drugs, it is teh suXXor.

not every country's form of money is worth the same thats why. do u expect poor parts of the world to pay our prices?

 

[AMDZen]

Originally posted by: murderburger
The keys they sold were legal. There was never anything in the Eula or Tos about keys being region specific. This was not a glitch but a change of terms after the fact. I didn't pay for CS:source, what if Steam suddenly took that game away from my "games" list because I got it with Half Life2 rather than paying retail price for it. I can understand why customers are angry.

This is not much different than traveling to a foreign country and buying a pc game they don't sell in the US market. So you can't consider it a glitch. I might have also purchased from these sites but I kinda figured Steam would screw them somehow, so I waited. Thank god for procrastination.

I have written a letter to this effect and sent it to Valve asking that they reactivate my games. I'll update if anything comes to fruition. I addressed the letter to Jason Holtman of their legal dept. We'll see.

 

[intogamer]

Originally posted by: Pwntcomputer

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner
I got a full refund as well. I hope these guys weren't too badly hit by Valve

Valve, big F*#ks to you.

I know. How dare they create an awesome package and ask full price!!!! WTF is wrong with them? Closing that glitch in the system.....what were they thinking?

I wouldn't consider it as a "glitch" Because they are maximizing profits worldwide.

You would rather sell in a country to get a 'lower profit' rather than none at all.

 

[Ika]

Originally posted by: tvdang7

Originally posted by: dehemke
I am really getting tired of products being offered at different prices in different parts of the world when artificial means are used to prevent the entire globe from benefiting from the lowest cost. I don't care whether its video game keys or prescription drugs, it is teh suXXor.

not every country's form of money is worth the same thats why. do u expect poor parts of the world to pay our prices?

Um... yeah? Tech prices overseas are usually more expensive than in the US...

 

[duzytata]

They weren't responding to emails about a refund so I opened a claim with PayPal and had my refund back overnight. I still don't like the fact that Valve locked out paying customers, but at least I got my money back.

 

[duzytata]

This issue has hit the consumerist

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