Copy of the Email I just sent to contact@bioware.com
Dear Bioware.
You seem to know who I am, you've sent me enough email over the years. I am one of your long time customers, I've bought Baldurs Gate 1 and 2 and the expansions, Neverwinter Nights and the content packs for it, Dragon Age and the DLC's for it, Mass Effect one and two and the DLC's, and many other games you've developed.
As someone with a disability I am on a tight budget, if I intend to purchase new games when they first come out then I have to specifically set aside money to pay for them, they are expensive items in my budget, I had set aside the money to pay for Mass Effect 3 and I had pre-orrded the game via Amazon, in the past I have purchased Collectors Editions of games, as a writer and artist I enjoyed looking at the Art Books that came with those games and the other physical items that where included, the cosmetic content that was unlockable in the game was a bonus but not really my reason for purchasing collectors editions.
Today it came to light that you are planning to release a downloadable content pack on the day of release of Mass Effect 3, the same pack is apparently included as part of the Collectors Edition, and is seeming much more than simply the cosmetic extras that are normal practise in a Collectors Edition, and that you intend to charge extra for this already produced content that you included in the Collectors Edition.
In response to our concerns you have made this statement in your forum.
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http://social.biowar...index/9403705/1
"As most of you know, yesterday there was a leak that revealed the upcoming DLC “ME3:From Ashes” on the
Xbox LIVE Marketplace. This leak took place before we were prepared to make an announcement about the details of that pack (slated for this Friday).
There has been a lot of discussion about the DLC offering but we wanted to clarify a few things...
- “From Ashes” includes the Prothean squad mate, an adventure on Eden Prime, a new weapon, and an alternate
appearance for every squad mate. Note that these alternate appearances are in addition to the ones already advertised in the CE.
- The Collectors Edition has been advertised from the beginning as containing a bonus character/mission, but we were not at liberty to provide the details. The Prothean is optional content that is certainly designed to appeal to long-time fans, which is why he is part of the CE offering (the version many fans would be likely to purchase). Mass Effect 3 is a complete – and a huge game - right out of the box.
- The content in “From Ashes” was developed by a separate team (after the core game was finished) and not completed until well after the main game went into certification.
- The Collectors Edition has been sold out in most places for some time now, and is becoming very hard to find (many players prefer not to purchase the digital version). As such, we wanted to make this content available so that SE buyers could also incorporate the Prothean into their game.
We’ll be releasing someimages and video about this pack in the coming days.
As always, we are extremely thankful for all of your support. We pulled out all of the stops to make Mass Effect 3 the best game ever, and we can't wait for you all to experience it.
Mike"
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In effect you are telling us that this was late game development and developed separately, in order to justify charging money for it on the day of release. This is contradicted by the fact that this was known about almost a year ago. This can be demonstrated by this post from that time ..
http://social.biowar...3/index/7551111
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"In the N7 Collector's Edition "Features" caption there's this:
Get the ultimate Mass Effect 3 experience with the N7 Collector's Edition! This exclusive and limited package includes:
• Exclusive N7 fabric patch
• Art book, 70 pages
• Dark Horse ME Series 3 issue 1, with alternate cover art
A full collection of in-game content that can’t be found anywhere else!
• N7 arsenal pack – N7 Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, Pistol and SMG
• Squad-mate alternate appearance pack
• Normandy mechdog companion
• Shepard casual appearance– N7 hoodie
• Exclusive extended soundtrack
• Exclusive 4x6 lithograph
• Day 1 DLC – the Prothean (Adventure/Character)
• XBL Normandy Avatar
• Exclusive forum, social avatars, badges and perks
So.....
Reactions? Thoughts?"
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and the reply from you ..
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Sorry, that was a mistake from old text. It is being removed. Hate to be a killjoy.
Oh wait... no I don't. smilie
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So , this was obviously not late game content that was developed separately when you had some time to spare after the Game had gone gold, this was something you had planned to be released on day one and charge extra for, with lore and storyline relevant content that your most loyal customers, who had played the previous two games, would most want, and planned for some considerable time in what seems to be a very cynical corporate decision to get extra money from your most loyal customers for something that should and could have been included in the game itself or offered as a code to those who bought the new version of the game instead of buying second hand.
I dislike companies that cynically try and milk extra cash from the cows (Before you joined up with EA I think we used to be referred to as the community, now we seem to be cows with $ signs painted on the sides), for things that could easily have been included as part of the, already very expensive, game, and I *reallly* dislike companies that blatantly lie to their customers or trick their own employees into making false statements by withholding information from them.
On reflection, despite my desire to see the conclusion of this saga, I have regrettably cancelled my order and will almost certainly no longer buy any future products from your company, entangled as you have become with the cynical Corporate practices of Electronic Arts, something you and they explicitly promised would not happen, when the merger happened we as a community where told that EA would treat Bioware differently, this has obviously not been the case.
If you are wondering if there is anything that can be done to retain my business, I would consider purchasing the game if you release the DLC freely, as something that should have been in the game already, this is the only way you can regain my custom and go slightly towards regaining my trust in you as a company separate from EA.
Yours Regretfully.
A customer since the beginning of your Company.
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