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[Sappho]

Gah... I really, *really* wish I would stop seeing people translate "I don't like short games" into "short games are bad." There is more to a game than its length. Some games have a point to make, they make it really, really well in an hour, and to make it longer would just be padding it for no reason. And plenty of people enjoy these short games without complaining that they didn't take enough hours to finish. People who don't like short games should go ahead and not buy short games, but PLEASE stop suggesting that they are inherently inferior or should disappear altogether.

In any case, I do believe that people like me who enjoy and seek out short, clever games (as long as they are cheap) are definitely less likely to be the ones abusing the refund system. If people were buying games not realizing they were short, then getting angry because they couldn't get their money back, then I guess they should go ahead and get their money back. That doesn't mean game devs should never make short games or that they deserve to go out of business or something. I guess it just means that now they will get their money from the people genuinely interested in the short games (and willing to spend a dollar or two on them) rather than getting that extra padding from people who demand X hours of play for the game to be worth buying, which I guess is fair.

If you really believe that a short game isn't worth buying, give Ephemerid a shot. Beatable in about 45 minutes, worth every second, and exactly as long as it should be. If you don't like it, you can just get your money back now I guess. And then there are games like To The Moon, which takes about 3 hours to beat and is widely regarded as a masterpiece. As long as the game isn't falsely advertised as taking a lot of time to beat, I truly cannot comprehend why anyone has a problem with them being available.

[Dansmithers]

has anybody else actually gotten a refund yet? I placed a request, but never got any reply as to whether it went through.

[Moghjubar]

For those 2hr or less games and completion... or at least a major completion %, I think we definitely need a Judge Judy "Ate the Steak" rule.  You don't get to ask for a refund for something you ate, only something you nibbled on.

[a1s]

Look, I don't like (well, Toady doesn't) to say this, but any game can be pirated. If you really wanted to play that $5 game without playing so badly, you always could (any video game that ends up costing more per hour of game play than Interstellar is a rip-off. I'm looking right at you Gone Esther).
This goes triple for EA- it's supposed to be about good will from the player base. Treating the player base as cash-cows and the game as a free demo violates the unwritten agreement. (And, frankly, with the way that's been going, we're due)

[Malus]

has anybody else actually gotten a refund yet? I placed a request, but never got any reply as to whether it went through.

I submitted a refund request for Mechs & Mercs: Black Talons and it took 3 days to process and get accepted. I'm still waiting on the funds, but they should be in my Steam wallet "shortly". Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the whole thing; I bought the game 5 months ago, so I wasn't expecting much to begin with.

[Dansmithers]

has anybody else actually gotten a refund yet? I placed a request, but never got any reply as to whether it went through.

I submitted a refund request for Mechs & Mercs: Black Talons and it took 3 days to process and get accepted. I'm still waiting on the funds, but they should be in my Steam wallet "shortly". Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the whole thing; I bought the game 5 months ago, so I wasn't expecting much to begin with.

i submitted mine on Tuesday and haven't gotten any word on it

[penguinofhonor]

.

[stabbymcstabstab]

I just refunded the New Order since in look like potato on my computer.(lighting glitches EVERYWHERE!) it take one to seven days for the refund according to the email.

[Urist McScoopbeard]

I would like to confirm with you all, I HAVE received my refund.

[lavenders2]

has anybody else actually gotten a refund yet? I placed a request, but never got any reply as to whether it went through.

I placed mine yesterday for Gal Civ 3, was processed and accepted within an hour.
I am still waiting on the funds, although I think it should be in my account by the sale. Only yesterday were people starting to see some money from the refund system according to various sites I saw. If you go to your account to see your balance and what you have bought on steam, it should show you the pending funds that will get added to your account eventually.

[IronyOwl]

Refund for Hero Generations was accepted.

[Moghjubar]

Hrmm... how does steam track playtime when you play in offline mode anyway? Couldn't someone just offline mode and delete shit before going back online and claim refund?

[Sean Mirrsen]

Hrmm... how does steam track playtime when you play in offline mode anyway? Couldn't someone just offline mode and delete shit before going back online and claim refund?

Offline mode still tracks usage, so long as you launch it through Steam. The only way around it is to launch the game directly from its install folder, bypassing Steam entirely, and not all games allow that sort of thing. It'll certainly be a moot point for the Steambox, which I'm suspecting this whole thing is really about.

[Malus]

Hrmm... how does steam track playtime when you play in offline mode anyway? Couldn't someone just offline mode and delete shit before going back online and claim refund?

In theory, there's almost certainly a way for users to do that, yeah. But if you're going around and hex editing files, you might as well pirate the game in the first place. Legally speaking, it's just as dubious. If you want to download, play, and enjoy games without giving the developers anything, you can already do that, and Steam's refund policy isn't making it easier. There's a chance your refund request will be denied, or if you do it too much, your ability to get any refund (even legitimate ones!) will be locked out. Even if your refund is accepted, it still takes almost a week to get your funds, and they only go into your Steam wallet anyway.

People who try to figure out a way to "game the system" are missing the point. You want to game the system? It's called The Pirate Bay. Or you could just, you know, support devs who make good software and encourage the creation of more.

[Moghjubar]

The only way around it is to launch the game directly from its install folder, bypassing Steam entirely, and not all games allow that sort of thing.

Or just stay offline and restore steam install to a backup you made before playing?

Edit: on piracy: yea, but this is the asshole way to do things... and you cant get in trouble with the law for it so.... gonna happen. A lot.