The rather unexpected Activision / Call of Duty news splurge continues with the announcement that Independent U.K. gaming pressure group GamersVoice are to report Activision to the Office of Fair Trading regarding what they describe as the ‘buggy and unfinished’ PlayStation 3 and PC versions of Black Ops.
GamersVoice issued an open letter to Activision which explains that they have been ‘inundated with complaints from people who have bought copies of Call of Duty: Black Ops.’ The letter asked Activision to reply within a month, they have not so the pressure group is proceeding with further action. Chris O’Regan, Head of Industry Relations at Gamers’ Voice, has said:
“As a result of their inaction we will test the might of government agencies against Activision. We can only hope this brings about some litigious action. These agencies do exist to protect our rights as consumers, let us see if they can fullfill their remit on this pressing issue.”
“GV wish to set an example with Activision to ensure games are not released in an unfinished state. If litigation is initiated, then a precedent would be set. In other words, publishers will have to reconsider releasing unfinished code in the future, in the UK at least.”
The full letter of complaint to Activision is below:
Dear Sir/Madam,
Gamers’ Voice is a consumer advice and lobbyist group that represents the video game consumer in the UK. As part of our remit we are tasked to ensure that the purchasers of video games are given a fair hearing when they have a particular issue with a game they have bought. It is for this reason we are contacting you now as we have been inundated with complaints from people who have bought copies of Call of Duty: Black Ops. They all concern the Playstation 3 console and PC versions of the game.
The complaints range from freezing when a new map is being loaded, locking up of PS3’s and PC’s while running the game, inability to log into multiplayer matches and connection drops mid game. None of this apparently applies to the Xbox 360 version, which is clearly the lead platform for the title.
It is quite obvious that you have focussed a majority of your QA on the Xbox 360 version with the assumption that the majority of people who play the game will do so on that system. Despite this, you have chosen to release it on multiple formats to maximise the revenue from sales of the game. By doing so evidence suggests that little attention was paid to the platforms with a smaller install base and hence a reduction in QA being employed for these versions.
It is now that your valuable customer base is bearing the brunt of this short sighted act of crass profiteering on your part, for that is exactly what this is. You have pushed out a game that is broken to the point of it not fulfilling its function as a piece of entertainment. Reading from the back of the game’s box, we quote:
“Epic single-player, acclaimed multiplayer and 4 player co-op Zombies”
What this tag line fails to have is the caveat that this only applies if you are playing the Xbox 360 version. None of this will be experienced by the purchaser of the PS3 and PC ports for they do not actually function as intended.
We therefore request that you offer by way of explanation to us why this has occurred and, more importantly, what are you going to do to recompense your customer base? You have one calendar month to respond to this letter. If no response is received or your retort fails to treat this issue with the gravity it deserves, we will be forced to take matters further.
Source: Gamersvoice / IncGamers
cc_star
Never had a single problem with it. Surely if it was broken, everybody would experience problems rather than just a section of users? Add that section to bandwagon jumpers with an agenda & those people who think they’re superior by not liking something that’s popular and we have the over-whelming noise we have here.
bunimomike
Bugs can surface for a variety of reasons and even though the core hardware is the same, you might find some rear their ugly heads because of external hardware (the way you connect to the internet, etc). However, I didn’t think there was any COD hating going on here, to be fair. I just think it’s good that publishers sit up and take note when something is particularly bug-ridden. Wasn’t Mass Effect 2 wall-to-wall bugs? If so, it’s been noted in the press enough and the developers will be acutely aware of bad press. No one wants bad press (okay, people prefer good press, then bad press, then no press) :-).
beeje13
Try playing online lol. Disconnections, lag and one unbalanced SMG which causes lots of problems.
Mainly it’s the people playing which ruin it – campers, they seem to forget it’s a game. I like rushing, it worked for the first few months while people were getting adjusted, same could be said for mw2, got high kills, low deaths simply because I was confident against someone face to face (so to speak).
Second chance is shocking. Everywhere on the CoD forums, many hundreds of threads are started with the intention of getting treyarch to get rid of it, yet no dev listens.
quinkill
“Surely if it was broken, everybody would experience problems rather than just a section of users?”
well no, clearly there have been enough complaints to warrant this kind of action. just because you’ve not had any problems doesn’t mean others havent. Like me :/
Jas-n
I haven;t experienced any problems that are in the game, but why should 360 users get something that the PS3 can handle just as well?
Jas-n
However, as least we get 3D, so that’s something the 360 doesn’t get that PC and PS3 users can get.
cc_star
360 has 3D, although it could be argued that that only works properly on the PC
BG123
‘bandwagon jumpers with an agenda & those people who think they’re superior by not liking something that’s popular’
LOL, it’s hilariously hypocritical when blind COD fanboys spew crap like this, call of duty IS a bandwagon and is the ‘cool’ thing. hahaha!
and I also LOVE this bitch-fight between IW and activision, It’s great seeing the companies responsible for ruining gaming with never-ending brainless online FPS’ all at each others throats. Shame Microsoft isn’t in on the affray.
cc_star
You’re seriously calling me a blind CoD fanboy? I’ll give that the careful & considered reply that trolling like that deserves…. and just not bother.
Ridiculous troll is ridiculous
MegaBonez
I didn’t have the game for a month before getting rid of it! I was pretty annoyed at paying the same price as 360 users but for an inferior product. Activision should face some fallout for this!!
PoolieMike
I’m like cc_star, racked up about a day and a half of playtime and the only host migration I’ve seen is when I was pounding him into the ground so he quit :D
but yeah, not had a single issue with online connectivity or anything. It’s never frozen on me, either.
So..I’m meh about the lawsuit.
MEH.
quinkill
that’s great, but what about others who do have problems. no offence, but people seem to be so insular in their opinions on this website. Surely making these kind of complaints/lawsuits will make for a better experience in future games FOR EVERYONE!!!!! (that’s if these devs learn their lessons)
PoolieMike
MEH.
;)
quinkill
good point.
Colinbarr66
The game works generally fine for me, brilliant game overall. I’ve had the occasional disconnect but I’ve had much worse experiences (Army of Two, FIFA, Kane and Lynch and WWE were awful online). .
If people want to complain about Black Ops not working then they need to take a look at Modern Warfare 2, it’s pretty much unplayable now.
lukieboy1981
I still get freezes on the game everyday which is very annoying, I continue to play and enjoy the game but I am very glad an organisation is getting involved. I think FattyUK misses the point, yes nothing may come of this but I for one am glad someone is taking a stand.
fattyuk
My point is quite simple.
People make a noise, but nobody is listening,
bigdon23
I think (or hoping) they should give ps3 and pc users the 1st map pack for free as an apology
fattyuk
:| apology?
My cod has been fine,i don’t need an apology.
solidsteven
That’s a good one.Acti caring about their customers. They will most likely give PS3 and PC users an overpriced map pack that will break PSN and whatever service is used for the pc version.
llcj112
Not suprised about this, alot of my friends that use this on the PS3, have told me about these problems. Glad someone has gone to the publishers directly!
rick_x
This would be great if legislation is passed to stop faulty/bug ridden games being released. To all those people saying it didn’t affect me stop whinging, carry the analogy over to almost any other consumer item e.g. cooker – well it gassed one family to death but hey it works for every one else so never mind; hell even cheap 99p kiddies toys get recalled if there’s even a stitch that could be a problem – these are all faults. Admittedly safety ones but faults nonetheless. Hell it might even get Bethesda/Obsidian to get their finger out and actually QA their games before release….
Jones81
the whole black ops situation is a joke. i bought my copy from gamestation, after numerous problems and frequent hard resets i decided enough was enough.
i checked the article regarding consumer standards saying you should be entitled to a full refund on a buggy game from a retailer, i then contacted gamestation and quoted this, after some discussion and the manager blaming the server providers, i pointed out that if i have a problem with a product i take this up with the point of sale, who should then take it up with their distributer directly. they then relented and gave me a credit note for the full £45 i paid. this must set some kind of precedent?
fight the power!
fattyuk
Not really, as game station would of just stuck it straight onto there 2nd hand shelf.
Seriously what are gamestation going to say?
“Dear activision, Someone didn’t like you’re game, thanks for making us hundreds of thousands of pounds though, please keep it up. Bye”