Earlier today we reported that gamers in the US and Australia were having multiple problems with the Catwoman DLC for Batman: Arkham City, including the game shipping with no code. Those who have emailed Warner Brothers customer support ([email protected] or [email protected]) have been asked to provide the following:
- A dated proof of purchase (receipt, invoice) showing the purchase of a NEW copy of the game (not a rented or used copy, nor a copy purchased from eBay).
- Your gamertag for Xbox Live, or your profile for the PSN.
- Your email address.
- A scan or digital picture of the package and game disc(s).
- A scan or digital picture of the code sheet (both sides).
- Your first born child, £3000 in unmarked bills, a video of you dancing the Fandango and Megan Fox’s phone number.*
Once these items have been supplied you should receive a working code for the Catwoman DLC which you can then download and watch as it corrupts so you cannot play the game at all.
In related news, Warner Bros has admitted that some Collector’s Editions have been shipped out with a DVD copy of Gotham Knight, rather than Blu-ray as was originally advertised.
Gamers in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium have now started reporting missing codes.
Friday will be very interesting.
Source: Joystiq / MCV / Batman Forums
* Not true. Yet.
TSBonyman
Ridiculous that they expect people to go through such hoops to get what they paid for. I won’t even buy this new at a discount, i’ll just pick it up second hand in a few months time.
The Lone Steven
So i take it that sending the retailers is too much to ask for Warner then?
How the hell did they feck up so badly? i mean, didn’t they check before sending it out? I guess profits is more important then delievering the correct and working content. :-/
jikomanzoku
I honestly don’t reckon they had time to test it. It seems entirely plausible to me, that the decision to do this, was so last minute that they hacked the catwoman section out of the campaign with a knife and cobbled it into a “DLC” pack so hurriedly that they didn’t have time to test it adequately.
But as you so rightly point out, they (WB) don’t care, they’ve got their cash and as Hazel says earlier in the thread – it’s the consumer who suffers.
The only save-face solution for me here, was, as others have said, to abandon the scheme and give away what should have been included in the first place – a la Driver/Ubisoft.
jikomanzoku
The shame for Rocksteady here comes (for me) from the fact that they facilitated this whole bloody mess and didn’t oppose it.
hunterstryfe
So then, people like me are screwed. I occassionally buy NEW from ebay (not good enough for WB) and I don’t own a digital camera OR scanner (I have a laptop) so if I was to buy and it was buggered I would essentially be buying a full price NEW title that is technically as useful as a pre owned I’ll be able to pick up for half the price in a month or so. Think I’ll wait till price drops:)
hazelam
and i’ll bet they’ll be surprised when this is the most pirated game of the year.
and use it as an excuse for even more restrictive schemes.
i’ll bet there will be pirate versions available with all the catwoman content before they even bother sending out these replacement codes.
TheDeathAvenger
I think this is a terrible way of handling the situation.
It’s kind of like something getting damaged or the wrong item sent through the post and you having to spend the time informing the seller what has happened, finding out where to send it to, pay to sent it back, send them proof of the cost of postage, to eventually get your item replaced and postage costs refunded. It’s not your fault, so having to jump through hoops to get to where you should have been in the first place seems ridiculous.
I would have thought that someone would have noticed this, whether it was just after the codes where (meant to have been) printed, or the people putting everything inside the case. If people were involved, how come the blank code sheets weren’t identified then. If people weren’t and it’s all automated, shouldn’t there be procedures in place to check this kind of thing. I’ve never heard of disc being sent out without the game on them.
psychobudgie
Didn’t the exact same issue occur with MK resulting in them having to enable online for everyone. Warner seem to have an issue with their distributor.
I love it when the online pass goes horribly wrong. Just reinforces how stupid ideas can go spectacularly wrong.
KellynLevy
Warner Bros. just stick to making films please. they just fail so hard in the games industry.
KellynLevy
I also think the best solution right now, is if you’ve preordered the game and are afraid that your copy might get screwed. then just play the game without the DLC for now, and then when all this has blown over, get your DLC’s downloaded and installed when the patch fixes have been launched. I will do this, I will not have my experience of this game ruined because of a shoddy last minute hack job.
psychobudgie
You will though, as the DLC apparently ties into the beginning of the game.
KellynLevy
Well yes I would like to play the DLC, and i know my experience will probably be trashed if i dont play the DLC. But, seeing all this BS going on, Id rather just avoid it and play the game without and wait until I know for sure that this wont happen when I get mine. I live in Europe and my game is due tomorrow. Hopefully no problems here, but if I come across any I’ll definitely let you guys know. I may be barking up the wrong tree but I’ve been reading all these cock ups since this last minute venture was mentioned.
wait… did you say if I play the game without the DLC the problems may still persist? if so, I just wont play my copy until all the updates and patches have been released. Sucks, but I’d rather wait and be able to play my game, rather than rush into it and get screwed over.
jikomanzoku
I hope when your copy arrives everything goes smoothly for you mate.
I’d advise leaving it in the cellophane so you can send it back (saying unwanted birthday gift etc), should there be a 1st hand price drop prior to everything getting fixed to your satisfaction.
Then pick it up again with your refund and pocket the change. No way you should be out of pocket because of having to wait out their mess ups mate.
hazelam
this is a very loose definition of the word “solution” i feel. ^_^
Kaminari
Hopefully the 18€ Platinum edition released in six months will be shit-free.