The Sorrow of a LONG time GW Player

MY MAIN QUESTIONS ARE:
-do people think anet is screwing over the customers that bought from real store?
-do people think anet is screwing over the real stores that purchase enourmous amounts of copies?
-will anyone ever buy from a real store again?

Below - my rant on the topic....

WELL, WELL, WELL

The new, little expansion pack is out!!

I just want to make sure I have the facts right...

1.The new expansion is ONLY for those that bought from the online store.
2.Other players can NEVER get one of the new weapons because they are customized, as well as the books.
3.Loyal players, fans, CUSTOMERS are locked out because we pre-ordered the day NF came out from a REAL LIFE STORE.... even BEFORE we ever knew about this pack!
4.If there were NO real stores for Prophecies & Factions, GW would be half the size it is today, if that [not a fact, just an observation. Not sure EXACTLY when online store opened up]. If there was an expansion pack - a free one at that - NOBODY WOULD HAVE BOUGHT FROM A REAL STORE.

My question is, ARE THEY REALLY SCREWING LOYAL CUSTOMERS and the stores that sell the game? Is there anyone else out there that is pissed off as well? Will you ever buy from a real life store again?

I don't think I will buy another GW from a store, if I even buy GW2. Do you think Game Stop [or another retailer], who probably orders a million copies, will appreciate this?

Being honest, I ask this because I am pissed off I have NO way to participate in this new part of GW. I think everyone would have bought it from the online store.
But I think people are being penalized [extra expansion = enjoyment of the game] for pre-ordering NFall the day it came out.
THANKS ANET


Comment or flame at WILL! I really want to know how other people feel about this...

Um, i bought gwen and got the BMP .. i mean, u had months to buy it.. not like it was a last min thing.. they did skill packs, char slots. just buy useless stuff like that. if you dont want to .. then u dont want the bmp.

try here, many many thoughts about it.

http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/s...php?t=10217538

Correct. There was a one or two month window to purchase.. $29, I believe it was, worth of merchandise from the GW online store to qualify for the BMP. However, it's extreme flattery to call it an expansion. It's a set of four replayable mini-missions with rewards.

Incorrect. Players with access to the BMP can access up to 3 uncustomized books per story per account, if I understand correctly. I have yet to redeem one of the uncustomized books, but I hear they may somehow be customized to the account.

The pack was available up to a month before the release of Eye of the North and a few weeks afterward. Buying EotN in the online store was an easy way to qualify. Some players made the choice to buy EotN from a real store for the book and case, but that was their choice. You can still buy character slots and unlock packs in the store to qualify.
Again, it's not an expansion.

Anet made the game, and if we buy the game directly from them they get the full purchase price instead of having to sell it to a middleman. Therefore it's profitable for Anet to promote the online store.

BMP has nothing to do with NF.

This is similar to some retail store offering a free "whatever" for buying this product from their store. If you bought the product somewhere else or you missed the deadline to purchase it then you are SOL.
I think the only people that can complain about this are the ones that could not purchase from the online store for whatever reason.
You screwed up, short and simple, now live with it.

Sigh...there's a million whine posts about this already.

I would say search, but you didn't even need to do that. It's all over the first page.

I really don't understand how NF has anything to do with this at all.

Weapon damage is not dependent on skin. At risk of sounding like a cynic, this is a vanity purchase, and we 'long time' GW players are not hindered one bit by not buying it.

You can't sell the books, or the weapons, so you aren't missing out on some tremendous gain anyway.

tbh, I don't see the cause for all the whining. anet will probably sell the bonus mission pack for like 5-10$ in the online store soon anyways... and if you complain about spending an extra 5 or 10 dollars to get it, then you must not want it as bad as your posts are indicating...

Can someone put this in form of a question?

antheus - i asked a couple questions:
-do people think anet is screwing over the customers that bought from real store
-do people think anet is screwing over the real stores that purchase enourmous amounts of copies

seandom
-i would spend a few bucks, $5-10, [maybe not $20 for 4 small mission and skins] or whatever for some extra content

onerabbit:
-i preordered gwen the day it came out, paid in full

flubber:
-thanks, am reading
gn
GD Defender:
-thanks for comments
-i am fully unlocked through pvp faction, have 2 accounts - and i think all bought from real store. guess 3 extra character slots if i want.
-i know that GWEN [i mistakenly put NF] is not 'tied' to this 'expansion', but i had already ordered everything [and paid for it] before this 'pack' was announced.
-from everyone online - every book and weapon is customized...unfortunately... but i also want to do the extra storylines..

to tomarrow:
-this is a LOT different than a free minipet or weapon
-you are kinda missing the point, if people knew about the bonus, everyone would have bought online - correct?
having said that, if all BOUGHT online, how would a store like game stop feel - how would the relationship be with anet in the future?
-lol, i screwed up buying gwen from people that keep anet in business.. hmmm
-i dont have to 'live with it' i can buy char slots [ones i dont need!], if i like.


ANYHOW, AS MENTIONED, THERE ARE OTHER POSTS LIKE THIS... MY MAIN QUESTIONS ARE now AT THE TOP OF THE FIRST POST. THANKS

.. I'm not even sure what he's complaining about honestly. I think he believes the BMP is a full-on expansion and is complaining about not having qualified.

EDIT: Nevermind.

EDIT2: You can't buy character slots to qualify anymore. At this point you're out of luck.

Well, there are other circumstances that can stop people getting the BMP! Like mine, I couldn't use my credit card at the time because I was, and still am, in the middle of sorting out a major problem. Some complete **** in Brazil has cloned my card and racked up just shy of £18,000 credit!

So, even though I'd have been perfectly happy to shell out on say three new character slots to qualify for the BMP I couldn't!

No. The terms were plainly written.
No. The future is digital, real stores are obsolete - let them figure out how to deal with it.
No. Haven't bought a box for years, digital download is much more convenient, not to mention faster, especially for new releases.

In other words, no screwing is going on.

THE FUTURE IS NOW

No anet is not screwing over us. For most of the games that were bought in stores, you could ge tthe pre-orders. In the online store, you couldn't. I don't see how this is any different. As said previously, the terms were pretty clear. I chose not to get the box, map etc.

So basically, it came down to choosing between the map posters etc. or the BMP. I would have liked the map too but i didn't whine that they couldn't send me one by mail if i ordered online.

Again it's all a matter of choice. The only thing that could make you mad is having to use a credit card.

As for the store part, they know it's part of the business. How do you thing stores feel about steam and the games sold there this isn't that much different.

Yes i will buy from a real store as well as will buy form online stores.

do people think anet is screwing over the customers that bought from real store?

No. They had a special promotion. Every time you logged in the game, bam... it was right there, you click, you read, you decide... Do I want to spend 30 bucks on line and get this FREE promotion? I chose yes. I ordered GWEN. Had I preordered it somewhere else, I would have probably bought something else.

The problem here is, people that READ the promotion, decided NOT to spend the money, and HOPED if they whined long and loud enough, ANET would give them the same promotion, are now wanting to have what I got FREE because I spent money on their online store.

-do people think anet is screwing over the real stores that purchase enourmous amounts of copies?

Ummmm how so? The BMP was free. If you mean GWEN, lots of people like you, bought it in real stores.

How many "waaaaaaaa's" are we going to get on this subject? Sheesh! There's other threads.

KANE

No flaming/whining/ranting in Q&A. Also there are like a billion other threads on this. You've had your chance. Thread closed. I understand your need to vent your anger, but do it in Riverside. Please?

And yes I have seen your questions.