EA’s Project Ten Dollar offers free new stuff to first-hand buyers, but GameStop ‘fail to warn’ second-hand purchasers they have to pay for it.
Plaintiff James Collins purchased a copy of BioWare’s Dragon Age: Origins from a GameStop store in Hayward, California. He paid $54.99 plus tax for a second-hand copy, which was $5 less than a brand new one. The box promising free DLC enticed him.
However when he came to get his free downloadable content he found he would have to pay $15 to get a hold of it. Yes, he would have to pay $10 more to get access to free stuff that he would have had from a nice new copy, which would have cost $5 more.
Irony. ”GameStop, who makes more than 20% of its revenue and nearly $2 billion from the sale of used video games, is aware of this issue, and continues to fail to alert customers that this content is not available on used games,” says the suit, reports IGN.
”As a result, GameStop tricks consumers into paying more for a used game than they would if they purchased the same game and content new.” Collins wants restitution, punitive damages from the fraud of it all, and compensatory monies - USA! USA! USA!
EA operates Project Ten Dollar which is designed to encourage first-hand game sales by offering free new stuff, where second-hand buyers need to pay around $10 for the additional content. Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect 2 both use this initiative.
Should GameStop be slapping stickers on boxes to warn of no free DLC? Would you pass up on a new game copy for just $5 more than a pre-owned?
