Says launch made a “mockery” of customers.
A rapidly growing number of Battlefield 2042 players have signed a petition demanding refunds for their purchase of EA’s troubled shooter, accusing the publisher of “false advertising” and of launching the game in an “unplayable” state.
It has, of course, been a bumpy few months for Battlefield 2042; just days after its release last November, the DICE-developed shooter gained the unenviable accolade of being one of Steam’s worst-reviewed games of all time. Eurogamer’s Martin Robinson was equally damning, going as far as to call its launch “a disaster”, writing, “Since Battlefield 2042 went live on Friday, I’ve endured hard crashes, server problems and whole nights where the whole thing is simply unplayable…This is another Battlefield that’s launching in a sorry state.”
Since then, DICE has struggled to right the ship; while the developer has continued to massage the experience with a succession of post-launch updates, it’s still managed to draw ire for other questionable choices made post-launch, as well as the sense among players that much-needed improvements to the game simply aren’t coming fast enough. Already this year, DICE has delayed Battlefield 2042’s scoreboard update by a month, and its first season of content now won’t arrive until “early summer” – some six months after the game’s launch.
Digital Foundry – Battlefield 2042: PS5 vs Xbox Series X/S.
It’s in this climate that frustrated Battlefield 2042 fans have now taken to Change.org to demand refunds of the game on all platforms. “EA’s release of Battlefield 2042 was a mockery of every customer who purchased this video game for $70 (USD) due to EA’s false advertising,” the petition reads. “Battlefield 2042 has cost consumers millions of dollars in damages and upset thousands of customers worldwide.”
The petition goes on to claim that “Electronic Arts and DICE did not keep many promises made at launch, and Battlefield 2042 was launched as unplayable. Even today, Battlefield 2042 has bugs that drastically change the in-game experience so much that it’s deemed an unfinished release by many community members.”
At the time of writing, the petition – which states it will attempt to launch a class-action lawsuit against EA if signed by 50,000 people – is rapidly closing in on 40k signatures. “The gaming community should not tolerate this abuse and bullying from multi-billion dollar corporations who make unfinished games and false advertisements,” it concludes.
EA recently addressed its Battlefield 2042 woes in a call to investors, admitting its launch “did not meet expectations”. EA boss Andrew Wilson also acknowledged the game’s “unanticipated performance issues” on release, and made reference to certain design choices that “did not resonate with everyone in our community”. However, he said EA remained “fully committed to realising the full potential of this game and fully committed to our Battlefield fans. We have already implemented a series of major updates…and there is more to be done.”
