> > World of Warcraft requires you to pay a monthly subscription fee, and restricts you to one server when you first sign up.
>
> It restricts you to one server? You can play on as many servers as you'd like; you just can't move characters between them.
>
> As for the monthly fee, well, you get what you pay for...
>
> Stephen

I'm loving WoW so far, but the whole "You get what you pay for" argument kind of fell flat for me, after I purchased the game from Best Buy only to be told by Blizzard that my activation key, while a valid key, had already been activated.

Thanks to Blizzard's messed up distribution system and policies regarding activation keys, a key is absolutely a one-time thing. If someone buys the game from Best Buy, activates the key, then returns the box claiming defective discs or whatnot, that boxed set is essentially a paper weight now. Best Buy can't put it back on the shelf for resale because the key is worthless. Blizzard also refuses to give new keys to anybody or allow you to purchase new keys online. In a world where Valve just proved the effectiveness of online game distribution with Half-Life 2, it's mind boggling to me that Blizzard wont even consider doing something similar for a game that CAN ONLY BE PLAYED ONLINE such as WoW.

What happened to me is I either got a return that was mistakenly put back on the shelf, or somebody opened the box in the store and wrote down the key. I effectively paid $45 for a manual full of lies (it's crazy how wrong the manual for the game is about what is actually IN the game--as Stephen said, it's clear the game was shipped woefully incomplete) and four CDs that let me install but never play the game I just bought. And Blizzard was of zero help--they said my only recourse was to take the game back to Best Buy and exchange it. There's no system in place for exchanging keys or getting new keys from Blizzard. They basically leave it all in the hands of the retailers, which really made me feel like they just don't give a crap.

And here's another bizzare twist. The box comes with a 10-day trial key that you can share with a friend to let them try the game out. The idea is you loan your CDs to your friend, he installs the game on his system, uses the 10-day key, and tries out the game. You would THINK that after that 10-day trial, if your friend likes the game, he could then just arrange to pay Blizzard some money over the intarweb (like everyone else does with the monthy subscription fee) and continue playing the game, right? WRONG! Blizzard, again, will not sell activation keys online. If after that ten day trial your buddy wants to continue playing the game, he has to GO TO THE STORE and buy a copy of WoW for himself--EVEN THOUGH ALL HE NEEDS IS A KEY. He has to go buy a boxed set full of CDs he doesn't need and a manual full of lies just to get that activation key. It makes absolutely no sense at all. Even if Blizzard charged the full $45 for the key online, it'd be more convenient than going to the damn store to get a copy of a game you already have just so you can continue playing it. I'm facing this right now with Carrie. If she decides to play, we have to go back to the store and buy another damn copy of the game just to get another key--there's no way she can just install from my discs and pay for the key online. It's not the money I care about so much as the retarded idea that you can give someone a 10-day trial where you're EXPECTED to share CDs with them, but at the end of that they can't just whip out their credit card and tell Blizzard "Ok, lemme buy the full version now."

Anyway, I did end up having to exchange my boxed set at Best Buy. I got a non-activated key on the second try. But it still kind of makes me feel dirty supporting a system whereby people can so easily be hung out to dry. What happens if Best Buy refuses to exchange the game for some reason? I've heard horror stories of some retailers doing just that, because of the key issue and knowing that people might be trying to scam a free second account by claiming "defective discs" and returning their copy for another one. In fact, Best Buy very nearly made me keep my worthless key when I tried to exchange it--the guy at the return desk had to call his manager to verify that he didn't have to force me to keep the old key when we did the exchange, even though THE KEY WAS THE REASON I WAS RETURNING THE GAME. Thankfully, his manager set him straight--they only force people to keep the old key when they come in claiming defective discs. That way they can't scam a second activation key. On the surface this is a pretty good policy, and I'm sure it's foiled a few casual scammers. However, it wouldn't even be necessary if Blizz hadn't come up with such a broken and obviously exploitable activation system in the first place. Not being able to purchase new keys online directly from Blizz and there being no better system in place for dealing with valid-but-already-activated-for-some-reason keys other than "return it to the store for an exchange" is unacceptable. I still kind of feel dirty having supported such a system with my purchase.

Unfortunately, I'm now totally hooked on the game, so I'm sure I'll continue to tacitly approve of the way I was screwed with by continuing to pay them money. *sigh* At least I'm not one of those unfortunate people who bought the game at release and had to live with the constant server downtime that Blizzard has only recently appeared to have licked.

-- Dave