A recent petition was posted on Change.org in protest of Electronic Arts’ handling of Battlefield 2042. The petition requests that anyone who purchased Battlefield 2042, regardless of platform, should be owed a refund. This is due to the unsatisfactory state of the game at launch, and players’ frustration at the companies. So far, the petition has managed to gain over 150,000 signatures from fans of the series who feel let down.
The petition reads: “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.” It continues to accuse EA of not fulfilling the promises made at launch and releasing 2042 in an nearly unplayable and buggy state.
Most fans supporting this petition aren’t looking for a refund because Battlefield 2042 is a terrible game. In its own right as a standalone product, it is a serviceable albeit flawed first-person shooter. The crux of the issue for the petitioners is EA’s “false advertising.” The company over-promised to deliver features that don’t look likely to happen.
Recently, developer DICE confirmed that the game’s first season of content has been delayed until summer. Due to this, Battlefield 2042 will not receive a new weapon, map, or Specialist until at least June. Having to wait seven months for a content update is not good enough for a supposed live service game. In that same timeframe, Battlefield 4 had received two fully-featured expansions: China Rising and Second Assault.
The petition argues that EA deliberately misled consumers and delivered an unfinished experience.
Can you get a refund?
Currently, there is no way of getting a guaranteed refund of Battlefield 2042 once you have played for more than two hours. There have been cases on both Steam and Origin of users getting refunds beyond that play time, but this usually involves multiple appeals. It’s not impossible, but it can be a hassle.
The goal of this petition is to make it so that anyone who purchased Battlefield 2042 can get a refund without dispute. How likely that is to come to fruition is to be seen, but the strong support for the petition speaks for itself. Many Battlefield fans aren’t happy and they want their money back.
