Gear Games Quickie: Want to Play Dragon Age 2? Don’t Upset an EA Forum Moderator!

Gear Diary is reader-supported. When you buy through links posted on our site, we may earn a commission at no cost to you. You can learn more by clicking here.

I pretty well tore a hole into Dragon Age 2 the other day, including about the whole need to be logged in everywhere. But there was one thing I didn’t even think about – that an inability to login could prevent you from playing the game! But apparently that is EXACTLY what has happened to at least one person according to a report at BluesNews!

Please review the EA Community Terms of Service, particularly sections #9 and #11. There are two levels of enforcement here:

1. BioWare community bans are forum-only and can be for as little as 24 hours. These bans should have no effect on your game, only your ability to use all the features of this website/community. these bans are handed out by BioWare Moderators as the result of our travels around the forum and/or issues reported by fellow community members.

2. EA Community bans come down from a different department and are the result of someone hitting the REPORT POST button. These bans can affect access to your game and/or DLC.

Because the BioWare community now operates under the same umbrella as all EA Communities, community members here have all explicitly agreed to abide by and be governed by both sets of rules. Consider it an added incentive to follow the rules you say you’re going to follow.

So what seems to have happened is that bad-mouthed EA in the forums in criticizing the demo for Dragon Age 2, got himself banned, and was therefore unable to activate and play the game. If the game was an online game that required EA servers that would be one thing, but to be prohibited from playing a SINGLE PLAYER OFFLINE GAME? Over the line.

My bottom line is this – NO WAY should your ability to use something you paid for be held in check for whatever might happen in a free and public discussion forum – particularly when there is nothing that could possibly be construed as illegal. It was just something EA didn’t like – or more particularly a forum moderator.

Oh – and the comment that got him banned and unable to play the game?

“Have you (Bioware) sold your souls to the EA devil?”

Apparently the answer is YES.

As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Thanks for your support!

About the Author

Michael Anderson
I have loved technology for as long as I can remember - and have been a computer gamer since the PDP-10! Mobile Technology has played a major role in my life - I have used an electronic companion since the HP95LX more than 20 years ago, and have been a 'Laptop First' person since my Compaq LTE Lite 3/20 and Powerbook 170 back in 1991! As an avid gamer and gadget-junkie I was constantly asked for my opinions on new technology, which led to writing small blurbs ... and eventually becoming a reviewer many years ago. My family is my biggest priority in life, and they alternate between loving and tolerating my gaming and gadget hobbies ... but ultimately benefits from the addition of technology to our lives!

7 Comments on "Gear Games Quickie: Want to Play Dragon Age 2? Don’t Upset an EA Forum Moderator!"

  1. Gear Games Quickie: Want to Play Dragon Age 2? Don't Upset an EA …: So what seems to have happened is that bad… http://bit.ly/eCOC1x

  2. http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2011/03/forum-user-gets-banned-loses-access-to-dragon-age-ii.ars

    Update: We just received word from EA’s Andrew Wong that the situation was actually an error. “Unfortunately, there was an error in the system that accidentally suspended a user’s entire account,” he told Ars. “Immediately upon learning of the glitch, EA took steps to restore the user’s macro account and apologized for the inconvenience.”

    • And yet a forum mod cited specific terms that allowed EA to do EXACTLY what happened. When the tech & gaming community erupted it suddenly becomes an ‘error’? How convenient! Sadly this is EXACTLY representative of EA as a corporation … and sadly now Bioware as well.

      • yep sounds like an after the fact bit of spin doctoring on EA’s part. I’m usually leery of EA games and they kind of get a price discount in my mind because of their reputation. At least the guy gets his game now though. That said I’ll probably still end up buying it if steam has a sale.

        • That is my basic advice if you read my ‘day one impressions’ – it is getting harder to recommend a full price purchase since sales come so fast these days! It is a good game, but there is just too much baggage to recommend supporting it fully.

  3. For EA lovers, Gear Games Quickie: Want to Play Dragon Age 2? Don't Upset an EA …: So what seems to have happe… http://bit.ly/gtt4D0

  4. For EA lovers, Gear Games Quickie: Want to Play Dragon Age 2? Don't Upset an EA …: yep sounds like an after th… http://bit.ly/eWwNKK

Comments are closed.