ArenaNet responds to fan outrage over Guild Wars 2 Heart of Thorns prices
ArenaNet has responded to fan criticism regarding the way Guild Wars 2 expansion Heart of Thorns was priced.
Throughout last week, large parts of the Guild Wars 2 community responded negatively to the way ArenaNet priced upcoming Guild Wars 2 expansion Heart of Thorns. The furore was mostly to do with the fact that there was no cheap upgrade option for existing owners of the base game.
Today, the developer has announced a new refund policy as well as veteran rewards in an effort to placate the masses.
"For our long-standing fans and loyal players, we would like to say thank you and show our appreciation. For all players who registered the core Guild Wars 2 game prior to January 23, 2015 and who upgrade their account by pre-purchasing and registering any Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns edition before its launch, we will add one additional character slot to your Guild Wars 2 account," reads the new blog post.
The developer said that the FAQ change was made in good faith, as it only wanted to clarify that Heart of Thorns is not a standalone expansion.
"For all players who purchased the Guild Wars 2 core game from our website and registered it between January 23, 2015 and June 16, 2015 in anticipation of Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns, we will automatically refund what you paid for the core game should you decide to pre-purchase Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns from our website or in-game store any time through July 31, 2015. If you take advantage of this refund and pre-purchase Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns, all of your current account progress will be kept intact.
"If you purchased the core Guild Wars 2 game from our website and registered it between January 23, 2015 and June 16, 2015, and you no longer want to play Guild Wars 2, we will refund your core game purchase price and close your account provided you make the request by July 31, 2015. Please contact our Customer Support team to make this request.
"If you purchased the core game from a third party, we are unable to provide a refund. However, if you registered the core game between January 23, 2015 and June 16, 2015 and upgrade it by pre-purchasing any Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns edition before Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns‘ launch, we will add one additional character slot to your Guild Wars 2 account."
ArenaNet added that specific refund timings as well as the extra character slot timings will be revealed soon.