CanuckEh

So I took the video down, and edited this original post with a little summary of the events.

The bad news is my card had already been charged, too late for that.

Their policy states that the customer is held liable in the event of lost mail.

"Once Game Access ships a game from your account, it is your full responsibility to return it to us. If the game cannot be returned to us, or not received back for any reason, Game Access reserves itself the right to charge the replacement cost of the game to your credit card. Although extremely rare, all instances of unreturned games are dealt with case by case and investigated to prevent fraud. If you ever receive a damaged game, please contact us for instructions."

Well, there hasn't been any talk of an investigation.

@rebgav said:

@CanuckEh said:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZ2l8-K-jdg&feature=youtu.be

Their response to that video was to cancel my account, charge me for the lost game, and then send a CEASE AND DESIST letter demanding I edit/take down the video for false information/representation of their company.

So I guess what I'm asking from you guys is, what should I do here?

I would take down the dumb video before the hyperbole lands you in legal trouble on a technicality. Make another video, perhaps one which doesn't refer to the business as a scam in the title and in which you don't accuse the company of holding you hostage in your opening line.

I think you may be right, and I think that is what I am going to do.

@believer258 said:

@Subjugation said:

@believer258 said:

I don't think they can do anything to you for making a Youtube video decrying their shitty practices...

...but I'm not a legal expert and some (read:most) lawyers can be evil motherfuckers depending on how good they are at their jobs and how well they are paid.

They would probably go with libel and slander.

In that case, OP, do you have any evidence that you rented the game from them? Like a receipt or something? And that it was sent back to them?

Had my "Platinum account" had not been cancelled, their website would have me listed as having rented out Dead or Alive 5 in the queue. So the information is on their side. Beyond that are my back and forth e-mail exchanges with their customer service discussing the matter, including their recent billing me for the whole game.

I have no proof of me returning the game (under normal circumstances, you wouldn't need to.) I made a video of me returning the last game they sent me to a mailbox just to cover my back in the event they tried claiming I didn't send it back.

So I posted this video yesterday, basically discussing my experiences with the Canadian online game rental service Game Access.

EDIT: Per the advice of many people, I've taken the Youtube video down. I can agree that it is hyperbolic to call them a scam. For the people that missed it: they're an online game rental company akin to Gamefly. You pay their monthly fee, they send you a game, you play, send it back using the postage-stamped envelope included with the game, get another. I returned Dead or Alive 5 on the 360 over the holidays because I received the PS3 version of said game (the special edition, no less) as a gift. They claim to have never received it. Because they claim to have never received it, the "Fast Return" feature (they send you a game as soon as you log into their website and tell them you mailed back the game) was disabled despite my paying for it.

I traded some e-mails with their customer service that spent a long time putting off my requests of a cancellation. Their initial offer included billing me for the game and giving me credit for the next few months. I told them I wanted a cancellation; I can't trust either them or Canada Post to not let this happen again.

In a nutshell, I sent a game back to them, they claimed to have never received it, and they were adamant to charge me for it.

Their response to that video was to cancel my account, charge me for the lost game, and then send a CEASE AND DESIST letter demanding I edit/take down the video for false information/representation of their company.

So I guess what I'm asking from you guys is, what should I do here? I am in no position to have a legal battle. I'm also disgusted in that I feel that they responded to my accusations of them bullying with more bullying. All I know for sure is shame on me for having used their service at all.

And if that video or this thread gets deleted, well, you'll be able to guess why.

So I've signed up http://www.extra-life.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.participant&participantID=39096

My working idea involves all N64 games, every half hour, and document the whole process online. http://64bit24hr.blogspot.ca/ Sealed boxes will be opened, games of questionable rarity will be played, there will be wrestling game after wrestling game after wrestling game, and at some point I guess I'll brush my teeth.

@AhmadMetallic said:

How does the charity part of your plan work again?

You're giving me too much credit in suggesting I even have a plan yet.

@HatKing said:

@CanuckEh said:

@No0b0rAmA said:

If you review terrible games that would inflict self harm to anyone who plays it for extended periods, yes.

I don't have a whole lot of those in my collection. Doing this would require some ethically questionable means that I imagine not a lot of people would be thrilled about.

You could go buy a bunch of really bad games for a couple bucks each at pretty much any used game store. hahah... I must know your opinion on Turok, Dark Sector, and Lair.

Now that...becomes a bit more plausible.

@No0b0rAmA said:

If you review terrible games that would inflict self harm to anyone who plays it for extended periods, yes.

I don't have a whole lot of those in my collection. Doing this would require some ethically questionable means that I imagine not a lot of people would be thrilled about.

Hello there beautiful people. I'm the guy that's wasted way too many hours in front of Microsoft Word writing enough reviews to have the most reviews out of any user on Giantbomb. I assume that by proxy of being that guy with the most reviews around the time Giantbomb introduced a points/quest system and an audience hungry for points, that I became the user reviewer with the most recommendations.

I've started trying to chronicle what sparse games I find myself playing and have gotten a bit of a bug for it. So I've had the idea planted in my head; write a review every day for a month. And hey, a June month is coming up.

And if this is something people aren't entirely indifferent on, make a charitable fundraiser out of it. Maybe get people to give to Child's Play or something like that.

So, yeah. Let me know if this is something you would (or would not) give a crap about. Would you endorse this cause and my resulting repetitive stress injury?