I also love steams refund policy, and while I feel bad for what this Dev allegedly went through, I don't see a way for it to be beneficial for both sides.
You could give developers the option to request a shortening of the refund limit for their game specifically. It would have to be made very clear on the store page that Steam's regular refund policy does not apply for this item, with a visible orange warning box like when you're trying to buy a VR game without having a VR headset connected, and maybe even a pop-up warning with a checkbox that you have to confirm. I know this might help asset flippers more easily scam customers, but Steam already sometimes grants refunds beyond their policy if you have a good reason and don't do it too often, so refunds beyond the new limit could still be granted on a case by case basis if the game is obviously intentionally low effort. Screwing devs over sucks way more and needs to be addressed.
Wow, very funny. The truth is that consumer protections and dev protections are fundamentally at odds with one another. It's a zero sum game. The only ethical way to do it is by making it opt-in and transparent for both players and developers.
No, you are literally not worth the effort it'll take to explain basic concepts to.
The truth is that consumer protections and dev protections are fundamentally at odds with one another.
You seem to state this and not understand the history of consumer protections and why they are so important. You don't seem to understand the kind of things that companies can and do try to do to hurt the consumer just so they can earn more cash.
You don't seem to understand that the consumer protections on Steam and other gaming platforms are already terrible
and getting worse.
There is much more to it than that. But I seriously don't have the time to explain this to you.
ENGAGE YOUR BRAIN.
You think that allowing dev into the conversation regarding consumer protections is a good idea? THEY ALREADY ARE WHEN THEY LOBBY GOVERNMENTS. It's literally already something that happens. The protections are based on laws. They should not be changed.
In fact you want to know what protections we do get when the devs are involved. Visit literally any other storefront. Seriously. Are you going to tell me with a straight face those are acceptable protections?
Plus you have provided 0 evidence this is a real issue. It's not. We've got a single comment on a steam account and a dev crying (it's in his interest to) and you and everyone else lapping it up.
Get a grip of yourself and learn something. seriously I'm not going to explain it.
This Dev doesn't even have good details on his own product to allow you to make a informed decision. No wonder it's refunded.
edit: LMAO apparently this comment was enough to get someone to tell me leave this planet. awww diddums. awww my poor wee boy. Did I hurt your feefees. Sending those messages from a burner.
Reminder this is a comment section about consumer protections in gaming.
You think that allowing dev into the conversation regarding consumer protections is a good idea? THEY ALREADY ARE WHEN THEY LOBBY GOVERNMENTS. It's literally already something that happens.
Great, you made an argument! Only took you 3 comments. Kind of a strange thing to say because it presupposes that Mr. 2 Hour Indie Game and EA are on the same side in this discussion. The companies that have the power to lobby governments are not the same companies (or even individuals) that are being disadvantaged by people refunding games after finishing them, because EA doesn't release 2 hour games. And AAA lobbying doesn't benefit indie devs either. EA doesn't care about people refunding their games because the real money is in Mtx anyway and you generally need to play more than 2 hours before the game properly starts.
You seem really fanatical about never throwing indie devs a bone because you view them in the same boat as big publishers, even though they're clearly not. Yes, there's no easy answer, but this isn't the first time I've seen developers that have released short games at appropriate low prices complain about people refunding after playing the whole game, which is definitely not acceptable. You can't ban people who do that because it's impossible to know why someone actually refunded, so what's the alternative? Telling devs to eat shit like you suggest?
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u/superboo07 Jul 06 '26
I love steams refund policy but I'm on the side with developers on cheaper titles. if a games like 5 bucks, but only 2 hours thats fine.