In recent years, there has been a change in the way games are sold.
Big AAA games now offer some sort of Premium version that lets you play a few days early for around £30/$30 extra.
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Many publishers call this period ‘Early Access’, which has caused a rift in Steam’s refund policy.
This is because the term Early Access already exists with a completely different meaning.
Originally, Early Access meant that a game was not complete and was usually sold for a lower price while it was still in development.
There will still be bugs in the game or missing content, and the team is looking for feedback on how to improve it.
Most Steam games have a 2-hour refund policy, which means if you play less than 2 hours of gameplay, you are guaranteed a full refund.
However, early access games do not have this loophole and you can get a full refund at any time while the game is still in the early access period.
This is why the new Premium Editions, which claim to allow “Early Access,” are so confusing.
These games are complete and simply allow players to access the full game a few days early.
Steam has now called this period Advanced Access, and players using this premium edition benefit will no longer be able to request a refund if they have more than 2 hours of gameplay.
Before the change, people could complete a game in what is now called Advanced Access and then get a refund.
Some of these games require over 40 hours to complete and you can still play the whole thing for free.
Steam is doing away with this and hours played during Advanced Access will count towards your refund eligibility.
You can still refund a game in Advanced Access if you played less than two hours.
If you want to read more on Steam, here’s how you can get a free update for Fallout 4.
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