SEIV GOLD Rebate

[WarChild]

Since the "Gold" edition is just an extension of the current game that we all originally purchased, why not dispense entirely with the rebate issue by using a form of electronic distribution?

Make the "Gold" edition into a patch of the original game which adds all of the features/improvements and includes a .PDF Version of the new manual. Distribute it as an electronic download that can be purhased for $20 (and could even include some form of activation/registration code delivered via e-mail to combat piracy).

This avoids customers destroying the original CD and shipping it back, Shrapnel from wrestling with credits/rebate checks especially for customers overseas, and saves money for Shrapnel by not having to manufacture CD's for people who have already bought the original game, nor does Shrapnel have to print the new manual.

Many have written about their hesitancy to destroy the original CD, or even just the bother and cost, however minor, of sending it back. Overseas customers have clearly written that the costs involved with cashing checks from the U.S. hardly makes the rebate worthwhile. Shrapnel has written that credit card credits encur them a fee. Some customers are not interested in Shrapnel store credit.

We all love this game, and have always been overwhelmed by the level of attention and support provided by both Shrapnel and MM. We appreciate the attempt by Shrapnel to provide a savings in the form of a rebate to existing owners of the game.

Hundreds of companies distribute upgrades or even entire programs electronically in downloadable format, many with a form of piracy protection or registration process involved. I would think that employing this type of distribution has considerable advantages across the board for Shrapnel and only minor disadvantages for the customer. The customer does has the burden of printing the manual, of having an e-mail account to receive any activation code, and of the download itself (which could be somewhat cumbersome to those with modem connections, but high-speed Subscribers would not be inconvenienced at all.)

I think most existing customers would readily pay for this electronic upgrade, (even if the download took some time; i.e. over a phone modem) in order to dispense with the rebate hassle. Others who do find this upgrade process inconvenient, or for newcomers to SE4, could purchase the CD by the standard method.