I have what would seem to be a simple problem: I bought a movie on the Playstation Store, it was supposed to come with a couple of voucher codes for some additional stuff, only the codes were never sent to me. Somebody at Sony just needs to send me the codes, sounds simple enough, right?

Well, I decided this is probably something I don't need to call them directly for, so I used their e-mail submission form on the support website, figuring somebody there could knock this one out in a minute or two. It's been two days now and not only have I still not received my codes, I also have not received anything from support indicating they are doing anything about it (I did get the automated receipt confirmation, but that's it). Since they claim they will normally respond within 48 hours, I decided that now it was time to call them directly.

Sony had other ideas.

In a giant "fuck you" to their customers, the Sony support phone line is not taking any calls at this time. Seriously. They actually have an outgoing message that basically says "we're too busy to deal with you today, call back some other time". I understand that their call volume is probably a little bit high due to recent events (to put it lightly), but to flat out not accept calls at all? It was bad enough when hackers exposed their lackluster (or non-existent) security measures, but to then not take the steps necessary to deal with the increased call volume that was clearly to be expected... this is not something I expect from an international multi-billion dollar company with nearly 70 years of history.

I've worked in and managed support call centers for a number of years now and I have never seen a lack of professionalism like this before. Sony makes great gadgets and I was willing to give the benefit of the doubt over the PSN debacle due to the nearly 15 years of great gaming they have given me, but between the additional hacks exposing more incompetence on their part and now this... I never thought I'd say this, but I'm seriously considering trading in my PS3 for an (ewww) Xbox.

I guess you are not going to do anything with GOG then, right? Because they have yet to respond within a week to anything I have ever submitted.

GOG has always responded in a very timely manner to my (very few) support requests, sometimes within a matter of hours. I know some people have had problems with GOG's support, but not me. Besides, I could excuse GOG's support failings due to the tiny size of the company and the fact that I know they have already taken steps to address the problems that some people have had. I no longer trust Sony to go that extra mile when they should.

Well, this gets even better. After repeated phone calls, I finally did get through, only to have the tech tell me that their servers are overloaded due to some new big DLC recently released and the backlog could mean my codes won't show up for 3-5 business days. So much for Sony's vaunted "improvements" to the PSN infrastructure.

...Sony has customer support? Jesus H Christ!

No, seriously, their support sucks. I did the same thing concerning a PSP game voucher and some other stuff and I got the same reaction.

Again. You are whining about not getting something immediately, even after they explained to you the reason.

And my ass GOG responds to you quickly. They are slow as fuck, there have been multiple threads about it even in the last two or three weeks.

You talk about going the extra mile..while they are giving you free shit.

Self entitled much? They have it all over the main page. I am not sure what is so difficult to understand about "our servers are overloaded due to higher demand than expected."

Wow, do you not even bother to read what other people write before you start spouting your usual ignorant, foul bile? This is not "free shit", I paid good money for this crap they aren't giving me... TWO DAYS AGO. I'm not asking for anything immediately, I'm just asking for stuff I should have already received. We are talking a simple XMB message with two voucher codes in it, not some massive game download or even a physical product. Besides, the reason they gave is complete bullshit, since the "big DLC" was released AFTER I made my purchase.

I know full well that some, if not many people have had problems with GOG's response time (who doesn't know that), but I have only had to contact them very rarely and they have never taken more than 2 business days to get back to me. The last thing I needed was a multiplayer key that I received a mere 3 hours after I asked for it.

-_-
That was 5 months ago, before they had that silly attack. It looks like someone needs to learn to not assume shit. :)

I've never had to Contact Sony for support because I have never had a problem With Their Electronics - Walkman, LED TV

Or Their PS3

Or Their PSP

Not a single problem ever related to the hardware on their end or the PSN store, and I use my freaking PS3 everyday

I submitted a request a couple days ago, asking if there was an online/downloadable version of inFAMOUS' manual. My actual support request looked something like this:

"I recently redeemed my Welcome Back program items, and one of the free games I chose was inFAMOUS. When I started playing the game, I noticed there was little in the way of instructions, except for a diagram of the PS3 Sixaxis controller, showing me which buttons do what. Is there an online or downloadable version of the manual for inFAMOUS, preferably in .PDF format?"

The response I got was:
"We understand you are having trouble redeeming your Welcome Back free items. I have listed for you a number of knowledge base articles that should be helpful for you in this matter, as it has been for others who have also had trouble redeeming their items. If you need further assistance, please don't hesitate to contact Sony Customer Support."

My response to this was:
"Ok, well obviously you just skimmed over my support ticket for keywords (such as Welcome Back program) , and entered those keywords into a search engine for knowledge base articles, instead of actually READING the support request. If you had READ the entire request, you'd see that I already redeemed the game, and as such need no help from articles concerning the Welcome Back program. Please reread my request and respond with a more appropriate answer."

It could also be that I was answered by one of those "intelligent enough to skim your request and collate a list of possible solutions" bots. I did try calling their support line after that, and was on hold for about three minutes (so it wasn't "immediately") before the voice said "We're too busy, try again later".

The point is moot. Another user on the Playstation boards directed me to a Replacementdocs link that had the manual. I probably shouldn't have confirmed that I downloaded from it, though. SCEA's lawyers might go all "OMG! He pirated copyrighted printed material that he had rights to anyway because it went with a game he had a license to! Quickly, suspend his account!". It'd be a shame, too. I just finished building my PAIN collection.

The problem is, I don't know that. Going on three days now and I still have not received anything except lame and most likely false excuses from a tech who seemed more interested in making jokes than figuring out what was really causing my problem. At this point, I don't have any reason to believe anything more than Sony just scammed me.

Just buy a dreamcast :3

But there really is no reason to buy a xbox unless all you play is cod on it... Eww

I brought a ps3 (In february actually) for RPG's and such and it wins there, Only reason you want a xbox is for FPS games really.... Only decent RPG i played on xbox is resonance of fate that i now own on ps3

Hyperdimension neptunia... No game like it, Complete win.

There is no reason to buy a 360 at all, unless you absolutely cannot live without Halo or Gears

omg only 2 days ago and you are starting such a flame war?
Thats awful.