Your welcome and I hope they sort everything out for you
I contacted EA and the advisor said they will file a dispute and my games are marked as inactive but it doesn't say anything about Violations. So I decided to still reinstall Origin. Done, I started downloading Sims 3 again and I could download them all except for Master-Suite. It said "Add to Queue" and when I clicked on it it says to play an unidentified game I must first activate it on my account... the code obviously can't be activated again since I activated it over 580 days ago.
Very curious to see now if at least Supernatural will show up in my Launcher again, since I could download that without trouble.
Update: Supernatural did not show up in my launcher.
Im guessing my account states inactive. I have not updated origin in about 2 years since I don't need origin to play
Yeah. Funny enough, I actually just managed to download Master-Suite after quitting and reloading Origin. But both still not in the Launcher.
Were those the ones you bought off ebay? EA has allot of people upset who paid for those codes
Your welcome and I hope they sort everything out for you
I contacted EA and the advisor said they will file a dispute and my games are marked as inactive but it doesn't say anything about Violations. So I decided to still reinstall Origin. Done, I started downloading Sims 3 again and I could download them all except for Master-Suite. It said "Add to Queue" and when I clicked on it it says to play an unidentified game I must first activate it on my account... the code obviously can't be activated again since I activated it over 580 days ago.
Very curious to see now if at least Supernatural will show up in my Launcher again, since I could download that without trouble.
Update: Supernatural did not show up in my launcher.
Im guessing my account states inactive. I have not updated origin in about 2 years since I don't need origin to play
Yeah. Funny enough, I actually just managed to download Master-Suite after quitting and reloading Origin. But both still not in the Launcher.
Were those the ones you bought off ebay? EA has allot of people upset who paid for those codes
I did, but I also got other codes from Ebay and the EA Advisor said that my account has no notes about TOS violation or anything else and that my games are simply "inactive", and those games I activated and registered over 2 1/2 years ago so I can't really imagine charge back being an issue. He couldn't say why the games are inactive and said it was odd but suggested that my account might need updating and someone will look into it.
I own the store since March 4th, 2017! Thanks to everybody who has helped me achieve this!
TheSims3.com: Jahnna
Your welcome and I hope they sort everything out for you
I contacted EA and the advisor said they will file a dispute and my games are marked as inactive but it doesn't say anything about Violations. So I decided to still reinstall Origin. Done, I started downloading Sims 3 again and I could download them all except for Master-Suite. It said "Add to Queue" and when I clicked on it it says to play an unidentified game I must first activate it on my account... the code obviously can't be activated again since I activated it over 580 days ago.
Very curious to see now if at least Supernatural will show up in my Launcher again, since I could download that without trouble.
Update: Supernatural did not show up in my launcher.
Im guessing my account states inactive. I have not updated origin in about 2 years since I don't need origin to play
Yeah. Funny enough, I actually just managed to download Master-Suite after quitting and reloading Origin. But both still not in the Launcher.
Were those the ones you bought off ebay? EA has allot of people upset who paid for those codes
I did, but I also got other codes from Ebay and the EA Advisor said that my account has no notes about TOS violation or anything else and that my games are simply "inactive", and those games I activated and registered over 2 1/2 years ago so I can't really imagine charge back being an issue. He couldn't say why the games are inactive and said it was odd but suggested that my account might need updating and someone will look into it.
We have had a few people with accounts that somehow got glitched and EA has had to fix them on their end. That might be the case with yours
@igazor Is that really true ? I paid EA ok-I-don't-want-to-go-into-that-too-deeply-out-of-self-protection a lot of money, hundreds of euros, and still they will be able to take it away from me whenever they feel like it (I bought good old disks)? I apologize if this is a dumb question but I really want to know
@JoAnne65 if you have the discs that don't require origin they cant stop you from playing. If your discs are the version attached to origin or you use the downloads yes they can take those away whenever they want if the game is controlled by origin and you need origin to start your game. Anything attached to drm is on loan and they can pull the plug any time they want
@JoAnne65 if you have the discs that don't require origin they cant stop you from playing. If your discs are the version attached to origin or you use the downloads yes they can take those away whenever they want if the game is controlled by origin and you need origin to start your game. Anything attached to drm is on loan and they can pull the plug any time they want
Thank you. Which means Sims 4 players can never be the owner of the game..? Anyway, glad I have disks
@igazor Is that really true ? I paid EA ok-I-don't-want-to-go-into-that-too-deeply-out-of-self-protection a lot of money, hundreds of euros, and still they will be able to take it away from me whenever they feel like it (I bought good old disks)? I apologize if this is a dumb question but I really want to know
Well yes, in theory. But if EA randomly revoked legitimately obtained licenses to play the game without having an actual reason for doing so, at least without pulling the plug on the entire franchise for all players, then they wouldn't be holding up their end of the agreement either. No one is going to sue them for breach of contract over such a relatively small matter on an individual basis, but there could be other nasty consequences if they made that a regular practice indiscriminately. That's not what is happening here.
All software companies whose products "phone home" for authentication can do this as per the terms of their agreed upon EULA and none of us actually "own" these products we have purchased the rights to use. When discs are involved we may own the discs themselves, I mean the physical media and the boxes they came in, but those alone don't have much value.
@JoAnne65 if you have the discs that don't require origin they cant stop you from playing. If your discs are the version attached to origin or you use the downloads yes they can take those away whenever they want if the game is controlled by origin and you need origin to start your game. Anything attached to drm is on loan and they can pull the plug any time they want
Thank you. Which means Sims 4 players can never be the owner of the game..? Anyway, glad I have disks
You can never own the sims 4 unless EA offers the game drm/origin free. I don't see that happening since the sims 3 is now attached to origin too after being drm free for 6 years. Maybe one day down the road they will offer these games like they have the TS2 ultimate collection which is drm free
@igazor Is that really true ? I paid EA ok-I-don't-want-to-go-into-that-too-deeply-out-of-self-protection a lot of money, hundreds of euros, and still they will be able to take it away from me whenever they feel like it (I bought good old disks)? I apologize if this is a dumb question but I really want to know
All software companies whose products "phone home" for authentication can do this as per the terms of their agreed upon EULA and none of us actually "own" these products we have purchased the rights to use. When discs are involved we may own the discs themselves, I mean the physical media and the boxes they came in, but those alone don't have much value.
The discs that are not tied into DRM do have some value. We can install the game and play it whenever we like and not have to be on line to play it even though we technically don't own the content of those discs
@igazor Is that really true ? I paid EA ok-I-don't-want-to-go-into-that-too-deeply-out-of-self-protection a lot of money, hundreds of euros, and still they will be able to take it away from me whenever they feel like it (I bought good old disks)? I apologize if this is a dumb question but I really want to know
Well yes, in theory. But if EA randomly revoked legitimately obtained licenses to play the game without having an actual reason for doing so, at least without pulling the plug on the entire franchise for all players, then they wouldn't be holding up their end of the agreement either. No one is going to sue them for breach of contract over such a relatively small matter on an individual basis, but there could be other nasty consequences if they made that a regular practice indiscriminately. That's not what is happening here.
All software companies whose products "phone home" for authentication can do this as per the terms of their agreed upon EULA and none of us actually "own" these products we have purchased the rights to use. When discs are involved we may own the discs themselves, I mean the physical media and the boxes they came in, but those alone don't have much value.
Because for installing the patches you'll always need Origin you mean?
@igazor Is that really true ? I paid EA ok-I-don't-want-to-go-into-that-too-deeply-out-of-self-protection a lot of money, hundreds of euros, and still they will be able to take it away from me whenever they feel like it (I bought good old disks)? I apologize if this is a dumb question but I really want to know
Well yes, in theory. But if EA randomly revoked legitimately obtained licenses to play the game without having an actual reason for doing so, at least without pulling the plug on the entire franchise for all players, then they wouldn't be holding up their end of the agreement either. No one is going to sue them for breach of contract over such a relatively small matter on an individual basis, but there could be other nasty consequences if they made that a regular practice indiscriminately. That's not what is happening here.
All software companies whose products "phone home" for authentication can do this as per the terms of their agreed upon EULA and none of us actually "own" these products we have purchased the rights to use. When discs are involved we may own the discs themselves, I mean the physical media and the boxes they came in, but those alone don't have much value.
Because for installing the patches you'll always need Origin you mean?
Patches can be done without Origin's involvement, such as by bringing the 1.67 Super Patcher to the game by way of a thumb drive or something. I suppose a disc installed game can continued to be played in a totally offline environment forever. But once any form of connectivity is involved, such as trying to use the Launcher to install newly obtained store content (that might be enough right there if the game has to be online to make this happen), then the totally offline party is over.
It's kind of the same with Windows, Office, and other equivalents. Once you authenticate the first time, if you then take the computer totally offline then no one or nothing from Microsoft (Apple, Adobe, etc.) can bother you. But I imagine that very few computer users operate strictly that way all of the time unless they are in an environment that just has no connectivity.
@igazor Is that really true ? I paid EA ok-I-don't-want-to-go-into-that-too-deeply-out-of-self-protection a lot of money, hundreds of euros, and still they will be able to take it away from me whenever they feel like it (I bought good old disks)? I apologize if this is a dumb question but I really want to know
Well yes, in theory. But if EA randomly revoked legitimately obtained licenses to play the game without having an actual reason for doing so, at least without pulling the plug on the entire franchise for all players, then they wouldn't be holding up their end of the agreement either. No one is going to sue them for breach of contract over such a relatively small matter on an individual basis, but there could be other nasty consequences if they made that a regular practice indiscriminately. That's not what is happening here.
All software companies whose products "phone home" for authentication can do this as per the terms of their agreed upon EULA and none of us actually "own" these products we have purchased the rights to use. When discs are involved we may own the discs themselves, I mean the physical media and the boxes they came in, but those alone don't have much value.
Because for installing the patches you'll always need Origin you mean?
Origin client will not let you start the game without origin being attached to the game. If EA decided to pull the plug on the sims 3 and did not offer the player an option to play without origin, you would no longer be able to play the game. That is if you bought the version of the game that is tied into origin
I play the game without origin. I can patch my game without origin. Im patched to 1.67 . I have the original version of the game that does not require origin. If you are lucky to have this version , even if EA pulls the plug on the origin version of the game, you will still be able to play your game
To add to the confusion, I purchased Sims 3 when it was first released so I have the version of the game that doesn't require Origin and I'm patched to 1.67.
When I was about to buy Sims 2 after playing the Sims for several years I checked the web site and discovered Sims 3 was about to be released and I decided to wait for Sims 3.
When the Sims 2 Ultimate Collection was released and I was able to get it for free I got it and it is available for me to play through Origin. I can't play it without Origin though as I have to download it each time I want to play. If I try to launch it from my computer it just says it isn't installed and I have to install it. I don't think the whole thing downloads each time. It seems they did something to it for those who didn't own the disks so that you can't actually play without Origin - or it could just be me.
Fortunately, I don't have any attachment to Sims 2 and it doesn't particularly bother me that I can't play it. I barely have time to play Sims 3 these days.
When I get my new computer in a few weeks I'll probably install Sims 3 on it and maybe - just maybe I'll update Origin on this laptop - then and see if I can get Sims 2 to play on the laptop. I'll probably take Sims 3 off too.
I'm not planning to install Origin on the new computer. Just Sims 3. I'll have the laptop to play games that require Origin - such as Sim City and others. I tried playing them yesterday with an offline version of Origin that hasn't been updated and everything worked perfectly. It's just Sims 2 that 'isn't installed on this computer'.
I have the super patches downloaded. I'm not sure of the store content. I've read people have had to redownload their store content when they get a new computer as they can't install their backed up content. I'll have to wait and see what happens when the time comes. But I can download it from the store or my purchase history without having to worry about Origin.
@Karritz when I got a new computer, I copied my whole sims 3 file , Mind you I dont have many saves in there. I keep my extra saves on a second hard drive. Clean installed the game and replace the new sims 3 file with the old one that had all my downloads, etc. If you have too much stuff you can transfer individual files and replace them in the new install
When the Sims 2 Ultimate Collection was released and I was able to get it for free I got it and it is available for me to play through Origin. I can't play it without Origin though as I have to download it each time I want to play. If I try to launch it from my computer it just says it isn't installed and I have to install it. I don't think the whole thing downloads each time. It seems they did something to it for those who didn't own the disks so that you can't actually play without Origin - or it could just be me.
Actually, that happened to me too, but (at least for me) it has nothing to do with Origin. The problem occured every time CCleaner "cleaned" the registry. (I noticed that it deletes a not of TS2 stuff)
Of course, I might be completely wrong but that is my observation.
@dorcsyful@Karritz TS2 UC. With CC cleaner you have the option of choosing which files you delete. Make sure you don't have the sims 2 checked off in CCleaner when you clean the registry
When the Sims 2 Ultimate Collection was released and I was able to get it for free I got it and it is available for me to play through Origin. I can't play it without Origin though as I have to download it each time I want to play. If I try to launch it from my computer it just says it isn't installed and I have to install it. I don't think the whole thing downloads each time. It seems they did something to it for those who didn't own the disks so that you can't actually play without Origin - or it could just be me.
Actually, that happened to me too, but (at least for me) it has nothing to do with Origin. The problem occured every time CCleaner "cleaned" the registry. (I noticed that it deletes a not of TS2 stuff)
Of course, I might be completely wrong but that is my observation.
This exact same thing happened to me when I used CCleaner to clean the registry. I had to repair sims 2 UC every time after a cleaning.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news to the people who lost eBay codes. But this is likely the same outcome for you guys .
"Hello,
We received your latest message regarding the action taken on your account. We have now performed all investigations possible on this issue and we will not reverse the decision.
Please do not expect further responses from us on this matter."
If you have purchased in the last 180 days I would file a dispute now to stop them from being able to move your funds out of paypal. If, like me, you bought a long time ago there really isn't anything you can do beyond reporting the seller. All but one of the sellers I have bought from has already fled eBay though, so it probably won't do much good.
There is a chance they won't abandon their merchant account, so you can also try reporting to paypal.
If you lost hard disc codes or Amazon codes you should be able to get a different result than I did. If not, Amazon still offers protection I'm pretty sure.
I wish everyone the best of luck, and I really hope you get a better outcome than I did.
I'll be switching to the steam version during the steam summer sale.
So then buying a second-hand copy is a violation of the terms of service?
yes. Especially if it's tied into origin. You can probably get away with buying used discs as long as it comes with the codes. You won't be able to register those disc codes if they were already registered to another account in origin. If you are one of those people who has the base game disc issued before 2012 that does not require origin you can add used discs eps with code and not play with origin. If you dont own that base game that does not require origin anything you buy used won't work
Besides serving as their DRM, another purpose to Origin was to shut down the second hand games market, which cuts into their profits.
All software companies claim that what you purchase is a "service" and not a "product" that you own. They have taken this literally with their latest sims game with patches containing 'free' content updates, and with the game being located in their Mobile department they have those semi-regular in-game events like the Easter egg hunt and the latest plant sim business.
I don't have Origin installed on my main desktop either - which I've had about 6 months now. I do still have Origin and TS4 installed on my laptop but since I never get the urge to play that game (or anything else I have that's tied to Origin) I should delete it all. Maybe if I ever drag out the laptop I'll do just that.
But speaking of games being 'leased' now, aren't there limitations on how many times you can install disk versions? Granted you can contact support and 'deauthorize' old PCs that you are no longer using but I doubt anyone does that very often. So I wonder what would happen if you attempted to install the game for the 6th time in a few years? Between different laptops and desktops I've owned since the game came out, I may be getting close to that install limit.
@Linamints I am sorry you have run into this issue. If they had dealt with this problem long ago then you could have addressed this issue with Ebay. If they suddenly have the ability to detect these sorts of issues due to updated tech then they really should have made allowances for people who have been using these games for a while instead of suddenly yanking the rug out from under people like this. EA really does not know how to deal with customers in a friendly manner, it seems.
The Sims
Where are we going, and why am I in this hand basket?!
I'm going to go to my mom's house and get all my EP's and SP out of storage. I can only HOPE that this NEVER happens again!
My younger sister, who's played since THE SIMS1, has "lost ALL respect" for the series now because of this!
You can't stop pirated copies of games and to take away EVERYONE'S game (EP and SP) until you get proof of purchase from an authorized dealer is wrong.
Seems that EA should have the codes on file and WHAT crate load goes to WHAT location. All I know is that EA lost a long time Sims player. I'm hoping that she'll come back, but it's not looking too good right now.
@HappySimmer3 Thank you very much for your sympathy. I really wish they had dealt with this a long time ago, but it is likely they also were not aware that the codes were stolen until recently.
I forgot to mention in my previous post that if other eBay code purchasers have the same ruling as I did they will be unable to purchase any of the blocked Sims 3 packs through origin. Since the packs are deactivated and not deleted, it is effectively a block on buying those packs on your own account in the future.
I don't know if that will change but right now it's not looking like it will.
"Parenting is just like gardening, except if you let your garden die you don't go to prison." - Anna Blast
@HappySimmer3 Thank you very much for your sympathy. I really wish they had dealt with this a long time ago, but it is likely they also were not aware that the codes were stolen until recently.
I forgot to mention in my previous post that if other eBay code purchasers have the same ruling as I did they will be unable to purchase any of the blocked Sims 3 packs through origin. Since the packs are deactivated and not deleted, it is effectively a block on buying those packs on your own account in the future.
I don't know if that will change but right now it's not looking like it will.
Hmm.. EA also told me that my games were disabled due to an apparent chargeback against my account. However in the email it does say that you will have to repurchase these games to play, so maybe you will have to ask origin to remove them to be able to repurchase, or get details how that works.
I own the store since March 4th, 2017! Thanks to everybody who has helped me achieve this!
TheSims3.com: Jahnna
So then buying a second-hand copy is a violation of the terms of service?
yes. Especially if it's tied into origin. You can probably get away with buying used discs as long as it comes with the codes. You won't be able to register those disc codes if they were already registered to another account in origin. If you are one of those people who has the base game disc issued before 2012 that does not require origin you can add used discs eps with code and not play with origin. If you dont own that base game that does not require origin anything you buy used won't work
Besides serving as their DRM, another purpose to Origin was to shut down the second hand games market, which cuts into their profits.
They created Origin to compete with Steam and stopped selling their games to steam. Steam only has a few older EA games. I played the sims 3 DRM free while still having origin on my computer. Then in 2015 EA tired to lock all of us who were DRM free that have the original base game into origin. EA using origin to go after 3rd party sellers and illegal codes just happened this week. They could have stopped them a long time ago and none of these innocent people would be getting these letters. I don't know why EA did not contact Ebay and other unauthorized sellers and demand they stop selling game codes. I guess the way they are handling this now comes out cheaper for EA than a legal depute and the player pays the price.
@Linamints I'm sorry you and others have to deal with this
@Linamints
Firstly, I am very sorry for your situation.
Secondly, this is one of the rudest, unsympathetic and downright unfriendly notices I have ever seen from a company to its customer. It offers no suggestions to alleviate the situation. It is not the customer's fault if they were a victim of a sham!
"We received your latest message regarding the action taken on your account. We have now performed all investigations possible on this issue and we will not reverse the decision.
Please do not expect further responses from us on this matter."
Lastly, and I know no one here can answer this question, but what sense does it make to deactivate a game but not delete it? If a game has been rendered 'useless' then it is 'useless' to leave it clogging up someone's account.
Also, it makes no sense why a company which 'claims' to want your business such as Origin, would cut themselves off from making money by keeping a 'useless' games in an account as a placeholder. It would make more sense (business-wise) to see Origin offer to sell 'official key codes' to make the deactivated game a legal one. Or just delete the 'useless' game to make room for a legal purchase.
Excerpt from Linamints earlier post:
"You will need to repurchase the game in order to play it. Make sure you purchase from an authorized and trustworthy retailer or recognized digital distribution service such as Origin."
I just cannot wrap my head around how creating this barrier between Simmer and game makes either common sense or more importantly business sense.
So then buying a second-hand copy is a violation of the terms of service?
yes. Especially if it's tied into origin. You can probably get away with buying used discs as long as it comes with the codes. You won't be able to register those disc codes if they were already registered to another account in origin. If you are one of those people who has the base game disc issued before 2012 that does not require origin you can add used discs eps with code and not play with origin. If you dont own that base game that does not require origin anything you buy used won't work
Besides serving as their DRM, another purpose to Origin was to shut down the second hand games market, which cuts into their profits.
They created Origin to compete with Steam and stopped selling their games to steam. Steam only has a few older EA games. I played the sims 3 DRM free while still having origin on my computer. Then in 2015 EA tired to lock all of us who were DRM free that have the original base game into origin. EA using origin to go after 3rd party sellers and illegal codes just happened this week. They could have stopped them a long time ago and none of these innocent people would be getting these letters. I don't know why EA did not contact Ebay and other unauthorized sellers and demand they stop selling game codes. I guess the way they are handling this now comes out cheaper for EA than a legal depute and the player pays the price.
@Linamints I'm sorry you and others have to deal with this
I do not believe that they created Origin to compete with Steam. There is no way that they can actually "compete" with Steam. Origin has just a fraction of games compared to Steam.
But what they can do is to prevent Steam from getting a portion of profits that would go solely to EA by creating their own client that sells their own games directly to customers, creates a DRM barrier (just by it's very nature - it's an online tool that authenticates your purchase every time it starts), and cuts out the second-hand games market by making it impossible for people to purchase used games codes that will work since that code has already been registered to someone else.
The Sims
Where are we going, and why am I in this hand basket?!
Comments
Were those the ones you bought off ebay? EA has allot of people upset who paid for those codes
I did, but I also got other codes from Ebay and the EA Advisor said that my account has no notes about TOS violation or anything else and that my games are simply "inactive", and those games I activated and registered over 2 1/2 years ago so I can't really imagine charge back being an issue. He couldn't say why the games are inactive and said it was odd but suggested that my account might need updating and someone will look into it.
TheSims3.com: Jahnna
We have had a few people with accounts that somehow got glitched and EA has had to fix them on their end. That might be the case with yours
All software companies whose products "phone home" for authentication can do this as per the terms of their agreed upon EULA and none of us actually "own" these products we have purchased the rights to use. When discs are involved we may own the discs themselves, I mean the physical media and the boxes they came in, but those alone don't have much value.
NRaas has moved!
Our new site is at http://nraas.net
You can never own the sims 4 unless EA offers the game drm/origin free. I don't see that happening since the sims 3 is now attached to origin too after being drm free for 6 years. Maybe one day down the road they will offer these games like they have the TS2 ultimate collection which is drm free
The discs that are not tied into DRM do have some value. We can install the game and play it whenever we like and not have to be on line to play it even though we technically don't own the content of those discs
It's kind of the same with Windows, Office, and other equivalents. Once you authenticate the first time, if you then take the computer totally offline then no one or nothing from Microsoft (Apple, Adobe, etc.) can bother you. But I imagine that very few computer users operate strictly that way all of the time unless they are in an environment that just has no connectivity.
NRaas has moved!
Our new site is at http://nraas.net
Origin client will not let you start the game without origin being attached to the game. If EA decided to pull the plug on the sims 3 and did not offer the player an option to play without origin, you would no longer be able to play the game. That is if you bought the version of the game that is tied into origin
I play the game without origin. I can patch my game without origin. Im patched to 1.67 . I have the original version of the game that does not require origin. If you are lucky to have this version , even if EA pulls the plug on the origin version of the game, you will still be able to play your game
I hope this makes sense
When I was about to buy Sims 2 after playing the Sims for several years I checked the web site and discovered Sims 3 was about to be released and I decided to wait for Sims 3.
When the Sims 2 Ultimate Collection was released and I was able to get it for free I got it and it is available for me to play through Origin. I can't play it without Origin though as I have to download it each time I want to play. If I try to launch it from my computer it just says it isn't installed and I have to install it. I don't think the whole thing downloads each time. It seems they did something to it for those who didn't own the disks so that you can't actually play without Origin - or it could just be me.
Fortunately, I don't have any attachment to Sims 2 and it doesn't particularly bother me that I can't play it. I barely have time to play Sims 3 these days.
When I get my new computer in a few weeks I'll probably install Sims 3 on it and maybe - just maybe I'll update Origin on this laptop - then and see if I can get Sims 2 to play on the laptop. I'll probably take Sims 3 off too.
I'm not planning to install Origin on the new computer. Just Sims 3. I'll have the laptop to play games that require Origin - such as Sim City and others. I tried playing them yesterday with an offline version of Origin that hasn't been updated and everything worked perfectly. It's just Sims 2 that 'isn't installed on this computer'.
I have the super patches downloaded. I'm not sure of the store content. I've read people have had to redownload their store content when they get a new computer as they can't install their backed up content. I'll have to wait and see what happens when the time comes. But I can download it from the store or my purchase history without having to worry about Origin.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuW44b3uCMtCSaq4gwC8EZg
Actually, that happened to me too, but (at least for me) it has nothing to do with Origin. The problem occured every time CCleaner "cleaned" the registry. (I noticed that it deletes a not of TS2 stuff)
Of course, I might be completely wrong but that is my observation.
This exact same thing happened to me when I used CCleaner to clean the registry. I had to repair sims 2 UC every time after a cleaning.
"Hello,
We received your latest message regarding the action taken on your account. We have now performed all investigations possible on this issue and we will not reverse the decision.
Please do not expect further responses from us on this matter."
If you have purchased in the last 180 days I would file a dispute now to stop them from being able to move your funds out of paypal. If, like me, you bought a long time ago there really isn't anything you can do beyond reporting the seller. All but one of the sellers I have bought from has already fled eBay though, so it probably won't do much good.
There is a chance they won't abandon their merchant account, so you can also try reporting to paypal.
If you lost hard disc codes or Amazon codes you should be able to get a different result than I did. If not, Amazon still offers protection I'm pretty sure.
I wish everyone the best of luck, and I really hope you get a better outcome than I did.
I'll be switching to the steam version during the steam summer sale.
Here are a few links that might help others.
A list of official vendors so if you have to repurchase, you can purchase safely: https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/faq/where-to-buy-ea-games-v2/#trusted
A post from Igazor about purchasing with Amazon, be sure to be careful:
http://modthesims.info/showthread.php?p=5216485#post5216485
And for those still disputing, here is what you need to provide proof of purchase:
https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/account/how-to-provide-proof-of-purchase/
Besides serving as their DRM, another purpose to Origin was to shut down the second hand games market, which cuts into their profits.
All software companies claim that what you purchase is a "service" and not a "product" that you own. They have taken this literally with their latest sims game with patches containing 'free' content updates, and with the game being located in their Mobile department they have those semi-regular in-game events like the Easter egg hunt and the latest plant sim business.
I don't have Origin installed on my main desktop either - which I've had about 6 months now. I do still have Origin and TS4 installed on my laptop but since I never get the urge to play that game (or anything else I have that's tied to Origin) I should delete it all. Maybe if I ever drag out the laptop I'll do just that.
But speaking of games being 'leased' now, aren't there limitations on how many times you can install disk versions? Granted you can contact support and 'deauthorize' old PCs that you are no longer using but I doubt anyone does that very often. So I wonder what would happen if you attempted to install the game for the 6th time in a few years? Between different laptops and desktops I've owned since the game came out, I may be getting close to that install limit.
@Linamints I am sorry you have run into this issue. If they had dealt with this problem long ago then you could have addressed this issue with Ebay. If they suddenly have the ability to detect these sorts of issues due to updated tech then they really should have made allowances for people who have been using these games for a while instead of suddenly yanking the rug out from under people like this. EA really does not know how to deal with customers in a friendly manner, it seems.
Where are we going, and why am I in this hand basket?!
My younger sister, who's played since THE SIMS1, has "lost ALL respect" for the series now because of this!
You can't stop pirated copies of games and to take away EVERYONE'S game (EP and SP) until you get proof of purchase from an authorized dealer is wrong.
Seems that EA should have the codes on file and WHAT crate load goes to WHAT location. All I know is that EA lost a long time Sims player. I'm hoping that she'll come back, but it's not looking too good right now.
I forgot to mention in my previous post that if other eBay code purchasers have the same ruling as I did they will be unable to purchase any of the blocked Sims 3 packs through origin. Since the packs are deactivated and not deleted, it is effectively a block on buying those packs on your own account in the future.
I don't know if that will change but right now it's not looking like it will.
Hmm.. EA also told me that my games were disabled due to an apparent chargeback against my account. However in the email it does say that you will have to repurchase these games to play, so maybe you will have to ask origin to remove them to be able to repurchase, or get details how that works.
TheSims3.com: Jahnna
They created Origin to compete with Steam and stopped selling their games to steam. Steam only has a few older EA games. I played the sims 3 DRM free while still having origin on my computer. Then in 2015 EA tired to lock all of us who were DRM free that have the original base game into origin. EA using origin to go after 3rd party sellers and illegal codes just happened this week. They could have stopped them a long time ago and none of these innocent people would be getting these letters. I don't know why EA did not contact Ebay and other unauthorized sellers and demand they stop selling game codes. I guess the way they are handling this now comes out cheaper for EA than a legal depute and the player pays the price.
@Linamints I'm sorry you and others have to deal with this
Firstly, I am very sorry for your situation.
Secondly, this is one of the rudest, unsympathetic and downright unfriendly notices I have ever seen from a company to its customer. It offers no suggestions to alleviate the situation. It is not the customer's fault if they were a victim of a sham!
"We received your latest message regarding the action taken on your account. We have now performed all investigations possible on this issue and we will not reverse the decision.
Please do not expect further responses from us on this matter."
Lastly, and I know no one here can answer this question, but what sense does it make to deactivate a game but not delete it? If a game has been rendered 'useless' then it is 'useless' to leave it clogging up someone's account.
Also, it makes no sense why a company which 'claims' to want your business such as Origin, would cut themselves off from making money by keeping a 'useless' games in an account as a placeholder. It would make more sense (business-wise) to see Origin offer to sell 'official key codes' to make the deactivated game a legal one. Or just delete the 'useless' game to make room for a legal purchase.
Excerpt from Linamints earlier post:
"You will need to repurchase the game in order to play it. Make sure you purchase from an authorized and trustworthy retailer or recognized digital distribution service such as Origin."
I just cannot wrap my head around how creating this barrier between Simmer and game makes either common sense or more importantly business sense.
I do not believe that they created Origin to compete with Steam. There is no way that they can actually "compete" with Steam. Origin has just a fraction of games compared to Steam.
But what they can do is to prevent Steam from getting a portion of profits that would go solely to EA by creating their own client that sells their own games directly to customers, creates a DRM barrier (just by it's very nature - it's an online tool that authenticates your purchase every time it starts), and cuts out the second-hand games market by making it impossible for people to purchase used games codes that will work since that code has already been registered to someone else.
Where are we going, and why am I in this hand basket?!