Nintendo has been granted by a German court to allow digital refunds up until the launch date

Gaming New - Nintendo has been allowed by a German court to allow digital refunds up until the launch date.

Players can now only cancel pre-orders if they are more than seven days away from the game's release date.

Image Nintendo Eshop

Nintendo has been ordered by a German high court to allow players to receive digital refunds on games until they are released.

Players who pre-order a game through the eShop can currently only cancel and receive a refund if the title is still seven days out from release.

According to Nintendo's support page, "the voluntary right to cancel a pre-order can only be utilized seven days or more before the software's release date.

Nintendo has previously been sued by Norway's Consumer Rights Council and the German Consumer Protection Authority (VZBV), alleging that it had broken consumer regulations, but a judge at the Frankfurt regional court ruled that it was legal in December 2020. The judgment was then appealed to the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court, which has now reversed the previous decision.

The judges pointed out that the EU's 14-day right of withdrawal – which allows buyers to obtain a refund up to 14 days after purchasing goods online – did not apply to video games, according to a statement on the VZBV website.

Nintendo argued that some of its titles can be pre-loaded onto the Switch and activated on the day of release, implying that the transaction has already occurred.

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VZBV, on the other hand, said that even if a game was pre-loaded, the fact that it couldn't be activated until release meant that "the game is worthless for the consumer" until then, and that "the Nintendo contract has not been fulfilled in any manner."

Nintendo was compelled to amend its policy when the justices agreed and approved the appeal. VZBV claims to have completed this task for both the German and Norway versions of the eShop.

Nintendo hasn't said whether this will apply to all eShops in Europe or the rest of the world.

H/S: VGC 

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