Ed, a lifelong Sony fan, pours his heart out over an especially painful betrayal: misleading PS Vita advertising. He's decided to take the next logical step.
Sony will always hold a special place in my heart. I've supported them ever since I was able to spend my own money. When I needed to buy a gadget, Sony was the first stop. I've spent thousands and thousands of dollars over the years on their products, and I have had nothing but positive experiences. I've also owned every one of their game consoles...including three PlayStation's, three PlayStation 2's, four PSP's, and two PlayStation 3's. And like I said, I've never had a problem. Until I bought the PS Vita.
I was always on the fence about the Vita. Not because I didn't trust it would be great but because the cost was just a little too high. I eventually decided to wait. After all, they would drop the price eventually. Little did I know the surprise Sony had in store. One day, while at my local game store, I noticed an advertisement by Sony on the front of a Vita box that read as follows.
"Over $55 Bonus Value. 8GB Memory Card, AT&T Data Session And A Downloadable Game With Activation For A Limited Time Only."
This was a blessing. I would be getting a free 8GB memory card! A free AT&T Data Session and a downloadable game! Brilliant! I pounced. I couldn't have been happier. Sony once again proved they had the key to my heart and knew how to manipulate it in just the right way. I didn't even need to buy any games; I was getting a free one as soon as I activated my free AT&T Data Session pass.
After tearing apart the packaging and looking for the AT&T pass and the code for a free game, I found nothing. Confused, I did a Google search. That's when I read the truth and felt devastated. If you wanted the free game and the month of AT&T 3G service, you had to pay AT&T for a month of 3G first...Sony, my dear, dear Sony. They lied to me. Desperate to prove I was the one who was wrong, I read every single last word on the box. Nowhere, not even in the fine print, did it say that I had to pay to get these promised bonuses.
At first, I was hurt. Sony had lied to me? They had...lied? I felt betrayed by a friend. Like finding out your best friend just stole $55 from your wallet. The hurt quickly turned to anger, and like smacking that friend in the mouth for daring to steal from me, I went straight to the Better Business Bureau and filed a complaint. When I was done filing the complaint, I started feeling regret. Had I overreacted? I just wrote five paragraphs demanding Sony give me the free game that was promised, and now I started to think I may have let my anger get the best of me.
I was furious that they would stoop so low. Sony doesn't do that. They don't resort to such tricks. However, I felt regret nonetheless, and after a few days I had cooled down. Sony may have lied, but I was sure they would make it right. After all, the free game couldn't be more than $10 or $20, and that's nothing compared to the thousands and thousands I've spent on their products over the years.