If there's any one thing that defined gaming in 2014, it was a slew of broken, unfinished games. Assassin's Creed Unity, DriveClub and Halo: The Master Chief Collection were supposed to be among the biggest titles of the year. Instead, gamers spent their first few months with the games just trying to get them to work. Things haven't gotten all that much better in 2015, with Batman: Arkham Knight publisher Warner Bros. Interactive pulling the PC version entirely for being so terrible.

The worst part about the whole situation is that gamers have no way to hold the developers responsible. There's no way to simply return a game, especially if you downloaded the digital version, so gamers are stuck buying broken software or waiting to see if it works or not. It's a terrible system, one that gives publishers all the power while consumers get screwed.

Thankfully, that may be changing: according to a new British law, each and every product sold now comes with a mandatory 30-day refund window. Basically, if the product doesn't work as advertised, the buyer has 30 days to return it – and that new law extends to video games.

The latest version of the U.K.'s Consumer Rights Act of 2015 went into effect on Oct. 1, and while many of the changes were minor, there was one addition that could change how publishers handle their work. For the first time ever, digital products are covered by the act – meaning that, if the game or service doesn't function as advertised, consumers are entitled to a refund regardless of a store's previous policies.

Granted, there are specific circumstances that will determine whether or not a game is "broken" – don't expect a single dropped game to qualify anyone for a refund. However, with games like Batman: Arkham Knight being removed from Steam for months due to its terrible performance, it's clear that this new law is a necessary step forward.

So, what does this mean for U.S. gamers? Nothing, currently – the law only applies to the U.K., and it's highly unlikely that GameStop is going to change its return policy anytime soon. That being said, the U.K. (and Europe in general) is a big enough market for publishers to take notice. While it's highly unlikely that one new law will change everything, there's definitely a chance that it'll inspire some publishers to actually finish games before launch.

With the holiday season fast approaching, the gaming industry is about to kick into high gear – let's just hope that gaming in 2015 won't be quite as broken as last year.



Be sure to follow T-Lounge on Twitter and visit our Facebook page.

ⓒ 2018 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.