Thousands Able to Snatch Watch Dogs 2 For Free
While Watch Dogs 2 sales have not been particularly strong, the overall consensus is Watch Dogs 2 is better than the original Watch Dogs game. Reviewed by our man Ryan Tessier, he said “Watch Dogs 2 is an improvement over the original. A fresh new protagonist and setting drastically overhaul the somber nature of the original and create an enjoyable sandbox in the process.” Today, we learned thousands of Xbox One users have been able to download a free digital copy of Watch Dogs 2: Deluxe Edition from the Microsoft Store. They were able to do this after a redemption code intended for a single use only became indefinitely reusable.
The promotional code (which has now expired) began surfacing appearing on social media yesterday, before it was later picked up on by several notable deals sites across the world. Naturally, the code spread like wildfire, with Xbox users keen to take advantage of what appeared to be an act of holiday generosity on the part of Ubisoft.
Eventually; however, the true nature of the promotional code became clear which may not be good news for the users who took advantage of the glitch. Xbox Live’s terms of service states that “attempts to illegitimately acquire or use redemption codes, sharing or distributing account credentials, fraudulent transferring of content licenses, using glitches for financial gain, or other attempts to defraud Microsoft or support agents” are strictly forbidden, and may lead to users’ accounts being banned.
In this case, we do not know if Microsoft will punish those customers who may have innocently redeemed the code believing it to be a genuine promotion. We do anticipate their access to Watch Dogs 2 will be revoked but highly doubt their Xbox Live accounts will be banned. But really who knows.
It’s worth noting that there’s also a precedent for cases such as these. Back in June, the company handed out $10 gift vouchers in the way of an apology – but not before revoking all licenses – after Fallout 4 and all of its expansions temporarily showed up for free via the Microsoft Store.