The Problem with Giveaways

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Cryptic are currently running a promotional giveaway for Star Trek Online, in which the top prize is an exclusive ORIGIN Millennium Gaming Desktop themed PC with artwork from Star Trek Online: Victory is Life. It’s worth $3, 272, looks spiffy and has robust specifications. There all also various other runner up prizes, such as the Gamma Vanguard and Gamma Vanguard Starter Pack. If you enjoy STO then this is a good value giveaway with a fair selection of rewards. Or at least it is at first glance. If you read the ubiquitous small print that comes with any sort of endeavour such as this, you’ll quickly spot that you can only enter the giveaway if you’re resident of North America. And therein lies the problem with so many competitions these days. Despite games having a global market, giveaways are frequently hamstrung by regional restrictions, rules and regulations.

Let us not kid ourselves about the purpose of giveaways, competitions and prize draws that are common place to the gaming industry. They are marketing and promotional tools primarily designed to attract new customers and secondly to placate existing players. One of the biggest challenges any service industries has to face is churn; the attrition or turnover of customers. MMOs suffer this continuously. Therefore, they need to keep players engaged, enamoured and involved. Giving away in-game trinkets and baubles can only go so far. However, offering a tangible physical prize that is both exclusive and high-value is one way to attract attention. As human beings we tend to like the thrill and excitement of competitions and the chance of winning a prize. Often, the logical part of our brain which calmly tell us to consider the odds, is completely ignored by our emotions who want feel special and win something shiny. This is why companies such as Cryptic run giveaways. The buzz they create gets results.

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But competitions of this kind are an administrative nightmare. Every country has its own bespoke set of rules regarding competitions, the prizes they offer and the age of those who can enter. Then there are issues pertaining to tax, physically shipping the prize to the winner and ensuring that the entire process is administered in a transparent and fair way. And those are a bunch of very difficult dots to join. Hence companies such as Cryptic often elect to limit the scope of the giveaway to a specific region. However, where such action may solve one problem, it causes another because those parties that are excluded are left feeling like second class customers. You may get a similar feeling when you see advertisements for some great deal that is only applicable to new customers of a service that you already use. I’ve phoned British Telecom several times in the past and berated some poor schmuck in customer services because I can’t have a shiny new router despite twenty-five years of loyal custom. You only have to go and visit the STO Reddit and you’ll find complaints about this PC giveaway already.

This problem seems to stem from the gap between global markets and regional bureaucracy as well as supply chains. I’m sure at present, it not an easy hurdle to overcome, but I certainly think that it needs to be addressed. Perhaps there is a compromise to be had. Can a high value prize such as a PC be sourced to other parts of the globe by local business partners? Can alternative prizes be offered to those who enter outside of North America? A solution will no doubt increase the level of administration required and all too often in business, it is the bottom line that dictates decisions. But sometimes if you’re trying to gain goodwill you have to go the extra mile. And before anyone trots out arguments about “entitlement”, this is not a matter of hurt feelings or anything as trite. It’s a matter of being publicly seen to treat all your customers the same, which is a sound business practise.

CMP Giveaway: Win a Copy of Mass Effect: Andromeda for the PC (Closed)

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It’s been a while since there’s been any giveaways on Contains Moderate Peril. I won’t bore you with the details why. Legal complexities although pertinent are exquisitely tedious. So, to cut a long story short, here is a chance to win a copy of the popular RPG Mass Effect: Andromeda (standard edition) for the PC. Do I really need to write a potted summary of what this game is about? I think not. Despite the controversy surrounding aspects of the game upon its launch on the 21st March, it would appear that this title has still found favour with the gaming community. So, I thought it the perfect title to feature as the first Contains Moderate Peril giveaway of 2017. Keep checking the site, we have more to come over the month ahead.

Here are the minimum and optimum PC requirements to play Mass Effect: Andromeda.

Minimum System Requirements

OS: 64-bit Windows 7, Windows 8.1, or Windows 10
CPU: Intel Core i5 3570 or AMD FX-6350
RAM: 8 GB
GPU: Nvidia GTX 660 2 GB, AMD Radeon 7850 2 GB
Hard Drive: At least 55 GB of free space
DirectX: DirectX 11

Recommended System Requirements

OS: 64-bit Windows 7, Windows 8.1, or Windows 10
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790 or AMD FX-8350
RAM: 16 GB
GPU: Nvidia GTX 1060 3 GB, AMD RX 480 4 GB
Hard Drive: At least 55 GB of free space
DirectX: DirectX 11

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To enter follow the instructions below:

There are two ways to enter the draw. You may use anyone of them or both for a chances to win.

Method 1: Simply leave a comment on this post using a legitimate email address that you can be reached on. 

Method 2: Follow @ModeratePeril on Twitter, then use your Twitter account to tweet this exact phrase: Win a copy of Mass Effect Andromeda @ModeratePeril http://bit.ly/2nNh5lI #MEACMP #Giveaway #Competition

The competition will close on Sunday 30th April 2017 at 18:00 GMT. 

Terms & Conditions:

1.) One entry per person, per method (comment or Twitter) please. Total of 2 possible entries per person. To comply with UK ratings regulations all entrants must be 18 or over.

2.) Any entry using an IP address that's already logged will be deleted. Effectively only one set of entries per household.

3.) The actual text of your comment has no bearing on the competition, although it is sensible to be polite. It is irrelevant whether you post a unique comment or a reply to another person.

4.) Contains Moderate Peril's decision is final. There will not be a debate, steward’s enquiry or inquest into who won.

5.) The winner will be contacted by email or Twitter Direct Message. If they do not reply within 2 days, the prize will be re-allocated.

6.) The prize will be in the form of a region free game code for the Origin game platform. The winner will need to have or create an Origin account.

7.) Contains Moderate Peril contributors cannot enter.

8.) By entering you accept responsibility that the prize is compatible with your hardware. If you win and it's not, that is your problem and you have no recourse to Contains Moderate Peril.

9.) The winner may not request that the prize be transferred to any other person. No cash alternative or alternative prize is available on entrant's request but in the event of the advertised competition prize being unavailable we reserve the right to offer an alternative prize of equal or greater value.

10.) Entry in the competition implies acceptance of these rules

Good luck.