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They can’t all be winners.
It’s tricky to get refunds when you buy digital content because there’s no real scale of how much you’ve used it. It can be frustrating when you buy digital media and, for one reason or another, it doesn’t meet your standards (or you can’t use it at all). Luckily, at least if you’re shopping through Steam, you can get a refund. But how do you get a refund when you need it?
Before I answer that, let’s have a quick morality chat. Steam’s policy is that you can refund any game for any reason as long as it’s been less than a week since you bought it and you have less than two hours of play time on it. And when I say any reason, I mean any reason, whether it’s flat-out broken or you just didn’t like it. But remember, just because you can get a refund doesn’t mean you should. Some folks abuse the refund policy as a means of demoing games, and you just shouldn’t do that. Unless the game is completely broken or outright offends your sensibilities, you should really just suck it up and commit to your purchase. Okay? Okay.
So, if you want a refund, all you gotta do is go to the Steam Support page. You’ll see a list of games you recently played. Click on the game in question, and then click on the problem you’re having. You’ll get a list of help topics, but the one you’re looking for is “I’d like to request a refund.” You’ll get a short form to fill out that will confirm the game, how much you paid, and how it’ll be refunded to you (they can either send it back to a payment card or put the amount in your Steam Wallet). There will also be a comment box that will ask you why you’re refunding and let you write a little description, so be a sport and fill that out properly. Once you hit Submit, the game will be removed from your Steam library, and, usually in a day or two, the money will be credited back to you.
So there’s your refund method if and when you need it. Remember, kids, be a smart shopper: search for the best deals and read reviews and comments before you commit to a purchase.
