Completed Operation Letter Tsunami

https://www.facebook.com/events/231063733669743/?notif_t=plan_edited

Call to arms

This is the time where each of us can help. You won't have to be able to draw a perfect Garrus nor will you have to code a new ending, what we ask of you is that you help by sending letters and postcards!

We want to send letters and not just some letters. We want enough letters to fill the entire building. Many people have great ideas for the letters. Rather than just pick one and limit the choices, we will send them all. We will send postcards. We will send POV letters. We will send artwork. We will send them all.

So be ready for it!

Date has been set, the tides will rise on 12 May

Feel free to use your own idea, or use the blueprints below. Should you print or email these; do not copy, paste and print/send! be sure to change everything in-between the brackets like <name> to the desired receiver of your email

None of this could be done without the help of the people who came up with the ideas, nor the countless other people that helped shape them. A big *hurrah* for you all!


There are 5 options (or all 5 if you feel like it)

1) Idea by kihten Send a letter to EA explaining what is at stake, use blueprint A and any statistics you may have on EA's stock value, dropping prices or express that you will not buy another game from EA/BioWare nor will you advice your friends to do so. (you may use the links for statistics) Send it to one (or multiple) of the addresses below

2) Idea by TheCharAznable two-fold letter campaign, use blueprint B.
Send a letter to friends explaining why they shouldn't buy Mass Effect 3 games nor other games of EA/Bioware, then send a copy to one (or multiple) of the addresses below.

3) Idea by Shadowchaser Send a letter explaining which problems you have with EA/Bioware, their practices or their products and include a self-addressed stamped envelope(SASE) for a response, use blueprint C.
Explain what you find lacking, what you would like added and/or what practices you find unacceptable. Send them to one (or multiple) of the addresses below.

4) Idea by Jana Avila 'Future Gamers' Send a letter with pictures, drawings and anything related to your children, nephews or cousins, little brother or sisters etc. Use blueprint D
Our fight may have a whole lot more meaning then we ourselves realise. The ramifications of what we do today may (and must) pass on into the future to help shape the gaming industry in a better way. We wouldn't want to have to tell our kids 'games used to be fun, but then the gaming industry turned it into the same 10 games and started copying those' Send them to one (or multiple) of the addresses below

5) Idea by DrowVampyre. Postcards! Send a postcard to the people at EA and BioWare to voice your opinion on the endings and general practices. This one is a bit special, use the guide at Blueprint E below on how to send this postcard, as usual a blueprint is below for the ready-to-send text.
If a letter isn't really your style, why not send a postcard? Send them to one (or multiple) of the addresses below
We can make this happen, what we need is to bury EA and BioWare under mail until they have no choice but to grasp our hand to escape.

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Blueprint A

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Links:
link to cummalative Dragon Age sales: http://greywardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/DAO-vs.-DA2-sales.png

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link to EA stock price: [/B]http://i49.tinypic.com/urbk2.jpg

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link to sales per week DA:O, DA2 first 10 weeks: http://www2.picturepush.com/photo/a/5693540/img/Anonymous/DA2DAO-2.jpg

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Dear <name>
I write to you both on behalf of the fans as on behalf of your own interests. For several years now <company name> has been steadily declining; dropping stock prices, poorly made games that do not accumulate the expected revenue (the damage of which reflected upon sales of extra content.) An example of this would be Dragon Age 2. While Dragon Age 2 sold around 1.4 million copies in the first 10 weeks, Dragon Age sold 2.4 million copies. What also has to be mentioned is that after 3 weeks the sales of Dragon Age rose, while the sales of Dragon Age 2 plummeted into the depths after word of mouth got around.

This is an example of how rushed or poorly done games can cost you not only money on the short run, but also on the long run through fans leaving your company altogether. Your fans clearly demand a new ending. Not only because of the advertising you made, but also because of the story itself that was solid up till this point.

Now you stand at a crossroad: decide to not change the ending, insisting on your own feeling of being right, potentially costing you millions through lost revenue yet retaining your ‘artistic integrity’ or spend some money to change the ending in a way the fans feel will fix the problem. Or better yet: open up a line of communication with your fans. choose several people of each of the current movements (Retake, Hold the Line, Hold the Wallet) then publicly acknowledge the fact you have started a conversation. Fans have detailed clearly what it is that should be changed, combine that with input from the movements themselves and you save yourself a lot of work and money yet cannot go wrong in delivering the Extended Cut.

Should you choose the second option, many fans would love to return to buying products from you. This would not only affect sales of future games, but also DLC planned for current games.

You have always claimed to have listened to us, the fans. This is your time to prove it.

Kind regards,
<your own name>

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Blueprint B

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Dear <name>

You will have probably heard about the problems concerning Mass Effect 3 and it's ending. While the game itself is enjoyable, the ending itself ruins the experience and I strongly discourage you to buy this game. Not only have EA and BioWare shown they will release inferior products without hesitation (see Dragon Age 2 for more info, definitely don't buy that.) they also continue these unethical practices in their advertisements, falsely implying or downright lying.

I doubt I will buy more games from either of these companies, and I would urge you to do the same. We have the power as consumers and, should the need be there, we shouldn't be afraid to use it to stop these unethical business practices.

Yours faithfully,
<your own name>

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Blueprint C

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Feel free to add your own points of critique.

Blueprint C:

Dear <name>,

I'm writing to you in light of certain issues that came up recently concerning your company.

1) False advertisement. Not only have you been deemed guilty of falsely advertising the game before launch by the Better Business Bureau, but after launch you continued doing so. You even adding 'Provoked a bigger fan reaction than any other videogame's conclusion in the history of the medium' just below the line '75 perfect scores,' clearly implying the fan reaction was positive.

2) No communication. A company of your scale shouldn't try to solve everything with nothing but PR-tricks, and then expect the problem to go away. We are consumers and we have a problem with your product. We have the right to demand clear answers and to be treated with respect. Try contacting several people from each of the different movements (Retake, Hold the Line, Hold the Wallet) and show you genuinely want to solve this problem.

3) Not refunding digital products. When you only allow your digital games to be used on your own platforms, yet do not allow a refund when that product is unsatisfactory, then this is nearing theft. Every consumer has the right to be dissatisfied with a product if it does not live up to what you yourself advertised and, as a result, to demand a refund. This means a full refund without having to argue with Origin support-agents.

I hope you will take us up on the offer of communication, and will do your best to solve these problems.

Kind regards,
<your own name>

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Blueprint D

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(As I have no kids or younger relatives, I made this relatively short. for the people that do: be not afraid to put in an anecdote or something similar in there. This type of letter is supposed to have a more emotional touch to it so no fear in adding your own experiences)

Dear <name>,

We are fans that love your game to bits, yet are saddened by the direction you are taking. We took great pleasure in playing <game names> and we love to share this passion with our younger family members. We would be exited to, once they are old enough, show them this series and say: "This, this is how a game is supposed to be made. This is what you call proper character development, this is how you write a story". It would pain us to have to tell them, that the series we cared and loved is no more, and in it's place came a mediocre replacement. We adore these games and we would be thrilled to give them the possibility of sharing the same experience, joy and excitement we got out of these games.

Therefore we implore you <name>, help us realise this goal. Help to ensure that gaming as a whole takes a step forward, not several steps backwards. For us, but also for those who can not yet voice their opinion.

In the hopes that you will listen to our plea.

Kind regards,
<your own name>

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Blueprint E

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How to send:
1) follow this link Click

2) Click "Start a Mailing"

3) Click 5.5" x 8.5" in the left column

4) Click "Side Address"

5) Click "Upload your own image", then click "Browse" and choose the picture in the preview above (also in the spoiler here; you have to download it to your computer first), then click "Upload"

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6) Check the box labelled "Proceed with this image or select a new image below" and click "Next"

7) Copy the text in the "Back" section of the postcard preview above or in the spoiler here and paste it into the box labelled "Enter your text for back panel here."

8) Click "Upload new accent" on the left-hand side of the preview, then click "Browse" and choose the HTL logo in the spoiler here (you have to download it to your computer first), then click "Upload"

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9) Check the box labelled "Proceed with this image or select a new image below" and click "Next"

10) Click the arrow next to "Enter Addresses", enter the address of the person you're sending it to, then click "Save Selections", and repeat until you've added all of them that you want to send to. Make sure all of them are selected (click the arrow beneath "Select Names" to make sure) then click "Next"

11) Review the information to make sure everything is correct (make sure the date is correct, then check the box labelled "I approve this mailing" and click "Next"

12) In the area labelled "My Cart", make sure to make the numbers in the "Quantity" boxes match the number of postcards you are sending, and click "Update" on that same line if you change it to do so. Keep in mind, the line labelled "First Class Mail" is for US addresses, and the line labelled "International Mail" is for Canadian addresses, regardless of where you live in the world (because they're being sent by the company). Once you have done so, click "Next"

13) Enter your payment information (PayPal is accepted if you don't have a credit card) then click "Next"

14) Cross your fingers, wish on your favourite star, and hope Bioware finally gets the message!

The Back text:
We oppose an extended cut of the current ending which contains only "clarification and closure". The ending does not need clarification, for we already understand it, it simply does not fit with the themes or established lore of the Mass Effect universe and the previous two games. It does need closure, but given the breach of themes and poor writing of the shipped ending, any closure it can bring would be meaningless.

We will, however, fully support brand new endings that meet the promises you made to us - that they "would not be bespoke A, B, or C endings", that "there would not be a Reaper off-switch", and that our choices throughout the trilogy would "completely shape the way the ending plays out".

We do not want and will not accept a half-step of "clarification" and an extension to the series-breaking, setting-destroying ending we were given, we want brand new endings that give us what you promised us. We want you to succeed, we want to love your games and your company again, and we feel that you are only going to get one chance to make this right - please, do not waste it trying to placate us with "clarification and closure", rewrite the ending entirely to give us what you promised. We will wait for it. But commit to it now, before your fan base deserts you; because once we are gone, you will not get us back

List of adresses:
Casey Hudson (Producer and Project Director)
Bioware
4445 Calgary Trail NW
Edmonton, AB T6H 5R7
Canada

Mac Walters (Lead Writer)
Bioware
4445 Calgary Trail NW
Edmonton, AB T6H 5R7
Canada

Dr. Ray Muzyka (Senior Vice President and Group General Manager)
Electronic Arts Inc.
209 Redwood Shores Pkwy
Redwood City, CA 94065-1175
United States

Brian Keaster (Director, Customer Service Operations)
Electronic Arts Inc.
11501 Domain Dr
Austin, TX 78758-3483
United States

Michael Lawder (Vice President, World Wide Customer Experience)
Electronic Arts Inc.
209 Redwood Shores Pkwy
Redwood City, CA 94065-1175
United States

Aides for sending international(not needed for blueprint E)
Netherlands: https://digitalepostzegel.postnl.nl/
United Kingdom: http://www.postoffice.co.uk/letters-parcels/overseas-letters-parcels

Finally finished!

edit: removed the spoiler tags on the seal of approval. slightly less professional? probably. at least 20% cooler? hell yes!
second edit: could a mod sticky this? much obliged

Let's make some waves. ^_^

I will get started on this as soon as I wake up. Lol not that I'm not up now (just barely) I set my VI to ping me if I got alerts on this site. Lol uh kidding yeah. Anyway, bad jokes aside great job putting this all together

bump for justice

Blazerer

I coordinated with Kihten and published a Facebook event for this operation! Tell me if I missed something!

Cheers!

http://www.facebook.com/events/231063733669743/?notif_t=plan_edited

EDIT: Please give me a picture I can use!

perhaps?

Also I added the link to the first post, thanks for the hard work!

Your welcome

Hmm, we need something more specific? How about a Postcard from the group photo campaign? I thought it would be appropriate since that had lots of people in one photo sorta like this operation... various initiatives under one operation.

Thoughts?

I was thinking about that, but seeing the size of the thumbnail on the facebook picture I'm afraid it'd be extremely small. if it doesn't overly size it down, how about the main postcard?

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Posted!

well will you look at that, it's actually readable ^^ great idea!

Just to point out, too, that for my postcard thing ("E" in the list above) the postage won't be affected by people's countries of origin, because you make them online and that company sends them on your behalf.

I'll make sure to take note of that.

Also, I forgot to tell you about this Drow. I told Kihten I was making you an event, and then she suggested I do this instead

lol, no worries. I'm not sure how much support mine has, honestly - people have received it pretty well, but we don't have a lot of activity going on, so...yeah. <_< But I just want to do what we're here for, I don't care if it's my idea that does it. ^_^

Just a heads up if you guys don't already know, but if you send a postcard, don't fold it. I found this out the hard way. Obviously postage is cheaper for a postcard, but if you fold it the Post Office considers it a letter and says that you should pay postage as such. Of course, I think it's more expensive anyway to send a letter or postcard to Canada--definitely for Canada, I think you need three stamps on there. Postcards, someone else might have to fill in the blanks there. Just don't fold it.

Yeah, you don't want to fold it. Just to reiterate though - if you follow the directions above, copied from the main thread for the postcards (unless you're talking about different postcards - if so, disregard <_<), you're not going to be physically sending it. You'll be putting the info in at that company, and giving them the money to print and send it on your behalf in your name with your return address and whatnot. Which also means, for the international people, the postage will be calculated as coming from the US, not Britain or Australia or Japan or whatnot (should save you some monies ^_^). It ends up being about $1.70 USD per card if you send it to all 5, with the US addresses being a little less than that and the Canadian ones a little more.

~edit~
Nevermind, misread.

It's still being sent to their work address, so don't worry about that. ^_- Someone in the postcard thread had mentioned they were fairly well versed with legal matters and that it shouldn't be an issue, too.