Microsoft Responds to Backlash After Banning Japanese Xbox Players

Microsoft has responded to backlash after recently banning a wave of Xbox players in Japan and China. According to the company, users were suspended after redeeming fraudulent game codes. However, Japanese players say its response doesn’t address the underlying problem.

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Microsoft Explains Why It Banned Xbox Players in Japan

Screenshot: Xbox

Earlier this week, several reports surfaced on social media sites claiming that Xbox players in Japan were mysteriously getting banned. However, Microsoft has now released an explanation. Xbox CTO Scott Van Vliet revealed on X that reseller sites had obtained fraudulent codes and sold them to players. Users who unknowingly purchased and redeemed the compromised keys were then caught up in the account bans.

“Over the weekend, the XBOX support team took enforcement action under our XBOX Community Standards against a set of accounts that redeemed fraudulent game codes. These codes were purchased through reseller channels, and some legitimate players unknowingly purchased and redeemed them. Several of those players contacted XBOX Support with concerns, and after investigating, we reinstated accounts that we determined belonged to legitimate players who were inadvertently caught up in this enforcement action.”

Screenshot: X @scottvanvliet

It should be noted that Xbox has unbanned any player accounts that were victims of the scam. That said, the Xbox executive then offered up advice for the best way for players to avoid an account suspension is to purchase games and codes from authorized retailers:

“We take fraud seriously across XBOX and will continue to monitor and address this type of activity carefully, while aiming to avoid suspending legitimate players who unintentionally purchase fraudulent codes. The best way to protect yourself is to purchase XBOX products, games, and codes from authorized retailers.” However, some players say this response doesn’t address a much larger issue users in the region.

Japanese Players Push Back Against Xbox Bans

Screenshot: Microsoft

While Xbox’s explanation for the bans makes sense, some Japanese players have pushed back against it. In particular, they argue that many users are unable to purchase certain games through the Japanese Xbox Store due to regional restrictions. As a result, players in Japan and China sometimes rely on third-party code resellers because of limited availability.

“There are many games that aren’t available in the JP Store. Since there are no physical copies of the Xbox version, they cannot be imported. U.S. Store payment method, we’re required to provide a fake address. It’s more affordable to trust code resellers and purchase from them. If they would allow us to make purchases with a credit card linked to a Japanese address, just like in the past, we would buy from the official Microsoft Store,” one user on X argued.

Regardless, we now have an explanation for why Xbox players in Japan and China were recently banned. Although the enforcement action was tied to fraudulent codes sold by resellers, it also affected legitimate players who had unknowingly purchased them. Microsoft says those accounts were reinstated following an investigation.

The post Microsoft Responds to Backlash After Banning Japanese Xbox Players appeared first on VICE.

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