With the Civilization VI 10th anniversary sale, the Platinum Edition is discounted by 90%, making it a great deal for anyone looking to pick up the expansions and DLC.
There's just one ridiculous problem: if you already own the base game, Steam won't let you purchase it.
So apparently, supporting the game earlier means you're now locked out of a discount that's available to new customers.
I contacted both Steam and 2K Support to see if there was a way to upgrade.
Steam Support (October 24):
Because this bundle is a single-license package, you cannot purchase it if you already own any of its items.
Whether or not to ship an upgrade path is up to the publisher, not Valve. You may wish to reach out to the publisher's support team to make that request instead.
Fair enough. So I contacted 2K, since Steam explicitly said the publisher controls the upgrade path.
2K Support:
The Platinum Edition of the game is intended to come as a single-license package, meaning that if you own the Base game or any of the other contents included within then it means that it cannot be directly purchased on your account.
Because how bundles are handled and purchased is not handed directly from our end here at 2K Support, I'll be unable to offer any alternatives or workarounds.
I strongly recommend that you reach out to Steam Support for further assistance.
Seriously?
Steam tells me to contact 2K. 2K tells me to contact Steam. Neither offers a solution.
And here's what makes this particularly frustrating:
- A brand-new customer can buy the Platinum Edition at the heavily discounted price.
- An existing customer who already paid for the base game is blocked from purchasing the same package.
- The suggested alternative is buying expansions separately or purchasing a different bundle, potentially at a significantly higher price.
- Neither company's support team is willing or able to provide an upgrade path.
Steam already supports "Complete Your Collection" bundles that discount items you own. The Civ VI Anthology bundle uses this system, so the concept isn't exactly new.
I'm not asking for free DLC, special treatment, or even an additional discount for being an existing customer. I'd happily pay the same Platinum Edition price as someone purchasing the game for the first time.
It's absurd that owning part of a product makes you ineligible to purchase the rest at the advertised bundle price.
And apparently this isn't even a new issue. There are Reddit threads from years ago describing the same problem with Civ VI's Platinum Edition.
The game is celebrating its 10th anniversary, and somehow existing customers are still being punished for having bought it earlier.
2K/Firaxis: Please offer an actual upgrade path, or make the Platinum Edition a Complete Your Collection bundle.
Has anyone found a reliable solution that doesn't involve removing games from their Steam library or paying significantly more for DLC they could otherwise get through the Platinum Edition?