Steam breaks its own rules to issue refunds to region-blocked Destiny 2 players

Some Destiny 2 players have noticed they've been blocked from playing the game. The Destiny 2 error code TAPIR usually suggests the game is down for maintenance, but this has not been the case for the past week. Multiple reports from players in Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan suggest that developer Bungie has implemented a region lock on the hit FPS game. Employees on the official Bungie forum replied to questions with the same statement: "Destiny services are not available where access is restricted by law." No further clarification.

While some players used one of the best VPNs to get around the block for a while, it's now reported that any accounts created in the aforementioned countries are being banned from playing.

However, players are taking to Steam to request refunds for any Destiny 2 DLC purchased, and Valve seems to be acquiescing with their requests. However, it's currently unclear whether this is a surefire way of recouping your cash.

As one player showed The Game Post, Steam refunded them for the game's Ultimate Edition and numerous pieces of DLC after they explained their situation. This is despite the fact that Steam usually says you can't refund a game if you've played for more than two hours. This player has over 2,000 hours in Destiny 2 before their alleged ban, and yet their purchase was refunded.

While multiple cases of refunds have been reported as being issued, other players had no success. It may come down to the specific person who reviews your request. Players are still looking for workarounds in case their refunds aren't issued, which includes using a VPN for the login phase on PC (disconnecting after this means the game runs stably). On Xbox, you can change the DNS server, but if your PSN account was registered in Russia there's nothing you can do.

One player posted constructive feedback for the developer on the Bungie blog. After detailing their experience and some workarounds, they request "the Bungie team to provide a more detailed comment on this situation." As players don't know what law is restricting access or whether this is a technical issue, open communication seems to be their foremost priority.

This situation has led to a deluge of negative reviews on Steam, with the game's 78% 'mostly positive' rating falling to 'mostly negative' in the past 30 days, with just 32% of players leaving a positive review. Just 9% of the Russian-language Steam reviews this month are positive, rendering the game 'overwhelmingly negative' during this period.

If Bungie wants players to stop refunding the game, especially those hardcore players who have clocked thousands of hours, then it needs to issue a more constructive statement. Players in Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan have been unable to normally access Destiny 2 for over week now, and the lack of clarity in official communication is leaving them disgruntled.

PCGamesN has reached out to Bungie for comment on the situation.

If you're looking to move to a new game in light of the Destiny 2 region block, check out our list of the best MMOs for inspiration. If you're worried about being burned again, try one of the best free PC games.

Have you been affected by the region block? Have you managed to get a refund on Steam? Let us know in our community Discord server, where readers and staff are always looking for teammates in other games.