So Basically I Can't Play Becauseeee...?

Jinjer · April 2014

Some of you guys are really enjoying this game, so do I. And you all know what it feels like when you pay for the pre-order and a 60 days of game time after it, and then not able to play the game at all!! I mean isn't it so frustrating? So now that we are on the same track, let's hear my story.

I live in Iran, and as some of you may know that there are a lot of U.S. sanctions against Iran. I'm not going into details (I'm not a politician, so no comments on this one), but as of June 2013 the government of the United States has decided to lift some of the sanctions on Iran. It includes some of the digital stuff and internet services, which has removed the sanctions on many many big brands out there, Blizzard removed the ban from Iranian players, Apple and Google opened up their services to Iranian people again, as well as many others.

3 weeks ago, I created my elder scrolls online account. I noticed that my country (Iran) is not listed in the countries there, so I contacted customer support and discussed the matter with them. I asked them if it's illegal to play ESO from Iran, and after 3 weeks they've finally answered my question. Here it is :
We are prohibited by U.S. law to extend access to our game to persons in Iran, but we look forward to re-evaluating the situation should these restrictions be lifted in the future.

So according to this link the US government has already lifted the sanctions, So there's no specific Rule to ban Iranian people from playing any games, which is true because I play many other mmos without any problem, like world of warcraft. I'm not a politician and I don't know about the exact rules but if I can play world of warcraft (after the ban wave on Iranian players, they lifted the sanctions and returned the accounts to their owners) I can play this one too.

I pay real money to play the game, to support the game and developers, and I want the right to play the game aswell. I still have 90 days of game time left and I don't want it to waste for no reason.

Please help us out here with your supporting comments.
For The Queeeeeeeen!

Cheers.

siavash_k · June 2014

ESO ..plz attention to this topic..it give u bad reputation ..as i know there is no licence and agreement allow to you to block or ban account because he/she access from the other country

fromtesonlineb16_ESO · June 2014

Basically ZOS are lying, as you pointed out if Blizzard can allow access from Iran I'm damned sure ZOS can do so too. Clearly there's cluelessness in ZOS legal department.

Bhozz52 · June 2014

Hi, no reason why you cannot participate in the game, if other firms allow
allow their product to be used. Hope Zen address this issue quickly.
Good luck.

Swindrel · June 2014

Hey, hope you can get on the game soon. E.S.O. is just being racist. *grabs popcorn* oops.

Goodluck

Dayv · June 2014

Come on ZOS, it's not like there's an overabundance of players.

Sakiri · June 2014

Support from here too.

Doesn't matter where you're at, you should be able to play. End of story.

Trade sanctions are an act of war and BS to begin with. -_-

Rologue · June 2014

Doesn't matter from where u come from, it matters what brings us together. It's a freaking game anyway. Why u taking away people for me to kill in Cyrodyll ZOS?

Preachan · June 2014

Hope this will be solved soon - I see no reason to keep you away from this game.

Good luck, hope to see you soon ingame!

Jinjer · June 2014

Thanks for all the comments guys, I really hope I see more Iranian players out here in the future. The very first question they ask before buying this game is "is it safe to play or it will get you banned?".

mcfaen · June 2014

Hi! Its sad to hear that you "cant" play because of political reasons. But you do play now, right? VPN?

dannymcgr81b14_ESO · June 2014

I know absolutely nothing about this but is it possible that eso is not allowed because of the rating? World of Warcraft has a T for teen rating but Elder Scrolls is rated M for mature.

Fairydragon3 · June 2014

Sakiri wrote: »

Support from here too.

Doesn't matter where you're at, you should be able to play. End of story.

Trade sanctions are an act of war and BS to begin with. -_-

Lets still keep it from China, they have proven they can't be trusted with an MMO

Fairydragon3 · June 2014

dannymcgr81b14_ESO wrote: »

I know absolutely nothing about this but is it possible that eso is not allowed because of the rating? World of Warcraft has a T for teen rating but Elder Scrolls is rated M for mature.

They will have to localize it to fit your countries laws

Jinjer · June 2014

mcfaen wrote: »

Hi! Its sad to hear that you "cant" play because of political reasons. But you do play now, right? VPN?

We can play with VPN but we all have a bad memory of a big ban wave in world of warcraft, blizzard found out about Iranian players using vpn and started banning all of us. So I had to make this topic to somehow change ZOS's mind and convince them to change their rules about my country before they start the ban wave.

Asava · June 2014

It's because insurgents and Iran's Qud force was found to be relaying information to agents via gaming back in 2010 or so iirc.

Sihnfahl · June 2014

It was also due to the money issue. Don't forget that the US banned interaction with Iranian banks or anyone doing business with an Iranian bank.

It was a de facto ban on using Iranian money for anything. Including game subscriptions.

Diaboli · June 2014

I hate to see anyone denied access to the privilege I enjoy every day. Good luck in your struggles, outlander! You have my support!

ganja.mullarwb17_ESO · June 2014

I feel your pain mate. Where i live youtube is banned (yes really). But if they ban my ESO i would have to apply for a refugee visa xD

Zenzu · June 2014

This needs to be fixed for you asap. I guess Zenimax hates Iranians. They ban them to play without a legal reason.

aeiryanub18_ESO · November 2014

Yup, all the apple and blizzard companies support us now, how ever, i can't understand why we still aren't allowed to play?!

pgrusher · December 2015

hi dude u still banned ?! or unbanned ?!

siavash_k · January 2016

Hey ESO team
recently your team ban my account cause im accessing from iran
u know im half Canadian and Persian i have to leave here cause of my business and some other matters.
but basically im one of the Canadian citizen ..so by the law u can not ban may account u just can block the access from Iran!!
and if u have such policies why u do this without any warning?except u hate Iranian People
so now u break the USA law not me..
if my problem not solve quick ..i say this seriously..i will come back to Canada by any mean and price and go to the court just because of u..cause i know every rule and now im consult to my lawyer.
and according to some pages the US government already lifted the sanctions from Iran.
u know companies cant ban the somebody account just they connect from countries like Iran...u can just block your connection to iran not BAN the Iranian-Canadian People
u damage to my feeling and business because i have to leave my business here and coming to Canada for giving the Complaint to the court.
so ESO plz i said this already we love you..we love your game but why u hate us?
plz be with us not against us!
and plz solve my problem somehow..
i will rather always the friendly and logical way
thanks

ZOS_AlanG · January 2016

Hello. As explained in the forum rules, any questions about game moderation needs to be discussed with customer support, not on the forum.

ZOS_GinaBruno wrote: »

Discussing Disciplinary Actions: If you ever have questions or concerns about a disciplinary action or decision we have made on the ESO forums, or wish to appeal a forum warning or infraction you’ve received, we ask that you please contact https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/ to do so (please specify that you are contacting about a forum-related inquiry or appeal). We are happy to discuss and review specific moderation-related actions with you, but we do not allow discussion of any moderation actions or decisions on our forums. If you have questions or concerns about an in-game disciplinary action, please contact https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/ to ask about a suspension or ban, and any other support-related feedback. We cannot assist with in-game violations on the forums.