EA pulls titles from GAME/Gamestation [UK]

Update 2:

GAME have released an official statement on the matter:

We currently have a supply issue with regards to Mass Effect 3, which means that GAME and gamestation [sic] will not be able to fulfil orders for Mass Effect 3 at this time. We want to give customers as much notice about this as possible and provide them with a range of options ahead of launch.

We appreciate that this is disappointing for our customers, and we apologise sincerely for the inconvenience that this will cause. We value the loyalty of our customers very highly and as a gesture of goodwill we are providing the following:

- Customers who have pre-ordered in store, will have the opportunity to add £5 worth of Reward points to their card if they visit us from today through to 16 March 2012.
- Customers who have placed a deposit for the title will receive a refund as well as the £5 worth of Reward points between 1 and 16 March 2012.
- Customers who have pre-ordered online, will be provided with an online voucher to the value of £5 to be spent on any purchase on our sites.For ease, here are your alternative links to secure your pre-orders:

- Amazon
- Play
- ShopTo
- Zavvi

Update 1:

A leaked internal memo circulated to GAME and Gamestation branches offers up some more information. Here's the transcript as published by GamesIndustry.biz:

We gave the industry commitments - we committed to integrity and openness in our dealings, and working with everyone equally. We committed to only stocking products on which we could get the right credit terms, regardless of the title or supplier. We will not stock products if the terms are not right for our business - we will not sacrifice long-term credit requirements for short-term sales opportunities.

As a result of us taking this position - a position that we believe is critical to our long term health as a business - we have taken the very difficult decision not to stock EA's March releases, including Mass Effect 3.There is still no official press release from GAME's Head Office.

Original story

"As a specialist retailer dedicated to games and gaming, it is never easy to make a decision to stock a title, particularly one with such a strong fan base. But it is imperative that we treat every supplier evenly, that we stick to our commitments, and that we don't sign up to payment terms that will hamper us further in the future.

"It is even more critical that we manage this appropriately with our loyal customers/ We know they will be disappointed regarding Mass Effect in particular and in recognition of this we will be contacting our Mass Effect pre-order customers and as a gesture of goodwill we will be offering them £5 of reward card/elite points."

Reports are flooding in that EA have pulled Mass Effect 3 and all future titles ahead of SSX from the shelves of UK game retailers GAME and Gamestation (both owned by the same company). An official update from the Mass Effect 3 website asks gamers who have ordered from any other retailer than Zavvi, Play, Amazon or ShopTo to look into placing orders elsewhere to ensure they receive a copy of the game. This affects the N7 Collectors Edition as well. Here's the official statement:

For customers who have pre-ordered the N7 Collector's Edition please re-order your copies through these retailers [shown above].GamesIndustry.biz has apparent confirmation from specific stores, but have yet to obtain concrete confirmation from GAME's head office:

Several branches of both chains have confirmed that pre-orders for EA titles, including BioWare's Mass Effect 3, have been cancelled, with refunds only available as store credit rather than cash.Thanks to all of you who sent this in. We'll be updating this article as we hear more. In the meantime, if you have received details from GAME/Gamestation regarding a cancelled pre-order/refund, please let us know.