With digital distribution platforms like Steam and Impulse becoming more popular, it's no surprise that many gamers decided to buy their copy of the game online. The problem? EA and Bioware require you to sign into their own websites, with their own accounts and login information, to allow you to access the bonus content from your purchase. That process, it seems, is broken for many users. If you bought the game via Impulse? Your problems might be much, much worse.

Getting the game running was quite the adventure. After buying the $65 edition with the bonus content, Steam gave me two codes. I dutifully made a note of both codes. Once the game finished downloading, I went to the downloadable content section in the game's menu to get my bonus content. This took me out of the game and sent me over to a Bioware site. There I had to create an account with the Bioware Social Network (Beta!) and give them my e-mail address and birthday. I picked a display name, and even though the system said it was available, I kept receiving a generic error when I tried to finish setting up my account. Then it said the field was not filled in correctly, even though the name-checker said the name was available. Then it asked for the password to the name the system told me no one else was using. I of course didn't have a password, which resulted in another error.

Finally I went to EA's site and logged in using my old EA account, and registered my game there... without having to put in a key. After that step, I was able to go back to the Bioware Social Network (Beta!) and I found I was already logged in with one of the many names I tried during my error-laden first attempt. I put in my key for the downloadable content, and the downloads began. I am, it seems, one of the lucky ones.

While some in our forum were able to get the content with very little hassle, others ran into even bigger problems. One forum member tried to troubleshoot the issue using a method found online. "I follow the instructions and low and behold, he is right, my old bioware account isn't linked to my 'master EA account' Nevermind that this isn't mentioned ANYWHERE, I try doing that and what does it tell me?"