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Recovering an old account

Orbit Storm

Visitor
A quick search on this forum turns up dozens, probably even hundreds, of threads with this very subject but it seems the recommended options are no longer viable (numbers not in service, email turnaround taking weeks, etc).

What option do I have to reach out to EA and attempt to recover an account from 2002-2003? Awfully old, I know but even if I could just recover the characters and the account status, that'd be great. I'm not at all worried about items.

Thanks!
 

Lady Storm

Grand Inquisitor
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Here on Stratic's should be a copy of the most resent UO new letter. At the bottom of said letter is ways to contact to recover lost accounts. ***Sign up for the news letter at uo.com****
Mind you if you sold or gave away this account its quite possible its lost to you.
Try to have any info you can find on this account to aid them.
Your name on the account registry
Account name
Any payment record ... Like from a CC.
Your answer to the secret question.
 

ShriNayne

Babbling Loonie
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It often takes weeks to get an old account back, questions that I was asked included credit card info from when I last payed for the account and e-mail addresses and telephone numbers from the same period. For some people this might be relatively easy, but with my husband being in the Air Force for a long time we were moved around a lot and e-mail addresses and telephone numbers changed every couple of years. With some perseverance I did get the account back, but it took two weeks of daily e-mails, the customer service people were very nice though. Good luck!
 

Orbit Storm

Visitor
Appreciate the responses. I've sent out an email and included as much information that I could think of. I don't remember the email or username on the account (it's been ~15 years!) so that certainly complicates matters but I suppose it can't hurt to try. I just hope there isn't any sort of account pruning that would have resulted in the account being deleted.
 

ShriNayne

Babbling Loonie
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I am pretty sure that they don't delete accounts, so it should still exist. In the last few months I have seen quite a few returning players from the same time-frame, around 15 years ago, some had their own account back and others had a trial account. I really do hope you can get yours back, please let us know how you get on! :)
 

Dhagoth Ur

Visitor
I just went through getting my account from 04 back. I was told by support that no items or characters were deleted.

If you can somehow get into the EA mythic master account it makes things MUCH easier.

For what it's worth support was very friendly and helpful. Good luck in getting your account back.
 

GarthGrey

Grand Poobah
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If you do recover it, the account status will be a 4 or 5 year old account, your months havent been accruing while being expired.
 

AtlanticRealtor

ICQ 647752375
Stratics Veteran
I can tell from experience!
The most important thing is the account name, if you dont have that, the other thing will be the personal information like email, first and last name.
Sometimes even with the account name and email, they will ask a lot of questions to make sure that you are the original owner!, now, If you dont remember the account name ot email, that can be very very hard.
But all you have to do is try!!
 

Orbit Storm

Visitor
Update:

Support has confirmed that the account still exists but no mention on characters/items. Unfortunately, because the account was purchased for me by my former step-father shortly before I graduated HS and later transferred to my biological father since he had "custody", support is making it incredibly difficult to verify that the account is mine. Understandable but asking for emails from 15+ years ago is an impossible feat since I'm no longer in contact with either man. It appears that despite the plethora of information provided, they refuse to relinquish the account. Such a shame.
 

Lady Storm

Grand Inquisitor
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
you can be nice and ask the "father" for the info. and his release sometimes sugar gets you further then acid. Please and thank you's go a lot to get ppl the things they want. No items get deleted and to erase an account the shard would have had to reach its max in players active. Only house's get poofed.
Also some info you might need is on tax papers like e mail and cc #s.. for those reading who are lost to find such
 

AtlanticRealtor

ICQ 647752375
Stratics Veteran
Update:

Support has confirmed that the account still exists but no mention on characters/items. Unfortunately, because the account was purchased for me by my former step-father shortly before I graduated HS and later transferred to my biological father since he had "custody", support is making it incredibly difficult to verify that the account is mine. Understandable but asking for emails from 15+ years ago is an impossible feat since I'm no longer in contact with either man. It appears that despite the plethora of information provided, they refuse to relinquish the account. Such a shame.
You also have to understand "Their" side, you are trying to get an account back and so far "Fail" to answer to most important thing that make that account "secure" The secret question...

and Like @Lady Storm said... You can always try to contact your father, for the info... otherwise support will Not release or give you back the account!.

Please understand that I am "NOT" giving you a hard time and "NOT" saying that this is your case, but SO many people in the past sold their accounts and few years later decide to come back and they try to get their "Original" account back, and the "ONLY" thing that prevent that for happen, it is if the new owner changed the secret question from the original owner, making than impossible to get the account back from the new owner!!
 

JohnnyO

Journeyman
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It sucks, but you're probably best off just starting a new account:( Edit: if you don't care about items and also your account status wont have been updating while being unsubscribed,, the only drawback will be having to train up new characters
 
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Orbit Storm

Visitor
Appreciate the well-meaning sentiments from everyone. I wholly understand the position the support team is in but also find it a bit baffling given the circumstances but I suppose I'm biased. Either way, I only wanted to recover the account for the sake of nostalgia. My wife has heard a lot of my UO stories over the years and it'd have been something special to be able to reconnect with those old toons and be able to give her a brief glimpse of some real history. Unfortunately, reaching out for additional info simply is not an option for me and as a result, recovering the account [per support] won't be possible for me.

Again, thank you for the responses and perhaps I'll consider investing a monthly subscription for my wife and I in the future but doing it for an empty account just isn't feasible at the moment.
 

Lady Storm

Grand Inquisitor
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Sorry Cupcake and give my reguards to the wife ..
I can understand the inability to broach that corner of one's life... its that hard a road for some and in this I am fully supportive.
Wish I could help more... no other family who would know some of the info? grasping at straws ok be at peace and make new memories in uo with her
 

Drakelord

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Wish you the best of luck with getting your old account back. It took me a week back in April 2015 to get our two oldest accounts back, far quicker when I went after two more since they had most of the information from before.
 

AtlanticRealtor

ICQ 647752375
Stratics Veteran
because the account was purchased for me by my former step-father shortly before I graduated HS and later transferred to my biological father since he had "custody", support is making it incredibly difficult to verify that the account is mine

This is SO normal nowadays, people need to understand that, you MUST change the secret question of the account when you get as a gift or any other way, if you dont change, the account is NOT yours, no matter if you paid the account for over 15 years, ONLY the original owner/creator can retrieve the account at this point, This is fo your own safety!!, Support always say: Whoever own the secret question, own the account. but in your case, either you cant contact your step or He also purchased the account and never changed the info
 

OREOGL

Crazed Zealot
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Appreciate the well-meaning sentiments from everyone. I wholly understand the position the support team is in but also find it a bit baffling given the circumstances but I suppose I'm biased. Either way, I only wanted to recover the account for the sake of nostalgia. My wife has heard a lot of my UO stories over the years and it'd have been something special to be able to reconnect with those old toons and be able to give her a brief glimpse of some real history. Unfortunately, reaching out for additional info simply is not an option for me and as a result, recovering the account [per support] won't be possible for me.

Again, thank you for the responses and perhaps I'll consider investing a monthly subscription for my wife and I in the future but doing it for an empty account just isn't feasible at the moment.
If you decide to start over, please let me know.

I would like to give you 100m on Great Lakes to help make new memories.
 

Lord Frodo

Stratics Legend
Stratics Veteran
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This is SO normal nowadays, people need to understand that, you MUST change the secret question of the account when you get as a gift or any other way, if you dont change, the account is NOT yours, no matter if you paid the account for over 15 years, ONLY the original owner/creator can retrieve the account at this point, This is fo your own safety!!, Support always say: Whoever own the secret question, own the account. but in your case, either you cant contact your step or He also purchased the account and never changed the info
How do you set a Secret Question if you were never asked one to begin with. None of my accounts have them.
 

Uriah Heep

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And whilel we are on the subject of account management, altho off-topic, whatever happened to being able to easily unlink accounts??? Thought Messana said that was about to happen but it never has.
 

AtlanticRealtor

ICQ 647752375
Stratics Veteran
How do you set a Secret Question if you were never asked one to begin with. None of my accounts have them.
Yes, you do have, When you first create an UO Account that is one the first thing that you have to create.




so as you can see, if you fail to answer that, they will NOT unlink your account or give back or anything...

and the only way to change that is by sending support an email and ask to change for something else... ofc they will ask the one you have 1st
 

Lord Frodo

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Yes, you do have, When you first create an UO Account that is one the first thing that you have to create.




so as you can see, if you fail to answer that, they will NOT unlink your account or give back or anything...

and the only way to change that is by sending support an email and ask to change for something else... ofc they will ask the one you have 1st
That was not there when we first were required to link our accounts back in 2001. I just went through all my accounts and there is no secret question. I also went to accounts that did require that info (NON EA) and some I can change and some I can get hints at.
 

AtlanticRealtor

ICQ 647752375
Stratics Veteran
That was not there when we first were required to link our accounts back in 2001. I just went through all my accounts and there is no secret question. I also went to accounts that did require that info (NON EA) and some I can change and some I can get hints at.

A lot have changed... The easy way to find out, will be contacting support and ask them to update the info, but remember you can open a can of worm by doing that, if you never setup 1 hahaha
 

Orbit Storm

Visitor
If you decide to start over, please let me know.

I would like to give you 100m on Great Lakes to help make new memories.
Wow. Is that a typo? 100m? Perhaps I'm overestimating the value based on that being an enormous sum of money when I last played but still.

Apologies for not responding to this earlier. I only now stopped by to see if there were any response to this thread. That amount of gold is mighty enticing but I do need to ask: is Great Lakes still an active shard? From what I've read over the years, I was under the impression that Atlantic is pretty much the last bastion and the others only have a smattering of folks left. No disrespect intended but despite what that 100m could afford, with my wife joining me, I'd have to place more emphasis on community than gold.

EDIT: After doing some research, I've decided against rejoining UO. I was not aware that purchasing the latest expansion would not include all prior expansions. $58.47 is the absolute cheapest I could attain Stygian Abyss, High Seas, and Time of Legends. While it includes a free 30-days with the SA purchase, coupled with the recurring $11.69/mo price-tag (assuming I keep my Origin Access active for $5/mo) and the need to buy all three expansions twice (for my wife and I), it's a laughably steep cost for a game this old and a community this small.

I sincerely apologize to anyone I may offend with this post, especially those of you who have responded to me so graciously, but ~$120 is just absolute insanity given my options.

Thank you all and best of luck.
 
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Snowdrop

Sage
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Ask yourself this, where can you and your wife go every hour of every day for 30/31 days for $20 a month?
once you get upgraded which isnt a necessity all at once :)
 

ShriNayne

Babbling Loonie
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You would probably only want SA to start with, but you might be better to wait until they give details of the new extended free trial, which a few people have heard about. I guess we will hear something closer to the Anniversary. Paying monthly works out quite expensive, my husband and I get Game-Time codes on Origin and it works out around £13 a month for the two of us if we buy the 6 month codes each.
Yes most of the shards are a lot less populated nowadays, Europa is listed as low population, but there is a nice community there and some genuinely kind and helpful people to help new players.
 

OREOGL

Crazed Zealot
Professional
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Wow. Is that a typo? 100m? Perhaps I'm overestimating the value based on that being an enormous sum of money when I last played but still.

Apologies for not responding to this earlier. I only now stopped by to see if there were any response to this thread. That amount of gold is mighty enticing but I do need to ask: is Great Lakes still an active shard? From what I've read over the years, I was under the impression that Atlantic is pretty much the last bastion and the others only have a smattering of folks left. No disrespect intended but despite what that 100m could afford, with my wife joining me, I'd have to place more emphasis on community than gold.

EDIT: After doing some research, I've decided against rejoining UO. I was not aware that purchasing the latest expansion would not include all prior expansions. $58.47 is the absolute cheapest I could attain Stygian Abyss, High Seas, and Time of Legends. While it includes a free 30-days with the SA purchase, coupled with the recurring $11.69/mo price-tag (assuming I keep my Origin Access active for $5/mo) and the need to buy all three expansions twice (for my wife and I), it's a laughably steep cost for a game this old and a community this small.

I sincerely apologize to anyone I may offend with this post, especially those of you who have responded to me so graciously, but ~$120 is just absolute insanity given my options.

Thank you all and best of luck.
Understandable, the offer stands at 100m.

Best of luck to you and your wife.
 
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