Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit released more than a year ago, but a NeoGAF member recently picked up a new, shrinkwrapped copy. He was upset to learn that the code inside for his Online Pass, which provides access to the game's multiplayer features, had expired. That's right: New-in-the-box game, unused code, and no multiplayer for you.
His colleagues went through Electronic Arts' EULA and found a clause that indicates these pass codes can expire, and there was much gnashing of teeth. Credit Joystiq, however, for pursuing this just now with a customer service advisor at EA. They were told that an Online Pass can indeed expire. "As a rule, no Online Pass should expire, but a few titles will have a time limit on their use, even for new purchases," Joystiq reported.
Dragon Age 2, which released March 11, will see its Online Pass code expire on March 31, 2012, Joystiq was told. Again, this expiration covers the code itself, not the actual access to online features.
EA: Online Pass can expire for new-game purchases, but it shouldn't [Joystiq]