PlayStation 5 gamers keep missing out on free store credit for 'annoying' reason

PlayStation 5 gamers are mad as hell, and they aren't going to take it anymore. At least that's the vibe I'm getting after seeing some of the drama around PlayStation Stars over the last couple of weeks.

PlayStation Stars is Sony's very own loyalty program. And like any good loyalty program, your custom is rewarded with sweet, sweet prizes. It works like this: Earn points by completing various tasks in games. These points can then be traded in for store credit. You can also net bonus points on any purchases you make, so it's worth signing up for a (free) Stars account if you haven't already.

Take a look at our Final Fantasy VII Rebirth review below!

Unfortunately, PlayStation gamers have spotted a slight problem with some of the campaigns in which you can earn bonus points: they don't actually reward loyalty.

Earlier this week registered PlayStation Stars users called out a campaign in which you could earn 250 points by buying Final Fantasy VII Rebirth from 1 March. The game came out 29 February, so if you pre-ordered or picked up the RPG on day one, you were getting less points.

"Lesson learned: never buy games at release and wait for the coins coming next month or so," One user complained. "Please Sony, use your thinking hat. Loyalty programs are there to drive pre-orders and keep customers engaged. Sales and discounts are the way to drive sale of older games. Your Stars design just generates frustration and disengagement."

This isn't the only instance of something like this happening, however. On the PlayStation Stars subreddit fans are confused as to why they missed out on being able to claim points from buying Helldivers. It's another instance of early supporters of games missing points, which is definitely an odd approach for a program designed to encourage and reward loyalty.

"That part of the app makes me mad every month," argued one Reddit user. "They should reward you for being an early supporter."

Another wrote: "In the past year Ive redeemed almost 50 bucks through this program just buying and playing as I usually would, but maybe I've had a string of bad luck luck lately not 'timing' my purchases correctly."