Shift 2 unleashed : Missing content on limited edition

Is this why half my cars have disappeared since I last played this game early 2018? The ones I owned are stiĺl there, but I cannot race them and I cannot sell them.

> Is this why half my cars have disappeared since I last played this game early 2018?

That would be a new issue that I wasn't aware of. The problem is that EA/Origin changed the server so that it no longer sends out unlock messages to enable the Limited Edition content and any promotional items. This should only affect 3 cars (SIlvia, Giulietta, LP640), and 3 events (manufacturer showdown, old vs new, single type), plus any promotional cars like the Dr Pepper Camaro.

I don't know if other games content was disabled due to the EA/Origin server bug. It appears that Hot Pursuit Limited Edition does get it's Limited Edition content as soon as a player logs in for the first time to link the key with an EA account. I made a backup of the save files before logging in. On the very first log in, I was prompted to enter the game key, but starting over with a clean save and logging in again, the game didn't ask for the key again, as it already had linked it to my EA account.

I went back and looked at the EULA for Shift 2 Unleashed Limited Edition, it states that online play may be disabled with a 30 day notice, but there's nothing in the EULA that allows EA/Origin to disable content that was paid for, in this case the Limited Edition content. It's been about a year since this problem first started, and still there is no fix.

This is just a guess on my part, but looking at ea service_updates for shutdown dates, the only one I see near the time when the missing content bug started is:

March 15, 2018  - Need For Speed Network (website)

There is no mention of what this website does or how it relates to any of the Need For Speed games. Shift 2 online servers are still running, so it's not clear why the Shift 2 content unlock (Limited Edition stuff, Dr Pepper Camaro, ...) would be affected by Need For Speed Network website, but that's the only change I see in early 2018, which seems to correspond to the time that the content unlock stopped working. The data files for the extra content are there, but can't be accessed.

Yet another follow up. I called EA support again about this issue. Unlike my prior call in 2018, where support promised to try to fix the problem, support states that the game is no longer supported. The support person I was talking with, talked to an internal specialist that not only stated that the game was not supported, but claimed that there was a disclaimer on the Origin store listing for Shift 2 Unleashed that it was no longer supported, but while on the phone, I had the support person I was talking with check the Origin Store listing, and he confirmed that there was no disclaimer, and that Origin is still selling Shift 2 Unleashed for $19.99 as of the time I'm posting this.

Looking back on my notes from 2018 communication with support, the missing content on Limited Edition is due to the "entitlements" server no longer sending "entitlements" messages when logging into the Shift 2 Unleashed server (either from save information or user entered if a new save). When the "entitlements" messages were being sent, a player would see 3 to 5 pop-up messages for the cars unlocked by the "entitlements", the 3 Limited Edition cars, Silvia, Giulietta, LP 640, Dr Pepper Camaro (promotional code), and Porsche 911 GT3 RS Autobild Edition (promotional code). 

I have a save with the Limited Edition content and Dr Pepper Camaro, but it's password is all lower case, and now invalid, and Shift 2 doesn't not provide any means to re-enter a password if it is invalid. At least I have access to the cars offline, but there's no way to redo career mode without losing the content, and no way to go online without losing the content.

Online retail stores are still selling the PC DVD version of Shift 2 Unleashed Limited Edition.