Steam - opinions and experiences survey

[KeyCat 131]

Steam is an excellent example of a gaming platform, that connects you all. That millions are happy with. (Not a few disgruntled sim fams)

And exactly how does having to go thru the following steps make things better for a player that plays SP off-line, please enlight me and others...

Important:

The Steam client application's files must be updated to allow for the use of Offline Mode. If your game's status is "100% - Ready" but you receive the message "This game cannot be started in Offline Mode" when attempting to play offline, the Steam client application's files need to be updated.

Quote:

Using Offline Mode on a PC.

Please follow the instructions below to configure Offline Mode on your PC:

1. Start Steam online - make sure the Remember my password box on the login window is checked

2. Verify that all game files are completely updated - you can see the update status for a game under the Library section (when the game shows as 100% - Ready it is ready to be played in Offline Mode)

3. Launch the game you would like to play offline to verify that there are no further updates to download - shut down the game and return to Steam once you have confirmed that the game can be played

4. Go to Steam > Settings to ensure the Don't save account credentials on this computer option is not selected

5. From the main Steam window, go to the Steam menu and select Go Offline

6. Click Restart in Offline Mode to restart Steam in Offline Mode

Again, it's not about Steam as one of the alternatives for those who likes it, it's the "Steam Exclusive" thing that would force everyone even if they (for various reasons) do not like it.

And I have no idea how and why having different preferences/opinion makes me a "disgruntled sim fan"?

/KC

Edited March 13, 2011 by KeyCat

[b00tsy 28]

But the money they would gain on "consolidating the distribution method" will cost them customers refusing the "steam way".

That would also be for the other way around. There also many people that use Steam exclusively and refuse to buy in stores. Steam is not perfection, but buying games on a disc aint perfect either.

What I love about Steam:

Automatic patching

Update news

Related links on the game page

Easy and unlimited (un)installs

Reliable and secure payment methods.

Fast downloads

Easy fixing of corrupted games/files

Support with decent response time

NO scratches on discs and lost key codes

Steam Cloud

Steam achievements

Good site and easy to navigate

Steam forum/help

A lot of other people also like the community thingy and all the groups etc, but personally I never bother with that. Although, I am in the ArmA group of course :)

[killswitch 19]

Steam excusively? No, for reasons stated by so many others in this thread - the use and control of goods I purchase is to be determined by me, not a centralised entity, be it corporate or governmental. It's that easy.

Keep it as an option alternative though, for those who prefer it.

Edited March 13, 2011 by Killswitch

[ProfTournesol 956]

That would also be for the other way around. There also many people that use Steam exclusively and refuse to buy in stores. Steam is not perfection, but buying games on a disc aint perfect either.

No, because the question posted by Marek isn't "should we keep steam along with other distribution methods" but "should we be steam only".

That's why this thread has gone wild, as it turned into a pointless pro-steam vs anti-steam discussion.

[CarlGustaffa 4]

What is your opinion, should we make our games Steam only or provide Steam specific enhancements or not?

Please no Steam pro or cons discussion here. I'm sure there is another thread in which you can discuss this.

Keep this thread clear of any discussions and focus on the Poll so Marek doesn't have to read through your ... stuff. :)

So... What happened?

[lt_darkman 0]

I'm neither pro-Steam or against it. It works for me but I have a fast cable connection. Not everyone is as lucky.

It's easy to use for the novice but can be limiting for more advanced users as highlighted already.

The deals particularly in the sales at holiday times can be cost effective. For new games it's often more expensive than DVD. Sprocket because of the weak pound against the euro is also more expensive though for those in the UK.

I dislike the fact that you can't sell on your games when you are no longer playing them and having all your eggs in one basket is always a concern if your account gets hacked or valve decide to stuff up your account.

Choice for the consumer at least is a good thing. I can appreciate from the developer's perspective it just adds cost and complexity though. For god's sake no steam achievements though; that would really cheapen the experience of ARMA.

[Ollie1983 10]

If nothing else, if you have a reasonable connection, steam is a god send, games can be had cheaper than in shops sometimes and the weekend or holiday sales are just crazy good but if you miss them you curse yourself. The best thing is you're never in that 'bored of all my games want to buy something new but can't be bothered to go to the shops' thing ever again, as like many I guess I live 15 miles from Poole, my nearest big retail area.

[maruk 80]

Did it? To me it looks like one of the better threads on our forums.

I consider it as truly valuable feedback with a lot of good points.

I will maybe close it a bit sooner than originally planned but overall, useful topic, thank you all for the feedback so far.

That's why this thread has gone wild, as it turned into a pointless pro-steam vs anti-steam discussion.

[Ollie1983 10]

Put it this way, in the last 4 months, I've bought ten games on steam for every retail copy from Amazon or Tesco etc.

Why buy Steam? Well you never go on steam and find something sold out. You'll never buy the wrong version or have to go hunting for patches, if you want an old school game, just search for it, you don't have to dig around in some bargain bucket in GAME and then find the disc is scratched no/invalid CD key etc etc....

And if you change to a new PC? Just get steam running, enter User ID and redownload, bingo. I have probably spent the best part of £200 on steam since I got my PC. Not only that, but it lets me keep in touch with other players, notifies me when they are online, quick chat function, just wish they would build ventrilo into it really.

[sander 14]

My vote is against exclusive Steam distribution as I fail to see the added value for me. My inner magpie makes me prefer shiny objects such as disks.

Regards,

Sander

[Ollie1983 10]

My vote is against exclusive Steam distribution as I fail to see the added value for me. My inner magpie makes me prefer shiny objects such as disks.

Regards,

Sander

Fair enough, but as a games publisher/developer etc Bohemia are thinking, Steam all the way.

Why?

No need to spend all that money making disks, boxes, and shipping them to stores worldwide, no need to let retailers make a margin, simply release on steam, gamers get game, money is paid instantly, job done. Also, I am guessing steam is inherently more pirate proof and more secure, no people stealing disks and playing the game before launch etc. etc.

That said, there are still a lot of gamers who detest steam or don't have internet access anyway.

[whisper 0]

The question is NOT "Should we use Steam?"

The question is "Should we use Steam ONLY"

Plz, read and answer to the question, stop trying to promote Steam as an interesting platform, is certainly is and is ALREADY in the platform of choice for A2.

Question is : should everything else be dropped?

And like I outlined few pages back, it is not interesting in my case, the Sprocket platform is better for me because it permits download from off-home places, without a software installed, doesn't require full download at each patch.

Steam only would hamper me, to the point I probably won't be able to buy BI products, the installing and patching would be PITA for me. Exactly why I didn't buy Global Agenda.

Should Steam be a distribution platform for A2? Yes, definitely, and it is already

Should Steam be the exclusive distribution platform for A2? Hell no! Unless, for me, my points above are addressed. I don't see the the off-home download capability on Steam in the near future, though. => No go

BTW, as far as I understood, BI makes more margin on Sprocket sold A2 than on Steam sold A2

Edited March 15, 2011 by whisper

[Ollie1983 10]

I'm not worried. I didn't say steam should be the one and only outlet for games. I couldn't give a damn if BI make more margin on platform X then Y. The fact is, I'm not installing dozens of different things when steam does it all. I'm not a hardcore enough gamer nor am I looking to save 3 quid every time. If BI release more content DLC wise, I'll buy it if I think its something I will like. I want BI to offer a bespoke and fully developed inhouse package along the lines of ACE and Mando, something that slots right in with no issues and is fully MP compatible. Do that, and I'll pay. On steam.

[celery 8]

Question is : should everything else be dropped?

I've wondered for a while if people failed to read the question or if they really just want everyone to have zero choice in the matter just because they themselves are ok with Steam exclusiveness.

[sander 14]

For me as a customer the prime considerations for choosing how to spend my money is not determined by the advantages Steam offers to the seller, but those it would offer to me. Steam exclusive distribution would lead me to throw cash at one of my other hobbies. It is my opinion that it is much too intrusive on my system: its processing power is there to run a game, not to waste cycles on functionality I do not need. If it means I'll have to run golden oldies till I die, I am fine with that. OFP is ten years old and I still occasionally play and enjoy it.

Regards,

Sander

[Cookieeater 10]

Steam should be focused as the main distribution platform. Steamworks is a godsend for a lot of crap. It would be really nice to ditch GameSpy and use Steam's server browser. Steam is mod friendly as well, how do you think we have all of those Half Life 2 mods out there?

[KeyCat 131]

I've wondered for a while if people failed to read the question or if they really just want everyone to have zero choice in the matter just because they themselves are ok with Steam exclusiveness.

Exactly!

Ohh here is another "food for thought" I just bumped into.

I just lost a year's worth of games, some of which I had over 100 hours of game time in. 146 games, all legitimately bought, all thrown away thanks to a post.

http://www.reddit.com/r/gameswap/comments/fxgbz/attention_all_steam_users/

I personally have never sold any of my games/sims (but given away a few) but I'm sure there are people that do and I still ask myself how giving away so much of your consumer rights (and pay for it!) can be a good thing??

/KC

Edited March 16, 2011 by KeyCat

[froggyluv 2136]

Voted No.

Had too many problems with mods, updating and creating Combined Ops between the Sprocket and Steam downloads. Eventually went out and just bought the CD's -life has been smoother since.

[Ollie1983 10]

The poll was poorly done with leading questions and not enough choices. Hence people either ignored it or interpreted it as they wished. Why would someone vote for a steam only option?

I've said I would buy from steam most of the time, for various reasons. Its not perfect but it works okay for me. But I doubt an entire sector of the videogame retailers are going to go down without a fight, though it is painfully clear that high street retailers of all kinds are feeling the pinch from online sales, and this will probably increase as internet speed and coverage marches forward.

[KeyCat 131]

The poll was poorly done with leading questions and not enough choices.

Yes, make Arma 2 and/or future BI games Steam only and Steamworks enabled

IMO BIS clearly ask what we think about Steam only (a.k.a Steam Exclusive).

I really wan't to commend BIS for even asking their customers opinions about it and this "trend" is not limited to future A2 stuff.

Another simulator that I'm interested in have recently been announced to be "Steam Exclusive" and for that reason I will not buy it even if I would like to support the company and the sim.

My loss maybe but the only thing I can do as a customer is to vote with my vallet on things I do not like/agree on...

But I doubt an entire sector of the videogame retailers are going to go down without a fight, though it is painfully clear that high street retailers of all kinds are feeling the pinch from online sales, and this will probably increase as internet speed and coverage marches forward.

Again, this is not about CD/DVD's vs digital distributions and I think most people see that DLC is here now and will grow in the future. I'm all for digital distributions as long as they don't need on-line accounts requiring 3rd party software running combined with moronic terms to be able to play a game/sim I pay money for.

And as said numerous times there are many other ways to offer digital distributions like Sprocket/Direct2Drive/GamersGate/etc... with sane terms and non-intrusive DRM's.

Edit: I can't spell ;)

/KC

Edited March 16, 2011 by KeyCat

[Engioc 10]

No way would I want it to be steam only.

I hate steam and personally the few games I own which were steam only games are really quite annoying. I know steam is meant to make things easier to download and later patch your game, keep saves etc but really I find this whole system more annoying and more difficult. I'm a PC gamer and been playing games and around computers long enough that I've developed my own ways of getting things backed up and I prefer having more control over where the game installs, downloading and keeping patches myself (in the event that the developer finally decides its too old and patches are no longer available). Also having to just have that stupid steam client on my PC really annoys the heck out of me and I resisted it for as long as I could till a few games came along which gave me no choice.

By all means offer a steam version but PLEASE DONT EVER make it steam only. Provide people with the choice and that way everyone wins and gets what they want. I understand many people find it easier to manage their games with steam, but for myself and I'm sure many others like me it's not something I need and I'd really prefer to do things my way, not the steam way.

[Big Dawg KS 6]

Steam should be focused as the main distribution platform. Steamworks is a godsend for a lot of crap. It would be really nice to ditch GameSpy and use Steam's server browser. Steam is mod friendly as well, how do you think we have all of those Half Life 2 mods out there?

If they plan to continue releasing DLC/Expansions then IMO the Steam integration could use some improvement. Not that it's bad right now, but there's always room for improvement.

[Curious 0]

I say no because :

1. I don't like to be tied to a additional programs (Steam and license agreement).

2: Steam prices at launch are typically more expensive then retail at.

I have no issue with it being optional. Having said that I do use steam and have lots of games on their, but I usually buy on their crazy sale days.

[styxx42 0]

I personally would only say yes if the games on Steam worked identical to those you can purchase hard copies of or off of Sprocket. At the moment there seem to be too many workarounds for my liking, especially in terms of running Combined Operations via Steam, but if those were fixed I would not have an issue with it.

+1 to Zipper5

I own a Steam copy of Arma II but didn't like what I was reading about Combined Arms and only bought it originally on a Christmas sale because it was cheap at the time so it was not a favor to Bis.

I like physical copies or Purchasing directly from BIS(I see physical going the way of the doh doh. But I say keep steam going because it brings exposure to BIS and that is good for everyone. But make sure it works and is easy or BF3 will take valuable younguns.

I ended up purchasing Combined Arms because it is physical and will do the same for reinforcements even though I already own the DLC's.

[SWAT_BigBear 0]

Can I vote no a 3rd time and close the poll?

Seems it's obvious as to what the majority thinks.