How do you think Steam is coming along?

R

Roufuss

Gawd
Joined
Apr 7, 2007
Messages
755
I have to say, I am surprised at the way Steam is going... people calling it the future of PC gaming, companies jumping on by the truckload. Even my one complaint, the prices, they are even working hard to rectify that - Two Worlds was $10 a week or two ago, now Prey is $5 this weekend!

It's really hard to pass up those prices, so Prey was my first non Valve purchase on Steam. I have to say, it was awesome being up to buy the game before I left for dinner, go out to eat, come back, and the game is completely installed and patched up and ready to be played.

Plus, there is no clutter of a box, manual, game cases, the game itself (which I don't ever need after I crack it)... I used to think people who paid the premium on Steam (when games are on sale at B&M stores) were crazy, but now I definitely see the benefit of digital downloading. Less clutter, no time wasted at the store, the patches are automatic (which is awesome when you buy an older game, who wants to waste time finding patches??).

The only complaint I now have is, why aren't more companies on the ball? I was shocked to see Bethseda, Gas Powered Games, Monolith, and more haven't yet succumbed to Steam. My fiancee asked me why I didn't just buy Kane's Wrath on Steam, and I told her "Hey, one day, even EA will buckle to Steam". I know it's only a matter of time, but it would be so nice to just have all of my games in one place without any of the hassle. I know Stardock has their own digital distribution, but I'd love to see them hop on Steam as well.

Imagine Monolith dumping their whole back catalog (Well, I guess they couldn't do AvP) on Steam? I would buy that in an instant. Or Atari unleashing all the great D&D classics of yesteryear on us? (Again, I think that would be difficult due to the D&D rights, but I can dream). Steam has come a long way in a short time, and I can only imagine what it will look like in a year from now.

I was once a vocal Steam objectionist, but I think I have seen the light :D
 
Steam is friggin excellent, it really simplifies the whole gaming experience. Having to hunt for patches in the past was so annoying.
 
I'm a recent user and I like it a great deal. It is nice being able to use it on multiple PCs without having to install with any physical media.
 
EA has their own digital distribution system, which I made the mistake of pre-ordering bf2142 on. I hate it. Steam is the one that will win out over Games for Windows Live and EA's service
 
Can't agree more. I would buy ALL of my games on Steam. Win/win/win for everyone - developers get a bigger percentage, less waste, and I get my games without having to drive all over fucking town to get the best price. If there's a game I'm interested in, I check Steam first.
 
I didnt trust EA's for a preorder, but I bought Crysis through it. Was not a bad experience but no where near as nice as Steam. I run all my games through it so I can use the Steam chat to see if I want to join someone else. Or not needing to alt tab over to the other monitor when someone AIM's me.

Steam is great IMO, my only issue is passing games onto others after you buy them. Theres no easy way to transfer them. I am not selling my account or creating a new account for each game, if I can gift games to people I should be able to transfer the license for it to another user.

Steam was not really ready for release when they dumped it on the community, but they very quickly made it work and it has gone no where but up.
 
I think it's OK .... getting patches on my own was never a problem w/past games, I kind of liked having them separate, so when setting a game up on multiple computers/LAN had the choice of which version (& different weapon strengths/maps/veh attributes).

I'd prefer other games to Not follow the Steam model, but for the steam games I play I have no major complaints
 
I really like it, especially the points that were made about the patches and it auto downloading+installing.

But one major concern I have is once (and it will probably happen sometime in the future) most if not all games will be coming from Steam, they will turn into what EA is now, power hungry animals. And they will probably end up deciding on the prices somehow (like saying "if you don't let us set the prices, we're not letting you use our services", and since *hypothetically* everyone will be using it to distribute their games, they won't want to be the one company that is left out) :rolleyes:

Not to mention that possibility of having your account hijacked, good bye all the games you had (if there's a problem with the Steam support..), which can't really happen when you have physical copies of your current CDs and CD keys
 
I don't think Steam will turn into that... Valve seems pretty good about giving PC gamers what they want, and I think Valve knows that the product they have now is what, in a year or two's time, will be the main platform for PC Gaming, over retail channels. It seems the prices are pretty much set in stone anyways, it seems devs and pubs have to charge full price for their games when they come out due to retail stores and retaliation. I guess after a certain amount of time they are free to do whatever with their prices.

Could you imagine if Valve was to sway Blizzard into using Steam? IIRC, Blizzard doesn't have their own digital distribution set up, and well... seems like it would be a match made in heaven.

Starcraft 2 + Blizzard's back catalog (minus WoW) = great success. I guess the only problem is getting Battle.Net up and working through Steam, which could happen, not sure.

EA is stubborn, but I think in a year or two's time, they will start to trickle games out on Steam... I heard EA Link was shit too. Games for Windows is already DOA, Steam effectively killed that one, espicially when Epic (who is part of the PC Gaming Alliance) dumped their whole back catalog on Steam. If MS *really* wants to save PC gaming, it's time to put their back catalog on Steam as well, instead of trying to make competition that doesn't work at all.

Does anyone know why we have yet to see games like Oblivion and SupCom on Steam? Is it just a matter of getting these companies on it, or is there something I'm missing?

I am yearning for the days when every Gas Powered Game (Total Annihilation, Dungeon Siege, SupCom) and Bethesda game (Daggerfall, Morrowind, Oblivion) are available to buy through Steam.

I hated on Steam for a long time, but after seeing so many analysts and developers claim that Steam and digital downloading is the future, well, I can see why now. No wonder Valve can update TF 2 so much, because they know as soon as they do everyone will always be on the same patch automatically. Updating Supreme Commander was a royal pain in my ass.
 
You can also add games to your steam games list that you didn't even purchase from steam. I have most of my games cracked too so I use steam as my central hub for launching games.

I loved the little Ctrl + Tab feature they implemented. I also like to my buddies on steam. Some of my friends don't even have games for steam. They just use they could easily talk to eachother on mics or in chatrooms, which is all free. The only thing that cost money on steam I believe is purchasing games. I hope it stays that way too. I don't want it to turn into a stupid yearly Xbox Live fee. Which I doubt they will. Highly doubt.

Steam is getting a lot more popular. I hope it does become a frequently used program by many gamers. Some of the deals they offer like game discounts are amazing. More and more publishers are using steam too. These publishers are making a mistake by not putting there games on steam. It was cool that ID put all their doom games on steam. I bought the whole pack for an amazing price.

Go Steam!
 
My guess is that they are doing fine without Steam right now and aren't interested in spending who knows how much steam charges for the companies games to be on there. That is the only explanation I can think of (I mean, money aside, if it was free, who wouldn't put it out on Steam right now, free boost to their game purchases)
 
In some respects It's better, but in more it's doing an x-fire; trying to be cleverer than it needs.

The steam community overlay, for example. the number of times I've been sprinting in a game and held tab to see my score, only to have that shit appear, is too many. I don't like how slow it is to download stuff, either. I can update my games from fileshack or whatever at 500kb/s as a free user, but I'm lucky to get 190-200 from steam.
 
I think steam thus far is the only digital download service to get it right (on the pc).

Every time I decide to reinstall BF2 and BF2142 I always have a big hassle one way or another trying to download my booster packs. I dread trying to fight to get what I paid for next time I decide to play them as last I heard EA was going to start putting download limits on how many times you can even download what you have purchased.

I mean heck I can have the same game installed on both my main desktop AND my laptop through steam. (of course I can only play one at a time but still...) Not to mention I can download and install as many times as I need. iTunes, EA, etc.. all need to copy steam's way of doing business. I should be able to redownload what I have legally purchased as many times as I like. What happens if I forget to backup? Hard drive crash?

As for Games for Windows I think its dead outside of a couple of 360 ports. I mean they couldn't even get Uno a freakin card game out? (unless I missed it somewhere) And what happened to all that Cell Phone/Zune/PC/360 cross platform gaming stuff?
 
I like Steam. Automatic updates are nice. The occasionaly big price breaks are nice. Not worrying about losing media is nice. Plus. I get 600 KB/sec when I'm downloading games and updates.

As far as getting Battle.net running "through" steam, it doesn't need to. The games themselves are not necessarily modified to work with Steam. They don't have to get their network connectivity through Steam. Blizzard's Battle.net stuff would still work just as it always has.

As far as getting more games on steam, like Blizzard and GPG, it's just a matter of getting those publishers to accept Steam's licensing terms and distribution methods.
 
Ill take steam everytime. Being able to get to my game whenever I want (download). I would like the option however to order the dvd for a nominal price (like $5).
 
Steam has certainly come a long way from what it was. At first it was a pain in the ass at times. The service itself and game selection has really improved. I use it almost exclusively now. I hate bothering with the cd and no-cd cracks in multiplayer games can be problematic.

I would like the option to do a proper backup through Steam itself as opposed to the current method they employ. Copying of the steamapps folder to a safe place, install steam, logon, un-check "Don't save account credentials on this computer", close Steam, overwrite steamapps folder in Steam folder with the version you had backed up.
The latter method allows you to keep maps, setting, all updates, etc., etc. Steams method lets you install the game as if from a cd/dvd.
 
zmjone2992 said:
EA has their own digital distribution system, which I made the mistake of pre-ordering bf2142 on. I hate it. Steam is the one that will win out over Games for Windows Live and EA's service
Click to expand...


Ea's system is horrible. I bought 2142 Expansion awhile back and it was decent, I was even able to get a patch from there. Few months later they completely screwed it up, it barely works.

It will only let you install/download the game once, 90% of the time the thing doesn't even install, you have to jump through hoops to get 2142 expansion.

Buddy of mine bought NS to play with me, he can't even install it, apperantly it's a know bug. EA refused to refund his $10.
 
I buy all my games through Steam now. The last off the shelf game I bought was CNC3 which EA managed to screw up terribly.
 
I've bought one game from Steam and the operation was flawless. Pricing is great too. Another cool thing are the free games they offer, I believe I got games like HL2DM for having an nVidia video card, but not totally sure.
 
I have been using steam since its public beta, and all i can say is that it has come a loooooooong way. The idea of downloading content is great, it saves a trip to the store, there are some great deals, you don't have to swap disks during the install etc.

I think steam is great now (and the new friends list / in game chat is great too!)
 
I have bought games through Direct to Drive, EA and Steam. Steam is the only platform that consistently worked great and I have never had an issue with mods, etc. Its great for all the reasons list above. Its funny that EA a casual gaming company can't get a gaming service built that is friendly to the casual gamer. An example.

I decided to finally by Crisis last Friday and wanted to do it digitally. Unfortunately it was no longer available on D2D so EA was it. I downloaded the beast, installed it and when I went to play I get an authentication error from EA despite having their downloader client open and logged in. It turned out that I had to use IE (not opera or firefox), create an idenfity on their webpage and then I could finally play. Unnhhh?:confused: That's real intiutive.

Steam simply works. More companies need to release their games on Steam. Honestly if you are not part of the EA Monolith, there is no excuse for your game not to be sold on Steam.
 
I've felt for a while Steam-like systems are going to be the future. Its just easier for everyone to install one client application and it handle everything for you and have it all in one centralized location. After seeing all the various developers hopping on the band wagon recently just confirms it in my opinion.
 
inotocracy said:
I've felt for a while Steam-like systems are going to be the future. Its just easier for everyone to install one client application and it handle everything for you and have it all in one centralized location. After seeing all the various developers hopping on the band wagon recently just confirms it in my opinion.
Click to expand...

If MS would get on board it could easily turn into the defacto standard for online distribution. Not sure I could trust MS not charge us for it, or to turn it into micro transaction hell like XBL is. If MS gets involved you would be sure they would try to control it.

I would love it if all games coming out in the future were available on Steam.
 
Like many others, I think Steam is fantastic.

My favorite part is the fact that they're making older games available. Imagine trying to find a copy of Deus Ex or Hexen in the store?
 
Steam's great, but i still prefer having the game physically with the box and all. The boxes are a nice way to admiring your gaming collection, something you can't really do with digitally installed games.
 
GORANKAR said:
Steam has certainly come a long way from what it was. At first it was a pain in the ass at times. The service itself and game selection has really improved. I use it almost exclusively now. I hate bothering with the cd and no-cd cracks in multiplayer games can be problematic.

I would like the option to do a proper backup through Steam itself as opposed to the current method they employ. Copying of the steamapps folder to a safe place, install steam, logon, un-check "Don't save account credentials on this computer", close Steam, overwrite steamapps folder in Steam folder with the version you had backed up.
The latter method allows you to keep maps, setting, all updates, etc., etc. Steams method lets you install the game as if from a cd/dvd.
Click to expand...

It was utterly terrible when they first started trying to use it. I remember the grab-your-torch-and-pitchfork attitude people got when they switched Counter-Strike over from WON and it was a complete, unstable disaster on every single level.

Since then, it's been stabilized, streamlined and expanded into what could very reasonably be the future of PC game distribution. It's still got it's quirks, but they are generally easy to fix. I think it could also be a force to be reckoned with in fighting PC game piracy just because of the very infrastructure and design of the system.
 
compslckr said:
I have been using steam since its public beta, and all i can say is that it has come a loooooooong way. The idea of downloading content is great, it saves a trip to the store, there are some great deals, you don't have to swap disks during the install etc.

I think steam is great now (and the new friends list / in game chat is great too!)
Click to expand...

Agreed
 
the only problem i have with steam, and it isnt valves fault, is that quite a few games cannot be purchased from my location (new zealand). i was like "zomg prey for $5 american? thats like $7nz! w00t"

oh wait, i cant buy it because the dev for prey wont allow it because i live in NZ T__________________T
 
Wally said:
In some respects It's better, but in more it's doing an x-fire; trying to be cleverer than it needs.

The steam community overlay, for example. the number of times I've been sprinting in a game and held tab to see my score, only to have that shit appear, is too many. I don't like how slow it is to download stuff, either. I can update my games from fileshack or whatever at 500kb/s as a free user, but I'm lucky to get 190-200 from steam.
Click to expand...

You can change the shortcut keys for the overlay.
 
Steam used to be awful in the beginning but it has vastly improved. I now love using it and it's a great way to buy/manage games.
 
Yup, Steam used to suck major donkey balls. Since about this time last year, though, it's actually been stable AND working AND there have been plenty of games for it.

I have to say, I used to be a major detractor of Steam because it would generally screw up my copy of HL2 every single update. But now it's awesome.
 
PWMK2 said:
Yup, Steam used to suck major donkey balls. Since about this time last year, though, it's actually been stable AND working AND there have been plenty of games for it.

I have to say, I used to be a major detractor of Steam because it would generally screw up my copy of HL2 every single update. But now it's awesome.
Click to expand...

Plus 1...
It took them a LONG time to get it squared away, but now I like it.
Its too bad it took them nearly 5 years to do so, but hey, no ones perfect.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top