Steam vs. Everyone Else: The Best Gaming Deals?

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LifeHacker compares Steam's gaming deals to the competition and the results might actually surprise you.

It's summer, and that means a Steam sale is just around the corner. But does Steam really deserve its reputation for amazing deals? Well, yes—but there are a lot of other stores that don't get credit for being just as good. Here's a look and see how often the competition matches up to Steam's prices.
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To be honest, most games I buy aren't directly from Steam. They are activated through Steam but I rarely buy anything on Steam.
 
It doesn't seem like this article factored in generic discount coupons, cash back offers, and in store points/credits offers.

Especially with the frequent discount coupons some other stores offer you could say games are on sale even for preorder/day one buys.
 
Looks like I would have to monitor multiple digital markets to find a similar level of sales and discounts as with just steam.
Factor in the quality of the steam service, the security of the company's future (and my library), and all the innovative work steam does (steam os, their VR work, their eventual steam controller which most likely well be better than the current 360 controller PC dominance, their creation of this very market all the pretenders are able to now turn a profit in, etc), and Steam stands out more than ever.
 
I buy most of my games on Steam for convenience. I usually wait till they are below $10 anyway:p
 
I try to get my games through steam but if its cheap I don't getting it on origin or uplay. The last steam sale I think got more games off amazon that activated on steam then what I bought through steam.
 
while i do love me some steam sales, most of my games as of late are from humble B. And i make a :( face when i see bundle games i want are on Origin or Uplay
 
What I got out of that is, I can either monitor a whole bunch of different stores and sites constantly looking for deals, or I can just use Steam and reliably get deals from it in a decent amount of time.
 
I pay more and get every title I can on GOG just for the no DRM factor. I only buy games on Steam when they are dirt cheap. I only own one Origin game, Mass Effect 3. The DLC prices are such a rip-off for that game, it has completely turned me off to that service.
 
lathorus said:
http://www.cheapshark.com/ makes it easy.
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Why bother? Most of my games are on Steam now and its convenient. Plus I don't need to get every game as soon as it comes out. The problem is that their approach in that article is misleading. They are comparing one system to a multitude of others, while still saying that overall Steam still seems to offer the best value.
 
I prefer GOG. Steam is relatively decent DRM, but it's still DRM. It still violates the first sale doctrine by not allowing me to resell games, so I try to avoid it when possible. Not sure how they can continue to get around the law like that, but hey, everyone else does it, right?
 
NoOther said:
What I got out of that is, I can either monitor a whole bunch of different stores and sites constantly looking for deals, or I can just use Steam and reliably get deals from it in a decent amount of time.
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+1

What the article says might be true, but all of that "monitoring" is more work than most individuals have time for, and Steam fixes this issue easily.
 
If its close, I'll go Steam for the convenience. Also I use to use Direct2Drive and when that went under, I got screwed.
 
FYI I use Cheapshark.com to check for deals. They cover the big sites and you can sign up for wishlists and anytime there are changes in prices you can get an email notification.
Grant it, most of the time you're buying a Steam key anyways but its a nice way to save.
I do GOG whenever I can because WINE has a frontend for them and the older games usually run solid on my *nix laptop.
I also look into Humble Bundle, Blink Bundle (indy stuff) and Bundle Stars for some pretty good deals Steam rarely matches.
You can sign up on pretty much all of them for notifications for new bundles so you don't have to go back and check daily.
Its not hard, it takes next to no time to sign up to get a notification email with the latest specials.
I don't use Uplay because of the DRM and they shut down serves so you can no longer play the games they decide are too old without reinstalling a cracked copy.
I dont use Origin after this last Sim City debacle and I refuse to give EA direct support after years of them shitting on us PC gamers.
 
Does anyone here buy their games electronically on Amazon? If so, why do you prefer it?
 
Kalabalana said:
Looks like I would have to monitor multiple digital markets to find a similar level of sales and discounts as with just steam.
Factor in the quality of the steam service, the security of the company's future (and my library), and all the innovative work steam does (steam os, their VR work, their eventual steam controller which most likely well be better than the current 360 controller PC dominance, their creation of this very market all the pretenders are able to now turn a profit in, etc), and Steam stands out more than ever.
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exactly.. its a matter of perspective. I view it as it took 10 Davids to better Goliath.
 
Every time I've bought a game on Amazon for my PC it has come with a Steam code. The part I find stupid is you have to download a downloader that only downloads the Steam key text. Really, why not just put the Steam key on the receipt and order history instead?
 
I typically buy my games on Steam as gifts through Russian and Brazilian sellers that have good reputation. Let's say the game is already 75% off on Steam and is $10, if you get it from a russian, you could possibly get it for $5 instead. :)
 
SGA76 said:
Every time I've bought a game on Amazon for my PC it has come with a Steam code. The part I find stupid is you have to download a downloader that only downloads the Steam key text. Really, why not just put the Steam key on the receipt and order history instead?
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You don't have to go through a downloader to get the steam code. All you have to do is go to your "Your Games and Software Library" under you Amazon account and you will find the steam or other keys there for any steam/origin/uplay game you buy from Amazon.
 
dandragonrage said:
I prefer GOG. Steam is relatively decent DRM, but it's still DRM. It still violates the first sale doctrine by not allowing me to resell games, so I try to avoid it when possible. Not sure how they can continue to get around the law like that, but hey, everyone else does it, right?
Click to expand...

It's not as simple as that when it comes to digital games. A digital copy of a game by itself can be duplicated, and so it's not reselling a game if you are making a duplicate copy for someone else.

A fair resale would actually require a DRM client, where it would remove a game from your account, and give it to someone else. Otherwise there's nothing to stop someone from keeping a copy after selling his copy to someone.

This is not a problem for physical games as you have to give your disc to someone else when you resell, and there are protection mechanism in place to ensure you cannot make a physical copy.
 
SGA76 said:
Every time I've bought a game on Amazon for my PC it has come with a Steam code. The part I find stupid is you have to download a downloader that only downloads the Steam key text. Really, why not just put the Steam key on the receipt and order history instead?
Click to expand...

The last game I ordered from Amazon, the steam code was in the order confirmation email...
 
Good article with facts and data. :)

aL Mac said:
Does anyone here buy their games electronically on Amazon? If so, why do you prefer it?
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For me, Amazon charges tax but Steam doesn't. That said, if Amazon's price is much cheaper and it provides a Steam key, I'll buy it on Amazon and activate it on Steam.

Lately, I've also been buying games elsewhere and then activating on Steam. I'll go with whatever is the cheapest for the game I want. Some Humble Bundle deals are a good way to get a bunch of cheap games. :cool:
 
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