News Mass Effect 3 Origin edition detailed

Not necessarily. The article only states the the Deluxe Edition will be exclusive to Origin.

 

Hm, I think I'll wait and pick it up when it's on sale for <£20.

 

Meh, I'll wait for a steam sale, Oh wait...

 

How about Bioware stop with all the Sims-In-Space crap and actually make a decent game this time 'round?

 

£55 for a retail, boxed, limited edition? Maybe, depends how much I want it. The same for a digital edition? From an effectively untested platform? No thanks, I'll buy it boxed.

On the "Steam can do no wrong" front - I remember seeing a Steam update go to almost 100% then either return to single digits or crash completely (all this on a 33,600 KBps connection. Glee! ) so no, it wasn't perfect and still isn't (TF2 updating constantly, despite the fact you've specified "don't update automatically"? GRR!!) but for the most part it works better than the rest. The only other digital platform I use is GOG, simply because I don't trust any others.

 

Remember that person who worked for EA saying "$50 games were exploitative"?

Ha

 

You have to question if it's fair to deliberately leave out in-game assets from the non deluxe version. Buying collectors versions containing history -of / making- of videos and art work including concept art, fair enough, but with in- game stuff it's not really on.

 

Can't blame a company for using one big asset to strengthen another side of the business. Yes, it's annoying for users but on a purely business level, "exclusives" make sense. Heck, Sony, Nintendo, MS, et al have been doing it for years.

As for Origin. Well, it will be derided here and elsewhere for not being steam until it starts doing steam-like sales with irresistible bargains. Then people will buy.

I. for example, had no intention of using EADM until they gave away Burnout Paradise for free and offered BF:BC2 super cheap in a sale. Since then I've even added my free copy of ME2 to it (Dragon Age 2 giveaway).

In the end, if EA do it right and make using Origin easier and less invasive than using a DVD, then it will be good for Steam to have a competitor.

 

Digital. Litographic.

Yeah, that makes no sense what so ever...

 

Valve created the Steam system to distribute their own games/Software/Patches.
It worked well, and they then opened it up to other developpers.
They have actually pushed the 'Steam Sales', proving that having a limited-time sale increases sales and profits. They have put alot of work into Steam,, and it is worth it.
EA wants to try and copy steam, but offering only its own catalogue.
Would you want a download service for every publisher under the sun ? No.
Thats why its Steam, and not 'Valve Online Store'.

I do believe that HL:Ep3 has been delayed so long due to the rampant success of Steam. ( and of course the revenue it brings them, that is the point of being in business ).

 

this^ and what Ayrto said

 

Fairly sure EA have figured that if they offer digital distribution, and make them -ALL- sell it at £50, they can start charging console prices for PC games, and then everybody will follow suite.

Wouldn't surprise me if Activision don't come up with something the same, hell, I'm fairly sure StarCraft 2 was £35 on blizzards own site, which is still a bit high as far as PC games go.

 

how do we know Origin won't feature other games?

EADM was renamed to Origin, there may be a reason behind that.

 

I remember paying £50 for star wars on the NES and thinking that was quite dear. Gamers these days don't know how good they've got it

 

I quite agree. Playing catch-up is rarely the way forward.

Yes -- Valve did get me onto a Steam account by making it necessary for Orange Box activation and thereby leveraging that exclusivity; however, I only became a proper Steam convert when I discovered how user friendly the platform was and how good the sales and bundles were.

Rather than pissing people off with stupid exclusivity deals, EA would do a lot better by leveraging their massive back catalogue to beat Steam at their own game by making Origin to the go to place for really good value sales and bundles. They are also very well placed to exploit the long tail by making more of their bygone classics available through the minimal-cost digital platform.

Simply adding a bunch of exclusive tat for Shepherd isn't going to make me sign up -- instead its going to make me think EA are t**ts and buy a disc from Amazon in the "old fashioned" way (yes, I can still remember how its done).

 

Does anyone else remember the days when you could actually hold stuff? Digital comics and artwork are worthless.

 

Not to risk getting lynched here, but I have Origin (Crysis 2 was half price one weekend).

All I will say is - it works.

It does not automatically start or load any services or bloat when windows boots. You can disable chat and all the other crap in the options and it is fine.

Contrary to popular belief EA origins does not break in to your house and kill your family when you are asleep.

And yes, of course they have every right to bring a competing product in to the market, and yes competition and choice is always good for consumers, and yes I have Steam and yes it is very good but no it is not a charity or the precursor to world piece so get over it.

 

jimmy can you fill me in how this healthy competition works? As far as I was aware, EA will be selling their own games ... charging their own prices ... how does the competition work?

 

I just downloaded Origins. Most new games are £35! Whilst I think Steam over charges; I can put up with an extra £5 from Amazon's normal £25 price for the convience of having all my games in one place and not having to worry about CDs etc. £35 is over the top though. Guess it will be back to buying old fasioned DVDs for EA games now.

 

meh a lot of digital distribution services offer extra exclusive content as an incentive to buy from them.

so no point getting butthurt at EA for doing what everyone else is, including steam, if anything steam are more guilty than most.

but really its not really an issue, i can't say i have ever played a game where i didn't get the exclusive content and wish i had, so unless EA or whoever start offering exclusive content that is actually game changing it isn't a big deal