News Gearbox: Valve has too much power

QFFT

I can't believe how blind (naive) some people are when defending Valve and Steam.

 

Only annoying part about Steam is the game overlay.

 

Yeah, I love Valve and steam, but he does have a point, there is a bit of a conflict of interest here. BUT, why doesn't someone else step up to the plate instead of crying about it? Epic? They are useless, as are ID, sad considering they are where they are because of the PC. At least valve is still focused mainly on PC, and steam has done a tonne for the PC gaming community.

 

Come on now, this is extreme, there are already ways to get steam games to work without steam, lets be real, that is a non issue.

 

Hilarious, as the naive one was him really, he needs a tin foil hat. Sure, I agree there is a conflict of inetrest, but as for truly owning the games? LOL, thats a non issue, I burn copies, back them up on an external drive, and there are already ways to play steam games without steam. I also doubt they would do not already have something in palce to allow these games to work in the case of the highly unlikely even they do go under.

 

Put it this way, Valve's "crime" is to waste the budget of several future games on the advertising for one new one.

Aside from that, they haven't put any other foot wrong that I can see other than misjudging of demand on the servers eg UTIII or a TF2 update. I don't see Gearbox coming up with a solution for the ever-growing server demand that Steam creates, it's bold-faced envy from a company that churned out a bunch of WWII games and the odd Halo port.

And what's Gearbox's solution anyway if Valve are so dangerous, "let us have a go"?

 

So how much is valve charging that is so unreasonable? Are they charging different companies different amounts based on how much their products compete with valve?

 

"Steam isn't the answer. Steam helps us as customers, but it's also a money grab, and Valve is exploiting a lot of people in a way that's not totally fair...Valve is taking a larger share than it should for the service it's providing. It's exploiting a lot of small guys. For us big guys, we're going to sell the units and it will be fine."

The indie developer who made AUDIOSURF thinks a little bit different on that matter, so does the creator of Braid... I hate when people talk BS... I don't care if it's Valve that's behind it, at least it isn't microsoft and they are doing a hell of a job in comparison with other developers/publishers(EA Download Manager is a perfect example) on the matter... Besides steam is, I think, helping PC gaming... People were not buying games because of secu-rom, publishers weren't releasing much games without secu-rom and then sales weren't like they would've been... So whatever you were gonna invest in secu-rom, invest in something better... AT THIS MOMENT it is called Steam... PERIOD

 

I would never have bought indie games if it wasn't for Valve.

 

I prefer to have Physical Media over Digital, i hated Steam so much i got rid of it.
I do use GFWL, but only for Halo 2, and it's only running when i play Halo 2, and my machines powerfull enough for me not to worry about it anyway.

Sam

 

The guys behind red orchestra also love steam and rightfully swear by it. Personnaly I own a ton of games on steam and appart from a hurricane taking there servers offline for a day it's been perfect

 

I don't see how offering titles (that can't be published by the big houses to a broad audience), and charging for that audience is exploiting

small devs probably would want it on steam asap.. having no real competition in this area (kinda like microsofts os) has it's ups in that everyone is using it.. your target audience is there with wallets open!

 

you have to take it all into the proper perspective too. Steam is much much more than GFWL will ever be - it is a very convenient one stop shop. you can buy and download your games. you get chat. you get online play, that is quite frankly, leagues beyond anything else out there.

you have instant, easy access to several great mods - that in the past meant scouring the interwebs, and downloading from quite frankly questionable sources.

the only time that i have ever heard of steam having major issues was with the HL2 activation in the first week.

if Gearbox thinks that they can do better, let them. the ability to talk $@#* is far removed from the ability to back aforementioned $@#* with meaningful action.

 

as much as I love steam and use it for majority of my game purchases I have to agree
it would be better in the long run for steam to be spinned off to seperate company, a non profit one that is funded by all developers who want to sell tehre wears on steam, be it games/music/music/pics/art etc
in essence, steam should be an opensource online framework that 3rd parties can develop front ends to, i want to buy my games from one place online, not have to use steam for some, windows live wotever for others and westwoods krap version
but wotever happens all of then need to provide a resail section so i can sell games i no longer play

 

They may have a point, but that is not to say Steam isn't a great system. I would rather buy a game on Steam than on disc, just for convenience, especially after a reinstall (seperate drive for games!), but I think Steam has grown to a size that dwarfs Valve and it should be business in its own right and a level playing field for all developers.

 

But don't Valve make no profit from Steamworks? I thought the only revenue they get from it is when they make deals with other publishers/indie devs on specific games and take a share from it.

 

People what the heck is in your heads? Steam being equal to all developers and being something that has nothing to do with Valve? It's their property, it's been their hard work that has put Steam where it is and I think they have done a great job! I don't know how it would be in someone else's hands...

Come to your senses people you wouldn't invest in a project, bring it to be the best in it's class and then say "you know what, we aren't being fair with the rest of the developers, lets all share"...

 

that's the problem with kids today ... they expect much more than they deserve.

i blame Linux.

 

I blame socialism...

as for physical vs digital I used to be all about physical media especially when steam first started I really did not like it and I did not truest it becuase of all the bugs. Today as a server owner I still do not trust it very much but I do now trust my purchases though steam and know that I can access my games. Also the sales they have are something you can not get anywhere else.

 

I use and enjoy Steam. As far as it being a conflict of interest, I have seen now abuse as a customer, in fact I have enjoyed deep discounts in the purchase price of games.
If Gearheads want to bark up a tree they should complain as to how Microsloth is holding back not only PC Games development, but the entire human races development since we have a very very poor OS as a standard (no Win7 will not make the situation better, Johnny).
IF Steam and Valve abuse their position, then I will be the first to take up arms and start shooting at them, and complaining to my EU MP, until then I'll ask first "is this game available on Steam?!"

Yours in Adjudicatory Plasma,
Star*Dagger