Publisher: PC Games Going All Digital in 2011

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[citation][nom]mavroxur[/nom]Soooooooo how exactly does this work? Forcing game content to be all digital.....with games coming out on DVD's (sometimes more than 1 to a game) and Blu-Ray.... and internet providers talking about imposing limits on downloaded data? Does nobody else think this fail ship is preparing to set sail?[/citation]
was wondering how many others were going to bring this up. I download a lot of games and think Steam has amazing deals. But with so many ISPs having bandwidth caps you're not going to only pay for the game, but to also download them. Then just imagine having 20 games installed on Steam and then reformatting (I just did)
 
I like to collect my games, I don't want to download them and then have to re-download them because they are "corrupt" which often happens with large downloads. I also don't want to have the need for a huge external hard drive just to keep all my installers on for my games , So hopefully I'm allowed to burn it too a disk and get magic box art from them.
 
[citation][nom]mac_angel[/nom]was wondering how many others were going to bring this up. I download a lot of games and think Steam has amazing deals. But with so many ISPs having bandwidth caps you're not going to only pay for the game, but to also download them. Then just imagine having 20 games installed on Steam and then reformatting (I just did)[/citation]
if you copy the steam apps directory then paste it into the fresh install 95% of the games just work. a few require cache verifications and but its minimal compared to total loss.

Since retail copys require online verification to work and no longer come with great boxes and manuals to read, retail has 0 value. I love the big boxes and the 80+ page manuals I got with games like homeworld but this is long gone. I pick up a game now and its a disc in a case, no manual its a pdf on the disc.
 
pc games have always been digital. thats how computers work. what they mean to say is pc games may only be sold electronically via download only in the future. digital and download are two different things.
 
[citation][nom]Hilarion[/nom]I HATE steam and it's brethren. I want to play and not be strung out on the net just to do that with advertising I don't want and "friends" who aren't and all the other crap that comes with it. No box? I'm not likely to buy it.[/citation]

What ads? And how often do you acquire friends you didn't want on Steam?

You points make no sense what-so-ever. In my opinion, Steam is fantastic. I don't have to drive, wait in a line, or search for the game. I don't have to keep a stack of boxes next to my computer for all the games. There's no CD key to lose or have stolen (it's happened to me before).

The ONLY downside is having to download it. Which isn't a big deal... just start it before you go to sleep or before work. Or, god forbid, go DO something during that time. Hell, you might make a friend you actually want instead of being "bombarded by fake one's on steam". Pfft.
 
Well the bandwith will collapse, companies be ready to be oversaturated cuz of bandwith problems, second no internet no games, the retail stores will earn less, console sales could increase, piracy could decrease, i hate consoles, but there are ppl already use their bandwith capacity to the top, more ppl will look higher internet speed, IPS cost and invertment in new infraestructure could change and offer better speed, 1000 Gb connections more close than before and at the end piracu regain the spot lost and overincrease cuz of that, everyone will share more easy their own info to others ...
 
I buy games only on Steam when they are on sale and usually when they are under ten dollars. But the box is still the way to go as who knows if Steam will sell out or do something else in the future and what happens to your games that you bought on Steam when you don't really own anything physical?
 
I think this is a great idea. However...NOT YET. We've still got too many people that are online with slow connections and they will lose out. Plus, what if your computer crashes and you did not save the ISO? Will there be a way to redownload the game? That would be crucial, as well. Before this happens, I think every ISP needs to get together and completely DUMP dial-up.
 
There needs to be a way that when you boot up a computer with a formatted hard drive, it comes up with a screen asking which operating system(s) you wish to install on your computer, and allows you to order them from the appropriate vendors and some sort of license management system, for when you change computers or need to reformat. Same thing goes with all other apps, not just games. Everything should go digital.
 
If it goes digital then I want a discount since production costs are reduced as well as the middle man being cut out of the picture.
 
FRACK!!!!
I hate non-boxed games...i purchased Red Alert 3 Uprising. It limits how many times you can install the game before having to RE-PURCHASE the game...it blows...i prefer having my PC DVD box
 
This is to all you Steam lovers. Steam works good but have you ever heard of a monopoly, well if Steam get full or even vast control then they will start sucking, always happens.
I actually believe there is behind the scene powers at works collaborating together on this. MS, Game developers and distributors (EA Games anyone), even retail outfits. The game developers may even want to see PC titles go away all together. Too many problems with all the hardware. It is much easier to code for one set of hardware.
2. Control, control, control, rent a game like steam, can't sell it. This will drive most to the kiddie consoles, PS3 for me.
I see my house going MS free one day if this happens, no need for Windows if I can't buy games. Amazon.com is where I buy my most of my boxed games at, huge selection, cheap prices and I think they will continue to carry boxed games for years, even if the hacks in the gaming area (powers to be) go all digital download.

 
"But these consumers are now more than happy to click the download button."

The only time I'm happy to click a download button is when it's free. When I shell money out, I like to have a nice shiny box to look at and actually collect. There is no charm in digital-only content.

If what this guy thinks will come true near 2011, well I hope piracy will still be as easy as it is, because I will be pirating more than ever. Digital downloads would only be profitable if prices where WAY down compared to their retail versions, but it's not, or rarely is. With more ISPs capping bandwidth every year, this comes as a price for the consumer. Bandwidth have a cost, it's not free for everyone. In my opinion, platforms like Steam are pure bullshit, don't want to go out to buy a retail copy? Buy it over Internet on Amazon, or something similar.

I fail to understand why digital downloads are so popular at the prices they are.

 
[citation][nom]Hilarion[/nom]I HATE steam and it's brethren. I want to play and not be strung out on the net just to do that with advertising I don't want and "friends" who aren't and all the other crap that comes with it. No box? I'm not likely to buy it.[/citation]
Steam doesn't force you to add gamer friends, I have used Steam for years and not had a single unsolicited request to be added to a buddy list, only existing friends I choose, certainly less unsolicited begging from street charity workers as I try to get to the store. You get less advertising in the 20 seconds it takes to go from the Steam client to the game loading, whereas you get much more aggressive advertising the second you step out your house to buy in a retail outlet or if you decide to buy the box game from Amazon. The time it takes you to get ready, go out, down the shops, buy the game and come home is longer than to download it, also buying from Amazon you have to wait longer still whilst it is sent by mail, assuming of course that the store or Amazon aren't sold out, when downloads are never sold out. It is safer, if you accidentally trash your disk or have it stolen you are screwed, but if you downloaded from Steam when you replace your PC and login again your full games list is ready for you again to download. Plus I have never heard of anyone being mugged whilst downloading, but plenty of people in town centres have. Lastly it is better for the environment, boxed games use packaging, physical media, trucks to drive them to the store, you drive or get the tube to the store. Downloads have no packaging and no trucks to deliver. Decrease your CO2 footprint, use Steam.
[citation][nom]craig_98[/nom]What if you are on the road and don't have an internet connection? I am in the Navy and I play games when we pull into foreign ports or when I have time underway.[/citation]
Maybe Amazon is the best bet for you, but with this exception if you have an internet connection, downloading directly is:-
- Faster
- Never sold out
- Cheaper
- Less advertising
- Safer
- Good for the environment
[citation][nom]jaydeejohn[/nom]Fraggin great. Nothing beats a box, its a nostalga thing ya know?[/citation]
Fair play, it will be a shame to lose them, perhaps you could start a new internet business selling the box and manuals to people who have downloaded the game.
 
"Fair play, it will be a shame to lose them, perhaps you could start a new internet business selling the box and manuals to people who have downloaded the game."

I always thought DDs should be like that, or at least offer a choice. For example, if they sell Half-Life 2 for 49.99$ at retail stores, they should offer the option to buy it digital only at 34.99$ or 54.99$ for digital (to receive it right now as a download) and a boxed copy being shipped to you. The 5$ supplement being for the digital service offered, and in the other case, the 15$ less being for, you know..not having any physical possession of the product?
 
Yes, I've felt slighted as a PC Gamer by both Retail Stores and the game developers themselves.

The stores and especially GameStop have marginalized PC gaming down do one half of a single shelf! WTF.

It's just as bad that all the games that are also on console have limited themselves to DX9 and the consoles limits! I'm on a fragging 4GHz DX11 PC, don't dumb down my games for old old (in tech) consoles! New games like Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age just look like the console versions but with sometimes better textures! It's criminal!

Now everyone I read only talks about Valves Steam for digital downloads and then complains about requiring an internet connection at all times and other things involved. There are more than just Valve. I use mostly Direct2Drive and they only do a one time internet check to unlock the game then you can play all you want, no special consoles or net needed.


Now, I do think that PC Games not being bigger with the casual consumer is mostly the industries fault. Yes, I said it. Joe Consumer goes to Best Buy and gets a laptop that the blue shirt says is a good gaming PC. Well the salesmen fell for the hype from intel about the HD3000 or what ever. That customer then goes down a few rows and picks up a game. 95% chance that game won't run on that computer. And we wonder why PC Gaming is getting marginalized?

I think what we need is minimum standards or more inforced standards. Either embrace the Windows Experience Index on the shelf marketing of the PC and the games or... have a PC Gaming logo that if the PC and the game have that logo it plays well. I'd suggest computers with the PC Gaming Logo at least have a low end decrete card for the bottem bar.

That's a load off my chest. Glad I said my piece.
 
[citation][nom]MCMunroe[/nom]Now everyone I read only talks about Valves Steam for digital downloads and then complains about requiring an internet connection at all times and other things involved..[/citation]
By all means switch Steam to offline mode and you can still play with no internet.
[citation][nom]MCMunroe[/nom]That's a load off my chest.[/citation]
You had a load on your chest? Eeeewwwww........ that's gross.....
 
This is hard on those with slow internet or none at all. Btw I don't like Steam's impact on my system, its an annoying utility and should be less obtrusive.
 
I'm OK with digital content as long as I am allowed to create back-up discs I can install from. When Fallout becomes real-life I want to still be able to play my games on my nuclear-powered UPS with no internet connection.
 
what ever. but I don't like the DD system there is at the moment, having to pick one distribution method. there should be a general DD management system that holds all your games, developed by a third party, then all the different stores distribute their games in a common format for use with that third party system. imagine if different game shops had exclusives, so you could only buy the next Half life from EB, then imagine that you had to keep any game you bought from EB at EB, if you wanted to play it, you had to go to EB to pick your copy up. that’s what the DD system is like at the moment, and I don't think its good enough, its anti competitive encouraging users to pick just one online store for simplicity.
 
I want to laugh at this and say it's crazy, but he might be right which doesn't make me happy. I hate Steam. It's worthless bloatware and I like having physical copies of my games. I buy boxed copies whenever I get the chance. But I found one game last week that I could only find available on Steam, which sucked. So I skipped buying it completely.
 
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