Report: Steam Has a Monopoly Over PC Gaming

[d-block]

I use D2D and Steam exclusively. Impulse just seems like a flea market to me. It looks all cheap.

 

[czar1020]

I havn't used steam in over 4 years, But when I did use it, well it worked and everything I've heard from people has been good.

 

[kinney]

I'm a Steam gamer, registered September 2003. Steam ID under 50,000 if I remember correctly. No regrets. If Steam isn't around in 20 years, I doubt I'll be crying about it. Today, and for the last 7 years, it's been awesome. Thanks for the innovation Valve, one of the better places I've given my money to.

 

[isamuelson]

Steam is great and it's NOT a Monopoly. In fact, I would love to know how many games are purchased through mediums like Steam because I know those are NOT counted in the retail sales figures that are released on how the PC Game industry is doing. Who really cares about Gamestop and their ilk? In the past 3+ years, I've purchased most of my games electronically, mainly through Steam and it is great.

 

[stradric]

[citation][nom]Dekasav[/nom]Well... it's *really* obvious why Games for Windows failed, it's because it does nothing for the consumer and just plain sucks.[/citation]

Well, to its credit, you can redirect incoming voice chat to your headset earphones while maintaining game audio through your speakers. That's something that Steam does not do (but should). It also appeals to xbox 360 owners since you're using the same Live account. I actually like GfWL, but I understand why many do not.

 

[ddt529]

You can put Steam in offline mode and it won't keep track of your game time or require you to log in. It's amazing what features are available when you take the time to learn

 

[pluripotent]

When companies can't compete, they turn to anti-trust law. If another company could offer the same as steam, or better, they would gain market share. There is no need to legislate their way into the market.

 

[demonhorde665]

"Does Valve really have a monopoly on the PC market? Probably not. Eventually it boils down to content, presentation, and accessibility. Valve has spent many years perfecting the service, has amassed a wide user-base since its launch seven years ago. Of course, its popularity may be as simple as familiarity: PC gamers are familiar with Left 4 Dead 2, Half-Life, and the Valve brand. Will that still hold true ten years from now? Maybe not."



you ahd me liking the article til you got here ,

1. steam definitely does NOT have a monopoly on teh PC gaming market ,many poepel like myself stil buy games fromthe store , or from amazon.comn , as long as the game doesn't include Securom or some other similar DRM scheme.

2. Steam will most definitely NOT be forgotten in ten years , ther may be another service that crops up that is similar to it , but thatdoesn't mean valve will be forgotten in ten years or that such a thing would even be possible given the huge lead steam has on digital downloaded games , not to mention valve them selves will stil continue to release great games.

 

[gamerk316]

Funny, you can still buy every game on a disk. There are other Digital download services (Impulse, Direct2Drive), etc. This is just people complaining about why everyone goes to Steam.

Yes, Valve being a publisher itself is a potential issue. But so far, they have treated both their and their direct competitors games equally. I don't see BC2 or MW2 being hindered for TF2 or L4D to have better odds of succeeding...

All Steam does is licence out Keys to a digital version of the same exact game. Heck, you don't even need to be connected via internet once the game is downloaded (Offline mode).

 

[crom]

Its all about price and convenience. Steam isn't just about a dominant distribution model, they run incentive campaigns to get people to launch the service at least once a week. Steeply discounting old games, 1 day only specials, etc. Windows Live tries to force itself onto your computer, and they even have a stupid "points" based purchasing system. Why would I want to use a service like that when I can open Steam, have a clean and easy to use interface, that sells me games based on a dollar value, not some abstract point system.

 

[Guest]

I used to love steam for the convenience and pricing. Since then I've been bit in the butt by having all control in the hands of a third party. Their customer support is horrible, and if you have a problem with any order their only response is for you to not use it anymore. As if that really helps anyone. Its just another DRM. I refuse to buy anything else on steam, no matter how cheap it is.

 

[rhelme]

[citation][nom]beayn[/nom]I can't stand Steam. Having to log in and remain connected to play a game is stupid. I have the original DVD and my internet goes out (frequently) and guess what... I can't play that game I just bought. It's like disabling games and apps on your phone just because you don't have a signal.I bought Supreme Commander 2 original box, got it home, did the enormous 2gb update and just as it finished my internet kicked off for 12 hours and it wouldn't let me in. I will avoid STEAM games if at all possible.[/citation]

A> Ever heard of offline mode
B> You do NOT have to be connected to the net to play the game and if you get disconnected lose your games or your spots...

Either your a troll, or are mixed up with the UBI-Soft deal and thinking that it applies to Steam as well.

Some people never figure it out, and you sir, probably won't, but you do not have to be connected to play your game... well unless your playing online multiplayer and then you can't bitch about that...

 

[rhelme]

[citation][nom]moricon[/nom]I am an AVID PcGamer, and have never even installed steam on my PC, Yres I may be missing a few of Valves games, but there is more choice of hard box set games out there than steam could ever offer and I like to have the physical media for my game. If Steam were to offer the newest games at the correctly adopted price for a purely download product with no manuals, media box art work then I may, possibly consider them as an option. Nope, it seems to me at this time that my Alligence to Code-masters as a developer is still justified.. and for the record, Steam is definately not a monopoly!!![/citation]

Usually they have a few dollars off pre-order, I can't remember the time I sat looking over Box and the Box art remembering all the fun times I had in that game, and then finding a place to store that Box and Box art. Plus the fun of the new DRM's that require the CD to be in the drive, so you have to store the new ones close, and file the old ones away...

Steam's game library easily blows away any store in North America with the sheer number of games it has available for sale.... If you need media, you can burn you a backup and file it away.

If you are like me, I have 1/2 closet full of every PC game I have ever owned.... and all it is now is a waste of space that I don't want to throw away because of the thousands I spent buying them.

With Steam, you can be anywhere in the US with any decent connection and a decent PC, install and run the game and not have to deal with the storage of box, and manual... well unless you are a hoarder and all that junk will have some special meaning and we see you on TLC holding on to your old Space Quest I box with manual saying "no no no, can't get rid of that one..... I might want to play it again in 30 years".

nearly 200 games a click away.... no store in North America has that shelf space...

 

[rodney_ws]

Quick! Someone call the WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAmbulance!

 

[Dirtman73]

I'm confused. Some people here are saying that it's never necessary to be connected to Steam to play a game, yet they sell games like Torchlight that save your progress via Steam's cloud capabilities. Could someone clarify for me?

And yes, sometimes offline mode doesn't work. There have been several occasions where I wasn't allowed access to a particular game because Steam couldn't start offline properly. It's not perfect, guys.

 

[megamanx00]

Perhaps if other store bought games didn't exit when you beat a level just because your DSL was crappy people wouldn't so easily flock to steam.

 

[kilthas_th]

[citation][nom]False_Dmitry_II[/nom]My problem with steam is the same as with literally any other digital distribution system. Used games. The first sale doctrine.I still use them when I can get the price half off or less, but when it's a choice between buying mass effect 2 on amazon with no draconic copy protection or having it forever tidally locked to my steam account I'm not getting anywhere near choosing steam.[/citation]

You can sell the account, though. I, personally, don't sell my PC games used, but when I was asking myself how I could do it with Steam, the answer was as simple as just creating a new, free Steam account for each game purchase. You could then sell the account once you were done with the game. No need for postage, a trip to the store, etc, even, so even that way, it can save you money, and you don't even have to track down the manual, case, key, etc.

 

[hankylord]

To all you people who complain about having to be connected to Steam to player your games...it only requires you to be connected if it's a game made by Valve. A game like MW2 you can just go to the folder where the .exe is stored and start it from there. All Steam does is execute that .exe but if you're using the shortcut provided by it then you must be connected.

Like I said, if it's not a Valve game then you needn't use Steam to play it.

 

[deltatux]

Well, no because its competition sucks with no good distribution system and community. Steam is the only content distribution system that works as it should. If a competitor can rival Valve when it comes to content distribution, then sure, I'll go for it as would most people. However, the only reason why people keep going back to Steam is because there's no better solutions.

 

[jednx01]

As long as they don't become like EA and Activision and try to rip us off, I really don't care if they have a monopoly. Steam has worked well for me, so I don't care. Just my two cents.

 

[knickle]

When Steam first came online it hand a large mob of disbelievers waiving torches. When the air finally settled, Steam turned out to be a pretty good setup once the kinks were worked out.

If I recall correctly, one of the main reasons that Steam exists is because Valve got tired of being controlled by the publishers. Valve decided to beat them at their own game and did a damn good job of it.

 

[back_by_demand]

[citation][nom]beayn[/nom]I can't stand Steam. Having to log in and remain connected to play a game is stupid. I have the original DVD and my internet goes out (frequently) and guess what... I can't play that game I just bought. It's like disabling games and apps on your phone just because you don't have a signal.I bought Supreme Commander 2 original box, got it home, did the enormous 2gb update and just as it finished my internet kicked off for 12 hours and it wouldn't let me in. I will avoid STEAM games if at all possible.[/citation]
I happily play all my Steam games at LAN parties by setting it to Offline mode.
I do not have to be connected to the internet
let me repeat that
I do not have to be connected to the internet
note
this also works at home
if I want to play my Steam games offline I can do so

 

[truerock]

In my opinion this article and everyone who has commented on it are missing the most important point: Steam is much, much better than iTunes.

Steam is light-years better than any other copy-protection system ever used. The only copy-protection better than Steam is: no copy protection. That is why Steam almost or does have a monopoly.

I'm surprised that Steam hasn't taken over all software delivery - it is that good.

Steam is not about downloading software. We have been dowloading software for decades. Anyone with any experience in building a website can support downloading software. There are hundreds of thousands of web sites opertating today that support listing and downloading software flawlessly. What makes Steam different is that its copy-protection is flawless.

If Steam gets on the Apple franchise - it could easily replace iTunes.

 

[pocketdrummer]

They have a "monopoly" because nobody has created a service worthy of the consumer's time or money.

The first digital service I used was Direct2Drive. While it worked at first, the method of downloading was flawed and patches had to be made specifically for the Direct2Drive version of the game. This left my copy of F.E.A.R. unusable online until they released F.E.A.R. Combat for free. After that, I switched to Steam.

If you don't remember, Steam was not a smash hit when it was unleashed to the public. The first iteration was slow and buggy. MANY people hated it (me included). However, it slowly grew into an invaluable tool for downloading and playing games. With the ability to download games and re-download them later if needed, I never feared losing discs or key codes. I can connect with friends directly and chat with those playing another game simultaneously. All my games are in a single list, and the best ones are at the top. Servers are incredibly easy to find and join (unless the game uses another method) and stats are even logged for bragging rights. The entire service is streamlined for ease of use and connectivity.

Before anyone jumps to any conclusions, keep in mind that other services ARE second rate. One cannot expect the consumer to spend their money on lesser products when a better option is easily within their grasp.

 

[zak_mckraken]

Great. Bash on succesful companies. That will get your self-esteem up. I have an idea to beat this "monopoly" of theirs : make a better product.