Steam will kill pc gaming

[Darkn3ss]

Surely this is the issue more so of the governments of the countries within? Steam cannot be blamed for this issue at all...

True, I'm not blaming Steam for high speed internet not being available everywhere, only that Steam's alternative to broadband is poor at best.

 

[Darkn3ss]

Many of the “bugs” Identified throughout these forums have actually been discovered to be related to software outside of steam. Remember steam is only but the content providing system, not the game(s) themselves.

Understood.
Please tell me which of the following are not bugs is Steam...

• the process steam.exe hangs when steamtmp.exe runs
• the cache files have become corrupted.
• installation hangs if counter-strike is deselected.
• audio stutter issue
• steam does not start at windows startup
• no profiles in games
• screenshots in HL2 save menu are corrupt

How about the following annoyances...

• seven minutes to validate and unlock HL2 files
• waiting more time for additional files to download after installing 5 cd roms
• again waiting another seven minutes for files to validate the second time I launched HL2
• when I shutdown windows I occasionally get a frozen steam.exe that I can wait to terminate or 'end now'
• again waiting another seven minutes for files to validate the fifth time I launched HL2

 

[<?>..::ButcheR::]

it works great for me realy i cannot understand why you are whining.

<?>..::ButcheR::

 

[Darkn3ss]

The current system does work. Yes you have been unfortunate; yes you have been unable to load the CD correctly.

Then NO, the current system does NOT work.

I works for you, and perhaps others, but that does not diminish the fact that many are extremely frustrated with Steam and still others are trying to return their copies of HL2 or selling them on half/ebay and elsewhere.

And it didn’t have to be this way.

Without Steam, you and I and everyone else reading this thread would be playing HL2 right now and only stopping long enough to discuss the coolest screenshot and the latest sighting of the G-man.

 

[AxelGreaseMonkey]

Acidrainy,

Surely game retailers on your side of the Atlantic are not that naive. What's to stop an individual from copying the purchased game (to optical media or hard-drive), cracking it, and then returning the original for a full refund ? Businesses exist to make a profit at the consumer's expense, not the other way around.

I can't think of a single retailer in North America (from Wal[hell]mart and EB on down to your local computer shop) that will allow a refund on an opened software item.

 

[ethanbee]

Cutting out retail distrubution is a Good Thing.

Think of all the indy and pseudo-indy games that will finally be able to get "distribution".

 

[acidrainy]

You can return the game for the same game, NOT for a refund. Thats so if the game cd is bad you can exchange it. But I have never heard of a retailer that will refund the money.

Examples of where you can return the game for menetary reimbursemnet.
GAME, HMV, Virgin (Megastores), EB, Tesco, ASDA(UK Company owned by walmart)...

This is only a few of the stores that sell the game and that I have been able to confirm their return policy.

Did I have to get a loan to buy this game? No. Did I have to get a security clearance to buy this game? No. Have I ever had to give my correct email addy so I can play a game before? NO! So why now all of a sudden do I have to give out information to somebody I have no clue about.

Do you not know who vALVE are?
You do have the option of putting falsified information in. Or did you not think that far ahead?

 

[acidrainy]

Acidrainy,

Surely game retailers on your side of the Atlantic are not that naive. What's to stop an individual from copying the purchased game (to optical media or hard-drive), cracking it, and then returning the original for a full refund ? Businesses exist to make a profit at the consumer's expense, not the other way around.

I can't think of a single retailer in North America (from Wal[hell]mart and EB on down to your local computer shop) that will allow a refund on an opened software item.

Sadly, what you suggested happens. It's not a huge scene, but it happens.

Consumer right laws over here are far stronger for the individual than in the US. I'm afraid these laws dictate this matter.

One sign of evidence is that the UK games industry is larger than ever, so the fact that we can return games does not effect sales by all that much. I guess as a majority, we are just honest..?

 

[Grimkeeper]

fuk steam it ruined my hl2 experience

 

[acidrainy]

fuk steam it ruined my hl2 experience

Sorry to hear that Grimkeeper.

Did you get to play the game in the end? Was it good?

 

[paratwa]

Examples of where you can return the game for menetary reimbursemnet.
GAME, HMV, Virgin (Megastores), EB, Tesco, ASDA(UK Company owned by walmart)...

This is only a few of the stores that sell the game and that I have been able to confirm their return policy.


Do you not know who vALVE are?
You do have the option of putting falsified information in. Or did you not think that far ahead?

Yes I know who valve is, who I dont know is steam. What are they going to do with my information? And yes I gave the correct information, because I figured it was best because of all this bogus security crap, didnt want them to send an email that I needed to respond to to get the game running. How was I to know what was needed, never used Steam before and never will again!

 

[acidrainy]

Yes I know who valve is, who I dont know is steam. What are they going to do with my information? And yes I gave the correct information, because I figured it was best because of all this bogus security crap, didnt want them to send an email that I needed to respond to to get the game running. How was I to know what was needed, never used Steam before and never will again!

Sorry if this makes you look a bit naive, but Steam is a program made by vALVE...

Then again common sense is not everyone’s virtue..

 

[Delicious Bass]

Sorry if this makes you look a bit naive, but Steam is a program made by vALVE...

Then again common sense is not everyone’s virtue..

Its VALVe not vALVE, just had to say that

 

[OCybrManO]

Actually, it's neither. On their logo all of the letters are capitalized but the E is written in superscript (raised and smaller)... while in other places only the V is capitalized (like when they say "Valve Corporation").

Example:

 

[Doppelgofer]

i miss the good old days of buying a game, wacking it in the drive and playing it as soon as install finishes. when i got half-life 2, it installed PLUS i had to wait for the files to unlock THEN AFTER THAT, the game apparantly still wasn't ready to play because more of half-life 2 had to be downloaded from steam...i mean EH? WHY? why didn't they put everything needed to play straight on the retail disc, it makes no sense.

i also miss the direct play option of old games where as now i double click half-life 2 and have to wait for that pile of ass to load up and connect...THEN wait for it to update maybe...THEN it'll launch. it might sound odd but half-life 2 doesn't feel like its MINE and on MY COMPUTER...it feels like i'm having to rely on other sources like valve's steam network all the time for it to go.

steam pisses me off no end and i would be glad to see its ass end for the last time. agree, disagree, i don't care...i'm just having a rant.

 

[Antic2]

You can play without having Steam connect to the net - just click on "save my password" when you log in next time.

After that, every time you start Steam, make sure you're disconnected from the net - it will ask you if you want to start in "offline mode". Say yes, then you can connect to the net again. If you have a router, just unplug your cable when you start up, then plug in again.

But yeah, Steam does take the magic away. I daresay we'll get used to it, though.

 

[Darkn3ss]

I think you guys that are for steam have missed the point. Why should I have to give up my email address and any other information just to play a game. Why cant a friend of mine play this game on my computer using a different name so it wont mess my saves up. Why do I need to have an internet connection JUST to play offline! Why have to add time to install a game just verify that I am legal when I know I am. Valve really needs to think this over. I for one will use my vote for not using Steam by never puchasing a game that uses security of this type again!

I agree that Steam and any other software security of its type will kill pc gaming!

Well said.
I completely support your points in addition to what I've been saying about how frustrating Steam is (even when its working) and how it will give PC gaming a black eye.

 

[Darkn3ss]

If that's true, PC gaming WILL die, as the consoles are going to be released with better and better hardware, and better 3rd party support.
[cut]
Folks, it's not going to get any better.

Excellent points.
Thank you for eloquently saying what needed to be said.

 

[CSharkbytes]

You can play without having Steam connect to the net - just click on "save my password" when you log in next time.

After that, every time you start Steam, make sure you're disconnected from the net - it will ask you if you want to start in "offline mode". Say yes, then you can connect to the net again. If you have a router, just unplug your cable when you start up, then plug in again.

But yeah, Steam does take the magic away. I daresay we'll get used to it, though.

You still have to run steam to even go offline. Also, if you have been reading other threads here and elsewhere, some people can't even get it to go offline. When I install a piece of software, I don't always want to update it. This should be my choice to update or not. Steam updates it for you, doesn't ask just does it. Even if you always try to play offline. I started up the other day and steam told me I could not play ofline until I reverified and updated. That is crap my friend, having to install and validate for 5 hours, then a few days later be asked again.

Steam is acting as game police on my harddrive. With my money.
This invades my space. What I don't need is software, I did not want or want to purchase, just to play a game. As far as getting used to it...I DON"T THINK SO!!!!!

 

[Darkn3ss]

You could buy HL, CS:CZ, and all of the games in their catalog through Steam for quite some time before HL2...

Interesting, thanks.
I did a little browsing on Steam but was not able to find HL, CS, or similar, available for individual sale. Is seems they are only available as part of a package.

This gives me a whole new concern about Steam.

Does the future of game purchasing thought Steam include control and manipulation? Should we be concerned that Steam will try to control what we purchase and how much we spend by manipulating their availability?

Man this gets worse by the day!

 

[Llama]

claim to be played in 5 minutes?
is this guy reading these forums?, 99% of people here are totally unable to play, and its nearly been 5 days, not 5 minutes!

Well then, how can people be boasting about HL2's brilliant single-player if 99% having played it? Jackass

 

[Llama]

wierd...

Unless im the luckiest guy on earth or something steam is a lot better than most of you lot think.

I got the game working within 7 minutes of the release.

Steam hasent hung or crashed or affected anything else on my machine, it finds me patches even when i dont know there are patches.

If you look at it, the vast majority of people ie. 95% of people are playing hl2 just like any other game.

there isnt any more bitching about steam than there is of any other game when it launches.

also note how 9 out of 10 people who think steam is the end of the world have registered in the last week, dare i say it? but it seems to me that steam is not the problem its the people who know jack about it that are the problem.

at the risk of being labeled a raving fanboy, i only decided to get hl2 over steam 2 weeks before release becuase i hated it, i came round though when i stopped acting like a whiny kid (hint hint) and actualy used it a bit and learned that most of my preconceptions where wrong.

And if you are saying that steam sucks because you are on a 56K modem then go hang yourself, unless you live in some rural mountain town with no water never mind broadband there is no reason for you to bitch about technology moving ahead without you.... its like a guy on a horse moaning about guys with cars.

theres no point in flaming me about this cos i wont be reading the responses, ive been around long enough to know that when you try and correct whiny kids they just whine even more.

Coudnt agree more. Im still at school, but a took the day off and got HL2 activated about 25+ after the release. Steam is brilliant, ppl please stop bitching about it. IT ROCKS!!!

 

[Darkn3ss]

Steam is constantly crashing, darkness wtf are you talking about!

I'm saying Steam is a buggy program that crashes often, on many deferent types of PCs worldwide. If it hasn’t happened to you, consider yourself lucky.

Im having..trouble understanding this..

The market will increase if developers make great games like HL2 and more gamers are able to play right after installing than those that can not.

You and me both. Man, that sucked. Sorry about that.
What I was trying to say was that the PC gaming market would benefit more by having developers create great games that install easily and got to the game quickly.

Please just list your reasons on why steam is bad... Maybe if your a publisher then yes it is bad. If your a developer its good, you make more money!

ok

1. It crashes allot
2. It hangs when I shutdown, if I don’t close it first.
3. It takes too long to validate files
4. It invades my privacy
5. It doesn’t have a good alternative for people without broadband
6. Offline mode is obviously a jury-rig
7. I have no choice but to use it
8. I believe it will try to control content and force me to buy things I don’t want. (software bundles)

 

[Darkn3ss]

In my opinion, trying to get console gamers to play pc games is foolish in itself...most of the console gamers that don't already play pc games can hardly even use simple programs on a pc. So dumbing something down to appeal to them will effectively push away pc gamers, because there won't be features that they need...

Good post, I just disagree with this last comment.
It is possible to have it both ways. Improvements like where a game adjust its own settings based on available resources, I don’t consider 'dumbing down', but go a long way in making PC games more accessible to casual gamers. Plenty of PC games have made improvement like this and also retain console commands and other advance features for those interested in that.

Part of my frustration with Steam is that I'd hoped the release of HL2 would 'snowball' into something huge. That it would put the HL franchise back on top. Top of everything. Best game period, all genres, all platforms. And as we've seen, the game has the potential to do it, however with a frustrating delivery system and difficult install we're loosing potential HL fans by the droves.

 

[Darkn3ss]

If your games were tied to an account that had no contact information and you lost your password you would be up shit creek without a paddle. How is it not reasonable to give them an emergency contact e-mail address (you could even make a worthless spam address if you really don't care)?

True, I would be up sh*t creek.
But why have my copy of HL2 tied to any account, and give me no choice about it?
No account, no giving up my email address, problem solved.

 

[Darkn3ss]

it works great for me realy i cannot understand why you are whining.

<?>..::ButcheR::

Because I enjoy it.
First thing I do every morning is make a list of the top ten ways I can get someone to call me a whiner.

 

[Darkn3ss]

Sorry if this makes you look a bit naive, but Steam is a program made by vALVE...

Then again common sense is not everyone’s virtue..

I don’t think this makes paratwa look naive at all.
Why do we feel the need to treat the developer of a game we love like a family member?
We don’t "know" Valve. Their not our friends.
Their just a company full of good people and bad people and a bunch of people in the middle.
We don’t *really* know what their doing with our information any more than anywhere else.

 

[ChareltonHest]

Well, I to would like to say a few words. This Thread seems to be the place to address Steam, so here goes...

They have been trying to force SteamingPile down our throats for a while now.

Vavle decided to make HL2, and the rest of their games, "online-games"...wether they were MP or SP. They decided to force anyone who wishes to play their games to sign on an account with them and join their community.

When I want to buy a single-player game, that's what I want, a single-player game. But HL2 is an online game. You must have internet access to play, and be under the ever-watchfull eye of SteamingPile.

A single-player game should be stand-alone and not subject to outside sources in order to be played. Independent. They have made us dependent on an outside source. If I take out one of my old games, like Doom or C&C, I can play it. Steam may not be here forever. Things change. What if I want to dig out my old HL2 game some 10 or 15 years into the future? What if I don't have access to the internet? This feals more like renting a game than acctualy purchasing.

HL2 is an online game. This just isn't right. I don't want to be part of their community or have to flash my ID to the Combine each time I have to access what is supposed to be a single-player game that I paid for.

It's Valve's game and they can set any requirement they want. That's their right, it's their game. But if they want to treat us like this, we don't have t support them or buy their product. Like their "G-Man", they tell us "time to chooe." Half-Life 2 is the last product I will ever buy from Valve if they insist on followong this path.

What will the future hold if developers decide to follow this Steaming path? Will we have to send in names, addresses, and social-security numbers in order to pay games in the future? Or will they just phase out the retail section completely, making games only downloadable?

SteamingPile is the worst thing I have seen yet, and I pray we will not see more of this in the future.

This is my opinion of the Steam situation


Sincerely,
C.H.

 

[sixgunz]

That's strange, I have to do so much more...
I have to

• Tax it
• Insure it
• MOT it
• Fill it with petrol
• and do a quick point safety check before I drive off

And pay for it, of course!!!!!

I bought the retail copy of HL2 after stupidly losing my ATI offer with my Radeon 9600XT :<

After reading all this, I'm glad I bought retail after all!

My personal experience, like most of the stories here, had HL2 up and running after about 30mins. As did my not-so-computer-literate boss, who also bought the game at the same time!

My sympathies go out to those who are having probs though, especially those on 56k.

Think it would have been nice to have stated "broadband connection needed" on the box rather than just "online activation needed"

It seems this is going to be the way of the future, seeing as piracy is such a big issue these days, but it is really going to make users hopelessly dependent on the internet to do things.

Look at my situation.

1. I have XP - cannot activate XP without online activation (but they do have a phone/postal/fax backup, which is nice!)

2. I have I-Tunes - requires authorised computer to play tunes
authorisation key delivered via internet (as of ver 4.7)

3. I have HL2 - content activated / verified over internet

4. I have Doom3 - activated over the internet

Can anyone see the pattern?!!!!

If my installation messes up for any reason, I have to contact these companies - XP to reactivate my licence, I-Tunes to reset my activations - not to sure about Doom3 and HL2...?

My belief is that the Console and PC will eventually merge (er, can anyone say X-Box???)

But I think it will come in the form of a USB2 / Firewire / PCI adapter, allowing cartridge based games - utilising ROM and RAM areas so individual game data can be stored (patches, save games, personal data) and the ROM area can house the actual games plus hard encoded copy protection - crack that!!!). Plus cartridges can hold tons of data - gigs? Think Terras!!!!

Yes, this means that your average game will cost about 10-20% more than now, but think of all the time saved and the possible benefits!!!

One downside though - every one will have to agree on a universal standard, or you will be buying an adapter for each software company!!!! But surely, this is a small step to what could potentially be a huge market seller!!

Valve / Steam / ID / Sierra - are you listening????

This is the way forward!!!

Love to know what you all think! Please be gentle though - this is my first time here!

R's all!!

Six...

 

[Darkn3ss]

Hummm, the silence in deafening.
Let me ask that again...

I did a little browsing on Steam but was not able to find HL, CS, or similar, available for individual sale. Is seems they are only available as part of a package.

This gives me a whole new concern about Steam.

Does the future of game purchasing thought Steam include control and manipulation? Should we be concerned that Steam will try to control what we purchase and how much we spend by manipulating their availability?

 

[ryudom]

steam is good. online activation is good for the first two weeks imo, just so warez doesn't get released before release. other then that there should be an alterative wher eyou can just buy the non-steam version (although i'd get the steam version anyway)

oh yeah and steam rocks

 

[OCybrManO]

Hummm, the silence in deafening.
Let me ask that again...

It's just like it used to be in stores. You buy HL, you get all the mods (but not CZ) for free. If you buy CZ they give you everything except the Source-based games. They also give you all of their back-catalog (including CZ) when you buy HL2. How is this bad? They give you all of their old products when you buy a new one... they didn't charge any extra, and you complain?

 

[Darkn3ss]

It's just like it used to be in stores. You buy HL, you get all the mods (but not CZ) for free. If you buy CZ they give you everything except the Source-based games. They also give you all of their back-catalog (including CZ) when you buy HL2. How is this bad? They give you all of their old products when you buy a new one... they didn't charge any extra, and you complain?

Yes, I complain! Steam is f*cking with me again. Take a look at the browse games again. Its no longer as you describe. I have to buy HL2 to get HL1. Same goes for a few others. Its the lack of options that seems suspicious to me.

 

[ChareltonHest]

Buying HL2/Steam appears to be much less buying a game than it is buying a passport to live in the Valve community...we could call this community "City17". Since you cannot play it without being "in the community"(having an account, and whenever loginig in online, checking up on you).

At this point, in order to play any of their games, you must have the passport. And if your passport become rejected, you are thrown out of the community and cannot access any of the games again.

And pardon the language, but the old phrase "shit happends" still applys. What if an error occures on either end, be it Valve or the player, wich results in the termination of your account? All games you have ever purchased will no longer exsist for you. So are you paying $60 for a game or a passport?

"Shit Happends": Valve could get the records wrong and insist that at one time you may have broken the EULA. Or their could be a hacking attempt on either end. There are mistakes. Systems are not always secure, no matter how carefull one is. Computers are prone to problems. Somewhere along the line, there could be a slip-up.

Valve has made it clear that you are responsable for your own system. But like I said "Shit Happends", especialy in the computer world. You could be a responsable, legal, paying customer for years with Steam and one wrong step and the 10s, if not hundreads, of dollars you have spent on your games will be for not as you have your citizenship revolked.

I'm under the impresion that having your "citizenship...revolked" is permenent. That means all those games you paid for are no longer games, but papperweghts.

Citizen: "There must be some mistake. I got a normal bording pass like everyone else."

Combine: *shuts window*


C.H.

 

[Rage999]

I think the real challenge today for PC's isn't Steam: they just want to have a direct contact with their clients and i think it's a good idea. Why consoles are gaining the battle?
1- Distributors own theses rights so they gain money on consoles and games (to the contrary for PC games)
2-the recent clash between VU and Steam shows that theses bigs distribution companies are afraid to loose there position on the market: if anyone can download from home what the hell do we need them?
3-New companies are literraly strangled by theses distributors because they have particular ways to see the hole market and don't want to take risks on newbees ( i know what i'm talking about, i spent the last year trying to convince almost 50's of the bigest in the world to spent some money on new projects where 40 people were involved).

4-It's a good way to stop the spreading of cracked games that you can have almost immediatly today via the web (isn't it very funny? You can have a cracked game via the net but not an original....).

So i think Steam isn't the one to shoot at....

 

[packet_loss]

Greetings everyone,

I for one do not like Steam. I have read every post through this whole thread (all 8 pages) and have to agree for the most part with everyone else that hates Steam, or has a problem with it, as well. I think vALVE neglected to think of all the people who are still on dial-up, or even those that do not even have internet access. When I first installed HL2 & Steam I was extremely pissed off when my disc 4 kept giving me error's. I later found out it was because Steam hadn't finished updating itself, but only after two frustrating hours, many cancellations and re-installs. I was literally ready to take the game back and exchange it for something else.

Here are my main greivances with Steam & HL2:

1) I cannot play the game without internet access.

2) Everytime I try to play the game I have to wait anywhere from 30 minutes to 4 hours for Steam to update itself or HL2.

3) Dependancy on Steam. As it was mentioned once before, what if in 5 to 10 years from now I want to dig up HL2 and play it again, but Steam isn't around then?

4) Too much risk involved. I spent $60 on a game that if either myself or vALVE screws something up, may become worhtless, because in their eye's it is no longer a legitimate copy.

I'm sure I'm not the only one here that only has access to a dial-up account. Where I live restricts me to that. And it seems that vALVE has been pretty negligent in that respect. It took me over 8 hours to go from inserting the first disc to install the game, to seeing the main menu for the first time. All because of the manditory updates and "Unlocking" that had to be done over the internet. And the thing that pisses me off the most is that I can't see what Steam is doing when it's updating. I see the little icon in my system tray, but I can't get any info from it. No menu's, no tool-tips, nothing. If I was at least able to bring up a window that showed it was updating, and the progress of that update, it wouldn't have been so bad.

In conclusion, Steam probably was a good idea, but in my opinion, it wasn't integrated properly into the games. If I double click the HL2 icon, I want to play HL2 then, not wait 4 hours for Steam to update, then play. If vALVE was to remove the dependancy that HL2 and other games have on Steam, it would be a move in the right direction. I can tell you this though, if no changes are made, I will never be buying a game again that rely's on Steam the way HL2 does.

Just my 2¢.

 

[Gish05]

I am under the assumption that Steam does not allow you to play HL2 if for some reason you cannot access the internet. I think that is very stupid. You should not need online authentication to play a single player game. A serial number is fine.

 

[Expansion Pack]

One thing valve have proven with their buggy HL2 release is that they wont be the ones who bring internet mainstream games delivery systems to the mainstream gaming public.....They have a nice growing crowd of angry gamers from HL2 steam buyers who cant play the game due to bugs or problems with steam,then you got all the people without Net connections.......Well done for valve for turning one of the most anticipated game of the last few years into a complete nightmare for some gamers......The next time i purchase anything through steam will be 3 days after my frontal labotomy....

 

[Infidel]

Hehe, well said

Infidel

 

[ctrevan]

One thing valve have proven with their buggy HL2 release is that they wont be the ones who bring internet mainstream games delivery systems to the mainstream gaming public.....They have a nice growing crowd of angry gamers from HL2 steam buyers who cant play the game due to bugs or problems with steam,then you got all the people without Net connections.......Well done for valve for turning one of the most anticipated game of the last few years into a complete nightmare for some gamers......The next time i purchase anything through steam will be 3 days after my frontal labotomy....

roger that heh. Yea they did spoil HL2, I liked it better than Doom 3 because the physics were more realistic, and it had CS source. But after that slaughter of 20k steam accounts by Valve.... you know the rest -.-