EA Blames Dragon Age 2 Disappearance on Valve

[Bags159]

You know, this whole Origin vs Steam, EA vs Valve thing is one of the few times I'm glad to be a lowely console player. I don't have to worry about where I will get my games.

EDIT: I'm not anti-PC gaming at all. I'm just saying that "Not having to deal with DD services is a plus for me"

I can see where you're coming from with that, but there is also the plus side of stuff like Battlefield 3 supporting 64 player multiplayer that makes it totally worth putting up with all of this bullshit. Hopefully the next line of consoles will be able to support that stuff.

You say 64 players like that's a lot.

Anyhow, other companies sell DLC through VALVe just fine.

Valve has never taken this position with any other games from publishers that utilize their own distribution network, also Valve has nothing to gain from pulling the games if they didn't break contract because if anything that HELPS EA since their network will be the only place to buy it, they certainly aren't going to get more profits that way.

You obviously are not very attentitive now are you. Have you ever actually looked at the shit some of the valve fanboys spew out? Valve could literally come out and say ya we took it down because we dont like EA starting their on DD service and the fanboys would still blame it on EA.


The problem here is valve wants a cut of the money regardless of wether or not the dlc was sold through steam. EA said go fuck yourself and so valve is being a little child and removed the game. The reason this isnt happeneing to other companies is because they are all to small to argue with valve or they dont actually have their on DD service. Up untill now valve could basically say what ever they wanted and developers would be forced to agree to their terms because for some idiotic reason PC gamers worship steam like a god. EA is tired of valve being a greedy bastard and has finally challanged them on it.

You know why there are so many rabid Valve fanboys? Here's a clue, it's not because they covered a dartboard in developer's names, and threw a dart at it while blindfolded, it's because Valve has built up a reputation for being a fair and honest in their practices, and making quality software.

Steam allows a game to reach a wider audience, that service is literally worth money, and they deserve a cut of what gets put on it, that's how it works, EA is trying to use all of the advantages of Steam while cutting it out of the loop when it comes to contractually obligated profit sharing, and they were well within their rights to drop the game.

With EA's massive legal team, they would have to literally be retarded to not know they were violating the terms, but they did it anyway because they wanted the game exclusively on their service, and this was a convenient way to pull it from steam while clumsily trying to direct the negative PR at them. It's the only explanation that makes any sense

Sounds right to me.

I love how all of the valve fan boys cannot entertain the idea that valve are being shadey. EA's greed would not let it pull a title and lose sales for no reason.

Uh, you do realize they have their own store platform now, right?

 

[newwiseman]

I hate Steam, and I won't list my reasons for so again when I have already ranted so many times before. Any new game that doesn't force me to use Steam is one that may actually get a purchase from me.

 

[Twilight_guy]

Well I know why they want to avoid steam for their DLC, money money, but Steam is more convenient for buying DLC in my mind. I don't like having to track down a website for each game to find DLC information, Steam centralizes it in the same way it centralizes browsing for games. I understand EA but I wonder if they'll wind up losing sales because of it and thus money.

 

[Krantos]

What "restrictive terms of service" was there exactly that prevents download off of Steam?

Steam requires all DLC for games to be purchased through them. EA is trying to cut the middle man out of their games by making the DLC purchasable through the games themselves. Any DLC purchased this way completely bypasses Steam, meaning Valve gets nothing from the sale.

Now, honestly, I would support EA in this if they sold DLC cheaper this way. They don't. All they're really trying to do is cut out the distributors. Given the fact that EA has started releasing 75% completed games and charging extra for DLC that should have been part of the main game..... You can see the issue.

Steam's entire reason for existence is as a Distribution client. Now, EA's trying to cut distributors out of the loop but still charging full price for DLC. That's a huge market share that EA is trying to keep to themselves.

Speculating a bit here, but my guess is, the reason the other distributors are allowing this is because they don't want to be locked out of EA games. If Impulse, for example, decided not to allow this, EA might just stop offering ALL their games over that client. That's not something they're going to do with Steam. It's just too popular.

 

[mjc0961]

Yeah, sure EA. I believe you! It couldn't at all be because Steam is the biggest digital marketplace and thus the biggest threat to your Origin service, and you think that taking your games off Steam while going "HEY GUYS WE HAVE OUR OWN STORE NOW IT'S CALLED ORIGIN HINT HINT" will get you more sales. Or rather, you're just purposely doing things you know will get your game pulled so you can blame Steam and look like the victim instead of outright pulling the games like you want and looking like dicks. Even though you pretty much look like dicks anyway.

 

[silwerwolf]

well i gess you have to understand EA wanting to get ther own store gong.
but this is not the wey to build a custumer base, if ther is his much truble athe bigining the are likely to sceare awey custumors
Allso picking on steame ........ realy ........ REALY.

ps. realy doun´t think that steame wod start truble with in game DLC, ther are games with microtransactios available fore download on steame so i dont tink it wod be a problem fore them.

 

[Signa]

EA might be the evil empire but I think they might be in the right here. Why SHOULD DLC be forced to sell through a 3'rd party? Does that party contribute anything to said DLC besides taking a cut?

If I were selling DLC to a game I had on Steam I'd totally share EA's opinion on this. As a popular piracy prevention distributor, Valve already got their cut. Why should I pay them an extra cut for DLC if I can handle the distribution of that without them?

Because that's a totally exploitable system. A company could release what is effectively a $2 demo and then DLC the rest of the game out of Valve's hands. I listened to the bit of that podcast that Sunrider linked (http://darkzero.co.uk/game-podcasts/podcast-76-meet-team-meat/ start at 1h5m) and you can tell from the dev's perspective that Valve knows how to handle the customer's money so that everyone wins. Valve wins, the Dev wins, and the customer wins. I suspect that even if you disagree that Valve deserves the in-game DLC money, it seems pretty clear that Valve is forcing a certain level of quality control for the customers that no other 3rd party would need to hold themselves to.

 

[Reaper195]

I like how EA seemed to never be heard about shit like this until after their announcement of Origin.

 

[Theminimanx]

No one else is making a fuss. No one else has even commented on it. So I doubt Valve are the ones with the problem.

They keep everything consolidated likely because they don't want other people's shitty service (I would struggle to name a publisher that has provided a decent download service, or that can even maintain good servers for its own games half the time) affecting their image. If its their problem they can deal with it. EA just wants the entire slice of their own overpriced DLC. Nevermind that the only reason some people buy it is because Steam's knocked off 75% and stuck it in the "recommended for you" tab.

And this whole thing isn't new anyway; I'm pretty sure that if you've wanted to use DLC with a Steam version you needed to buy the DLC through Steam.

No you don't actually. If you've bought mass effect 2 through steam, you can still download and install the DLC through bioware's own site (social.bioware.com to be specific) and I assume all the money spent there goes goes directly to EA. So EA is just bullsh*tting us here.

Look EA, I have no problems with you wanting to start your own digital distribution store. But just be honest that you're trying to fight steam directly. Otherwise you're just reducing people's goodwill towards you even more, goodwill that you'll badly need if you want people to use your store for anything other than exclusive titles.

 

[Jacksaw Jack]

EA knows just how to get the armada sailin'.

Get yer fancy hats on and 'oist the main sail me Hardies.

 

[Azmael Silverlance]

EA is going to lose sales beucase of that pull. I just dont see anyway steam losing the fight. What with their outrageous sales and already huge community.

 

[TheHitcher]

I don't understand the issue. Everyone else manages to sell DLC through Steam. EA are the big babies of the gaming industry who complain even when there isn't much of a problem.

 

[RobfromtheGulag]

I'm inclined to side with Valve, though I can't really determine from the article what's going on.

I don't think anybody liked that dude in your camp in Dragon Age Origins begging for RL coin. So if Valve is lobbying against that, bravo. If they're trying to stop EA from jamming adds for their DLC into the game launcher, as my store bought copy of DA2 has, I guess that kinda seems like EA's right, though perhaps Steam should charge 50c or a buck more if EA is demanding the full 10$ or whatnot.

 

[TimeLord]

Yeah... No. At least have the decency to admit you want the publicity for Origin, EA.

 

[Beryl77]

We don't know enough about what's going on there to really judge this but my best guess would be that this is a marketing move for Origin.

 

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

*sees news*
*raises eyebrow*
*goes on Steam*

Ooh, Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines for $5! *buys*

Yeah, I'm a Steam fan. Constant sales FTW.

 

[bob1052]

HAHAHAHA

Battlefield 3 not on Steam?

EA must really want to lose this fight they have been picking with Call of Duty.

 

[Infernai]

Dear EA- Kindly Shut the fuck up

Regards Gamers everywhere.

Silly EA, we all know that Valve can't do bad things.

Indeed, they can't

 

[Lunar Templar]

well its EA so I'm hard pressed to care, my suggestion to EA? get over it you have your own 'steam' now so have a nice big cup of STFU and try an hit valve in the wallet (fat chance there though)

 

[Azaraxzealot]

steam is not a prophet of chirst (which the greater PC gaming community believes valve to be), if they do something questionable or bad it means they're just as fallible as any other game company!

It may very well be that Valve is "in the wrong" here (these are business decisions, not really right or wrong).

But don't you think it's fishy that only EA games (and only recent and well-sold ones) are being pulled out from Steam? I've bought plenty of DLC outside of steam for games I owned in Steam, like Mass Effect 2. In this thread many people mentioned examples of games that sell DLC outside of Steam. Yet no one else is complaining and pulling their games from Steam.

You accuse people of blindly following and defending Valve, but maybe you suffer from the reverse problem, and your hatred for Valve/Steam is clouding your judgment.

i don't have a hatred for valve. i have a hatred for ignorance, and people ignorantly defending Valve even if they ate puppies and shat pure malevolence pisses me off. for the record, i like a lot of valve's games, i'm just not amazed by them because they're mostly all linear FPS games or Multiplayer focused ones meant to show off their fancy engine. i wish they would branch out and try new things that weren't all in the first person perspective, but i don't hate them.

i just wish people (especially PC gamers and the Escapist) would take their mouths off of Valve's.... hand for a moment so that they can see that they're just as flawed a developer as every other one and that they are still a corporation and sometimes will do things for the sake of "CHA-CHING!" rather than the adoration of their fans.

If that's hatred then I must be Hitler-Incarnate for the mere notion of suggesting that Valve was fallible and isn't the second coming of gaming jesus.