EA Gets Ready to Throw Down With Steam - UPDATED

[TitsMcGee1804]

Okay i did some more reading and here is what i make of it (i might be wrong)

Crytek signed a deal to only support Crysis 2 with patches via Origin, this meant that copies of Crysis 2 on steam (existing and new) would not receive any updates

Therefore valve thought it wasnt fair on customers (especially ones paying for new copies) so they took it off the system as they didnt want people paying money for a product that would be unsupported (not to mention counter-productive to steams values - continuous updates etc)

People with copies of Crysis 2 already on their steam it seems have three options

1. Using their CD key on steam and uploading it via Origin.
2. Continue playing the unsupported version. (there might be a work around via messing with the steamapps files when a patch gets released on origin, i dont know)
3. Consider this a gigantic breach of trust and the final nail in the coffin for loyalty with EA

Alot of people are flaming valve as it was THEY who removed the game, which was drastic and perhaps in the short term a bit spiteful, but really I see removing the game as them basically saying:

'You wont be patching this game on steam anymore? Fine, take your game and fill your boots elsewhere. We dont want our customers paying for a game that wont be updated'

<3 steam

 

[Hristo Tzonkov]

Wow...What a major pile of fanboys you all are.Wait and see how the service looks like before bashing it.And boycotting their digital sales because they don't like the business getting monopolised?Cmon you're gonna miss out on awesome games that are likely also going to be on some wicked sales just because of Steam.STEAM.Jesus.

Also Crysis 2 was pulled off by Steam because of some contract breach.It had little to do with EA games.

 

[Onchei]

I long ago realized, as most gamers did, that the more EA was involved in a project the more likely that everything peripheral about the game - the menus, the support, the multiplayer client, the patching, the DRM - would be utter crap. I need a second Steam about as much as I needed Silverlight, and I want the version these clowns will come up with about as much as I want ebola.

 

[Vault boy Eddie]

I need another Steam type service like I need a new asshole. Jesus, every game now needs it's own digital distribution site?

I'll buy Hard copies of EA games if I have to. Unless they are planning on people having to have Origin open to be able to play their games(even physical copies), in which case, that's just spiteful.

 

[PettingZOOPONY]

Wow...What a major pile of fanboys you all are.Wait and see how the service looks like before bashing it.And boycotting their digital sales because they don't like the business getting monopolised?Cmon you're gonna miss out on awesome games that are likely also going to be on some wicked sales just because of Steam.STEAM.Jesus.

Also Crysis 2 was pulled off by Steam because of some contract breach.It had little to do with EA games.

We already have used their service, they just changed the name to origin.

 

[MeatMachine]

Anything that hurts EA makes me enjoy life just a little bit more.
Especially if it is of their own doing.

I came.

 

[qeinar]

I hope bf3's on steam. :/

 

[Lazyjim]

EA has basically realized that PC is still a viable platform, and Steam is the largest community on that platfrom.

They have decided that they should have thought of that idea first and want to make their own.

Pity it won't work, having only EA titles will doom Origin. And other publishers will be very hesitant to put their products on a service so closely related to EA. Companies like Activison, THQ, and Ubisoft will be much more likely to make their own services. Which will be equally pointless.

In time all these ventures will flop and Steam will still be there. Steam is not invincible though, it just has a truly epic head start in this arena.

I could totally see a well put together service that featured content from all the major publishers and indie devs overtaking Steam, especially if it had more competitive pricing. (With say Amazon.)

 

[Callate]

Well, I know I'm looking forward to this. Because as a PC gamer, if there's one thing I love, it's more little icons on my taskbar cluttering up my system resources, more constantly changed EULAs to parse through, more programs updating things on my system at a whim and conflicting with each other, more passwords to remember, and more companies mining my personal information for valuables!

Now if you'll excuse me, these pins aren't going to work themselves under my fingernails!

 

[Nickompoop]

Not exactly looking forward to how this turns out, since EA doesn't have the same amount of care for its customers that Steam/Valve does.

Understatement of the Year Award goes to this sentence. It's mainly because EA's entire marketing department is filled with the dumbest people on the planet. And Valve figured out how to manufacture pure joy. Hell, if Steam ended up monopolizing the entire digital distribution market, I'd actually be OK with that.

Oh, and I'll just put this up so more people see it:

Okay i did some more reading and here is what i make of it (i might be wrong)

Crytek signed a deal to only support Crysis 2 with patches via Origin, this meant that copies of Crysis 2 on steam (existing and new) would not receive any updates

Therefore valve thought it wasnt fair on customers (especially ones paying for new copies) so they took it off the system as they didnt want people paying money for a product that would be unsupported (not to mention counter-productive to steams values - continuous updates etc)

People with copies of Crysis 2 already on their steam it seems have three options

1. Using their CD key on steam and uploading it via Origin.
2. Continue playing the unsupported version. (there might be a work around via messing with the steamapps files when a patch gets released on origin, i dont know)
3. Consider this a gigantic breach of trust and the final nail in the coffin for loyalty with EA

Alot of people are flaming valve as it was THEY who removed the game, which was drastic and perhaps in the short term a bit spiteful, but really I see removing the game as them basically saying:

'You wont be patching this game on steam anymore? Fine, take your game and fill your boots elsewhere. We dont want our customers paying for a game that wont be updated'

<3 steam

 

[Paularius]

Ah damn. Forgot EA has its grubby devil hands all over and in Starwars the old republic. Wont be buying that at launch and maybe not at all if to many bad things are said about it.

 

[WoodenPlanck]

I'll wait to see if Origin actually works. Considering that this is EA, I'm not expecting it too.

As of right now it's just a rebranded reskinned version of EADM with some tacked on social networking features. Their DRM and download system works the same.

If this is anything like how the EA direct downloader worked with Spore, then I hope this will be a miserable failure.

[Buy Game] Do you want to pay $6.00 to be able to download it in the future? Also, good luck making a backup copy, lol. Thanks. -EA

 

[Assassin Xaero]

Well, I'm not buying Crysis 2 anymore. I was waiting for a cheap ass Steam sale just to play it for the single player, but looks like that won't happen now...

 

[synobal]

I'll wait to see if Origin actually works. Considering that this is EA, I'm not expecting it too.

As of right now it's just a rebranded reskinned version of EADM with some tacked on social networking features. Their DRM and download system works the same.

If this is anything like how the EA direct downloader worked with Spore, then I hope this will be a miserable failure.

[Buy Game] Do you want to pay $6.00 to be able to download it in the future? Also, good luck making a backup copy, lol. Thanks. -EA

I don't think EA ever did that, I think that's Impulse from Gamestop.

 

[TokenRupee]

So, what about people who bought it, and other EA titles on Steam? Will they still be able to play it?

So Valve did this now? What new rules does Steam have that Crysis 2 violates? Is it because Crysis 2 is being offered on the Publisher's own service? If that's the case, why hasn't The Witcher 2 been removed for being on GoG?

Is it because Crysis 2 is offered on other Digital distribution services? If so then almost every single game on Steam should be removed.

So... what are these new rules, and where can we read them?

Not exactly looking forward to how this turns out, since EA doesn't have the same amount of care for its customers that Steam/Valve does. As evidence by how they say they have the right to ban you from playing your games if you say something naughty in their forums.

And what the hell is with EA challenging everything lately?

Because EA's tagline is "Challenge everything."

Good luck with that EA. I think I'll just stick with Steam. More convenient and better than anything you guys can come up with.

 

[Shamanic Rhythm]

I think perhaps 'grow our audience' might be code for 'grow our wallet'.

I'm not signing up to another bloody digital distribution service just because EA wants to grab every last penny they can.

and you think valve doesn't with steam? i know that people like to look at EA and Activision as big "evil" corporations, but this is someone just trying to challeng Valve's monopoly. I don't know why everyone looks at them as some sort of folk hero when they're SWIMMING in cash.

Valve don't have a monopoly. Unless you're talking about TF2, Portal and their own titles which as far as I know you can only download through Steam. Otherwise, last time I checked Direct2Drive and GameTree were all operating fine. The reason Valve have such a high market share and everyone's love in the digital distribution market, which I think is what you were getting at, is that Steam does its job, is not intrusive, and they so regularly do discounts on most titles that you rarely have to pay full price beyond release week. It's a system that works.

EA wanting to set up their own digital downloads is just the same as Activision wanting to find a way to get a cut of Xbox Live's monthly fees for playing CoD. They don't like the idea of anyone making any money out of their products that they themselves could be making, so they want to mess with a system that works perfectly fine and force people to do things their way, which will probably be far less pleasant in its user friendliness.

 

[Speakercone]

Next month will be a good time to short on EA stock.

 

[X3N0N]

Everybody, quick! Invest stocks in EA, ride the price wave that the hype over Origin brings, then sell right before the entire system fails miserably! It's brilliant!

 

[Sparcrypt]

Of course it will work... was noone there when steam launched? I was.. EVERYONE hated it and didn't want it - it was buggy, crashed lots and was a general pain in the arse. Everyone just wanted to install their games off of a CD that they got from the store, none of this stupid 'digital distribution' stuff - who the hell wanted to have to DOWNLOAD your game before you could play it?!? Patches were bad enough dammit!

They only moved to it because CS 1.6 and all valve games thereafter required it. That was it. Now everyone loves it because they used it long enough to see it grow and the benifits it brings.

EA is just doing the same thing - they have games millions want and are saying 'Cool, but you need to use this platform for it'. People will then proceed to use it, complaining the entire time, until they stop bothering and just use it anyway.

I say again.. EA is doing the EXACT same thing that Valve did to get Steam off the ground. It will work just fine - the vocal minority will complain, the rest of us will just install it and play the game. Long as it works I couldn't care less.. I only use steam because it's the way games I want to play are distributed.

 

[synobal]

Everybody, quick! Invest stocks in EA, ride the price wave that the hype over Origin brings, then sell right before the entire system fails miserably! It's brilliant!

heh I think we are all a bit late on that number

EA Games Stock Price [http://www.google.com/finance?client=ob&q=NASDAQ:ERTS]