EA Gets Ready to Throw Down With Steam - UPDATED

[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]

 

[The Random One]

I can't see EA doing better than Valve, but I could certainly see Microsoft, a company with decades' worth of experience with software and internet as well as two midly to highly succesful consoles under its belt, providing a service that tackles Steam to the ground; and yet GFW is by all reports a pile of manure. Therefore, by my unflappable logic, if Microsoft should be able to outdo Valve and couldn't, EA shouldn't be able to outdo Valve and therefore will.

 

[Superior Mind]

Not keen. Digital distribution services should earn customers because of a good service, not exclusivity. If you can only get certain games by subscribing to certain services you'll find yourself handing out your personal and credit card information everywhere - and recent events have proven that to be far from a good idea.

Also I don't like a whole bunch of rubbish fucking up my system and getting in the way of me playing my game anyway. EA Download Manager, Games for Windows Live, Rockstar Social Club, uPlay, there are all things I like to avoid. Steam is fine, it's one service, it does its job, I don't want any more.

Nice try EA but I will be giving Origin a wide berth. If you constantly try to push it on me through your titles then I'm just going to stop buying them, sorry.

 

[dallan262]

i would have agreed timed exclusives for their download service but not letting them on any other service such as Steam is moronic at best.

 

[General Vengeance]

I don't understand why they are doing this. Why do they want people to use this service?

Greed

Don't forget folks,
The ticker symbol for Electronic Arts is ERTS and it is traded on the Nasdaq.

 

[Pinstar]

Regardless of the fact that Crysis 2 was taken off steam by Valve's hand, I still am wary of EA. They have lost any and all goodwill on me due to securerom. I shop at Steam or GoG for my electronic downloads.

 

[Pyrokinesis]

... Oook, So Basically Steam is imposing some "mysterious business Terms" That i can only presume mean "You can only offer it here". EA says, hell no, were gona make it so that its only offered over "here" now on a new program no one has heard of yet and make more money on our own... whut?

Thats like saying "A movie theater tells me I cant sell my movie to a different movie theater company so.. im just gona setup a projector in my garage and sell tickets there, its got great publicity over your 'big theater'"

Sounds like a case of "Oh yea, well fine ill make my own X, I dont need you". We all know how well those turn out. The sad part is alot of games go un-heard of because they are not on steam, and vise versa alot of small games get big publicity because they are on steam. You may not like their style but theyll compensate you with the extra publicity, which will intern increase sales, alot more than just rag-tagging your own program no-one knows of.


-Edit
Also on another note. Why is EA doing so Well at pissing off its customers? Its "Anti-renting system" more formerly know as "multiplayer passes" Is just a kick in the nuts to its customers. Alot of its games are starting to go Down hill or already were downhill from the start (Mass Effect not included bioware got that one right so far as I can tell) Its developments appear to be either stalling or hitting squeal-itus. And alot of their squeals are pissing of their devoted fans (yes im referring to dragon age.) In all honesty from my view, EA isnt looking to hot.

 

[Waaghpowa]

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

I've been skimming the Mycrysis forums about this, and apparently the Steam version will still be supported.

 

[Watchmacallit]

Oh for fuck sakes. I already have to put up with Steam's shit and now Origin...Everyday I play a game on the PC and Steam fucks up some how kills part of my soul...Now it can die twice as quick. Thank you Valve, thank you EA.

 

[Kungfu_Teddybear]

Why does EA all of a sudden feel the need to challenge everything lately. Why do they feel they need to be the best at everything. They want Star Wars:The Old Republic to beat World of Warcraft, they want Battlefield to beat Call of Duty and now they are going after Steam.

But yeah, this won't fly. It's most likely going to fail horribly.