Origin Bulks Up With New Publishers

[Croaker42]

When the Origin user agreement stops allowing their service to rape my computer of information.
If that ever happens they will have to offer fairly massive benefits, sales or exclusives to compel me in that direction.

Perhaps if they did something a little different.
Rewards for hours spent playing through the Origin service. (Games, Apparel, Time on Pay to Play games.)

 

[Frostbite3789]

If Valve games were exclusive to Steam, we could talk competition, but Steam is just a store that sells games, whereas Origin is a required platform for all future EA games disguised as a store so they can hopefully get a little more of your money while you are there.

Alright, I just saw this part of your post and it gave me a headache. Valve games are exclusive to Steam...even if you get a physical copy you have to install Steam. Much like getting a physical copy of BF3 requires Origin.

Valve games have required you to install Steam since 2004. So somehow you've missed this for nearly 8 years. Even some non-Steam games are starting to require Steam, such as DoWII: Retribution. Dead Island. Space Marine.

 

[TokenRupee]

When the two are truly in competition and EA isn't just trying to 'steal' my business by not giving me a choice as to where to buy Mass Effect 3, I will start considering them competitors.

You know that there are a lot of games that require Steam these days right? Its no different. In time I imagine we will see some of these titles come back to Steam (with a lot going to Origin) but a lot will remain Origin only (think Half Life on Steam). Soon it wont be any different from choosing between buying a game from Game or Amazon for example.

EA's past history is causing people to knee-jerk a lot on this subject but I think once people get over that initial reaction they'll start to accept Origin as a valid content delivery system. If we get some cheap games out of it in the process then awesome.

If EA wants people to stop knee-jerking over this, then they need to actually earn some goodwill. They have yet to make up for their past mistakes and have only earned contempt from me. Since ToR doesn't even require Origin and can be bought elsewhere, there is nothing even enticing me to use Origin. And even if they change that, then I guess I'll just pass the game up.

 

[MisterShine]

Basically this Christmas they need to have a sale on most of their merchandise that will make even the guys at Valve blush to show PC gamers that sometimes EA isn't a mustache-twirling villain. Otherwise they're going to be another D2D, Impulse and GFWL marketplace: Totally ignorable.

I can accept dealing with only moderately-evil companies who do try to offer me real value in addition to fucking with me a bit unlike some other publishers I could name, since hey, I'm not perfect myself.

 

[intheweeds]

If Valve games were exclusive to Steam, we could talk competition, but Steam is just a store that sells games, whereas Origin is a required platform for all future EA games disguised as a store so they can hopefully get a little more of your money while you are there.

Alright, I just saw this part of your post and it gave me a headache. Valve games are exclusive to Steam...even if you get a physical copy you have to install Steam. Much like getting a physical copy of BF3 requires Origin.

Valve games have required you to install Steam since 2004. So somehow you've missed this for nearly 8 years. Even some non-Steam games are starting to require Steam, such as DoWII: Retribution. Dead Island. Space Marine.

I am clearly not as eloquent as I would have liked. I don't care that I require Steam to play any game per se. I just want to choose where I buy things. I want to choose for instance, whether I want to give Steam my money for X game, or whether I would like to give it to someone else. I don't want to be forced to buy through a certain service. I would like to be able to choose.

I completely understand why you need Steam or Origin or whatever as a game client for certain games, I just want to choose to buy from any digital distributor I want. If both Steam and Origin sold ME3 for instance, I don't care if I have to download the Origin client to actually play it. I bought Civ5 in a physical store for instance(doesn't matter where just that it wasn't Steam) and I downloaded Steam to play it. No problem with that. If I'm still wrong, I would love someone to right me, cause I would like to see this.

 

[Frostbite3789]

Snip

If you'd like I could take a picture of my PC copy of Battlefield 3 that I purchased from a retailer.

I mean, EA is still going to do retail releases. Getting a physical copy if you want, is possible still. I prefer it, because my internet is kind of garbage at downloading things.

Edit: Half Life 2 is only available on Steam. The Half Life games are only on Steam. Portal is only available on Steam. Portal 2 is only on Steam.

There are lots of games that are only on Steam as far as DD is concerned. How can you damn Origin when Steam does it too?

 

[Robin Stanton]

unfortunately all the company's that have teamed up with them are known for making terrible choices when it comes to new things, WB for example was the biggest backer of HD disc's,and capcom uses arcade machines to keep them self floating every time they step into bankruptcy.

 

[JeppeH]

The only problem I have with Origin is the EULA.. That and the fact EA has absolutely NO GOODWILL in my book.

EA has done nothing innovative, daring, caring, charitable, fan-building or fun for the gaming community.
EA is a bunch of money-hungry bureaucrats with no artistic, moral or aesthetic ambition.
EA is to the gaming what FOXnews is to TV.

This is my current view of EA and they have a long way to go before I will install Origin. But they could start with the EULA and rewrite it to say they will not harvest information from my system. Because it matters to me to NOT get bombarded with advertising and it matters to me to NOT have my privacy invaded.

 

[Irridium]

The only problem I have with Origin is the EULA.. That and the fact EA has absolutely NO GOODWILL in my book.

EA has done nothing innovative, daring, caring, charitable, fan-building or fun for the gaming community.
EA is a bunch of money-hungry bureaucrats with no artistic, moral or aesthetic ambition.
EA is to the gaming what FOXnews is to TV.

This is my current view of EA and they have a long way to go before I will install Origin. But they could start with the EULA and rewrite it to say they will not harvest information from my system. Because it matters to me to NOT get bombarded with advertising and it matters to me to NOT have my privacy invaded.

Pretty much this. Though it's also personal for me.

They forced Spyware onto my computer with Spore. And even after that the game wouldn't install because it thought it was pirated because I couldn't connect to the internet and when I tried to install other times it used up my "install credits" which pissed me WAY the hell off even more. And when I talked to customer service, they told me to buy another copy. Words can't describe my anger. I bought a game, LEGALLY, was told by the game itself that it couldn't play because it thought it was pirated, and then told to buy another copy.

And another time when I tried buying Lair of the Shadow Broker. I was using a pre-paid credit card. I followed all the steps and everything to add points to my Bioware/EA account, but for some reason the data wouldn't go through. Alright fair enough. Not every place takes pre-paid cards, so whatever. So I added the funds from my card to my paypal account. Well, it added $16, and the card was a $20 card. "What the fuck" I said to myself. Well I checked the transactions, and it seemed EA charged $1 from my card every time it failed to process the order. Yeah, they couldn't give me the points, but they sure could take my money.

So yeah, EA can kiss my ass. Origin offers no good reason to use it over Steam. And no, having EA games isn't really a point in its favor. Especially when the reason is stupid as hell.

"They won't let us sell DLC seperately", well it doesn't seem to be much of an issue with Sims 3, which is still on Steam and still selling new DLC. Most recently Sims 3 pets which went up a few days ago for $40.

Kiss my ass, EA.

 

[Baresark]

If Valve games were exclusive to Steam, we could talk competition, but Steam is just a store that sells games, whereas Origin is a required platform for all future EA games disguised as a store so they can hopefully get a little more of your money while you are there.

BF3 is also not exclusive to Origin - it's available at other digital distributors and at retail. It's just not on Steam, because Valve isn't letting EA do business the way they like with their game. And it's not like that's just EA complaining, other titles have been held off Steam by other studios for the same reason.

It's not exclusively sold on Origin, but it requires Origin to play it. So, no matter what you have to be signed into Origin to play, no matter where you buy it. Also, most publishers like Steam a lot. Steam just requires that all future DLC is also sold through Steam, so it's an even playing ground. They want to sell the DLC themselves making it problematic EA, but only EA. There are a lot of companies that have no problem with this. The problems Steam has is that their worried their customers will be denied DLC by EA. It's not unreasonable, IMO.

OT: This doesn't mean they are capable of competing with Steam. I would find it strange if these titles didn't show up on other digital platforms. Also, we all know it's bullshit that they have 6 million subscribers. All old EA accounts (such as what you have for BF games) were made into Origin accounts. Meaning that if the last EA game you played was BF:2142, then you are still considered a subscriber.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

"Since launch, we've had overwhelming support from both publishers and developers across the gaming industry, recognizing Origin as an opportunity to deliver more of their great content straight to consumers across the globe," said Origin Senior Vice President David DeMartini.

Any substance? Any at all?

 

[Vrach]

If Valve games were exclusive to Steam, we could talk competition, but Steam is just a store that sells games, whereas Origin is a required platform for all future EA games disguised as a store so they can hopefully get a little more of your money while you are there.

BF3 is also not exclusive to Origin - it's available at other digital distributors and at retail. It's just not on Steam, because Valve isn't letting EA do business the way they like with their game. And it's not like that's just EA complaining, other titles have been held off Steam by other studios for the same reason.

It's not exclusively sold on Origin, but it requires Origin to play it. So, no matter what you have to be signed into Origin to play, no matter where you buy it. Also, most publishers like Steam a lot. Steam just requires that all future DLC is also sold through Steam, so it's an even playing ground. They want to sell the DLC themselves making it problematic EA, but only EA. There are a lot of companies that have no problem with this. The problems Steam has is that their worried their customers will be denied DLC by EA. It's not unreasonable, IMO.

Oh silly me, I forgot that when you buy a Valve retail game, or really any game protected by Steamworks, installing Steam is not a requirement >.>

So, because Valve is greedy and wants money from the publishers DLCs, EA is the bad guy for not wanting to take that deal? That's like a car shop saying to Ferari "well, if we sell your car in our shop, any further modifications or additions you wanna sell to the owner of that car we sold, you have to do it through us". It's nothing short of greed and the consumer is the one getting fucked by it.

In fact, I am heavily against Steam on just that, not because they'll lack titles, but because of what it does when they DO get titles. Bought a retail version of the game and wanna buy the DLC off Steam? Fuck you. Bought a Steam version of the game and wanna buy DLC off the publisher/anywhere else? Fuck you. I've had this issue with BFBC2: Vietnam myself.

Considering DLC is how developers do expansion packs these days (and DICE proved it does just that with BFBC2: Vietnam), that is ridiculous. Imagine if you went to a game retail shop and they told you "if you buy the game here, you can't buy the expansion pack anywhere else". If GameStop did that, these forums would be up in fucking flames, but since it's everyone's favourite Valve, they're actually getting away with that shit and EA, as the one not willing to take it, is demonized instead.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

The only problem I have with Origin is the EULA.. That and the fact EA has absolutely NO GOODWILL in my book.

EA has done nothing innovative, daring, caring, charitable, fan-building or fun for the gaming community.
EA is a bunch of money-hungry bureaucrats with no artistic, moral or aesthetic ambition.
EA is to the gaming what FOXnews is to TV.

This is my current view of EA and they have a long way to go before I will install Origin. But they could start with the EULA and rewrite it to say they will not harvest information from my system. Because it matters to me to NOT get bombarded with advertising and it matters to me to NOT have my privacy invaded.

It seems that if we want to play a title that is Origin exclusive and we want to protect our personal privacy (a law some countries still have), then we must become criminals and pirate the game.

If they re-wrote the EULA so the whole things is way less intrusive, then I probably wouldn't mind having it on my system.

 

[shadowform]

Price is not an issue with attracting me to Origin. The issue is that I don't feel that EA has ever shown any sort of goodwill towards their customers. Their games aside, as a company I don't like them, and I certainly don't trust them to treat me right if I ever do subscribe to Origin.

 

[JeppeH]

The only problem I have with Origin is the EULA.. That and the fact EA has absolutely NO GOODWILL in my book.

EA has done nothing innovative, daring, caring, charitable, fan-building or fun for the gaming community.
EA is a bunch of money-hungry bureaucrats with no artistic, moral or aesthetic ambition.
EA is to the gaming what FOXnews is to TV.

This is my current view of EA and they have a long way to go before I will install Origin. But they could start with the EULA and rewrite it to say they will not harvest information from my system. Because it matters to me to NOT get bombarded with advertising and it matters to me to NOT have my privacy invaded.

It seems that if we want to play a title that is Origin exclusive and we want to protect our personal privacy (a law some countries still have), then we must become criminals and pirate the game.

If they re-wrote the EULA so the whole things is way less intrusive, then I probably wouldn't mind having it on my system.

I investigated the whole Origin invading a few weeks back. At this moment Origin does not "read" or view anything Steam doesn't. Origin only checks a few folders. (some guy more clever than me checked it in Sandboxie)
But the EULA says that Origin and EA retains the RIGHT to read all kinds of folders and get all kinds of information of whats installed on your PC.
READ: only whats installed. So those pirated movies it will not tell EA about, but if you have something installed, like a game, application or program; then Origin COULD be used to tell EA. It doesn't at the moment, but the EULA tells you the EA has the intention to do so at some point.
Now Steam CAN do the same thing and indeed Steam asks if it can get more info by prompting you to participate in this info-harvest. The difference being Steam asking and giving me an opportunity to deny. Origin is not asking just stating it keeps the right to harvest without consent.

 

[ph0b0s123]

Snip

Edit: Half Life 2 is only available on Steam. The Half Life games are only on Steam. Portal is only available on Steam. Portal 2 is only on Steam.

There are lots of games that are only on Steam as far as DD is concerned. How can you damn Origin when Steam does it too?

Not true, I have a half life 2 box in front of me, portal was part of the orange box at retail, which is in front of me and Portal 2: http://www.play.com/Games/PC/4-/18287185/Portal-2/Product.html?_%24ja=tsid:11518%7Ccat:18287185%7Cprd:18287185

All available outside of steam.

 

[Frostbite3789]

Snip

Edit: Half Life 2 is only available on Steam. The Half Life games are only on Steam. Portal is only available on Steam. Portal 2 is only on Steam.

There are lots of games that are only on Steam as far as DD is concerned. How can you damn Origin when Steam does it too?

Not true, I have a half life 2 box in front of me, portal was part of the orange box at retail, which is in front of me and Portal 2: http://www.play.com/Games/PC/4-/18287185/Portal-2/Product.html?_%24ja=tsid:11518%7Ccat:18287185%7Cprd:18287185

All available outside of steam.

That's not digital distribution. That's an online store, that delivers you a physical copy. Which EA games that are on Origin, are still in stores.

IE: I got my PC copy of Battlefield 3 at the midnight release at GameStop.

 

[ph0b0s123]

-snip-

-snip-

I investigated the whole Origin invading a few weeks back. At this moment Origin does not "read" or view anything Steam doesn't. Origin only checks a few folders. (some guy more clever than me checked it in Sandboxie)
But the EULA says that Origin and EA retains the RIGHT to read all kinds of folders and get all kinds of information of whats installed on your PC.
READ: only whats installed. So those pirated movies it will not tell EA about, but if you have something installed, like a game, application or program; then Origin COULD be used to tell EA. It doesn't at the moment, but the EULA tells you the EA has the intention to do so at some point.
Now Steam CAN do the same thing and indeed Steam asks if it can get more info by prompting you to participate in this info-harvest. The difference being Steam asking and giving me an opportunity to deny. Origin is not asking just stating it keeps the right to harvest without consent.

So from what you are saying Steam, at the moment, is gathering a lot more info than Origin, but with steam I can opt out of it collecting the info. Whereas with Origin I cannot opt out. Then I know which one I pick, the one that gatherings more info, but that I can opt out of, which has net result of least invasion of privacy. That's Steam. Done....