Steam Greenlight "Will Be Gone Within 12 Months," Indie Dev Says

Andy Chalk

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Nov 12, 2002
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Steam Greenlight "Will Be Gone Within 12 Months," Indie Dev Says


The design director at indie developer Curve Studios says a Valve rep told him at GDC that Steam Greenlight will be gone within a year.

It's no secret that Valve would like to do away with Steam Greenlight, the voting/curation process that helps determine which games make it on Steam. Gabe Newell himself said so [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/131366-Gabe-Newell-Our-Goal-Is-To-Make-Greenlight-Go-Away] during Steam Dev Days back in January. And according to Curve Studios Design Director Jonathan Biddle, even though Valve hasn't had anything to say about it since, the wheels are turning.

[tweet t=https://twitter.com/onebitbeyond/statuses/448407893390680065]

"We met with Valve at GDC, and they say Greenlight will be gone within 12 months," Biddle tweeted earlier today. "They'll still offer curated space, but otherwise be open."

Biddle said he couldn't offer any verification of what he was told, but he added that the person he spoke to was "very genuine."

"They just want to get out of the way, stop being a bottleneck. They want to do it ASAP," he tweeted. "Partly because the current system is too much work for them, but also because they don't think it's fair as is."

Even though Newell has made it clear that Greenlight's days are numbered, it's grown so popular and integral to the process of Steam releases for indies that it's hard to imagine a future without it. Of course, it may well be replaced with something functionally similar; Newell said in January that he wants Greenlight to go away, "Not because it's not useful, but because we're evolving."

Source: Twitter (Bidds)


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Falterfire

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The issue here is whether Steam will still have some way to prevent Guise of the Wolf type games from becoming the rule rather than the exception. Mr. Sterling (Thank God for him) did an episode about Steam needing quality control earlier this year and I don't see making it a fully open platform fixing that.

While I do appreciate Valve's desire to make their platform as open as possible, it would be nice to know that they're leaving some barrier of entry to prevent it from becoming the App Store all over again.
 

gigastar

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Sep 13, 2010
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shadewolf said:
...and every other game not actually being made at all.
Instead of other inde titles that have actually been released through other PC services, it should be pointed out.
 

rofltehcat

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Andy Chalk said:
"They just want to get out of the way, stop being a bottleneck. They want to do it ASAP," he tweeted. "Partly because the current system is too much work for them, but also because they don't think it's fair as is."
Well, the people currently doing all that work could be used for other quality control things but I somehow doubt that they'll reallocate them that way.
 

Playbahnosh

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Steam desperately needs quality control with recent influx of utter garbage flooding the service. This tidal wave of sh!t has to stop! TB recently did a vlog on the subject and I mostly agree with the points he made. Greenlight (and Steam in general) became the dumping ground of publisher back-catalog and utter shovelware. It's like big video game crash all over again.

Also, this Early Access nonsense has to stop! Dumping barely funcioning, unfinished, bug-riddled messes as "early access" expecting people to pay for it is insulting and it's pulling the entire game industry down. (No, Minecraft is the exception, not the rule!)
 

Johnson McGee

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Andy Chalk said:
"They just want to get out of the way, stop being a bottleneck. They want to do it ASAP," he tweeted. "Partly because the current system is too much work for them, but also because they don't think it's fair as is."
Does this mean they want even more crap to enter the marketplace? I can't even find meaningful sales anymore because there is a constant stream of 200 or more 'specials' to sort through (mostly DLC for games I'm not interested in). Add to that even less oversight and browsing Steam is going to be the digital analogue of the bargain bin at Staples.

On top of all the downtime recently; makes me wonder why I even use the service anymore.
 

Vivi22

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Falterfire said:
The issue here is whether Steam will still have some way to prevent Guise of the Wolf type games from becoming the rule rather than the exception. Mr. Sterling (Thank God for him) did an episode about Steam needing quality control earlier this year and I don't see making it a fully open platform fixing that.

While I do appreciate Valve's desire to make their platform as open as possible, it would be nice to know that they're leaving some barrier of entry to prevent it from becoming the App Store all over again.
A Steam store which is curated by the consumer would effectively prevent shit from skating by unnoticed. It's honestly not that hard to understand how consumers could readily destroy the reputation of any shitty game on Steam when things like user reviews and recommendations will immediately become more important and influential than ever. More to the point, I don't see a major problem with a user curated store that only requires consumers to exercise some modest amount of self control and good sense. See a game with very few reviews and recommendations? You're taking your chances. See a game getting labeled as a scam by every player out there? Best to avoid it.

Being a reasonably intelligent consumer isn't rocket science, and I get a little tired of people thinking that if something like Steam became a more open marketplace rather than more restricted, the industry will suddenly implode.
 

BreakfastMan

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Jul 22, 2010
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This sounds like a horrible idea. Steam needs to move AWAY from the Appstore or Google Play, not become more like them. D:
 

StriderShinryu

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Greenlight was a good idea on paper but Valve totally screwed it, and the Steam curation system in general, so badly that it needs to go. Hopefully with Greenlight getting the axe it will mean the entire Steam store gets an overhaul such that the good/interesting/innovative games get their due promotion and the moldy oldies and shovelware gets shelved where it belongs.
 

NuclearKangaroo

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i just hope steam doesnt end up like the appstore

StriderShinryu said:
Greenlight was a good idea on paper but Valve totally screwed it, and the Steam curation system in general, so badly that it needs to go. Hopefully with Greenlight getting the axe it will mean the entire Steam store gets an overhaul such that the good/interesting/innovative games get their due promotion and the moldy oldies and shovelware gets shelved where it belongs.
not all old games are bad, 3 words, Half Life 2, also right now im playing the original X-COM and Painkiller for the first time as well as Splinter Cell Chaos Theory, all great games
 

SamTheNewb

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Vivi22 said:
A Steam store which is curated by the consumer would effectively prevent shit from skating by unnoticed.
And that is the biggest worry with a user curated system. We would give too much attention to it and would forget that throwing it into a fan blade is not the best of ideas.
 

Karadalis

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Apr 26, 2011
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Vivi22 said:
Falterfire said:
The issue here is whether Steam will still have some way to prevent Guise of the Wolf type games from becoming the rule rather than the exception. Mr. Sterling (Thank God for him) did an episode about Steam needing quality control earlier this year and I don't see making it a fully open platform fixing that.

While I do appreciate Valve's desire to make their platform as open as possible, it would be nice to know that they're leaving some barrier of entry to prevent it from becoming the App Store all over again.
A Steam store which is curated by the consumer would effectively prevent shit from skating by unnoticed. It's honestly not that hard to understand how consumers could readily destroy the reputation of any shitty game on Steam when things like user reviews and recommendations will immediately become more important and influential than ever. More to the point, I don't see a major problem with a user curated store that only requires consumers to exercise some modest amount of self control and good sense. See a game with very few reviews and recommendations? You're taking your chances. See a game getting labeled as a scam by every player out there? Best to avoid it.

Being a reasonably intelligent consumer isn't rocket science, and I get a little tired of people thinking that if something like Steam became a more open marketplace rather than more restricted, the industry will suddenly implode.
Yeah.. because user driven stuff has been so succesfull in being fair in the past right?

*cough*metacritic*cough* *cough*amazonbombing*cough*

And even then user reviews and tags will not stop the shovelware flood from cluttering up the new release list. We get crap from 1998 for christs sake that no one asked for and games that are barely better then some random flash game on newsground (littl divil and desert shooter)

Valve just doesnt give a fuck anymore... they are swimming in so much money and all they see are more $ signs comming their way. Its like they dont give a shit about Steams reputation anymore... not that they ever did that much to begin with.
 

MetalMagpie

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Andy Chalk said:
Even though Newell has made it clear that Greenlight's days are numbered, it's grown so popular and integral to the process of Steam releases for indies that it's hard to imagine a future without it.
Maybe this is a sign I'm getting old, but I didn't think Greenlight had been in existence long enough to become an "integral" part of the Indie dev scene. It's only been around for about a year and a half!

*shrugs*
 

Unit72

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Yeah I see Greenlight as a great system for brining out new good games. Sure you get a few bad eggs but it just requires special rules. I had this idea for improving it for a while now......

Do you buy games with your credit/debit card? Never find a use for those "gaming card" steam prepaid cards? Now is our chance. Buy your games with debit and credit but buy steam cash for the sole use of funding projects you like to support. Your money makes the game so the niche audience of 300 people can have their niche $1,200 development cost game.

Picture this its like kickstarter. A person wants to greenlight "Insert indie game here". To do that he will need to fund his project. Rather than people voting for the game to get greenlit the developer will have to say "I need three thousand dollars to make this", so people can pre-purchase using their steam cash they got from the prepaid cards. There would be a vote system on the game itself. One that would tell steam that the game isn't living up to their end of the bargain. So players would vote if the game hasent provided what it said it would and if a majority of players vote to be refunded (51%), then the game would appear on a list for steam employees to review to investigate and mabey contact the developer (incase they censor/screen their game forum) to pressure them into delivering what they promised the paying customer.

If the developer dosent provide what was promised or hasent improved the game in 6 months then the users get their money back in their steam wallet and the game is pulled from their liberaries.
The caveat being that developers would have to agree to sign a contract stateing they must deliver a finished product or lose the money they got from steam (devs would receive a check from steam since devs cant use steam cash to pay bills). Like a bank that loans money, one way or another if you spent the money and haven't delivered you must pay it back or finish your project and if not you get hit with intrest payments. This would ensure the market doesn't get flooded with unfinished half hearted projects and only the serious entrepenural devs get in.

Now im not an economist or lawyer so this may be majorly flawed in a way im not seeing. Point being though that I can see a world without greenlight but rather something similar on steam but under a different name and with a new set of strict rigid rules to prevent scams and half baked products. Strict rules but with the spirit of freedom in them.
 

NuclearKangaroo

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SirBryghtside said:
NuclearKangaroo said:
i just hope steam doesnt end up like the appstore

StriderShinryu said:
Greenlight was a good idea on paper but Valve totally screwed it, and the Steam curation system in general, so badly that it needs to go. Hopefully with Greenlight getting the axe it will mean the entire Steam store gets an overhaul such that the good/interesting/innovative games get their due promotion and the moldy oldies and shovelware gets shelved where it belongs.
not all old games are bad, 3 words, Half Life 2, also right now im playing the original X-COM and Painkiller for the first time as well as Splinter Cell Chaos Theory, all great games
I was about to call you out for saying Half-Life 2 was old, and then I realised it had been ten years :(

My outlook must be screwed from all the Daggerfall I've been playing recently :p
that game holds up stupidly well, best FPS ever, 10 years and no FPS since then has topped it