Topic: EA Joins Steam - Spore, Mass Effect, NFS: UC, Dead Space (in 2009), etc etc

[MysterD]

A lot of EA games are going to Steam.

Steam News
Official Steam time: Saturday, December 20, 2008 - 5:18 am

Steam Launches Hit PC Games from EA
December 19, 2008, 12:05 pm - Shawn Zabecki - Product Release

Spore, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning and More Available Now

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - December 18, 2008. Just in time for the holidays, Valve announced that, Spore™, Spore Creepy & Cute Parts Pack, Warhammer® Online: Age of Reckoning™, Mass Effect®, Need for Speed™ Undercover and EA SPORTS FIFA Manager 2009 are available now to gamers in North America via Steam, a leading platform for PC games and digital content with over 15 million accounts around the world.

In the coming weeks, Mirror's Edge™ , Command & Conquer™ Red Alert™ 3, and Dead Space™ will also be added to the catalog of EA's titles available via Steam.

"EA is one of the industry's largest publishers," said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve. "The EA titles coming to Steam this holiday include some this year's top PC titles."

"We are pleased to extend our holiday titles to gamers worldwide via Steam -- a revolutionary technology that is one of the game industry's most successful digital distribution services," said John Pleasants, President, Global Publishing & Chief Operating Officer.

For more information, please visit www.steamgames.com

Here's the EA catalogue, if you're looking for EA stuff over Steam

Now, there's a lot of debate going on over Steam's forum as to if any of EA's games sold over Steam will come w/ Securom DRM limitations placed on top of it -- such as in this Spore thread over Steam's boards.

From Bioware's forums...

Mass Effect on Steam uses Steam's Digital Rights Management only.

For Spore's version over Steam and some other EA games, you might see this -- so, this is worth noting.
So, who knows if there really is just the Steam DRM there only on some of these games...

INTERNET CONNECTION, ONLINE AUTHENTICATION, END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT REQUIRED TO PLAY. TO ACCESS ONLINE FEATURES, YOU MUST REGISTER ONLINE. ONLY ONE REGISTRATION AVAILABLE PER GAME. EA TERMS & CONDITIONS AND FEATURE UPDATES CAN BE FOUND AT WWW.EA.COM. YOU MUST BE 13+ TO REGISTER ONLINE. EA MAY RETIRE ONLINE FEATURES AFTER 30 DAYS NOTICE POSTED ON www.ea.com.

When I find out more on if all or just some EA games do have ONLY just the Steam DRM, extra DRM tossed on top of the Steam DRM (i.e. Securom or Tages 5-install limits imposed over Steam version), or whatever the case might be, I'll let you know...

[beo]

according to valve, there will be no additional DRM on EA titles - just steam itself (at least for spore).

source: http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=771370

i recently visited the magical underworld store for the first time in years, because of ea's install limit crap, so this is a step in the right direction for me. i know some of you still dislike steam (and can we please not go over that again), but surely this is the lesser of two evils.

[Quemaqua]

I'd say it's about the same for me.  I know a lot of you guys haven't had issues with Steam, but I've had a lot of legitimate problems with the program simply not working right.  If it worked for me the way it's supposed to, it would probably be the lesser evil.  As it stands, I think Steam has actually given me way more problems than any DRM scheme I've come across.  I have greater opposition to the idea of what DRM is and does, but Steam just doesn't work for me.  It's fucked up installs, I hate all the forced update crap which doesn't work right half the time, and the program itself has at times been unstable and resource-hoggy.

So... eh.  It's all the same to me, I guess.  But for some I'm sure it's a big deal and a happy thing.

[Ghandi]

I wish Steam had some competition. That kind of bothers me.

I didn't used to mind Steam (way back when) but like Que I've had some problems with it as well. Plus it pisses me that I have to log on every time I want to play one of their games.

[Quemaqua]

IMPULSE.  That's the competition right there.  Go buy some Stardock stuff.

[MysterD]

Impulse is Steam's biggest threat, yeah -- agreed.

GOG would be some great competition, if they jumped into current games, too -- especially since they don't do DRM.

[gpw11]

The thing about impulse is that they really don't have a good selection at all.

[Quemaqua]

That's not true.  They have a great selection of unheard of and underrated games.  And hopefully the success of Demigod is going to propel that forward.  I'm praying that one does well.

[MysterD]

Well, Impulse really is just starting to pick-up more and more major titles.

Impulse is picking up some of the bigger and more well-known AAA titles -- i.e. Witcher: Enhanced, Sacred 2, Unreal series, Sup Com + expansion, Civ 3: Complete, Painkiller, STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl, and Full Spectrum Warrior series.

Saint's Row 2 will be coming soon to Impulse.

[Pugnate]

That's not true.  They have a great selection of unheard of and underrated games.  And hopefully the success of Demigod is going to propel that forward.  I'm praying that one does well.

That's a strange one for me.
 
On one hand, it would help strengthen the main competitor of STEAM. On the other, Chris Taylor is a dick.

[Quemaqua]

I'm no fan of Chris Taylor, but the game looks really awesome.  I haven't been interested in anything he's done for a long time, but this game looks like it could be worth supporting.

[Pugnate]

Yea the game does look unique -- a first for him -- and good. Let's just hope it is more than the technical achievement that his other titles have been. Hopefully it has a soul.

[Quemaqua]

This one, at least, has some artistry, something most of his others have lacked.  That alone bodes very well, at least in comparison.  Time will tell if the gameplay will match up with that, but I'm not so set in my ways that I won't give somebody another chance.  The guy obviously has some talent, I just don't think he's done a project that really mattered in the last however long it's been since TA.  Maybe he's realized that, too.  I hope so, anyway.

[gpw11]

I think the main thing with the Impulse selection is it's kind of all over the place.  Que has a good point, although I'd say there were more unheard of games that I saw than underrated ones, but that could just be me.  It's just that the games they have which I have heard of are purely bargain-bin material with a few exceptions.   Beyond that, they're pretty much all on STEAM anyways.  They don't really offer all that much over STEAM, which isn't a bad thing in itself, but doesn't really bode well for them since 90% of PC gamers already have STEAM.

[Quemaqua]

They do need to distinguish themselves a bit, yes, beyond just getting exclusive content.  Still, I prefer everything about them to Steam in basically every possible way.  Steam is a bit more polished and a little friendlier, but its functionality just isn't there in comparison.  Even at a slightly more rudimentary level, Impulse is just more solid and useful and convenient.  It doesn't fuck with you, it just does what it's supposed to.

There are definitely strides that need to be made, and I do certainly have my doubts about Impulse ever overtaking Steam or even coming close to it, but I'll be damned if I'm not going to root for it and support it.

[gpw12]

No, fuck you.  Agree with me. I need constant reinforcement.

[Pugnate]

I am considering buying Mass Effect on steam. D, do you know if that will have additional DRM aside from the steam client itself?

[gpw11]

I don't think so. I'm pretty sure the story on Digg was that EA's games going onto STEAM are going to be stripped of the DRM.  I'd double check though.

Mass Effect is also really, really fun.

[Pugnate]

Yea I am a huge Bioware nut, but surprised myself by canceling the preorder for it when it was released on retail. The main reason was actually the DRM. But it is going for a decent price on steam, and if there is no additional DRM, then I figure I put up with the steam stuff anyway... so....

[Xessive]

Bioware kick ass. I recently discovered that they actually made a Sonic The Hedgehog RPG on the DS called Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood. Which sounded like a ridiculous title at first till I saw the Bioware logo! After reading up on it I figure it's probably the best Sonic game outside of the originals from way back.

Anyway, Mass Effect is pretty sweet. I think you'll enjoy it despite Steam.

[MysterD]

I am considering buying Mass Effect on steam. D, do you know if that will have additional DRM aside from the steam client itself?

As far as I know, it has been said by both Valve and EA reps that EA games over Steam carry NO SECUROM Terms. Personally, I trust neither -- b/c EA is EA and b/c Valve has often been implementing Securom install limits terms over Steam games.

Personally, I'd just wait and let the Steam fanatics who'll buy anything sold over Steam comment on the Steam boards and see what they experience w/ the DRM. Let them Steam fanboys be the guinea pigs / test lab rats first.

[beo]

because obviously you'd have to be a fanboy or a fanatic to use the service...

[Pugnate]

LOL

edit:

Well, I made a portrayal of what D thinks a steam user is:

[MysterD]

because obviously you'd have to be a fanboy or a fanatic to use the service...

I use Steam's service here and there -- and I'm no fanboy.

My point is that you know the Steam fanboys who think "Valve is GOD" are going to buy whatever comes on Steam over buying from the retail outlets.

Sure, you're gonna have some who'll get the Steam version that want to deal w/ the Steam version over the retail version laced with Securom -- but, who knows if they'll get rear-ended and find out when it's too late that the Securom limits are still imposed on the Steam version of the game. There was a big deal to do w/ that in regards to Sacred 2, STALKER: Clear Sky and Crysis: Warhead b/c they imposed install limits on the Steam version -- and nobody knew about it (on Crysis and Clear Sky) until after those games were released on Steam.

Valve's gotten better with this, as we knew Sacred 2 had its limits imposed ahead of time b/c it was listed on their site before pre-order on Steam went up, but I still don't trust Valve and EA.

[Pugnate]

D YOU TRAITOR!



D AND VALVE SITTING ON A TREE... K-I-S-S-I-N-G!!!!

[MysterD]

I'm no Valve fanboy. I do like a lot of their work, but some of their work -- work, as in everything from their games to their Steam service -- drive me crazy. As in their ability to leave lots of storyline threads dangling (see HL series), not give much content per box (see L4D), and that they take forever to make a game (especially episodic sized ones like HL2: Ep Three), Securom limits imposed still on top of a Steam DRM protected game, activation required on SP games, etc etc are head-scratchers...

I just honestly dunno how some people can praise Valve to the high heavens like they do. It's as Valve became the new Square (back when Square couldn't do no wrong in the 90's), for some blasted reason and people just fall in love with anything they do. It's quite baffling...

It's as if some PC gamers were looking for a new Blizzard that would helm the PC realm of gaming or something and be their so-called "savior," so they picked Valve for some blasted reason.

[Pugnate]

[Cobra951]

I'm confused.  WAAAH!!!

[MysterD]

Pug, who the hell is that a picture of?
LOL @ that pic.

[Pugnate]

It was in response to your post before it. I was flabbergasted.

[MysterD]

It was in response to your post before it. I was flabbergasted.

I caught that much!

I was wondering if that was a pic of someone famous or somethin'.

[beo]

I caught that much!

I was wondering if that was a pic of someone famous or somethin'.

john prescott. british deputy prime minister.

[MysterD]

Thanks, Beo.