Good question. But Valve is just another money grubby middle man, so I doubt they ever will. There greed won’t let them.
CraigM
3727
Yup. It’s things like that, and the claim that Epic has done more for Pc gaming than Valve has that have strained my eye rolling muscle.
I’m not sure if what Valve did was all that great. I mean, they did the same thing that Impulse did, they just happened to survive a little longer.
stusser
3729
I agree that digital distribution of games is a manifest destiny sort of thing that someone was going to do anyway, but the fact is that Valve came out on top and did a pretty good job over many years, which absolutely aided PC gaming.
Tim’s a troll, nothing more.
Little history lesson:
Valve did not intend to build Steam themselves, or even make a store. They wanted to avoid manual patching of Team Fortress and CS, so they went to Real Media to help them build a content delivery application. They were laughed out of the room. They went to Microsoft. Same result. So they built it themselves. First as an application to deliver updates automatically. Then to provide smoother multiplayer functionality and steam friends. Then came the possibility to buy games, first their own, then other companies (Rag Doll Kung Fu, anyone?).
And since then, they have steadily added more features to Steam than all of their competitors managed combined.
Of course, competition was still great. E. g. Origin came out first with refunds, which Valve didn’t want to do at first, but then did and perfected.
…but sure. They “just did the same thing that Impulse did”. Eye roll.
CraigM
3732
yeah, no. Like there is no rational argument you can make that doesn’t ultimately conclude Steam has had a massive impact in the PC gaming space. That the PC gaming space is in a better place for end users today than it was 10 years ago. Remember Starforce and install limits, remember the increasingly punitive DRM measures that were more likely to harm actual consumers than pirates? Remember how much it sucked if you were into more niche titles? Like we are in a god damn golden age of PC gaming, one that doesn’t exist without Steam I’d argue.
Now could you argue that someone else would have done the same? Maybe. But remember that Valve had a very active role in changing the mindset of publishers on many things like DRM, install limits, digital sales, discounting older titles, hell selling older titles, the viability of niche markets, etc. they were not some passive participant.
PC gaming is far more consumer friendly today than in the mid 2000’s, and that was by no means guaranteed. But to pretend they did nothing for both gamers and developers is patently absurd. Both sides are better off today. Are they perfect? No. Could they improve? Certainly! They’re are definitely issues with Steam.
But your position fundamentally reminds me of this scene:
Nesrie
3734
Some really screwed up and selective memory showing up here. Wow.
Thank you, I am.
@Nesrie, I am going to block you for a bit. I used to value your voice, but recently, it’s really just been insults and snide remarks, and nothing really of value. Talk to again in a few months.
Nesrie
3736
G: I wonder why he treats me differently. Real surprise.
CraigM
3737
Yup, I do really think the Monty Python scene captures the essence of it.
And I don’t have anything against the EGS generally, other than some of the behavior. Broadly speaking I hope they, and he developers on it, succeed. But the level of blind devotion from some is shocking, really.
Because you are constantly attacking me personally. And because you have no kids, unlike @CraigM, and I like the stories @CraigM writes about his kids from time to time. They are about the same age as my kids and I can relate to that.
Nesrie
3739
As opposed to the guy that just pointed at you and laughed. You’re such a hypocrite.
What the hell does having kids have to do with Epic and Steam? Wow you’re a sexist ass.
Reported. Pointing at a woman and saying she doesn’t have kids. Wth are you thinking?
CraigM
3740
I don’t know what it is about this thread that brings out the worst. Like I never realized store loyalty could inspire such passions.
It’s like the bad old days of the console wars. I thought Qt3 was above such pettiness.
Can you both not do this, please? If you put someone on ignore, then do that and don’t continue the spiral. If some puts you on ignore, do your best to just move on.
It’s the tit-for-tat stuff that raises the noise level.
Nesrie
3742
Telefrog. You have no idea what you are talking about if you think pointing at a woman and saying she doesn’t have kids is somehow acceptable. It’s completely inappropriate and sexist. It also has nothing to do with this topic which is why it’s obviously sexist.
KevinC
3743
What a stupid and needless comment to make. I thought you had no way of topping your previous one this morning, but apparently I underestimated you.
Once again: good lord.
If @CraigM didn’t have stories about kids to post, I would ignore him right away. But he does, and they are the same age as mine and I can relate to the stories about kids he posts.
It’s one of the best things to come out of Qt3 is all the parenting stories people share. Parenting is tough.
Also, I think @CraigM may have gifted me a game a while back, and ran a lot of the cool Battlestar Galatical forum games, so he gets a lot of slack from me for all of that.
I just happen to like him more than other people, although currently in this thread, he has been less than nice to me.
