<!--QuoteBegin-Nemesis Zero+Apr 29 2005, 01:35 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Nemesis Zero @ Apr 29 2005, 01:35 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> Another nail. In the most successful PC game of 2004's coffin.
You know, this "Xyz is dying!" craze starts to be just a <i>bit</i> ridiculous... <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> Sorry. I realize now I should have explained more. I was speaking of my decision to avoid the game. I would have purchased Half-Life 2 via the retail package had Day of Defeat: Source been 1. released, and 2. been available for Half-Life 2 retail packages. Steam is a terrible precedent for computer gaming, and Valve is a very untrustworthy company, so I wanted to make sure I had the actual CD in my hands in case Valve goes bankrupt. However, now that the retail packages are no longer being distibuted, my choices for purchasing have dropped down to... well, zero.
So, it is in effect yet another nail in Half-Life 2's coffin for me. My feelings for the game were on life support since the release, and I'm seriously considering pulling the plug on this one, to use a lovely little picture in words there.
<!--QuoteBegin-Thaldarin+Apr 29 2005, 03:39 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Thaldarin @ Apr 29 2005, 03:39 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> Valve aren't exactly untrustworthy. They do what they say they are going to even if 90% of the time it is late. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> So if 90% of the time one reports into work late, that person is not tardy? If 90% of the world dies, it's not a famine/plague? If Valve says "We'll get X product by Y date" and they don't succeed, they're not trustworthy (not that it's only release dates that make me dislike Valve).
Well, Med, I have my Steam install with HL2 on my HD, and on a backup. The worst possible thing to happen is that Valve and Steam fold up with no successor whatsoever (and I heavily doubt that's going to happen while I care about the game). In that case, Steam could simply not connect to the master server, which would leave me with the offline mode. Seeing that I bought HL2 primarily for the singleplayer, I couldn't really be worried.
But seriously, I doubt that they won't get themselves another publishing deal. Only that this time around, the conditions will be theirs.
The problem is that you'd have to keep Half-Life 2 on your PC indefinitely if Valve were to ever go bankrupt, because it requires Steam to install (one MAJOR reason for me avoiding the game). I have frequently re-installed old games to play through the single player versions, often after the company has dissolved and/or gone bankrupt. You can't do that with Steam, and we have no promise that if Valve were to ever undergo financial difficulties to the point of closing, that they'd release a patch to open their software.
As for the backup, I prefer the professionally mastered CD over a consumer-level CD, which doesn't have the same reliability. I also enjoy the (oh so terrible) packaging that many here dislike, as I often display the games I own on a shelf. Sadly, even the packaging that came with the retail version of Half-Life 2 was horrid.
I'm less confident of Valve's intentions with distribution than you are, obviously. Personally I hold little faith in them, or any future distribution deals.
<!--QuoteBegin-MedHead+Apr 29 2005, 09:06 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (MedHead @ Apr 29 2005, 09:06 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> Problem is Nemesis, is that you'll have to keep Half-Life 2 on your PC indefinitely if Valve were to ever go bankrupt, because it requires Steam to install (one MAJOR reason for me avoiding the game). <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> In which case if Valve went bankrupt, Warez would be your new friend.
<!--QuoteBegin-Thaldarin+Apr 29 2005, 04:08 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Thaldarin @ Apr 29 2005, 04:08 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> In which case if Valve went bankrupt, Warez would be your new friend. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> So I should sacrifice my integrity to do an illegal act because of Valve's bad decision to restrict use of games on Steam?
Med, I did complete copy&pastes of Steam dirs in the past. If you have it all burned away on a DvD in uncompressed form, you shouldn't get into trouble. Plus, yeah, I doubt the custom community would take long to fill possible vacuums.
<!--QuoteBegin-Nemesis Zero+Apr 29 2005, 04:11 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Nemesis Zero @ Apr 29 2005, 04:11 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> Med, I did complete copy&pastes of Steam dirs in the past. If you have it all burned away on a DvD in uncompressed form, you shouldn't get into trouble. Plus, yeah, I doubt the custom community would take long to fill possible vacuums. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
If this is in reply to my comments about illegal acts, I wasn't speaking of archiving the data. I was speaking of potential EULA, DCMA, or copyright violations by making Steam no CD cracks/patches/files. I don't want to have to depend on anyone else to play my game. That includes the gaming community.
ShockehIf a packet drops on the web and nobody's near to see it...Join Date: 2002-11-19Member: 9336NS1 Playtester, Forum Moderators, Constellation
<!--QuoteBegin-WaterBoy+Apr 29 2005, 05:27 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (WaterBoy @ Apr 29 2005, 05:27 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> This means that valve can sell there games for a lower price over steam too. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile-fix.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> Ha, that's pretty funny. Valve may have had 'evil overlord publisher' issues, but they haven't exactly been 'repressed freedom fighter for the common man' themselves either. Using the whole Internet for beta testing, forcing the issue, Condition Zero being nothing more than a platform test yet they <b>profited</b> from it....
I don't like the Publishers, but that doesn't necessarily mean the Developers are any better.
yah, I doubt prices will drop (much). This just means more money goes directly back into Valve, and, in theory, allows them to build games as they want, hire more people, build better stuff and so on.
In theory <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
ShockehIf a packet drops on the web and nobody's near to see it...Join Date: 2002-11-19Member: 9336NS1 Playtester, Forum Moderators, Constellation
<!--QuoteBegin-Comprox+Apr 29 2005, 09:54 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Comprox @ Apr 29 2005, 09:54 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> yah, I doubt prices will drop (much). This just means more money goes directly back into Valve, and, in theory, allows them to build games as they want, hire more people, build better stuff and so on.
In theory <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile-fix.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> More cheeseburgers for Gabe, more Ferrari all round... etc etc. My corporate cynicism knows no bounds.
It's about time. VU was starting to turn into Interplay after that whole Tribes thing. However, with Caen heading Interplay, I don't doubt that VU will die before Interplay.
<!--QuoteBegin-Shockwave+Apr 29 2005, 12:50 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Shockwave @ Apr 29 2005, 12:50 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> <!--QuoteBegin-WaterBoy+Apr 29 2005, 05:27 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (WaterBoy @ Apr 29 2005, 05:27 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> This means that valve can sell there games for a lower price over steam too. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile-fix.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd--> Ha, that's pretty funny. Valve may have had 'evil overlord publisher' issues, but they haven't exactly been 'repressed freedom fighter for the common man' themselves either. Using the whole Internet for beta testing, forcing the issue, Condition Zero being nothing more than a platform test yet they <b>profited</b> from it....
I don't like the Publishers, but that doesn't necessarily mean the Developers are any better.
- Shockwave <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> 99% sure that Valve has stated publicly the only reason HL2 wasn't cheaper over steam was because of their contract with Vivendi. It has always been their intention to pass the savings off to the consumer.
While much of the responsibility of a game is in the hands of the publisher, it's really not right to blame them constantly. It's like saying the reason Troika's games are so buggy is because Activision kept pushing them, when most of it was simply because Troika was lazy and didn't playtest enough. Activision was partly to blame, but they weren't making the game; Troika was.
Then again, since you're speaking of price, I suppose it's VU's fault as far as prices go.
<!--QuoteBegin-Nemesis Zero+Apr 29 2005, 11:35 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Nemesis Zero @ Apr 29 2005, 11:35 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> You know, this "Xyz is dying!" craze starts to be just a <i>bit</i> ridiculous... <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> Yeah, I stopped with that 3 years ago when I was like "well half-life 1 is on its last leg now"...
<!--QuoteBegin-DOOManiac+Apr 29 2005, 08:06 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (DOOManiac @ Apr 29 2005, 08:06 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> <!--QuoteBegin-Nemesis Zero+Apr 29 2005, 11:35 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Nemesis Zero @ Apr 29 2005, 11:35 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> You know, this "Xyz is dying!" craze starts to be just a <i>bit</i> ridiculous... <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd--> Yeah, I stopped with that 3 years ago when I was like "well half-life 1 is on its last leg now"... <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> Oh man, ain't that the truth.
Comments
You know, this "Xyz is dying!" craze starts to be just a <i>bit</i> ridiculous... <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Sorry. I realize now I should have explained more. I was speaking of my decision to avoid the game. I would have purchased Half-Life 2 via the retail package had Day of Defeat: Source been 1. released, and 2. been available for Half-Life 2 retail packages. Steam is a terrible precedent for computer gaming, and Valve is a very untrustworthy company, so I wanted to make sure I had the actual CD in my hands in case Valve goes bankrupt. However, now that the retail packages are no longer being distibuted, my choices for purchasing have dropped down to... well, zero.
So, it is in effect yet another nail in Half-Life 2's coffin for me. My feelings for the game were on life support since the release, and I'm seriously considering pulling the plug on this one, to use a lovely little picture in words there.
So if 90% of the time one reports into work late, that person is not tardy? If 90% of the world dies, it's not a famine/plague? If Valve says "We'll get X product by Y date" and they don't succeed, they're not trustworthy (not that it's only release dates that make me dislike Valve).
But seriously, I doubt that they won't get themselves another publishing deal. Only that this time around, the conditions will be theirs.
As for the backup, I prefer the professionally mastered CD over a consumer-level CD, which doesn't have the same reliability. I also enjoy the (oh so terrible) packaging that many here dislike, as I often display the games I own on a shelf. Sadly, even the packaging that came with the retail version of Half-Life 2 was horrid.
I'm less confident of Valve's intentions with distribution than you are, obviously. Personally I hold little faith in them, or any future distribution deals.
In which case if Valve went bankrupt, Warez would be your new friend.
So I should sacrifice my integrity to do an illegal act because of Valve's bad decision to restrict use of games on Steam?
If this is in reply to my comments about illegal acts, I wasn't speaking of archiving the data. I was speaking of potential EULA, DCMA, or copyright violations by making Steam no CD cracks/patches/files. I don't want to have to depend on anyone else to play my game. That includes the gaming community.
As for this Valve and Vu parting, that's awesome news. Valve won't be held back anymore, and they can just completely use Steam.
*Air guitar with headbanging motion* <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
/start mosh pit <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Ha, that's pretty funny. Valve may have had 'evil overlord publisher' issues, but they haven't exactly been 'repressed freedom fighter for the common man' themselves either. Using the whole Internet for beta testing, forcing the issue, Condition Zero being nothing more than a platform test yet they <b>profited</b> from it....
I don't like the Publishers, but that doesn't necessarily mean the Developers are any better.
- Shockwave
In theory <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
In theory <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile-fix.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
More cheeseburgers for Gabe, more Ferrari all round... etc etc. My corporate cynicism knows no bounds.
Ha, that's pretty funny. Valve may have had 'evil overlord publisher' issues, but they haven't exactly been 'repressed freedom fighter for the common man' themselves either. Using the whole Internet for beta testing, forcing the issue, Condition Zero being nothing more than a platform test yet they <b>profited</b> from it....
I don't like the Publishers, but that doesn't necessarily mean the Developers are any better.
- Shockwave <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
99% sure that Valve has stated publicly the only reason HL2 wasn't cheaper over steam was because of their contract with Vivendi. It has always been their intention to pass the savings off to the consumer.
Then again, since you're speaking of price, I suppose it's VU's fault as far as prices go.
/donces anyway
<!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Yeah, I stopped with that 3 years ago when I was like "well half-life 1 is on its last leg now"...
Yeah, I stopped with that 3 years ago when I was like "well half-life 1 is on its last leg now"... <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Oh man, ain't that the truth.