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Games for Windows Live shutting down July 1, 2014.
- Thread starter Archie
- Start date
The port is fine. It's just barebones. Laughably barebones. From seemed concerned with the bare basics of making sure that the game was up and running on PC, and that it worked properly. All the important aspects like making sure the game engine code was ported over properly and that the game was compatible with a good variety of hardware configurations, that was all there. It
Is it sad that From Software didn't include things like graphical options and non-fixed resolutions? Yes.
Are these things also trivial to implement? Yes.
Was From able to make a game that ran better on PC than on all other platforms largely because of Microsoft's awesomeness at making developer tools, because From ended up being bailed out by the fact that they could convert the Xbox 360 Dark Souls API calls to Direct X 9.0c with minimal effort? Probably. (Xbox 360 API is based on Direct X 9.0c, which is - shockingly! - the version of Direct X needed by Dark Souls Prepare to Die Edition.)
And From does care - Dark souls 2's lead development platform is PC, and Dark Souls is regularly advertised on the Steam front page and featured in Steam sales.
People don't know what a bad PC port is in this day and age.
Syphon Filter
Member
Bioshock 1 had no gfwl.
Baron von Loathsome
Member
BioShock 2 is safe, at least if you have it on Steam. The fate of the Dawn of War games and GTAIV remain unknown.
Good point my friend, very good point.
But what about achievements? I loved being able to get achievement points buy playing Arkham games on PC!
You get steam achievements homie and trading cards and you will like it.
Madrugador
Member
But what about achievements? I loved being able to get achievement points buy playing Arkham games on PC!
You have until 07/01/14 to get achievements. You won't be able to get them after that.
I'm going to guess PC sales when Dark Souls first released and then after that when Dark Souls went on sale during Steam sales made Namcos executives eyes open VERY wide as to the profit potential
Felix Lighter
Member
GTA IV is still a good seller, so I think Take 2 will do something about it but I imagine Rockstar is a little preoccupied right now.
I H8 Memes
Member
These companies that were stupid enough to use GFWL with their games should be speaking up and letting people know how this is going to affect peoples games. They were morons for using GFWL, no need to be cowards as well and not speak up on it now.
And I hope gamers whom lose their game access because of this shitty service, bitch about it and make some noise so these companies will fix their games rather than just shrug their shoulders.
Epic is apparently discussing what to do with Bulletstorm. It's good to know they are at least acknowledging it.
https://twitter.com/iFlak/status/370134831885086720
https://twitter.com/iFlak/status/370134831885086720
Relic has already converted Company of Heroes to Steamworks (it shows up as New Steam version in your library if you own all three games on Steam) so I imagine they'll move Warhammer over to Steamworks as well.
Steam Achievements for Arkham Asylum were added a while ago.
Arkham City already had Steam Achievements, it used an odd combination of GFWL and Steamworks.
slowly but surely the demon that is GFWL is being killed off.
Arkham City had steam achievements when it released.
You can finish it within a month, man. Set the time aside on your schedule and go through it. Unless you're exploring everything you only need to ring two bells, do a few gold-gate unlocks (if that, forgetting) and then you're basically at the final boss. Extremely short compared to something like Final Fantasy or an MMORPG.
What about Gears 1? We should get them to release a steam version.
Valve provides Steamworks for free. That includes any DRM you use as part of Steamworks, afaik.
In the case of UPlay, it's just Ubisoft wanting to have its own online services so they have more control over the games. Same for Origin. Remember that UPlay started off as always-online DRM for Assassin's Creed II on PC. I don't think any non-Ubisoft published game actually uses it.
As for GFWL, it's probably a combination of things:
- Developers thinking PC gamers want Xbox on their PC.
- Easy to port online play stuff from Xbox 360.
- Exclusivity deal with MS (more in the early days when they were trying to force pay-to-play online on PC gaming).
- A general contempt of their customers.
- Something else I'm not aware of that makes GFWL compelling to devs and pubs.
Baron von Loathsome
Member
It has not been patched yet.
For Windows Live, as far as Microsoft goes, it used to be their attempt at a Steam/Xbox Live style online platform for PC. They all but abandoned it fairly quickly, after their attempt at making people pay for multiplayer fizzled out, though they sort of half supported it for several years after. It still got a lot of use from certain devs and publishers in the interim, especially Japanese ones, because it made for easier porting of multiplayer games from Xbox 360 to PC sometimes.
As far as Uplay goes, it was basically just Ubisoft's always-online DRM solution, which they also used as a sort of super cheap "rewards" program for buying some of their games. (Basically getting certain achievements in a game would give you Uplay points, which you would then use to unlock stuff like wallpapers and alternate costumes and stuff in game). They've recently moved towards changing it into a Steam competitor, because if you have the ability to make your own platform, why not try for some of that Valve money?
Indeed. If this isn't handled well it could be a real PR nightmare. People will find ways around it, of course. They'll surely crack their legitimately purchased games in order to keep playing them after the sunset, if there is no alternative. Not a good look at all...
This was what Capcom (Sven) stated as they key reasons for going with GFWL:
Sven had been pushing for any PC support at all. So pretty much it required the least effort at the time, and probably the only reason they got made. He had stated pushing for any PC releases at the time was a huge effort. Fortunately they have gone full Steamworks.
Doug Heffernan
Member
That's not their call to make.
Microsoft has the publishing rights.
Yeah, there's a patch in the works, but it's too early to say whether or not it pertains to the removal of GFWL.
luknotluck
Member
So what's going to happen to dark souls and batman arkham city and the DLC?
As per this thread only Dirt 3 is being actively explored at the moment. This brings the list of games known to have plans pertaining to the removal of GFWL to:
- Batman: Arkham Asylum GOTY
- Batman: Arkham City GOTY
- BioShock 2
- Dirt 3
- Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet
Dirt 2, F1 2010/2011, Fuel, and Operation Flashpoint: Red River "are being looked at".
Quadraphonic
Member
The Colonies Edition does. And that's the one I bought because I didn't know there were two versions. It doesn't activate on Steam.
Dirt 2 can be played offline, not Dirt 3.
Lord British
Member
I really hope that there's some sort of universal fix. In particular I will miss Dead Rising 2: OTR.
Sure, but that's hardly a solution, not to mention registering one's Dirt 2 key will be impossible after GFWL is shut down.
Great news.
On a side note, although I don't condone piracy...it does seem like there's a good chance that dozens of GFWL games will become useless (or at least far less fun) overnight. This does give extra credence to the argument that pirates often use to justify piracy in the first place: pirated copies of games ironically offer more glitch-free usability than the legitimate DRM-infested versions.
On a side note, although I don't condone piracy...it does seem like there's a good chance that dozens of GFWL games will become useless (or at least far less fun) overnight. This does give extra credence to the argument that pirates often use to justify piracy in the first place: pirated copies of games ironically offer more glitch-free usability than the legitimate DRM-infested versions.
How is it that WB and 2k still apparently haven't taken care of these games when the plans for it leaked many many months ago. Nobody can tell me that patching out idiotic DRM is a lot of work.
Madrugador
Member
It would be great If we get Steam versions of Dirt 2 and 3. I played over 30 hours each and GFWL was always a pain in the ass.
I hope they also let us buy Dirt 3 DLC from Steam now.
I hope they also let us buy Dirt 3 DLC from Steam now.
There's a distinction to make between downloading a pirated game to skirt payment and downloading a pirated game so you are able to play something you'd legally purchased. A rather novel example of the latter is using leaked ISOs as de facto pre-loads when you've pre-purchased a game on Steam and there's to be no official pre-load period.
In the case of Bio2 and Batman, GFWL is being replaced with Steamworks, plus as large multi-national publishers there's a ton of red tape to wade through before an update is formally submitted to Valve (QA being the most obvious and perhaps the largest bundle thereof).
Codemasters is open to the idea of releasing a patch that will add the GFWL DLC to the game for free, but if it's to follow in the footsteps of 2K/WB and replace GFWL rather than just remove it, then I assume the DLC will be resold via Steam instead.