Instro said:
I dont this though, whats stopping someone like D2D from selling keys for SteamWorks games?
In the case of Impulse, Brad Wardell's analogy is these two things(from Stardock forums)
[quote who="Frogboy" reply="86" id="2613142"]
How is it any different to Elemental requiring Impulse to be installed and active to play? Impulse/Steam install an invasive client. Impulse/Steam is required to authenticate those two games. Impulse/Steam have "exclusives" with those games. Impulse/Steam are used as the DRM system. Impulse/Steam force you to join their communities with all the good/bad that comes with that. Impulse/Steam MUST be running in the background to receive patches and updates.
A little hypocritical in my opinion.
So you feel 2K Games is simply entitled to my dollars and my modding time then even though its success comes directly at the expense of what I work on? I'm sorry but are you insane?
Previously, on the assumption that Civilization V was going to be a normal PC game release, its success would help all strategy games. Now, its success basically helps solidify Steam's position. I certainly don't want that. So why should I help support that move?
Now, if you think that there being a single store (with no other viable options) to decide what is and isn't going to be available is a good thing then there's nothing to discuss.
Impulse exists because no one else bothered to come up with a credible alternative to Steam. Without Impulse, the PC would certainly become a a closed platform where Valve gets to take 30%+ cut of every game that comes out because in the long-run, digital distribution is going to dominate.
I always assumed that every publisher would end up with their own e-store. But if Steam (or anyone for that matter) takes over and the PC becomes effectively a closed platform, then why would anyone want to develop for it given the headaches of making a PC game? Might as well make iPhone games or Xbox games or whatever where at least the platform owner delivers a helluva lot of value.
If you want Valve to be the PC game platform owner, then more power to you. But I doubt most PC game developers feel that way. I know I certainly don't. My disappointment isn't with Valve or Steam. They make great products and Steam and Steamworks is a great system. My disappointment is with Civilization.
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[quote who="Frogboy" reply="117" id="2613452"]
I'm not arguing the perspective of 2K, Firaxis or Civilization as a series. Your original comment implied you wouldn't participate with Civ5 due to the deal struck between Valve and 2K to use Steamworks. From a purely business point of view I can totally understand that you would not want to favour Impules's direct competitor. That I totally understand.
I was arguing the point that if you really are dropping Civ5 because of the inclusion Steamworks then that is a little hypocritical due to the requirement of Impulse for Elemental (as specified on the product page). Like Civ5, Elemental will be available through brick 'n mortar, Amazon and other locations (I'm assuming) yet to participate in the community and receive patch updates, an Impulse account and installation will be required. How is this different to Civ5? It's NOT.
I think I've made pretty clear my reasoning. For me, it would be like the CEO of AMD buying Intel based CPUs. It's hardly hypocritical.
Civ V's success comes at our expense. Thus, I don't want to support that. I'd feel the same way if it were being sold exclusively at Walmart and I was CEO of Best Buy.[/quote]
Makes sense to me. The first one is a legitimate concern of what would potentially happen in a One Valve Future, and why Brad Wardell went from a company DD service into making Impulse to compete with Steam, and the second is why he personally doesn't want anything to do with Civ 5 due to this.
He isn't slamming Valve here.
