Support NeoGAF

[Alexios]

https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2019/02/21/steam-stepping-back-from-selling-films/

Steam's experiment in selling plain ol' non-games-related films, shows, and videos is ending, as Valve say they're refocusing on, y'know, stuff to do with video games. Which is no surprise, because games are why people use Steam. They've removed the 'Video' section from the Steam Store menu and plan to stop selling a number of non-games vids, though folks who bought them will still be able to watch and download them.

I'm not sure how I feel about this. I mean, it was a pretty awful experience. Steam's video player is awful and you don't even have the option to have a given series' (mostly anime series?) episodes start playback one after the other. Or download and play your files instead of stream. It was also weird it wasn't separated more from the games. But on the other hand they could have worked to fix that rather than abandon it altogether. Make a decent player people feel like using and separate the store, then maybe people will buy stuff and have more companies release them. Oh well.

 

[brian0057]

Today I learned that Steam sold stuff besides video games.

 

[J-Roderton]

Yeah. Never even knew they offered that stuff.

 

[Fbh]

I didn't even know they sold movies.
So not much of a loss for me

 

[Northeastmonk]

I bought a few good documentaries from GOG, but that's about it. If its not video game related then what's the point? GOG has a few LARPing movies and some other "geek" subjects. I've rarely listened to the OST's I've gotten with Steam just because I forget how to actually access that content.

 

[JCK75]

They had a sale on some tutorial series once, I own quite a few videos on it, no movies or anything but I do have creature factory 2 series for blender and Kung Fury.

 

[MayauMiao]

Valve should use that investment in making games, not a friggin Netflix wannabe.

 

[Cert.in.Death]

Selling movies is no longer fashionable. I want very little to do with services that don’t allow me expansive access to a library of content and insist on selling each item piecemeal.

 

[Soltype]

If they priced them more aggressively, it might have taken off.The idea of a movie platform like steam is ideal, the pricing was just crazy.

 

[Vlaphor]

I kinda glad they stopped. I've had several instances of finding something that looked like a really cool synopsis for a game, only to find out that it's a movie.

The Steam store is cluttered enough as it is.

 

[JimboJones]

Didn't know about films, I do have a load of behind the scenes stuff from Broken Age which is cool to have via steam.

 

[Husky]

Does "stepping back from selling films" carry any suggestion of "stepping forward in selling (or making) games?" Because I'd like for Valve to make some games. Some Half-Life 2: Episode Three games. Maybe a Left 4 Dead 3. Valve friend please it's been so long and I yearn for Mister Freeman

 

[Sorcerer]

I bought an episode of Sailor Moon just to see how it stacked up. Basically the pricing is not aggressive, they offer absolutely no extra content. Most of the movies are the most obscure indie titles that I have never heard of. It is just another case of Valve putting something out there, half assing it, then giving up on it rather quickly. There not giving movies up because they want to focus on other things, they are giving up because the service was an utter failure on their part.