Stop greedy publishers to block Geforce Now

[saschaschwarz]

I am a Mac Guy. I own several "real" Mac and a very powerful hackintosh that I use for CAD. It is capable of playing actual games, if they are available for Mac. From time to time I like to play a game which is (i have to say "not yet" in some cases). Yeah, I could to dual boot, but that sucks.
Now Geforce Now lets me "rent" gaming hardware for 5,49€ a month for that I would have to pay several hundred € and refresh it all 2 years at least.
I can run most of the games I purchased on steam and I am happy with the provided service. Yes, for some hardcore gamers that need the max FPS that might not be good enough, but for me it is just perfect. And I can even play some games with a BT mouse and BT keyboard or game controller on my Amazon Fire Cube(with sideload) on my 75" TV.

What I always liked about Steam was the philosophy that I had to buy a game only once. I could buy the game when there is only a PC version and when the game later is ported to Mac I don´t need to buy it again. Also there is no HW looking. If I used my desktop at home, my Laptop on travel or maybe someone else´s PC, I just install steam, login and can play my games. (Not saying to let others play my games!)
This is why I use steam and prefer it over all other other platforms.

On the game consoles this is very different. I own a game for the PS3, but when I bought the PS4 I have to buy the PS4 version if the game. Ok you might argue that this is a different code, developed for a new platform.

But now some greedy publishers like 2K, Bethesda, Activision and Blizzard don´t allow you to play your games, that you have purchased a license, in the cloud.
So where is the difference if I use my HW, some rented or loan HW at my home, some HW at a friends home or in a vacation rental to play my games OR if I rent the HW from a cloud provider like Geforce Now? None, absolutely none.

But those greedy .... want to charge you again. Like with Googles Stadia where you had to purchase any game again just for Stadia and could play that game then only in Stadia.
And that is the reason that Stadia failed. Nobody wants to buy a game again oder and over.

If we, the customers don´t do anything the will screw us over.

Steam could help here, for example mark games that cannot be played in Geforce Now.
But I fear that Valve does not want to stand in for the rights of their customers if that means they might jeopardize the relations to some big publishers that bring in a lot of business.

[Start_Running]

引用自 Anonymous Helper：

引用自 saschaschwarz：

So here they want to charge you twice for exactly the same product. It is like you would have to buy all your games again if you get a new PC.

No, they want NVidia to compensate them for the use of their properties same as everywhere else especially as NVidia is making money out of them. Simple as that. NVidia needs to get licences to the games they're going to install on their servers exactly like everyone else else.

I think they were hoping to leverage their tech against developers. Basically you use nVidia tech, and they'd waive their license fees just for letting them use your ghame on GFN. THough that apparently didn;'t work.

[Manny]

I don’t know the legal side of this at all, but GeForce Now is great for consumers, such a shame some publishers won’t support it.

[Tito Shivan]

引用自 Muppet among Puppets：

Nvidia is like a second computer.
One that can run the game for me.

Not. at. all.
It's not even close.

引用自 saschaschwarz：

Not sure how familiar you are with cloud service. for example in Amazon WorkSpaces you can have a Windows 7 or Windows 10 Desktop. It is a preinstalled Windows instance.

Which Microsoft approved AWS for deployment on their instances. You just don't get a preinstalled OS 'because you own one' You're actually paying again for the OS (With your AWS subscription)

引用自 saschaschwarz：

If you need software you downloaded the package via the internet and install it. Apply the license you are done. The Software can be Steam for example.
Only problem now you would rely either on Windows RDP or Steam Link Remote Play. Both sucks.

That last sentence here makes a whole world of a difference. As I said earlier, the devil hides in the fine print.
Geforce now is as similar to what you described as an apple to an orange.

引用自 saschaschwarz：

Instanced usage is a different story. This is if you run many copies of the same software the same time.

Now you're getting close to how GeforceNow really works. Maybe you can understand now why devs aren't all thrilled with getting their software automatically run en masse in such an infrastructure.

引用自 saschaschwarz：

Unlike many Users would play a game on the Nvidia servers, but every one has it´s own license.

And Nvidia is running multiple instances of a game to their customers. Just like Amazon provides Windows OS on their instances. I'm sure Amazon and Microsoft had a talk before implementing the feature... Yet somehow a game developer doing the same is 'greedy'

引用自 saschaschwarz：

And Geforce Now is not replacing Steam. They provide the HW with pre-installed Steam, you login to steam and can play your games.

This isn't about Steam. This is about the game developers.

Would game developers be happy if Ubisoft unilaterally decided any game owned on Steam is automatically owned on Uplay? Or if any Steam owned game could be played through GOG?
Pretty sure not.

引用自 rawWwRrr：

With GFN, you aren't playing your own licensed copy of the game, you are paying to play nVidia's copy of the game.

And this man here gets it.

Geforce now is using as much 'Steam' as Firefox uses it when you log in through the browser and launch a game from there.
In reality you're using the 'GeforceNow' game you've validated to own through the Steam API.
And that's why some developers are upset.

Lawyers are very finnicky and easily startled creatures. And things like this unsettle them the most.

引用自 Start_Running：

I think they were hoping to leverage their tech against developers. Basically you use nVidia tech, and they'd waive their license fees just for letting them use your ghame on GFN. THough that apparently didn;'t work.

They put the cart before the horses. It wouldn't surprise me a 'Geforce Store' was planned somewhen mid term. And they wanted to build muscle by -instead of giving free games away- porting whole libraries to the service.

Basically fix the Stadia Issue by porting people's libraries to the service.

[Spawn of Totoro]

引用自 Bluez n 2z：

I don’t know the legal side of this at all, but GeForce Now is great for consumers, such a shame some publishers won’t support it.

That is debatable. Some feel it takes away from consumer rights and puts more control of games in to developer/publisher hands.

As with anything, there are both good and bad that can come with it, especially if it becomes forced to always use such a service for one's purchases.

[Start_Running]

引用自 Bluez n 2z：

I don’t know the legal side of this at all, but GeForce Now is great for consumers, such a shame some publishers won’t support it.

Publishers will happily support it...for the right price...

[BossGalaga]

引用自 saschaschwarz：

something, something, geoforce good, valve and publishers bad

So Geforce hasn't secured licenses with these game publishers and that's the publishers' and Valve's fault that you have games that you can't run on your Mac? Gotta hand it to Geforce, charging people for a substandard service and getting their users to complain about it here while you continue to give them your money. That's like boycotting Burger King because you're mad at McDonalds.

[Tito Shivan]

引用自 BossGalaga：

So Geforce hasn't secured licenses with these game publishers and that's the publishers' and Valve's fault that you have games that you can't run on your Mac? Gotta hand it to Geforce

'Games in my Steam library should all work in Geforce Now because Geforce said they would. So if they don't it's Steam fault'

In a sense it gives kind of an amazing insight at how permeable people is to publicity.

[Crazy Tiger]

引用自 Tito Shivan：

引用自 BossGalaga：

So Geforce hasn't secured licenses with these game publishers and that's the publishers' and Valve's fault that you have games that you can't run on your Mac? Gotta hand it to Geforce

'Games in my Steam library should all work in Geforce Now because Geforce said they would. So if they don't it's Steam fault'

In a sense it gives kind of an amazing insight at how permeable people is to publicity.

The marketing department has used its spindoctors quite effectively, it seems.

[Paint_Man]

Starting now every game in my Steam library that gets removed from GeForce Now also gets a thumbs down review.

[BossGalaga]

引用自 Paint_Man：

Starting now every game in my Steam library that gets removed from GeForce Now also gets a thumbs down review.

Right, because it's the publishers' fault, not Geforce's fault for not securing licensing and lying to their customers. Sure, that makes sense.

[Paint_Man]

License for what? The games are NOT included on GeForce Now, the games are in the user's Steam library. I can pay for GeForce Now, but if I didn't also bought the games on Steam I can't play them.

Playing on GeForce Now is the same as if I log into my Steam account on my neighbours high end PC and play the games I have in my Steam library.

nVidia should only advertise that they support Steam and other game launchers to shut up the greedy devs.

[BossGalaga]

引用自 Paint_Man：

License for what? The games are NOT included on GeForce Now, the games are in the user's Steam library. I can pay for GeForce Now, but if I didn't also bought the games on Steam I can't play them.

Playing on GeForce Now is the same as if I log into my Steam account on my neighbours high end PC and play the games I have in my Steam library.

nVidia should only advertise that they support Steam and other game launchers to shut up the greedy devs.

Nvidia needs a license to stream publishers' games through their service which they charge users for. Nvidia also advertises those games on their platform in order to get people to subscribe to their service. Nvidia actually secured a handful of temporary licenses but has been working on the assumption that they can just use any other publishers' games without permission or license. That's contradictory.

[Crazy Tiger]

引用自 Paint_Man：

License for what? The games are NOT included on GeForce Now, the games are in the user's Steam library. I can pay for GeForce Now, but if I didn't also bought the games on Steam I can't play them.

A license to play the games through Geforce Now. The Steam license you purchased is only for access to the games through Steam, not through Geforce Now.

It's irrelevant whether the games are bought through Geforce Now or are included. Nvidia provides an alternative access which needs to be covered. Simply put, Nvidia needs to make a deal with publishers before they're allowed to stream their content.

[RedLightning]

引用自 Tito Shivan：

引用自 Muppet among Puppets：

There is no reason for that.
But nvidia was rather like glasses to read the book anyway.

Not at all.
GeForce now it's literally 'If you own the hardcover you can read the ebook online in every device you want'

Except not every hardcover includes the ebook to read anywhere.

引用自 Muppet among Puppets：

Buying once is not enough.

Not sure where you see that common.

I bought Minecraft for PC long ago. Had to buy it again the mobile version.
I own Cultist simulator on Steam. The mobile version costed me money too.

I've re-bought lots of physical books in electronic format and vice-versa over the years.
Not to mention my VHS movie library I had to rebuy in DVD/Blu-Ray.

Buying more than once is not that uncommon.

Well at least when you replaced VHS .. you got a superior picture..

Cannot say that for the games they want us to buy multiple copies of .

[Start_Running]

引用自 RedLightning：

引用自 Tito Shivan：

Not at all.
GeForce now it's literally 'If you own the hardcover you can read the ebook online in every device you want'

Except not every hardcover includes the ebook to read anywhere.


I bought Minecraft for PC long ago. Had to buy it again the mobile version.
I own Cultist simulator on Steam. The mobile version costed me money too.

I've re-bought lots of physical books in electronic format and vice-versa over the years.
Not to mention my VHS movie library I had to rebuy in DVD/Blu-Ray.

Buying more than once is not that uncommon.

Well at least when you replaced VHS .. you got a superior picture..

Cannot say that for the games they want us to buy multiple copies of .

Assuming the transfer was done competantly. And then there's also the matter of sound.

引用自 Paint_Man：

License for what? The games are NOT included on GeForce Now, the games are in the user's Steam library. I can pay for GeForce Now, but if I didn't also bought the games on Steam I can't play them.

Licensing the streaming rights. That's a thing.

Playing on GeForce Now is the same as if I log into my Steam account on my neighbours high end PC and play the games I have in my Steam library.

Not quite, because again, that game has to install and download before being playyed locally. Streaming is something different.

nVidia should only advertise that they support Steam and other game launchers to shut up the greedy devs.

It wouldn't matter if they advertised it or not. The devs would still pull their games, because the streaming rights are worth money.