Game download vs. geolocation

[Marsalla]

Hello everyone,

So, today I was browsing the store, and for the first time I noticed this on game pages :

"Notice: Purchases made in Russian Federation can only be added to your library if you are in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Republic of Moldova, Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan."

Dunno how long this has been there, I only just saw it because I only browse new games every other week. I was wondering if anyone knows exactly what this means ?

I'll be more specific ; I move often due to my job. I've been living in Russia for about two years now, and I'll move to western europe by the end of the year. Does that mean I can no longer download those games I bought while living here in Russia ? Or does that only apply at the moment of the purchase (in other words, if I claim to be in Russia while I'm not, I can't buy the game) ?

I'm thinking that the latter applies (anything else would be ridiculous) but just to be sure... I can't be the only one who changes country every few years, right ?

While I'm at it, why are there price differences on steam ? The cost for both Steam and the game producer is exactly the same no matter where I live. If they can make a benefit by selling me a game for 10 euros in Russia, why do I have to pay 50 euros for the exact same game in western europe ? How is this fair ?

I'd like to make clear that I very much appreciate steam, I think it's great to be able to buy games from my computer rather than have to hunt down a copy, and more importantly I can play it in any language I want, which is great. Otherwise if I wanna play a game in english I have to order it from the UK, which takes time and costs more. But this one thing about game prices and rules depending on where you live, I find annoying.

The same is true with some release rules (some games can't be bought if you live in Russia...) I think I was told some years ago that this was the game producer's choice, not steam's, but either way it's a stupid rule. They should want to sell more games, not less (and as usual it's the paying customers who have to deal with all that annoyance. I'm beginning to think that piracy is that much simpler).

I mean, this is just like dvd regions, or PAL/SECAM, or whatever else they can think off to annoy the paying customer. And then they have the gall to act surprised when people pirate. If I'm shelling off hard-earned money for a game, I damn well want to play it wherever I please. Be it on the dark side of the moon or at the top of the Eiffel tower.

Sorry, just venting off some steam here (no pun intended, heh). Please let me know if anyone has an answer/explanation for this, and I apologize if the matter has been discussed already. Though I did a quick search and found nothing relevant so I don't think so.

[Father John]

It's called Region Locked.

[Raiden]

In most cases only the registration is region locked, but when it comes to Eastern Europe or ROW (especially ROW) region it might have also "only run app when in these countries" flag. SteamDB provides info on that.
I would avoid buying the games which have this notice (games published by smaller companies shouldn't sport this warning). 1C Company (or Cenega in Eastern Europe, since 2003) is the biggest offender when it comes to region locking.

[HLCinSC]

I don't know about your specific countries/regions, but in general region locking occurs for two reasons. First, certain countries/regions have laws that mandate lower game prices than the rest of the world receives or a publisher feels a less wealthy country should have their product available at a discounted price. They lock it to those host countries/regions so users from other countries don't try to import/aquire the cheaper copy of their game. It's also why some of those region/country locked versions will only have native language support as opposed to the region free versions that include the major languages. Second, some games are region/country locked due to native censorship laws. Germany and Austrailia often only have censored versions of certain kinds of games and they may be delayed or priced higher due to the additional development/editing costs.

[Marsalla]

Thanks for the replies, everyone. If this is recent I hope it won't affect games I've had for a while. This seems counter-productive, really. One more annoyance for the paying customer, I'm certainly not going to pay twice for a game for such a silly reason. Remind me why pirating is wrong, again ?

"a publisher feels a less wealthy country should have their product available at a discounted price.

So basically they make a double benefit on some people. I'm sure it stems from good intentions (and don't we know what hell's way is paved with), but it still doesn't strike me as quite right.

"They lock it to those host countries/regions so users from other countries don't try to import/aquire the cheaper copy of their game."

Well, yeah, but they don't give the option of buying the unlocked version at a higher price either. If you live in X country, then you're stuck with the local version. What if I live in Malaysia and I don't speak Malaysian ?

Basically, this seems stupid for one reason ; if I don't want to pay for a game I'll pirate, so what's the point of putting up that sort of restrictions ? Seems to me it's not conducive to a healthy relationship between buyer and seller.

"Germany and Austrailia often only have censored versions of certain kinds of games and they may be delayed or priced higher due to the additional development/editing costs.

Censorship, yes. Now there's a word that should be censored. Censorship is silly and pointless. I really dislike people who think they have the right to decide in my place "for my own good" Riiiight, I could be shocked by all the gore in a video game, I mean it's not like there are warnings on the box, or trailers to look up. So not only I get a truncated game, but I also get to pay more for it ? Right now I'm glad I don't live in Germany, heh.

Sorry, not ranting at you, thehaydencampbell, I appreciate you taking the time to explain. I'm just frustrated by this sort of nonsensical rules.

[HLCinSC]

Originally posted by Marsalla:

Thanks for the replies, everyone. If this is recent I hope it won't affect games I've had for a while. This seems counter-productive, really. One more annoyance for the paying customer, I'm certainly not going to pay twice for a game for such a silly reason. Remind me why pirating is wrong, again ?

"a publisher feels a less wealthy country should have their product available at a discounted price.

So basically they make a double benefit on some people. I'm sure it stems from good intentions (and don't we know what hell's way is paved with), but it still doesn't strike me as quite right.

"They lock it to those host countries/regions so users from other countries don't try to import/aquire the cheaper copy of their game."

Well, yeah, but they don't give the option of buying the unlocked version at a higher price either. If you live in X country, then you're stuck with the local version. What if I live in Malaysia and I don't speak Malaysian ?

Basically, this seems stupid for one reason ; if I don't want to pay for a game I'll pirate, so what's the point of putting up that sort of restrictions ? Seems to me it's not conducive to a healthy relationship between buyer and seller.

"Germany and Austrailia often only have censored versions of certain kinds of games and they may be delayed or priced higher due to the additional development/editing costs.

Censorship, yes. Now there's a word that should be censored. Censorship is silly and pointless. I really dislike people who think they have the right to decide in my place "for my own good" Riiiight, I could be shocked by all the gore in a video game, I mean it's not like there are warnings on the box, or trailers to look up. So not only I get a truncated game, but I also get to pay more for it ? Right now I'm glad I don't live in Germany, heh.

Sorry, not ranting at you, thehaydencampbell, I appreciate you taking the time to explain. I'm just frustrated by this sort of nonsensical rules.

There are sometimes region free or DRM free versions of games available through Steam and elsewhere. Unfortunately, Steam doesn't allow you to select which version but other online retailers may offer the version you seek if the developer/publisher has made such version available. If you have a payment method with an appropriate region free billing address the process should be easier but depending on what if any kind of drm those versions have you could run into problems actually activating it. There are also ways around this by tricking Steam into thinking your in a different locale, but it is against their policies and can get you banned if caught.
The system is obviously far from perfect but with so many publishers and countries to deal with it's a steep climb to get a system that reflects the customer's wishes and the publisher's intentions.

[Marsalla]

I guess you're right, and it must be a legal nightmare to nagivate through for Steam. I always think of the internet as a place with no borders and no limits (other than perhaps linguistic). It's frustrating to find that artificial borders keep being put up. I just wish we could have the same rules for everyone. And a little less policing around, too.

Thanks for explaining the logic behind this. I'm not happier about it but at least I understand how it works.

[HLCinSC]

Originally posted by Marsalla:

I guess you're right, and it must be a legal nightmare to nagivate through for Steam. I always think of the internet as a place with no borders and no limits (other than perhaps linguistic). It's frustrating to find that artificial borders keep being put up. I just wish we could have the same rules for everyone. And a little less policing around, too.

Thanks for explaining the logic behind this. I'm not happier about it but at least I understand how it works.

Globalization has been a blessing and a curse. Some countries have benefitted from it while others have been harmed and enacted strict trade agreements. Right now regional powers/acts have helped to establish standards like the EU, NAFTA, Russian Trade Federation that may have helped streamline things within their region, but it can also make it a nightmare for both companies/organizations that operate in between/with multiple regions as well as individuals such as yourself who travel/move for work reasons. The U.N. is too splintered/fleckless to do much of anything these days and though they have the power to be the solution for this issue, it is so low on their priorities/backlog that I doubt either of us will see a solution in our lifetimes.