you dont own the games you bought on steam right?

[dallas]

some games required steam in order to run

[pasa]

Technically yes, you get something like license to use, not a full ownership. However for practice of just playing it is hardly a difference. You need steam to launch, but it can be in offline mode.

[abcmouse.com]

Not really, its basically like renting but until the steam servers explode and the sun engulfs the earth

[Ⓥenom Ⓢnake 🐍]

They still require steam but you can back up any one of your games on any format you want.

I have 450 games backed up at this point.

But you don't own any digital software you purchase. You just purchased a license.

[dallas]

thank you all

[dallas]

Originally posted by Ⓥenom Ⓢnake 🐍:

They still require steam but you can back up any one of your games on any format you want.

I have 450 games backed up at this point.

But you don't own any digital software you purchase. You just purchased a license.

so many

[psychotron666]

Originally posted by Ⓥenom Ⓢnake 🐍:

They still require steam but you can back up any one of your games on any format you want.

I have 450 games backed up at this point.

But you don't own any digital software you purchase. You just purchased a license.

You can back them up, but you can't play them without cracking them or using your steam account. So if you got banned for example or steam shut down their service (probably both highly unlikely, you'd need to do something bad like get caught cracking the games to lose your account), you wouldn't be able to play your backed up games.

Whereas a gog game could be backed up and played on another computer without steam or a steam account

[Plaid]

2.1 We give you and other GOG users the personal right (known legally as a 'licence') to use GOG services and to download, access and/or stream (depending on the content) and use GOG content. This licence is for your personal use. We can stop or suspend this licence in some situations, which are explained later on.

It's not much different here, except for the client (which isn't required for every game purchased on Steam actually)

[psychotron666]

Originally posted by Plaid:

2.1 We give you and other GOG users the personal right (known legally as a 'licence') to use GOG services and to download, access and/or stream (depending on the content) and use GOG content. This licence is for your personal use. We can stop or suspend this licence in some situations, which are explained later on.

It's not much different here, except for the client (which isn't required for every game purchased on Steam actually)

Yeah just like steam, but the difference is once you have the game and back it up physically on a hard drive or whatever, gog can't stop you from playing it even if they revoked your accounts and licenses. While a backed up steam game wouldn't be able to be played in the same scenario, unless you cracked it yourself

[Plaid]

Originally posted by psychotron666:

Originally posted by Ⓥenom Ⓢnake 🐍:

They still require steam but you can back up any one of your games on any format you want.

I have 450 games backed up at this point.

But you don't own any digital software you purchase. You just purchased a license.

You can back them up, but you can't play them without cracking them or using your steam account. So if you got banned for example or steam shut down their service (probably both highly unlikely, you'd need to do something bad like get caught cracking the games to lose your account), you wouldn't be able to play your backed up games.

Whereas a gog game could be backed up and played on another computer without steam or a steam account

If Steam shuts down or your account banned, then it wouldn't matter if we cracked them, right?
Nothing left to lose

[psychotron666]

Originally posted by Plaid:

Originally posted by psychotron666:

You can back them up, but you can't play them without cracking them or using your steam account. So if you got banned for example or steam shut down their service (probably both highly unlikely, you'd need to do something bad like get caught cracking the games to lose your account), you wouldn't be able to play your backed up games.

Whereas a gog game could be backed up and played on another computer without steam or a steam account

If Steam shuts down or your account banned, then it wouldn't matter if we cracked them, right?
Nothing left to lose

Yeah, that's right. You'd just need the knowledge of cracking the game is all, which obviously not everyone has. But yes, it could be circumvented

[Exiled Alchemist]

Depends on the publishers, and the age of the game. Like the majority of DOS games that are on Steam can be ran without it as DOSBox is not being gated by Steamworks DRM. That may also include other titles from the 90's that where made long before Steamworks thus not having it intergrated into the game's main .exe file. Thus allowing those games to be freely backed up, and ran on machines that don't have Steam on them.

A good number of indie games have been noted to be DRM free out of the box by the devs/publishers. Dusk's single player content is all DRM free. Only Duskworld's function requires Steamworks for it's online content. That is only because it needs it for connecting to online servers for multiplayer. Hedon is another game that was released on Steam that is DRM free, because it runs on the GZDoom engine.

The bottom line is the only way to know if you can still run the games without Steam is to manually test it yourself. Back up the installed game's folder, and then transfer it to another computer that doesn't have Steam on it to see if you can still play it. If you can still run the games just fine congrats, and if not just enjoy it for as long as Steam is active.

By the way a small rant on the subject. People seem to be stuck on the literal term of ownership. When it's actually licensed ownership for these kinds of things. It's not new, and has been a thing from the start of physical media. For example, most home video releases have it marked in small text of the conditions of paying for the product. One of those conditions is that you when't allowed to re-sell it for any reason. Yet people broke that rule all the time with yard sales, and pawn shops. Even old games from the 80's had this listed on the back of the game's box. It's just the fact that most digital goods come with DRM that prevents many from breaking/ignoring these rules. So from a technical standpoint nothing has changed, and it's just a reinforcement of the licensed ownership rules/regulations of paying for the product.

[Snoopa]

In actuality, you don't own any games, no matter if it's on PC, Console, physical, or digital. What you pay for is the license to use specific game for a specific platform. Which all has their own unique game-keys.

At any time, that the Major Studios, devs, courts, or anyone allowed some kind of final-say, decides to end a game, then the ripples goes from the Top down to the consumers.

We live in a world where everything digital and recorded. The corporation can turn off all conumer access if so choose.

[HypersleepyNaputunia]

as long as you pay for physical or drm free you are safe from those predator corporations that might take them away

[Snoopa]

You pay for a physical, corporations can still shut it down by the platforms getting an update have the game removed.

DRM free isn't actually the game. All you're doing is getting a different version of the actual game
So there's possibility. No no no, don't think abou tit.

[Naedmi]

Nope, says so in the Terms of Service, it's primarily used to avoid any lawsuits in case Steam ever goes out of business and shuts down servers.

As it's stated in every Terms of Service for every game/DRM service that requires internet connectivity to use. Aside for GOG, but it never defined itself as a DRM service.