Games Without Steam

[Zepondrax]

I used to like it when you could just go into your local game store such as EB, or whatever, buy your game on CD/DVD and go home and put the disc in and install it. It would take maybe 5-10 mins to install and you would be playing it within 10-15....suddenly one day that changed when i first purchased homefront, i thought i would sit down, install it off CD and play, then put disc in and only file was an installer for steam?
werent games so much easier when you could just bring it home, and install and play, rather than wait and download it, despite the fact you have the CD with the game on it

[Asparagus]

In the modern days its just more convenient to get digital copies. If i'd have to keep CD's for all games i own i'd need a new apartment and i dont think im the only one with this problem. Of course it was easier because you didnt need the internet for it but it had other unique drawbacks. (Broken/Scratched CD's to name the biggest) Would i go back? No. Do i still enjoy to use CD's from old games i have owned for years? Yea.

[Daxank]

Originally posted by :(:

In the modern days its just more convenient to get digital copies. If i'd have to keep CD's for all games i own i'd need a new apartment and i dont think im the only one with this problem. Of course it was easier because you didnt need the internet for it but it had other unique drawbacks. (Broken/Scratched CD's to name the biggest) Would i go back? No. Do i still enjoy to use CD's from old games i have owned for years? Yea.

/thread

[Crazy Tiger]

I still get physical copies, though for the consoles. Only times I get them in a retail store, though, is when there is some sort of discount (trade in games for X discount on a new title). Last time I did that was when RDR 2 released.

However, most of the times I buy them in an online store at a severe discount, I'll then get them the next day.

Convenience is a thing. I'm just glad I don't have to use cds anymore for pc games. Downloading for me is rather quick, so there is no issue.

[xSOSxHawkens]

You can still have this. Its call GOG + External archive drive.

DRM Free, offline installs, local only installs, legacy machine support, legacy OS support, modern OS support, and if you dont have fast net just use coffe shop wifi to make the intial one time download of new titles, similar to going to the store to buy a game, but you buy coffe and watch an episode of some show on netflix and relax while the game is downloading.

I used to be a major supporter of Steam, but the fact is that I have games on here that though they *can* be run with a *ton* of work arounds on modern OS's, were purchased *on* steam *on* windows XP, and on such a machine work flawlessly without any workarounds needed.

Not everyone has legacy rigs, but I do, and the fact that I can no longer access the games, in some cases on the litteral hardware they were purchased on, has led me to seek out any and all titles I can away from steam, mainly (if available) to GOG. Then I have a copy that not only works well on moern rigs, but can be treated the same as an OG CD/DVD copy (even burnt to a disc if I want) and used on any system with windows.

[Mr Jt (Gog is king)]

Originally posted by paranormal_18:

I used to like it when you could just go into your local game store such as EB, or whatever, buy your game on CD/DVD and go home and put the disc in and install it. It would take maybe 5-10 mins to install and you would be playing it within 10-15....suddenly one day that changed when i first purchased homefront, i thought i would sit down, install it off CD and play, then put disc in and only file was an installer for steam?
werent games so much easier when you could just bring it home, and install and play, rather than wait and download it, despite the fact you have the CD with the game on it

Yes of course it was better and you also owned your games but on gog for example are drm free games where don’t need a launcher and also no cd so you can own your games.I also like to buy physical for consoles on pc it makes no sense bc without the launcher it wouldn’t run but there is still hope that thing can become great again

[Jej]

I also miss the goodies games often came with such as a manual and the "Feelies" some games used as a form of copy protection.

Hell, most games nowadays don't even provide a PDF download. Rockstar Games manuals were great because they weren't strictly manuals but also provided some humorous tidbits about the game world.

While GOG does help bridge the gap between retail and digital (as they often provide goodies with the games and allow for one to burn the installer to a disc without any need for online authentication) I still miss the days of going to the store and getting a physical product.

[Chris]

I prefer ownership over ^^convenience^^ i pay a lot of money so i don’t just want to have a license to play them.Physical games are the best way or drm free but games with drm i always buy cheaper

[Crazy Tiger]

Originally posted by Jej:

I also miss the goodies games often came with such as a manual

Manuals. Always loved them. Still have the Codename Panzer ones with all the unit descriptions.

Originally posted by Chris:

I prefer ownership over ^^convenience^^ i pay a lot of money so i don’t just want to have a license to play them.Physical games are the best way or drm free but games with drm i always buy cheaper

You always had a license. You only ever actually owned the coaster, sorry cd/dvd.

It's actually one of the main reasons publishers went digital. They now can actually enforce the licensing.

[Mr Jt (Gog is king)]

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:

Originally posted by Jej:

I also miss the goodies games often came with such as a manual

Manuals. Always loved them. Still have the Codename Panzer ones with all the unit descriptions.

Originally posted by Chris:

I prefer ownership over ^^convenience^^ i pay a lot of money so i don’t just want to have a license to play them.Physical games are the best way or drm free but games with drm i always buy cheaper

You always had a license. You only ever actually owned the coaster, sorry cd/dvd.

It's actually one of the main reasons publishers went digital. They now can actually enforce the licensing.

If you had a physical game you actually owned the game.There will always be a need for physical games and i hope they are coming back for pc

[Crazy Tiger]

Originally posted by Jt:

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:

Manuals. Always loved them. Still have the Codename Panzer ones with all the unit descriptions.


You always had a license. You only ever actually owned the coaster, sorry cd/dvd.

It's actually one of the main reasons publishers went digital. They now can actually enforce the licensing.

If you had a physical game you actually owned the game.There will always be a need for physical games and i hope they are coming back for pc

No, you owned the medium it came on. You had a license to play the game. Never read the EULA's and such, I see.

[xSOSxHawkens]

Originally posted by Jt:

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:

Manuals. Always loved them. Still have the Codename Panzer ones with all the unit descriptions.


You always had a license. You only ever actually owned the coaster, sorry cd/dvd.

It's actually one of the main reasons publishers went digital. They now can actually enforce the licensing.

If you had a physical game you actually owned the game.There will always be a need for physical games and i hope they are coming back for pc

depends on the game, the platform, the country, and the year that the statement is made sadly :/

But on the basis of what it *should* be, yes, you are correct. Just as you own a book to do with as you will, and a painting to do with as you will, so too should one own the game/software they buy. Note that does *not* mean that you can repaint the painting slightly and sell it as yours, nor does that mean you can plagerise the book, nor does that mean you can copy or re-sell the game.

But it *should* be your individual copy to do anything with personally you choose. Period.

[Chris]

Everything is possible but if physical games would come back for pc they are probably in another format but gog is on the same level and you don’t even need a launcher or cd just put it on an extern hard drive and you are good to go

[Mr Jt (Gog is king)]

Originally posted by xSOSxHawkens:

Originally posted by Jt:

If you had a physical game you actually owned the game.There will always be a need for physical games and i hope they are coming back for pc

depends on the game, the platform, the country, and the year that the statement is made sadly :/

But on the basis of what it *should* be, yes, you are correct. Just as you own a book to do with as you will, and a painting to do with as you will, so too should one own the game/software they buy. Note that does *not* mean that you can repaint the painting slightly and sell it as yours, nor does that mean you can plagerise the book, nor does that mean you can copy or re-sell the game.

But it *should* be your individual copy to do anything with personally you choose. Period.

Of course the new ones need a launcher so you just have a license but yeah i was talking about the past games

[xSOSxHawkens]

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:

Originally posted by Jt:

If you had a physical game you actually owned the game.There will always be a need for physical games and i hope they are coming back for pc

No, you owned the medium it came on. You had a license to play the game. Never read the EULA's and such, I see.

EULA's are not always enforcable, nor do they always have limitations that will be upheld, nor do their restrictions on ownership always apply...

JohnDeer tried to say that their EULA's protected the software in their tractors from being modded by farmers to get better performance, they claimed the farmers broke the EULA and that JD had reason to claim damages they would have gotten in sales from better equipped tractors had the farmers not hacked their software and broken the EULA to get better engine performance.

JD lost. Their EULA did not mean that the owners of the tractor couldnt change/locally coppy/add/remove/modify *their* property with *their* copy of the software. the tractor in this exact argument would be no different than the CD, or than an embeded device pre-installed with software, ie, its only the carrier/runner of the software.

If one device with software can be "owned" under the law (including right to do with that software as you please under copy write protections) then *all* devices can be. There should be no defining line between the software that runs on a tractor in the field and the software that runs on any other device anywhere. Software is software and computer hardware is computer hardware, the chassis its in is nothing but a wrapper to fit the end goals, much like the software.

[Mr Jt (Gog is king)]

Originally posted by xSOSxHawkens:

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:

No, you owned the medium it came on. You had a license to play the game. Never read the EULA's and such, I see.

EULA's are not always enforcable, nor do they always have limitations that will be upheld, nor do their restrictions on ownership always apply...

JohnDeer tried to say that their EULA's protected the software in their tractors from being modded by farmers to get better performance, they claimed the farmers broke the EULA and that JD had reason to claim damages they would have gotten in sales from better equipped tractors had the farmers not hacked their software and broken the EULA to get better engine performance.

JD lost. Their EULA did not mean that the owners of the tractor couldnt change/locally coppy/add/remove/modify *their* property with *their* copy of the software. the tractor in this exact argument would be no different than the CD, or than an embeded device pre-installed with software, ie, its only the carrier/runner of the software.

If one device with software can be "owned" under the law (including right to do with that software as you please under copy write protections) then *all* devices can be. There should be no defining line between the software that runs on a tractor in the field and the software that runs on any other device anywhere. Software is software and computer hardware is computer hardware, the chassis its in is nothing but a wrapper to fit the end goals, much like the software.

It’s just convenient what steam does but the best way for customers was in the past but gog continues this legacy and who knows maybe we see physical medium for pc coming back