Steam's Family Sharing is really right now, "Family Rental"

[X-ZEV]

Hello there fellow PC Gamers!

I would to start by saying that it is great news Steam has decided to go for their own Steam Machine/OS/Big Picture, taking away the anoying (for me personally), Xbox and PlayStation dominating presence that has destroyed much of what we see as gaming today, as I grew up when PC's used to dominate, which was a lot better than paying for literally using The Internet to play games on the Xbox/PlayStation, as well as the overpriced and unspec piece of garbage these consoles are. I just hope we return to proper games and no COD + COD Spinoffs, overpriced titles and unfinished games.

I really enjoyed the fact that Steam's Family Sharing allows you to connect your same Steam account with the rest of the family, however... This is not the case, as if I would like to use a second Steam account on the same computer, it would actually crash/make errors/force a restart for me, without any notification but for stopping me play on Steam, this is a pain, but this isn't the case I am trying to make explicitly, what I am trying to make a case of, is how they have a stupidly thought out feature of limiting 5 accounts to one device out of a max of 10, yet don't even mention how you can only "Rent Games" from the main account, for example, if one account is playing downstairs on SteamOS with Europa Universalis IV on a Steam Machine, every other account bar for the Main one cannot play Europa Universalis IV, but if the main account selected Europa Universalis IV, the account playing the game will be forced to save and exit within 5 minutes, as it will close and lock the game from the account, coming up with a pay now button...

This blows out Steam's opportunity to take PC Gaming to the market and succeed in Family Sharing, as it is literally a "Family Rental" service at the moment, as clearly stated above by myself, very disappointing Steam, its hard enough advertising people to buy PC Titles, due to Microsoft's horrific unsecured OS's and a bunch of kid hackers DDoSing and Identity Frauding people as they play a game for a few minutes, it used to be because the kids were anoyed for losing, but now they do it for no reason, other than they can, I still play on the PC, but on Ubuntu Linux, which SteamOS runs from, so please for the love of god, sort out this ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ forsaken issue before we see the end os Steam's Machine for good. As nobody will buy something you have to pay for, just to literally play the same game on two different machines... Me Included.

[El poco nuez del muerte]

Originally posted by Imperator:

As nobody will buy something you have to pay for, just to literally play the same game on two different machines... Me Included.

I'm not sure I understand, you can play the same game on two different computers. Not at the same time of course, that would basically be giving out one game for free.

[X-ZEV]

Originally posted by El poco nuez del muerte:

Originally posted by Imperator:

As nobody will buy something you have to pay for, just to literally play the same game on two different machines... Me Included.

I'm not sure I understand, you can play the same game on two different computers. Not at the same time of course, that would basically be giving out one game for free.

You should be able to play the same game on two accounts at the same time, as I mentioned before.

[Silicon Vampire]

My family uses it as intended quite a bit.

We all have our own accounts with our own games but if one of us wants to try something before we get it for our own accounts, we can do so easily when one of us already has it...

Now I'm not stating we always buy another copy but that's what often happens. Usually during a sale. :)

[X-ZEV]

Originally posted by Silicon Vampire:

My family uses it as intended quite a bit.

We all have our own accounts with our own games but if one of us wants to try something before we get it for our own accounts, we can do so easily when one of us already has it...

Now I'm not stating we always buy another copy but that's what often happens. Usually during a sale. :)

So your asking new Console > PC and PC people alike, to buy the game 5 times for one family, I don't think so.

[Silicon Vampire]

Originally posted by Imperator:

Originally posted by Silicon Vampire:

My family uses it as intended quite a bit.

We all have our own accounts with our own games but if one of us wants to try something before we get it for our own accounts, we can do so easily when one of us already has it...

Now I'm not stating we always buy another copy but that's what often happens. Usually during a sale. :)

So you asking new Console > PC and PC people alike, to buy the game 5 times for one family, I don't think so.

I am not asking you to do anything, just stating how we use the feature. As intended, which works well for us.

[El poco nuez del muerte]

Originally posted by Imperator:

You should be able to play the same game on two accounts at the same time, as I mentioned before.

Why? That essentially means that you want two products for the price of one. What is the justification for that?

I mean, yes, I get it, why buy the game 5 times for one family. I think you overestimate the importance of family in this case. If 5 people want to play the same game at the same time, they are 5 customers who want 5 products. But you want to pay only once. Of course it doesn't work that way.

[X-ZEV]

Originally posted by El poco nuez del muerte:

Originally posted by Imperator:

You should be able to play the same game on two accounts at the same time, as I mentioned before.

Why? That essentially means that you want two products for the price of one. What is the justification for that?

I mean, yes, I get it, why buy the game 5 times for one family. I think you overestimate the importance of family in this case. If 5 people want to play the same game at the same time, they are 5 customers who want 5 products. But you want to pay only once. Of course it doesn't work that way.

Yeah well, no Console gamer with common sense is going to want to use Steam on PC and or on any Steam Machine, if you can't play without anyone else through your account. As no games are split screen I know about, plus it feels too much like a Single User experience, built on forcing 5 people like I said, to buy the same game, instead of just going with the normal limits of 5 users per 1 device, to a max of 10 devices, which makes more sense, Family Sharing = Family Renting, as I said before, Two Products? Its the same as Family Renting, just without the limitation of 1 user, but 5.

[X-ZEV]

Originally posted by Silicon Vampire:

Originally posted by Imperator:

So you asking new Console > PC and PC people alike, to buy the game 5 times for one family, I don't think so.

I am not asking you to do anything, just stating how we use the feature. As intended, which works well for us.

I didn't mean to offend/imply anything by it :( Its just most people will want to use one account, it makes sense to have several accounts under that account, so you have seperate saves etc, cloud and so on, but simply having one user per a game and making out that Family Sharing is just for trying out the game before buying, is really backwards in terms of competing with the Console Titles, I have the Steam OS + A Very Powerful PC + More on the way, including Massively Powerful Games Controller, my own Hardware for a SteamOS on the way I wish to partner with Steam to sell, but I can't do that with this rediculous limit, as it kills the point of getting a Steam Machine in the first place... Why buy one? When you can't even play with other family members online? It is a common sense approach that needs to be taken here.

[Spawn of Totoro]

If you want to comare it to a console then...most house hold only have a single unit of a specific console.

If you want to play single player, you are still restricted to a single copy for those 5 people.

If you include multiplayer, then it is a local game as online multiplayer for two people on the same system, tends not to be supported on a console either. A game having local multiplayer is decided by the developer, not by Steam or who ever made the console.

The restrictions between Family Sharing and those of a Console are very similar.

Finaly, there is already a Discussion board for this, so feel free to discuss the matter further there.

Thank you.

http://steamcommunity.com/groups/familysharing/discussions