Dark Souls PC removes Games for Windows Live, now Steamworks

[Bateluer]

http://steamcommunity.com/games/211420/announcements/detail/206368522048405952

You can now update your Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die Edition for PC game to replace the Games for Windows Live functionality with Steamworks functionality. The update is available from today – December 15th and will let you keep both your Save Data and Achievements.
Please read below or visit http://steamcommunity.com/app/211420/discussions/0/626329187083042093/093/ to read the update process.

If you played or are currently playing Dark Souls™ Prepare To Die Edition, you will be able to update and keep your Save Data and Achievements. The Save Data and Achievements transfer service is being provided from December 15th to February 16th. From February 16th, the new version using Steamworks functionalities will become the default version of the game.

Dark Souls Prepare to Die Edition has been on a couple Steam sales now and I always hold off because the Steam Forums for it were nothing but people having GFWL issues. And after GFWL catastrophically failed in Batman Arkham for me, I wasn't eager to try again.

 

[Rhezuss]

Will this be the same thing with every GFWL on Steam?
On top of my head: Fallout 3, Fable 3 (games that are on my list)

 

[ControlD]

This is good news. Maybe I will actually try to play Dark Souls this time.

 

[Dahak]

Will this be the same thing with every GFWL on Steam?
On top of my head: Fallout 3, Fable 3 (games that are on my list)

I cant remember now, but I believe you can add your GFWL key for Fallout 3 to steam and as steam removed the need for GFWL it should work.

Now again I cant remember if this is what i did or i just picked up the FO3 GOTY on sale for super cheap

 

[ControlD]

I cant remember now, but I believe you can add your GFWL key for Fallout 3 to steam and as steam removed the need for GFWL it should work.

Now again I cant remember if this is what i did or i just picked up the FO3 GOTY on sale for super cheap

I just played FO3 GOTY a couple of months ago. The first thing that popped up when I installed it was the GFWL login screen. I actually had to install a mod to get it to go away.

 

[ImpulsE69]

I saw this last night and tried it. MOst people have had issues with it and I coudln't even log into live to do it.

DSFIx doesn't work after you've done it.

 

[TheSlamma]

Nice.. I've been meaning to go back through this one again, DS2 while I really liked it, was way easy in comparison and I hated the weight/encumbrance system in 2

 

[Hinda65]

I saw this last night and tried it. MOst people have had issues with it and I coudln't even log into live to do it.

DSFIx doesn't work after you've done it.

Thanks for that info.....I'm about 3/4 of the way done with the game and was cautious about switching over for that reason (DSFIX). If I remember reading correct, the game will play through steam with GFWL save files through February?

Has anyone switched and had DSFIX work?

****Edit**** looks like there is already a new dsfix 2.3
http://blog.metaclassofnil.com/?p=652

have not tried it but i'm about half way through all the posts on the steam forum and folks are saying it's working.
I've never had any problems playing the game through steam with GFWL save files.

 

[Xonim]

Yessssssssssssssssss.

Perhaps I will actually play it now.

 

[EDUSAN]

what changes? its easier to join someone and play together i guess

but how does it affects being invaded and those things?

 

[Hinda65]

what changes? its easier to join someone and play together i guess

but how does it affects being invaded and those things?

The only thing that will change is no need for GFWL...As long as your online through steam you can invade/be invaded. As far as co-op, i'm not sure...I think you'd still to use the summons signs to hook up for co-op?

 

[futurefields]

Is this just my flawed observation?

People complain about GFWL but online connectivity under Steamworks seams to be a lot worse.

Take for example when SF4 switched over to Steamworks, a lot of people can't play that game online now.

Seems like a case of be careful what you wish for, the GFWL hate cuz now people are unable to play some games after switching.

 

[Rakehellion]

I thought Windows Live was discontinued years ago.

 

[Hinda65]

Agreed....Lots of posts about people not being able to play DS now...Some of that is probably stupidity but I would assume not have to switch save files for fear that something will get borked..

 

[ImpulsE69]

I'm probably just going to have to start over at some point. I haven't been able to get into Live for months and so it only ever starts in offline mode anyway. I truly f'ing hate always online saving BS. If anything needs to die it is that. I feel you should be able to sue any company that uses it and you can't get to your save files. Consumers need a ToS to counter this BS.

 

[Artorias]

The transfer went very smooth however there is one very huge flaw.

By default, Steamworks games are region locked, for DS this means online play is limited to your country which entirely kills pvp. The DS community is very international as I encounter more players from EU than the US with GFWL.

Im in Canada by the way and online activity is dead, even though there are 3000-6000 players on concurrently.

Hopefully it gets sorted otherwise the steam transition will all but kill pvp activity.

Other than that the network code of the game is much better, I've experienced zero failed summons, with GFWL I would literally would have to try more than 5 times to summon.

Edit: Good news on the region locking issue as the developers are looking at resolving the issue. https://twitter.com/JKartje/status/545356163051573248

 

[Hinda65]

The transfer went very smooth however there is one very huge flaw.

By default, Steamworks games are region locked, for DS this means online play is limited to your country which entirely kills pvp. The DS community is very international as I encounter more players from EU than the US with GFWL.

Im in Canada by the way and online activity is dead, even though there are 3000-6000 players on concurrently.

Hopefully it gets sorted otherwise the steam transition will all but kill pvp activity.

Other than that the network code of the game is much better, I've experienced zero failed summons, with GFWL I would literally would have to try more than 5 times to summon.

Edit: Good news on the region locking issue as the developers are looking at resolving the issue. https://twitter.com/JKartje/status/545356163051573248

did you use the new dsfix? Do you play with mouse/keyboard or controller...I'm mainly concerned about no mouse support...seems like dsmfix doesn't work with the new 2.3 dsfix

 

[Artorias]

did you use the new dsfix? Do you play with mouse/keyboard or controller...I'm mainly concerned about no mouse support...seems like dsmfix doesn't work with the new 2.3 dsfix

I'm using DSfix 2.3. While I prefer in most games to use M+KB, a game like Dark Souls feels so much better for me with a controller, so I use a X360 controller and having no issues with that so far.

I think you're just going to need to wait it out for a new version of the mouse fix.