Should I buy games or get them off of steam?

[Rifter]

Wut? Only Steam would need to be "Cracked". They'd just remove Code from Steam that does a Check or add a Null Server that returns an OK back.

this x2 and it has already happened.

Before i went bonkers on steam games(have over 200 now) I downloaded a cracked steam client just to make sure that i had a out if valve ever did go under, and on the 5 games i tried they all worked on the cracked steam client. So its not like you dont have options if steam does ever go away, im sure some of the online aspects/servers/community will not work on a cracked client but i consider the price of most steam games(only buy games on sale) low enough that if i did lose a few online features it would still be worth it. my .02

 

[pcslookout]

this x2 and it has already happened.

Before i went bonkers on steam games(have over 200 now) I downloaded a cracked steam client just to make sure that i had a out if valve ever did go under, and on the 5 games i tried they all worked on the cracked steam client. So its not like you dont have options if steam does ever go away, im sure some of the online aspects/servers/community will not work on a cracked client but i consider the price of most steam games(only buy games on sale) low enough that if i did lose a few online features it would still be worth it. my .02

I would be very careful about doing that because I seen plenty of accounts VAC ban for stuff like this. Then again what do I know. Don't care if someone uses it but do you really want to make your account useless and have to buy all your games all over again ?

 

[pcslookout]

Steam games could be free and they still would not convert me.

 

[CPA]

OP, I used to be a collector of sorts, but with Steam I find it hard to buy a physical copy. Just don't want to go through the hassle of the discs.

 

[skace]

I'm a huge collector, I've got crates in my basement full of video game boxes. But even so I've converted 90% of my gaming over to Steam. Now, as far as collecting physical media goes, I look for things that jump out at me, for instance the WoW CE is an impressive collectors item because of how big the game ended up being. I tend to stick to CEs and Limited Editions for any collecting now and usually for games that are either incredibly unique or incredibly important to the chronology of gaming as a whole.

It's a shame, but the reality is that Steam's convenience > my desire to grow my collection.

For example: I was using someone's laptop in a hotel, nowhere near my home, and I installed Steam and then downloaded Super Meat Boy relatively quickly just to play. That kind of convenience is godlike.

 

[BurnItDwn]

I buy games through steam vs buying physical media copies. It's MUCH more convenient.

The only advantage of physical media is that when I'm done with a game I can give or lend it to a friend, but I'm not about to let anybody else know my steam login/pw info....

 

[HybridSquirrel]

Your thread title implies that Steam gives games away for free.

they practically do sometimes (and with their current promotion they are giving games away for free)

 

[heat901]

Get with the times grandpa and use steam or other digital downloading services. Only reason I would not use them if 1) I had horrible internet access with limited speeds or bandwidth(and even they you can probably would around that) 2) Found it cheaper on Amazon or something like that 3) Are afraid of the internets!!!!

 

[Throckmorton]

Get with the times grandpa and use steam or other digital downloading services. Only reason I would not use them if 1) I had horrible internet access with limited speeds or bandwidth(and even they you can probably would around that) 2) Found it cheaper on Amazon or something like that 3) Are afraid of the internets!!!!

I disagree. Steam is the only good "digital" download provider. The rest of them suck. Their downloads expire, require activations, have expiring keys, etc.

Steam is simple, easy, and it always just works. You don't even have to redownload and reinstall games when you reinstall Windows.

 

[Throckmorton]

I am not actually apposed to Steam in anyway. I just downloaded some games. Steam really is not so much the issue as is having some physical ownership and value. I would like to buy the games in a box too. I would be more then happy to spend the $50.00 or so if I valued the game and thought it might have some lasting power. Probably why I still own copies of Monkey Island, Indiana Jones... I would just like the additional option. Having the game on my hard drive is fine. I can burn it to CD too but it is just not the same.

Well with Steam, it's not just on your hard drive. You can download any time you want from Steam. You can also copy the folder, move it to a different computer, etc.

BTW, Monkey Island is on Steam

 

[zerogear]

I disagree. Steam is the only good "digital" download provider. The rest of them suck. Their downloads expire, require activations, have expiring keys, etc.

Steam is simple, easy, and it always just works. You don't even have to redownload and reinstall games when you reinstall Windows.

GOG and Impulse is pretty good. D2D requires activation on some of the games depending on publisher.

 

[Jadow]

I was like that too, but the whole CD/DVD install process just got old for me. I like Steam / GOG.com WAY better now and don't buy physical media any more.

Besides if you want for deals, you can get some killer prices with digital downloads.

 

[Pia]

I'll only consider buying from Steam when the game is so cheap, Steam could go belly up in a month and I'd have gotten my money's worth. Otherwise, physical copy please.
(Except when those also have online activation, in which case it's back to "sub $10 price or no sale".)

 

[The Boston Dangler]

i like steam, but not love.

access to tons of games (although i'll not care for 99.9% of them)
good sales
ease of use (mostly)

user interface has been upgraded from mid-90's to late 90's. it's still terrible.
close on exit? no.
technical hiccups
no refunds for broken-ass games

 

[thedosbox]

I disagree. Steam is the only good "digital" download provider. The rest of them suck. Their downloads expire, require activations, have expiring keys, etc.

Steam is simple, easy, and it always just works. You don't even have to redownload and reinstall games when you reinstall Windows.

Games which require "activation" on other download services still need to do so on Steam.

GOG downloads never expire, don't require activation, don't need the GOG client installed and can be backed up by simply copying the file.

 

[Turtleshell]

I love Steam!

 

[ImpulsE69]

I've only purchased 2 games through Steam as of yet. I think there are different levels of hesitation involved here. The biggest for me is simply if I don't like it, I can't sell it off. I'm just out. On the other hand, if I'm only buying the $10 and lower bargain bin sales, it's not so much an issue. Let's face it, unless you get collectors editions today, games barely even come with instruction manuals, let alone all the fancy stuff they used to.

I will say those that pay full price on Steam for a game they could have got retail for same price are just..well..insane and lazy.

 

[Throckmorton]

Games which require "activation" on other download services still need to do so on Steam.

GOG downloads never expire, don't require activation, don't need the GOG client installed and can be backed up by simply copying the file.

I've never heard of GOG. With Steam though I've never had a game fail to activate automatically and require any phone calls etc.

 

[Throckmorton]

I've only purchased 2 games through Steam as of yet. I think there are different levels of hesitation involved here. The biggest for me is simply if I don't like it, I can't sell it off. I'm just out. On the other hand, if I'm only buying the $10 and lower bargain bin sales, it's not so much an issue. Let's face it, unless you get collectors editions today, games barely even come with instruction manuals, let alone all the fancy stuff they used to.

I will say those that pay full price on Steam for a game they could have got retail for same price are just..well..insane and lazy.

People still sell games? You'd recover, what... $5 out of $50?


It's not insane and lazy to want to never have to worry about a DVD being scratched or lost, making copies of your key, or reinstalling a game (you don't have to reinstall Steam games if you switch computers or reinstall Windows)

 

[Rifter]

I would be very careful about doing that because I seen plenty of accounts VAC ban for stuff like this. Then again what do I know. Don't care if someone uses it but do you really want to make your account useless and have to buy all your games all over again ?

No kidding, dont worry though i was running behind my server/firewall which i reprogrammed for the test and there is no way my computer was getting online while i was playing around with the cracked client.

 

[Phynaz]

No kidding, dont worry though i was running behind my server/firewall which i reprogrammed for the test and there is no way my computer was getting online while i was playing around with the cracked client.

Who told you that you had to get online?

Edit: Oh, client, not game.

 

[coloumb]

2 things I don't like about STEAM:

[1] Their gift policy - Per the TOS, you're not allowed to sell a gift. You paid for the gift - you should be able to do whatever the hell you want it. STEAM is getting paid - why should they care if you want to sell it to someone else?

[2] If your account is banned - [I assume] you lose access to all of your games unless they are installed on your computer [which you can then just use alternative methods to play the games you paid for]

 

[skace]

2 things I don't like about STEAM:

[1] Their gift policy - Per the TOS, you're not allowed to sell a gift. You paid for the gift - you should be able to do whatever the hell you want it. STEAM is getting paid - why should they care if you want to sell it to someone else?

[2] If your account is banned - [I assume] you lose access to all of your games unless they are installed on your computer [which you can then just use alternative methods to play the games you paid for]

The one thing I hate about Steam's gift system is the fact that you even have to choose whether a game is a gift or for yourself. Steam already has a mechanism in place where if you buy 2 copies of a game, it queues it under your giftable items. So why can't I buy 3 copies of something in addition to that game I want and then have it all go to my giftable queue to distribute later? No, they make you select the recipient on purchase which is silly. I expect they will upgrade the cart checkout process soon though since the giftable items menu makes it completely obsolete.