Steam: Invasive crap software

[CVSiN]

Yes, I disappeared for a whole two hours. Insecure much? Sorry, I had to go pack up, since I'm going to move my whole house to secure an appropriate internet connection just to play this game as some of our more... intelligent posters... suggested <not>.

The steam requirement was not originally listed on the Amazon page. They got numerous complaints and have now added it. It's good to see that they corrected their issue. Do a simple google search to confirm it if you'd like to actually be informed...

I feel truly bad for the non-technically inclined. No wonder so many folks have moved to consoles. I have to know the 'tricks' to run the game I just bought? I have to know how to fix steam when it screws up, which appears to be very very often judging by the internet hits, and since people here even know how to 'fix' it.

It's all so ridiculous. I wish there was a way to force these stupid companies to see that.

I'm sorry if you cant figure out Steam.. you shouldn't have a computer in the first place.. it's easier than windows..

there are no issues with it connecting or updating or anything else unless there is an outage..
which is solved by hitting the OFFLINE MODE button.. which is soo hard..

I'm sorry even my GF can and does use Steam with ease..
it's literally not rocket science..

but then again the OP is still on a 28k baud modem and a 386 apparently.. so it may seem like it to him..

It's not like it was a big secret even if Amazon DIDN'T list it that it was secured by Steamworks. it was all over the net.

Sorry but even Navy ships in the middle of the ocean have high speed internet now...
get satellite or quit your whining.. or go play Nintendo with the console kiddies.

 

[dpodblood]

While I agree with the OP on the principle that retail games should not require an internet connection to play, Steam is probably the best, and most acceptable form of DRM out there. The pro's is offers far outweighs the cons. It is unfortunate you have difficulties connecting to the service, but once you are connected to it once you can switch over to offline and not need to worry about it anymore.

 

[shingletingle]

Patience young padawan, you don't seem to understand what physically purchasing the game means. See, you get this DVD to install it from. It's really quite handy when a piece of software that has nothing to do with the game uninstalls it without your permission.

While you're at it, tell me where it says "STEAM REQUIRED".

http://www.amazon.com/Elder-Scrolls-...2677474&amp;sr=8-1

Um...it says it right here under Product Features which I found at the very link you provided.

Product Features
Platform: PC | Edition: Standard
Skyrim reimagines the open-world fantasy epic, pushing the game play and technology of a virtual world to new heights
Play any type of character you can imagine, and do whatever you want; the legendary freedom of choice, storytelling
Skyrim's new game engine brings to life a complete virtual world with rolling clouds, rugged mountains, bustling cities, lush fields
Choose from hundreds of weapons, spells, and abilities; the new character system allows you to play any way you want
Requires internet connection and free steam account to activate

 

[Schfifty Five]

LOL I can't believe this. You linked us a web page and asked us to look for something, we found it for you, and you came back with this excuse.

Why is it so hard to just admit that you didn't see it?

Because he's one of those people who thinks he's entitled to whatever it is he's complaining about, and if anyone even remotely disagrees or proves him wrong, he gets all defensive.

He's the kind of person you can't reason with even if you have all the proof in the world that what he's complaining about is wrong.

LOL, even those that honestly give him a non-threatening, no-attack, useful post, he will still reply with a slight hint of snideness.

 

[ImpulsE69]

*yawn* the fact that the OP vented here and expected any different responses than he got shows he either doesn't get on the net much therefore probably wouldn't know, or is trolling. Either way, the majority of replies show exactly whats wrong with the attitude of the world today.

Grow up.

 

[rivethead]

It's all so ridiculous. I wish there was a way to force these stupid companies to see that.

Here are my suggestions:

1) Bitch and moan about it on a PC gaming forum full of people who really should be playing PC games.
2) Join you local OWS potest/campout.

Both should have an equal amount of impact at forcing the stupid companies to see your pov.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

http://www.amazon.com/review/R3EBOVZ...res_rtr_alt_48

(UPDATE: since writing this review, Amazon did add one line to the product description mentioning the Steam requirement. That was solely due to the effort of one reviewer, Eric DiPier, who knew about something called the "catalogue update form" and used it to get Amazon to update their product description on 11/14/11. Kudos to Eric!)

 

[Dankk]

Either way, the majority of replies show exactly whats wrong with the attitude of the world today.

Yeah, I think we've gone a little too far with the responses.

OP lives in the middle of nowhere, probably doesn't go online much, buys a PC game without realizing it requires online activation. He doesn't know how to use Steam and ends up ragequitting.

He's already activated the game, so there isn't much he can do at this point (except... uhh... actually play it.)

I think he's learned his lesson. 4 pages of ragging on him is probably enough.

 

[Schfifty Five]

Yeah, I think we've gone a little too far with the responses.

OP lives in the middle of nowhere, probably doesn't go online much, buys a PC game without realizing it requires online activation. He doesn't know how to use Steam and ends up ragequitting.

He's already activated the game, so there isn't much he can do at this point (except... uhh... actually play it.)

I think he's learned his lesson. 4 pages of ragging on him is probably enough.

It's only 1 page for me. 100 posts/page is the only way to go.

 

[Dankk]

I love reading Amazon user reviews for PC games that are Steamworks titles. Lots of ignorance and general incompetence/misunderstandings. And for some reason - who knows why - they always write Steam's name all-caps. "This game uses a 3rd-party spyware called STEAM! Avoid this game cuz it uses STEAM!"

 

[Childs]

With respect, not having internet in a developed country is very rare and I doubt ID Software had people like your cousin in mind when they decided on the DRM for Rage.

I like a simple activation over the internet. No annoying SecureROM or having to have a disc in the drive. Plus Steam also does all the patching for me so I don't even need to worry about trawling the internet looking for some patch that was released three years ago from a website that's down.

Well, the family members I'm talking about live 30 miles from Silicon Valley. My mother, who lives 60 miles away from SV, and 10 mins from a 100K+ city, lives in a gated community. Takes big bucks to live there, and there is no wired broadband internet there. Only wireless, which costs $40 a month and can barely stream 360p Youtube videos...when the wind isn't blowing.

I agree that they didn't have these kinds of people in mind. But they are also not that uncommon. Its not that Steam is bad, but that the service should account for those that dont have internet access. Heck, outsource a 2 person call center to India to handle the calls. Maybe they should have a way to activate at the retail store, but I'm sure the retail store doesnt want to encourage people to use Steam.

 

[gothamhunter]

All of the time you spent ranting on the forums and trying to defend yourself could have been spent trying to "figure out" Steam and get it to "work"; the same amount of effort as my younger sister gave so she could buy The Sims on Steam.

(She got it working and is playing it just fine, by the way!)

 

[KMFJD]

Before the last patch you did not have to run steam after initial installation, just had to run tesv.exe...jackass's just patched that out, what a pita

/and lol at those suggesting satellite

 

[irishScott]

Well, as long as you have 56k internet I guess you're fucked. A large enough portion of the world has advanced beyond that point for games like Skyrim to sell on steam, in droves. So I guess games like Skyrim are effectively not available to people like you. Sucks, if you want modern tech I guess you'll have to wait, move, or pay for satellite. In the meantime I suggest you read labels and don't waste your money.

Oh and there is apparently broadband available in a lot of rural areas as of 2009: http://www.dailyyonder.com/broadband-connection-highs-and-lows-across-rural-america/2009/02/11/1921

 

[frozentundra123456]

Alright. Rant time.

Steam is the biggest piece of bullshit software I've ever dealt with.

I purchased skyrim on release. No warning from the seller that steam was *required* to play this game. Upon getting it I was pretty f*n upset, because I live out in the boonies and have basically 56k. So steam took close to a day to do it's crap install.

Ok. Fine, I can cope with that I suppose. I mean, not being able to play a game I bought.....

So I go in to play. And steam has to connect. WTF? Did I buy the game, or did I buy steam? 15 minutes later, it finishes connecting. Then it starts popping crap up. "Steam News"? wtf? I just want to play my game!

So I'm finally there. I get to play my game. I play for a bit, then log out and shut off the computer. The next day.... I have to wait for steam again! Another 10 minute wait. Then I see it pop up that I've played for xx amount of time. WTF? So now valve is monitoring how long I'm playing my video game? Ok. That's pretty freaking intrusive. I don't remember giving them the "ok" for that, but I guess that's one of the features when I install the game.

Next day, I can't log in to steam. It sits. And sits. So I start looking around on the internet, and find thousands of posts complaining about the same thing over the last 4 years. Really Valve? You're going to force me to log in on the internet to play a game I bought, and you can't get your damn software to function right?

Fine. So I keep looking for solutions. Most suggest uninstalling and reinstalling steam. Fine, I can do that and wait all over again to play the game I own.

Only I can't. Because uninstalling steam, without asking, also uninstalled my game. Skyrim is now gone off my computer. Was that enough though? Of course not! It also deleted close to a gig of other downloads like texture improvements that I spent time downloading and installing to Skyrim.

Dear Valve - F* YOU. Dear Bethesda. F* You.

I purchased this game because I enjoyed Oblivion. PURCHASED. Now I'm going to go download a copy of a game from the torrents that I already own (no, it's not piracy folks, I bought the game) so that I can PLAY the game.

Burn in hell Valve and Bethesda.

Wait, if your internet is too crappy to run Steam, isnt it just as crappy for torrents??

I do agree with you though, that a game you buy at retail should not require steam to play. I resent these Steamworks games as well, and feel if I legitmately purchased the game on DVD, I should not have to use steam to play it. I do believe though that if you read closely Skyrim did say that it is a "Steamworks" game. That is a sneaky way of saying that it requires steam to activate it. It might be nice to have the option to register a game on steam if you like its (steam) freatures, but I hate to be required to use steam.

If you want to play offline, just start the game in offline mode. That is start the game with your internet disconnected totally. Steam will allow you to play in offline mode. Then just be sure every time you start the game you are not connected. If you try to start with the internet connected, you will have to log in again, and even if you then disconnect you will not be able to play in offline mode until you have logged in.

 

[frozentundra123456]

OP seems upset.

Also, I've been a Steam user for 4 years now, and I don't think it's ever taken me more than a few seconds to connect. Maybe his computer, or his "56k" internet is to blame?

I have a decent DSL internet, and a decent computer, and still had extensive difficulty connecting to steam when they first started their new authentication procedures. I could not connect for several days and received virtually no support from Steam.

 

[frozentundra123456]

It's DRM. The game needs the Steam DRM. Get over it, it's better than the other DRM methods out there. Don't even bother looking at Ubisoft games with that shitty connection.

I have said this before, but I still dont understand why people give a pass to Steam, yet hate Ubisoft so much. Not meaning to criticize you, because most people feel the same way as you do, but I dont really understand the difference except that steam allows offline mode, which can be a pain to set up and can conflict with cloud saves.

 

[irishScott]

I have said this before, but I still dont understand why people give a pass to Steam, yet hate Ubisoft so much. Not meaning to criticize you, because most people feel the same way as you do, but I dont really understand the difference except that steam allows offline mode, which can be a pain to set up and can conflict with cloud saves.

It's a matter of quality of service. Steam is unobtrusive for most. Loading steam takes all of 7 seconds on my PC and then it's off to the races. It also provides great deals on games that you can't get anywhere else (find me another source for Mass Effect 2 for 5$ with free shipping).

Other forms of DRM on the other hand offer none of the above and are far more intrusive. The OP's lack of decent internet is at fault for his issues, not steam. Anyone who says steam should work over 56k apparently hasn't downloaded a 10 GB+ game over 56k. Takes weeks, patches would take days or weeks. Almost defeats the purpose of buying the game in the first place.

 

[Born2bwire]

I have said this before, but I still dont understand why people give a pass to Steam, yet hate Ubisoft so much. Not meaning to criticize you, because most people feel the same way as you do, but I dont really understand the difference except that steam allows offline mode, which can be a pain to set up and can conflict with cloud saves.

Mainly because Steam is many things in one and it does not need to be all of those things at once. The DRM is a choice done by the publisher. They can choose the methods of activation and they can also add on their own DRM on top of what Steam provides. Too many people treat Steam as being the entire chain for a game from development to sales. If a game has bugs (excepting Valve products here), that's not Steam's fault anymore than it is Amazon's. If the game requires internet connection, that's not Steam's fault that was the choice of the publisher/developer.

For the OP, it just comes down to that he needed to install Steam and use it to activate it via the internet. If it wasn't through Steam, it would be done through other methods. I just downloaded Mass Effect 2 from Amazon and I had to authenticate it via internet.

 

[NTAC]

I think the positives of Steam eclipse any minor negatives that come along with it.

One on-line library for all your games.. AWESOME!!
Not having to store boxes and CDs and sh1t in your house... AWESOME!!!
Not having to worry about losing boxes and CDs and stuff... AWESOME!!
Not having to worry about patching your games... AWESOME!!
The insane deals you get because of unlimited inventory... AWESOME!!

Seriously, it's pretty bad ass.

 

[Nebor]

Wait, if your internet is too crappy to run Steam, isnt it just as crappy for torrents??

This.

 

[coloumb]

OP sounds just like my father in law with regards to "Steamworks" games. He doesn't have the uber high speed broadband connection that a lot of us take for granted. It literally took him 3 days to download BFBC2 over an area wireless connection due to poor quality [my in laws are snowbirds - his connection at the Canadian resort way out in the county isn't much better than a 56k land line]. Now that he's in California - his connection is much more reliable/faster.

I despise the fact that a lot of games now require "steamworks" to install/play. It should be an option - not a requirement.

 

[spaceman]

maybe u should pawn one of the lcds
and 6950s for couple yrs of real net
lol that machine on dial up is like a vette w/o wheels
bahahahahaha!

 

[Via]

I'm sorry if you cant figure out Steam.. you shouldn't have a computer in the first place.. it's easier than windows..

there are no issues with it connecting or updating or anything else unless there is an outage..
which is solved by hitting the OFFLINE MODE button.. which is soo hard...

Well - to be fair, the offline mode is not that simple. I had an outage a few months ago, tried to use the offline mode, and it didn't work. I posted about it here and (of course) got pilloried for it. The Steam defense force activates quickly on this forum.

 

[Powermoloch]

Steam is a annoying

But convenient when I buy dirt cheap games in the 5 dollar range

I've gained from 1 steam game to 130+ within one year....