YAST: Steam would be great if...

[SunnyD]

My tl;dr short list:

- Parental controls. (There are none)
- I could play Game A on PC A at the same time as Game B on PC B using the same account.
- I could "gift" people titles from my active library (which then removes MY right to play them).
- Subaccounts (which would neatly allow the first and second points under one roof).

*sigh*

I just had to say all of that out loud for once. Nothing that hasn't been said before, I'm sure.

 

[Red Storm]

If you make an account for each game you basically get the ability to do all of that. It's not very convenient though.

 

[SunnyD]

If you make an account for each game you basically get the ability to do all of that. It's not very convenient though.

That's essentially what I've (sortof) done. I'm up to I think 3 or 4 steam accounts now, as my kids are getting older. Biggest problem I have is that the main account I used for ALL of the kids, now that my son has his own computer, has all the games I previously got for, well, ALL of them. But I can't let him use that on his computer if the girls are on the kidputer, so he now has his own account, which is devoid of titles.

Obviously there will be a few they want to play together, but seriously, there will be many times where he wants to play X while they're playing Y. In the glory days of computing, this was never an issue.

 

[Aikouka]

- I could play Game A on PC A at the same time as Game B on PC B using the same account.
- Subaccounts (which would neatly allow the first and second points under one roof).

What would stop people from just sharing accounts instead of actually paying for games?

 

[JTsyo]

As long as the two games aren't online games can't you play one in offline mode on PC B?

 

[gothamhunter]

Make different accounts for different people.

/Thread

 

[SunnyD]

What would stop people from just sharing accounts instead of actually paying for games?

This IS a minor technical hurdle, one that has crossed my mind. But then again, it is completely legal anyway, regardless. When it came to physical media, nothing said that I couldn't let you borrow my media to install the game and play it, provided I'm not playing it at that very same moment (in most cases).

But then again, this is the entire point of this exercise anyway.

Make different accounts for different people.

/Thread

Not remotely the same, which I had already covered in my first reply anyway.

Obviously, much to Steam's liking as well as each developer/publisher's liking, this requires the purchase of an additional copy of every respective title for EACH account, which totally contradicts my second original point in the OP.

 

[DominionSeraph]

When it came to physical media, nothing said that I couldn't let you borrow my media to install the game and play it, provided I'm not playing it at that very same moment (in most cases).

That would have violated the license agreement.

 

[SunnyD]

That would have violated the license agreement.

Not usually. Most license agreements typically didn't have any clause in them that limited how many machines a piece of software could be installed on (aside from things like OSes and the like, for obvious reasons).

 

[HydroSqueegee]

Its going to be quite some time till my kids have their own Steam accounts, much less their own computers. I'm actually excited for when their older. I'll be getting 4 packs all the damn time to play games with them.
In the mean time, what little they do play on Steam they play on my account. And since they like to play the games i already have, not an issue. If one is playing on the computer, the other can do something else till the computer is free.

 

[shortylickens]

People arent gonna want to buy games twice. If parents like Bubble Bobble and kids like Bubble Bobble they dont feel like paying for Bubble Bobble twice. They will wish to buy it once and share it. But they'll still want seperate accounts and profiles and save games.

Thats how the Playstation and Xbox got it right. Memory cards, or profiles on a hard drive. One copy of the game, everybody has their own stuff.
For online purchases and downloading of the game to each computer, it gets more complicated, especially if folks paid full price for the game to begin with.
I dont mind multiple 5 dollar copies of Titan Quest so everyone can play it without issue.
Multiple MW3? No, not gonna happen.

 

[Texashiker]

That's essentially what I've (sortof) done. I'm up to I think 3 or 4 steam accounts now, as my kids are getting older. Biggest problem I have is that the main account I used for ALL of the kids,

Seems to me you were not thinking ahead.

My kids have their own steam account, that they use on their computers. during the summer and holiday sales I buy a bunch of discounted games and gift them to my kids accounts.

 

[gothamhunter]

People arent gonna want to buy games twice. If parents like Bubble Bobble and kids like Bubble Bobble they dont feel like paying for Bubble Bobble twice. They will wish to buy it once and share it. But they'll still want seperate accounts and profiles and save games.

Thats how the Playstation and Xbox got it right. Memory cards, or profiles on a hard drive. One copy of the game, everybody has their own stuff.
For online purchases and downloading of the game to each computer, it gets more complicated, especially if folks paid full price for the game to begin with.
I dont mind multiple 5 dollar copies of Titan Quest so everyone can play it without issue.
Multiple MW3? No, not gonna happen.

The only reason they "got it right" in this respect is because of the current inability to DRM those discs to be one console only. This was attempted before on consoles but it was so expensive that it wasn't adopted. I'm sure that'll be changed in the future.

 

[Elcs]

Download bandwidth controls including timers and scheduling
Ability to mass select games for verifying game integrity
Ability to mass select games for turning auto update off/on

 

[DominionSeraph]

Not usually. Most license agreements typically didn't have any clause in them that limited how many machines a piece of software could be installed on (aside from things like OSes and the like, for obvious reasons).

First one I pulled: (Mechcommander Gold)

LIMITED LICENSE: You are entitled to use this CD-ROM for your own
use, but may not sell or transfer reproductions of the CD-ROM or
Documentation to other parties in any way. You may use one copy
of the CD-ROM on a single terminal connected to a single computer.
You may not network the CD-ROM or otherwise use it on more than
one computer or computer terminal at the same time.

OWNERSHIP; COPYRIGHT: Title to the CD-ROM and the Documentation,
and patents, copyrights and all other property rights applicable
thereto, shall at all times remain solely and exclusively with
Hasbro Interactive and its licensors, and You shall not take any
action inconsistent with such title. The CD-ROM and the
Documentation are protected by United States, Canadian and other
applicable laws and by international treaty provisions. Any
rights not expressly granted herein are reserved to Hasbro
Interactive and its licensors.

OTHER RESTRICTIONS: You may not cause or permit the disclosure,
copying, renting, licensing, sublicensing, leasing, disseminating
or otherwise distributing of the CD-ROM or the Documentation by
any means or in any form, without the prior written consent of
Hasbro Interactive. You may not modify, enhance, supplement,
create derivative work from, adapt, translate, reverse engineer,
decompile, disassemble or otherwise reduce the CD-ROM to human
readable form.

 

[SunnyD]

First one I pulled: (Mechcommander Gold)

LIMITED LICENSE: You are entitled to use this CD-ROM for your own
use, but may not sell or transfer reproductions of the CD-ROM or
Documentation to other parties in any way. You may use one copy
of the CD-ROM on a single terminal connected to a single computer.
You may not network the CD-ROM or otherwise use it on more than
one computer or computer terminal at the same time.

OWNERSHIP; COPYRIGHT: Title to the CD-ROM and the Documentation,
and patents, copyrights and all other property rights applicable
thereto, shall at all times remain solely and exclusively with
Hasbro Interactive and its licensors, and You shall not take any
action inconsistent with such title. The CD-ROM and the
Documentation are protected by United States, Canadian and other
applicable laws and by international treaty provisions. Any
rights not expressly granted herein are reserved to Hasbro
Interactive and its licensors.

OTHER RESTRICTIONS: You may not cause or permit the disclosure,
copying, renting, licensing, sublicensing, leasing, disseminating
or otherwise distributing of the CD-ROM or the Documentation by
any means or in any form, without the prior written consent of
Hasbro Interactive. You may not modify, enhance, supplement,
create derivative work from, adapt, translate, reverse engineer,
decompile, disassemble or otherwise reduce the CD-ROM to human
readable form.

As I said, perfectly legitimate to have it on two different machines in the same house provided you're not trying to play both at the same time. It explicitly says as much, no legal interpretation needed.

Nothing else in that text precludes you from doing as much.

 

[DominionSeraph]

As I said, perfectly legitimate to have it on two different machines in the same house provided you're not trying to play both at the same time. It explicitly says as much, no legal interpretation needed.

Nothing else in that text precludes you from doing as much.

But then again, it is completely legal anyway, regardless. When it came to physical media, nothing said that I couldn't let you borrow my media to install the game and play it, provided I'm not playing it at that very same moment (in most cases).

This is patently false.

You are entitled to use this CD-ROM for your own
use, but may not sell or transfer reproductions of the CD-ROM or
Documentation to other parties in any way.

Title to the CD-ROM and the Documentation,
and patents, copyrights and all other property rights applicable
thereto, shall at all times remain solely and exclusively with
Hasbro Interactive and its licensors, and You shall not take any
action inconsistent with such title.

You may not cause or permit the disclosure,
copying, renting, licensing, sublicensing, leasing, disseminating
or otherwise distributing of the CD-ROM or the Documentation by
any means or in any form, without the prior written consent of
Hasbro Interactive.

 

[SunnyD]

This is patently false.

The former, as per the text, is explicitly true.

The latter is also true, as there is legally no difference between you sitting at my computer using the title and me installing the title on your computer and using it. The clause has previously been deemed unenforceable multiple times over.

 

[SunnyD]

Seems to me you were not thinking ahead.

My kids have their own steam account, that they use on their computers. during the summer and holiday sales I buy a bunch of discounted games and gift them to my kids accounts.

I've started doing that recently for a few titles, particularly the titles that I know my kids will want to play together on (multiplayer titles). At the same rate, I figured by now Steam would have evolved with a more family-friendly vision by now.

Basically, when my son finished putting together his computer a few months ago, I essentially gave him a new Steam account with a couple of games I had bought multipacks of and told him that if there were any other games he wanted, HE would have to earn/buy them.

 

[PhatoseAlpha]

Parental controls would be a good addition.

The rest of it is just asking for those of us who only use 1 copy of a game in 1 place at a time to subsidize those of you who don't. No thanks.

 

[gorcorps]

My tl;dr short list:

- Parental controls. (There are none)
- I could play Game A on PC A at the same time as Game B on PC B using the same account.
- I could "gift" people titles from my active library (which then removes MY right to play them).
- Subaccounts (which would neatly allow the first and second points under one roof).

*sigh*

I just had to say all of that out loud for once. Nothing that hasn't been said before, I'm sure.

1.) Do you mean requiring like a password to play Mature games on a single account, or just limit a separate account from downloading anything like that entirely? Either way should be easy for them to add. I wonder why they haven't.

2.) This will never ever happen. It's against all licensing rules as they're currently set up. Back in the day you had one "play" disc, and unless you copied that disc you could only play on one machine at a time. Steam works exactly the same way. Whoever has the "play disc" (or steam account now) has the ability to play the game. Steam works very similarly to how PC games have worked for quite a while unless you were doing something illegal (no-cd crack, copy disc, etc).

3.) Rumors are that they're thinking about trying this with Valve games. Obviously the other devs would have to make their own call if they want to join in. The recently added marketplace to trade/sell TF2 stuff some believe to be a trial for doing that with games themselves.

4.) Subaccounts would make #1 easier for sure. I could see them maybe allowing multiple profiles under one master account, but I think they'd still limit you to only being logged in to one machine at a time. Even the consoles don't allow you to log in with your account in more than one spot.

 

[Wyndru]

Yeah, subaccounts would be great. Especially if you could just assign rights to each game to allow transferring of games from one sub to another. The problem is people would just abuse it and share the subs with their friends, so I doubt they would ever consider it.

 

[tHa ShIzNiT]

Yeah, subaccounts would be great. Especially if you could just assign rights to each game to allow transferring of games from one sub to another. The problem is people would just abuse it and share the subs with their friends, so I doubt they would ever consider it.

they could just require a copy of the person's birth certificate (to verify they are family!) to allow the sharing! bang, done. I should be hired by steam for that idea. it would create new jobs in america too, the whole "birth certificate verification" department.

 

[tHa ShIzNiT]

I figured by now Steam would have evolved with a more family-friendly vision by now.

was kinda hoping this would happen myself, since my son is getting to that age where he tends to want to actually play games himself rather than watch me play em =)

 

[imaheadcase]

I honestly want ability to remove games completely from library. I'm embarrassed that I have black ops game in it along with lame other $5 games i got from sales.