Aynone else hate this Steam obsession?

I believe it's the publisher's choice to make the game available to you in Offline Mode or not, not Valve's choice. My internet was cut off yesterday and I still can play Mass Effect, Oblivion and CSS (with bots, of course) fine.

And also, people like Steam because it's good.

"You need to be online to change to offline"

No - you don't.

[QUOTE="RECON64bit"]

[QUOTE="guynamedbilly"] How is steam FORCED any more than putting a dvd in is FORCE? Yes, almost all games do not require you to be online to play. You have to be online the first time you start a game and that's it. You are simply doing it wrong or lying.Iantheone

I don't understand why people are comparing the act of putting in the disc that you legally own and verifying your game via a third party software. I really do not.

Also I am not lying because Empire total war I had to verify, I had to be online to use offline mode. Can you explain the logic in that please?

Ok, I can see where you are coming from but, they are still not the same things. You can also see putting the disc in as a necessity. Another thing, no matter where you are in the world or what computer you are using you can always play your game as longas you install it and have the CD.You can't say the same forSteam, at least not for allof it's games.

"You need to be online to change to offline"

No - you don't.

Born_Lucky

I have about 50 games on Steam. I've never had a problem with any of them, including Empire. I'm sorry you don't like Steam, but you're just going have to get used to it and stop complaining.

[QUOTE="Iantheone"][QUOTE="RECON64bit"]

I don't understand why people are comparing the act of putting in the disc that you legally own and verifying your game via a third party software. I really do not.

Also I am not lying because Empire total war I had to verify, I had to be online to use offline mode. Can you explain the logic in that please?

RECON64bit

Ok, I can see where you are coming from but, they are still not the same things. You can also see putting the disc in as a necessity. Another thing, no matter where you are in the world or what computer you are using you can always play your game as longas you install it and have the CD.You can't say the same forSteam, at least not for allof it's games.

I don't understand why people are comparing the act of putting in the disc that you legally own and verifying your game via a third party software. I really do not.

Also I am not lying because Empire total war I had to verify, I had to be online to use offline mode. Can you explain the logic in that please?

RECON64bit

As far as putting in a disc, it's the exact same thing except you have to do it more often. If you thinking putting in a disc to check every time is less intrusive than having steam have to check it once, and then have steam running to play the game, well that's personal preference I guess and so that's a fair critique.

[QUOTE="RECON64bit"]

[QUOTE="Iantheone"] You need the disc in your computer to verify. You need Steam connected to verify your copy. They do exactly the same thing, no difference. You dont need to be online to play offline. You need to be online to change to offline. After that is done you can open and close Steam as much as you want from anywhere and it will always start in offline mode. The reason behind this is to make sure that you own everything on your account and what is installed. Iantheone

Ok, I can see where you are coming from but, they are still not the same things. You can also see putting the disc in as a necessity. Another thing, no matter where you are in the world or what computer you are using you can always play your game as longas you install it and have the CD.You can't say the same forSteam, at least not for allof it's games.

Yeah but not all places in the world have access to internet. If you consistently travel to a rural area like I do, then steam becomes a hassle. Whereas before the conception ofSteam all you needed was your disc and your handy dandy CD key. What was so bad about that system?

Yeah but not all places in the world have access to internet. If you consistently travel to a rural area like I do, then steam becomes a hassle. Whereas before the conception ofSteam all you needed was your disc and your handy dandy CD key. What was so bad about that system?RECON64bit

[QUOTE="RECON64bit"]I don't understand why people are comparing the act of putting in the disc that you legally own and verifying your game via a third party software. I really do not.

Also I am not lying because Empire total war I had to verify, I had to be online to use offline mode. Can you explain the logic in that please?

guynamedbilly

As far as putting in a disc, it's the exact same thing except you have to do it more often. If you thinking putting in a disc to check every time is less intrusive than having steam have to check it once, and then have steam running to play the game, well that's personal preference I guess and so that's a fair critique.

There were some companies that actually made it possible for you to play your game without putting the disc in all the time. I remember Relic, and EA doing this. However, I don't know what they are doing now, I think Relic went with Steam for DOW II. I prefer putting a disc in than trusting a third party software with my games. With a disc you just needed to store it.Yes it is preference for my situation.

Yeah but not all places in the world have access to internet. If you consistently travel to a rural area like I do, then steam becomes a hassle. Whereas before the conception ofSteam all you needed was your disc and your handy dandy CD key. What was so bad about that system?

RECON64bit

Massive amounts of piracy. Also if you are in part of the world that dont have internet connections then I really doubt that you will be gaming there. While Steam is annoying and sometimes just full out sucks, it is far better than the alternative. Which is DRM like Ubisofts, or developers just not making games for PC anymore and just sticking to consoles.

[QUOTE="RECON64bit"]Yeah but not all places in the world have access to internet. If you consistently travel to a rural area like I do, then steam becomes a hassle. Whereas before the conception ofSteam all you needed was your disc and your handy dandy CD key. What was so bad about that system?guynamedbilly

From what I understand Securerom only allows 3 installs, right? Steam is better than other security systems, I admitand I may try it again in the future if I cannot resist Civ5 or if I want to play Dawn of War II and hope that the systemhas beenrefined since the time i had it for Empireand places trust in it's customers.

[QUOTE="RECON64bit"]Yeah but not all places in the world have access to internet. If you consistently travel to a rural area like I do, then steam becomes a hassle. Whereas before the conception ofSteam all you needed was your disc and your handy dandy CD key. What was so bad about that system?

Iantheone

Massive amounts of piracy. Also if you are in part of the world that dont have internet connections then I really doubt that you will be gaming there. While Steam is annoying and sometimes just full out sucks, it is far better than the alternative. Which is DRM like Ubisofts, or developers just not making games for PC anymore and just sticking to consoles.

Trust me I would be gaming, late at night when I am not sleeping and I just want to play a game as in depth like Total War, or Civilization.

Piracy is something that will never die. Even the console games are being pirated by large. Nintendo Wii's are easily moddable by anyone with internet and an SD card, and there are of course modded Xbox 360's that can play copied games. Piracy is everywhere, and not even Steam can stop it.

I hate the fanboy and the anti-fanboy aspects of it. People blame it for everything from their mouse not working to the games disconnecting in the middle of multiplayer when Steam has nothing to do with either of those problems and the user is just ignorant of that. People also praise it like it's the second coming of PC Christ and achievements are infiltrating my precious pc games.guynamedbilly

I agree 110%, its just a site, a pc game site.

Anti Fanboys- please if you dont like it ok...no one cares, no one is making u go to steam.

Fanboys- its not the best site on the planet, end of discussion.

hate to break it to you but the ownership of other people's art and music is coming to and end. They will soon allow you to play/listen to it, but it won't be yours. It is the only way they can protect themselves from greedy people who just want to steal everything.

I don't have a problem wif someone pirates a bit here and there, but those pieces of crap that refuse to buy anything are basically bringing an end to being able to have your own local copy that isn't tied to some online scheme.

hate to break it to you but the ownership of other people's art and music is coming to and end. They will soon allow you to play/listen to it, but it won't be yours. It is the only way they can protect themselves from greedy people who just want to steal everything.

I don't have a problem wif someone pirates a bit here and there, but those pieces of crap that refuse to buy anything are basically bringing an end to being able to have your own local copy that isn't tied to some online scheme.

schu

I do not like anything about steam, in fact I hate it and everything it stands for. Basically it is a program that you need to have to be able to play your games that YOU PAID for. Why do I need to ask for permission to play a game.

RECON64bit

[QUOTE="RECON64bit"]

I do not like anything about steam, in fact I hate it and everything it stands for. Basically it is a program that you need to have to be able to play your games that YOU PAID for. Why do I need to ask for permission to play a game.

nethernova

No, I get where he is coming from. The difference is with a disc-check, his access to his games are significantly more dependent on factors within his control versus online authentication or online services such as Steam.

Someone could argue that the ability to purchase a replacement disc-drive if it's needed to play games that he's bought is dependent on factors outside of his control (they need to be manufactured, sold, etc) for example. However, that seems a bit of a reach to me compared to the potential loss of access to your games if you've lost your internet access for whatever reason, the service that hosts access to your games goes out of business, or whether legimately or accidently have had your account (e.g. Steam) taken from you in some manner --- i.e. your access to your games is dependent on servers outside of your control.

This likely isn't the point you were making regarding operating systems, but just fyi I don't know if you can really compare requirements for operating systems to games, at least for most people. Operating systems are for the most part disposable where games are often added to personal collections. At least for me, my copies of Win 98, XP, and even Vista have since been forgotten. However, I'm very glad I still have my discs for No One Lives Forever 1 and 2 that are accessible to me whenever I like! (the fact that I haven't yet confirmed they work with Windows 7 notwithstanding). Operating systems may require internet access for install authorization but that may not elicit the same response from a gamer as online DRM for a game.

By the way OP, I can also vouch for having some trouble accessing my games via Steam's offline mode when my internet access was down for a while. It only happened once, but then again I don't use offline mode that often. I don't remember the exact message, but it absolutely would not let me into Steam to access my games offline, it said something about having to login online first. I wonder if a Steam client update affected it or something, maybe the last time I ran Steam it had just updated the client and I hadn't started it again after that point or something --- who knows, but I don't think accessing your games via offline mode always quite works perfectly.

At any rate, if you really don't like Steam, hopefully for most games there will always be a choice for consumers between Steam and retail (non-Steam) versions. You may start to tolerate Steam much more though, especially if you start to pick up some games during their great sales. I used to really dislike Steam, however, now I like it. I still choose to buy retail primarily when it's an option, but Steam is a nice, convenient option to have available -- especially for the deals! :)

I've been PC gaming for a long time, and I've never used Steam. I just buy hard copies.

I've been PC gaming for a long time, and I've never used Steam. I just buy hard copies.

RobboElRobbo

Missing out on a few games then, aren't you. :P

I've been PC gaming for a long time, and I've never used Steam. I just buy hard copies.

RobboElRobbo

[QUOTE="RobboElRobbo"]

Missing out on a few games then, aren't you. :P

KHAndAnime

Yeah :(

[QUOTE="RobboElRobbo"]

I've been PC gaming for a long time, and I've never used Steam. I just buy hard copies.

General_X

And I got that one for christmas for 360 :(

[QUOTE="General_X"][QUOTE="RobboElRobbo"]

I've been PC gaming for a long time, and I've never used Steam. I just buy hard copies.

RobboElRobbo

And I got that one for christmas for 360 :(

Not really. I actually like Steam, sure there are some technical problems with the games sometimes, but Steam has some really good deals from time to time.

The only problem with steam is that you have to keep it running at full functionality in the background. For newer computers, it's not such a big deal. But for older computers, it's a resource hog.

I personally like Steam and fully embrace it. 108 games and counting..

Only valid criticism of it that I see is the whole Internet connectivity requirement.. but how many gaming machines don't have Internet access? Even then it's only needed for activation, then you can run it in offline mode for like 2 months before having to reconnect and refresh your "certificate" or whatever (actually, did they change this?)

As for the whole "OH NO, STEAM HAS TO RUN IN THE BACKGROUND, END OF THE WORLD" thing ...that is just childish. Who cares? No really: why do you care?

The only problem with steam is that you have to keep it running at full functionality in the background. For newer computers, it's not such a big deal. But for older computers, it's a resource hog.megamagition

How is it a resource hog?

Come on, ~100MB of RAM is nothing. If you have an older machine you can run out and buy a 1GB stick of RAM for pocket change..this is really no longer a valid argument, and the Steam bashers should honestly stop clinging to it.

Oh, so now your router going bad is Steam's fault too? This is too much, lol!

Trolling is fun, huh?

mkaliaz

[QUOTE="mkaliaz"]

Oh, so now your router going bad is Steam's fault too? This is too much, lol!

Trolling is fun, huh?

jwsoul

[QUOTE="Baranga"]

[QUOTE="RECON64bit"]

I am angry with my whole experience with Empire Total war, I essentially gave up playing it because of steam and it's updates and it's servers, and the fact that I could not play my game offline somewhere else.

RECON64bit

What?

Another thing I had to get a new router because of Steam, because mine would keep disconnecting. I did not have much of a problem with this back then because I did not play online much and It was barely noticeable when surfing the web, but on Steam if my internet went out I could no longer play. I just do not like something on my comp restricting me from doing something I want to do. I just don't.

I haven't read through all the pages here yet . But, I physically disconnected my internet and then played some singleplayer games that were under Steam. Steam prompted me to go to offline mode and warned about not being able to get updates. But the games loaded and played fine.

As for the rural areas..... I live in a rural area and cable was able to reach my location. If a place is so underdeveloped that it doesn't have internet, chances are you probably won't be able to buy a game. We just finished a roadtrip from NY to Reno NV down through Las Vegas and Tucson before heading back to NY. We did overnights in motels that were in the middle of nowhere. Somehow, every single one of them have internet.

I've never had a problem with it, it automaticly updates my games, the deals are great and it has a nice friends/community system, I don't see why I wouldn't like it.

Still, could be worse....

[QUOTE="Baranga"]

[QUOTE="RECON64bit"]

I am angry with my whole experience with Empire Total war, I essentially gave up playing it because of steam and it's updates and it's servers, and the fact that I could not play my game offline somewhere else.

What?

Another thing I had to get a new router because of Steam, because mine would keep disconnecting. I did not have much of a problem with this back then because I did not play online much and It was barely noticeable when surfing the web, but on Steam if my internet went out I could no longer play. I just do not like something on my comp restricting me from doing something I want to do. I just don't.

[QUOTE="Born_Lucky"]

"You need to be online to change to offline"

No - you don't.

Iantheone

Just to clarify, that would be a WINDOWS problem and not Steam. Don't believe me? Disable your network card (NIC), then launch Steam, 100% of the time, it will ask you if you want to start it in Offline mode.

I bought Company of Heroes and the expansion: Opposing fronts for €3,74 yesterday. I like Steam.

... if you don't like it and can't figure out how to use it properly, then just uninstall it and don't worry about it anymore. Maybe one day you'll get a machine that can handle the couple MB it uses in the background or learn how to use it in off-line mode. Until then, you won't be missed; nobody wants a whiny, cry-baby in thier game or on their server anyway :lol:

I do not like anything about steam, in fact I hate it and everything it stands for. Basically it is a program that you need to have to be able to play your games that YOU PAID for. Why do I need to ask for permission to play a game.

I am angry with my whole experience with Empire Total war, I essentially gave up playing it because of steam and it's updates and it's servers, and the fact that I could not play my game offline somewhere else. Now I hear Civilization 5 will be a steam game. This made me upset because I really like Civ 4 a game I can uninstall, and install freel whenever I want. Now I need to have steam's consent before I do anything with that game.

I HATE steam so much right now. It's unfortunate that Steam is becoming the future of PC gaming and I have not been playing many PC games because of Steam. I miss the days when I paid for a game it would be mine COMPLETELY and all I needed to input was the CD key, and I could play it whenever I wanted to. It looks like I will be strictly a console gamer now. I mean I have always been a Pc gamer and a Console gamer, I have always been both and it was great. Especially during the Gamecube's dry spells, I knew I could always turn to PC games, now Steam is taking over. I hate you steam I hope you die.

What's so hard about steam? Download, install, play..... Always keeps my games up to date lets me know about new game releases and offers me good deals on games. Ive never hit a snag with steam and wish all games devs use it.

I have only one complaint about Steam. You have to load all Steam related games to the same harddrive. I'm about out of room on my 320 gig. Now on tuesday I'm going to install a new 2TB drive as a slave and shuffleing stuff around is going to be a mess when if Steam would use multiple drives I could just roll on. Just sayin'.

Wow people are being real arses to this guy. I wonder why I even come here anymore. Steam does suck. I cant do what I want with games. Like go over to a mates house and lan a game I have with him just for lan. Thats my biggest woe. As for the router, they do die and that could have been that problem. No matter if they are CIsco, linksys, or crappy ones they all die sometime. I have had points where steam decides it wants to crash or make the game crash or do something stupid. Personally I suspect a few possible things such as the GameUI or that maybe some thing happened for a moment in between me and steam DRM making the game stop running. Or maybe TF2 just has an affinity to crash. It happens. Some people are acting like steam is Jesus the easter bunny and Santa all in one. This is ridiculous. Its a program. Just like any other. How is it so much better. Or when steam does decide it dousnt wants to be online sometimes I suspect steam servers of going down though. I cant confirm that though since I'm not to worried about it. This is steam. This is not on my end.

Im not a hater of steam. I just hate a those things about it. What I like about it though is the community features, auto-update, game sales, Source mods are integrated, mods directly dled from steam, I just got Red Orchestra for free from facebook with a steam code!, and many other things. But just because one supports something and likes it dousnt mean that somebody cant hate stuff about it.

I can play NTW offline though, are you sure its steam. I would make a post about it creative assembly forums since it seems that here is being rather useless with the excepting of a few. Also adding a ticket to steam support is a good idea. Most of the games I cant play while in offline mode are ones like my beloved tf2 and other online only games.

I personally like Steam and fully embrace it. 108 games and counting..

Only valid criticism of it that I see is the whole Internet connectivity requirement.. but how many gaming machines don't have Internet access? Even then it's only needed for activation, then you can run it in offline mode for like 2 months before having to reconnect and refresh your "certificate" or whatever (actually, did they change this?)

As for the whole "OH NO, STEAM HAS TO RUN IN THE BACKGROUND, END OF THE WORLD" thing ...that is just childish. Who cares? No really: why do you care?

[QUOTE="megamagition"]The only problem with steam is that you have to keep it running at full functionality in the background. For newer computers, it's not such a big deal. But for older computers, it's a resource hog.Velocitas8

How is it a resource hog?

Come on, ~100MB of RAM is nothing. If you have an older machine you can run out and buy a 1GB stick of RAM for pocket change..this is really no longer a valid argument, and the Steam bashers should honestly stop clinging to it.

When you're playing games like TF2, another 100 ram stolen is a lot.

[QUOTE="Velocitas8"]

I personally like Steam and fully embrace it. 108 games and counting..

Only valid criticism of it that I see is the whole Internet connectivity requirement.. but how many gaming machines don't have Internet access? Even then it's only needed for activation, then you can run it in offline mode for like 2 months before having to reconnect and refresh your "certificate" or whatever (actually, did they change this?)

As for the whole "OH NO, STEAM HAS TO RUN IN THE BACKGROUND, END OF THE WORLD" thing ...that is just childish. Who cares? No really: why do you care?

[QUOTE="megamagition"]The only problem with steam is that you have to keep it running at full functionality in the background. For newer computers, it's not such a big deal. But for older computers, it's a resource hog.megamagition

How is it a resource hog?

Come on, ~100MB of RAM is nothing. If you have an older machine you can run out and buy a 1GB stick of RAM for pocket change..this is really no longer a valid argument, and the Steam bashers should honestly stop clinging to it.

When you're playing games like TF2, another 100 ram stolen is a lot.