EA Origin - Steam Competitor?

[PeteAtoms]

What do you guys think about EA's plan to create it's own version of Steam? I just downloaded it to take a look, and am very unimpressed. The game catalog is very small, though this could be because the service is so new.

How will this go down for Steam? I wonder if future EA games will even be offered on Steam or other digital game services. It would be a shame. Not that I like any service in particular. And despite the "competition," if EA's Origin service will have exclusives to future titles, I doubt it will do anything for price or quality. So much for "competition."

I really hope it fails. Because I also hate the EA business/corp itself. I wish bad things on them, lol.

 

[Maniacal]

The EA store has had terrible digital policies, you get X nubmer of downloads, or can only download it for X amount of time, downlaod protection (to extend it) for an extra fee, etc. Origin is really just a rebranding of the existing EA Store and Download Manager to sell their games and DLC.

The upcoming Bioware KotOR mmo will be exclusive to Origin.

Their EULA isn't any different from any other download service though.

I have no interest in using it beyond DLC (lol) and downlaod only expansions (Bad Company 2: Vietnam, though I won't be getting it even thoguh its good), although I already have an EA account anyway, I don't trust them for this.

 

[aelf]

No! Give us back the original Origin!

 

[Maniacal]

In related news EA has withdrawn some of its games (Crysis 2 confirmed) from Steam (existing buyers can still play them but they are no longer for sale) and Origin is basically copying Steam's features.

The FAQ for Origin still mentions that you can download your games for 12 months after purchase as if tis some kind of reward instead of how every other digital distributor lets you download them forever.

 

[Rub'Rum]

I don't want multiple gaming platforms on one computer. I avoided Impluse, despite liking it enough, because of that reason. I personally benefit from Steam being the giant. I don't need to bother with fifty accounts of this and that and whatnot. It's the ultimate platform in that when I'm gonna buy a new powerful computer, all my games are still gonna be playable, all my friends are still gonna be on my list, etc etc. I really, really am not interested in splitting across Games For Windows Live and Origin and other unncessary stuff. If they want to offer their games on their own website only, fine, but do so in a GamersGate or GoG kind of what if you really have to. Download from website, no need for software and in-game checkups and whatnot.

 

[Maniacal]

You do not have to run Impulse to play the game, its only used for downloading it and patching. However, Origin already seems to sounding a lot like uplay. At least Steam has a (usually) working offline mode. Hopefully they will fix/improve stuff like that now.

 

[Rub'Rum]

I know, and even that was too much for me, so imagine.

 

[Till]

If this succeeds, the other publishers will probably create their own exclusive stores as well, which is not an appealing idea. Don't really see why the publishers don't band together to form a content delivery platform on their own if they are tired of paying valve a share of their sales.

 

[Maniacal]

Yeah no one wants their desktop to look like this (all of the icons for different digital platforms running, not the rest of the desktop which also looks kind of ugly).

 

[Rub'Rum]

Why does it always have to be so antagonistic, it seems like we'll soon reach a point where I may stop playing video games altogether. Maybe this and everything else I keep yapping about in other threads (DLC, microtransactions, DRM, always-online, ads, accounts for everything, etc etc) is starting to explain why I've been going back to pen and paper and board games in the past year.

Who do I hate most though? Greedy clueless game publishers with their white collars being condescending because they are paid to use words like "thinking outside the box" and "downsizing" and "pushing the envelope" and "synergy" and "reach out"... or the mouth-breathers who just buy into this and don't give a crap?

 

[PeteAtoms]

It would be nice to see some sort of price reduction in games, older games especially, when it comes to manufacturers cutting out middlemen and selling products directly to consumers. But they will just pocket that $ and continue their crappy consumer relation MO.

I really hope some sort of industry wide arrangement can be made for digital distribution. The taskbar full of running apps looks like something from a nightmare. Please no, lol.

EDIT: It makes me want to just buy physical copies of the games from here on out. Yet even the physical copies require these programs! It is getting ridiculous.

Steam is convenient (as are other sources at the moment), but the future is looking less and less so. What should make life more hassle free for gamers, is turning into something we're going to dread. It's going to create more problems than it will solve.

If the purpose is to get closer to customers and increase customer satisfaction, they are failing. If the purpose is to squeeze every last dime out of them, keep it up.

 

[Maniacal]

It would be nice to see some sort of price reduction in games, older games especially, when it comes to manufacturers cutting out middlemen and selling products directly to consumers. But they will just pocket that $ and continue their crappy consumer relation MO.

If digital copies cost less than the retail copies (at release anyway) the brick and mortar stores would be up in arms about it. Its not worth the hassle.

If the purpose is to get closer to customers and increase customer satisfaction, they are failing. If the purpose is to squeeze every last dime out of them, keep it up.

Its EA, a giant corporation and publisher, of course they are only in this for money. Same with Activision, although Kotick isn't a gamer and the EA CEO has played video games (or the whoever was CEO a year or two ago was). Its not much different from other publishers who routinely make life difficult for developers and gamers alike.

 

[Sonereal]

EA is shooting themselves in the foot trying to compete with Steam. Especially since my limited experience with the EA Store and Download Manager have been unpleasant to say the least. It's incredible that here on the website it says "players will no longer have to constantly swap discs" as if players only play EA games. Sims 3, with its overpriced DLC sofas turned me away from getting myself involved any further when it comes to EA on PC but I was still looking for Battlefield 3.

They already took Crysis 2 off the Steam market. I rather use Steam to download games than anything but I rather get into the car and drive to Gamestop and buy a game that way as opposed to using anything related to EADM again.

 

[Dachs]

Yeah, I'm not going to deal with Origin. This time around, I'm getting a hard copy of the Mass Effect 3 Collector's Edition. (Allegedly, ME3 will be available for Steam download, but the digital version of the Collector's Edition will be Origin-exclusive. Screw that.)

 

[Maniacal]

I hope the collector's edition is worth it this time, wasn't worth the extra $20 or whatever for the ME2 one.

EDIT:

Content and Entitlement Availability

If you have not used your Entitlements or Account for twenty four (24) months or more and your Account has associated Entitlements, your Entitlements will expire and your Account may be cancelled for non-use. Once you have redeemed your Entitlements, that content is not returnable, exchangeable, or refundable for other Entitlements or for cash, or other goods or services.

http://tos.ea.com/legalapp/WEBTERMS/US/en/PC/#section5

EDIT2:

Every time the download button is clicked, a download count will be added to your lifetime total. If you have installed your game via Origin on more than three computers within a ten day period, you will need to wait until the first installation expires.

Okay, not great but not TOO horrible.

Note: Re-installing your operating system, or interrupting a current download, will count as a new computer installation.

WTH? That is just ridiculous.