Steam vs. "Normal" Shop

[HKBvonMoltke]

Thanks for all the pros and cons that you guys delivered.
Just to sum it up for myself... I plan on buying Civ5, so it is better to get a hardcopy, since it will get registered to Steam anyway, when I start playing, correct??

Thanks again.
HKBM

 

[Optional]

Just to make this absolutely clear: you have no choice between a hard copy or Steam. Steam is forced upon you.
When you buy a hardcore copy you will still need to validate this copy through Steam before you can run the game.
After that you can select 'offline mode' in your Steam user settings, but even then your game will still try to connect to Steam first every time.

It's a nuisance. Sometimes you can't play your game because Steam needs to put new adds on first. Sometimes you can't play your game because Steam asks you to verify your email account first... I absolutely hate Steam meddling inbetween me and my game... Sod off please, I didn't want you guys, I just wanted the game.

But more and more games do it. One reason for the games company is, like has been mentioned before, the second hand sales. If all you need is a hardcore copy, game companies see not a penny from second and third hand sales.
Through Steam they get more control. I don't see game companies go back.

 

[Moosezilla]

So civ5 is for the rich, class warfare begins, I refuse.

 

[anandus]

So civ5 is for the rich

Eh?

 

[Selous]

Thanks for all the pros and cons that you guys delivered.
Just to sum it up for myself... I plan on buying Civ5, so it is better to get a hardcopy, since it will get registered to Steam anyway, when I start playing, correct??

Thanks again.
HKBM

it doesnt matter if you get a hardcopy or get it from a digital store, the hardcopy will just save you a few gig dload, but in the end, you get the same game with steam attached, so get the cheepest one that is available (and you just missed 66% sale on steam )

 

[forty2j]

Thanks for all the pros and cons that you guys delivered.
Just to sum it up for myself... I plan on buying Civ5, so it is better to get a hardcopy, since it will get registered to Steam anyway, when I start playing, correct??

Thanks again.
HKBM

The true answer to this depends on which place has a better deal, and how much you like owning boxes and out of date CD's. (I don't think the box even came with more than a cursory manual.)

The only content of the box that matters is a code that you type into Steam, which results in exactly the same effect as if you had bought through Steam directly. You can throw the box and its contents away; it's no longer any good to you. Civ will download and run on any PC (or Mac) that you log in to Steam on and attempt to play, and this is true whether you buy 2K's PC box, Aspyr's Mac box, or click "Buy" in the Steam client.

 

[Optional]

Eh?

Well, you wouldn't be able to get Civ5 at £1.50 off Ebay or a carboot sale or whatever, due to verification of serial code + email needed.

Not wanting to start a discussion here about whether the game makers don't deserve a share from everyone who plays their game, because of course they do, but there are people who can only afford luxury items in their lives when they can get them for a bargain.

 

[anandus]

Well, you wouldn't be able to get Civ5 at £1.50 off Ebay or a carboot sale or whatever, due to verification of serial code + email needed.

Not wanting to start a discussion here about whether the game makers don't deserve a share from everyone who plays their game, because of course they do, but there are people who can only afford luxury items in their lives when they can get them for a bargain.

What's wrong with a sale or the bargain bin?
Civ 5 has already been on sale for prices like €7,- and in the future will be even less, either in shops or on Steam.

 

[Optional]

Civ 5 has already been on sale for prices like €7,- and in the future will be even less, either in shops or on Steam.

I didn't know that last thing. 7 Euros already seems very low, I didn't think the game company would authorise that kind of prices - a fraction of when the game was new - already a year after release.
I wrote my comments without knowing prices. I've only read an interview with some game company guy who said the loss of money from a for them iinvisible second hand market was a main reason to set up constructions like with Steam.
Whether that indeed leads to the end of bargains still depends on the pricing policy of the game companies.

 

[HKBvonMoltke]

Well, as it seems that there are no real differences between the two, at the end the price will make the decision for me... I hope not to miss the next bargain...

Thanks again.
HKBM

 

[anandus]

Well, as it seems that there are no real differences between the two, at the end the price will make the decision for me... I hope not to miss the next bargain...

Thanks again.
HKBM

Also check normal retail shops. As there is no difference you can go for the lowest price, independent of the format.
Be it either a bargain bin in a local retail outlet or a sale in a digital shop

Check your local price-comparison site

 

[Maniacal]

I didn't know that last thing. 7 Euros already seems very low, I didn't think the game company would authorise that kind of prices - a fraction of when the game was new - already a year after release.
I wrote my comments without knowing prices. I've only read an interview with some game company guy who said the loss of money from a for them iinvisible second hand market was a main reason to set up constructions like with Steam.
Whether that indeed leads to the end of bargains still depends on the pricing policy of the game companies.

Steam is famous for its frequent and often ridiculously cheap sales. They just had a US Thanksgiving/Black Friday sale (so did GamersGate and other digital retailers), and are going to have another one in a few weeks for the winter holiday that will almost assuredly put Civ5 on a daily special for as cheap if not cheaper than it just was.

The retail price doesn't change anymore for a Steamworks game than it would for a non-Steamworks game, it depends on the individual retailer and how well it sold. It could easily still end up somewhat cheap in a retail store or website store like Amazon, although they are never as cheap as digital retailer sales.

 

[The_J]

I think you have to prove that ^^.

 

[OrsonM]

A comicbook salesman once told me that most collectibles are worth whatever people are willing to pay (hence the Comicbook collectible bubble in the 90s).

Videogames not being tangible have a trickier value, that they are being sold without a box or manual makes this even more complex. Some of the first PC videogames that came without a box and were just a floppy disk were dirt cheap.

Sales on Steam can be weird at times, I feel that it's the sort of opportunity that you can't pass on, or that I'm somehow pulling some tricks on the Valve corporation, but most likely it's the other way around and that the prices have a certain degree of artificiality in them.

 

[Scarpa]

I think the sales are just a typical loss-leader marketing strategy. They accomplish a few good marketing objectives: Keep you thinking about Steam "Don't want to miss the good deals!"; Get new games in front of you "I didn't know that was out yet!"; Drive traffic in general to give Valve something to show to prospective publishers "We have X Million downloads on average through arbitrary time period".

 

[anandus]

I think you have to prove that ^^.

If you go to your local retail outlet you can see for yourself.
In the bargain bin there are just as easy Steamworks games as there are non-Steamworks games.

Or do you mean something different?

 

[Optional]

But I'm assuming second hand sales are off, or am I mistaken? I've got a hard copy of the game. When I first fired it up, it automatically connected with Steam and asked me to type in the serial number of my copy and my email address, plus I needed to respond to an automatically sent email to verify that this email I gave was indeed mine.

What I'm thinking is that if I want to sell my copy on, or bring it to charity, this will not work. Somebody else can't do anything with it, as upon install it will ask for a serial number and associated email.

That's why I was saying earlier that things like the carboot sale or Ebay were off for Civ 5. I was talking about second hand sales specifically, not retailer deals. For Anandus: 'Carboot sale' would be called 'vlooienmarkt' in Amsterdam. Ebay is also used for new stuff, maybe that blurred my point.

If now sales between people on Steam or going on, as I read here, then I understand that, because with cooperation of Steam you could still do it. If they see the sale and agree with a new email address being created for that copy of the game, you're good to go.

 

[The_J]

You're right with your first 3 paragraphs .

If you go to your local retail outlet you can see for yourself.
In the bargain bin there are just as easy Steamworks games as there are non-Steamworks games.

Or do you mean something different?

I rather meant that the retailers are not cheaper .

 

[Ruler]

I think the sales are just a typical loss-leader marketing strategy. They accomplish a few good marketing objectives: Keep you thinking about Steam "Don't want to miss the good deals!"; Get new games in front of you "I didn't know that was out yet!"; Drive traffic in general to give Valve something to show to prospective publishers "We have X Million downloads on average through arbitrary time period".

Well, it was good idea like 8 year ago, hell they got me... but I think they should change strategy. Whats interesting EA's Origin was just released. I think we all can agree its unstoppable train whether its slow or fast is yet to see. Pisses me off, if I need to start using two program. I just hope Kingdoms of Amalur isnt Origin exclusive game.

 

[forty2j]

But I'm assuming second hand sales are off, or am I mistaken?

Second hand sales of PC games have been "off" for quite a long time. Steam is just one of the more recent methods to prevent them.

There just isn't a good way to enable a second-hand market that ensures that the first party is no longer using the products. And, well, the publishers aren't exactly motivated to work on one.