27 ms·

Facebook's Oculus has already tried to go the way of exclusives and walled gardens so I doubt it will take off. PC gamers are an opinionated noisy bunch and the

by mevile 10y ago

Facebook's Oculus has already tried to go the way of exclusives and walled gardens so I doubt it will take off. PC gamers are an opinionated noisy bunch and they will cause all kinds of drama for Facebook if they aren't as open as Steam. I don't really get this anyway. Steam works. Origin and Battle.net kinda make sense since those are the publisher's platform, and there's also GoG's Galaxy. There's really not any more room for another competitor.

eswat 10y ago
> Steam works But does it still provide a great experience for gamers and creators? I'd wager so say they can do a lot better, but they're letting their success stagnate them. Buggy mobile apps, questionable revenue share on Workshop items, no strong answer to the discovery of good games ever since Greenlight came out, IMHO Valve isn't doing enough with their platform on their own. I'd welcome competition to get them to perk up their step a bit.
- mevile 10y ago
  There already is competition. GoG's Galaxy. It's great. Nobody I know uses it. Not a single streamer on twitch I've ever watch uses it. I'm fine with competition too, but not from Facebook. They've already fucked up with the Oculus store and I don't trust them anyway. Facebook is an unscrupulous advertisement company that turns intimate personal information into pay per click ad dollars. I'd even go so far as to say Valve not caring is a good thing. They don't try to interfere too much and when they do and it blows up they walk it back.
  - serge2k 10y ago
    > I'd even go so far as to say Valve not caring is a good thing. Ridiculous statement. Waiting weeks for a support request is not a good thing. Waiting weeks then getting response in russian is not a good thing. The app being a generally slow clunky experience is not a good thing. Piss poor preview games is not a good thing. CS Go gambling is not a good thing. DotA2 is not a good thing. :p A lot of things were even worse before Origin arrived and Valve started at least a half-assed attempt to make things better.
    - n0w 10y ago
      What's wrong with DotA2??
      - deleted 10y ago
        [deleted]
      - grogenaut 10y ago
        For this person it's likely that it's not League or HOTS... or to make the standard joke... it's actually challenging and for adults instead of an ez mode toy for kids.
      - serge2k 10y ago
        It's a MOBA. Obviously.
  - chaostheory 10y ago
    People who don't play multiplayer or don't have a good enough internet connection tend to go with GOG since most if not all games on GOG is DRM free.
- nilkn 10y ago
  I think Steam's a great experience. It seems leaps and bounds ahead of competition. The coolest thing about it to me is how it keeps expanding in innovative ways. I picked up a Steam Link and Steam Controller last year, and it's really nice to be able to play a PC game in the living room whenever I feel like it. SteamVR is also great. I guess the mobile app is kind of crappy. I've never really cared as I don't see any reason to use it.
  - maccard 10y ago
    It's pretty a Awful. I set it up as o was getting nagged about setting up the app as an authenticator, and the next update wouldn't boot. Not a great first experience, considering it's a webview app.
    - ycombinatorMan 10y ago
      Maybe the app isnt great, but the platform is.
    - Freak_NL 10y ago
      Steam's approach to authentication is annoying. You either get their authenticator app for two-factor authentication, or get demoted to a second-class Steam citizen. Without the authenticator you get nagged frequently to get it, and you cannot buy and sell things on the marketplace normally (every action has to be confirmed via email, and any item you want to sell is placed in escrow for two weeks). I appreciate Valve pushing for better security, but with the authenticator app the only option this really sucks if you don't have a smartphone, or do have a smartphone, just not with Android, IOS, or Windows Phone on it. Now I understand this for the interim (people were losing their digital items due to poor security), but it is damn near impossible to contact Steam with suggestions or comments (on the Steam forums your voice is drowned in a sea of despair, and I can't seem to get a hold of anyone with a technical background at Steam's help-desk). Perhaps if someone at Valve is reading HN: please consider using Fido U2F as an alternative to a smartphone app!
      - touristtam 10y ago
- serge2k 10y ago
  I'd welcome competition, steam can get a lot better (it's one of the worse apps I use) but I'm not going to use a facebook game thing. Already have steam, gog galaxy, origin, and uplay for various things. I use only the former 2 as much as I can.
- fellellor 10y ago
  I think of platforms like Steam as an OS. I don't really want to spend a lot of time there. It is just there to help manage my library, keep the software updated and all that, and just get out of my way. I hear about the games I want to play from other channels, so their substandard discovery doesn't bother me so much. I do miss the days when I'd find a cool game to play on the front page, though.
_puk 10y ago
Some must recall the drama that was the launch of Steam. If I recall, it was optional for CounterStrike1.4, but then required for CS1.6. The PC bunch were crying that they'd never use this DRM'd buggy POS. That must have been 16+ years ago. Steam has come a long way since then, and has been credited [0] with helping reduce PC game piracy over the years. Likely because steam just works for the most part, and is as easy if not easier than the alternative. I just don't see how Facebook can really disrupt this given Steams head start and positive mind share (not to mention the libraries of games that users have likely accrued over the years) 0: http://www.digital-digest.com/news-62904-PC-Gaming-Piracy-On-the-Decline-Says-Industry-Head.html http://www.digital-digest.com/news-62904-PC-Gaming-Piracy-On...
- snake117 10y ago
  >...and has been credited [0] with helping reduce PC game piracy over the years. Their sales definitely had something to do with this as well. Before these kinds of sales, PC games were fixed at a certain price point and would take a long time to see a price drop. Now, I'll see fairly new games that may be marked down anywhere from 10% to 25% and, at least for me, I feel much more inclined to purchase it if I like it. Granted I have a backlog of games to get through, but still it made purchasing games much more approachable as I know I won't be breaking my wallet over one game.
- thegeekpirate 10y ago
  > If I recall, it was optional for CounterStrike1.4, but then required for CS1.6. 1.6 was the only version on Steam, 1.5 used the WonID servers, which they shut down a few years later. The largest issue with Steam when it was released was the fact that the client was slow as molasses, and plenty of others had resource issues since you had to also run the client in the background along with whichever game you were playing.
- tech2 10y ago
  The issue with Steam for CS players was the removal of WoN and needing to re-purchase CS instead of being given a license upon it if you had one on WoN already.
- 10y ago
shostack 10y ago
Yeah, you'd think they would at least have the common sense to start completely altruistically and gradually boil the frog once they have lock in and a solid moat.
GlennS 10y ago
Existing PC gamers are a fussy bunch. There are plenty of people who play games who've never heard of Steam, and whose friends aren't on Steam, but who are on Facebook. A lot of those people might be ripe to get sucked into the hobby if Facebook manages to advertise the right game in their feed.
- HemanHeartYou 10y ago
  I think the bigger issue would be when they're sucked in it just expands the /casual/ mobile game market and generate more poor games. What's the point of me writing this? All I'm going to get is down voted or someone getting mad that I said casual.
JimmyM 10y ago
Looking at Steam, there's a huge undercurrent of games that don't get pushed, don't appeal to the hardcore, but that - in aggregate - sell a very noticeable amount. Hidden object games, educational games for children, iOS and Android ports. In the case of the former two - with no real marketing, and with a great deal of competition, these still fly off the digital shelves, and are not expensive to produce. There are people who want these games, and Steam honestly is not doing the best job of getting in touch with these people. Integration with the rest of the Facebook ecosystem would really really help push these games towards the people who want to buy them. For the last option, people often buy these games when they felt good about playing the iOS/Android game and want to continue the experience (or in rare cases, play a more full-featured version - usually the PC port is incomplete, but sometimes it does contain unique bonuses). I imagine Facebook would have a killer app if it could sync your iOS/Android saved games (or even just achievements) to the PC version of the save game. TL:DR; I think there's a huge opportunity for a major casual gaming platform, and I think Facebook's pretty well placed to be that platform.

by mevile 10y ago

eswat 10y ago

> Steam works But does it still provide a great experience for gamers and creators? I'd wager so say they can do a lot better, but they're letting their success stagnate them. Buggy mobile apps, questionable revenue share on Workshop items, no strong answer to the discovery of good games ever since Greenlight came out, IMHO Valve isn't doing enough with their platform on their own. I'd welcome competition to get them to perk up their step a bit.

mevile 10y ago
There already is competition. GoG's Galaxy. It's great. Nobody I know uses it. Not a single streamer on twitch I've ever watch uses it. I'm fine with competition too, but not from Facebook. They've already fucked up with the Oculus store and I don't trust them anyway. Facebook is an unscrupulous advertisement company that turns intimate personal information into pay per click ad dollars. I'd even go so far as to say Valve not caring is a good thing. They don't try to interfere too much and when they do and it blows up they walk it back.
- serge2k 10y ago
  > I'd even go so far as to say Valve not caring is a good thing. Ridiculous statement. Waiting weeks for a support request is not a good thing. Waiting weeks then getting response in russian is not a good thing. The app being a generally slow clunky experience is not a good thing. Piss poor preview games is not a good thing. CS Go gambling is not a good thing. DotA2 is not a good thing. :p A lot of things were even worse before Origin arrived and Valve started at least a half-assed attempt to make things better.
  - n0w 10y ago
    What's wrong with DotA2??
    - deleted 10y ago
      [deleted]
    - grogenaut 10y ago
      For this person it's likely that it's not League or HOTS... or to make the standard joke... it's actually challenging and for adults instead of an ez mode toy for kids.
    - serge2k 10y ago
      It's a MOBA. Obviously.
- chaostheory 10y ago
  People who don't play multiplayer or don't have a good enough internet connection tend to go with GOG since most if not all games on GOG is DRM free.
nilkn 10y ago
I think Steam's a great experience. It seems leaps and bounds ahead of competition. The coolest thing about it to me is how it keeps expanding in innovative ways. I picked up a Steam Link and Steam Controller last year, and it's really nice to be able to play a PC game in the living room whenever I feel like it. SteamVR is also great. I guess the mobile app is kind of crappy. I've never really cared as I don't see any reason to use it.
- maccard 10y ago
  It's pretty a Awful. I set it up as o was getting nagged about setting up the app as an authenticator, and the next update wouldn't boot. Not a great first experience, considering it's a webview app.
  - ycombinatorMan 10y ago
    Maybe the app isnt great, but the platform is.
  - Freak_NL 10y ago
    Steam's approach to authentication is annoying. You either get their authenticator app for two-factor authentication, or get demoted to a second-class Steam citizen. Without the authenticator you get nagged frequently to get it, and you cannot buy and sell things on the marketplace normally (every action has to be confirmed via email, and any item you want to sell is placed in escrow for two weeks). I appreciate Valve pushing for better security, but with the authenticator app the only option this really sucks if you don't have a smartphone, or do have a smartphone, just not with Android, IOS, or Windows Phone on it. Now I understand this for the interim (people were losing their digital items due to poor security), but it is damn near impossible to contact Steam with suggestions or comments (on the Steam forums your voice is drowned in a sea of despair, and I can't seem to get a hold of anyone with a technical background at Steam's help-desk). Perhaps if someone at Valve is reading HN: please consider using Fido U2F as an alternative to a smartphone app!
    - touristtam 10y ago
serge2k 10y ago
I'd welcome competition, steam can get a lot better (it's one of the worse apps I use) but I'm not going to use a facebook game thing. Already have steam, gog galaxy, origin, and uplay for various things. I use only the former 2 as much as I can.
fellellor 10y ago
I think of platforms like Steam as an OS. I don't really want to spend a lot of time there. It is just there to help manage my library, keep the software updated and all that, and just get out of my way. I hear about the games I want to play from other channels, so their substandard discovery doesn't bother me so much. I do miss the days when I'd find a cool game to play on the front page, though.

_puk 10y ago

Some must recall the drama that was the launch of Steam. If I recall, it was optional for CounterStrike1.4, but then required for CS1.6. The PC bunch were crying that they'd never use this DRM'd buggy POS. That must have been 16+ years ago. Steam has come a long way since then, and has been credited [0] with helping reduce PC game piracy over the years. Likely because steam just works for the most part, and is as easy if not easier than the alternative. I just don't see how Facebook can really disrupt this given Steams head start and positive mind share (not to mention the libraries of games that users have likely accrued over the years) 0: http://www.digital-digest.com/news-62904-PC-Gaming-Piracy-On-the-Decline-Says-Industry-Head.html http://www.digital-digest.com/news-62904-PC-Gaming-Piracy-On...

snake117 10y ago
>...and has been credited [0] with helping reduce PC game piracy over the years. Their sales definitely had something to do with this as well. Before these kinds of sales, PC games were fixed at a certain price point and would take a long time to see a price drop. Now, I'll see fairly new games that may be marked down anywhere from 10% to 25% and, at least for me, I feel much more inclined to purchase it if I like it. Granted I have a backlog of games to get through, but still it made purchasing games much more approachable as I know I won't be breaking my wallet over one game.
thegeekpirate 10y ago
> If I recall, it was optional for CounterStrike1.4, but then required for CS1.6. 1.6 was the only version on Steam, 1.5 used the WonID servers, which they shut down a few years later. The largest issue with Steam when it was released was the fact that the client was slow as molasses, and plenty of others had resource issues since you had to also run the client in the background along with whichever game you were playing.
tech2 10y ago
The issue with Steam for CS players was the removal of WoN and needing to re-purchase CS instead of being given a license upon it if you had one on WoN already.
10y ago

shostack 10y ago

Yeah, you'd think they would at least have the common sense to start completely altruistically and gradually boil the frog once they have lock in and a solid moat.

GlennS 10y ago

Existing PC gamers are a fussy bunch. There are plenty of people who play games who've never heard of Steam, and whose friends aren't on Steam, but who are on Facebook. A lot of those people might be ripe to get sucked into the hobby if Facebook manages to advertise the right game in their feed.

HemanHeartYou 10y ago
I think the bigger issue would be when they're sucked in it just expands the /casual/ mobile game market and generate more poor games. What's the point of me writing this? All I'm going to get is down voted or someone getting mad that I said casual.

JimmyM 10y ago

Looking at Steam, there's a huge undercurrent of games that don't get pushed, don't appeal to the hardcore, but that - in aggregate - sell a very noticeable amount. Hidden object games, educational games for children, iOS and Android ports. In the case of the former two - with no real marketing, and with a great deal of competition, these still fly off the digital shelves, and are not expensive to produce. There are people who want these games, and Steam honestly is not doing the best job of getting in touch with these people. Integration with the rest of the Facebook ecosystem would really really help push these games towards the people who want to buy them. For the last option, people often buy these games when they felt good about playing the iOS/Android game and want to continue the experience (or in rare cases, play a more full-featured version - usually the PC port is incomplete, but sometimes it does contain unique bonuses). I imagine Facebook would have a killer app if it could sync your iOS/Android saved games (or even just achievements) to the PC version of the save game. TL:DR; I think there's a huge opportunity for a major casual gaming platform, and I think Facebook's pretty well placed to be that platform.