InXile's Brian Fargo Calls Steam PC Gaming's "Savior"

[JET1971]

I don't get where people see where there was a decline in PC gaming. There wasn't a decline in sales ever but there was a big decline in titles available to buy. If your particular favorite genre of games doesn't have a new title available to purchase you cannot purchase. This was caused by the Xbox and PS2 war between the manufacturers and the deals they made with the major publishers to bring more exclusives like Nintendo does and that took away titles from PC. But it started earlier than that when Bungie was sold to Microsoft and Microsoft took Halo and chose to make it the flagship game for Xbox when it was originally being developed as a PC title. Since then the big money from the console manufacturers have worked with the big publishers to make console games and many as exclusive title thus stifling the PC games market with fewer new titles to buy.

 

[cypher-raige]

Giving indies a shot aside, it's still a form of DRM. I still don't like having to use it because I don't want 3rd party software needing to be attached to what I pay for and own.

People felt the same way when it was initially released.

It's either account based activation (like Steam) or stuff like Securom, Starforce etc.

Pick your poison. PC gamers voted with their wallets in the late 2000s for the former.

 

[Clovus]

He was right about the start, bit too much on the supposed "dark ages" though,that part is always exaggerated these days with the tinted glasses.

Yeah, there was definitely a minor feeling of dread for a few years. I grew up buying used games at Babbages, which became Electronics Boutique, which became EBGames, which became GameStop. You could find a wide range of PC titles. Then that shelf space quickly disappeared. There was definitely a few years there were a pretty good number of games never made it to PC and finding older titles was hard. I'd sometimes wait to get a title for a bit cheaper, but then it just completely sell out. At that point, it was pretty much gone. The used market vanished (not a big deal really), but the cheap games vanished too. But, the idea that "PC gaming is dead" was always hyperbole.

I'm pretty sure that digital distribution would have taken off without Steam, but Fargo's point that Valve could have controlled the market more tightly as a good one.

Still I couldn't much care for what Valve does these days, they've opened the flood gates and stirred a lot of hassle on their end, if Jim and Total Biscuit as well as others point out what's currently going wrong on Steam's end then I'm pretty sure something bad is happening, then again it's not like I can look at the front page and shop to my hearts content, I used to be like that maybe 3-4 years ago but now it's different to a point where I don't shop there any more, I instead shop elsewhere where I know there's something I want at a good deal and that isn't cluttered with crap I don't want, also other places that are more open and aren't DRM.

Serious question here. You really stopped shopping on Steam because it's "cluttered with crap"? I never understand this idea. It's like saying Steam is now just a bargain bin filled with junk. But a bargain bin requires you to dig through it to find what you want. You can find what you want in Steam by searching for it. I assume that since you are posting on the Escapist that you must read game reviews and follow the industry. Do you really only search for games by looking at the front page of DD services? That just doesn't add up.

Also, Steam's front page is still pretty useful. The front page deals are still curated by Valve. The top selling games are usually interesting, although there is plenty of "early access" there.

Do you really use digital storefronts for "game discovery"? I mainly use gaming websites for that. I've been on Steam since the beginning and I don't think I've ever bought a game based on seeing it on the front page. So, for me that aspect of Steam hasn't changed much. Why should it bother me that someone can use Steam to buy Pretty Pony Stables or whatever? How can you not "shop to [your] hearts content" now?

 

[Geisterkarle]

I think the "rebirth" of PC gaming is less Steam and more that console gaming is now basically PC gaming!
Seriously! It once was: Put cassette, cartridge, CD, ... in the console and start playing. It was the PC, that wanted to install things. Needed special drivers. Had to update things. ... You had to wait for a "long" time until you could play. Consoles were much faster and more reliable!

But all that is on consoles now too! What gives?
And so - "special" console-only games aside - why should I use a console over a PC? I can plug a controller in there too!

 

[whycantijustdeletemyaccount]

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[Savryc]

Yeah I'm not about to praise DRM that's pretty much forced upon you if you want to game on PC. Sure there are a few outliers, GOG and the like. But they're a minority. It's a real pain in the ass for someone like me with a piss poor connection, I could hop on a bus into town, buy a game, get home and have it installing before 2Gig has even downloaded. But even then Steam is a requirement for a lot of physical copies too these days, so if there's a fairly sizeable update I'm shit out of luck.

Between the disturbingly cult like praising of Newell and the trio of bumbling console developers it looks like I'd be better off sticking to my 3DS, or finding a new hobby entirely.

 

[shintakie10]

Was PC gaming really that bad though?

Nope. It was never bad.

There was never a gigantic games crash like console makers had. Sales have never taken a long extended drop.

At most, as someone else said, there was just less games to buy in places like Gamestop (I had Gamecrazy back when I was a kid). You could still find them in major stores though and there were still lots of quality PC only developers.

 

[Strazdas]

A saviour we never needed. PC gaming was always doing fine, and its only people shouting FUD that ever claimed otherwise. In comes a loud and shouting DRM called Steam and buys people sympathy with sales.

Well I will say this, either as a PC person I either spend $300 on a console and then $60 per game that I can't mod, or I spend $500 every 2 years on upgrading my pc but get games for $6 or $20 dollars with steam or the humble bundle. I think I choose the PC if only for the comfortability factor.

you spend 500 dollars every 2 years? what kind of a beast are you running? trimonitor setup and all i assume?

also brian fargo is 100% correct, sorry anti-steamers but thats the truth

No hes not. hes factually wrong that PC games were ever at "Dark age".

hahaha only 2?

well, Valve did never learn to count to 3....

It's either account based activation (like Steam) or stuff like Securom, Starforce etc.

Pick your poison. PC gamers voted with their wallets in the late 2000s for the former.

Or its no DRM (GOG style)

I want to see more stores like Humble Bundle and Good Old Games that are against this bullshit DRM crap.

You do realize that Humble Bundle is a steam key reseller right? (well not always, but most of the time) And its not even the best bundle store out there.

But even then Steam is a requirement for a lot of physical copies too these days, so if there's a fairly sizeable update I'm shit out of luck.

you can disable automatic updating and just dont start the manual one or do it overnight or something. It will be like playing a console game before patching it, except that on consoles you cant do that (unless you dont conenct to internet, then you can).

 

[Lightknight]

I wouldn't say it's a "Savior" of PC gaming. But it sure as heck launched PC gaming right back into mainstream for both consumers and developers.

Well I will say this, either as a PC person I either spend $300 on a console and then $60 per game that I can't mod, or I spend $500 every 2 years on upgrading my pc but get games for $6 or $20 dollars with steam or the humble bundle. I think I choose the PC if only for the comfortability factor.

I haven't spent $60 on a console game in 10 years. I think Halo 2 or something was the last.

If you're in a game store, you just need to look a little to the left or right to see the preowned shelves.

As for new games, Steam tracks relatively closely with hard-copy game prices too. You don't get a new game on Steam for $20. You get it for full price or $10 off if it's new.

Now, don't get me wrong, my steam account is in the several hundreds of games right now. I love picking up older games that I missed for $10 or less. But let's not maintain lies about new game pricing.

As for the games I buy on console, I also get buy one get one free discounts on preowned games at my local non-chain game store. I have literally gotten better deals for my console than on steam and that's crazy. But my backlog of games is so large that I can easily afford to wait six months or a year before playing most games.

 

[cypher-raige]

Or its no DRM (GOG style)

GoG is a niche service. Not a serious competitor to Steam.

 

[grigjd3]

Whatever people have to say about Steam and their very real frustrations with download speed and DRM, its currently the best option in the market. Consoles have become more painful for both developers and gamers whereas PC gaming is becoming easier and cheaper.

 

[loc978]

Steam certainly made things take off after they got good... started off as the next thing to malware, though.

As for being "savior"... not so much. There was no crisis to avert. Most of the reason PC is up while consoles are down is the reality of what the internet has done to gaming. Console game patching, updates, et cetera are a pain in the ass. Their input devices of choice are terrible for that sort of thing, as are their operating systems. People flock to convenience, and even back when we downloaded patches manually, PC gaming was more convenient than what consoles have become.

 

[LordMonty]

I some people argue against steam on the DRM issues, that are the only real issue you can take with them. Devs see the bigger picture more than we do and Fargo is clearly high lighting the ease and safty a developer can release on steam with little or no hassle. Steam is good for gaming and moved us forward with digitial disribution without a single doubt, money and numbers say so.

So hate if you gonna hate but steam is the online retail backbone for pc gaming and from it other sites have copied and grown the market. But steam is the heart and center of it.

 

[Nimzabaat]

Was PC gaming really that bad though? I only took a brief break from PC gaming when the original Xbox came out and I couldn't afford both, but it seems to have died and come back to life in those few years.

"[The console makers] put al sorts of guns to our head," said Fargo. "Valve has all this power but they don't wield it. They let us work in an open system. So for that I can't say good enough things about them."

Not sure I agree there. Consoles do impose a lot of restrictions but Valve are hardly angels. I like to think they're the good guys in this industry but they did bring in DRM for starters. Plus they kinda do exercise their power - not happy about the state of Steam's QA (or total lack thereof)? Tough. same goes for guarantees. You can't really turn away from Steam now as you're completely invested in it and most games are only available there.

Well Valve didn't invent DRM, they did invent charging the consumer for adding DRM to another companies product though. Pretty damn savvy when you think about it.

Whilst I've never heard of this guy or his studio, a quick search show's he's selling a game in early access for AAA price. Call me ignorant but it hardly looks like it's got a AAA budget and the first review says that it was unplayable at launch. I'm sure this is the open system that devs dream about but it's hardly good for the consumer. Even if this stdio is ok, there are 10 shitty rip-off merchants for every honest dev on Steam these days. I just wish they'd exercise a little of that power they have on developers.

I wouldn't worry about the games asking price. This Steam he loves so much will have it down to $5 soon enough Sadly they made a lot of their development cost from Kickstarter so that'll be less of a burn.

I'll agree that Valve did a lot in the war against piracy by making legitimate copies cheap enough to make pirating them less worthwhile. On the other hand they did make consoles more appealing to the AAA developers. How many devs aren't even bothering to port games to PC anymore? You can thank Valve for that. PC gaming has started to make more than consoles but that's because of the volume, subscription fees and micro-transactions, not quality games (yes FTL is a good game but I wouldn't pay $60 for it).

 

[synobal]

It's the best thing Valve ever invented and I thank them for it and the Portal series. As a company with only two good games to their credit they've done so much for PC gaming and I believe the main factor is sales. When they have things like their summer or winter sales I think many people, myself included, will even buy games we wouldn't normally because the price drops to something insignificant. I know some companies want those sales to end but I wouldn't doubt if they're responsible for selling a ton of games.

Your "only two good games" to their credit is massively biased. If you look at their games objectively the half-life series, Team Fortress 2, Dota 2, Portal series, Counter Strike series, Left 4 Dead series are all "good games".

Maybe it was only two games you enjoyed but if you look at the reviews and general sales performance of their games in general valve has far more than two good games to their name.

The people that live in The Sticks, Maine actually hate Vavle because they all but destroyed PC gaming because the highest internet speeds are from DSL.

I only have DSL, we are talking 350kb download rate max. I've almost 200 games now on steam. So I dunno are these people on download caps or something?

 

[lacktheknack]

Or its no DRM (GOG style)

GoG is a niche service. Not a serious competitor to Steam.

Give it some time. When it got the rights to Alan Wake, the floodgates creaked open a bit.

And yes, if gog.com has something that Steam does, gog.com gets my dollar every time (unless Steam undercuts it by five dollars or more).

OT: He's not wrong.