Mister Jack Posted May 3, 2012 Report Share Posted May 3, 2012 If Battlelog had been an in-game function it would have been awesome. I remember hearing about it and thinking it would be something cool like the autolog in Need for Speed. That was a terrific feature. Why oh why did they have to fuck it up by doing it the way they did? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted May 18, 2012 Report Share Posted May 18, 2012 http://www.develop-online.net/news/40852/EA-offers-free-Origin-launch-for-Kickstarter-games Pretty cool. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted May 18, 2012 Report Share Posted May 18, 2012 Trend riding, but a positive move. As long as the usual EA strings aren't attached this could be great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted May 26, 2012 Report Share Posted May 26, 2012 Got another misleading e-mail advertisement, though not nearly as bad as the first. Someone needs to let EA know that "storewide" means "everything in the store", and fine print doesn't change that. At least this time all the franchises specifically shown off in the e-mail actually are on sale, so it's a step up in that regard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Heart Posted May 26, 2012 Report Share Posted May 26, 2012 You and T-Next would probably know the legal definition better than me, and a lot comes down to how Origin groups its games, but 'storewide' doesn't necessarily mean every single item. As an example, department stores can claim 'storewide' sales but that doesn't apply to every single brand or concession within a department. Obviously, Origin is a different beast, and I'm not sure if you can say it's done by genre or publisher or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted May 28, 2012 Report Share Posted May 28, 2012 (edited) Maybe it's an English vs. English thing, but in my experience "storewide" is synonymous with "everything in the store", with the occasional exception of things that were already on sale. *Edit* - I guess I've seen generalized stuff like "Storewide deals" just mean deals scattered throughout the store, but when it's specific like "50% off storewide" I've always seen that to mean all items. Edited May 28, 2012 by TheMightyEthan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-06-06-david-demartini-origin-wants-to-be-the-hub Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luftwaffles Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 Because of course the only thing to an IP that matters is price. And besides, didn't GOG say this same thing recently? EA can do better with their butthurt than this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 I do agree that Steam sales probably lower what people are willing to pay. I know they've certainly made me only buy games in the $10-15 range unless I'm hyper-super-excited for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister Jack Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 (edited) What a stupid assertion. Steam sales don't cheapen an IP. Games just cost too damn much now. I'm relatively okay with paying 60 dollars for a huge game like Skyrim or a game packed with content like Mortal Kombat, but when so many games are 10 to 12 hour affairs that include some tacked-on multiplayer that will be forgotten in a few months, it becomes a really hard pill to swallow. People don't want to pay so much unless they are sure they're going to like what they're getting. Sixty dollars is not the kind of money you shell out just to try something to see if it's any good. Edited June 6, 2012 by Mister Jack Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 Games just cost too damn much now. For the millionth time: Games now are cheaper than ever once you factor in inflation. I'm not sure if I agree on your assessment on value. I understand where you are coming from... but old games used to be that short too, if not shorter. They were just harder so they took longer as you learned the game. People tend to shill out 60 dollars for things that they trust. Brand recognition goes very very far in this industry. I don't think Steam sales cheapen an IP. In general, I just don't buy full priced games period and I'm very patient. There's still plenty of people who are the opposite. See Diablo 3 sales figures for an example. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 A good RPS article on that response: http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/06/06/hmm-ea-on-steamorigin-mega-sales/#more-110982 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thursday Next Posted June 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 Steam sales make it harder for other publishers to charge what they want to charge. It's a free market. If you don't like the "Stack 'em high, sell 'em cheap" model, then don't let Steam publish your games. I think (personally, not related to anything overheard in my employment) that this is a message to developers. Basically EA are saying, "If you want to sell a million copies of your game at $4.99 go to Steam. If you want to sell half a million at $10 come to Origin." owtte. Developers will decide which they prefer. I think we will see some shifting towards the traditional publishers with an established consumer base leaning toward Origin, where their profit margins will be protected. Smaller, more nimble, indie devs will gravitate to Steam so that they can shift more units and establish a larger fan base. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted June 8, 2012 Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 Thing is if you look at the Steam Top Sellers only 5 of them are running with sales, and one of those is just a slim 10% pre-order bonus (unlike Origin which charges £5 up front to pre-order). And the full price titles include stuff like Skyrim, Game of Thrones, n Max Payne selling at £30-£35 a pop. ARMA II is up there due to the whole Day Z craze, which shows how good mod support can be. And heading below the Top 10 you've still got stuff like Ghost Recon pre-orders, Modern Warfare 3, Crysis 2 etc selling for full price. If you've a high end product you can sell it for a high end price. So established companies can maintain their profit margins if they like. It's hardly like the sales are required (the latest two COD games never go on sale), so if you've a strong product it will still sell. It is mainly the indies that will want to sell low, but they're also generally offering a smaller product. Of course when they sell low and offer a product of better value than those established guys with £30-£40 games that's when it becomes an issue for the big guys. It's not that the established game, let's say Skyrim, might go on sale for £20 that devalues the IP, it's that the unestablished but equal contender that goes on sale that's the problem. See the fact that Diablo III (from long runner Blizzard, retails for £45) is being compared with Torchlight II (company is a few years old, 4 copies for £45). It's that the cheap indies undervalue their games that is the bother. It's also worth noting most of the Top Sellers have some form of steamworks support, be it as simple as achievements or all the way up to Workshop support. Origin has nothing comparable to offer either developers or consumers, at best a wide range of non-connected services like Battlelog, Autolog, Bioware Social etc. Aloso if you sell a million copies for $5 instead of half a million for $10, sure you've got the same amount of income, but on Steam you have twice as many people to market your sequel and DLC at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thursday Next Posted June 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 Well, I was trying to pick non-contentious numbers otherwise I'll have people pulling real figures from Steam and Origin and shoving them down my throat. What I was trying to get across was, if you are unestablished, you'll take the hit to your margins in order to build a fan base. CoD etc. do not need to do that. I'm just extrapolating on what De Martini seems to be driving at, that he wants Origin to be a place where you get quality and pay a higher price because of that. I'm well aware of Origin's short comings with regard to features and community (and even basic functionality at times), but at the moment I'm just thinking about price and volume of sales. I should also point out that I have no idea how Steam conducts its business. So I'm not sure if they set the price, or if the developer does, or if it depends on who the developer / publisher is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted June 8, 2012 Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 I'd imagine price depends on the developer. i.e Activsion will likely go "we're selling COD for £40" and Steam will be "sounds good". Whereas little fresh faced indie will be "We think £5 is okay price" and Steam will go "well similar titles sell for £15, want to try that?" (or vice versa). Which is another thing Steam can offer developers: Vast amounts of data n figures and years of experience. Origin is looking to pick up Kickstarter titles by the way, so it will likely end up with an equal quantity of high priced established titles and newer cheaper offerings as Steam has. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thursday Next Posted June 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 This is true, though I'm not sure how long that bandwaggon hopping will last. EA has always been a big-ticket publisher. As much as the higher ups may want to change that, the people in the middle are fantastic at blocking those opportunities and not getting digital generally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister Jack Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/23/demartini-origin-to-be-a-better-version-of-steam/#comments I know you think this in your head EA, but when are you going to realize that bragging out loud about how you're going to outdo steam does nothing but turn people off? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 Is he comparing Origin to the recently failed IPO of Facebook that's currently dragging everything around it down with it? Also talking of social networks, that's the main thing Origin is still lacking is the whole social side of things. A friends list is something any simple IM client can do. But with Steam you can go "oh hey, friend X is playing L4D2" *right clicks, joins in*. But despite requiring Origin no game seems to offer that functionality yet. There's no reason to have Origin open other than to play games tied to the service. But Steam there's the community stuff to see what games folks have recently picked up, how far along they are, any neat screenshots. And then to hop in a group chat n use that. Origin has none of that. Oh and the "are we regional or are we not" thing should really be resolved ASAP. Fucking sucks that the simple task of sharing URLs with other people just won't work if the recipient isn't in the same country as you. Being kicked back to the Origin homepage just makes me lose interest in whatever was being linked and close the tab. Having deals that are either exclusive to a country, is stupid. Even more stupid when they ave deals that are for the website or for the client. Steam, except on some very rare occasions, has a deal, it's regardless of using the client, website, mobile site/app or regardless of country too. One link works for all platforms and countries too. eg: Kingdoms of Amalur: Origin Steam It's just pathetic to be boasting when there's still fundamental issues with the client and service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister Jack Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 The biggest problem right now is that they simply don't offer anything that Steam already doesn't do much better. They claim to have big ideas to win people over, but forgive me if I don't exactly have faith in their ability to deliver. I can think of a few things right now that could make Origin actually worth using, but I'm betting none of those things will be implemented. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 Not that Steam is all perfect either mind. They need a serious revamp of the store site atm. Especially since the client can't open multi-tabs so using the steam storefront is horrible since you end up a fair ways into a list of games, click an interesting one to have a look, go back and you're at the top of the list again. (and many other minor issues, though the "set your own icons" update recently was nice fix to one issue I had had for some time now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister Jack Posted June 23, 2012 Report Share Posted June 23, 2012 Well I don't think anybody but diehard fanboys are going to claim that steam is perfect, but it's still better than any of the alternatives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thursday Next Posted June 25, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2012 I'm missing the part where EA were bragging... Is your vision so clouded by the EA hate that you can't see when someone is complementing a rival service and saying "Our goal is to be better than that." At no point does he say that Origin is better than Steam or that it will kill it. He is saying that EA will "try and do a better version of what someone has previously done" He is " quite optimistic we will differentiate ourselves as a service." And in comparing the situation to MySpace he's simply saying that competition is necessary to improve services. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted July 11, 2012 Report Share Posted July 11, 2012 At Develop Valve have countered the "Cheapens IP" thing: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-07-11-valve-counters-eas-steam-sales-cheapen-intellectual-property-accusation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted July 17, 2012 Report Share Posted July 17, 2012 www.ea.com/news/whats-coming-in-origin-90 Origin 9.0 incoming. With floating friensd list, resizable library icons and reworked menu. I think we can get a good idea of the feedback they've had the past year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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