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Comment by flohofwoe | Hacker News Reader

It can't be worse than in the mid-90's (at least in relative numbers, of course absolute numbers will be much higher because the market is so much bigger now).

Ever since services like Steam existed I have pretty much pirated zero games, it's just too much hassle compared to clicking the Buy button on Steam (and if it's too expensive, the next season sale is always just around the corner). In comparison, my 90's self owned pretty much zero bought games.

Or as our Lord and Saviour Gaben ;) said:

"The easiest way to stop piracy is not by putting antipiracy technology to work. It's by giving those people a service that's better than what they're receiving from the pirates."

Still spot on.

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I also appreciate Gaben, but we can't rely on enlightened despots, it just leaves room for bad actors to eventually ruin things.

Of course, but since the Steam model works so well one wonders why everybody else is stumbling along instead of "just" copying it. Steam is pretty much the only platform where I don't care that I'm constantly bombarded with "targeted ads" for instance, I'm actually most of the time interested in what the Steam recommendation algorithm has in store for me.

The "ads" on steam are so good that piracy websites use steam to recomend new releases.

I wouldn't even call it "bombarded". I only get ads when i click on "store", as in I signal "I'm interested in spending money, what do you have?" - that's actually a reasonable time to get ads.

> Of course, but since the Steam model works so well one wonders why everybody else is stumbling along instead of "just" copying it.

Origin, Blizzard, uPlay et al failed to challenge Steam largely because they lack both features and catalog; it's not clear they even intended to take on Steam, because of the lack of content from other publishers.

EGS is worth special attention because it both has content from other publishers and has dumped considerable cash into the goal of unseating Steam. I think it comes down to features: the EGS store has generally been a sub-par experience, and they purposefully refused to implement features like Community Scores, Forums, and other metasocial features that make Steam what it is.

They underestimate the value of player reviews, community scoring, forums, guides, workshop and so on. Even if most of users of most games don't avail themselves of those features, they're important features for retaining the most die-hard of users; who in turn form the core of the social draw to use Steam.

The problem with EGS isn’t really the lack of features (though it does lack many), it’s that the interface is poorly designed as well as being sluggish and miserable to use.

Epic Games Store comes to mind, along with dozens of other smaller/defunct enterprises. There's a rumor that Gamestop is going to make one that's crypto-enabled somehow. The problems remain; ask anyone who's been banned by Valve how they feel about their Steam library being rendered completely inaccessible.

> Of course, but since the Steam model works so well one wonders why everybody else is stumbling along instead of "just" copying it.

Because copying is theft. I kid...

The problem is it's incredibly hard to create a semi-ethical company like steam without an enlightened despot.

Valve can take away software you've rightfully purchased as well. I don't know that they are the holy grail either even though they're commendable for what they've done with gaming on Linux. I bought CS GO years ago but after the CS 2 transition, I was no longer able to play the game since it became Windows and Linux only.

> it's just too much hassle compared to clicking the Buy button on Steam

Game piracy today is still easier than clicking the buy button, and it's also free. We're not ripping individual files from sites anymore these days, most games are neatly packaged up into one-click install repacks.

Yeah, of course Gaben will say that (while providing developers a Steam DRM mechanism). A good PR example: he knows the importance of antipiracy, but he also knows the importance of downplaying it to not irritate the gamers.

The steam drm is a joke and I think it's on purpose. It takes a few minutes to use a steam emulator and overcome it.

Publishers do also have the option of including their own DRM, which Steam proactively discloses, one of the things that I love most about it. But it's rare enough (basically just Ubisoft and EA) that I can fully boycott anything with that label without feeling like I'm missing out.

DRM is optional for Steam games, I think that's a pretty good balance between the interest of game developers vs the interest of user, it's an issue between users and game devs, not between users and Steam.

The more important point is though that the Steam DRM is hassle-free for the user. For instance games (with macOS ports) I already bought for PC I can also just install on my Mac, with save games automatically shared between the two. I don't have to buy a separate Mac version (as would be the case with Xbox vs Playstation), nor do I need to pay extra, so there's no incentive to pirate the Mac version.

DRM could also be executed in a way that makes it impossible for companies to claw back the content. DVDs use DRM and all it does is restrict what devices can access it, but it can't be retroactively clawed back. Consumers understanding when that is the case is the problem. They just assume it can't be clawed back or they just think it's very unlikely, and only get mad when it happens. Unexpected restrictions in content is a centralized platform thing in general and can happen with your own content on any cloud storage provider for example, it isn't necessarily a DRM problem.

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