Why I Won't be Playing ME3

[Jonathan Meer]

http://www.gamefront.com/mass-effect-3-t...-versions/

[Rafael]

God dammit, seriously? Well, if it does come to steam, sweet, but otherwise, eh. Kinda irritated at the series on steam as it is with DLC being so hard to get

[Ashe]

That's unfortunate. I was pretty annoyed that I couldn't get a Steam version of Star Wars too, and although it is possible to get the game without touching Origin at all, most of their links try to make it seem otherwise so I just bought hard copies from Best Buy. I'm not putting Origin on my computer.

EDIT:

I agree with this comment:

I’m amazed how these “restrictions” EA bitches about only seem to truly affect again “EA” no on else seems to be butt hurt about it. There’s even F2P games on Steam.

All EA has to say is “We want our service to leverage STEAM and their huge market share in PC digital distribution and we want to keep for our selves the 20% VALVE takes per game copy”.

Grow some balls EA please you just make yourself look bad.

From my immediate perspective, it seems like this is just EA trying to keep a grip on their games in hopes that Origin will compete with Steam better while wanting to keep more of the profit, and in doing so, are trying to raise "awareness/propaganda" that Steam is trying to hurt the gaming industry and are dangerous to gamers.

I acknowledge the possibility that both sides have issues, after all they are both trying to make money, but Origin is widely known for shit like double and triple charging your games, even out of nowhere after you've owned the game for a while, while at the same time leaving you unable to get your cd key to work, and then wiping your account during the complaint process. I'm not dealing with that.

[Jonathan Meer]

I don't think EA is going to find any headway there. I've never heard any real complaints from developers, big and indie, regarding Steam.

Steam is a huge success because of the merits of the service. Origin is trying to artificially manufacture that success (for the sake of profits, let's be clear) by unnecessarily saddling their shit.

I already feel icky when I give EA any money at all. I may pick up a hard copy of SWTOR sometime, but I won't be purchasing things through Origin. The prices aren't right, and they're far too new to establish any level of legitimacy/trust.

When shit goes wrong with Steam, I know Valve will make it right, and Steam's prices are simply unbeatable (as in, how the fuck can they possibly make a profit at THAT price?).

If G+ showed us anything, it's that having a superior product to beat an established market-institution is not enough. You have to be obviously and massively superior. And honestly, I can't imagine a (possible, reasonable) video game digital distribution service that could be obviously and massively superior to Steam. It's just too fucking good.

So yeah. Fuck ME3. I would totally have bought it on Steam, too. Hopefully lots of people won't buy it (due to the initial Origin obstacle), and they'll buckle down and release it on Steam.

[Vad]

This is what makes me hate EA. I did some reading. Real bullshit going around.

To all of you who wonder what’s the problem with Origin.

I am not a fun of Steam or Origin by any means, however at least Steam has fair Terms of Service. EA since they introduced Origin doesn’t.

As it stands now, you can lose access to ALL of your games tied to your Origin account PERMANENTLY for…forum infractions.

I am not joking, few of my colleges from Origin got banned for swearing often not directed at any other user of the forums, an avatar showing two men kissing, someone put “Let’s play mother f…” as his status update on Battlelog and lost his Origin account.
Still don’t believe me ? Read some press coverage about it:

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/12/...e-edition/

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/r...ent-filter

No warning, no 3 strikes system, just someone reports you and bam you permanently lose access to games you paid for.

There is no appeal system, there is no way to contact with the people who give away those bans, customers support will tell you nothing, most topics on the forums which discuss that subject get locked and removed. Total Nazi land.

I find it funny, ridiculous and infuriating at the same time that this situation is allowed to continue.

Daily you see dozens of cheaters getting their stats wiped out on Battlelog ( Battlefield 3 forums/feature ) and LET to play the game despite fact they got caught cheating multiple times.

Meanwhile honest people who happen to swear on the EA forums or commit other forum “crime” get their copy of the game taken away from them without ability to get their money back.

EA totally ignores industry standards which hand out forum warnings, suspensions and forum ( mind forum not game ) permanent bans for misbehaving on internet forums. They sell you a product and next take it away under ridiculous excuses. They show total lack of decency and most likely get as close to fraud as they could.

[Ashe]

I saw that. What's lame is that this is EXACTLY the type of bullshit that encourages piracy (to include that pirated copies work where Origin purchases copies frequently will not) and yet EA is one of the BIGGEST speakers against piracy and support of SOPA type stuff.

[Vad]

I saw that. What's lame is that this is EXACTLY the type of bullshit that encourages piracy (to include that pirated copies work where Origin purchases copies frequently will not) and yet EA is one of the BIGGEST speakers against piracy and support of SOPA type stuff.

Yeah...

I'd talk about the Scene groups and which ones are bad ass and trustworthy, but I'd rather not. I do agree with you. This type of shit (like Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed 2 DRM) encourages piracy. It encourages it a lot.

[Jonathan Meer]

The story, in pidgin english:

Steam make money, steam sell our game, steam take some our money. we want sell our game and take all our money. we clone steam and make people use. EA STRONK. EA VIRILE AND STRONK.

[Piper Juunanagou]

I'll be buying it for the 360, so I really could care a less about the PC version.

That is stupid that it won't be on Steam, but what can you say? Isn't that how business/competition works?

[Super Buu]

^That. EA is a business, and this is pretty normal for them.

[Jonathan Meer]

This goes beyond that, though. There's such a thing as 'legitimacy' in business. When you recognize that you can do substantially better than a competitor, you develop a competing product based on that improvement, and try to convince the public that your product is indeed superior. That's a good thing all around; for the companies involved and for us. That's legitimate competition.

That's not what's happening here. EA has instead created what is essentially a clone of Steam, with no real improvements (at least, none I'm aware of), and quite a few missing features. They're not interested in providing a better product; they're only interested in cornering the market on their games so they get that extra 5% per game sale that they're not getting through Steam, and forcing us to utilize their platform.

It's bullshit because Steam is a great platform that I find extremely useful, and has been the product of years of development to fine-tune the weirdnesses and inconsistencies. The idea that I'm forced to be saddled with a hey-at-least-it's-not-GFWL just to play a game is annoying.

And I'm voting with my dollars.

[Tyr]

I'll be buying it for the 360, so I really could care a less about the PC version.

That is stupid that it won't be on Steam, but what can you say? Isn't that how business/competition works?

All versions mate.

Here's how ME3 might still be playable guys.

*puts on eyepatch*

[Piper Juunanagou]

How does it requiring some program thing impact playing it on a console in any way?

I'm not disagreeing with your malcontent or try to argue the point, I'm just genuinely curious/confused.

[Jarka]

All versions mate.

Here's how ME3 might still be playable guys.

*puts on eyepatch*

On all PC versions.

In a post on the Bioware forums, Community Manager Chris Priestly broke the news to the fans, saying, “Yes, Origin is required for all PC editions of Mass Effect 3, physical or digital.”

The Origin software is not a thing on consoles. At most, they're probably going to have an option to link to your EA/Origin account, like you could in ME2 with the Cerberus network or whatever they called that.

[Tyr]

On all PC versions.



The Origin software is not a thing on consoles. At most, they're probably going to have an option to link to your EA/Origin account, like you could in ME2 with the Cerberus network or whatever they called that.

The demo was leaked with the XBox Live Dashboard Preview something other and I'm 90% sure it had Origin in it which caused an uproar. Ubisoft managed to implement their shitty DRM across multiple platforms, Steam managed to do it, worry not, Origin will come to console if not with this game, then eventually.


e: also Piper, traditionally the DRM with an online service requires you to be online and for the server to be online. Ubisoft has a somewhat notorious DRM because the server is a fragile baby and upon release date? Dies. Often. With every game release. If the system detects anything funny (like clown hat mods), it disables your game and prevents you from playing, just like in the new Anno game. No net? No game at all, not even the supposedly very good single player. Basically it's just putting another gateway for a person to get through to the game.

Before DRM, it was just buying the game and putting it in. You had ALL content unlocked right then and there, some might have some additional account service for multiplayer services and if you had that and internet service, you could enjoy that as well. If the online didn't work, at least you still had the core game play of your game to play at any time you wanted. Now it's not that simple.

[Jarka]

The demo was leaked with the XBox Live Dashboard Preview something other and I'm 90% sure it had Origin in it which caused an uproar. Ubisoft managed to implement their shitty DRM across multiple platforms, Steam managed to do it, worry not, Origin will come to console if not with this game, then eventually.


e: also Piper, traditionally the DRM with an online service requires you to be online and for the server to be online. Ubisoft has a somewhat notorious DRM because the server is a fragile baby and upon release date? Dies. Often. With every game release. If the system detects anything funny (like clown hat mods), it disables your game and prevents you from playing, just like in the new Anno game. No net? No game at all, not even the supposedly very good single player. Basically it's just putting another gateway for a person to get through to the game.

Before DRM, it was just buying the game and putting it in. You had ALL content unlocked right then and there, some might have some additional account service for multiplayer services and if you had that and internet service, you could enjoy that as well. If the online didn't work, at least you still had the core game play of your game to play at any time you wanted. Now it's not that simple.

Yeah, I saw the leak. It looked exactly like a page where you can link to the Origin/EA account. Just like in previous games. I'm not going to jump the gun about consoles. I'll wait until more information is released.

[Kaden]

I don't like Origin, or EA, but Bioware has earned their money. Holy fuck have they earned. Mass Effect is a fucking epic trilogy and more enthralling than 90% of the other games I've played in the last five years since ME1 came out.

[Jonathan Meer]

I definitely don't blame Bioware.

[Super Buu]

That's not what's happening here. EA has instead created what is essentially a clone of Steam, with no real improvements (at least, none I'm aware of), and quite a few missing features. They're not interested in providing a better product; they're only interested in cornering the market on their games so they get that extra 5% per game sale that they're not getting through Steam, and forcing us to utilize their platform.

So essentially EA is cornering the market on games they publish in order to make more money, putting players at an inconvenience by having to install a thing? They would do that? Just to make an enormous profit?

... Holy shitballs.

Incidentally, anyone remember back in the day when everyone was like "you need to install steam to play half-life 2, what a stupid hassle just let me play the game"? Cause I do.

I'm just saying, put yourself in the EA boardroom. Your job is to make the company successful. This was GOING to happen. You wanna change it, campaign to change the laws that allow and encourage the growth of massive conglomerates like EA. Complaining about EA trying to make profits is like boycotting lions for eating gazelle. This is the world we live in. Businesses are ruthless, or they are bankrupt, or they get bought out by a business that was run by someone more ruthless and thus made more profit. Survival of the fittest.

tl;dr: EA is EA

[Jonathan Meer]

Again, the issue isn't so much that they're bundling their software with their game. We can judge that bundled software by its merits. GFWL is utter bullshit because it's slow, unnecessary and annoying, not because it's auto-bundled. If it was zippy, helpful and pleasant to look at, I might see it as a plus.

Origin looks to be nothing more than a Steam clone with fewer features, and that's really dumb. When things I like are ripped off, I tend to not like the rip off.