Microsoft System to Challenge Steam

[Shawn Zipay]

Microsoft is tossing their hat into the "digital distribution" ring and looking to face off against Valve's Steam client. Just as you may expect, they're looking to exploit the system in any way possible.

The first step arrived today when Games for Windows Live received an update. The update "improves the interface and adds support for video, demos, and DLC downloads through a Marketplace application."

Steam currently features no priced DLC, a fact which Microsoft hopes to exploit with both publishers and customers by rolling out DLC support ahead of full distribution. For instance, though Games for Windows Live exclusivity does not preclude the titles such as Fallout 3 from being sold on Steam, Fallout 3's DLC will only be available on Microsoft's GFW Live Marketplace.

Take that all in for just a moment. Shacknews put up part of their interview with Chris Early, the GFW Live general manager, about the future plans for the service.

Chris Early: When we get to the place where we do distribute games digitally, will we have a digital rights management system? Maybe. Or maybe we'll just continue to support the industry leaders in that. Because it is a hard thing to do. You talk to any of those companies, and that is their whole company, is doing digital rights management.

Shack: You were saying, "When we get to the place where we sell games eventually"?

Chris Early: Did I say that? [huge laughter]

Shack: Because I ask you guys every time we do one of these interviews..

Chris Early: Clearly it's on our road map.

Shack: It's on your road map. So that's what you're looking at as a next step?

Chris Early: Right.

Shack: So this is your DLC effort, and rolling out the infrastructure, and then that will come next.

Chris Early: Right. And if I were to make that choice again today, would I go the same way? I absolutely would. Because this is something that you can't do today on a PC, right? You can buy digitally through a bunch of places.

Source

[imported_ATM743]

Re: Microsoft System to Challenge Steam

i dont really like this because most games on pc are now going to run this gfw live crap and if i have to start paying 50 bucks a year to play some pc games online ill be pissed.

i HATE xbox 360's xbox live bull crap. when gears came to pc, it used the gfw live thing and you had to pay to play ranked (not anymore) And now i can see microsoft doing what they do best on xbox marketplace to the pc.

when an update or expansion comes out they will make you buy 10 dollers of their so called "points" to get a expansion

If they want to compete with Valve (Steam) They will have to learn how to not charge people for updates (which i dont see them doing)

TF2 has had so many patch and has had 3 updates (with medic, pyro and heavy and i hear soon to have new update in the works)

If they did this on xbox 360, each character update would have probably cost 10 bucks each

I personally think that the in game interface is a cool thing for some pc games so you can chat with your buds that are on other pc games/xbox games

BUT, if these games that run it, run under microsoft crapy player list servers then im going to not be a happy camper

[vfn4i83]

Re: Microsoft System to Challenge Steam

Right now, STEAM is the leading system distribution, only and just because they have the best games on it; And I mean the entire Valve family, and M$ haven't near that. And Valve just recently announced some support to Linux gaming, so expect for near future major companys also joining this effort.

EPIC and ID as community support, whiling or not they work on Linux, but for some time EPIC is working to favored windows, such as gfw cr@p. And since all major engine makers announced the possibility to end the Direct X support by they're engines, so they might really give wide support for Linux gaming.