Features - QOTW: Where do you buy your games?

[Animus404]

Steam, Online Stores(whichever the cheapest) and surprisingly OnLive.

[watercooled]

@ExHail & aidanjt (to avoid quoting two whole posts): I'll have a read of those links, it could be that I see piracy as a larger problem to the industry than it is, and I'm open minded to that, although I strongly doubt anything would change my opinion about the selfishness of it. Plenty of people I know download thousands of music tracks/films/games without paying a penny except if it's not easily avoidable (console games for example). I just ask you to consider my point of view. TBH I find it quite shocking, just how many people don't think twice about doing something morally and ethically wrong just because people around them get away with it, and not just piracy...

I'm also extremely annoyed about removing the possibility of resale (greedy so-and-so's might be trying it with new consoles), so it's not that I agree with DRM at all. But without pirates, the publishers' argument for DRM wouldn't have a leg to stand on.

[Noxvayl]

@ watercooled

That is fair enough. I don't feel publishers have a leg to stand on with pirates existing anyway... If anything piracy is the lesser of the two evils, profiteering being the other, so I'm inclined to stand up for pirates bold enough to publicly admit it.

[aidanjt]

@ExHail & aidanjt (to avoid quoting two whole posts): I'll have a read of those links, it could be that I see piracy as a larger problem to the industry than it is, and I'm open minded to that, although I strongly doubt anything would change my opinion about the selfishness of it. Plenty of people I know download thousands of music tracks/films/games without paying a penny except if it's not easily avoidable (console games for example). I just ask you to consider my point of view. TBH I find it quite shocking, just how many people don't think twice about doing something morally and ethically wrong just because people around them get away with it, and not just piracy...

I'm also extremely annoyed about removing the possibility of resale (greedy so-and-so's might be trying it with new consoles), so it's not that I agree with DRM at all. But without pirates, the publishers' argument for DRM wouldn't have a leg to stand on.

It doesn't matter what argument publishers come up with to rationalise DRM. It simply doesn't work against the stated excuse. What it has been extremely effective at is decimating the second hand market. And now they're bringing it to consoles. Not that there's a rampant piracy problem on those platforms. But because they've sufficiently seeded the market with anti-piracy propaganda, often consisting with outright lies and made up statistics, and acclimatised the industry with machine lock-in DRM, and they've every reason to believe they can get away with usurping the property rights of a much wider audience. Which has clearly been their long play all along.

Downloaders may not be right to infringe on copyright. But publishers are no more right to be abusing their monopoly rights in such a manner, and rigging the market to their financial advantage.

[Adio]

I personally buy my games online. Ironically, from GAME's website, before their downfall. I was fortunate though to make sure I used up all my reward points before they halted the feature...

I rarely buy anything from high street retailers these days, unless I need an accessory there and then. On average the best deals can be found online from Play.com and Amazon.co.uk etc, not to mention the comfort of home deliveries.

[tickleonthetum]

Over the last year I've slowly stopped playing all the games I used to play as I finished them one by one, but haven't bought any new ones.

As I won't use Steam or Origin and only play true offline solo-player games I have found less and less of interest available. In the end I was left with just The Sims 3 installed (yeah I know) but between the shoe-horned in Social Networking features and the over priced Store and it's new target audience of pre-teens, that came off my machine last month. My one remaining hope has been for the new Sim City game due next year, but as EA have now announced that that is to be a multi-player only continuous connection game then that is now out as well.

So as all of the games due in the next 18 months or so either have heavy handed DRM, Steam or Origin built in I won't be playing/buying ANY games for the foreseeable future :-(

And no I don't have a console, Smart Phone or tablet...

[Noxvayl]

Over the last year I've slowly stopped playing all the games I used to play as I finished them one by one, but haven't bought any new ones.

As I won't use Steam or Origin and only play true offline solo-player games I have found less and less of interest available. In the end I was left with just The Sims 3 installed (yeah I know) but between the shoe-horned in Social Networking features and the over priced Store and it's new target audience of pre-teens, that came off my machine last month. My one remaining hope has been for the new Sim City game due next year, but as EA have now announced that that is to be a multi-player only continuous connection game then that is now out as well.

So as all of the games due in the next 18 months or so either have heavy handed DRM, Steam or Origin built in I won't be playing/buying ANY games for the foreseeable future :-(

And no I don't have a console, Smart Phone or tablet...

Go to www.gog.com, you have a good choice of games free from DRM. Alternatively support Kickstarter campaigns for games, watch out for Humble Bundles that are also free of DRM and support Paradox Interactive and Stardock who both dislike DRM.

There are good options out there for games that are DRM free so don't give up.

[MrBozack]

It used to be Game.co.uk for the kids' console games. That is until they failed to provide me with pre-orders due to their financial troubles! I am no longer a Game customer!

I always use Steam for PC games - since 2005, anyway.

[Boomstick777]

Mostly Steam. Amazon uk and Play.com

[jnutt]

For me I use Amazon for boxed games, GOG for the classics as I have been replacing the disc versions of my old games with working digital copies and then everything else I use Steam.

I'm exactly the same. Just got Baldurs gate 1 & 2 from GOG.

[grizzla]

My decision to buy a game normally comes down to where I feel I get best value (cheapest in most cases). I have found over the past few years that game.co.uk offered good value on pre-orders compared to Amazon, play etc. (at least the same price sometimes cheaper). I rarely buy from bricks and mortar unless I have something I wish to trade-in. I mainly use Steam which can be expensive but their sales are always good, Origin, Green Man Gaming and Gamesplanet I have also used recently.

[HalloweenJack]

usually online now - and since the likes of EA are now actively trying to kill console game reselling might have to wait to buy them longer

[=assassin=]

I decided to check out our local Gamestation yesterday, found that they had got the stock of PC Games from the local GAME that had been shut. I picked up Stalker: Clear Sky for £2.98, which I thought wasn't too bad. Normally I buy stuff online though.

[Jedibeeftrix]

+1

Lazy bugger I am , I order almost everything none food from Amazon.

< just spent £35 on a kilo of biltong!

[Saracen]

It doesn't matter what argument publishers come up with to rationalise DRM. It simply doesn't work against the stated excuse. What it has been extremely effective at is decimating the second hand market. And now they're bringing it to consoles. Not that there's a rampant piracy problem on those platforms. But because they've sufficiently seeded the market with anti-piracy propaganda, often consisting with outright lies and made up statistics, and acclimatised the industry with machine lock-in DRM, and they've every reason to believe they can get away with usurping the property rights of a much wider audience. Which has clearly been their long play all along.

Downloaders may not be right to infringe on copyright. But publishers are no more right to be abusing their monopoly rights in such a manner, and rigging the market to their financial advantage.

That, more or less.

I don't quite agree with all of your previous post (#26), but I do agree with most of that.

As for where I buy my games .... well, these days, I pretty much don't buy any. Why? Mainly, the way DRM has gone. The excess greedinesses and obnoxiousness of DRM has turned me into more or less a non-gamer. So, effectively, DRM => market = market-1.

[GingerNinja]

For me I mainly buy from Shopto.net or Play.com sometimes from amazon depends on price. I never buy from high street retailers cause they rip you off big style.