Something I’ve noticed in this community is that whenever I criticize Steam, or point out something I don’t like about the platform, I tend to get a ton of downvotes.

And honestly, I’m just curious why.

This is a piracy-oriented community, so I find it kinda interesting that Steam seems to have such a strong positive reputation here. I’m not saying people shouldn’t like Steam, obviously everyone has their own reasons for using it. Steam is convenient, has huge sales, supports Linux, has a massive library of games, etc. I completely get why people use it.

I’m just wondering where the line is for people.

For example, do you like Steam despite the DRM because the convenience outweighs the negatives? Do you see Steam as fundamentally different from other forms of DRM? Do you consider Valve one of the “good guys” in the industry? Or do you simply see Steam as a convenient storefront and don’t really think much about the DRM side of it?

Or maybe you actually agree with some of the criticism of Steam, but just think it’s being exaggerated.

For me personally, I don’t use Steam because I don’t really like having my games tied to an account and a platform. I’d rather have the actual files, be able to back them up, move them around, mod them and know that I still have them years later. That’s basically what I was getting at in that video I made about Steam as well.

But I’m not trying to start another “Steam bad!” argument here. I’m genuinely curious because sometimes the reaction seems surprisingly pro-Steam considering the nature of this community.

So what is it about Steam that you guys actually appreciate?

  • Wildmimic@anarchist.nexusEnglish
    211·
    9 hours ago

    Lets see:

    • Good prices if you are a bit patient and want to support devs
    • seamless linux integration nowadays - Proton is a blessing!
    • DRM is the decision of the publisher - not required by steam in any way - and the offered standard DRM is so weak that it doesn’t really exist while also respecting you as a costumer (no hardware binding, no limited activations and so on - if a game has that, it’s the publishers bad decision)
    • steam workshop is the easiest way to get into modding by far
    • autoupdater for all your games (and mods when using workshop)
    • integrated overlay offering guides and discussion forums
    • steam input is awesome and powerful, while not being overly complicated, and also works on non-steam games (the overlay does too - opening a game wiki in the overlay is pretty handy)
    • switching between offered builds/betas takes 3 clicks
    • steamworks making multiplayer easy - rightclick your friend and invite into the running game
    • discovery queue is a pretty good feature - i tend to run one or two every month just to keep up on whats new and up my alley
    • creates a news and patchnotes stream out of your library and store follows, making sure you always are informed even if a game isn’t currently installed, for example when you are waiting for some specific feature / content in a game
    • easy managing of your installed games with a good overview of used space and when you last used that 80GB behemoth of a game
    • Steam inhome streaming is pretty good and readily available, and also enables mixed remote/local couch gaming; i prefer moonlight/sunshine, but it’s deffo more involved than clicking on the “Stream” button.
    • Family sharing makes my library availabe to 5 other people free of charge

    Don’t get me wrong, i am someone who collects game repacks in large volumes, so i am completely fine with piracy as it is. but i also want to give game devs that have created something special financial security so they can continue doing their thing. That means games that i actually want to continue playing after testing them out sooner or later land in my library, at a price point that i a) can afford, since i am a small time pensioner and b) that i perceive as fair for the product in comparison to how much joy the game brought me. My wishlist is primarily a “reminder to buy because they deserve it” list. In some cases this can even result in paying the full new release price (Baldurs Gate 3 e.g, and CP2077 - this has more to do with my fandom towards the pen&paper RPG tho, and i am happy that the game has evolved to something where i can say i am proud i paid full price)