Valve Is Making All Their Games Free To Debian Developers

[DDF420]

I'd ask a question, is any kind of DRM good? I know of none. They are all bad. But if you evaluate DRM only on the scale of comfort, you easily can come to "acceptable" forms. I don't evaluate it on the scale of comfort as as a primary issue, though I can say that any DRM always means reduced usability.

Steam is DRM done right

Their is the restriction of games being tied to an account.
That account can be used on any PC
Now has the ability to share your games with other accounts
After a one time activation games can be played offline
You can back games up
If the game maker wants it, you can bypass steam and load the game directly.
So apart from a game being tied to an account, games having a one time online activation, and some folks fear of valve closing steam and one day disappearing.Most think the imposed restrictions are minimal and acceptable in comparison to other DRM options out there.

What most gamers don't like is when 3rd party DRM http://pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/The_Big...y_DRM_on_Steam is thrown on top of steam DRM
If we are talking steam DRM restrictions are minimal

[GreatEmerald]

Steam is DRM done right

And once again, there can be no "DRM done right", because there is no way to do DRM right. DRM is wrong by design. Yes, Steam's DRM is not obtrusive, but that doesn't make it "right".

[shmerl]

And once again, there can be no "DRM done right", because there is no way to do DRM right. DRM is wrong by design. Yes, Steam's DRM is not obtrusive, but that doesn't make it "right".

+1. Saying "DRM done right" is like saying police state done right. It's an oxymoron. But I see it once again. Some evaluate DRM only in the aspect of comfort and completely ignore the unethical principle behind it, or any other related concerns (privacy + security). So for them "right" means "unobtrusive", which simply means well hidden.

[smitty3268]

And again, Valve isn't playing nice with their DRM, they are adding it as a requirement to use Steamworks

How exactly do you think you can use Steamworks without logging in? Because that's what the DRM amounts to here, logging in. You had to log in to Phoronix in order to post this message, too, you couldn't do that without the "DRM".

[smitty3268]

And once again, there can be no "DRM done right", because there is no way to do DRM right. DRM is wrong by design. Yes, Steam's DRM is not obtrusive, but that doesn't make it "right".

"DRM done right" refers to the game being better with it than without. And that really is the situation on Steam right now.

I'd rather have my save games stored in the cloud and accessible from all my machines, than not have that. And there's no downside, as a user, except for the political and theoretical.

It's fine if you care enough about those political and theoretical things that you can't see anything else. But some people don't care that much, and in a practical sense there isn't anything bad going on.

[dee.]

great games like battlefield4, cod , nfs, fifa etc

Ahahahahahahahaha

stop trolling...

[mike4]

How do you become a Debian Developer? You need SteamOS and a published game?
Thanks

[Kivada]

First of all how do you know how Valve is using DRM? And how do you know how Valve is not using it?

Wireshark. It's not hard to tell what little they are doing if you aren't an idiot.

[Kivada]

DRM infested or not. It is first not Valve alone, it is the game's primary publisher deciding. Second: It is definitely a nice gesture. Of course they might speculate to gain some development power for their SteamOS issues and help from the Debian devs but hey, why not?

PC only indie games are self published on Steam.

The only say Valve has is if the community wants it and the game actually meets stability and content standards that Valve has set so that users don't feel they've been cheated out of their money with a cool video but a terrible game as well as ensuring theres no content not allowed on the store like porn in the game. Outside of that the only way to get in trouble with Valve if you're a dev is if you get caught using IP you don't have a license for.

These rules are no different for a game on a DVD on a store shelf.

[Kivada]

We are already using DRM-free options and avoiding Steam, no problem. That doesn't mean that we can't criticise it. And again, Valve isn't playing nice with their DRM, they are adding it as a requirement to use Steamworks, and while you can have DRM-free games on Steam, they are never advertised as such and overall seem to be opt-out rather than opt-in.

Sure it does, since it's painfully obvious that you've never used Steam. It's like saying you don't like pineapples but have never actually eaten one. Steam, like pineapples, is pretty damn delicious.

Steamworks ties into the users account, how exactly would this work if the game wasn't on Steam? You do realize that Steamworks is not an integral part of the game right? The same games available on Steam are usually available via Desura and/or DRM free without that Steamworks integration, to no ill effect to the game itself, just to the user's ability to connect with friends and other players for a better gaming experience.

I hate social media but I love Steam's network as I'm a semi-serious gamer, in that I'm very laid back about gaming, but I also like to be with other people that have some ability to coordinate and follow pre-established roles. But not to the point of the "pro" gamer douchebags or the irritating kids. I'm too old to dedicate my life to mastering a game like that, I don't have no problem with swearing so long as you are capable of holding a conversation on quantum mechanics.