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ErikPeter Walker
United States
New Haven
Connecticut
Uplifting
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Anyone else receive the recent email regarding EA's new download service, Origin?
http://store.origin.com/store/ea/home/
Basically they've created an exclusive EA marketplace, which requires you to download and install this DRM/Distribution app to get your games.
Anyone else feel like this is just another straw on the camel's back considering EA's recent track record?
First, a couple of years ago, there was Spore. I got as far as the Spore Creature Creator/preorder. Using the funky, half-broken EA Download Manager or whatever the hell it was called back then, I eventually managed to install the program, and found that whenever I tried to save a creature, it crashed--meaning the program was 100% useless. All this, for only $10?
When I tried to uninstall, it crashed. When I went to the online help forum, there was a css error. When I finally managed to look at the tech support questions, none of them applied. When I used the "Send an email to customer support" form, the site crashed!
Then there's the whole "Cerberus Network" thing in Mass Effect 2. I get it, it's a way to get more money from customers who buy it used. But I've already got an XBL account, which works just fine as a vector for DLC. I buy new games. If you don't want people to buy pre-owned, go digital (Well, I guess they figured that out...)
And pre-ordering to get access to items? Thanks, Mass Effect, Dragon Age 1&2, TOR. What's the deal with pre-ordering anyways? Is it really that important to invest a small portion of your profits with a slight head start?
The Old Republic is the biggest offender. It will probably be awesome, but it's $85 to pre-order anything but the ($65) bare bones edition--plus monthly fees. They're actually charging people $5 extra to pre-order! Even though I love BioWare and KOTOR was the shit, I'm particular about MMOs--if it's just another WoW clone with a few dialogue options, then I'm out eighty bucks, so I guess I'll wait until I can get a free trial week (you know, around six months after release.)
And now we come to Origin. What the hell is it? Will it be another buggy, spyware-esque download manager? I suppose it's EA's answer to Steam. But you know what's awesome about Steam? You can use it to buy things besides EA games.
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The EA Download Manager always tells me that I don't own EA titles. That may be because all of them are not available in my region (uncut games)... Therefore I can't use it... Couldn't care less about their stuff.
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Steve Bryce
United Kingdom
Reading
I currently have a PS3, PS2, Wii, XBox 360 and an Amiga 1200 all connected to my TV
HMS Astute on Sea Trials
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Well the upside is that instead of having to carry around the DVDs to play my copies of Mass Effect II and Dragon Age I & II, I was able to redownload them through Origin and can now run them without the disc.
As somebody who travels a lot and games mainly on my laptop, I consider this to be incredibly useful. However I recognise that other people have other priorities!
It clearly isn't as polished as Steam, but any system that allows me to play my games without carrying around a load of physical media gets a thumbs-up from me!
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Alex Rush
United States
Bellingham
Washington
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Downside: Origin, as par user agreement, has the right to inspect and collect everything about your computer, including your personal files, for EA records. You know, your porn, your illegal games, your mom's b day present order, your taxes... all the good stuff. They can't publicly give it to anyone else, but they can give it to some third parties.
Also does anyone else get their side, mocking reference to Origin, a company they bought, milked and killed back in 2004. Seriously, now they steal the good name for idk. They are so malicious, boycott them.
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Alex Rush
United States
Bellingham
Washington
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Worse: Even if you uninstall, EA still had the right to collect, and that element cannot go away, until you get a new computer.
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Brian Baird
United States
Pflugerville
Texas
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Have a Steam account?
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SJ Benoist
United States
Saint Charles
Missouri
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This seems like a good place to mention this Geeklist:
Digital Distributors of Video Games (Steam, GamersGate, et al)
If you guys can add anything to Origin/EA, please contribute.
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Alex Rush
United States
Bellingham
Washington
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But, something overlooked by Steam and Origin for that matter, they are eliminating the used game market. Because of registration, you can't sell your games anymore, even if you have physical retail form of it. (if you register it, love it, hate it, it's yours forever.) Also people are saying Steam is like a digital itunes for games, and I have steam, and I can see where their coming from, but with two big exceptions, 1) itunes is a brilliant piece of programming, used for ease of access and smooth compatibility on most systems 2) Steam is a forced dictator, they don't care about the refined use or content as much, because unlike itunes it is forced upon you, for game registration. You may argue that it isn't forced (you don't have to play games), but that's a bit like date rape in my opinion. "Sure you can walk home 10 miles, in the dark." Where as itunes or netflix are non-forceful lovers you can take or leave and who actually have competition to make them better, year after year.
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*cough*
Steam works for me without problems. Ever. Not one single problem.
iTunes on the other hand is like cancer. Crashes often, annoying updates, deletes playlists, hard to navigate, slow as hell. Bad interface, no user friendliness, deletes or ignores changes... Worst thing ever happened.
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