14 replies to this topic

[TheMightyWashburn]

So I agree with most people it was too early for open beta! But whats done is done and nothing but exposure will keep this boat afloat now. I think if the patch on the 20th knocks out some serious issues then it should go on steam.

Counter arguement - "It has too many bugs, it would just crash and burn"
Rebuttal - There are many gamers today that players understand are in beta. And I dont know about you but I have a lot of fun even with the bugs.

[CycKath]

Yet more incentive to ensure Steam doesn't record my CC details, have enough trouble buying too many TF2 keys :/

[xxx WreckinBallRaj xxx]

Unless the game begins to die, putting it on Steam would hurt it more than help.

[RiceyFighter]

Probably never, Steam/Valve will take a percentage of the profits. Also this system is already in place and working properly.

[OpCentar]

Steam was discussed in closed beta.

Official response was that it would take too much of the revenue to be worth it.

And there are other conditions, adherence to certain rules etc. You can't just "go Steam", your game must be approved by Valve.

[Noth]

OpCentar, on 14 November 2012 - 04:40 PM, said:

Official response was that it would take too much of the revenue to be worth it.

this is what I don't get. There are developers that have much cheaper games and much smaller profit margins than PGI that use steam and still make a healthy profit, healthier than they would on their own.

[CycKath]

Like everything they have to factor that in, will they get enough extra business by being on steam to cover the Valve cut of any MC buys from said players?

[IceSerpent]

They will also need to factor in the number of current players that will bail if this game begins to require steam.

[DJMarine]

Noth, on 14 November 2012 - 04:43 PM, said:

this is what I don't get. There are developers that have much cheaper games and much smaller profit margins than PGI that use steam and still make a healthy profit, healthier than they would on their own.

Well that's the thing, what would those companies earn on their own without the exposure that Steam brings? For a company like PGI, pushing a game like mechwarrior, it's arguable that they don't need steam to be successful, thus the ROI doesn't add up for them.

I personally hope this game doesn't go to Steam either.

[CycKath]

Steam-only client will never happen, look at other separate then moved onto Steam F2P games like Star Trek: Online and Champions Online for example, all Steam is in those cases is a launch button, real client/updater is separate.

[ThreePi]

I wouldn't be shocked if it happened in the future. Super Monday Night Combat launched on Steam. Tribes: Ascend came to Steam a few months back. Planetside 2 will be on Steam (not sure if it'll be there on the 20th at launch or later). Even Microsoft caved and put Age of Empires Online on Steam. Fact of the matter is that there's no better tool for exposure than a big front page splash ad on the Steam store. I think its pretty well assumed that Valve's cut of game sales is 30%, I can see some devs being a bit turned off if they take that cut on F2P purchases as well.

I still think it'll happen eventually. We can't all be League of Legends. At some point things will start to slow down and that Steam spike will look awfully appetizing.

[OpCentar]

Noth, on 14 November 2012 - 04:43 PM, said:

this is what I don't get. There are developers that have much cheaper games and much smaller profit margins than PGI that use steam and still make a healthy profit, healthier than they would on their own.

It's not for us to judge their decision, but we can speculate on their reasoning

As I think, MWO is their baby. They tried MW5, probably got trough a lot of crappy meetings with the "big boys"... well we all know how that turned out.

Then somebody got the F2P idea, but that requires not so small starting capital with risky outcome. They invested heavily, the community helped but in the end they still bet a lot of their own funds.

Now going Steam would no doubt return their investment sooner or later but it would also take a massive cut of the future income. Valve dictates everything from the starting price to the promotions, you can suggest prices but they need to approve in one way or the other.
I don't know if you can get out of Steam once you're in, but it's like making a deal with the devil - you get your wish and in return you play by his rules till he lets you go.

That's my take on the financial situation, there's also the other side and that's legal and Steam specific stuff.

As I mentioned before, you can't decide on your own if your game is ready for Steam - Valve needs to approve it. I have no idea what conditions you have to fulfill but, you can be sure the game needs to be stable. And I don't think it's stable enough right now with the CTDs, black screen, HDR, 4fps bugs etc.

And there's the matter of IP, and code ownership. I bet that they (Valve) got their hands in there too.


In short - it's much beneficial for a indie developer to use Steam than a mid size one. BIg boys don't really care because they got the resources to negotiate with Valve on a different, more equal level.

[nitra]

Actually MWO is planned for Wii U

so that way you can have you fist person on the main screen !! and the 3 rd person on the controller !!3rd

Edited by nitra, 14 November 2012 - 06:10 PM.

[Aurien Titus]

OpCentar, on 14 November 2012 - 05:15 PM, said:

Now going Steam would no doubt return their investment sooner or later but it would also take a massive cut of the future income. Valve dictates everything from the starting price to the promotions, you can suggest prices but they need to approve in one way or the other.
I don't know if you can get out of Steam once you're in, but it's like making a deal with the devil - you get your wish and in return you play by his rules till he lets you go.

Anything beyond pure conjecture to back anything you just said? I love these experts who come out and tell us exactly how it is doing business with Valve and nothing to back it up. I see people talking how Valve gets a 30% cut and even on MC sales they'd get a cut. Yet if you look at Tribes Ascend's Steampage, you won't find any gold coins to purchase. You only get those in the starter packs. So they obviously don't get cuts of all sales F2P games make. But please tell me more of what you think Steam does.

[Warrax the Chaos Warrior]

Steam takes 30% of game sales, I'm pretty sure that would apply to MC microtransactions as well. The only reason to go to steam would be if you thought it would increase revenue enough to offset the cut, which it may or may not. I wouldn't be surprised if MWO ended up there eventually, but they are only going to consider it if profits are really lackluster after launch I would think.

Edited by Warrax the Chaos Warrior, 14 November 2012 - 07:45 PM.