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General discussion (archive)Steam keys?(60 posts)(60 posts)
(60 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted June 19, 2013
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hedwards: They do, it's going to be negotiated into the contract they're operating under. It is true that Valve does host some things for free, but I highly doubt that they're letting 3rd parties make money by leeching their bandwidth.
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SirPrimalform: See my edit.

Also, I can't remember who, when or where but I have heard multiple devs say that they get as many steam keys for their game as they want, for free. They then take these and make a licencing deal with GamersGate or wherever who then sells the keys. There is no direct deal between Steam and GamersGate.
Or, for that matter, Humble, Indie Royale, Groupees etc, etc. All these places gives you both DRM free downloads and keys where available.

Humble Store is probably the most comparable. I agree with OP on this, there is really no reason why it is not possible on gog also.


Edit - by the way, from Valve:

"Take advantage of the platform that supports over 1,000 game titles on Steam. Steamworks gives you access to a connected community of 25 million gamers and a robust world-wide network. Steamworks is entirely free. There are no licensing fees and there’s no charge for bandwidth, retail copies, or OEM distribution. With Steamworks, you avoid the overhead and delay of certification requirements. Distribute your game on your terms, updating it as quickly and frequently as you see fit. "

http://www.valvesoftware.com/business/
Post edited June 19, 2013 by amok
Posted June 19, 2013
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hedwards: They do, it's going to be negotiated into the contract they're operating under. It is true that Valve does host some things for free, but I highly doubt that they're letting 3rd parties make money by leeching their bandwidth.
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SirPrimalform: See my edit.

Also, I can't remember who, when or where but I have heard multiple devs say that they get as many steam keys for their game as they want, for free. They then take these and make a licencing deal with GamersGate or wherever who then sells the keys. There is no direct deal between Steam and GamersGate.
That's certainly possible. But, the end result is still the keys coming from Valve to those stores, and money going from those stores to Valve. Albeit in a convoluted fashion.

For those that really care about avoiding Valve, I suppose that would make a slight difference, but probably not much as those games would be Steamworks games anyways.
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SirPrimalform: See my edit.

Also, I can't remember who, when or where but I have heard multiple devs say that they get as many steam keys for their game as they want, for free. They then take these and make a licencing deal with GamersGate or wherever who then sells the keys. There is no direct deal between Steam and GamersGate.
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amok: Or, for that matter, Humble, Indie Royale, Groupees etc, etc. All these places gives you both DRM free downloads and keys where available.

Humble Store is probably the most comparable. I agree with OP on this, there is really no reason why it is not possible on gog also.
Of course it's possible, GOG or the developer could give Valve money and get the keys. I just don't think that the majority of users here really want that. These questions pop up from time to time, but not often enough to suggest a real demand for it sufficient to make it profitable. People who want Steam keys have tons of places where they can buy them.

But those that don't want DRMed games have relatively few options.
Post edited June 19, 2013 by hedwards
Posted June 19, 2013
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hedwards: Of course it's possible, GOG or the developer could give Valve money and get the keys. I just don't think that the majority of users here really want that. These questions pop up from time to time, but not often enough to suggest a real demand for it sufficient to make it profitable. People who want Steam keys have tons of places where they can buy them.

But those that don't want DRMed games have relatively few options.
But they do not charge any, so give what money.....

Valve do this to get people on Steam, they do not get a dime for any keys distributed outside of Steam store.
from Valve:

"Take advantage of the platform that supports over 1,000 game titles on Steam. Steamworks gives you access to a connected community of 25 million gamers and a robust world-wide network. Steamworks is entirely free. There are no licensing fees and there’s no charge for bandwidth, retail copies, or OEM distribution. With Steamworks, you avoid the overhead and delay of certification requirements. Distribute your game on your terms, updating it as quickly and frequently as you see fit. "

http://www.valvesoftware.com/business/
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Fever_Discordia: Blatent trolling thread is blatently trolling, BTW
You might not like the topic, but I do not think is trolling at all. I have frequently asked myself the same question.
Post edited June 19, 2013 by amok
Posted June 19, 2013
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hedwards: That's certainly possible. But, the end result is still the keys coming from Valve to those stores, and money going from those stores to Valve. Albeit in a convoluted fashion.
No, I think you must have misread my post. At what point in what I said does Valve get money?
Posted June 19, 2013
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Fever_Discordia: Blatent trolling thread is blatently trolling, BTW
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amok: You might not like the topic, but I do not think is trolling at all. I have frequently asked myself the same question.
Why would you want GOG to give out Steam keys when it would lead to more people trading/selling/giving away the keys while they keep the DRM Free copy for themselves?

I don't think the OP was a troll, but people should realize GOG is meant to sell DRM Free games. The market is already full of steam key resellers and joining that race of undercutting each other to the bottom won't help in the long run.

Its like going into a KFC and complaining they don't have burgers on the menu.
Posted June 19, 2013
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amok: You might not like the topic, but I do not think is trolling at all. I have frequently asked myself the same question.
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Fictionvision: Why would you want GOG to give out Steam keys when it would lead to more people trading/selling/giving away the keys while they keep the DRM Free copy for themselves?
Yeah, I know. The abuse the HiB gets in this and other forums is horrible. It is the only thing which I can say is holding it back.
Posted June 19, 2013
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Fictionvision: I don't think the OP was a troll, but people should realize GOG is meant to sell DRM Free games. The market is already full of steam key resellers and joining that race of undercutting each other to the bottom won't help in the long run.

Its like going into a KFC and complaining they don't have burgers on the menu.
This thread has been filled with bizarre analogies that make no sense. Does KFC represent GOG in that example? I'm not asking anything of GOG. I like GOG just fine. I am asking the developers who sell their games on GOG for a Steam key which costs them nothing to give to me, so that I don't have to buy their game again just to get access to a few helpful features on Steam.

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Fictionvision: Why would you want GOG to give out Steam keys when it would lead to more people trading/selling/giving away the keys while they keep the DRM Free copy for themselves?
If it will help put the developers at ease, I would happily sign a solemn contract/promise/vow to immediately register the key they give to me on my Steam account.

Regardless of that, though, this should be an extremely minor consideration. For one thing, it's pretty well accepted by now that developers have not been hurt in any way by these super low-priced bundles that produce thousands of tradable Steam keys. If they were, you wouldn't see developers clamoring to be a part of each Humble Bundle as they are. They want to be a part of those bundles because doing so gives them a big influx of cash in a short amount of time, and it also dramatically increases the number of people playing their games on Steam, which in turn increases the games' popularity, which then increases sales.

I have not yet heard a single developer complain about being a part of any of these bundles. The only reaction I've ever read is praise or gratitude.
Post edited June 19, 2013 by ThreeSon
Posted June 19, 2013
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SirPrimalform: Actually, to the best of my knowledge, they don't.
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hedwards: They do, it's going to be negotiated into the contract they're operating under. It is true that Valve does host some things for free, but I highly doubt that they're letting 3rd parties make money by leeching their bandwidth.
As others have already pointed out, that is exactly what Valve is doing. The benefit they get from people playing games on Steam far outweighs the pennies (if even that much) it costs them to distribute the games in the first place. Valve gives as many keys to developers as they want - no cost, no restrictions. And 3rd party retailers who distribute Steam keys (Amazon, GamersGate) do not give any money to Valve at any point in the entire process.
Post edited June 19, 2013 by ThreeSon
Posted June 19, 2013
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ThreeSon: This thread has been filled with bizarre analogies that make no sense. Does KFC represent GOG in that example? I'm not asking anything of GOG. I like GOG just fine. I am asking the developers who sell their games on GOG for a Steam key which costs them nothing to give to me, so that I don't have to buy their game again just to get access to a few helpful features on Steam.
Yes GOG would be KFC in that comparison. Eating lunch at the time is what caused me to think of fast food places first. It wasn't specifically aimed at you, so I should have been clearer with that and apologize. But this is the 4th thread I've seen in the last few days asking about getting steam keys here or linking their games to steam.

GOG sells a specific type of product, that being DRM Free games. If they started selling games with steam keys, or worse, steam only games, they would be going against the stated purpose of selling DRM Free games. As stated earlier in the thread, the number of places to get DRM Free games is much smaller than places to get steam keys. Caving on this would give them less leverage to bring DRM Free games here in the future.

If you want to ask the developers directly, feel free to do so. However GOG has made a market for themselves by not being Yet Another Steam Key Reseller.
Posted June 19, 2013
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Fictionvision: Yes GOG would be KFC in that comparison. Eating lunch at the time is what caused me to think of fast food places first. It wasn't specifically aimed at you, so I should have been clearer with that and apologize. But this is the 4th thread I've seen in the last few days asking about getting steam keys here or linking their games to steam.

GOG sells a specific type of product, that being DRM Free games. If they started selling games with steam keys, or worse, steam only games, they would be going against the stated purpose of selling DRM Free games. As stated earlier in the thread, the number of places to get DRM Free games is much smaller than places to get steam keys. Caving on this would give them less leverage to bring DRM Free games here in the future.

If you want to ask the developers directly, feel free to do so. However GOG has made a market for themselves by not being Yet Another Steam Key Reseller.
Alright, well... If GOG doesn't want to be a part of it for whatever reason, that's certainly fine. Although I would think they would be plenty happy if the developers decided to start issuing Steam keys for GOG sales. Because like I said, I've pretty much stopped buying GOG games that are also available on Steam because I'm tired of having to buy the same game twice, as I've done too many times already. I can't imagine that GOG sees that situation as a win for them.

I originally made the thread not as a question to developers, but to GOG members to see if they knew of specific devs who provided Steam keys. I was able to get one for Unepic which I didn't know about before, so at least there's that.
Posted June 19, 2013
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hedwards: They do, it's going to be negotiated into the contract they're operating under. It is true that Valve does host some things for free, but I highly doubt that they're letting 3rd parties make money by leeching their bandwidth.
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ThreeSon: As others have already pointed out, that is exactly what Valve is doing. The benefit they get from people playing games on Steam far outweighs the pennies (if even that much) it costs them to distribute the games in the first place. Valve gives as many keys to developers as they want - no cost, no restrictions. And 3rd party retailers who distribute Steam keys (Amazon, GamersGate) do not give any money to Valve at any point in the entire process.
Nobody with any direct knowledge of that has commented here. I don't believe any of those people actually work for Valve or one of the developers in question. Nor do I believe that any of them are privy to the details under which these deals are negotiated.

I'm sorry, but I just don't buy it.

Ultimately, the burden of proof here is on you. I don't need to prove anything, you're the one that seems to think that the keys are free and that Valve is just giving out server space to anybody that asks nicely.


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ThreeSon: Alright, well... If GOG doesn't want to be a part of it for whatever reason, that's certainly fine. Although I would think they would be plenty happy if the developers decided to start issuing Steam keys for GOG sales. Because like I said, I've pretty much stopped buying GOG games that are also available on Steam because I'm tired of having to buy the same game twice, as I've done too many times already. I can't imagine that GOG sees that situation as a win for them.

I originally made the thread not as a question to developers, but to GOG members to see if they knew of specific devs who provided Steam keys. I was able to get one for Unepic which I didn't know about before, so at least there's that.
You should have done a forum search. This isn't the first time it's come up, and Steam keys have never been popular in any of those threads, at least not as far as I've seen.

People shop here for various reasons, but the people who care that much about having Steam keys aren't the target demographic for this particular shop.
Post edited June 19, 2013 by hedwards
Posted June 19, 2013
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hedwards: Ultimately, the burden of proof here is on you. I don't need to prove anything, you're the one that seems to think that the keys are free and that Valve is just giving out server space to anybody that asks nicely.
Given that Amok directly quoted Valve on the matter and you still disagree, I'd say the burden is on you to disprove it. Also I'm curious as to whether you really did misread my post earlier or whether I misunderstood you.
Posted June 19, 2013
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hedwards: Nobody with any direct knowledge of that has commented here. I don't believe any of those people actually work for Valve or one of the developers in question. Nor do I believe that any of them are privy to the details under which these deals are negotiated.

I'm sorry, but I just don't buy it.

Ultimately, the burden of proof here is on you. I don't need to prove anything, you're the one that seems to think that the keys are free and that Valve is just giving out server space to anybody that asks nicely.
They're not giving out server space. I've never said that nor has anyone else here. They do provide as many free Steam keys as the developers ask for. Numerous people here have already pasted Valve's business policy that says explicitly that distribution on Steam is free, but here it is again just in case:

http://www.valvesoftware.com/business/
"There are no licensing fees and there’s no charge for bandwidth, retail copies, or OEM distribution"

I don't know how it could be any clearer than that. But here they posted it again in even more exact terms:
http://www.steampowered.com/steamworks/retailsupport.php

"Keep all of your users together no matter where or how they get your game. Steamworks has a host of features and services that support your retail product and any digital copies, wherever they are sold. It’s free. There is no per-copy activation charge or bandwidth fee."

Do you buy it now? Or does Valve not meet your qualification of someone with "direct knowledge" of Valve's business policy?

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hedwards: You should have done a forum search. This isn't the first time it's come up, and Steam keys have never been popular in any of those threads, at least not as far as I've seen.

People shop here for various reasons, but the people who care that much about having Steam keys aren't the target demographic for this particular shop.
Maybe if there's been many more forum posts on this topic, it's a sign there is a desire for it out there, perhaps?
Post edited June 19, 2013 by ThreeSon
Posted June 20, 2013
I wonder if gog has actively disallowed this, I assume it just hasn't come up from the developer side. I mean it wouldn't be much different than any other extra, if the dev wanted to do so.
Posted June 20, 2013
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samlii: I wonder if gog has actively disallowed this, I assume it just hasn't come up from the developer side. I mean it wouldn't be much different than any other extra, if the dev wanted to do so.
Honestly, considering the stance GOG has on DRM I am going to go out on a limb here and say GOG is not a friend of STEAM , rather an enemy.. not in physical terms but rather principle..

So, yes, I think they actively disallow this..

You know... but this does beg a question for me, why is The Witcher sold on STEAM?? o.0? ... Actually, I'm not so sure anymore.. All of this is "Red Tape" to me and very confusing.
Post edited June 20, 2013 by YellowAries
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This is my favourite topic
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General discussion (archive)Steam keys?(60 posts)(60 posts)
(60 posts)