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The Age of Steam
“The more we used them, the more we thought about creating a better customer experience, and changing our relationship with customers. We wanted a way to sell games, provide support, communicate with customers and get a better handle on what people were doing with our products in a way that would allow us to make better games. Nobody was building the system we needed, so we had to build it ourselves.”
As ever when talking to Valve, the customer is the default lens through which the team views the platform, but Newell admits that the catalyst may actually have been more developer-driven.
“At the same time we were thinking about this, Team Fortress was showing there was a different model for product development, rather than the blockbuster approach where you try to create the largest splash in the opening weekend.”
Instead, Team Fortress grew its audience over time, expanding its community through updates. That kind of model would need a decent means of administering those updates in order to thrive.
It’s these two elements – desire for a closer relationship with the customer, and a realisation that sales of online games could behave differently to the previously accepted norms – that suggested a move beyond pure game development into the realms of publishers and distributors might be worth the hassle.
“This was going to be a lot of work, but we didn’t really have a choice,” says Newell. “We had to start solving problems immediately. There was a sense of necessary pain.”
Despite early problems such as the awkward authentication process for Half-Life 2 on PC, the signs for success were already there back in 2002. Digital distribution was inevitable, and Newell isn’t surprised that it was a developer rather than a publisher that provided the most successful platform: “Take UI. That’s what games are. Figuring out how to expose a media library is not that different to the challenge an MMO has about helping people figure out which armour they should wear.”
Holtman agrees: “Its core features rose out of games – the stuff that drove Counter-Strike. If you keep the principles of a game developer – it gets you in touch with your friends and doesn’t get in the way of the game – then you get a platform that looks like Steam.”
Well, looks like Steam as it does now. Since 2002, it has changed enormously, evolving and mutating in the marketplace at a distinctly un-Valveish pace. “In 2002, Steam just allowed us to auto-update people,” says Doug Lombardi, Valve’s vice-president of marketing.
“Then, around 2004, we started selling our products. Fast-forward to 2006 and 2007, you get into Steamworks and services like that, and third parties selling their games.”
And selling thirdparty titles is arguably Steam’s most important move so far. “Rag Doll Kung Fu was a big milestone,” admits Newell, referring to the first non-Valve title on the service. “People thought of Steam as this thing for Valve games, and then it turned out to be a useful tool for this independent developer that couldn’t get traditional distribution. Then we started to see the publishers jump on board: Steam wasn’t their enemy and retailers weren’t going to rebel if publishers used us as a way of reaching out to new customers.”
The arrival of EA on Steam in 2008 was the final endorsement, particularly since it already had its own competing platform.
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Copyright 2006 - 2009 Future Publishing Limited, Beauford Court 30 Monmouth Street Bath, UK BA1 2BW
England and Wales company registration number 2008885
For *new* games in the US, Steam is usually the same price as brick-and-mortar retail but a few dollars more than Amazon. I keep it around just for the sales on older games.
My only issue with Steam is Steamworks. Dawn of War 2 requires you to be a Steam user to do anything. So you'll never see it on another distribution platform because of that.
If we should have learned anything from Microsoft, its that giving one person all the keys is a really bad idea. But other then that, its a good platform these days and its success is good for the industry.
One thing I have always liked about Steam: I have never, ever been unable to download my games onto any pc I wanted. That in and of itself makes it valuable for me...at least until they go out of business.
Brian
www.brianwoods.com
To Wall_E:
I agree with you, but, from what I've heard, it is the publisher who fixes the prices of their products on Steam, not Valve. And, even then, there are Steam discount sales which offering very generous savings - the 'Bioshock' Christmas sale being a notable example.
SwiftRanger:
Yeah, I've heard many people on the forums complaining about the Steam rollout of E:TW. Luckily, I wasn't one of them; although, I feel it's pretty tough on people who bought the game game for a premium price and end up getting a flat-out broken service.
Also, I agree with the worry of Valve establishing a monopoly over online distribution. As a gamer I like to have my games in one place, and I also have a lot of goodwill stored up in Valve. As a consumer I don't believe that any company with that kind of dominant position in a market won't exploit it, just to keep the fanbase happy. Competition keeps companies competitive and sparks innovation: it's almost like a physical law of nature.
If anybody isn't aware, Stardock provides a fairly good distribution service called 'Impulse'. Unfortunately, it lacks the features which make Steam's service seem more like a community than a business model. If other distribution platforms want to compete with Steam, I think they will have to step up their game somewhat.
Who the f**k in their right mind would pay £39.99 for Total War on Steam when the game can be bought for £30, or even order it from some places online for £25.
Madness!!
Madness, this is Sparta!
sorry couldn't resist. :)
"and the service’s opening months were marred by bottlenecks and a frustrating online registration experiment. "
Well, that's still the case even now, both the DoW II and Empire launches didn't go all that smooth to put it lightly.
I like Steam but it's essential it doesn't become a monopoly or that the gaming press doesn't exclusively highlight certain Steam pricedrops and special deals. PC gaming should never rely on one company pulling the strings, like it's the case on consoles.
As much as i like Steam and the content it provides, i can't help but get annoyed at the price tag of some games.
For example:
Fallout 3 £26.99 on Steam - £16.99 for retail version.
Bioshock £13.99 on Steam - £10 for retail version.
Dawn Of War II £34.99 on Steam - £22.99 for retail version.
Empire: Total War £39.99 on Steam - £29.99 for retail version.
This is just a small example (there are loads) when comparing retail and downloadable games.
Considering there are no distribution costs for downloadable games i.e. no disc, no printed manual, no box, and no shelf space fees, these games shouldn't be price so high.
Games just aren't worth £30/40 and asking such high prices for downladable games is laughable considering the no distribution costs.
I for one won't be moved on my maximum £25 per title, therefore i'll go to the place where i can get the title the cheapest.
The future isn't digital downloads if they are priced at these ridiculous numbers
Hrm. Maybe the experience is different in the UK. Here, I first installed Steam when I thought about buying the orange box on special at a local office supply store. When I checked steam, it was cheaper. I ended up buying the valve complete pack.
Similarly, I have picked up things when they've been deeply discounted... like bioshock for $4.95.
Now Steam for us Canadians is in American dollars --- so the actuall price has become more skewed of late, but I still find that releases are cheaper on Steam... even FEAR2 at $49.95 vs. $59.95 (although that's awfully close with the current exchange rate).
There 's a big debate over the price of games within Steam over at the Steam forums (see link below). Most of Europe are at War with Valve over pricing.
http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=770231
Maybe the moaning idiots should have kept hold of their own currencies then?
//Sorry, double post.
Definitely agreeable.
And also--Gabe Newell really needs to lose weight.