I was stuck out in the country over the weekend with no internet. I thought "That's ok, at least I can play Skyrim on my PC."

But I couldn't. Because Steam wouldn't start in offline mode. Because Steam svcks and has more issues than Brittany Spears.

Forcing me to use an online service that doesn't work half the time to play a stand-alone game is essentially stealing my money and should be criminal.

Steam has been aware of the offline problems for a while and refuses to fix it. Skyrim may well be the greatest game ever made, but I will NEVER buy another game from ANY company that FORCES me to use
an online service to play a standalone game.

Bethesda, please take note. This is a common problem and I'm sure you've already heard many complaints. This is BS, plain and simple.

Is it Monday already? :bolt:

How is Steam dysfunctional? Just because your ISP svcks, don't blame Steam. I have NEVER had a problem with Steam. Online activation and usage are the future of gaming. Get used to it. It's not going away.

Don't patch.
Launch the .exe directly, bypassing Steam.
Enjoy.

(I can't believe they released a patch that basically purely functioned to make it so you had to launch Steam.)

Did you even read the OP's post? He/She said they were out in the country and couldn't connect, thus were locked out of playing a game they paid for.

For the OP : While I do also hate the fact of having to use a third party program to play a game, I thought you could log into steam without actually having to connect. An offline mode of sorts.

But you get mods!

Steam was a headache for me awhile back when I first started using it, it took alot of tweaking before finally getting offline mode to work. In recent years though I have grown more accustomed to using it, its simple to use and they offer many older games that I can't find at gamestop or best buy. The best part is you don't even have to leave the house!

I prefer my games on a disc, not on a cloud.
Thanks.

When it does become the future of gaming, I'm getting out.

This is why I'm a console gamer now. When they start forcing me to activate my game online with the console, I'll do something else.

I'm the consumer. I don't need to buy games. The gaming companies need us the gamer more than we need them.

i agree completely steam is garbage and it should be criminal to force you to use online. Like they expect everyone everywhere to have internet at all times to play your owned offline single player games.

I did this except i did my research first so that it would work.

step1: with your internet connected before you leave set steam to NOT launch whenever you start the computer
step2: start steam in offline mode (while you still have internet). now turn steam off
step3:disconnect your computer from the internet.
step4:launch steam, click "start in offline mode" or whatever it says to that effect.
step5: play skyrim offline

it takes less than 5 MINUTES TO DO THIS.

It will go away if more like-minded people like the op and myself close their wallets. Did you know you actually don't have to open your mouth and say "ahhh" anytime a corporation wants to shove crap down your throat? You always have choices, remember that. Some of them are much tougher than others, but still. Mods or not, 3rd party verification is the reason I won't be buying the pc version of this game.

Um, yeah, it's not my ISP, dude. You may have never had problems with Steam, but your reading comprehension seems problematic. I was NOT HOME. I was somewhere with NO INTERNET. I took the disc of a game I paid for and, stupidly, expected to be able to play a non-multiplayer, fully updated game without having to get online. Steam would not start up in 'offline' mode. The Steam forums are full of complaints about this very issue, so obviously it's not just my issue.

I guess because YOU have never experienced an issue, then no one else in the world has either. Maybe if you left your parents basemant occasionally you would experience the same issue. If I buy a single player game for my PC on disc, I expect to be able to play that game whenever I want, not at the whim of a service completely unrelated to the game's manufacturer, a service that knows there is an issue with their offline capability and simply refuses to fix it.

I also expect that the game's manufacturer would be more responsible then this, as their reputation is being tarnished by the failure of a company outside of their control. If Bethesda required me to use Steam to register or update, that's fine. But to FORCE me to open Steam to simply play the game is BS.

Maybe in the future you should READ and UNDERSTAND the issue before making ignorant statements.

You cant play Skyrim in offline mode after the patch? I did not know this.

I don't and never have had trouble with Steam or the 1.2 patch...don't know whatchurall talkinbout. I can play Steam in offline mode with the 1.2 patch installed just fine.

nytephantom, it's just simple logic. If Steam itself was dysfunctional, then everyone would experience problems. Most people don't experience problems. Therefore, it is not Steam, but something with your internet setup or rig. Sheesh. Don't blame Steam. You are the one who is ignorant.

TL;DR: waaah steam blahh

I like how someone who goes out into the country to play video games is accusing someone else of living in their parent's basemant. Reminds me of those folks in 1.2 Issues thread who complained about taking time off of work to play a video game. I really hope children aren't in the picture to experience the neglect this game brought on.

Hmm, Skyrim lets me play in offline mode on Steam, and I'm patched up to 1.2. Sorry that you and others have had trouble, OP. It does sound like something needs to be done.

Let me ask you Steam supporters: What's the point?

It's a single player game. What's the point? Multiplayer games, I want on Steam since it's easier to connect to, but what's the point with single player games? Nothing.

Yeah, the problem is that Steam goes into some little 'updating Steam' screen, even if it doesn't need to be updated. If it doesn't detect a connection, you get the 'Restart Steam in Offline mode", but then it won't actually do that, because it still wants to check for updates. There was actually a message that popped up on my screen that said something to the effect of "Offline mode can't be started offline." Seriously.

...Serious?

Being able to take screenshots and talk to friends via the steam chat and shift-tab to go to UESP instead of risking a crash by alt-tabbing and being able to check the time, as well. I'm iffy on how the steamworks thing will work, but other than that that's really it for single player games. I love steam. It's all about the shift-tab.

also, haters gonna hate

Another person who is challenged by reading comprehension.....lol.

Internet setup or rig? what?

I'd imagine you were made completely aware from wherever you purchased the game from that it uses Steamworks and by proxy would require Steam to be running.

Your best move would've been to not purchase the game.