Hi. I'm not sure, but I think I heard it was going New Vegas-style, using Steam activation.

I take it that means you can only install and play it on one computer (due to the CD Key)?

Sigh. Not many people appreciate that there are still brothers living in the same house who game.

If it used steam it would certainly be possible to install on multiple computers. That's one of steam's selling points for buying games through them. You can download/install any game you've purchased using steam on any computer that has steam installed.

As for a physical copy of the game I see no reason why you wouldn't be able to install it on multiple computers. If it's security uses steam you would only have to activate it once. After that you never have to open steam again.

But it would still be linked to one account right? So we couldn't play at the same time, would have to choose one of our accounts to use with it, rigth?

Set it up on both computers then use one in offline mode?

Exactly. Like I said you only have to activate it once. After that you never have to use steam again.

^ What they said. It wont be a problem.

I hope Steam isn't a requirement (It doesn't like my setup) so if Steamworks is used I'm not getting it even though I love Beth's games

Indeed, it would still be locked to a single account. So you can't play it at the same time, just like you haven't been able to do with barely any PC game in the past decade as they required the game disc in the computer while you play it. Or just like how you can't play a single copy of the 360 version on multiple 360s at the same time.

Agreed... I absolutely refuse to purchase a game that requires a steam (or any equivalent) subscription. Honestly, if it were not illegal, I would vastly prefer to download a pirated copy and send a monetary amount to the developer. I want to be able to install and play my game 10 years from now if both the developer and STEAM are either 1) out of business or 2) no longer support this 'old' game. Currently, this would not be possible. I sincerely hope that Bethesda does not opt for this option. Regarding prior games that have been launched with steam, empirical observation indicates that the developers are losing a lot of sales by forcing players to use steam. Additionally, this strategy does not appear to effect piracy (after all, shortly after the games are released, pirated versions are readily available free of steam).

FYI - I do not intend to redirect this post into a discussion on the disadvantages/merits of steam. Additionally, I strongly disagree with piracy of games. If the user disagrees with the usage of a program like steam, the best way to convince the developer to part company with steam is to boycott the product and contact the developer with your concerns.

Oh, yeah. As for the playing it at the same time I guess that's not one of the problems... Usually we don't play the same game at the same time anyway.

Anyway thanks for the info.

Steam has games for sale in its store that are more then 10 years old. I have some of them...

Morrowind
The Longest Journey
Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic


To name a few...

Hmm.. I'd like to know how that's done. I have FONV, and it won't run unless Steam (hack, ptui) is running. I know you can run Steam (hack, ptui) in offline mode, but of course it's still running in that case.

if steam EVER where to go down a patch would be released allowing you to play with out it im 100% sure that Valve would take care of its customers, they arnt some evil shadowy group.

snip

Steam is great for some things, and completely unnecessary for many others. An offline singleplayer game like Skyrim doesn't really need it at all.

The thing Steam does do is provide good copy protection for the game developer, plus I can imagine it reduces production costs dramatically if they distribute digital because they don't have to provide disks, manuals, etc. If I was a game software developer I would be all over Steam. I also like browsing the Steam store to see what is on sale, it reminds me of the old days when I used to head to the local games software store just to browse and chat with the owners/workers...

Hah. I didn't start this thread to be an argument or a discussion about steam, but it's pretty interesting.

I was just asking... I don't hate Steam. I have 62 games on it (don't ask how. I spent like 40 or 50 bucks during the Christmas sale and it seems like they all came bundled with at least one more game, if not 5...).

Steam will never go out of business, and by the time they stop supporting it, it won't be compatible with anything anymore, so that's not a problem it's self. I personal, prefer electric download because then you don't have to worry about losing the CD or it becoming to scratched to use. I've had to rebuy a lot of games because of that. You may prefer physical CD, but a lot of like the electric sites, and steam is the most reputable by far. The one problem with having it through steam though is that some people can't figure out how to activate the product, and give up. If they choose that option they need to provide unquestionable support to first timers. (Steam is way easier then people think it is however)

+1

For the retail disk version of a single player-only game, a disk check and maybe offline keycode is sufficient. I personally don't care how the distribute the game digitally, as long as the retail disk version is not exclusively tied to Steam or some other online server.