Steam still has the option to play off-line, the bugbear being you do need to be online initially to initialise the capability.

***EDIT***

Additionally, some games you don't need to launch steam at all, just make a shorcut to the games executable file, admittedly that methods not true for the majority though.

*END*EDIT*

Does in need some kind of client installed to work anyway? Or can in calmly exist on computer with no Internet what so ever?

You need to go online to activate the game the first time you install it.

After that, you can play offline forever if you like.

Bethesda had dropped a hint that some of the compression in Skyrim would be improved over Oblivion. Perhaps they will be compressing the save files. When I 7-Zip them (at least as a solid archive... not sure about individually) they end up one-tenth the size.

Than I guess it's no buy for me. I thought it may be like Fable 3 - it needs games for windows, and has a client on the disc, but it installs just fine with no Internet connection, you just create an of line profile... Peaty.

Steam is not bad. it certainly is the best service. Its a whole hell of a lot better than GFWL. Only thing i dislike is forcing you to patch single player games. Which isn't a big deal really. Most of the time it is beneficial in the long run.

trust us Sshodan...Steam is 100 [censored] % easier to deal with and unless your traveling around extremely frequently within the Australian Outback or in the middle of Sahara, you will be able to find an internet connection to do the activation.
Edit: oh yeah apprently Oblivion and Morrowind are now using steams Cloud service as well.

Last time I tried to play a Steam game "offline" (my internet was out), it instead kept trying to say I had to update my Steam client and wouldn't let anything run. It happens. :shrug:



I am not anti-Steam. I've had Steam installed since Half-Life 2, and have purchased a number of games (all smaller old and/or indie games) from them.

But you'll never catch me linking my store-purchased games to my Steam account - I don't care about "you can download copies to any computer!" or "it'll update stuff automatically!" or "it keeps your library all nice and organized" or even "you don't need to insert the discs anymore!". (Oh yeah - and I definitely could care less about their pseudo social-network crap... don't want a profile, don't need to show off my achievements, definitely have no need for some "friends list" or obnoxious "community chat" crap.)

None of those things are positives to me. Certainly not worth taking games that I have some control over and deliberately giving up that control by attaching them to a Steam account.


(yeah, just for reference - I basically don't play online multiplayer anything, except for MMOs - last nonMMO game I played with other people was Diablo 2 - and I've never sold a used PC game.)

That's how I interpreted this anyways.

If your internet was out, how did Steam found there was a client update in the first place?

I had that exact question, when the error box popped up. No idea why.

How is that ay better? Beth released FO3 on GFWL. People HATED it. It splits games based on profile and DLC was a nightmare to download, partially because it split the DLC apart from the main files so you could only turn it on/off if you went deep into hidden folders.

I pre-ordered my pc version in a Game Stop. So I hope not.

Good thing GFWL was optional. I never used that crap at all.



One of the odd quirks about steam. I've seen it do this too. Maybe it just doesn't like that there's suddenly no internet connection. No idea.




http://www.gog.com/ is the Digital Distribution that the people need. DRM is completely worthless. Punishes customers, and stops nothing.

The answer was in what you quoted....


Yes, G4WL blew as a DLC shop. But it didn't require internet, and could be removed/disabled pretty easily.


(Personally, with FO3, I never had the problem with finding save files - because I never went online with G4WL, ever, except for the short amount of time it took to download Pitt and BS)

No

Steam as an option for people who want to use it = Fine
Steamworks as a requirement for playing a single player game = Oblivion being the last TES game I play (which is a shame since Oblivion was also the worst TES game).

EDIT: Also, LOL at those taking shots at Kivan. Talk about biting hands that feed.

Your "brand new gaming computer", you've bought 5 years ago, was outdated a half year later and now is pretty much obsolete.

I had a copy of Fallout that was published in Russia (English version was included) it had off line DRM. With Fable it was better becouse I did not have to use Internet what so ever if I did not want to, simple.

@ thyco
I value my freedom, if the game requires Internet at any point I'm not buying it that's all it is to it. If Steam client and internet is an OPTION for thous who want it I'll be all for it, but not if it is necessary.

I'll just hope than that there will be Russian published version like Fallout - with full English language included, they never include on line DRM.

I love how pro Steam folks call anti Steam people ignorant.

Steam is fine. As long as it remains Steam. It shouldn't be DRM. DRM should be something non invasive in the background that doesn't change the gaming experience. It shouldn't be a client that's primary goal is to sell online distributed video games.

To people that say Steam is the future; if that's true, many gamers are in trouble. Go look up some statistics about the amount of people with a reliable high speed internet connection. Steam makes very few attempts to be friendly with slow connections. Try buying Empire: Total War on dial up, or with a strict bandwidth cap.

Even if you do have a reliable connection, you shouldn't be forced into it. There's a lot of people that travel, along with some people in the military. Not to mention the servers can have their problems.

If you want to use Steam then fine. Register your game with Steam. You can be happy then. However don't go around acting like games should be tied to Steam. No matter how much you like the client it's not right for it to be forced.

I bought Empire: Total War when it was released. When I got home and found out it not only required Steam but also had to be downloaded I boxed it up and it sat on my shelf for a very long time. Eventually, high speed internet became available (still not reliable, but better than satellite) and I installed the game.

I live about 40 miles from Cleveland Ohio (a major US city) and gained access to high speed internet in 2010. If Steam becomes the future then gaming will die.

I'm one of those people. I travel frequently and I generally prefer digital downloads because I travel, I don't have storage space for lots of boxes and discs and my laptop doesn't even have an optical drive.

If I feel like running a game while traveling, I just use Offline mode. No internet connection required. You can even play your game forever in offline mode

better steam than gfwl

How did you end up getting high speed?

Unfortunately I still have satellite. I got the game through LTE on my phone because of a temporary free hotspot promotion though.

Logic System Online
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False Dilemma Logical Fallacy Utilized
Statement that Steam is "better" than GFWL implies that those are the only two options. As this is not the case, the statement is a logical fallacy and should be ignored.
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The local telephone company eventually added a range expander to their DSL and I just made the outside edge (my parent's house is just north by about a quarter mile and they still cannot get DSL).