El Presidente, I'm probably wrong about this again, but do you need an affiliate tag on that humble store link?

This looks really promising, though with a minimum listed requirement of a GTX 760 that probably knocks out half of the people I play TTS with.

bhcompy wrote on May 12, 2020, 17:04:
Yea, THPS and SSX basically covered that arcadey middle ground that was fun to play, fun to do multiplayer(either competing at the same time or sequentially), and were easy to spend just 20 minutes in rather than a deeper session investment that most games require these days, etc

This is a nice summary of most of the sports games that I really enjoyed between 1995 and 2005. By the time I've recovered from the anxiety of choosing my character stats in a recent NBA 2kwhatever I could have had several games of NBA Live '95.

Heads-up: that Sierra bundle doesn't have the affiliate tag in the URL.

There seems to be a lot of overlapping content in recent Humble Bundles, but the LotR card game played well enough on the Xbox Game Pass and will be nice to have on PC. And I can choose how much of the money goes to Blue's News!

This comment was edited on May 8, 2020, 23:34.

Thanks to the new moderators for volunteering! Hopefully the community makes it an easy job, and it stays that way.

From memory, linking my Epic account with Authy was painless and secure.

Epic used to email me every time someone tried to log in as me unsuccessfully without 2FA enabled, which is what finally convinced me to set it up. This seems like a pretty good incentive too.

Orogogus wrote on Apr 25, 2020, 03:05:
It seems to me that outside of the headline, VentureBeat forgot to quote or even paraphrase the part where Sweeney actually talked about iOS being worse.

Looking at the recording I'm not sure I see the bit where he actually says it's "worse", just "different" (how apropos).

Excerpt, immediately after the "fake open system" comment about Android:

Apple's approach is different and Apple is honest about it - they say this is a closed platform, you can only distribute apps through us and all transactions have to go through a 30% payment processing fee, and you know they justify that based on security reasons but it's not really honest.

The core of security on an OS is two things. It's number one the ability for the ability for the operating systems kernel to implement permissions based security and ensure that apps can't do anything that users don't authorise them to do. Apple is the best in the world, they could open up their platform tomorrow and it would still remain perfectly secure.

In fact, Apple does operate an open platform around iOS - they have this enterprise program in which any enterprise customer can install any app from their enterprise just by white-listing their enterprise signing certificate. But the small thing preventing that from being used for consumer apps is just a contract term that says "you're not allowed to do that".

I think the next step that has to happen with mobile platforms is first of all, fully opening up so that every publisher who wants can launch their own store on the platform and it operates technically within the operating system on equal terms to the platform's own store.

And number two, even these stores which have massive market share - the iOS App Store and Google Play - need to open up to support publisher-controlled payment services so that every payment processor - from Zola to Mastercard to VISA and PayPal - can each compete on an open playing field for payments.

I expect the only reason that Epic put out that kind of grudging acceptance of defeat to Google Play but not for the App Store is that Apple's been building that walled garden for decades and it wasn't possible to mount a challenge against them in the first place.

Edit: Reflecting on that presentation has improved my opinion of the Epic Games Store quite a bit. I still prefer the GOG / Humble DRM free distribution model though.

This comment was edited on Apr 25, 2020, 05:18.

Cutter wrote on Apr 24, 2020, 21:48:
you don't have to use Steam anymore. Point in fact, you never had to.

This article - and Epic's statement - are entirely about the Google Play store. We're not yet at the point where you can only use the Windows Store without disabling confusing OS security settings.

That's unfortunate, but not surprising. Side-loading apps can be a pain and I wouldn't expect a novice user to be comfortable doing it.

I'd really appreciate a competitive app store for Android:

• The Humble Android app has no app storefront, is fiddly, and many devs never update their games
• Fdroid has always felt a bit sketchy
• Manufacturer storefronts (including Amazon's) have always seemed like a money grab rather than any genuine attempt to be competitive

RedEye9 wrote on Apr 17, 2020, 21:58:

Domgrief wrote on Apr 17, 2020, 21:51:
In Epic's case I believe they provide a kickback to the publisher depending on if (how much?) the free game is actually played.

What makes you think the payment is based on time played?

Good question - it made sense at the time I heard or read it (if it's never played it's probably not a lost sale for the publisher), but I can't find a source for that.

The only mention of revenue I can find is from PC Magazine:

If you're wondering how Epic manages to keep the free games flowing, it's because developers get paid for them. As Sweeney explains, "Epic pays each developer or publisher for the opportunity to distribute their game free for a week. The paid amounts are negotiated to ensure that the developer gains more from the Epic payment and resulting new customer influx than they would expect to lose in paid sales as the result of the free week."

Maybe it's a fixed amount based on how well the game normally sells.

The Half Elf wrote on Apr 17, 2020, 21:14:

Cutter wrote on Apr 17, 2020, 19:49:
For all the money Steam makes you'd think they could spring for at least something halfway decent for once.

Cutter... because Steam owns all the stuff on Steam right? Come on now, put the box of wine down and pay attention...

I expect Steam's current freebies are probably all set by the publishers, but I believe other storefronts offering free games (the Epic Games Store in particular, but likely GOG and Humble Store too) are done by arrangement between the platform and the publisher. In Epic's case I believe they provide a kickback to the publisher depending on if (how much?) the free game is actually played.

So there's no precedent for it, but for all of the money Steam makes they really could spring for something halfway decent.

Performance of the Xbox app is abysmal, but that's not a big deal compared to the pain of dealing with the storefront itself, or worse, installing and trying to use a game delivered via the Microsoft Store (mods or launching via steam are both a mess, and controllers don't work via steam link).

The Xbox Game Pass is a pretty good deal, but I dislike the whole experience so much that at this point I'd rather just buy my games elsewhere.

Agreed. I'll take a punt on Commander '85.

I'm less sold on the old school racer. There's a lot of focus on owning my own private island and virtual mansion and I don't remember that as a core game mechanic of Outrun.

If it's enough to help you out, then $3 would be great. I can't think of any perks that would appeal at a higher tier, I'm just thankful for the well curated news and good (bad) puns.

Burrito of Peace wrote on Jan 31, 2020, 11:34:
Patreon, Blue.

It'd cheer me up to be able to contribute more directly. I've got a lot out of this site for more years than I can remember.

The ability to filter my collection by tag without having to use a third party service is welcome, but I'd rather have back the usability, responsiveness and visual consistency that I just lost.

Be prepared to be especially confused by the new library if you're using Steam Family Sharing.

I see where the comments are coming from, but where else are fledgling game development studios in Australia going to get the capital they need to build (and market) a competitive game?

Banks, with their long track record of understanding and fostering innovation?

American publishers, with their track record of shutting down Australian studios on a whim?

Starting small and gathering funds by building apps that milk money out of otherwise rational people with microtransactions? Or worse, lingering there forever...

I've really enjoyed some of the games that have been made possible by the the AIGF and Film Victoria. Hand of Fate and Ticket to Earth are both excellent, genre-fusing games.

ViRGE wrote on Mar 31, 2017, 08:35:

Kxmode wrote on Mar 30, 2017, 21:01:
Has TTG ever made anything original that wasn't based off of an existing IP?

Yes. Puzzle Agent.

Puzzle Agent is original, but there's a huge amount of inspiration drawn from Graham Annable's existing body of work (particularly Hidden People, which predates Puzzle Agent by a couple of years).

Kxmode wrote on Mar 30, 2017, 21:01:
Has TTG ever made anything original that wasn't based off of an existing IP?

There was Telltale Texas Hold'Em, where they tried their hand at inventing characters such as Theodore Dudebrough and Grandma Shaky.

I expect that The Crew being added as part of the Ubi30 giveaway boosted the player numbers a bit.

I tried it for a few hours - the idea of freely driving around the US is quite appealing, especially as a foreigner - but the plot and the quests really weren't doing it for me.

jimnms wrote on Oct 28, 2016, 22:14:
I'm not investing my time in another Telltale game until they finish The Wolf Among Us.

I'm still hoping they go back and finish Bone one day.