Steele Johnson wrote on Feb 16, 2022, 17:53:

jdreyer wrote on Feb 16, 2022, 17:20:

Steele Johnson wrote on Feb 16, 2022, 15:37:

jdreyer wrote on Feb 16, 2022, 14:24:

chickenboo wrote on Feb 16, 2022, 14:03:

Steele Johnson wrote on Feb 16, 2022, 12:47:
I think I've purchased about 6 or 7 games, plus all the freebies, so I use it all the time. If I want a game, I'll compare the price on both Steam and EGS, and many times EGS has the better price

Has that been the case for games you can buy on both storefronts, and is that the EGS discount that makes it cheaper, or is the game actually cheaper on EGS? I have to admit that EGS unlimited $10 coupons that stack on top of the existing discount are unbeatable value. I wish Steam would do this - I think they did it one time for $6CDN for one single purchase - but they could certainly compete by doing it again. Granted, EGS will stop their coupons as soon as they reach critical mass, that is, as soon as they no longer need to. Steam probably doesn't want to hand out coupons because they don't have to, they're already the most popular gaming storefront.
I still haven't bought an EGS game but I'm getting close to folding. FF7R has been out for coming on two years, and without a Playstation I've been unable to play it.

EGS can't actually make a game cheaper if it's also on Steam. Steam has an anti-competitive "Most Favored Nation" clause that they stick into all their contracts prohibiting a publisher from having a lower price on another platform. You get away with that when you're a defacto monopoly. If you want to offer a lower price to account for the lower percentage EGS takes, you can't be on Steam.

That's not true at all. All it takes is a few seconds to take a look for yourself. I just picked a random game that's on both Steam and EGS, and EGS has a sale on it for $10 cheaper.

Steam: Black Book
EGS: Black Book

Sales aren't the retail price, which you will note are the same. There's even a lawsuit, despite it being a still legal activity.

According to THR, "five gamers filed a putative class action" lawsuit against Valve because of the group's misuse of market power with the Most Favored Nation clause. This clause is found in the contracts the group makes with game developers prior to selling games.

The Most Favored Nation clause stipulates that "the game developers agree that the price of a PC game on the Steam platform will be the same price the game developers sell their PC games on other platforms." The major argument against Valve requiring this in contracts is that it leaves no room for other PC game platforms to compete or grow in the market. This creates room for Valve to continue almost have a monopoly over game sales in the PC market. With the rise of Epic Games, a relatively new platform PC players can purchase games through, the Most Favored Nation clause is becoming an issue for the free market.

However, the clause doesn't function the same way in a market that Valve dominates 75% of. The issue with Most Favored Nation clauses in different markets isn't a new one. The Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission held a workshop in 2012 debating the legality of the clause and how it should function in markets. There were discussions that dealt with companies abusing the clause to hold market value, but the Most Favored Nation clause is still a legal practice at this point in time.

Epic made the game cheaper for the consumer, and that's all we really care about. It's called competition. I found a better deal, and they get my money. That's pretty much it.

Mr. Tact wrote on Jan 5, 2022, 12:45:

WaltSee wrote on Jan 5, 2022, 12:40:
Do people actually spend that sort of money on such kid stuff?.

Dude, there are a LOT of idiots. Even a lot of rich idiots. This isn't even the worst thing people have spent thousands of dollars (or more) on -- although it is near the top of the list.

Burrito of Peace wrote on Dec 2, 2021, 11:56:
"...online multiplayer survival game."

And that's when I lost interest.

necrosis wrote on Nov 11, 2021, 18:13:

Laughing Man wrote on Nov 11, 2021, 12:40:
lol, imagine making a fictional video game and apologizing for something that was done in it

the world is in such a sad state.

lol, imagine making a fictional video game and offending people over a fictional person and having to apologize for it

Sepharo wrote on Nov 4, 2021, 20:02:

Benzer wrote on Nov 4, 2021, 19:54:
"on a go-forward basis."
He typed that out and thought that was ok.
A fucking CEO. .."The future of our industry on a go-forward basis."
What a douchebag.

I think he spoke it rather than typed it out.