Home › Forums › General Discussion › Do we need distribution outside of Steam?

Viewing 15 posts - 1 through 15 (of 17 total)
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  • 17th December 2014 at 6:35 am #258
    miki151
    Participant

    The next release will come out on Early Access. Steam is an awesome tool for me with easy packaging, auto-update, etc. It's also awesome for you because of leaderboards, map exchange, cloud storage for save files, etc.

    Packaging separately for Itch.io will be a major hassle for me, and as a lone developer without much time, I am planning to drop it completely. The Steam version will still be DRM-free.

    However, if players feel very strongly on this, I'm willing to reconsider it :), so let me know.

    21st December 2014 at 6:01 pm #981
    LHLF
    Participant

    I really think this game should be on GOG as well. They have a much better customer service and platform (I hate depending on the Steam client to do stuff, it is a really heavy program). I would certainly buy it through there.

    21st December 2014 at 6:12 pm #982
    miki151
    Participant

    I was in touch with GOG a while ago, but they kind of ignored me. It's not a website for early access games anyway. I'm sure they're more likely to include KeeperRL when 1.0 comes out – which will take a while.

    21st December 2014 at 6:43 pm #983
    aodendaal

    I'm happy if it's only available via Steam, especially if it's less hassle for the developer.

    Have you got ideas yet for implementing Steam's other features?

    21st December 2014 at 10:21 pm #984
    miki151
    Participant

    Yes, I'll use their Workshop thing for public highscores and uploading retired dungeons for other players to fight.

    21st December 2014 at 10:44 pm #985
    LHLF
    Participant

    I was in touch with GOG a while ago, but they kind of ignored me. It's not a website for early access games anyway. I'm sure they're more likely to include KeeperRL when 1.0 comes out – which will take a while.

    Indeed I've never seen early access over there, but if 1.0 can be made available when it happens, I believe it would be a great idea. Not only for the site itself, but the people who buy things there tend to be more appreciative of your kind of game  🙂

    How long do you think before 1.0? Not that I'm in a hurry, after all I play Dwarf Fortress and Unreal World, so I'm pretty comfortable with the “20+ years to completion”, lol

    22nd December 2014 at 9:03 am #986
    miki151
    Participant

    I talked a little bit about the future here:
    https://keeperrl.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=45&Itemid=102

    22nd December 2014 at 7:03 pm #987
    LHLF
    Participant

    Oh, great, thanks! Sorry for not having seeing it before!

    8th January 2015 at 1:00 pm #988
    Gnarz

    I feel that yes, a distribution outside of steam is desirable. While I acknowledge the fact that it is easier for you to only have one distribution channel, there are 2 things I really don't like about steam. Firstly, steam is DRM. And Secondly, it is a subscription service, meaning you don't own the stuff you have there. Then there is the necessity of the client, which means there are a lot of scenarios where I would not be able to play the game any more.

    I know, us people who don't think steam is the best thing since computer games were invented are a minority, but please consider my arguments.

    10th January 2015 at 1:07 pm #989
    Tchey
    Participant

    Steam is fine, but Steam is DRM.
    More choices > Steam.

    So, do we need distribution outside of Steam ?

    Yes.

    10th January 2015 at 1:19 pm #990
    miki151
    Participant

    I don't want to be harsh, but please at least read my first post. KeeperRL will not be DRMed on Steam.

    11th January 2015 at 3:23 pm #991
    Tchey
    Participant

    Yep, i did. I didn't express myself in a good way however.

    I meant, Steam is a third party program, even without DRM it would be a must-have to download and update KeeperRL. Some people may want to play KeeperRL without having to install Steam. I suppose some players are still not “Steamers”. I myself use Steam, Desura, GOG, and non-attached games too, so i'm a “Steamer” in some extend.

    Anyway…

    More choices > Steam.

    12th January 2015 at 8:43 am #992
    Gnarz

    Even if you put a DRM free game on steam, it is still DRMed, by the fact that you need steam to install it. Also, if you should, for whatever reason, cancel or lose your steam account, you also lose the game ( + all other games you have on steam, for that matter). But, well, it is your decision. If it is on steam, it is lost for me, but I'm just one guy, probably doesn't matter.

    12th January 2015 at 9:15 am #993
    miki151
    Participant

    Even if you put a DRM free game on steam, it is still DRMed, by the fact that you need steam to install it.

    In the same way that you need a PC with Windows, ZIP program, etc. That's not what DRM means.

    You can freely copy the game around after you've installed it with Steam.

    Also, if you should, for whatever reason, cancel or lose your steam account, you also lose the game ( + all other games you have on steam, for that matter).

    No, you don't. You can back up the game folder and it will work ok.

    But, well, it is your decision. If it is on steam, it is lost for me, but I'm just one guy, probably doesn't matter.

    It does matter, but should I also provide RAR archives, because some folks are anti-ZIP, and COM executables, because someone doesn't like EXE?

    Steam is a technical tool for me (besides a distribution channel), which makes my job much easier. It will make your life easier too, with auto-updates, highscore and dungeon sharing, etc.

    Btw, if we're going on idealogical grounds, distributing outside of Steam will mean I have to continue using Paypal, which I have very strong arguments agains.

    12th January 2015 at 10:45 am #994
    Gnarz

    well, zip doesn't reserve the right to scan my computer for software it considers to be in breach with its license, and other stuff like that, so the comparison is not quite valid. I did list technical reasons further up, and as someone who rarely finds the time for a gaming session, I find the steam client quite unwieldy… for example, every single time I start it, it updates itself first. Plus, I can't use it in some of the situations I play games in, like in a hotel room with my work laptop.

    But, as I mentioned before, it is your decision. If you feel the gain outweighs what I consider losses (and you obviously don't, so this one will be easy), then by all means do what you think is best for you.

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