Community MetaSteam | June 2019 - Microsoft does what Epican't

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Exzyleph

Dark Eroge Lord
Oct 9, 2018
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I don't see anything wrong with it. I have many games on my Steam library that I played through once, or played for a few hour and didn't like enough to keep going. If I could have rented them instead of buying them outright I would have saved money. Games that I'm likely to be playing for months I will buy outright. To be honest I don't see any downsides.
Yeah. There's a lot of titles I would like to try, but don't necessarily care about outright owning.
This way I can just subscribe for a month when I feel like dipping my toes into some of those games.
 
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NarohDethan

There was a fish in the percolator!
Apr 6, 2019
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I don't see anything wrong with it. I have many games on my Steam library that I played through once, or played for a few hours and didn't like enough to keep going. If I could have rented them instead of buying them outright I would have saved money. Games that I'm likely to be playing for months I will buy outright. To be honest I don't see any downsides.
Yup. I played Forza Horizon 4 to completion last November for 5 bucks, I cant really complain since I was dirt poor back then.
 
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FunnyJay

Powered by the Cloud
Apr 6, 2019
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If you wanna buy it for uplay you should do it here:
Watch_Dogs 2 [Uplay Ubisoft Connect] for PC - Buy now
Thanks for the tip!
Personally, I always forget what games I have on uPlay so I try to avoid it for that reason if the offers are at least roughly equal. A bit silly, but that's how it is :p
Precisely my thought as well!
And add GOG for all "classic" older games.
We didn't stop Sweeney's Heresy, we should pay for our sin.
Incoming 50+ book series from the Black Library? Storefrontus Exterminatus? 😉
 
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PossiblyPudding

sometimes a doctor of rhythm
Apr 17, 2019
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What are the essential DLCs? I'll buy it on the next sale plus my mother loves the mobile game, but in the usual EA manner, it's basically unplayable without a constant stream of investments.
For expansions I'd say Get to Work, Cats & Dogs and Seasons are probably the top three. The other three that are also out now are nice to have but kind of based on personal preferences.

Once you start talking about game packs and stuff packs is where it gets a little murkier. Those are based even more on personal preferences. Jungle Adventure, Outdoor Retreat and Parenthood were the first few I went with. And I've mostly avoided stuff packs so I can't really make any recommendations there.
 

Ascheroth

Chilling in the Megastructure
Nov 12, 2018
5,310
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Honestly, for 1€ I don't care I'm just renting a game. 4€/month after that is still an amazing deal when you look at the line-up. To be brutally honest, the majority of games I own are one-and-done experiences that I'm never going to replay.
Long RPGs and other games I'd play over a longer period of time, I'm probably still more comfortable actually owning, though.
 

Hektor

Autobahnraser
Nov 1, 2018
5,970
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Honestly, for 1€ I don't care I'm just renting a game. 4€/month after that is still an amazing deal when you look at the line-up. To be brutally honest, the majority of games I own are one-and-done experiences that I'm never going to replay.
Long RPGs and other games I'd play over a longer period of time, I'm probably still more comfortable actually owning, though.
Pretty much.
I bought Void Bastards for 20€ and finished it in 2 days.
Could have done the same with Gamepass for 4€ and then i could've picked up the game later on in a humble bundle for permanent ownership.
 

m_dorian

Ούτις
May 22, 2019
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I like owning games too but the deal MS offers is very good and i am very glad they finally came to their senses. If there is a game i liked owning i can wait for a sale to buy it, hopefully on GoG or steam.

I think i am going to take advantage of the Game pass deal very soon.
 

Ascheroth

Chilling in the Megastructure
Nov 12, 2018
5,310
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Also, I've just completed Onimusha: Warlords.
Outside of that one annoying puzzle section, I really loved it.
The story is straightforward, but still nicely presented, very cool atmosphere, music and enemy designs, good combat and boss fights, rewarding exploration and puzzles. Pretty much has it all.
The Devil May Cry of Resident Evils that was Dark Souls before Dark Souls was cool.

Now remaster the other games in the series Capcom, that ending left me craving more!
 

gabbo

MetaMember
Dec 22, 2018
3,524
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Toronto
So I need to ask - is there a Council recommended xbox control emulator/app to use outside of Steam for game that don't have official support? The few times ive tried to work with solutions listed in the controller glossary on pcgwiki, it's been a terrible failure.
I just recently grabbed Strangehold off ebay (what can I say, Im on a 360/ps3 gen kick lately) and it feels like it could be better played with a controller, but has no support at all.
 

Rosenkrantz

Once Punched Man
Apr 22, 2019
1,020
2,306
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Trying out the Xbox game pass deal makes me appreciate Steam even more.

The download speed isn't terrible, but Steam has been consistently maxing out my connection for so many years now that I don't even remembered that this is not a given :p
Yeah, PlayStation consoles are pretty awful in this regard, especially PS3, I think it never used more than 40% of a maximum download speed. Among PC clients I only have troubles with BNet.
 

QFNS

Plays too many card games
Nov 18, 2018
1,285
3,110
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It's coming in the summer
2020

I hope Valve is asking devs to update the Grid Images so I won't have to make too many of them myself.

Valve asks devs to do things all the time. They ask them to implement regional pricing, they ask them to use Steamworks APIs, etc. Those things don't always happen or tons of them ignore it. I would be prepared to make MANY of them yourself.
 

Exzyleph

Dark Eroge Lord
Oct 9, 2018
878
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So I need to ask - is there a Council recommended xbox control emulator/app to use outside of Steam for game that don't have official support? The few times ive tried to work with solutions listed in the controller glossary on pcgwiki, it's been a terrible failure.
I just recently grabbed Strangehold off ebay (what can I say, Im on a 360/ps3 gen kick lately) and it feels like it could be better played with a controller, but has no support at all.
Am I understanding you correctly that you need to emulate an XBox Controller using a Direct3D/non-Xbox controller?
If so, then I've been using x360CE with great success, mostly for fighting games.

The reason why I like it is that you install it simply by unpacking the files where the game executable is located, running the configuration program, and creating a config specifically for that game. It works by DLL injection, so you don't need to keep a program running in the background, and it doesn't affect other games.

If the game doesn't support controllers at all, then you'll need to use something like JoyToKey.
 

Ascheroth

Chilling in the Megastructure
Nov 12, 2018
5,310
12,281
113
So I need to ask - is there a Council recommended xbox control emulator/app to use outside of Steam for game that don't have official support? The few times ive tried to work with solutions listed in the controller glossary on pcgwiki, it's been a terrible failure.
I just recently grabbed Strangehold off ebay (what can I say, Im on a 360/ps3 gen kick lately) and it feels like it could be better played with a controller, but has no support at all.
In theory* you should be able to set your Steam Desktop configuration to a regular controller config and then can use a controller everywhere as long as Steam is open.

*I don't think I've ever tried this myself.
 
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gabbo

MetaMember
Dec 22, 2018
3,524
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Toronto
Am I understanding you correctly that you need to emulate an XBox Controller using a Direct3D/non-Xbox controller?
If so, then I've been using x360CE with great success, mostly for fighting games.

The reason why I like it is that you install it simply by unpacking the files where the game executable is located, running the configuration program, and creating a config specifically for that game. It works by DLL injection, so you don't need to keep a program running in the background, and it doesn't affect other games.

If the game doesn't support controllers at all, then you'll need to use something like JoyToKey.
I'm just trying to find a way to get my x360 controller to work with games that have limited controller support, but are much older than the 360 controller and don't use the same input api (direct input vs xinput, i think?). I tried with Drakan, but it was horrible and I couldn't get movement to work properly. Found the interface terrible.

In some cases the games don't offer official support for controllers. I used Stranglehold as my example because it's clearly a game that could use a 360 controller, as it's a port of the console version to pc and I just started playing it, but there isn't any controller setup options in the game.
I will look into X360CE and JoyToKey, though I don't see what the purpose of the j2k license is, if the shareware has no limitations (the site doesn't actually provide a side by side of license vs unlicensed).

edit: Keep in mind, this is just for playing on my htpc. On my actual gaming rig, it's less an issue
 

Dandy

Bad at Games.
Apr 17, 2019
1,656
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So one needs the DLC for Sims 4 for it to be really worthwhile?
Not at all, but after dozens of hours the DLC freshens things up and gives you something new reasons to play. I actually don't recommend playing it with a ton of DLC right away, because you probably will miss out on a lot of the little stuff they add because it can be overwhelming.

What are the essential DLCs? I'll buy it on the next sale plus my mother loves the mobile game, but in the usual EA manner, it's basically unplayable without a constant stream of investments.
Seasons is the one that I feel has the most impact on the game. It changes all of the worlds, adds holidays, and just makes the game seem more alive. I really like City Living because I prefer apartments to houses, and Parenthood adds lots of great mechanics if you're the type of person who enjoys family-focused playing. Cats & Dogs is also good for people who love animals. The Create-a-Pet system is crazy.

The mobile game is awful. I tried to get into a few months ago, and it's basically impossible to complete anything without paying. It's also super shallow, and just a huge time suck - you have to be glued to your phone and literally not miss a timer. I remember waking up to pee at 3am one night and being excited because I could queue up some new actions and maybe finish one of the limited time quests. It made me feel dirty and I uninstalled it after that.
 
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Arsene

On a break
Apr 17, 2019
3,280
8,305
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Canada
I cant get the new SteamUI to work for the life of me. Pulling my hair out trying to find out whats going on with it.
 
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Amzin

No one beats me 17 times in a row!
Dec 5, 2018
1,001
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In the topic of rent vs. own, something I think is good advice in general is that whenever you spend any money for anything, you are simply trading that money for some kind of utility or experience. It's up to you whether that is worth it or not. If you "rent" a game for $5 and finish it and never want to play it again (that's most games for me, with my limited free time) than it is objectively better for you than buying that game for $10. Similarly, paying for a rideshare or renting a car vs. owning one is an issue almost entirely dependent on one's situation. I don't see the rent for my apartment as wasted, because there's literally 0 places to own here, and I'm exchanging my money to live in a space I like in a location that's nifty that supports my life. Also, I don't have to fuck with a yard, that's worth something right there :p

It's funny seeing this rental conversation pop up. When I was growing up and playing games / watching movies in the late 80s and early 90s, rentals were the thing. It was uncommon for anyone I knew to buy any media, it was so expensive compared to renting and you rarely knew what you were getting with a blind buy anyway. Then production got much cheaper, so suddenly VHS / DVDs were more affordable and ubiquitous, and then digital stuff started up and that in particular made PC games much more available. Renting died off and owning became the norm. And now with passes, renting (after a fashion) might be on the rise.

Also worth noting media companies tend to prefer pushing buying over renting, a lot of companies did not like institutions like Blockbuster existing because they felt (probably correctly) that it cut into their profits by basically community pooling of the costs and sharing.

TL,DR; the worth of the experience you get from spending money is purely based on what you get from that experience, not the ownership or lack thereof inherently.

Edit: This is also coming from someone who objects to the Stadia on a lot of levels, and prefers to own whenever possible and I am a big supporter of the "right to repair" / ability to actually OWN the things you pay for. But having the option to rent vs. buy, it becomes consumer power, which is becoming more rare as the days go by.
 
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