If there's a distinction then maybe I can get it for cheaper and they'll slap PC into the current Xbox gamepass.
I like the way you think.
News Xbox Gamepass annouced for PC, Microsoft Store will support Win32 and more Xbox titles coming to Steam
- Thread starter prudis
- Start date
Microsoft are becoming the "good" guys, what a strange twist.
Well that's a good news, the jab at epic is lovely.
Well that's a good news, the jab at epic is lovely.
OP
- Thread Starter
- #54
This fundamentally misunderstands Sweeny's objections to Microsoft's actions. Microsoft's problem historically was that they owned and controlled PC gaming through Windows. It was entirely intentional. They created modern convenient plug-n-play PC gaming through DirectX to gain control over the market. People could pretend Linux was a viable alternative during a long period all they wanted. MS held the keys. Their APIs were king. And in the 2010s MS were starting to make changes that were hostile towards Windows' defacto status as an open platform. This has nothing to do with storefronts, and it's really, really weird that people think it is. Storefronts are meaningless. This little Epic vs Steam war people seem emotionally involved in is a drop in the bucket. Game launchers are not walled gardens. The issue is the operating system. The operating system is the bedrock. The OS is the walled garden. iOS is a walled garden due to its OS. Same with videogame consoles.
Microsoft have the power prevent software running. They can block it, they can break it on purpose, and so on. Older Starforce games don't work on modern Windows without extreme workarounds because MS decided they shouldn't work. MS made a decision that you can't play King Kong. And you can just go sit in a corner if you don't like it.
Steam runs because they ALLOW it to run. All other content delivery platforms are the same. Microsoft break a lot of shit by accident. If they started breaking shit on purpose, Google-style -- or arguably IE-style -- there's nothing anyone could do to stop them practically speaking. Microsoft were making clear indications they were planning on pushing the entire Windows ecosystem to a relatively closed platform, one where running anything that didn't come from Microsoft's Store would be either extremely difficult or impossible for normal users. That is what Sweeney was warning against.
Remember that this is the company that back in the early 90s planned on sabotaging competitors by making their software throw meaningless error messages in Windows 3.1 They have changed in recent years. They're a far friendlier, less sinister company that isn't constantly trying to undermine, sabotage, etc. But the threat MS posed to the open PC platform was not something to be taken lightly. MS were making plans. They've since abandoned them, or perhaps put them on hold to be cynical, but their plans were real.
Bout fuckin time. Be a software company. Make game software. Let me buy it where i want. Like we used to do.
Excellent news, of course. Ms can restore those brands somewhat and we can play them without the shinnanigans.
Thank you so fuckin much. This has been driving me nuts. Tim Sweeney is a dick but what he said then still stands. The flip flop story is a happy false equivelence for both epic critics and ms fans. Im surprised it goes unchallenged. Ive attempted to bring this up but nobody seems to care about what he really said.
Excellent news, of course. Ms can restore those brands somewhat and we can play them without the shinnanigans.
Yooooo
Thank you so fuckin much. This has been driving me nuts. Tim Sweeney is a dick but what he said then still stands. The flip flop story is a happy false equivelence for both epic critics and ms fans. Im surprised it goes unchallenged. Ive attempted to bring this up but nobody seems to care about what he really said.
Last edited:
That's the spirit! I have a lot of faith in the PC gaming community and it hasn't let me down so far. Epic will lose.
That's good news, really hard for me to see anything bad here tbh.
Crazy how things have changed, Xbox is really turning into a service, I suppose.
Microsoft is doing a lot of interesting stuff lately, they are going to ship a Linux kernel in Windows, implementing a Sandbox feature, a Linux like terminal, bring back win32 support for their store.
Of course, half of the stuff won't work at launch and there is still the directX monopoly, but they are opening up a bit.
Still, they deserve some positive credit, at least a bit.
I'm going to subscribe to this and if I like it, I may even drop my ps+ subscription in favour for Gamepass.
Crazy how things have changed, Xbox is really turning into a service, I suppose.
Microsoft is doing a lot of interesting stuff lately, they are going to ship a Linux kernel in Windows, implementing a Sandbox feature, a Linux like terminal, bring back win32 support for their store.
Of course, half of the stuff won't work at launch and there is still the directX monopoly, but they are opening up a bit.
Still, they deserve some positive credit, at least a bit.
I'm going to subscribe to this and if I like it, I may even drop my ps+ subscription in favour for Gamepass.
Fine... I'll try to optimistic... AGAIN.
OP
So does this mean they'll make the whole process of adding a Win Store game on Steam not a total mess like it is today (and therefore make it also easier to access game files for Win Store titles)?
I think to a degree the onus is on Valve to make adding non-Steam games a bit more comprehensive, especially for other clients like Origin and EGS. It's possible because other launchers like Playnite manage to support different clients and games, so if Valve wants the Steam client to be the centre of the library then they need to make it so third party hacky solutions aren't necessary.
And let's be honest, in a world where most PC games use one launcher or another, the "Add non-Steam game" functionality only works 100% with DRM-free exes, which really isn't good enough when most non-Steam games for years have been Origin titles. It's not like this feature is newly-broken with the dawn of Windows 10 and UWP, and Valve's implementation has been very barebones since the day is was added.
That said, UWP/WinStore games are a little different, as MS has clearly and intentionally subverted Win32 and how apps traditionally launch on Windows to push their incompatible App Store, but if the developers of GloSC have found a way to do it then Valve can (and should) manage a solution.
But I do agree 100% that MS should open the apps up to let people tinker and mod them.
OP
- Thread Starter
- #69
nah is this case adding UWP apps to steam is totally on MS ... there is no problem to add everything else as "nonsteam game" to the library as everything you need to do is add and Exe and run through it and guess what UWP are launchable only through powershell link , tunning through exe does jackshit
This is the most important thing for me. MS should stop storing game files in an encrypted container, and I'm still not sure they are actually planning to do so. Protecting their achievements is probably more important to MS than allowing the community to mod and tinker away.
Last edited:
You can't just add the exe for a lot of games. Many Origin, Uplay and EGS games will break if you do that. That is totally on Valve, as other launchers like Playnite have managed to accommodate these games. Meanwhile, to get games from these launchers working as they should on Steam you need something like GloSC or OSOL.
Recently I was experimenting with EGS free games to see how easy it would be to add them to Steam (which, other than philosophically disagreeing with exclusives, is the biggest barrier to me using their store), and it was a mixed bag. RiME and City of Brass seemed to work by just pointing Steam to the exe, but Fortnite and Dauntless required some (for novices) rather finnicky steps (including editing an .ini file) that could be made a lot easier on Valve's end.
Pretty much any modern Origin game won't work by just adding the exe. I discovered OSOL because I was looking for a way to add Mass Effect 3 and Titanfall 2 to my Steam Library and use it with the Steam Controller on my Shield TV (which I have connected via VirtualHere). In that case it's a lot more simple than EGS (as OSOL's default configuration is designed for Origin), but still requires some "backend" configuration, which is especially annoying if you are a Big Picture user.
The only time I've really had seamless adding of an exe to Steam is either DRM-free GOG/Humble/other games, or a game which has DRM but runs independently of any client (like an MMO like FFXIV or older versions of games bought from Telltale's store, before they stripped the DRM from them). The second you bring a different launcher into the equation, whether the game actually works becomes a crapshoot.
The reality is, just like Playnite detects my different launchers and finds my installed (and even uninstalled) games, Steam should be able to do the same. Just imagine being able to just see a list of all your installed UWP, Origin, Uplay, EGS and so on games, click a little tickbox, and have it appear in Steam without any tinkering? Valve is all about creating turnkey solutions where possible, and they have done an amazing job in so many areas, but how Steam handles non-Steam games - especially ones tied to a different launcher - leaves a lot to be desired.
I agree that UWP is different, and MS were deliberately trying to frustrate you doing anything outside of their store, but Valve could find a way to make it work. And even if it's not Valve's responsibility, where compatibility has been a problem in other areas they've taken it upon themselves to fix it. See Proton and controller support as two examples of this.
Last edited:
I'm pretty sure that's true. But my guess is Valve doesn't want locked down UWP apps to become the new standard for pc gaming anymore than most their customers do. I wouldn't be surprised if they boycotted UWP deliberately.
Do not get my hopes up. I would love to not have to buy this used online as I lost my old install files extract from w GFW version cab file.
Gamepass will single handedly evolve gaming to the next level. There is so much value here and Bravo for Microsoft for creating this.
I just hope to see platform based subscriptions rather than developer/publisher based subscriptions.
I just hope to see platform based subscriptions rather than developer/publisher based subscriptions.