I like that they’re making it clear that we don’t own the game up front, but we’ve always had to check the “Steam User Agreement” box every time we buy something and it’s already buried in there.
They’re doing this in response to legislation requiring more transparency on this, but the legislation really should have gone after companies to give us more ownership of digital assets, not just slapping another pointless warning label on something.
ArmyOfDix
If buying isn’t owning, then piracy isn’t theft ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
nydiasaidyn
Many mention that this isn’t the case for GOG, but I would argue that their are the same.
On GOG you can download and keep the installer. But most DRM-free games on GOG, on Steam you can just copy paste the game folder as well.
Products on sale on GOG can disappear just as well. Duke Nukem 3D Atomic Edition disappeared from the GOG store alongside with the Steam store.
Finally, if GOG or Steam were to shut down, you’d face the same issue: you wouldn’t be able to download anything that you didn’t copy to disk in the first place.
Temporary_Role_3247
If buying is not owning, then piracy is not stealing.
Fuck Steam. They stole my copy of GTAV and are holding twenty dollars of mine hostage until I surrender a bunch of personal information to them.
belovedeagle
That is not a “clear warning”; that makes it sound like you get the license in addition to the purchase. It os completely uninformative to someone who doesn’t know the difference.
Altruistic_Cress9799
Jeez fine I will just go back to pirating. Keep your licenses.
OllyDee
I find it ironic that if you pirate it then you *do* in fact own it. The whole world’s back to front man I swear it.
xondk
Oh the EU is going to have a field day, they’ve been waiting for someone to take these steps so they can challenge the whole ‘buy’ concept and the California case really opened up for it to begin, especially since if you ‘buy’ a physical copy, and thus have the copy on disc, for the same price as you ‘buy’ a copy on steam.
If those two are not the same, and only one of them is actual ownership, then why do they cost the same?
And alright, do you ‘own’ that license then? in that case why can’t you then give it to someone else if you ‘own’ it?
Shouldn’t you then be able to choose what you do with that license? oh, the company says you can’t do that, then what is it you ‘own’ if it isn’t the game, OR the access to the game, what is it you are paying for, where you are paying on the same level as someone that does get a physical copy?
15 Comments
This is the equivalent of putting “caution hot” on a coffee cup.
>This isn’t something new, as all game purchases across all platforms entitle the buyer to a license and not complete ownership of their copy.
Not sure this needed an article written about it. Sounds like they are just making it more obvious than before
Time to support GOG more [https://x.com/GOGcom/status/1844752098145038435](https://x.com/GOGcom/status/1844752098145038435)
Good on them for helping make players more aware.
I like that they’re making it clear that we don’t own the game up front, but we’ve always had to check the “Steam User Agreement” box every time we buy something and it’s already buried in there.
They’re doing this in response to legislation requiring more transparency on this, but the legislation really should have gone after companies to give us more ownership of digital assets, not just slapping another pointless warning label on something.
If buying isn’t owning, then piracy isn’t theft ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Many mention that this isn’t the case for GOG, but I would argue that their are the same.
On GOG you can download and keep the installer. But most DRM-free games on GOG, on Steam you can just copy paste the game folder as well.
Products on sale on GOG can disappear just as well. Duke Nukem 3D Atomic Edition disappeared from the GOG store alongside with the Steam store.
Finally, if GOG or Steam were to shut down, you’d face the same issue: you wouldn’t be able to download anything that you didn’t copy to disk in the first place.
If buying is not owning, then piracy is not stealing.
(edited purchasing to owning)
[https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/26/24254922/california-digital-purchase-disclosure-law-ab-2426](https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/26/24254922/california-digital-purchase-disclosure-law-ab-2426)
Fuck Steam. They stole my copy of GTAV and are holding twenty dollars of mine hostage until I surrender a bunch of personal information to them.
That is not a “clear warning”; that makes it sound like you get the license in addition to the purchase. It os completely uninformative to someone who doesn’t know the difference.
Jeez fine I will just go back to pirating. Keep your licenses.
I find it ironic that if you pirate it then you *do* in fact own it. The whole world’s back to front man I swear it.
Oh the EU is going to have a field day, they’ve been waiting for someone to take these steps so they can challenge the whole ‘buy’ concept and the California case really opened up for it to begin, especially since if you ‘buy’ a physical copy, and thus have the copy on disc, for the same price as you ‘buy’ a copy on steam.
If those two are not the same, and only one of them is actual ownership, then why do they cost the same?
And alright, do you ‘own’ that license then? in that case why can’t you then give it to someone else if you ‘own’ it?
Shouldn’t you then be able to choose what you do with that license? oh, the company says you can’t do that, then what is it you ‘own’ if it isn’t the game, OR the access to the game, what is it you are paying for, where you are paying on the same level as someone that does get a physical copy?
valve can’t get sued soon enough.