honestly not that worried about it. if they try to fuck me with licensing nonsense i’ll just pirate it.
How important is owning your own video games to you?
Submitted 3 weeks ago by The__Guy_Fawkes@lemmy.world to games@lemmy.world
https://lemmy.world/pictrs/image/1bf40c98-c8ad-4bbc-bbbb-4b21591c4e4d.jpeg
Comments
acosmichippo@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
chunkystyles@sopuli.xyz 2 weeks ago
This is exactly how I feel.
I’m happy to play ball as long as the game is fair.
The second any of these platforms start being shitheads, that’s over.
Nintendo won’t get another penny from me. If I feel the need to pay any of their games they will be emulated from pirated ROMs.
tacosanonymous@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 weeks ago
Fairly important and it’s grown with age. I wish I could get back all of the games I sold bc I was too poor to have them and newer games.
As much as I use emulators for travel, I have repurchased a bunch of old consoles and I love booting them up.
While nostalgia fuels a lot of this for me, I’m also passionate about preservation for everyone.
steelplatedmech@piefed.ca 3 weeks ago
Got a 3DS XL and DSi XL this year and it has been my most favorite console I’ve owned. Really unique piece of handheld and I’ve liked the games that take advantage of the stylus like Trauma Center Under the Knife. First console where lower resolution and fps hasn’t bothered me.
SkunkWorkz@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
It’s crazy how a used New 3DS XL cost as much as a Switch or even a Switch 2 these days. Jailbreaking and putting pirated roms on it has become so easy that this handheld has become popular again.
Drusas@fedia.io 3 weeks ago
If I'm going to rent them, the prices should reflect that.
chemical_cutthroat@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
That’s what it comes down to. When XBOX Gamepass was dirt cheap and they gave the newest games on release day, everyone said the model wouldn’t survive. They were right, but the model was fair. I didn’t own the games, and I had no say in when they came or went. I was paying to play them, not own them. If I wanted to own them, I would go out and buy them at full price, which I did for games like the Forza series and the DOOM series, among others.
Full disclosure, I have a massive Steam library, but I don’t believe that I truly own the games. I do have faith that Valve will treat me with more respect than a lot of other companies, though, so I’m hedging my bets with the best option I have. It’s why I don’t own anything from Epic, because I don’t trust a fucking word they say.
BreakerSwitch@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
I’m with you on steam. If and when they enshittify I’m in for a bad time, but I trust them at the moment. We DO have better options in gog and itch selling drm free software though
thingsiplay@lemmy.ml 2 weeks ago
I’m okay with owning a license to the game, rather than physical media. But I want to own it, in the sense that the companies cannot take my license rights away and that I can resell the license. And it should even work if the company or servers go away. Funny enough NFTs (Non-fungible token: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-fungible_token ) would have solved this issue. Although it does not solve the issue with inactive servers, at least a specific license to a game could be owned.
CovfefeKills@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
Yea I swear that shit was designed to fail GameStop’s whole thing was making sure it did not mean digital licenses.
mHtt@lemmy.ca 3 weeks ago
I send money to DE for Access to Warframe. I know I don’t own it and my privileges can be revoked at any time. I balance this with the free to play entry and my enjoyment of the content therin.
0li0li@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
OpenWF is there for you if you ever need it.
An offline backup for when they kill the servers or ruin the game otherwise, a moddable version, one where you can replay cut or past content, get anything you want for free, one without any fomo or timers, etc.
mHtt@lemmy.ca 3 weeks ago
OpenWF
thanks never heard of it!
cobysev@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
How important is owning your own games to you?
Let me put it this way: I have nearly 5,000 games on Steam. It’s the one source of media I have no problem investing money into, because I agree with how Valve is providing the service.
It’s convenient, user-friendly, and easily exportable. I can go anywhere in the world, download my games and save files, and pick up where I left off. Which has been made even more convenient with the advent of the Steam Deck.
If I paid for a game, it’s in my library forever. Even if it gets removed from the Steam Store. And the regular sales/discounts ensure I can afford to have such a massive library. I would be severely in debt if I paid full price for my entire library.
If/when Valve loses Gabe Newell and the new CEO prioritizes profits over customer satisfaction, I will gladly switch to pirating and hoarding my own games.
I’m very much against subscription services and I firmly believe in owning everything I drop money on. I don’t play console games anymore because they’ve all been pushing subscription services, and with Sony in particular trying to push for people to not own games anymore? Fuck PlayStation.
This is also why I won’t use Epic Games. Their predatory business practices and poor customer service shows what a terrible company they are and I refuse to support a business that degrades and exploits the customer experience for profit. I will gladly pirate any exclusive they keep off the market, or wait until they show up on Steam in a year or so.
If everyone voted with their wallet, Epic Games would be forced to confront the fact they need to make changes to compete with the online gaming market, or go bankrupt.
BackgrndNoize@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Not that much since I rarely have any interest in replaying a game, but then again I never buy them for full price, I only buy them very cheaply on Steam sales. I have no idea why anyone would pay $60+ to “rent” a game, I’d just ISO it alongside buying it in such a case
AndyMFK@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 weeks ago
I feel like if you rarely have any interest in replaying a game, you would be the most in support for owning your games, so you could re-sell them.
snooggums@piefed.world 3 weeks ago
I can spend far less buying a game on steam for 75% off compared to the old trade in for 25% of the sale price or whatever game shops did back in the day.
Plus it is still there if I ever feel like playing it again with no need to track or store anything on my end.
BackgrndNoize@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Since I don’t come from a culture of selling games that thought never occurred to me, when I was a kid we’d just share our games with each other, so I guess I never saw it as a source of profit, as an adult I don’t know if I would even bother with the effort of trying to sell a video game for whatever little money you could get for them
ghorsey@lemmus.org 3 weeks ago
Fuck them all. I want to own the media that brings me enjoyment. I want to play it on old hardware…
billwashere@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
I hate paying for something to want to use it 10 years later and realizing it’s no longer there. So yeah pretty important.
Going into a used game shop and finding a classic I played 10 years ago and popping it into a console I still own is pretty cool. So yeah pretty important.
This is all about greed so fuck all these gaming companies going digital only. There are exceptions. GOG is digital only but once I download it, it’s mine. It’s on me to keep a backed up copy. That is acceptable.
Tattorack@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Same importance as owning anything else I buy.
NaibofTabr@infosec.pub 3 weeks ago
The important thing is that the terms are clearly defined up front, prior to the sale, not in fine print buried in some terms of service document, and not subject to change after the sale. Then I will decide if the advertised price is worth it for me in that moment.
The specifics of whether the game is for rent or for sale is not really important, nor is the price. What matters is that shady business practices end in legal consequences.
pory@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
A lot, which is why I don’t play any games from the following categories:
-
Live-service forever games with cash shops
-
Server-based games that become unplayable when the servers die
-
anything with Denuvo
-
anything that can’t be played without an account
-
any console game where the console has not had its DRM compromised (Switch 1 yes, Switch 2 no)
-
any Steam game with DRM more secure than the screen-door Steamworks
What is completely unimportant to me is reselling my games. I don’t really care if I “own” them ideologically or legally, I care about using them how I wish, when I wish, without barriers like “an account in good standing with a company that exists and operates its servers” in the way.
-
novibe@lemmy.ml 2 weeks ago
Not really important tbh. Ownership is only relevant in a society of scarcity. And games are infinitely copiable, thus the opposite of scarce.
I’m more in favor of collectivization, as in archives of games free to download, maintained by open projects and donations, stuff like that.
AgentRocket@feddit.org 2 weeks ago
And games are infinitely copiable, thus the opposite of scarce.
unless the servers where you can get your infinite copies from disappear or no longer host the game. And if the game requires an online connection to run, all those copies won’t do you any good, if those servers get shut down.
hanrahan@slrpnk.net 3 weeks ago
maybe it’s just me because im old but the photo itself shows why I have zero interest in owning a game, or any physical media (a someone who had vinyl originally, then tapes, seeing the back of both those was a joy. I’m also seeing “kids” return to analog cameras but that will pass, like bell bottoms.
a physical game that needs online authentication, or a server for collaborative play are all only here for a “short time” anyway, physical media aside.
I’m a reader more than a gamer, my books are all digital with no DRM, most of my games are digital from GOG and no DRM and are all single player, my music is all MP3 or flacc , zero streaming. It’s why I get pissy when phones don’t have an SD card, I can throw a TB of movies, books etc on a card and have another with me if I want but you streamers have killed it :)
Funkt4st1c@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
If i pay for something, i should own it. End of conversation.
I buy a copy of software. I buy a shoe. I buy a washing machine. I buy a car. Nothing is different here. Theres no expectation that i own the shoe store or the car dealer, i own the thing i bought, because thats what buying is.
kahjtheundedicated@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Pretty important. If I paid real money for the game, I want to have it to play whenever I want in the future. I try to buy on GOG whenever possible, and I keep games I particularly liked archived on my NAS. For games that I’ve bought on steam that I really liked, I download the Fitgirl repack and back that up. If you can’t legally own a copy of your game, sometimes you have to take matters into your to your own hands.
And I have half a mind to to get a stack of archival blu-rays to back up some of my all time favorites, kind of just for fun and bookshelf fodder.
But I’m no archivalist saint, if a game sucked I feel no need to keep those files around.
zod000@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 weeks ago
Very.
DudeImMacGyver@kbin.earth 2 weeks ago
If I paid for it, I should own it.
nosuchanon@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
Yes.
Pratai@piefed.ca 3 weeks ago
People are totally fine paying for MMO games that eventually pull the plug. (think Asheron’s Call, Dark Age of Camelot). I don’t really see what’s different.
Not in defense of it at all, just not understanding why one is totally fine while the other is not.
yukichigai@kbin.earth 3 weeks ago
Because of the second "M" in the term, i.e. "Multiplayer". MMOs are as much about the community as the game. For some they're more important than the game. MMOs generally only get shut down when almost all of the community has left... or in other words when a lot of the game's "content" is no longer available anyway.
That's not the case for singleplayer games, or games designed for local/couch multiplayer. There's no natural limit on the game being playable. For PS2/Xbox era stuff and before, as long as you have game and the hardware you can fire it up today and have the same experience (not counting your worsening reflexes). There's no justifiable reason why a company should be allowed to decide that you can no longer play the game you bought on hardware you physically possess. The only reason is greed, pure and simple. That's why people aren't okay with it.
spankysalmon@fedinsfw.app 3 weeks ago
It’s not fine when they do it to games that don’t need servers. It’s not fine when they do it for games with content outside of multiplayer. It’s not fine when they arbitrarily decide to destroy a game because they don’t want to maintain the Always Online services they decided to put in games with campaigns.
You don’t understand because you don’t know what you’re talking about.
Pratai@piefed.ca 3 weeks ago
This would have been a completly fine discussion if you didn’t make the ignorant decision to accuse me of not knowing what I’m talking about. The question itself represents the fact that I do.
I bought and paid a premium for those games. They pulled the plug. I didn’t get my money back. Neither did the millions of others that once played them.
No complaints.
But you suggest that the only difference is that there were servers involved? Yeah…. I’m the one that doesn’t know what I’m talking about. I asked a serious queue and you come back with childish insults.
Gonna block you now and get ahead of the stupid response you’ll have.
warbond@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
People are fine paying for movies that end, too, but that’s the deal. MMOs have a monthly subscription, if you don’t like it don’t pay it, but if you sell me something I’m gonna think I own it.
Pratai@piefed.ca 3 weeks ago
But the MMO also cost a premium to buy. People actually bought DAoC, EQ, AC…. AND payed a monthly fee to play. Plug pulled… that’s that. Not defending the behavior, just wondering what changed.
steelplatedmech@piefed.ca 3 weeks ago
Those MMOs are sold and advertised as subscriptions, so there was never question of there being ownership due to being locked out if you stopped paying.
IEatDaFeesh@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
I don’t really care. Every game I care about has a few hundreds of hours already. If they were taken away from me I’d move on to the next thing.
Eternal192@anarchist.nexus 3 weeks ago
I might buy something on Steam when it’s heavily discounted as far as “AAA” goes and indie games if i like them, but everything else is full sails, only sure way it won’t surprisingly vanish from my library.
echodot@feddit.uk 3 weeks ago
No, I download all my N64 cartridges.
bashibazouk@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Tough one. I’ve been playing video games since pong. I tossed a big stack of 5 1/4 floppies when I realized I’d never have another drive installed that could read them. Same with 3 1/2 floppies. I still have all the CD/DVD’s I’ve ever bought but have ended up re-buying on sale through steam or GOG when I needed a nostalgia hit because they just worked on modern systems without a bunch of tinkering. I can download just about any game I once had on either sized floppy and run it in dosbox. On modern systems, I’ve been on playstation and steam. Bought the PS5 with a disk drive and have installed PS4 disks but have yet to buy a PS5 disk, only digital which I prefer. I hate trying to find the disk, then find the case for the disk for the game in the machine. I also question what you own on modern games. Do you really want to play some of these games without the day one patch, or even the one month patch? What to do really own with a No Mans Sky launch disk if hello games disappeared and it could not be patched?
On the other hand, though I’m too much of a data hoarder to sell games used, I understand the desire. And having a kid that always wants the newest game for birthdays/Christmas but grandma has no real way to buy him the game specifically, I get physical for something to wrap and have under the tree.
In theory, I want to own my games but the history and reality of video games makes that a much more nuanced question…
missingno@fedia.io 3 weeks ago
I prefer to buy physical when possible, but that 'when possible' gets harder and harder. For the kinds of niche games I like, even when they do get physical releases some of them are just hard to find at a reasonable price. So I'll settle for digital by telling myself that if I ever lose access to my purchase, I'll pirate it guilt-free.
Piracy is preservation, which means my real concern lies with online games that can't easily be preserved.
Kolanaki@pawb.social 3 weeks ago
Having no way of accessing a thing I bought because it’s stored somewhere other than my own device should the entity storing my thing disappear was at release, and still is, my biggest issue with Steam (and subsequently other services/stores). Steam does give a way to backup games I buy, as does GOG so it at least solves that sorta kinda. I’d still prefer some kind of absolute guarantee that what I buy will still be accessible forever, tho.
The__Guy_Fawkes@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
There are ways of playing the games on steam without having steam. Cracked games, but I wouldn’t promote piracy…
CovfefeKills@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
It is important. I don’t really get the valve dick sucking tho why would you put your hopes in rich cunts? They were forced to implement their refund policy don’t credit them for it.
Why it very important especially for Valve users is because when you die your licenses die with you. Those 5000s games in your library? Those tens of thousands of hours? Your whole Steam identity. Gone… Game libraries/accounts are assets that should be left to your friends and families.
Yes if steam were to catch wind that your big brother was dying of cancer and gave you his credentials then they will delete that account. It is not excusable and it’s pretty fucking hilarious to see Lemmy defend it from over the spectrum because they think Gabe is nice. It’s like yous just invent your morals on the spot.
TheStaffmaster@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
and now, in this corner of Heaven…
All you need now is an endless hot wing buffet, a bottomless bag of only the dankest of nugg, and a troupe of nymphomaniac nudist college cheerleaders with no gag reflex and daddy issues.
The__Guy_Fawkes@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
TheStaffmaster@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
all i’m saying is that you are living at least 1/4 of the dream. you even have somewhere to play them vs having them collecting dust in boxes in your attic.
BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today 3 weeks ago
The better way to ask it is: Would you pay $80 to rent a game?
Godort@lemmy.ca 3 weeks ago
It’s a complicated topic for me, I think.
With console games, no. I will only ever buy a physical version because taking the game out of the case and putting it into the machine is a quintessential part of the experience. It’s the same reason why I like buying music on vinyl. There is a whole little ritual involved that makes it so much more enjoyable.
I’ve somehow deluded myself when it comes to PC games though. Digital distribution is just so fucking convenient. Putting a CD/Diskette in the machine and then running an installer always felt more like a chore than part of the whole experience.
I like the middle ground that GOG is trying to foster, (we’ll host these as long as possible, but we welcome you to download and save them forever) but realistically, I only play through most games once, and sometimes it takes me months or years to finish. So for me, an $80 rental with a multi-year lease time is something I would personally consider.
who@feddit.org 3 weeks ago
*For an unspecified period of time that can be changed by the publisher on a whim?
charokol@lemmy.zip 3 weeks ago
Yes
The__Guy_Fawkes@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
“Would you download a car???”!
KoboldCoterie@pawb.social 3 weeks ago
I assume you know this and are referencing it sarcastically, but just in case you don’t: That was not the original text in the anti-piracy PSA; it was a third party edit making fun of the original PSA that is now widely mistaken as being the original text. The original text was “You wouldn’t steal a car”, not “You wouldn’t download a car”.
wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Me, printing my 4th car this week: 😎
rants_unnecessarily@piefed.social 2 weeks ago
Would you pay 80€ for 200 - 800 of gaming?
I know I wouldn’t. I don’t buy them new.
Ajdee6@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
People have been answering this question for years with their wallet. Why are we just asking now?