Steam may allow game borrowing soon

The latest Steam Beta update would suggest that game borrowing could soon be a new Steam feature.

[MuhammadJA]

Steam is great!

[Alexious]

Agreed!

[B1663r]

And thanks to the x1, is getting better!

[OhMyGandhi]

'tis great!

[Anthotis]

Steam sucks.

I should be able to lend my copy of Skyrim to a friend in the first place, but steam prevents this.

[A-laughing-horse]

Are you joking?

[Anon1974]

Eventually I think they'll allow the transfer of digital content. With the court ruling out of the EU last year stating that licenses cannot be prohibited from transfer in the EULA like Steam does, they stopped short demanding that companies like Valve setup a transfer system themselves but they can't do anything to block the transfer. If you want to give your digital copy of Skyrim to your friend, in the EU Steam legally can't stop you. They just don't have the mechanism to actually do this yet.

My guess is that Valve will get in front of this and take control of license transfers themselves rather then letting some 3rd party get in on it, but this is a big change that will need time for all parties selling digital content in the EU to adjust to. I suspect this court ruling is one one of the reasons we've heard Microsoft is setting up some sort of digital content market for license transfers.

[fermcr]

I'm still waiting for the EU to force Steam to allow 2nd hand digital content sale. If i buy it, i can resell it.

Same goes with Microsoft, Sony, Apple or Android's digital content.

[marchinggamer]

The EU is full of shit and couldn't force any company to do anything lately Google apple Microsoft sony are just giving EU the finger

[matgrowcott]

If a country doesn't do as the EU says, there's usually just a fine. The fine is usually less than it would cost to actually implement these laws.

I'm guessing it's the same for companies as well.

[marchinggamer]

Usually companies don't pay the fine unless they know they did something wrong

[Grap]

EU can't do anything about steam Valve and any digital distribution cause they don't operate and had no presence in EU lands.

[iamgoatman]

You're kidding right?

[Festano]

great job ... great steam

[Psychotica]

Now that would be cool..

[cleft5]

This would be awesome. If this happens it completely changes the digital landscape and how we think about digital content altogether. I really hope this happens.

[Bathyj]

valve pouncing on the opportunity to lay the slippers into Microsoft

[OhMyGandhi]

for the longest time, I thought your avatar was you taking a picture of yourself, and then I rewatched Full Metal Jacket (it's been too damned long since I last saw it) and it all made sense.

What's hilarious is that Edgar from Men in Black, (my avatar) is the same person.

On Topic: Combine game sharing with Steam's badass prices and deals and you got a service most others cannot compete with.

[Bathyj]

sugar!

I've never seen sugar do that.

no. give me sugar.

[Bathyj]

so you thought I was that crazy looking? what is your major malfunction?

[OhMyGandhi]

haha you never know :)

"The only thing that pulls its weight around here is my goddamn truck! "

[B1663r]

Well now Sony has responded to x1 game borrowing showing their decidedly last gen and obsolete game borrowing solution, rather sarcastically.

Steam is now reacting to X1 game borrowing by adding their own game borrowing scheme.

Next up is Nintendo... What will Nintendo' game borrowing mimicry of the x1 look like?

[jmc8888]

Well considering Steam's version will probably be out before the Xbox One hits shelves...who did what first?

But more specifically, how is Steam copying Xbox One? Does the xbox one allow you to not check-in every 24 hours? Steam does.

[mushroomwig]

Could this affect the quality of the sales?

[Death]

Yes, but in two ways.

If I borrow a game and want to play with my friends online, I still need to buy a copy. If it is offline only, that could kill a sale if there are not limitations.

[iRocket]

This would be an "in your face" to Major Nelson, remember the Angry Joe interview? When Joe brought up Steam and it's sales Nelson countered it with "does Steam allow family sharing?". Well what do you have to say now? :D But this is still just a rumour, but would be awesome. I could borrow my friends some Indie games and other games I have already finished.

But yeah, Steam just keeps getting better and better. I just hope this doesn't affect Steam sales or game prices...

[B1663r]

Um... No... mimicry is the sincerest for of flattery...

This is also basically proof that the hive mind on n4g has it wrong. If the x1 was going to be the failure you have all declared, Steam would not be copying the x1 just days after this announcement.

[jmc8888]

No, you just need to look at the details to know that Steam just obliterated Microsoft's lame justification of needing to check-in every 24 hours as well as the whole notion that 'used game is bad...but apparently sharing it to 10 people is good'.

Microsoft wants CONTROL, and have lied to you about WHY they need it.

Steam just showed that you DON'T need to require universal 24 hour check-ins in order to share games (or simply use your console).

So no, the thinkers were right. Once again, because the people that weren't thinking, still aren't.

[Wikkid666]

It's great when Steam does it... but MS is evil for doing it.

[Convas]

Pretty much.

[wishingW3L]

because Steam is not always on.
on Steam you can play off-line for as long as you want.
Steam it's free.
Steam has great prices.
Steam has no DRM (unless the publisher wants to put it in their games).

Now they add this feature to become even better and not to save some face while having a gazillion of restrictions in the back.

[matgrowcott]

Steam IS DRM.

[Wikkid666]

If Steam does this it's requirements will be almost identical to X1. Sorry... they aren't in the business of giving free software.

[Death]

Steam is all digital. You can't burn an ISO to disc, it's tied to your account. You also can't sell the games, share them or trade them. That is what DRM is. The XboxOne will be similar, but you still have a physical copy you can trade in. You have to go to an authorized retailer though since they need to unlock the game from your account. The 24 hour check will most likely be used to lock the game out of your system so you can't play a game you don't have anymore.

[Imalwaysright]

Steam is a service and the xbone is a console. 2 completely different things that should never be compared.

[Somebody]

Yes, Steam is a DRM but I think wishingW3L meant that Steam doesn't impose any other DRMs unless publishers want to. Like what MS is doing with X Box One: putting a number of DRMs on top of one other (online activation, 24-hour check ups, Kinect-based security).

Valve has a nice thing going with Steam so if they add the borrow feature without adding any new stringent restrictions then it's OK. MS on the other hand gave everyone a very bad taste of things to come from the first announcement so no matter how awesome the borrow feature is, it'll be judged and drowned by the earlier negative and overwhelming perceptions.

[A-laughing-horse]

Um dude... SteAm is DRM

[I_LOVE_MYSELF]

Because Valve do it right. I'm no PC fanboy. Heck, I hardly play my PC, but Valve treat their consumers a heck of a lot better than Microsoft do.

You're comparing them on a very basic level there.

[wishingW3L]

the DRM controversy is changing everybody's ways for good except for MS's.

[marchinggamer]

Never going to happen

[B1663r]

Well, then get an x1 where this is REALITY.

#dealwithit

[WeAreLegion]

You realize the PS3 already does this, correct?

[Convas]

LOL @ all the "Good Job Steam! Show MS how's done." are incredibly ironic and I don't think the posters truly realize what it is they're saying.

[WeAreLegion]

Up to six people could download games from your PSN account when the PS3 launched. Now, it's down to two. Sony learned the hard way that having that many people download from one account is extremely costly.

I have a feeling Microsoft will learn this, too.

[Wikkid666]

No... it's not the same at all. 10 people have access to a game, but only 1 person can be playing at 1 time.

[WeAreLegion]

So? That's still one person buying a game and ten people downloading it from his or her account. Unless it's a game you absolutely have to play with your friend online, why waste money on it?

I imagine most people will find a group of ten friends and each of them will take turns purchasing single-player games. When the first friend beats it, the next plays through it...in a circle. It's pretty simple, really.

They aren't giving us all the details on this ten person thing.

[Wikkid666]

The details were given:

*Set up the 10 people in your "family"
*These people must be on your friends list
*They also must have been there for at least 30 days
*1 person can be playing at 1 time

Anyone one on your list of members will have access to your entire game library. This would be like your brother or sister grabbing your game while you are playing something else. Or you lend a game to close friend... MS is just limiting who you can do this with.

[mananimal]

its not MAY do it....they WILL do it, its an Industry thing, there are no competitors in the INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY...the Goal was & ALWAYS HAS BEEN about DRM as an Industry Standard.

[mydyingparadiselost]

Well look at that, just another reason not to but a One. So I can ( soon hopefully) digitally share games, can't wait til I can sell and trade then Steam will have something going on.

[Count]

Yep, can't wait for a feature that I've never used before and will surely never use.

[mydyingparadiselost]

I can't really say I have anyone to share digital stuff with but it's at least nice for those that do. How good or convenient is a digital product if it's less flexible and gives the purchaser less options of what can be done with it?

[DarthJay]

So it's cool now? Of course it is cool. It's awesome. It's hilarious that just how awesome it is has been glossed over completely... that is until someone other than Microsoft says "yeah, we're doing this!"

I can't wait for the Xbox One to launch so everyone can see how stuff works and stop freaking out. And good on Steam for adapting.

[jmc8888]

No, Steam just showed that Microsoft is full of it about needing their check-ins.

But I guess people will be just fine when their Xbox One doesn't work, because Microsoft was just full of it.

Imagine that, Steam, whose program is free, won't alienate their customers with needless bs.

Microsoft, who makes you pay $500 for a $60 videocard, is willing to make that purchase worthless if you can't or microsoft is unable to connect to your console every 24 hours.

Steam didn't adapt, it just blew Microsoft's entire DRM strategy out of the water, and proved to those that couldn't think, that it was completely unnecessary.

[DarthJay]

Welp, and just like that, the 24 hour check in is gone. So now what?

[jmc8888]

Steam: Hey Microsoft, this is how you allow people to share games without making everyone's console a brick if they don't check in.

#dealwithit