Steam Is Running A Deeply-Discounted Christmas Game Sale

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Steam Is Running A Deeply-Discounted Christmas Game Sale

Now through 4 January is the "Steam Winter Sale" with discounts on thousands of games...

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Steam-2015-Christmas-Sale

[reavertm]

I'm boycotting. After no response to my DRM-related service ticket (certain Windows game doesn't start with "Error code 15, problem contacting steam servers", I can blame myself for not checking this immediately after I bought it) for over three weeks, I'm done with Steam. Once refund expiration period is over, they are apparently not obliged to provide any service or deliver their part od the deal whatsoever.

[zuxun]

reavertm steam probably gave your money to the GAME PUBLISHER. So after some time steam cannot refund you. The stupid thing is that these GAME COMPANIES are living in the middle ages. It's 2016 and i cannot get my money back for a broken game? I should even be able to return a game because i didn't like it. Has anyone noticed that 90% of the games are total crap? Outside steam these games aren't even visible to the buyer.

I own hundreds of games on steam so i have noticed. I play on windows

[F1esDgSdUTYpm0iy]

Well, already seen one sale that is worth it, or would have been had I been confident the title in question runs smoothly in WINE, as in, performing well as opposed to merely just running at all. Which I doubt. Skyrim, Legendary Edition for less than €8. Now, there's a fairly good deal.

@zuxun: I agree, most titles are junk. Then again, they're easy to spot, usually. Primarily, I'd avoid Early Access like the plague. Avoid anything under a few hundred Mb in size, typically anyhow. Be very careful about F2P titles. But most importantly: Avoid titles with only a few (and mostly, if not exclusively positive) reviews. Reviews tell a lot about a game; particularly the negative reviews can tell you a great deal. And, I agree, it's a shame that you can't always get a refund. Best you can do there -- Spread the word, make the company in question look bad. Loss of income is the best way to punish a company. In fact, it's basically the only way.

[humbug]

Yes half the titles on Steam are crap and almost nobody buys them. They are just there because they are allowed to be there.
I prefer it this way because I don't want Valve deciding what is or is not worthy. I would rather have a large selection and use my judgemnent / research on what to buy. The steam user reviews are also a good tool..

I'm boycotting. After no response to my DRM-related service ticket (certain Windows game doesn't start with "Error code 15, problem contacting steam servers", I can blame myself for not checking this immediately after I bought it) for over three weeks, I'm done with Steam. Once refund expiration period is over, they are apparently not obliged to provide any service or deliver their part od the deal whatsoever.

That sucks. What was the game? I haven't had a problem playing my library in offline mode.

[magika]

All hail Gabe!

[AnonymousCoward]

I'm boycotting. After no response to my DRM-related service ticket (certain Windows game doesn't start with "Error code 15, problem contacting steam servers", I can blame myself for not checking this immediately after I bought it) for over three weeks, I'm done with Steam. Once refund expiration period is over, they are apparently not obliged to provide any service or deliver their part od the deal whatsoever.

From steam refund page:

There are more details below, but even if you fall outside of the refund rules we’ve described, you can ask for a refund anyway and we’ll take a look.

Did you tried refund?

Early access games are ok. But buy them only after you ask yourself this: I am ok with this game as it is even if there no further updates or never finished?

[Ray Ingles]

I already had Monstrum, but I picked up Sublevel Zero in the sale. Two games that work fine in Linux and are interesting and enjoyable in their own right.

[reavertm]

From steam refund page:
Did you tried refund?

I did try refund but those are handled automatically - in my case dismissed - I wasn't eligible for refund due to refund expiration period (14days, should have tried the game then and request refund immediately not month later).
The gripe is not with that. The problem is lack of reponse to my service ticket I filled there. Perhaps once staff is involved, they might offer refund but they don't seem to care about service tickets.

That sucks. What was the game? I haven't had a problem playing my library in offline mode.

It is Hitman Absolution.
Most games indeed don't have any DRM and thus can be run offline. This one apparently does have some kind of DRM that fails here. Or it's not DRM problem but Steam game launcher bug. Whatever the case, ticket submitted month ago, yet no response from Steam staff.

All in all, Steam purchase seem to be just borrowing, not owning, there's no guarantee Steam games will run forever. Some might, those DRM-guarded might just fail. Fiasco would be similar to GameSpy, with Steam though it would be way more fatal. To me it's rather risky to buy games there.

[pal666]

I'm boycotting. After no response to my DRM-related service ticket (certain Windows game doesn't start with "Error code 15, problem contacting steam servers", I can blame myself for not checking this immediately after I bought it) for over three weeks, I'm done with Steam. Once refund expiration period is over, they are apparently not obliged to provide any service or deliver their part od the deal whatsoever.

what part of the deal they do not deliver? they didn't promise the game will work for you, you are free to contact publisher's support. they did promise that they will refund you within 2 calendar weeks/2 gameplay hours. you failed your part of the deal