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Most DRM is 'just dumb’ says Valve head
Gabe Newell reveals his dislike of ‘broken’ DRM systems that he says decrease the value of a product
In many ways, it was Valve who started the whole online copy-protection fad when it introduced Steam a few years ago. The difference is that Steam added new social networking features, as well as the ability to play your games from anywhere, rather than simply limiting the number of installations and installing irremovable services. As such, Valve’s co-founder and managing director, Gabe Newell, has revealed that he isn’t afraid to hit out at the more restrictive DRM systems.
Newell wrote an interesting email to a fan, who had felt a bit miffed after seeing EA’s logo on the Left 4 Dead box, and wanted to make sure that EA wasn’t getting any revenue from copies sold on Steam, particularly after EA's use of restrictive DRM systems. The fan, Paul, who uses the handle ih8evilstuff, put his full email on his LiveJournal, as well as Newell’s response.
Newell clarified that ‘Steam revenue for our games is not shared with third parties,’ but interestingly also shared his opinions on other DRM systems. ‘Most DRM strategies are just dumb,’ said Newell, adding that ‘the goal should be to create greater value for customers through service value (make it easy for me to play my games whenever and wherever I want to), not by decreasing the value of a product (maybe I'll be able to play my game and maybe I won't).’
Newell also says that Valve ‘really discourage other developers and publishes [sic] from using the broken DRM offerings.’ Although he makes no mention of SecuROM, it’s clear that Newell is criticising that kind of DRM system. Has Valve got its copy-protection system right with Steam, or is it hypocritical of Gabe Newell to lay into other DRM systems? Let us know your thoughts.
Via Kotaku
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A bit harsh your comment - some of us have work to go to and lives to lead, and can't spend all day every day playing games - 30 hours is 6 weeks playing time for me! I stand by my original comment - a demo sells a game so if you can't play it, you can't decide if the game is right for you. I for one will leave Left 4 Dead for dead.
Comment by chrishall12 at 12:22pm 11th December 2008
A bit harsh your comment - some of us have work to go to and lives to lead, and can't spend all day every day playing games - 30 hours is 6 weeks playing time for me! I stand by my original comment - a demo sells a game so if you can't play it, you can't decide if the game is right for you. I for one will leave Left 4 Dead for dead.
Comment by chrishall12 at 12:22pm 11th December 2008
Sell games at realistic prices. For example, no more than £20 -£25. Rather than the £40 to £45 I have seen on mostly console games and many PC games. Scrap DRM that assumes that we ALL pirate games and loose the patronising attitude that assumes we are all naughty little children that should only be allowed to install a game on a certain number of PCs. If I own a desktop at home and a laptop I take to work I expect to but ONE copy of said game to use on both! If I upgrade the PC or change the laptop, am I expected to buy another copy? What if the hard drive dies a pathetic and humiliating death? Then I would be stuffed. Instead, if you, a gaming house, feel the need to protect your game from piracy then at least use a method of protection that doesn't secretly install rootkits and similar onto a PC without our knowledge. You will be found out in the end and it only looks bad against the company that does it.....(naming no names - apart from a large company that makes TVs, Laptops - that sometimes explode etc.) Just stick to simple methods, like codes that you type in etc. I hate it but I can live with typing in a code when I first install a game. Which then could be blocked from using online gameplay etc. if it is found to be a less than legal copy. Lastly, once the game is installed on my pc, the installed can't work on another unless I install it using the original disk so why do I need the disk in the drive whilst I am playing the game?!?! I want to install the game once and forget it. Then delete it if it is rubbish or keep it and swap myself with expansion packs or sequals if its super dupa!
Comment by DEEPBLUE69UK at 12:30pm 7th December 2008
Sell games at realistic prices. For example, no more than £20 -£25. Rather than the £40 to £45 I have seen on mostly console games and many PC games. Scrap DRM that assumes that we ALL pirate games and loose the patronising attitude that assumes we are all naughty little children that should only be allowed to install a game on a certain number of PCs. If I own a desktop at home and a laptop I take to work I expect to but ONE copy of said game to use on both! If I upgrade the PC or change the laptop, am I expected to buy another copy? What if the hard drive dies a pathetic and humiliating death? Then I would be stuffed. Instead, if you, a gaming house, feel the need to protect your game from piracy then at least use a method of protection that doesn't secretly install rootkits and similar onto a PC without our knowledge. You will be found out in the end and it only looks bad against the company that does it.....(naming no names - apart from a large company that makes TVs, Laptops - that sometimes explode etc.) Just stick to simple methods, like codes that you type in etc. I hate it but I can live with typing in a code when I first install a game. Which then could be blocked from using online gameplay etc. if it is found to be a less than legal copy. Lastly, once the game is installed on my pc, the installed can't work on another unless I install it using the original disk so why do I need the disk in the drive whilst I am playing the game?!?! I want to install the game once and forget it. Then delete it if it is rubbish or keep it and swap myself with expansion packs or sequals if its super dupa!
Comment by DEEPBLUE69UK at 12:30pm 7th December 2008
...Mr. Newell says the right thing. I like steam - when I first had to use it to simply play HL2 I was really irritated but now Valve have patched it a bit and got some real stability in, it's one of the most frequently run programes I have. Steam is a form of DRM but its a form that I like and can live with happily.
Comment by Godkyra at 3:40pm 6th December 2008
Re: Demo >> A step in the wrong direction STEAM !!! >:-<
Comment by draak at 10:03am 6th December 2008
What's "dumb" is stopping gamers from playing the Left 4 Dead demo now the game is published. My son took so long to download it, he couldn't play it by the time he had. Comment by chrishall12 That's his fault then, I had more than enough time to download it and play. i got 30 hours out of the demo. The demo wouldnt be a good idea now, you'ld just end-up with demo players being dropped part way through level 2, even then I doubt it would be compatiable. Just buy the game, play it how it was meant to be played, the demo was a tad easy.
Comment by Dambuster at 3:30pm 5th December 2008
Before Steam, every single game I bought, I had to crack because: 1. I play games on my laptop as well as my desktop 2. Having to have a disk in the DVD ROM is total pain if you have 5 games on the go like me. 3. Everytime an update was released, I had to repeat the whole crack procedure :-( Now I only buy games on Steam, because I don't have to do the above + I can backup all my games + I don't have to worry about updates, Steam does it all. I just hope that they will continue doing this great work.
Comment by draak at 7:22pm 4th December 2008
What's "dumb" is stopping gamers from playing the Left 4 Dead demo now the game is published. My son took so long to download it, he couldn't play it by the time he had.
Comment by chrishall12 at 12:03pm 4th December 2008
"Steam revenue for our games is not shared with third parties," He's saying VALVE's games, like Left for Dead, won't generate any income for anyone else but Valve when sold on Steam. A lot of people criticize Steam, but I love it. I constantly get patches without having to search them out and install them. I don't have to worry about losing, loading, storing, or damaging physical media. Plus, installs could not be any easier with Steam. If the price premium for Steam games, versus other sources, wasn't a concern I would use Steam exclusively to get games. I only wish I could register in Steam using the serial of the games that I purchased outside of Steam but are still offered on Steam, like COD4, so I could have the same convenience of using Steam. A program by EA that had the same (attempted) function as Steam could easily be a glitchy nightmare, but Steam under Valve has been a joy. Plus, the friends app makes it super easy to follow friends around in games. For the most part and most people, Steam has been DRM done right.
Comment by feraltoad at 5:33am 4th December 2008
the way i read it, he is not attacking DRM as a concept, but the oppressive methods some companies use it with. we saw with world of Goo that the average gamer is a lot less honest than we all like to think, so DRM in some form or another is needed, but limiting installs and spying on your customer is way out of line. steam does it right, buy the game, play it on any computer you want at any time. i know some people that say they will only pirate a game if they can't buy it legally on steam (with the exception of anything that uses SecuROM, they will pirate that long before they would buy it). besides a bit of bugginess, i think steam is the greatest thing to happen to the PC gaming world for a long time.
Comment by yougotkicked at 10:10pm 3rd December 2008
@ F_A_F oh yeah, don't get me wrong, I appreciate that. I guess what I really should have said was "It's a shame he can't talk the 3rd party publishers who use steam round to his way of thinking". Trust me to not think before I type!
Comment by cyberspice1 at 7:35pm 3rd December 2008
It clearly states in steam before you buy the game: "3rd-party DRM: SecuROM™ " So it will be in there...
Comment by UberTiger at 6:25pm 3rd December 2008
It's very rare that I buy a game not through Steam. The only issue I have with Steam is not allowing you to sell/trade/give away your games to other Steam users. I understand they get another sale if the user buys the game themselves, but if they could set up a section for Steam users to do this, then it would be just about perfect. =]
Comment by spotta at 6:01pm 3rd December 2008
@ Cyberspice: Valve have come in for criticism before about 3rd party publishers on Steam, for example the pricing debacle on COD4....costing $80 on Steam and only £25 ($50) in most stores. Basically Steam is seen by Valve as a content delivery system, they hold no sway on the content that the publishers provide.
Comment by F_A_F at 5:47pm 3rd December 2008
It does my head in that companies like EA are allowed to continue realising games that either don’t work or need a patch a week after we get them. EA use to be about quality games now it is about quality incomes for the executives – shame on you EA!!!
Comment by zz_zulu at 5:34pm 3rd December 2008
I agree to be honest. Steam is a form of DRM, but it does add value and overall makes for a better gaming experience. Just a shame he allows games other companies release on steam to use the "broken DRM system" he hates so much
Comment by cyberspice1 at 5:02pm 3rd December 2008
The more games that use steam and don't put copy protection in the better. I'm just downloading GTA4 on steam now, waiting to see if its true that SecuROM is in the steam version, which I'm sure it won't be, it can't be...........I hope, :p. I would buy more games through steam, if they weren't so expensive, as they work in dollars, it always seems to come out more expensive, if they could catar better for the UK market, then that would make them almost perfect.
Comment by Cerberus_xiii at 4:40pm 3rd December 2008
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