Origin Expands Games Catalog, DRM-Free Evangelist Joins DRM Scheme

[qubit]

Origin is the fledgling online download account-based DRM service from Electronic Arts launched last June, that is home to Battlefield 3. To compete effectively against other similar services, the industry-leading Steam in particular, it must offer more content. To this end, Origin has added 11 publishers to its portfolio, reports CVG. These are Trion Worlds, Robot Entertainment, Freebird Games, Recoil Games, Autumn Games, 1C Company, inXile entertainment, Paradox Interactive, Core Learning Ltd, N3V Games and CD Projekt RED. That last one is interesting, because CD Projekt RED owns and runs www.gog.com, the website dedicated to selling DRM-free games.



Now the vast majority of those games are pretty old, in the order of 5-15 years, but their own title, The Witcher 2 is current and also comes without DRM from gog.com hence, the obvious question is why are they signing up with a DRM service? Will they end up putting all their current games behind the DRM curtain? This is a possibility, because their recent attempts at extracting payment from alleged pirates backfired spectacularly. Note that at the time of writing, searching for The Witcher 2 on Origin returns no results.

Now, from today, Trion's MMORPG Rift is available on Origin, with more titles from these publishers to follow in the coming months. Commenting on Origin's expansion, vice president of business development Craig Rechenmacher said: "Origin is focused on providing choice to consumers and the games they play. From blockbuster franchises to high-quality independent titles, we're bringing the industry's best content to one place. We're excited to welcome new partners and a diverse new line-up of titles to Origin today."

So, will Origin turn out to be a Steam killer? This can only happen if games are not exclusively tied to the one distribution platform, since that will make them complement each other and they can peacefully operate as a duopoly, which is bad for the customer looking to get games at good prices. One can see how neither the distribution platform operators, nor the games publishers have any interest in being made available on more than one platform. The best that can happen is that the distribution platforms compete with each other to attract the publishers by undercutting each other's commissions, thus allowing them to make more profit, which isn't something that the end customer cares about.

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[erocker]

Origin is definitely not going to be a Steam killer, however there is definitely room for both to exist. As far as gog.com goes, they need to make money to.

 

[INSTG8R]

I am only worried about one publisher and that is 1C. They are the publishers of IL-2 and the latest Cliffs of Dover. They seemed to have finally gotten out of Ubi's clutches but out of the frying pan into the fire?

 

[FordGT90Concept]

My guess is CD Projekt is supporting Origin so EA wouldn't pull their support for GOG.

Steam has established itself and EA is using the same methods to establish itself (sell games that require the proprietary store).


I really haven't investigated Origin to figure out how dirty their DRM methods are (I heard about scanning the computer but that's not DRM). I really should...

 

[Roph]

Any publisher that will try and force me to use origin will be guaranteed no sales from me.

 

[qubit]

Any publisher that will try and force me to use origin will be guaranteed no sales from me.

I've noticed a lot of people say stuff like this. However, having never used Origin, I don't understand what's so bad about it. From what I can see, it's just another client, like Steam.

 

[Maelstrom]

What about the Witcher/Witcher 2 that are on Steam? Wouldn't they have some form of DRM (Steam)? If so, what's the big deal that they're now on Origin?

 

[NC37]

I've noticed a lot of people say stuff like this. However, having never used Origin, I don't understand what's so bad about it. From what I can see, it's just another client, like Steam.

It is just another client like Steam. But the level of development is maybe 2-3 years behind Steam.

Most of the hatred for Origin stems on EA's poor tactics against Valve.

EA was with Steam for a long time before suddenly they made the argument about Steam's EULA. They were fine with it and then suddenly they made a huge scene after Crysis 2 launches. Then suddenly back out support. Next thing you saw them scrambling to promote Origin which wasn't even ready for launch.

I can guarantee you that if EA did not make such a mess, Origin would be much better accepted. Origin used to have policies about games being deleted if you didn't use them within 2 years. Service was a complete abomination. But they've changed it since and tried to address complaints. I will admit their support was very responsive and helpful. But the mess with Valve left such a sour taste, I don't blame people for refusing to buy stuff that requires Origin.

EA shot themselves in the foot by the squabble with Valve. I cannot see Origin ever being a major success. If they really wanted to, they'd make peace with Valve already. Get games back on Steam. Even if they require Origin activation, so what. Show consumers that you have a competing product, don't throw a fit and force it on them.

Yeah Valve requires Steam with their games, but you can run them in offline mode. I used to be a big critic of Steam. But then as time went on and the service improved, I love it. Will this happen with Origin? Maybe. But EA has a major uphill battle and right now, they are not proving their service to be better or worth it over Steam.

 

[akashkoppa]

i think this is journalism at its nadir. Witcher 2 has always been on steam which by the way is a DRM service if you have not noticed. Witcher 2 is on retail over-the-counter boxes which had a DRM (and got removed, you obviously had not noticed it). To vilify the publisher just because he signed up with Origin is idiotic and silly ( why didnt you write this when they signed up with steam?).
For your information CD Projekt has suspended its so called "witch hunt" for pirates and have released a open letter to the community. To ostracize a company for looking at different avenues for making money is downright wrong.

 

[ice_v]

It is just another client like Steam. But the level of development is maybe 2-3 years behind Steam.

Most of the hatred for Origin stems on EA's poor tactics against Valve.

EA was with Steam for a long time before suddenly they made the argument about Steam's EULA. They were fine with it and then suddenly they made a huge scene after Crysis 2 launches. Then suddenly back out support. Next thing you saw them scrambling to promote Origin which wasn't even ready for launch.

I can guarantee you that if EA did not make such a mess, Origin would be much better accepted. Origin used to have policies about games being deleted if you didn't use them within 2 years. Service was a complete abomination. But they've changed it since and tried to address complaints. I will admit their support was very responsive and helpful. But the mess with Valve left such a sour taste, I don't blame people for refusing to buy stuff that requires Origin.

EA shot themselves in the foot by the squabble with Valve. I cannot see Origin ever being a major success. If they really wanted to, they'd make peace with Valve already. Get games back on Steam. Even if they require Origin activation, so what. Show consumers that you have a competing product, don't throw a fit and force it on them.

Yeah Valve requires Steam with their games, but you can run them in offline mode. I used to be a big critic of Steam. But then as time went on and the service improved, I love it. Will this happen with Origin? Maybe. But EA has a major uphill battle and right now, they are not proving their service to be better or worth it over Steam.

agree on everything u wrote but the part in bold...I don't think so :shadedshu

 

[DannibusX]

agree on everything u wrote but the part in bold...I don't think so :shadedshu

Yes, you can run any game in offline mode that doesn't require an internet connection.

 

[qubit]

It is just another client like Steam. But the level of development is maybe 2-3 years behind Steam.

Most of the hatred for Origin stems on EA's poor tactics against Valve.

EA was with Steam for a long time before suddenly they made the argument about Steam's EULA. They were fine with it and then suddenly they made a huge scene after Crysis 2 launches. Then suddenly back out support. Next thing you saw them scrambling to promote Origin which wasn't even ready for launch.

I can guarantee you that if EA did not make such a mess, Origin would be much better accepted. Origin used to have policies about games being deleted if you didn't use them within 2 years. Service was a complete abomination. But they've changed it since and tried to address complaints. I will admit their support was very responsive and helpful. But the mess with Valve left such a sour taste, I don't blame people for refusing to buy stuff that requires Origin.

EA shot themselves in the foot by the squabble with Valve. I cannot see Origin ever being a major success. If they really wanted to, they'd make peace with Valve already. Get games back on Steam. Even if they require Origin activation, so what. Show consumers that you have a competing product, don't throw a fit and force it on them.

Yeah Valve requires Steam with their games, but you can run them in offline mode. I used to be a big critic of Steam. But then as time went on and the service improved, I love it. Will this happen with Origin? Maybe. But EA has a major uphill battle and right now, they are not proving their service to be better or worth it over Steam.

Thanks, that was very useful. Of course, if Origin and Steam don't carry the same games, then who's better becomes moot, as you have to accept that platform if you want to run the game.

Yes, I have to agree those tactics weren't endearing at all. I wonder: Crysis 2 was briefly available on Steam and I had it, before I returned it over the undisclosed DRM. So, as it's no longer there, I wonder if those Steam users are left without the patches that came out later? That would suck so hard. :shadedshu Anyone here have experience of playing Crysis 2 on Steam?

agree on everything u wrote but the part in bold...I don't think so :shadedshu

You're obviously not a Steam user, or you'd know that you can. The option is right there in the menu. Just check out their FAQ's or install Steam and register an account and you'll see.

 

[amd/atifiend]

I haven't really formed an opinion of origin yet. I haven't really looked into origin.....i have bf3 but to enjoy the game requires an internet connection anyway.

I will give them a fair shake before passing judgement...if it is like steam then I will not have any issue with it.

Personally i like steam......in exchange for being a steam customer, i can access all my games from any pc just by going through a few steps.

In addition i think steam has added the ability to keep up with my save games.....if it doesn't have this ability i think they should add it bc keeping up with savegames can be a pain if like me you don't backup often enough and lose some progress due to hardware changes and failures.

Also if you wait a little bit steam will offer discounts(sometimes deep discounts during events/holidays) on games that I actually like to play. It is so great not having to keep up with CD's anymore.

For me steam is so hassle-free that i don't mind actually buying the games through steam. On top of that I can put steam into an "offline" mode so I don't feel like I need to be tied to the internet to play their titles.

For me personally STEAM has done more to stop piracy than any DRM will ever do.

I will admit I was against steam when it was first introduced but Valve has seriously polished it up since then.

Back on the subject concerning Origin; I will reserve judgement until I get some more titles that use it but I will however take whatever EA pumps out with a grain of salt. In the back of my mind thinking EA may employ a Wal-Mart strategy of being competitive and easy to use until they get a good hold of the market then bringing to light more restrictive agenda's whereas valve seems to have proved itself by not taking what they have and not running wild with it.

time will tell.

 

[ice_v]

agree on everything u wrote but the part in bold...I don't think so :shadedshu

my bad...I am a recent steam user, didn't notice there's actually an online/offline switch . Sorry

 

[NC37]

Yes, I have to agree those tactics weren't endearing at all. I wonder: Crysis 2 was briefly available on Steam and I had it, before I returned it over the undisclosed DRM. So, as it's no longer there, I wonder if those Steam users are left without the patches that came out later? That would suck so hard. :shadedshu Anyone here have experience of playing Crysis 2 on Steam?

EA enabled the CD keys from Steam versions to work on Origin. Literally you could play the games on either program. I tried it out on Bad Company 2 and sure enough, the code works on either. But I saw no point in using Origin for it since it still works fine via Steam.

But with Crysis 2, last I heard EA pretty much forced the Steam users to load their keys into Origin or it wouldn't work.

Think an apology by EA for the mess would go a long way in mending a lot of bad feelings. But they'd never admit that. By the time they get the thumb out of their butts and return titles to Steam, the prices will be so low that Steam holdouts will rejoice and taunt EA about the fact that they would have bought a year ago for full price had they not fought with Valve.

 

[qubit]

my bad...I am a recent steam user, didn't notice there's actually an online/offline switch . Sorry

No sweat, you're only human. It's surprising how much flexibility Steam gives you within its walled garden.

 

[NC37]

For me personally STEAM has done more to stop piracy than any DRM will ever do.

Very much so

But I would like the ability to trade keys back in on games I don't use anymore. Valve talked about looking into the option months back. But to do that they'd have to get approval of all the publishers and I doubt that would be an easy task. Nor that simple to implement.

New keys issued or just resell the used key? It isn't like a used game at Gamestop where it has scratches and missing a case. Digital would mean the same new game. So then the key would need to be de-authorized on one account and then authorized on another. Pirates would likely find a way to exploit this which would lead to more potential problems.

In the end I think Valve would much sooner add a subscription rental service than do that.

 

[DannibusX]

No sweat, you're only human. It's surprising how much flexibility Steam gives you within its walled garden.

Dude, it's not a walled garden.

 

[qubit]

Very much so

But I would like the ability to trade keys back in on games I don't use anymore. Valve talked about looking into the option months back. But to do that they'd have to get approval of all the publishers and I doubt that would be an easy task. Nor that simple to implement.

New keys issued or just resell the used key? It isn't like a used game at Gamestop where it has scratches and missing a case. Digital would mean the same new game. So then the key would need to be de-authorized on one account and then authorized on another. Pirates would likely find a way to exploit this which would lead to more potential problems.

In the end I think Valve would much sooner add a subscription rental service than do that.

The system to transfer games from one account to another is already in place and works just fine. An example of it can be seen with the gifting/trading system they have in place. It's not enabled for general transfers because it's in Steam's interest and the publisher's interest to charge for a new game instead of a used one. Think about all that bitching about the second hand gaming market that the games publishers do. With Steam's DRM, they efficiently deny you your first sale rights. B*astards.

Dude, it's not a walled garden.

Yes it is. You're locked in with DRM.

 

[DannibusX]

I got a couple of points.

As awesome as it would be to be able to sell/gift games that I've played it won't happen for one reason alone. The amount of hacking/account looting that is bound to happen if an option like it ever exists.

Next. First sale rights do not exist in the software world, as determined by the licensing of said software. It's a stupid loophole. I personally believe that first sale rights should apply, but it hasn't been overly decided by the courts yet.

 

[Gzero]

I got a couple of points.

As awesome as it would be to be able to sell/gift games that I've played it won't happen for one reason alone. The amount of hacking/account looting that is bound to happen if an option like it ever exists.

Wake up, that isn't the reason at all. Otherwise they would have not introduced Steam Wallet, Steam trading and Steam Gifting.

It's simply the publishers do not want you swapping/selling keys on hence why you do not get a spare key if you buy an extra of a game you already own without choosing the gift option.

Weird thing is the CEO of Paradox bashed DRM in an interview with GS, but then has signed up with Origin...

 

[jpierce55]

I see nothing wrong with Origin esp. compared to EA's last DRM that required you to register online. Origin is basically the same as Impulse, it is less developed than Steam. I have received some emails that Origin is going to be greatly improved. EA has some incredible sales around Christmas, so Origin could have some value. I now have 2 Origins games and it has caused me no problems.

I don't believe it can kill Steam, and I doubt that is even the intent. Look, you have Origins, Steam, and Impulse. You also have Amazon downloads (some are not steam/origin/impulse) and who know what other little start ups other places have. There is a big market. The market is expanding for more reasons than simple DRM issues. Stores don't like to carry PC games. How many do you know that have a good selection? People are getting lazier and want to buy everything online. Game makers know people want to buy their games that are not necessarily easily found, so combine those 2 items and add in their personal benefit of a more effective DRM and there you go.

FWIW, Origins is much better than SecureRom!!!!!!

 

[Gzero]

I see nothing wrong with Origin esp. compared to EA's last DRM that required you to register online. Origin is basically the same as Impulse, it is less developed than Steam. I have received some emails that Origin is going to be greatly improved. EA has some incredible sales around Christmas, so Origin could have some value. I now have 2 Origins games and it has caused me no problems.

I don't believe it can kill Steam, and I doubt that is even the intent. Look, you have Origins, Steam, and Impulse. You also have Amazon downloads (some are not steam/origin/impulse) and who know what other little start ups other places have. There is a big market. The market is expanding for more reasons than simple DRM issues. Stores don't like to carry PC games. How many do you know that have a good selection? People are getting lazier and want to buy everything online. Game makers know people want to buy their games that are not necessarily easily found, so combine those 2 items and add in their personal benefit of a more effective DRM and there you go.

FWIW, Origins is much better than SecureRom!!!!!!

Aye sure, enjoy it when you can't log in, I'll take Securerom (older version before all the date checking and internet activations) disc check over internet check.

 

[jpierce55]

Aye sure, enjoy it when you can't log in, I'll take Securerom (older version before all the date checking and internet activations) disc check over internet check.

Not me, SecureRom caused to many games to crash, have choppy FPS, and just plain misery playing.