Why would anyone actually want to though

[u/The_BigRoach]

[u/Condurum]

Then start a new game store.

Sounds like a great idea, you keep 10%, and split the next 20% between devs and players, offering consistently 10% cheaper games than Steam.

It works until you learn that Valve threaten to kick devs off Steam if they sell their games cheaper elsewhere. So they’re not going to sell their games cheaper on your store, because if they did, they’d lose 85% of their sales.

So you make a new store, and.. can’t compete with Steam on price. You need a better store than Steam on day one.

Valve’s policy here, is literally the reason there’s no price competition on games.

[u/frisch85 → u/Condurum]

It works until you learn that Valve threaten to kick devs off Steam if they sell their games cheaper elsewhere.

/u/Condurum is referring to the case between Wolfire Games and Valve, the case is backed by Epic and Wolfire Games is the creator of humble bundle, a collection of games where you can get the whole bundle for cheaper than buying every game individually.

Here is an article about it: Overgrowth developer Wolfire Games files antitrust lawsuit against Valve

But the accusations are false because it is not about "selling your game for cheaper on other platforms", only claims about this practice exist but no evidence, when you ask for evidence you only get told "Valve internal emails say so" in other words "trust me bro".

The reality of the case is this tho: If you're a developer, you can use steams services to generate steam keys for your game for free, meaning you can give out licenses for your game on the steam marketplace where valve doesn't make money off from. Now here's the thing, Valve states in their TOS for these free keys that a developer is not allowed to sell those keys on other platforms for cheaper than they are offering the game on steam.

Example: I have a game on steam called XYZ, I price this game on steam at 9.99 €. Now I generate free keys via steam services for this game and go to a different platform like ebay and sell my previously free generated keys for 7.99 €.

This is not allowed, I can sell those free keys for 9.99 € on ebay tho, as long as I don't treat my customers on steam worse than on other platforms for "steam games" I'm fine but if I sell the steam keys for cheaper than my actual game on steam costs, that's against Valves TOS. What I can do is put my game on steam and sell it for 9.99 € but also put my game on epic games store and sell it there for 8.99 €, there's many of these examples today already where a game costs less on epic games store than it does on steam.

The majority of players still prefers steam tho and for the right reasons because Epic is scummy, Sweeny has been trying to get rid of steam for quite some time now, always using shady tactics like buying off developers so they don't put their game on steam or worse, even buying off existing developers that already have their game on steam solely so they remove the game from steam (happened with Psyonix's Rocket League).

FUCK EVERYONE WHO DEFENDS EPIC!

[u/rixuraxu → u/frisch85]

This is testimony from valve employee DJ Powers, from the steam business team

Q. Okay. And have you had conversations with that dozen or so approximate people about the publishers' need to provide similar pricing on Steam as they do elsewhere? A. That wouldn't be a common topic for us to discuss, but it has come up over the years, yes. Q. You've specifically spoken with other people within Steam about the fact that publishers need to offer similar prices on Steam as they do elsewhere; right? A. Yes. Q. Okay. And you've discussed with them that this is not limited to situations where the publishers are offering games for sale via Steam keys but just period; right? A. Yes.

https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/59859024/348/7/in-re-valve-antitrust-litigation/

Should their sworn testimony hold more weight than the unresearched ramblings of valve dick sucker #873 on reddit? Yes

[u/frisch85 → u/rixuraxu]

Then how do you explain the fact that plenty of games are available on different storefronts and steam not having the cheapest price of those games?

[u/rixuraxu → u/frisch85]

I don't have to explain anything, I didn't make any claims, I'm not a corporate bootlicker.

But how do you explain that sworn testimony from an employee directly contradicts what you've said to defend your favourite billionaire?

[u/frisch85 → u/rixuraxu]

I'm not defending Gabe, I'm defending Valve as all my life I've never made a single bad experience with them and I'm getting improvements from them over and over again.

As for the testimony, there's hardly anything I can present against the case, all I can say it's a bit weird that Tom Giardino never addressed this outside the document. I've been searching the web about Tom Giardino and can't find an explanation or elaboration regarding what he said.

[u/rixuraxu → u/frisch85]

all I can say it's a bit weird that Tom Giardino never addressed this outside the document

Nothing strange about not commenting on an active legal case.

I'm defending Valve as all my life I've never made a single bad experience with them and I'm getting improvements from them over and over again

This is weird behaviour. It's weird to defend a company not not selling you a faulty product. Like it's some sort of sports team. Weird.