If this is true, Valve should be sued
Dear gamers and game developers, I would like to explain why Wolfire Games is seeking to represent game developers in a class action suit against Valve Corporation. I felt that I had no choice, because I believe gamers and game developers are being harmed by Valve's conduct. While I am ...
blog.wolfire.com
"Why you should believe us."
And why the reason is bollocks:
1. if they are selling Steam keys at their own store they could just make a semi-permanent 30% sale while the base price is the same as on Steam. they could even do a 2-day 30% sale on Steam to circumvent the "you shall offer the same/equivalent sale on Steam as on other stores".
2. if it was more than 30% why are they fleecing steam buyers?
3. All his arguments about competition with other stores are bollocks, because the stores already can do everything he said that they can't do.
:thinking:
Other than this weird precision, I agree with both Lars and Chet about soft power:
- there is what is written,
- there is the rumour which spreads from devs to devs.
Some clauses do not need to be written (or even true for that matter), they will be enforced by the weak ones themselves if there is a large power asymmetry.
Now, the question is whether there is some truth to "what I heard my older brother talk about". Or has there ever been some truth to it, like 10 years ago?
Have these people deceived themselves?
As others have pointed out, there is at best no evidence of this being documented, but if you look at literally any 3 random games on Steam you will normally find that their cheapest price was never on Steam and likely never will be. Someone said Wolfire also referenced bundled games being required to see price parity on Steam which I don't think has ever happened in the history of Steam, unless a bundled game was free at some point. Edit: 100% of Humble Monthly games would fail this check if they actually had this rule or enforced it
This really sounds like Wolfire is either making this up, or specifically said to Steam they are going to do something exactly against the (frankly, generous) Steam dev contract, and Steam said "hey don't do that or we have to take your game down" and now Wolfire is suing but under false pretenses publicly.
I believe the most common interpretation of Steam pricing rules is the MSRB / base price can't be different for
Steam keys sold outside of Steam but
even then there are no shortage of exceptions. Sale prices being matched on Steam is laughable as an argument as it's difficult to find games that go on sale regularly that
haven't been cheaper off Steam. Pre-orders on Steam are typically 10% off for however many months whereas on GMG, Humble, or any number of other sites they can see upwards of 30-40% off, again for months. That alone disproves the public claim Wolfire is making.
Steam also limits how often your game can be on sale on Steam, but no such limitations seem to exist on other storefronts. I missed a Steam sale on Manifold Garden while the key was also on sale on itch.io, but like 2 weeks later it was on sale on itch again for the same discount.
Like, there are legitimate complaints to level at Steam and it is incredibly frustrating to constantly see publishers and devs level compaints and suits against Steam for things that are utterly untrue.
