Tim Sweeney vs Microsoft

[Shelldrake]

Interesting article on the possible implications of Microsoft's Universal Windows Platform for PC gamers.

https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/03/04/microsoft-is-moving-against-the-entire-pc-industry-says-epic-founder/

[DoctorQuest]

MORE LINUX!!!!

[Martok]

My decision to hold off on getting Win10 again pays off.  ::) 

[mirth]

Oh how I despise Microsoft.

[Huw the Poo]

Anyone who is surprised by this needs to take a good, long look at themselves.  Microsoft have been pulling this kind of shit for decades.  They are not your friend.

[Martok]

Yeah, this basically feels like their crappy "Games for Windows" program, Mark II. 

[FarAway Sooner]

"Blind faith in your operating system, or in any one, can get you killed."

--Bruce Springsteen, from the lead-in to his cover to "War" off the 1986 Bruce Springsteen Live album.

[steve58]

Tim Sweeney thinks Microsoft will make Steam "progressively worse" with Windows 10 patches

If his vision of Windows 10 down the road plays out, not good for those of us with Steam libraries  >:(

[acctingman]

This kinda of crap pisses me off.

If it ever happens that MS makes us have to either buy new machines, lose our Steam Library or change the way we game, at all. I'm done.

I'll stick to miniature war gaming and call it a life.

FU big software developers....FU in the azz

[Staggerwing]

I'll be really, really pissed off if Microsoft keeps me from playing all the games in my STEAM catalogue that I've never played anyway. 

[Nefaro]

I dunno.. sounds like it may be some hot air from the current PC game monopolist.

I mean, MS hasn't needed to mess with the Steam client to make it buggy.  Damn thing gets patched every few days as it is.  I've experienced bugs with it over the years, for sure.

[Boggit]

Glad I stayed with Win 7. 8)

[Swatter]

C'mon guys, read the fine print a bit.

The first part:

"There are two programming interfaces for Windows and every app has to choose one of them," he said. "Every Steam app – every PC game for the past few decades – has used Win32. It's been both responsible for the vibrant software market we have now, but also for malware. Any program can be a virus. Universal Windows Platform is seen as an antidote to that. It's sandboxed – much more locked down."

and

"The risk here is that, if Microsoft convinces everybody to use UWP, then they phase out Win32 apps."

I can't see any way that will happen as long as UWP games are only (easily) distributed through the Windows Store. There is no compelling reason to switch over to a more restrictive platform. The Windows Store would need to be a superior platform to Steam for this discussion to even lift off. Even if MS wanted to, they could not strong arm developers into abandoning Win32 in favor of making games for an inferior platform.

There is no realistic fall of dominos that would lead to most developers abandoning Win32 for a restrictive UWP. It just won't happen.

The second part:

"Slowly, over the next five years, they will force-patch Windows 10 to make Steam progressively worse and more broken. They'll never completely break it, but will continue to break it until, in five years, people are so fed up that Steam is buggy that the Windows Store seems like an ideal alternative. That's exactly what they did to their previous competitors in other areas. Now they're doing it to Steam. It's only just starting to become visible. Microsoft might not be competent enough to succeed with their plan, but they're certainly trying."

He is just pulling this from his arse. It's one thing to covet Valve and their business model, it's another thing entirely to say the MS is going to leverage Valve out of business by incrementally making Windows 10 a more hostile environment to run Steam on.

With Microsoft and Windows 10, any conspiracy theory will fly these days. The only danger I see to Steam in the coming years will be a competitor making a superior product, essentially doing Steam better than Steam does. If that happens, then Steam will fall. If Microsoft is that competitor, they will have won based on creating a superior product, not on shady patching tactics. Its sounds more silly each time I hear it.

[Nefaro]

He is just pulling this from his arse.

Was my impression regarding the Valve guy's complaining. 

Sounded like the current top dog near-monopolist just trying to stir up the peasants with pitchforks against MS.


While I have criticisms against MS, this hasn't proven to be a valid one.  These guys have been crying about this specific, "DOOM!!" for years, and nothing has come of it.  In fact Games For Windows Live, or whatever that Microsoft DRM abortion was called, was nixed awhile back.  These guys were crying the same stuff about that long ago.  ;D