So, Microsoft is trying something new.
Will it work? I'm guessing probably not. It's obviously a shot across
the bow at Steam, trying to dislodge Valve's near-monopoly on PC
gaming. But it again makes the mistake of thinking that the reason for Steam's success is because it's just a great way to LAUNCH your games,
when Steam offers so much more. And not having to (manually) launch a
second client for those few non-steam games is probably not enough
reason to give up the advantages of using Steam. So I don't see this
attempt having much more success than Epic Game Store, GOG galaxy or
other third-party clients like Playnite.
So, Microsoft is trying something new.
Well, not really new. They're updating their "XBox" app (for Windows
and mobile) so it will have an 'aggregated gaming library' that
includes games from multiple platforms, including Steam, Epic Games, >Battle.Net, and their own XBox and GamePass services.* The goal is to
create a single destination from which you launch all your games; a >destination which just happens to be associated with Microsoft's own
store and services, giving them easier access to your pocketbook and
data.
On Tue, 24 Jun 2025 17:20:37 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:
So, Microsoft is trying something new.
Speaking of game launchers
(and not wanting to start a new thread for these news tidbits)
For those of you on Steam Deck (I think we have a few people here who
have the device), the "Heroic Game Launcher" gives you access to your
GOG, Epic and Amazon libraries on the device. How well it works I've
no idea; is it just a launcher or does it apply necessary shims to
install and play the games? It's not only for SteamDeck, so if you
want to try it on PC that works too. So Microsoft's got some
competition. Which do you trust less; some weird open source program
you can download off the Internet, or Microsoft's app? ;-) https://heroicgameslauncher.com/
Meanwhile, Epic got smacked hard for how shitty they made their own
launcher. Well, not so much the launching games part of it, but the
ways they used dark patterns to get people to make unintended
purchases (and for locking accounts of people who disputed the
charges). They're paying a $245 million USD fine to reimburse
customers (you've got until early July to submit a claim if you think
you're one of the victims they've fleeced!). Of course, most of these
crimes go unreported, so I'm sure the amount Epic is paying out is far
less than how much they took in. Something's got to pay for all those freebies we get! https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2025/06/ftc-sends-126-million-refunds-fortnite-players-who-were-charged-unwanted-items-reopens-claims
Launchers, launchers everywhere... nor any games I wanna launch. ;-)
On Wed, 25 Jun 2025 09:33:37 +0100, JAB <noway@nochance.com> wrote:
On 24/06/2025 22:20, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
Will it work? I'm guessing probably not. It's obviously a shot across
the bow at Steam, trying to dislodge Valve's near-monopoly on PC
gaming. But it again makes the mistake of thinking that the reason for
Steam's success is because it's just a great way to LAUNCH your games,
when Steam offers so much more. And not having to (manually) launch a
second client for those few non-steam games is probably not enough
reason to give up the advantages of using Steam. So I don't see this
attempt having much more success than Epic Game Store, GOG galaxy or
other third-party clients like Playnite.
From a personal point of view I tend to agree as launching games is
just not what I use Steam for. That's where desktop short cuts come into >>play.
I actually use Steam for launching (I hate desktop clutter so
shortcuts to launch the game aren't welcome ;-). But it's not the
primary reason I rely on Steam. Its discussion groups are useful. It's workshop is useful. It's store-pages are a hell of a lot more useful
and informative than on pretty much any other platform (GOG comes
close).
I launch games from Steam because Steam is useful. Other launchers
will need to offer more than just "all the libraries in one place" to
make me consider alternatives (especially since I already have one
that does that: Playnite... and I /still/ use Steam).
From a personal point of view I tend to agree as launching games isI actually use Steam for launching (I hate desktop clutter so
just not what I use Steam for. That's where desktop short cuts come into
play.
shortcuts to launch the game aren't welcome 😉. But it's not the
primary reason I rely on Steam. Its discussion groups are useful. It's workshop is useful. It's store-pages are a hell of a lot more useful
and informative than on pretty much any other platform (GOG comes
close).
I launch games from Steam because Steam is useful. Other launchers
will need to offer more than just "all the libraries in one place" to
make me consider alternatives (especially since I already have one
that does that: Playnite... and I/still/ use Steam).
Meanwhile, Epic got smacked hard for how shitty they made their own
launcher. Well, not so much the launching games part of it, but the
ways they used dark patterns to get people to make unintended
purchases (and for locking accounts of people who disputed the
charges). They're paying a $245 million USD fine to reimburse
customers (you've got until early July to submit a claim if you think
you're one of the victims they've fleeced!). Of course, most of these
crimes go unreported, so I'm sure the amount Epic is paying out is far
less than how much they took in. Something's got to pay for all those freebies we get! https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2025/06/ftc- sends-126-million-refunds-fortnite-players-who-were-charged-unwanted- items-reopens-claims
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