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Combat Mission and Steam


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"I just spent $100 on the Battlefront store, after working up the willpower to sign in to yet another store with another account. The experience was terrible. It asked for my shipping address for a downloadable program, twice. I had to scrounge up the patches needed for Red Thunder and Battle for Normandy, finding which patch is needed for which version of the product I own. I had to read up on how Battlefront's DRM works, and how I may be locked out of my own purchases.

I looked into a way to buy a 2nd copy of Red Thunder for a friend. Couldn't find one."

If you find it this hard and complex to purchase a CM2 game, then perhaps you won't have the ability or patience to actually play the game either.

I wonder who else on this forum experiences these problems in purchasing a CM2 title?

It wasn't difficult, it was bad. There is a difference.

Also, you can quote text blocks on this forum by pressing the "quote" button, or wrapping your text in QUOTE tags.

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When computer games used to be in stores like Software etc, babbages, and those other ones Battlefront got a lot of exposure from way back in the 1998 era or around that with CMBO. I bought my first one there so I'm pretty sure it got the exposure it needed to survive all those years if it was good and back then it was pretty good. Can't say I like the new model but the graphics are nice. I don't see Steam as a site that will bring it that much more exposure than it already has. Putting the old series of CM on there and some of the older strategy games would be ok I guess. People can see how good those were and then come here and see the rest. Makes more sense for the most money.

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When computer games used to be in stores like Software etc, babbages, and those other ones Battlefront got a lot of exposure from way back in the 1998 era or around that with CMBO. I bought my first one there so I'm pretty sure it got the exposure it needed to survive all those years if it was good and back then it was pretty good. Can't say I like the new model but the graphics are nice. I don't see Steam as a site that will bring it that much more exposure than it already has. Putting the old series of CM on there and some of the older strategy games would be ok I guess. People can see how good those were and then come here and see the rest. Makes more sense for the most money.

you,d be suprised,have a look at the amount of CM groups already on steam.

i get a few PMs asking what game im playing when im using CM through steam.

using the group search function will give you a large list to ponder through.

every time i post a new screen shot on CM i get a few enquiries and of course,i pass on the relevant info.

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I haven't been on these forums for probably 6 years, but I just came back today to check out what BF has been up to.

I've been a BF customer since at least 2000. I bought CMBO, CMBB, CMAK, Shock Force, TacOps and Strategic Command.

My opinion on this topic is that BF would be crazy not to at least experiment with putting an older game or one past the peak of its volume on Steam and seeing what kind of sales volumes they could get.

I think that realistically a CM game could sell on par with Napoleon Total War, which Ars Technica calculated as having sold more than 1M units. http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2014/04/steam-gauge-addressing-your-questions-and-concerns/2/

The only way that would be a losing money proposition is if Steam made you pay up front for your sales. If they do something like what Apple does (take 30% of the sales revenue), you will still make lots of money if you double or triple your sales volume, and let's just say that I am VERY doubtful that the latest CMs sold anything close to 1M units.

Personally at this point (and many of my friends are the same way), I have so many games on Steam that I don't even have time to play that the odds of me going and getting a game that is not on Steam are pretty low. It would have to be one heck of a game that no Steam game can come close to... throw in strange DRM and the odds drop even further... The grognard 'elite haughtiness' of this forum notwithstanding, BF is doing itself no favors by continuing to ignore Steam IMHO....

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The old one's are here now and cost less than the Battlefront store. I think this has to do with Battlefront only being the developer and not the publisher.

http://www.gog.com/game/combat_mission_beyond_overlord

The Theater of War games 1, 2 and 3 are on Steam as well, this is where I picked up those as a bundle during a sale.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/46290/

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The old one's are here now and cost less than the Battlefront store. I think this has to do with Battlefront only being the developer and not the publisher.

http://www.gog.com/game/combat_mission_beyond_overlord

The Theater of War games 1, 2 and 3 are on Steam as well, this is where I picked up those as a bundle during a sale.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/46290/

I think by "older one" it would have to be CMX2. CMX1 as a toe dipper on Steam is not a good idea, IMHO. It would be trivial to make some good looking videos of CMSF for the Steam store. For me CMSF was in a pretty good place by the time I bought it (about 2 months before CMBN came out, which I found a bit flat by comparison), some good mods and excellent campaigns, and for me still one of the most immersive environments CMX2 has been in. I could see it appealing to a decent chunk of Steam strategy / strategy-lite players.

Other than that, agree with many of the last few pro-Steam posts. The Battlefront store is really not a good experience, by comparison. On a Steam release we could be on the 3rd minor patch for CMRT by now, if they wanted.

Incidentally, engine upgrades can easily be sold as DLC on Steam - that is pretty much what some of the DLC for Crusader Kings 2 is, for example: Content plus engine upgrade, cost about $10.

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Interesting how it seems to have completely passed me by that Steam is so important these days. Sure, I have a few games on Steam, perhaps twelve or so, of which only perhaps two are actually installed on my HD right now. I don't think I've even played half of them, since I bought them during some $5 sale and figured I would get around to them "some day".

Just checked my desktop, and I have the following games installed at the moment:

CMBN, CMFI, CMRT: Obviously not Steam.

Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition 1 & 2: Don't think these are on Steam. I know I did not purchase them through Steam, and they auto patch without Steam.

Doom 3 BFG edition: Decided to play through this again once I saw the Doom 4 teaser trailer. Have the CDs somewhere in my basement, but decided to purchase it again through Steam for convenience of getting it running on a modern PC, patching etc. Still a fantastic game.

Starcraft 2: Not Steam.

XCom Enemy Unknown: Steam.

Panzer Corps/Allied Corps and all DLC: I did not buy these through Steam, though I think they are on Steam now. Playing through the German Grand Campaign DLC again.

Games I have on order:

Wasteland 2: Bought it through Kickstarter. Put in the extra $$ for the boxed edition. It's well into beta now. Don't know if it's available on Steam or not, but I'm supposed to receive a download link via e-mail once it is finished.

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Other than that, agree with many of the last few pro-Steam posts. The Battlefront store is really not a good experience, by comparison. On a Steam release we could be on the 3rd minor patch for CMRT by now, if they wanted.

Incidentally, engine upgrades can easily be sold as DLC on Steam - that is pretty much what some of the DLC for Crusader Kings 2 is, for example: Content plus engine upgrade, cost about $10.

I am not sure how being on Steam would have anything to do with altering either BF's patch process or their strategy about modules.

BF patches when they feel the patch is ready and has been run through tests with the Beta team. That is a laborious process that has nothing to do with the delivery model. As to selling engine upgrades as a DLC, also don't get that. A DLC is just additional content. An engine upgrade for CM is a requirement if you want to continue adding modules and packs further down the road. There aren't many games out there with the longevity CM has. I think maybe the HPS series is the closest I have seen in terms of the continuing upgrade of a series with consistent features. Compare that to big hyped game series like Elder Scrolls, Assassin's Creed, Call of Duty etc etc. Those are all stand alones that have no relationship to each other over the series.

Personally I could care less if BF decides to utilize steam or not. They know their business a heck of a lot better than I do and if they thought there was something to be gained by being on steam then they would be on steam. Obviously they don't and have explicitly stated they do not have any interest in pursuing that at this time.

Their continued success and growth seems to imply that they do not need to be on steam to succeed and they appear to very much savor their independence.

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I agree it would not hurt Battlefront to have something on Steam to a least expose that customer base to them similar to what they are doing with mobile. It doesn't have to be their flagship games but something worthy. The Close Combat release on Steam is pointing strategy WW2 gamers to Matrix and Slitherine's store and no doubt generating sales there as well.

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Interesting how it seems to have completely passed me by that Steam is so important these days. Sure, I have a few games on Steam, perhaps twelve or so, of which only perhaps two are actually installed on my HD right now. I don't think I've even played half of them, since I bought them during some $5 sale and figured I would get around to them "some day".

Just checked my desktop, and I have the following games installed at the moment:

CMBN, CMFI, CMRT: Obviously not Steam.

Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition 1 & 2: Don't think these are on Steam. I know I did not purchase them through Steam, and they auto patch without Steam.

Doom 3 BFG edition: Decided to play through this again once I saw the Doom 4 teaser trailer. Have the CDs somewhere in my basement, but decided to purchase it again through Steam for convenience of getting it running on a modern PC, patching etc. Still a fantastic game.

Starcraft 2: Not Steam.

XCom Enemy Unknown: Steam.

Panzer Corps/Allied Corps and all DLC: I did not buy these through Steam, though I think they are on Steam now. Playing through the German Grand Campaign DLC again.

Games I have on order:

Wasteland 2: Bought it through Kickstarter. Put in the extra $$ for the boxed edition. It's well into beta now. Don't know if it's available on Steam or not, but I'm supposed to receive a download link via e-mail once it is finished.

Except for Starcraft 2 and the Battlefront games these are all on Steam now. Wasteland 2 is in beta and can be played via Steam, I purchased it directly but the game is released via Steam.

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Except for Starcraft 2 and the Battlefront games these are all on Steam now. Wasteland 2 is in beta and can be played via Steam, I purchased it directly but the game is released via Steam.

Thanks for the info, but why should I care if the games that I purchased outside of Steam, such as Panzer Corps, Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition, and Wasteland 2, are now on Steam? Why should this matter to me, as an end user? I already purchased the games, outside of Steam, so what difference does it make to me if they are sold through Steam, or not?

If there is some sort of benefit to me to be gained by these games now being on Steam, will I have to purchase them again through Steam in order to gain these benefits?

I'm genuinely curious about this.

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Thanks for the info, but why should I care if the games that I purchased outside of Steam, such as Panzer Corps, Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition, and Wasteland 2, are now on Steam? Why should this matter to me, as an end user? I already purchased the games, outside of Steam, so what difference does it make to me if they are sold through Steam, or not?

If there is some sort of benefit to me to be gained by these games now being on Steam, will I have to purchase them again through Steam in order to gain these benefits?

I'm genuinely curious about this.

If you already own a game, having a steam copy allows you to do a few things..

A) Installed on multiple PCs without worry that you are running out of "activations". This probably isn't a big deal for some, but I'm a bit of a PC nerd. My computer gets upgraded every 9 months or so. Additionally, sometimes I like gaming on my home media pc downstairs on my 65" TV, so I have Big Picture mode installed downstairs. I can see Combat Mission on the big screen being pretty sweet!

Oh, also plan on installing Red Thunder to my Surface Pro 3 when it arrives, since I will be out and about over the summer, having some PC gaming with me will be a godsend. Again, easier with Steam.

B) Community. If I want (don't have to sign in) I advertise the games I'm playing with all my Steam friends, who are likely to be like-minded individuals. Easy way to get multiplayer games together. Steam also provides an easy way to share screenshots and the like from the games I've played so I can show off.

C) Maintenance. Much easier to maintain patches and be kept abreast of what dlc/upgrade packs are available for the games you own.

Steam isn't a requirement, and you don't have to use it, but it is pretty awesome for the games you already own, and is the way to buy new games. Battlefront may look at the requirements from Valve (Valve's cut, sales etc) and balk, but they are missing the boat.

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Many smaller developers are using the Steam platform to increase product visibility, generate sales and cash to finish games they are working on. It's not just a distribution platform anymore but also a way to garner investment from customers before a product ships. The Grim Dawn developers went to Steam to get a small infusion of cash so they could hire more employees and ensure they get to the finish line with their game. I think the Wasteland 2 devs went to Steam for the same reasons. You may not see a tangible benefit but the developers you are supporting are and in a round about way your going to benefit by getting faster updates, product expansions, and support to those games you have.

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Well those posts make some sense, Junior Members SgtHatred and CombatDave.

Are you Steam representatives, in some capacity?

If so, I'm sure BFC is flattered. :-)

Hahahaha, no... I was just ticked I had to give my credit card to yet another website, a website that tries to get me to install a Toolbar.

Valve is currently selling a Dota 2 Companion digital book for $9.99, donating $2.50 of each sale to their prize pool for their next competition. Prize pool is up to $9.3 million... Valve is the 800 pound gorilla, pretty sure they wouldn't bother with any sort of trickery to get a group like Battlefront to jump on board.

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Well those posts make some sense, Junior Members SgtHatred and CombatDave.

Are you Steam representatives, in some capacity?

If so, I'm sure BFC is flattered. :-)

I'm just a gamer, no link to Steam. I have always enjoyed a good WW2 game be it a board game (squad leader) or PC game. Currently playing the CM:BN Big Bundle and having a blast. Best features are realism of encounters, LOS, fog of War, detailed units, unit AI, campaigns and all the visual mods in the repository.

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Closee combat is on steam now. First i hear of it is my stem friends who have not played it since the 90s suddenly becoming aware buying it and then messaging me on steam.

With steam of course i can see when friends are playing and what and knew he was playing it already and probably could have just presser join to play with him to boot.

They had no idea close combat was still around. They paid $40 happily with no knowledge it has nott changed really or that close comvaat 3d is due by the end of the year.

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BF patches when they feel the patch is ready and has been run through tests with the Beta team. That is a laborious process that has nothing to do with the delivery model.

Can't agree with that I'm afraid. I work in a software house, we release every week. This is a methodology known as Continuous Integration. If your delivery method is as straightforward as the Steam updates process (as opposed to having your userbase check for patches on your website), it would tend to encourage a higher frequency of patching. For me, Battlefront's patching has everything to do with their delivery method. There are probably minor fixes to QB AI plans etc in the upcoming patch for CMRT, which could be a minor patch release. But it is not a good look, or good for your users, to have a dozen or more patches to download from the website. So we wait.

As to selling engine upgrades as a DLC, also don't get that. A DLC is just additional content.
. Crusader Kings 2 has 2 different types of DLC. Graphical enhancements that cost a few dollars, and new "campaigns" that contain both new content and engine enhancements. Steam also manages the dependencies between DLCs.
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