The bad press for the biggest game of the year just keeps stacking up. The latest development in the bitter Modern Warfare 2 PC debacle has seen a number of online retailers stand up in opposition of Infinity Ward's game, refusing to sell the much-hyped FPS. It's not because of dedicated servers, though. It's because Steam is a Trojan horse!
"We don't believe games should force the user to install a Trojan Horse," says online retailer Direct2Drive, criticizing the mandatory installation of Valve's Steamworks that will be a part of MW2's PC version. Two other stores, Impulse and Gamersgate, have decided to join D2D in its boycott.
Direct2Drive isn't just singling Modern Warfare 2 out, however. After revealing the boycott, it confirmed that it had evaluated some other games on its books, including Empire: Total War and Dawn of War II, and has refused to sell those as well. This is to continue until Valve has "decoupled its retail marketplace" from its other services.
Good on these outlets for taking a stand on something they believe in, but will it stop the juggernaut that is Modern Warfare 2? I'm curious as to how much bad press that game can withstand before a dent in its guaranteed sales will actually be seen. Probably ten billion.
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
9:20 AM on 11.06.2009
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Steam is not a trojan horse, but I can see not everyone wanting to install Steam.
But those who want to buy MW2 will just get it elsewhere, steam or not, so D2D lose anyway.
and it's not as if it'll affect the majority of sales: the Gamestop-going 360 crowd
If control of the steam servers ever fell into malicious hands, there would be some extremely FUBARED PC gamers out there. If you think it couldn't happen, you are quite naive about PC security...ANY system can be hacked.
Also, it's a Trojan that provides some pretty nice features.
Also also, Valve seems like the type of company that's introducing Steamworks as a bunch of cool features they thought you'd find neat, rather then as a way to thighten their grip on digital distribution.
To me nothing is more disgusting than a business claiming unfairness when you know they are just bitter they didn't come up with it first.
Nothing more than D2D trying to undermine the competition.
If D2D and Impulse sells digital copies of MW2 that is coupled with Steamworks (and thus Steam) then they are indirectly promotion a competitive service.
On the other hand, failing to selling the game will result in a loss of potential revenue as well as STILL leading folks over to Steam.
Blargh.
I really hope that your not getting it on the PC.. because if you really have been trying to ignore all these stories.. your gonna be in for a big surprise when you try to play online!
Either way,.. I'm all for the PC version being as hard to find as possible. I really hope it tanks because of how douchy they're being over all this nonsense. The omissions from the pc version, the FAGS video, the attitude... f them.