Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,024
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Post by Jo on Apr 25, 2022 20:30:49 GMT
Pick up to five (5) digital game download stores. Let me know if I've forgotten any.
Comments and discussions are encouraged and appreciated. Please tell us what you think!
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Post by sonia (username @eskarina) on Apr 26, 2022 6:41:03 GMT
I do buy from Gamehouse as well - but only some individual games - I don't have the Fun pass - and I voted for Big Fish although my account is on hold as I already have too many games from them
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Post by lurkercat on Apr 26, 2022 7:02:25 GMT
And then of course there is Game Giveaway of the Day. Old (old) games, but "free" is hard to beat pricewise!
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Post by lisabella on Apr 26, 2022 23:32:32 GMT
I only buy from Big Fish because, honestly, their site is the only one I can figure out these days. I have a Steam account but they're the worst, IMO.
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Post by metmichallica on Apr 27, 2022 0:59:03 GMT
I hate Steam's game manager.
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Post by sonia (username @eskarina) on Apr 27, 2022 9:05:31 GMT
I hate Steam's game manager. one good thing about their game manager is they have the option to visit the store page of the game, so you can remind yourself what the game was about
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smitty189
Squirrel
[TI18] "No great mind ever existed without a touch of madness" Aristotle
Posts: 1,000
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Post by smitty189 on Apr 27, 2022 15:34:46 GMT
Long long time ago Webroot would not let me use Alawar, Hate IWin not much experience with any others. Was leery of Steam at first but have been using them more and more and am getting used to navigating. Had a problem with one game and they refunded my money almost immediately
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pennmom
Bear
Chief Ranger
[TI0] IT'S FIVE O'CLOCK AND ALL'S WELL
Posts: 16,570
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Post by pennmom on Apr 27, 2022 15:34:51 GMT
I use my Steam Game Manager for everything, I don't even use my browser, I can do everything, add game codes (even non-Steam products so all my games are in 1 place that's easy to access) I can even chat & find friends so I think Steam's GM is the bomb! ...not to mention the fact that it won't stop working after purchasing too many games like the one from Big Fish Eats Little Fish
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,024
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Post by Jo on Apr 27, 2022 16:04:30 GMT
Long long time ago Webroot would not let me use Alawar, Hate IWin not much experience with any others. Was leery of Steam at first but have been using them more and more and am getting used to navigating. Had a problem with one game and they refunded my money almost immediately Steam can be very intimidating at first because it's so darned big. But once you figure it out, it's a great place to buy games. I equate it to Meijers, a Michigan chain grocery, vs the little Mexican market around the corner. Meijers was the first super store, even before Walmart. It's huge and has everything. I prefer shopping at the mercado - fast in and out - but I can't get the deals or everything I want there. Perfect solution: On line shopping and delivery from Meijers! If I had to browse the shelves at Steam, I'd never go there. On line shopping and digital downloads. And, yes, their customer service is excellent. The Community Hub, available on every game page, is a great way to connect to devs and other players. I've found lots of fixes there. I agree. It's multi-purpose in the best way!
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Post by SynthpopAddict on Apr 27, 2022 16:26:41 GMT
I just gave BF the heave and went to Steam as of today. The Steam client is more difficult to navigate (I'm still learning but it's the sort of thing that if I play around with it, will be able to pick it up), but also has a lot more features enabled. And unless you have to have the latest HOPAs out right now, Steam often has the same games for cheaper than BF sells them!
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pennmom
Bear
Chief Ranger
[TI0] IT'S FIVE O'CLOCK AND ALL'S WELL
Posts: 16,570
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Post by pennmom on Apr 27, 2022 18:53:37 GMT
I just gave BF the heave and went to Steam as of today. The Steam client is more difficult to navigate (I'm still learning but it's the sort of thing that if I play around with it, will be able to pick it up), but also has a lot more features enabled. And unless you have to have the latest HOPAs out right now, Steam often has the same games for cheaper than BF sells them! The thing I like the most about Steam is that when I find a game I think I would enjoy, I click the button to Wishlist it and then they notify me every time the game goes on sale so I don't have to check every day for what's on sale, I get an email telling me exactly how much the game is, and what % the sale is, and it tells me how long it will be offered at that price. They also have Bundle packages at really good prices and they keep track of which games you already have and give you a price for the games you need to complete that collection/package. Also, check at Fanatical because the sell Bundles & Packages really cheap (like 10 games for $3 bucks!) They aren't selling you the game itself, they are selling Steam Codes so after your purchase they show you the codes and you just click the + at the bottom left of the Steam GM and enter the code(s)
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Post by SynthpopAddict on Apr 28, 2022 13:56:03 GMT
The only things I don't like about Steam are that you can't demo a game first to make sure it likes your computer - but then again, it looks like all games on Steam are in the cloud, because when I bought Jewel Match Origins 2 CE yesterday at Steam, there was no download to my C: drive as BF would do - so maybe this isn't that much an issue? I also wonder how you would get around the problem of some games not having a player profile creation option. The trick of deleting the saved game file folder in your appdata works only if you actually have the game downloaded to your hard drive; if everything is in the cloud, you'd be out of luck trying to replay a game which doesn't have a profile creator?
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,024
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Post by Jo on Apr 28, 2022 14:58:06 GMT
The only things I don't like about Steam are that you can't demo a game first to make sure it likes your computer - but then again, it looks like all games on Steam are in the cloud, because when I bought Jewel Match Origins 2 CE yesterday at Steam, there was no download to my C: drive as BF would do - so maybe this isn't that much an issue? I also wonder how you would get around the problem of some games not having a player profile creation option. The trick of deleting the saved game file folder in your appdata works only if you actually have the game downloaded to your hard drive; if everything is in the cloud, you'd be out of luck trying to replay a game which doesn't have a profile creator? Here is an excellent article about demos from PC Gamer entitled "Game demos are back, baby!" One very important part of this article is that, if a game has a demo, people are more likely to wishlist it at Steam. "....wishlisting is pure gold for an unreleased game on Steam. Not only do developers count on wishlists to gauge interest in their game before release and predict how much it'll sell in its first few weeks, but Valve's recommendation engine loves games with a ton of wishlists. What's safer to recommend than a game that thousands have already endorsed? As GamesIndustry.biz Academy writer Marie Dealessandri points out, wishlists can help games get featured on the front page of Steam if Valve so deems it worthy. Increasingly, developers are using demos in a similar way." More and more games at Steam are offering a demo. It may have a time limit in that it's only available until a game releases or for a short time after that. It's very simple: Demos help sell games.
Steam downloads a game silently. If you have Steam installed on your computer, your computer assumes it has permission from you to download said game and will not ask for your permission as an extra step like BF games do. You'll always get this popup with BF games but not with Steam games.
If you click "Steam is already installed" or whatever the phrase is on the final Steam store buy page, the game will be downloaded. I never click it because I don't want everything I own installed so I have an "Install" button for every game until I actually install it.
A lot of games store save files in documents so I'd check there.
I'll do a tutorial for finding where a Steam game is downloaded and get back to you here with a link.
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pennmom
Bear
Chief Ranger
[TI0] IT'S FIVE O'CLOCK AND ALL'S WELL
Posts: 16,570
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Post by pennmom on Apr 28, 2022 15:46:43 GMT
Jo, SynthpopAddict, Jo I do the same thing, if I add a code or buy a game on Steam I just skip the finalization part of installing until I'm ready to play. SynthpopAddict, when you d/l a game on the Steam GM it will alert you with a small window on the bottom right of your screen when the download is complete. It keeps track of all your time playing the game and automatically gives you achievements as earned (Steam has more and/or different achievements) ALSO: keep in mind that if a game doesn't work, Steam has pretty darn good customer service, I've never had an issue getting a refund no questions asked. I love that I can wishlist games via the GM and that I don't have to retrieve a code every time I log in which is one of the reasons I don't use my browser. I love that they tag each game with all appropriate tags like point & click, puzzle, story-rich, and the games they suggest are usually spot on for my preferences, love that they have the release date & developer info, love that devs can update and patch issues immediately. They even warn me by saying "this doesn't look like anything you've played before"
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Post by SynthpopAddict on Apr 28, 2022 17:10:37 GMT
I'm not seeing anything with my latest Jewel Match game on my computer at all, even though I played a level on it while logged into Steam yesterday. It's OK with me if the game is in the cloud, so long as I can play it. But still makes me wonder how one would get around the problem of trying to replay a game when there is no player profile creation option in the game. As an aside, I haven't unlocked all the content available in my Steam account as of yet because I've only got the one game there, and used a code on it. Steam won't let you access "everything" until you've spent enough money for them to tell you have a legitimate account and aren't a spammer or bot.
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,024
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Post by Jo on Apr 28, 2022 17:50:03 GMT
I'm not seeing anything with my latest Jewel Match game on my computer at all, even though I played a level on it while logged into Steam yesterday. It's OK with me if the game is in the cloud, so long as I can play it. But still makes me wonder how one would get around the problem of trying to replay a game when there is no player profile creation option in the game. As an aside, I haven't unlocked all the content available in my Steam account as of yet because I've only got the one game there, and used a code on it. Steam won't let you access "everything" until you've spent enough money for them to tell you have a legitimate account and aren't a spammer or bot. I'll give you a quick screenshot: In the Steam game manager, right click on the name of the game → Manage → left click Browse local files. This should open: It will show you exactly where the game is installed and the path to get there.
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Post by lurkercat on Apr 28, 2022 21:20:51 GMT
Jo, pennmom, Hey, thanks for the info on finding stuff about Steam games! Since y'all are doing a bit of a tutorial here, I've got another question: Can I run my Steam games when I'm not connected to the internet?? If I click on the icon they install for the game or on the item in my library list, I always (usually?) get a window showing me they are updating Steam and/or connecting to the cloud. On at least one occasion when I clicked instead on the application downloaded on my disk, it also did the same. I'd like to be able to run my Steam games with no internet connection. Can I??
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,024
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Post by Jo on Apr 28, 2022 21:41:28 GMT
lurkercat , yes, you can with no problem as long as you're not trying to play an online game. You just won't have cloud saves. Here's an article about how to set it up to insure that games save to your computer.
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Post by lurkercat on Apr 28, 2022 22:03:56 GMT
and the games they suggest are usually spot on for my preferences ..... They even warn me by saying "this doesn't look like anything you've played before" D-u-h pennmom , having followed you in thread "Sales from my Personal Wishlist on Steam", I'd be hard-pressed to conceive of a game that didnt match your preferences, or that fell into a category of not "like anything you've played before"!!
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,024
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Post by Jo on Apr 28, 2022 22:13:06 GMT
and the games they suggest are usually spot on for my preferences ..... They even warn me by saying "this doesn't look like anything you've played before" D-u-h pennmom , having followed you in thread "Sales from my Personal Wishlist on Steam", I'd be hard-pressed to conceive of a game that didnt match your preferences, or that fell into a category of not "like anything you've played before"!! If that's not the truth I don't know what is! Pennmom has everything on her wishlist!
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