Free Portal 2 for PC?

while true I hope not too many do this. Valve gave consumers the benefit of the doubt with the amazing free PC game offer; it was amazing to only buy the game once and then have 2 copies to coop with at your own house, one on your pc and one on your ps3.
If stuff like this happens a lot you can bet valve won't make this mistake again in the future which will be sad.
So I ask all my fellow CAGs to please refrain from doing this.
 
[quote name='Naylord']while true I hope not too many do this. Valve gave consumers the benefit of the doubt with the amazing free PC game offer; it was amazing to only buy the game once and then have 2 copies to coop with at your own house, one on your pc and one on your ps3.
If stuff like this happens a lot you can bet valve won't make this mistake again in the future which will be sad.
So I ask all my fellow CAGs to please refrain from doing this.[/QUOTE]

I agree with you. I love CAG as a community to find and share great deals, not to exploit dirty tricks, especially when those dirty tricks will almost certainly lead to less great deals in the future.
 
Valve is still getting their money for the game when you initially buy it, regardless if you return it. So technically it's an extra sale that they wouldn't have made. Gamestop will end up with a massive stockpile of used PS3 copies of Portal 2 if this gets widespread, but wouldn't Valve be raking in the cash..?
 
[quote name='62t']dont think GS would allow you to return an opened copy[/QUOTE]

There's a promotion going on now that allows you to return certain games that have been opened and played within 7 days of purchase for full in-store credit.
 
[quote name='CACG']There's a promotion going on now that allows you to return certain games that have been opened and played within 7 days of purchase for full in-store credit.[/QUOTE]

The possibility of having to mull through copies that may or may not have already had their Steam activations used seems like it's too much of a hassle, let alone the dubious morality of the issue.
 
Gamestop/EB Games employee here, so yeah what he's saying is true, we have a flyer with a list of games that qualify for this, pretty much you buy it new, return it in good condition(manuel everything) and we give you store credit for it that can be used on another game or pre order. You only however only get the $59.99 back, not the taxes you will have to pay the taxes again for whatever you buy.
 
[quote name='Hakken']Gamestop/EB Games employee here, so yeah what he's saying is true, we have a flyer with a list of games that qualify for this, pretty much you buy it new, return it in good condition(manuel everything) and we give you store credit for it that can be used on another game or pre order. You only however only get the $59.99 back, not the taxes you will have to pay the taxes again for whatever you buy.[/QUOTE]

$59.99 is returned onto an EDGE Card, which is tax-inclusive. The "return" is processed as a trade-in, and the game that is being traded-in is valued at it's TIV + price override to get it up to the sale price. The tax is irrelevant. ;)
 
I don't think this is possible. Don't you have to log into steamworks on the PS3? This means the PC version and the PS3 are tied together. If one is logged in the other can't play as far as I know.

So the short answer is no this is not possible.

When you buy Portal 2 for PS3 you don't actually get a separate "Free copy" of the game. In order to play Portal 2 for PS3 (online) you need to tie your Playstation account with an existing steam id, or create a new steam id. When you do this you get the ability to play Portal 2 through your PSN/steam id on either PS3 or Steam. But it's the same account, and unless you are willing to share your PSN account with a friend, you really can't share it. (Even if you did, you can only be logged on in either the PS3 or steam, not both, at the same time).

While the "free copy" of Portal 2 for PC is nice, this is an admitted downside to steam that you become available to. (Signing into Steamworks via PS3 means that anyone wanting to play any of your steam games on your PC can't be signed in at the same time). If you are just one person it's probably no big deal, but if you have a family it can be a bit of a pain.

Now that I think about it. It's going to create a lot of problems for people that buy a used copy of Portal 2 for PS3.
 
[quote name='AftComet']I don't think this is possible. Don't you have to log into steamworks on the PS3? This means the PC version and the PS3 are tied together. If one is logged in the other can't play as far as I know.

Now that I think about it. It's going to create a lot of problems for people that buy a used copy of Portal 2 for PS3. They won't be able to play online because it's tied with the PC version.[/QUOTE]
Uuuuh, no.
I gave my free copy to a friend using a dummy PSN account and then we played together using my main PSN. The free PC copy is tied to the PSN, not the disc. And as far as I know, if used copies can't like you explained, then how the heck has my brother been playing it on his account?
 
[quote name='AftComet']I don't think this is possible. Don't you have to log into steamworks on the PS3? This means the PC version and the PS3 are tied together. If one is logged in the other can't play as far as I know.

So the short answer is no this is not possible.

When you buy Portal 2 for PS3 you don't actually get a separate "Free copy" of the game. In order to play Portal 2 for PS3 (online) you need to tie your Playstation account with an existing steam id, or create a new steam id. When you do this you get the ability to play Portal 2 through your PSN/steam id on either PS3 or Steam. But it's the same account, and unless you are willing to share your PSN account with a friend, you really can't share it. (Even if you did, you can only be logged on in either the PS3 or steam, not both, at the same time).

While the "free copy" of Portal 2 for PC is nice, this is an admitted downside to steam that you become available to. (Signing into Steamworks via PS3 means that anyone wanting to play any of your steam games on your PC can't be signed in at the same time). If you are just one person it's probably no big deal, but if you have a family it can be a bit of a pain.

Now that I think about it. It's going to create a lot of problems for people that buy a used copy of Portal 2 for PS3.[/QUOTE]

This is complete nonsense. You just have to link your PSN account with your Steam account, and you get the game download on Steam. You don't need the physical disc afterwards unless you want to play it on your PS3.
 
Valve isn't stupid. This is a great way to massively increase the number of people who use Steam and then buy games from Steam now that they've been introduced to it.
 
I think the original reason to include the PC copy of the game with every NEW PS3 copy was to encourage people to buy it new AND on PS3. Valve was initially very harsh on PS3 development and didn't release their games on the platform (Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead 2) after EA released a bad port of the Orange box on PS3 which ran very poorly and Valve didn't appreciate it. After Gabe Newell (Valve CEO) apologized during the Sony E3 press conference, he said they wanted to win sony fans by making the PS3 version the best console version, and included a free PC copy to sweeten the deal.

bVork is also right that it also increase the userbase for Steam - and once people have been introduced to a new way of buying online PC games, they are less likely to change to something else.

Anyway, if you bought it used you save a few bucks but miss out on the PC copy (and their games on PC normally include future updates with DLC for free like L4D).
By taking advantage of this promo, Valve will get a new sale and EB would get stuck with a used copy that is harder to sell (at least to informed consumers!)
 
[quote name='CACG']Valve is still getting their money for the game when you initially buy it, regardless if you return it. So technically it's an extra sale that they wouldn't have made. Gamestop will end up with a massive stockpile of used PS3 copies of Portal 2 if this gets widespread, but wouldn't Valve be raking in the cash..?[/QUOTE]
Valve doesn't get the money when you buy it. They get it when GS and other stores buy it. The problem is that GS probably didn't buy all the stock they expect to sell at once. Thus, as people buy out their stock, they'll purchase more from Valve. But if they aren't selling well, or they find that too many of their new games suddenly become used (lost value) without any profit made from it, I have to wonder whether the managers will want to continue restocking the game. Thus, Valve is likely to lose out indirectly in the long run from customers doing this.
 
[quote name='JoJoBlue']Valve doesn't get the money when you buy it. They get it when GS and other stores buy it. The problem is that GS probably didn't buy all the stock they expect to sell at once. Thus, as people buy out their stock, they'll purchase more from Valve. But if they aren't selling well, or they find that too many of their new games suddenly become used (lost value) without any profit made from it, I have to wonder whether the managers will want to continue restocking the game. Thus, Valve is likely to lose out indirectly in the long run from customers doing this.[/QUOTE]

As long as new copies are selling, they will keep restocking. If you really cared about Valve, or any game company for that matter, you would boycott Gamestop due to their used game sales. Not only do they rip off the people they buy used games from, but they rip off the developers by cutting them out of the picture. They can sell a game for $60, rebuy it for $10-15, then resell it for $3 less than what the brand new version costs, keeping ALL the profit for themselves and giving none to devs. Don't get me wrong, I partially blame the ignorant consumer for not realizing they are screwing over the people who make the games, but at the same time, I can't blame someone on a budget who is just looking to save a couple bucks...
 
[quote name='CACG']As long as new copies are selling, they will keep restocking. If you really cared about Valve, or any game company for that matter, you would boycott Gamestop due to their used game sales. Not only do they rip off the people they buy used games from, but they rip off the developers by cutting them out of the picture. They can sell a game for $60, rebuy it for $10-15, then resell it for $3 less than what the brand new version costs, keeping ALL the profit for themselves and giving none to devs. Don't get me wrong, I partially blame the ignorant consumer for not realizing they are screwing over the people who make the games, but at the same time, I can't blame someone on a budget who is just looking to save a couple bucks...[/QUOTE]

Going by this logic, anything being sold used is screwing over the devs who made any product in the current market. Also, most of the time, you can find better deals with Gamestops used games, than other stores.
 
[quote name='OmegaChaos']Going by this logic, anything being sold used is screwing over the devs who made any product in the current market..[/QUOTE]

That's exactly what he's saying. The difference is that Gamestop bases a majority of their business model on used game sales, unlike most retailers who only dabble in it.

Saving $3 on a game might add up over the year, but the bigger cost is to the game developers and the industry as a whole.

Don't blind yourself to the fact that an increase in used game sales will DIRECTLY affect profits to game developers. There are a lot of big name publishers that can withstand it for longer, but smaller independent studios will pack up a lot sooner. Even the big names will eventually pack up shop as well if the profit loss gets too high.

I can't say I don't shop at Eb/GS, but the only time I'd ever buy a used game is on out of print games.
 
No one wants to buy used because it doesn't help developers. But no one seems to mind waiting for a game to not sell well so they can pick it up for $10 instead of the original price.
 
[quote name='zorba_the_greek']No one wants to buy used because it doesn't help developers. But no one seems to mind waiting for a game to not sell well so they can pick it up for $10 instead of the original price.[/QUOTE]

Devs still get money if you buy a price reduced game though. If a game is really good, it'll get plenty of sales prior to the price drop. Most of the time games are reduced in price because they either aren't selling, or a newer version of the game is coming out soon and they want to squeeze as much money as they can out of it before the sequel is released. Bioshock 1 & 2 are a good example of this. People buy these games cheap, and then fall in love with the series and end up pre-ordering Bioshock: Infinite. Just think of them as an advertisement for Bioshock Infinite.
 
[quote name='zorba_the_greek']No one wants to buy used because it doesn't help developers. But no one seems to mind waiting for a game to not sell well so they can pick it up for $10 instead of the original price.[/QUOTE]

Fair point. But I don't always do that. Usually its on games I'm only lukewarm on. Proven titles I buy at full price. Examples recently were inFamous 2, Alice, and LA Noire. Even with a MASSIVE backlog, I still chose to support those developers (or my wife, in the case of Alice) by purchasing sooner than later.

At the end of the day, everyone has their lines that they draw and I'm not in a position to judge anyone on theirs, BUT as gamers, we should all be aware of the long and short term effects of our actions.
 
[quote name='CACG']Devs still get money if you buy a price reduced game though. If a game is really good, it'll get plenty of sales prior to the price.[/QUOTE]

The problem with this argument is that the same can be said about used sales. Making assumptions on how good a game is selling or that enough other people will buy enough copies to make it worth while for the devs can become a dangerous attitude if it spreads too much.
 
[quote name='Wikkidkarma']The problem with this argument is that the same can be said about used sales. Making assumptions on how good a game is selling or that enough other people will buy enough copies to make it worth while for the devs can become a dangerous attitude if it spreads too much.[/QUOTE]

This is a moot point, though. Even if a person isn't willing to buy a game until a new copy is $10, the developer still gets more money from that sale than if a person bought a used copy of the same game for $54.99. Regardless of how much the new copy is purchased for, it is always worth more to the publisher than any used sale.

I understand what you're saying about making sales-related assumptions, but if someone just isn't interested enough to pay more than a discounted price, it's still more beneficial to the publisher to sell new copies at that discounted price.
 
[quote name='Derfel']

I understand what you're saying about making sales-related assumptions, but if someone just isn't interested enough to pay more than a discounted price, it's still more beneficial to the publisher to sell new copies at that discounted price.[/QUOTE]

Short term, yes, but the retailer eats those losses. If a game publishers games continue to not sell well at full price and the retailer keeps losing money, you can bet they'll stop buying games from that publisher.

This is a worst case scenario and would require the majority of people to stop buying games at full price en masse. It's highly improbable, but for every person who chooses to buy used games or only buy games after significanf price drop will slowly erode the industry.

I'm really not trying to be the fear monger I'm coming off as, just offering my perspective. :)
 
Also, you are 100% right. Reduced new games sales are better than any used sales. I don't mean to imply that there is any scenario that used game sales could ever be better (unless the developers start doing their own trade ins, or retailers offer a "tax" back to devs on used sales". What I meant to convey in my last post was that discount buyers can ALSO hurt the industry, not that they were worse or even as damaging as used sales.
 
[quote name='Derfel']This is a moot point, though. Even if a person isn't willing to buy a game until a new copy is $10, the developer still gets more money from that sale than if a person bought a used copy of the same game for $54.99. .[/QUOTE]

The developer gets their money when the retailer buys it from the publisher, so having it sit on the shelf until it reaches $10 won't help them. If it doesn't sell to begin with (or people hold out), the retailer won't buy any more copies from the publisher, and the developer won't see any more money.

I'm just saying that buying used or holding out until something is dirt cheap really is the same thing because none of that money helps a developer, but it does help you. Ultimately, that is an individual's choice. I buy used games/cheap new games all the time and I buy many games for full price on day one. I wish I could afford to buy the new games all on day one to support all the developers out there but I can't afford that.
 
Technically, all this is is buying a game an trading it in. The only difference is you're getting all your money back and you get to keep the PC version. Gamestop registers it as a new sale, Valve's already got their money, Gamestop gets people into their store for their promotion and gets a used game to sell. Noone's really getting taken advantage of here and everyone gets what they want. I won't be doing it, but it's technically not hurting any of the companies involved. As far as Valve is concerned, you bought a new copy of the game and it wasn't returned, it was traded in so they keep all their money. People are going to buy used copies whether you trade it in or not. Obviously Gamestop is putting this promo up mainly so people have their real money transferred into $60 in Gamestop cred (which will come out to more profit when they sell you another game and get to keep a $55 used game).

So, I'd say if you want to do it, and don't mind a $60 EB Gift Card, it's morally justifiable. In fact, you're helping every party involved (EB gets a guaranteed $60 spent at store plus a $55 used game to sell), Valve already has their money and noone's taking it away by doing a full return claiming defect or something, and you get a free game. Win, win, win.
 
[quote name='zorba_the_greek']I'm just saying that buying used or holding out until something is dirt cheap really is the same thing because none of that money helps a developer, but it does help you.[/QUOTE]
Ummm, no.
 
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