I was going to just downvote and move on, but you seem unable to properly understand that a lack of a reply can mean different things, and you just assume that the person not replying to you agrees with you and is just too afraid to say so. Let me be clear… you are moving the goalposts and I see no point in having a discussion with someone who is not just dishonest in the conversation, but insists that it’s others who are acting dishonestly.

Steam does not have a monopoly on gaming. If you want to narrow that down to PC gaming then you’re changing the subject, but even then, they do not have a monopoly on PC gaming because they are not the only sellers. They don’t even have a monopoly on Linux gaming because they have put their resources there into open source projects which others have also benefited from, which is how I’m able to play Rocket League (yet another wildly successful game not available on Steam) on my Linux computer. Bringing other ‘classic monopolies’ into the conversation makes no difference on the discussion we’re having. And those other monopolies were not taken down because they were monopolies, they were taken down due to their anti-competitive practices - something that Valve has actively and successfully tried to avoid.

And no, I don’t think that because you feel that one number is ‘quite close’ to another number that they should be equal. I think that’s just another sign of you being dishonest and moving the goalposts and then assuming that you’ve made a valid point.

And finally, respond to this or not, I don’t care, but I said, multiple times, all that I need to say on this subject and to you.

The gaming market is much larger than PC gaming.

And Steam does not have an 80% market share on PC gaming, so who’s lying?

And finally, who the fuck do you think you are that I owe you a response?

You are equating “monopoly” with “abusive monopoly.”

No, I’m not. I’m saying they aren’t a monopoly by the simple fact that they aren’t the only providers of the service they sell. And while they are currently in a position to use their power to make themselves a monopoly, they are not doing that and instead are playing fair with their competition.

I know! There’s this great game called Fortnite that no one has ever heard of because you can’t get it on Steam. /s

Treat customers right and you get rewarded. They are the majority market shareholder because they have earned it, not through deceptive business practices but through being a great company.

If they were a monopoly they wouldn’t allow other game catalogs on their systems, yet I have GOG and Epic on my Steam Deck. In fact, there isn’t even a requirement for me to have Steam on my Steam Deck. Just because a company is the market leader doesn’t mean they got there through unethical means.

And Steam controls 80%-90% of the video game market?

Mono=one poly=seller… and last I checked Steam is not the only seller of video games. They aren’t even the only seller of digital video games. They aren’t even the only seller of digital video games for SteamOS.

They are the largest because they do what’s right by their customers and employees. As a ‘for instance’, I bought Portal 2 for the PS3 many years ago. I no longer have my PS3 but I can still play Portal 2 (as well as Portal which was just thrown in for me) on any PC.

I went all in on it… I fully drank that Koolaid and was an early backer, got an extra controller and really thought it was going to be amazing. But their whole launch was so bungled that by the time I actually got it I was so disillusioned with the whole company that I couldn’t enjoy it. It sucked to have bought into the kickstarter and financed the project, and then see the product on the shelves at Target while I was still waiting on mine to be delivered. I had mine for a couple of months before reselling it at a loss.

Several years later when Stadia was announced I felt that little familiar glimmer of hope pop up, but I didn’t let myself get too excited for it. I did eventually get a couple of Stadia controllers and really enjoyed that service (and I still use those controllers today).

I was cleaning out my garage a few weeks ago and came across my old Commodore 64 Paperboy floppy.

Steep (snowboarding, skiing, paragliding, wingsuiting) and Red Dead Redemption 2 (fast travel is an option, but come on, enjoy that ride!) are the two that I really enjoy.

I agree, this is why I consider myself a ‘patient gamer’… I don’t want to reward releasing half-done games, or trickling out DLC that should have been included in the original release.

I had to re-evaluate my stance on this when Baldur’s Gate 3 was released because I really wanted to play it, but was going to wait until it went on sale. Then the reviews starting coming in saying that it was a full game, no major issues, and no planned DLC. I immediately purchased it because **THAT **is the behavior I want to reward, and I’m very glad that I did.

This is the opening to John Scalzi’s Starter Villain. Great book for anyone interested in a humorous look at late stage capitalist supervillains.

Awesome! Now do it to keep the cops from being able to force you to unlock your phone under duress.

I agree, I was of the mindset that I wasn’t going to buy it at launch because too many games are broken at launch, but then I the reviews were all great, and I learned that there would be no microtranactions and I realized that this is the type of game I want to reward by buying early and paying full price. I’ve not been disappointed.

That’s not how rumors work.