If you're a PC gamer, chances are you're buying your games digitally via Valve's Steam platform. It's gotten to the point that it's hard to argue that Steam is the leader when it comes to selling games digitally.
Of course, that doesn't mean no one will try and take that crown away from Gabe Newell & Co. Quite the opposite, in fact. EA, the makers of franchises such as the Mass Effect and Battlefield series, has been trying to grab a significant marketshare from Steam with its own Origin digital platform.
While Origin might have its supporters, its competition with Steam is something of a sore point when its platform is talked about.
Speaking to IndustryGamers, EA Origin boss David DeMartini talks about Origin…and naturally, the conversation involves Steam. DeMartini has a few rather unpleasant words when it comes to Steam's giving random big discounts of its games. The EA exec thinks this move "cheapens" the intellectual property (IP) of games.
We won't be doing that. Obviously they think it's the right thing to do after a certain amount of time. I just think it cheapens your intellectual property. I know both sides of it, I understand it. If you want to sell a whole bunch of units, that is certainly a way to do that, to sell a whole bunch of stuff at a low price. The gamemakers work incredibly hard to make this intellectual property, and we're not trying to be Target. We're trying to be Nordstrom. When I say that, I mean good value – we're trying to give you a fair price point, and occasionally there will be things that are on sale you could look for a discount, just don't look for 75 percent off going-out-of-business sales.
I'm guessing a lot of gamers won't agree with DeMartini's statements. Do you agree with his sentiments? Does random deep-discounting of games cheapen their value?
Also of note, how many of you are using Origin and how are you liking it?
