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Let's all go post in the new STEAM thread and talk about Tom Clancy ♥
TychoCelchuuu
PIGEONRegistered User regular
PIGEONRegistered User regular
Trading is now live, as if you don't get all your stuff from fellow PA people or from SteamGifts.com
Coping With Steam: Reinterpreted Artistic Commentary on Our Shared Affliction
Most Frequently Asked Questions
1. Steam's search tool is cumbersome and not very informative. Is there a website, other than Steam's, I can go to find out what's on sale?
2. Can I register this copy of (Insert Game Here) on Steam?
Here's a list of games you can register on Steam. You can always add a non-Steam game to your Steam games list, so that people can see you playing it. You can also use this to add your own shortcuts with fake names to your Steam games list to make it look like you're playing Episode 3. Hilarious
3. If I buy a game pack that already includes a game I own, can I gift that game?
Not usually. You're welcome to ask in this thread, although if you Google it it'll probably be answered even faster.
4. Why isn't __Insert Game Here__ available in my horrible little corner of the earth?
Many Steam games might be unavailable in your country if you have the temerity to live outside of the United States. This is not Steam's fault. Regional game availability is determined solely by the publisher, who should be the source of your ire. Gifting works regardless of region so you might find some helpful person in North America who can gift you the game.
5. How do I get an invite to the Penny Arcade Steam group?
The most convenient way is to just post a link to your Steam profile page (getting one of the swank signatures described below makes it easy) and ask for an invite.
Some Words on Gifting
If you receive a game or pack via a gift or a contest, remember to thank that person either through a PM or by announcing it in the thread. We are classy gentlemen and will act as such.
Steam's new gifting features allow you to store up games in your gift bank when you purchase them, instead of having to email yourself the gift link. It'll be an option during checkout.
An Important Word on Contests
If you decide to run or participate in a giveaway contest for gift copies of games, please remember that all entry submissions must now be made via PM. The forum mods have stated that pages of the thread being filled with pictures, videos, etc. submitted as contest entries will lead to such contests being banned. So please, for the sake of the thread – take it to PMs.
Helpful Stuff
Steam Mover
Does your Steam library have 800 games? Do you wish you could move some of those games to different hard drives instead of deleting them entirely and then downloading them again when you want to play them? Steam Mover is here for you.
Steam Price Guide
Do you have the misfortune to live somewhere other than America? Steam hates you! Luckily, this cool website with prices for Steam games all around the world is here to help, so you can know if you want to ask an American friend to buy the game for you or not.
electricitylikesme wrote: »AUSTRALIANS!!!!
You need this program.
It reconfigures your Windows IPSEC settings (run it as an admin) to block out all but the servers which don't count towards your download quota on Steam. Now supports a bunch of ISPs through a graphical interface.
Basically guarantees you won't add to your download quota with Steam.
150KB/s
Download TCPview: TCPView
Then, use TCPview to close all Steam TCP servers (this is important, NOT the UDP ones, just the TCP ones). Steam will then reconnect to a different server, which will hopefully get you a better speed. If you don't go faster in a couple of seconds, retry until you get a speed you like.
This shit totally needs to go into the OP, I've tipped this to so many people already.
Cool Community Add-Ons
Steam Signatures
With such a cool service, someone must have done some extra things to build on it. The forums have one such man, who made some super cool Steam signatures. Suds is his name and killing is his game. Except for the killing. The signatures automatically use backgrounds for the games and the correct icon. Pretty neat, and they're 100% free!
Sample signature:
Steam Calculator
You can also use a script on his Steam Calculator page to see how much your Steam account would be worth if you had taken advantage of some obscure, arcane combination of special deals that nobody could ever have taken advantage of. Or something sort of like that.
Steam Roulette
Having trouble picking a game out of your burgeoning [strike]backlog[/strike] gamebank to play? Let VicWhiten's Steam Roulette decide! Just type in your Steam community ID (easier if you set up a custom URL on your Steam profile page), and Steam Roulette will read your library and randomly pick one game every time you hit "Spin the Wheel!" It even connects to Steam to allow you to install or start the game with a single click.
What's all this about serving "The Newell?"
It started with this comic:
TychoCelchuuu on
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Posts
Gish
Fate of the World
Time Gentlemen, Please/Ben There, Dan That
Two rules:
1) First to PM me gets the game of his or her choice.
2) Pay it forward some way. Buy a down-on-his-luck gamer a Steam gift for Christmas, help an old lady across the street, volunteer at a soup kitchen, or something.
This is a clickable link to my Steam Profile.
Although if I had reckoned with this VPN trick being devised I don't think I would have bought a physical copy I have to wait for.
Anyway, getting comfortable in the new thread. This one ought to get us to a Thanksgiving sale at least, then batten down the hatches.
Also, I hope Valve do put up a weekend deal. It'd be bizarre if they didn't.
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I'm going to admit, I'm a little worried about the looming holiday season sales. Normally I at least wait to see what the deals are, but this time I know I'm getting 2 copies of Trine 2 and quite likely whatever Civ V pack comes out for my girlfriend. It won't be horrific damage, but I'm usually good for some random shenanigans, and despite already owning most of what I'd want from Steam's library, resisting the urge to serve the Newell is perilous at best.
Basically I'm weak and expect my wallet to be crying for mercy by the time it goes live, let alone by the end.
Send help.
And pockey.
Edit:
They typically lock at 100 pages as a tradition, if not a necessity. (as in it used to be the latter, now it's the former)
And I too will be surprised if there isn't a weekend deal. I figure it's either something awesome so they're letting the hype build a bit, or it's nothing/something small and are just giving us a minor breather before the big one-two knockout arrives in 2 weeks.
You can buy Steamworks games on disc, but that's not really buying them from Steam. Gabe's definitely being an asshole though.
And then you have to download it anyway!
You can install from disc, but you still (probably) have to download a lot of updates.
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Also, seeing you in my friends list playing Skyrim is killing me inside, Fig. Hah.
I once bought a retail box for a Steam game. I tried installing it. It told me that the files were corrupt or something and it was going to download the whole thing from Steam now.
Yay discs!
Steam ID: slashx000______Twitter: @bill_at_zeboyd______ Facebook: Zeboyd Games
Steam ID: Obos Vent: Obos
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Skyrim is actually only 5 GB, oddly, and it downloaded in a few hours for me at ~400 KB/s.
Steam BoardGameGeek Twitter
I had just poured myself a big ass mug of Earl Grey Hot and placed it on my desk. Reaching for the mouse, I knocked it over and the contents of the entire mug pours into my computer, which sits on the floor right next to the desk. The tea doesn't simply splash onto the machine, mind you. There's a grill on top of the computer for one of the fans and the tea literally poured right into it, soaking the motherboard, graphics card, power supply, the lot. :shock:
The screen instantly went black and I frantically pulled out every plug from the machine. I wiped it off, opened it up, and gently wiped everything dry. The only thing I could think of was "FFS, Skyrim comes out tomorrow and I have the whole weekend off. Skyrim comes out tomorrow! I'm fucked!". Woe!
I let the machine sit for a couple of hours to dry out and then I plugged everything in again. I expected it to be dead, but it isn't. The bugger still works. The scroll wheel on the mouse (which was also soaked) appears to be fucked and doesn't respond, but everything else works.
Oh really? Wow, I'll have to get that then. Strange, must be very well compressed.
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when will it hit $10?
Yeah, it just fired right up. No problem. Joyfully blasting away in a twin stick fashion with out of the proverbial box 360 pad support.
Is the general consensus the these game are funny, or even mildly enjoyable? Because if that's the case, I may be broken. I played through one of them (I forget which one, the one where you get captured by aliens) and had to force myself to get through it. I literally fell asleep a couple times playing it.
Also I still have the key for the Santum Violator DLC weapon that no one claimed when I gave away the game. Send me a PM if you want it.
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When you and I are ready to play it.
You've got horrible luck, man. I've had one corrupt disk since I started buying PC games...maybe it's more common than I expect, but still, horrible man.
I can't help but imagine the rather fantastical scenario that there wasn't anything wrong with your disk, Steam just didn't want you saving the bandwidth, heh.
I think the general consensus is they are fairly well liked but not "OMG YOU HAVE TO PLAY THIS" status. I quite enjoyed them, but I think it's mileage varies on how much you like the genre and British people acting silly.
The sense of humour is very British, so it depends on how much you like British comedy and jokes about genitals.
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@Roshin, nice. That's a hell of a bullet you dodged.
To everyone who said the Bastion soundtrack is awesome, well, you were right. I confess I don't usually listen to game music independently of the game. But this whole fricking album is top notch. It's like a beautiful muddle of Firefly/Serenity, Oh Brother Where Art Thou and Blackhawk Down.
Steam profile.
Getting started with BATTLETECH: Part 1 / Part 2
I think my biggest issue with it was the almost complete lack of sound. It's practically silent. I'm fine with no VO, but atleast give me some decent music to listen to. Otherwise it's just a slightly interactive book.
If you want either, PM me.
EDIT: Also, it appears that the Revenge of the Titans update has just dropped.
Also, I wish Steam would stop messing with my head. Weekend Deal starts on Thursday! Thursday, not Friday!
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I think you can use this to accomplish that goal.
If there isn't a listed date, then there isn't a set date. It depends on when the developers finish the game and get it properly prepared for a steam release.
Thanks! I'll have to try this when I get back from the gym.
You can do it using a freeware programme like Junction Link Magic ( http://www.rekenwonder.com/linkmagic.htm ) that works on XP, Vista and 7, to create a junction point between the folder were Steam install the game by default and the folder were you really want it to be installed.
For example you want to install Borderlands in E:\Games\Borderlands
By default Steam installs it in ..\Steam\SteamApps\common\Borderlands
BEFORE installing the game just manually create BOTH folders manually and then create a Junction Point from ..\Steam\SteamApps\common\Borderlands with destination to E:\Games\Borderlands.
Then launch the game install from Steam. The game will be installed in E:\Games\Borderlands and will run normally from there.
Junction point a a Windows feature since XP/2000 (NTFS 5.0) and are "transparent" to Steam so you shouldn't have any compatibility problems.
edit: beaten
🖥️Steam Profile
There's the coming soon tab on the front page, but many games are just not advertised on Steam at all before release.