this post was submitted on 15 Sep 2023
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Meme transcription: A table comparing the steps to start a game ‘then’ vs. ‘now’.

Content of the “Then” column:

  • Double-click GAME.exe
  • Play game

Content of the “Now” column:

  • Launch Steam
  • Steam updates

  • Steam opens

  • Close Steam’s ad window
  • Select Game
  • Game launcher starts

  • Game launcher launches Game launcher updater

  • Yes
  • Yes
  • Yes
  • Ok
  • Would you like to sign up for our newsletter?

  • No
  • Our EULAs have changed. Please review them before continuing

  • Scroll
  • Scroll
  • Scroll
  • Scroll
  • Yes
  • Yes
  • Yes, sell my soul
  • Start game
  • Skip vendor intro
  • Skip vendor intro #2
  • Skip vendor intro #3
  • Sit through nVidia The way it’s meant to be played
  • Skip opening cutscene
  • Main menu opens

  • Would you like to connect your Steam account to account?

  • No
  • Press play.
  • Play game.
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[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago

This is why I just went back to playing Red Alert 2. My install from 2001 still works.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I dunno about all this, I just play games from Atari, NES, SNES, Genesis, Game Boy, Playstation, etc. Maybe I'm simple but I'm also having fun :P

[–] Weirdfish 3 points 1 year ago

Yeah, I went console when I realised I wanted to spend time actually playing the game.

Sure I'm missing out on the absolute highest settings, mods, etc.

However, I spend 55 minutes out of an hour actually playing the game.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I hate this, above Steam client is slow as hell (GOG isn't much better). But you can hack it in most games to start the game clicking in the Icon. Look at the properties of the games in the folder, there is usually a game launcher, it is this one whose icon appears when this game is installed, it is this one that launches Steam (or GOG), but apart from that there is usually the original executable (look also in the subfolders, mostly in bin) which directly launches the game without Steam or GOG.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

If your steam client is slow. Try disabling hardware acceleration. Worked wonders for me. Steam went from being slow to super responsive.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Maybe, but anyway I use it only to install the Game, but not to play it. All this shit when launching a game, with all the Steam loads makes me sick, plus it stays resident after finishing the game, having to close it separately, uselessly spending RAM on my poor Laptop which is not very bulky in this sense either.

[–] CoolBeance 4 points 1 year ago

well at least I don't have to keep the CD in the CD Drive to actually play the game now

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

missed the bit about windows forcing an update and reboot, then crashing to an irreparable state, forcing a reinstall of the whole os and games that were installed.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

I had ME legendary edition in my steam library. I wanted to play. It asked me to sign up for all the EA bullshit.

I still haven't played it.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Hate this bullshit so much.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

I remember having to hunt high and low for the dune 2 manual to find out how heavy an Atreides airfield is because that’s what anti-piracy measures were back then.

Also it was much more of a crapshoot whether or not a game would work at all. Some games just completely refused to be played outside of specific hardware, especially when it came to video cards. Stupid messages like “sorry, you must have a GeForce 2300 or newer to play” that literally checked if your video card name started with some specific string…

Similar kind of thing with sound cards. Most games had a couple options for sound: if you have a sound card that contains the magic words “sound blaster” you got to enjoy nice sounds! Otherwise hope you like some kinda shitty half-attempt at MIDI sound.

And every game ever came with an EULA, if it wasn’t in the game it was in the manual or in some readme. It’s just as meaningless now as it was back then.

Then when CDs came out, sometimes they’d get scuffed and become impossible to install, so you’d have to end up buying a game twice because your cousin got a hold of it.

Things haven’t changed that much. There’s still a lot of shitty games, with a few that are great. It’s more like micro transaction or “free-to-play” games instead of shovelware now for the most part it seems though.

Everyone remembers the classics and forgets the duds!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Half of that never happens to me tbh and the vendor intros were mostly a thing in 2010ish games (for me).

But something that is not on the list and I hate is if steam just starts another game launcher where you have to click something (like Witcher 3 or cities skylines).

[–] Shady_Shiroe 3 points 1 year ago (9 children)

I hate that this is so accurate

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

From very recent memory, unfortunately.

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[–] BeezKnuts 3 points 1 year ago

Made by someone who wasn't around back then. Getting games to run was just as if not more tedious than it is now.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Some of my favorite games from back in the day had a half dozen vendor intros. There were a few years where they were completely out of hand. It's not all so bad these days.

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