Steam I was wondering how many of you have it?

[Silverthing 0]

I was just wondering if any of you have steam? I have steam along side with a lot of ValvE games, It would be really great to play some of you people.

Games that I have installed:

Counter Strike: Source
Gmod

Those are the only two games I really play at the moment :/



A review of steam?

Steam, well, what is it?**********************

Steam is an internet site, owned by Valve software, which distributes PC games over the internet, these games include Half life 2 and the much under rated Darwinia, but more about the games later on!
Why did you choose Steam?
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I registered to this site many years ago with my version of Half Life, this enabled me to play the game over the internet. I had forgotten about this site and had the urge to play Half life, but couldn't find the game disk. So I logged on to the internet and downloaded the Steam software and luckily I could remember my password so I signed in and got to play Half Life and the fantastic Team Fortress.
So I got to play games which I owned but had lost the discs for.
How do I get Steam?
************************

Firstly don't type http://forums.xisto.com/no_longer_exists/ as I did, this takes you to the former home of "Steam Tunnel Operations."
Instead type http://store.steampowered.com/,'>http://store.steampowered.com/, when this loads up click on a orange box, just down the page saying "Get Steam Now."

Then check your system specs, which are as follows.
Windows 98, ME, 2000 or Xp
64 MB RAM
400 Mhz processor
1GB HD space (recommended)
Internet connection (broadband recommended)


You really need plenty of space on your Hard Drive as you download the games to your HD thus every file is stored on your computer, and not played off a CD.
If your system meets the minimum specs you continue by pressing the "Free Download" button and downloading a very small file which is the main steam software, this enables you to download games and automatically updates your software when updates are released.

You then start the software and register your name and register your credit or debit card using thier secure servers, this only takes a few minutes and enables you to purchase the games from the steam store.
What Games are Available?
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Well theres certainly plenty, All the "Half Life" games, various versions of counter strike, the fun but strange "Rag Doll Kung Fu" and the awesome "Darwinia" are amongst the best, but recently Valve signed a deal with a company called "PopCap" to sell their games through Steam, bring games like "Bejewelled" and "Zuma" direct to the consumer,
there is a full list at http://store.steampowered.com/ and is updated very often.

How Much do Games Cost?
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This is the best part, Halflife Episode 1 was released recently in the shops it went for ÂŁ19.99 while on Steam it goes for $19.99, so your paying in American $ and thus get the fantastic exchange rate. If you preorder games you can often get $5 off the normal price, and they throw in a load of freebies aswell. If you Buy "Sin: Episode !" you also get to download the original game for free.. They also do linked purchases so you could pay $19.95 for one game or buy a bundle of 3 similar games for a pretty cheap price. These offers do change and some bargains are to be had.

How Do I get the Games?
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You just download them using your "hopefully" fast broadband connection, we used to have a 8MB service and could download a pretty hefty game in under an hour, which is certainly faster than walking to the shops or waiting a few days for the game to arrive in the post.

Some games even let you play them before you've finished downloading them, which can be great.

Notice from Yordan:

Please do not post copied text without properly quoting it and mentionning your sources

[frazz86 0]

I don't like steam XD i find it easier just to buy the games for a better price and not having to use up your download limit (gb usage)

[SillySoul21 0]

I personally do not like steam it is very expensive.

[Quatrux 4]

I personally don't play games, especially new ones, as I am more a retro gamer, but I heard a lot of bad stuff about steam, and usually people don't like it. Maybe the idea is good, but for a lot of people it's just uncomfortable. Besides, not all computers are online.

[Silverthing 0]

It is a good idea, you can log on to any computer in the world, and without using a disk you can log on, download and play the game, its quick and easy. Personally I think its the way to go Also: Sorry Moderator people D:

[H.O.D 0]

steam is a good concept but its working well only in countries like usa and uk where there are good internet connections and the gamers are actively buying new titles always. in other countries the internet connection is mostly slow and people find it difficult to download large amounts of data off the internet. and in the first place, they are not ready to buy new games on a regular basis. i know a few people who buy one popular title only once every three months. they are very fond of gaming but due to their budget problems they can afford to buy one game only once in three months. the rest of the time they have to be content with playing games like farmville, mafia wars,etc. steam says that there are over 200 games priced under $5 and although i haven't seen the list of titles in that category, i think we can safely say it doesn't have many popular titles in there. but i think steam will start gaining popularity after a few years because things are changing across the world and governments of various countries are realising the importance of having good internet connectivity and thus they are taking steps to bring faster internet at more affordable prices to the people. once a large number of gamers have a good internet connectionand some money to spend, then im sure steam will pick up steam