Battlefield 3 to require EA's Origin service
The Battlefield 3 blog confirms that EA's Origin service will be required to play copies of the game purchased at retail.
It was recently reported that Battlefield 3 wouldn't be coming to digital-distribution platform Steam. Though the information came second-hand from financial research firm Baird--and not from DICE or Electronic Arts--EA has since confirmed that this is indeed true. More information has surfaced today, indicating that Origin--EA's new proprietary digital distribution platform--will be required to play the game.
According to fan site Battlefield 3 Blog, DICE's Daniel Martos confirmed that the Origin service will be required to run the game "if it is bought in retail." While it seems likely that digitally-purchased copies of the game will also require Origin to run, that caveat hasn't been confirmed.
Battlefield 3 is due out for PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 on October 25.
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replyJeff Mattas posted a new article, Battlefield 3 to require EA's Origin service.
The Battlefield 3 blog confirms that EA's Origin service will be required to play copies of the game purchased at retail.-
NOPE.
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Origin has nothing to do with the game other than patching it
If anything will do matchmaking it will be Battlelog.
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this is a very sad day :(
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,,,but i'm still buying it on Origin once i get a response from EA customer support regarding the VAT that i have to pay for although i don't live in Europe or u.k
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Already Pre-Ordered on Origin. So I'm cool with this.
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Origin is only being used to patch the game, or redownload it in the future, nothing else.
I'd have an issue to, but if it's just merely updating the game directly from the Publisher, I don't see the problem with that. I'm buying from Amazon, hard copy, either way, I only use STEAM to purchase digital copies anyway.
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I called it too. This is why Steam isn't allowing BF3. Because Origin will be doing the patching regardless of your place of purchase. BANNED.
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And the PC FPS blacklist continues...
2009: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (mandatory IWNet matchmaking-only multiplayer; no developer console)
2009: Borderlands (SecuROM activation DRM)
2010: Bioshock 2 (requires Games for Windows Live)
2010: Bulletstorm (requires Games for Windows Live)
2011: Crysis 2 (SolidShield activation DRM)
2011: Battlefield 3 (requires Origin)
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lol
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It's getting harder to buy PC games when they keep giving me reasons why they'll betray me.
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I thought the reason for Crysis 2 would be multiplatform and consolification (less open world)? :) The DRM is the last reason I didnt buy that game. Also, I thought one reason for Borderlands was the FOV that is consolified as well? The game itself is great once you get the hack for the FOV working.
I got BF3 preordered (from cd key store), so I dont have any problem with this, but if the digital version needs Origin, yeah I know I'm going to be upset. Too many stupid software running in my computer just to get a game running.
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Yeah, it's funny how so many people disregard that. It's fine if it's Valve, but anyone else does it and all you hear is bitching and moaning. I could care less what service I use, as I use them all for the most part. Steam, GFWL, D2D, GOG, Impulse, Amazon, etc. and now Origin. If a game I want is only available on a certain service, then that is where I get it. Or if a game happens to be a much better deal on one service over the other, same thing. I just don't understand this die-hard service loyalty, especially towards Steam. Sure, Steam is the biggest and most used service but that doesn't mean I'm going to ignore everything else, not to mention that Steam is FAR from perfect.
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Steam was a leap of faith back in 2004, and I went ripshit, kicking and screaming, about having to sign up for a damned online service. And, at the time, I had to buy a WRT54G and an 802.11 PCI card so my computer could be on the Internet (back then, I had the gaming PC offline, and browsed the web on the laptop; I would've had to run a 30 foot ethernet cable to get the gaming PC online).
The GFWL client is still an abortion, made by a company that knows more about 360 gamers than they do about PC gamers who aren't also 360 gamers.
Origin is snake oil; it's just a storefront and an online login service, as far as I can tell externally. Maybe it does multiplayer authentication, I don't know, but that's obviously how EA is pushing it with this announcement. It doesn't do DRM, so EA will probably still shove something like SecuROM or SolidShield DRM onto the PC retail SKU, unless they trust Origin's online authentication, and lock out people from playing the game at all unless they're logged into Origin.
GoG is the only other one that sounds appealing to me, since it's built on the premise of "we hate draconian DRM too".
Direct2Drive and Impulse: I never trusted them much, and I trust them even less after the acquisitions (Impulse acquired by GameStop, Direct2Drive acquired by Gamefly).
I registered for Steam, only buying the Half-Life 2 special edition, and putting Steam on probation for two years. For two years, the only games I had on there were Half-Life 2, Half-Life 1, and Counter-Strike Source. Valve proved themselves through that time, and ended up being about the only trustworthy online-tied DRM, since they're far less user-hostile than the other solutions.-
Pretty much this.
I also didn't touch Steam for a long time because it truly used to be terrible, even now it has issues. But Steam and GOG are the only two services not backed by companies that seem to loath their own customers and make life miserable at every opportunity.
I'd also refrain from mixing Steam with the term "DRM" which got its popularity from SecuROM, TAGES and other systems that do nothing for anyone, not customers nor pirates nor the publishers.
A better term for Steam would be something like a digital gaming platform, it's not there to stop you from playing and games using Steam activation get cracked like everything else. Steam is a combination of a store, library and community features. You don't go online with it it to run your games (you can go into offline mode) you run it so you can chat to friends, get achievement, upload screenshots, get game updates, news and everything else you could want while playing a game.-
You two said it better than I could.
That being said, I will likely buy retail and play only BF3 on Origin, for a probationary period. It's only one game; if i don't like what it may have the potential of becoming, oh well. There is still Steam for their extensive and growing catalog.
Worst case, Origin gets fucking drilled by anon or lulzsec or whiever and no one can play anyway.
Best case, it does something cool, probably not neat or innovative, but it will work. At least play BF3 until they drop support for it.
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It might have something to do with LOYALTY and TRUST. Didn't EA used to have a digital service in which you had to buy a warranty just to be able to re-download any games you bought? Make no mistake, Valve earned the loyalty it now enjoys. EA has not. Not everyone has a short a memory as you.
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I could barely play HL2 when I was in Iraq because Steam's Offline mode sucks and still does.
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Oh I can too, but there are times like if the power goes out, steam crashes, or just boots up with the offline mode not being available.
If I deploy to Iraq/Afghanistan in the future I'm not counting on steam offline working the entire time nor being able to access the internet often enough on my own computer to have offline mode.
Impulse, GOG, even Origin I'll be able to play the games on those offline. I'm pretty much set on buying single player games (like Mass Effect, Dragon Age, etc) outside of steam so I don't have to worry about having a client check in that I own the game. It's only one step away from being Ubisoft's DRM.
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This is upsetting to hear, but as much as I hate what EA is doing....I really want to play BF3 :( They know it too.
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Glad to see nobody is reading the article: "According to the Battlefield 3 Blog, DICE’s Daniel Martos confirmed that the Origin service will be required to run the game "if it is bought in retail." "
Physical retail copies use Origin to keep the game up-to-date. Otherwise, your digital distribution provider will keep the game up-to-date. Like previous stated, Origin is not used in matchmaking or server browsing.-
Doesn't matter; can't buy Battlefield 3 on Steam (allegedly).
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I could have sworn the whole reason for the conflict between Valve and EA was because of who distributed the DLC and the patches. So if these other distributors aren't controlling patches/DLC, then it is either Origin, or the game itself. If it's Origin, then that conflicts with your claim about the DD provider, but if it's in-game then that conflicts with your claim about retail. So which is it?
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Hmm, good point, I assumed that it would be automatically updated via whatever service you're using, and then purchased through the website.
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I don't even like Steam. I'm sure as hell not dealing with another Steam-like service, and especially not one from EA. I truly hope Origin fails and I'll refrain from buying as many of their games as necessary to see that it does.
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- lost sale right there - thanks EA - im buying RAGE
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I hope Id's community manager is watching this; Id better announce Rage on Steamworks. Or better yet: Rage on disc check only.
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I hope the Steam version is just Steamworks. If the retail version is disc check only, that'd be even better, but almost nobody's doing that these days, except Activision on their titles that weren't expected to sell a ton (Singularity and Wolfenstein were disc-check-only).
I have a fear that Id is going to launch their own equivalent to Battle.net or Bungie.net, and require login to it to play Rage at all. Tim Willits was gung-ho about Diablo 3's approach, but it doesn't make sense for Rage, since Rage doesn't have an economy to enforce. Rage only has preorder bonuses.
I don't know if the Rage preorder bonuses are only for the 360 and PS3 versions, but if it's for the PC version, that points to an online authentication system tie-in.
Here's a scary set of quotes from after last year's QuakeCon: http://www.shacknews.com/article/65258/rage-gets-page-on-steam
While the DRM used in Rage has not yet been revealed, lead designer Matt Hooper recently told Shacknews that he "thinks people will be pleased with the direction we're going," with regards to DRM.
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Bethesda has clarified to Shacknews that the Steam page "does not mean anything one way or another regarding Steamworks. Too early to discuss." It just confirms that RAGE will be purchasable through Steam when it is released.
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that this is even the first issue about it to most people and not stuff like lack of map tools is sad
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Not many games have mod tools, or even allow you to mod anymore. CoD:BLOPS still has no mod tools, despite Cesar Statsny saying last September that they were doing it, and then earlier this year saying it was eventually going to come out, and then.... still waiting. I still want to do my "nixie tube" HUD mod, but damn, if you're going to promise a feature, at least try to get it out before you have to start working on your next game that's inevitably scheduled due to the leapfrog-annualization lockstep of doom that is the Call of Duty franchise.
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Hell yeah, Red Orchestra 2. I don't think 1C Company will have an overarching agenda like EA to ruin it.
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I wasn't planning on buying this anyway, except maybe during a Steam sale for 70% off.... oh wait it'll never be on a Steam sale now.
Watch me rage when they announce that ME3 will be Origin only though. -
Still a purchase for me, in fact Im using origin for any EA game I have on steam, I really don't get what all the hubbub is about.
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I would rather not.
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at least if i buy the physical copy i know i wont be re-forced to buy it again in a year or two
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(since ea does not keep your games after a period of time). It happened to be with 2042
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I don't blame them. I still want to get the game but I hate how EA is forcing their shitty distro platform on everyone. I also hate their practice where they kill a game after a while even if there's a small playerbase that still plays it. Personally, I bought a game and some asshats in suits shouldn't be allowed to tell me when I can and can't play it anymore. Even if they realeased all the content free to the public after it becomes abandonware so people can run their own servers and shit.
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That's because a lot of people who piss and moan on here lack the courage of their convictions and actually are just whining. They'll still be out there, midnight release, slavishly drooling waiting for their copy.
I personally couldn't give a toss, I'll just wait a while, see wot happens.-
That, in and of itself, makes me want to punch them.
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Not getting it. Time to pick up a used Super NES and hunt cartridges.
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Good job I wasn't buying it on release anyway...I'll just wait for it to come to Steam.
In the mean time I'll buy TOR at retail and just ignore this Origin shit until it dies and goes away.-
Also, despite the fact BF3 will be an amazing game, no doubt there, there is also equally little doubt that it wil have a freaking horrendous front end on release that will only get marginally better thru patching.
Bad server browser, shoddy friends list, connection and interface issues, etc, etc. DICE can make games, but can they fuck make a decent front end.
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Bold move at this point in time. In my case, it means the game will have to be phenomenal for me to purchase it. Some time after BC2 launched I posted about how it was a great game, but how I'm growing tired to the BF formula and how I'm doubtful I'll pay for yet another one when it comes out. The cool trailers and tremendous (shack)hype, however, did their thing, and I actually went to "probably", but now thanks to this Steam/Origin circus I'm back to "probably not".
Hell, I'm annoyed at myself for even putting this much time and effort into considering whether I want to buy a game or not. The money is not an issue for me (MY BIG EUROS), but the fact that I'm being forcefed yet another thing to login to and install on my PC, which I like to keep as clean as possible, is annoying as hell. Add to that the fact that I don't think Origin will ever become anything comparable to Steam (meaning I don't see anything except EA games being published on it, nor do I see EA developing Origin to the point where it could functionally speaking compete with Steam), and there are just so many reasons for me to skip this game, cool trailers or not.
Maybe I'll get it on the 360 or PS3 and cry myself to sleep, knowing that I've partaken in the famous DEATH OF PC GAMING. Tee-hee. -
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Uggggh. I was thinking of giving DICE/EA another chance after a looooong boycott, but now I'm gonna have to wait for reviews and whatnot. I really doubt the game and the distribution system will run well in the first year after launch (maybe they'll fix it eventually, maybe not).
Definitely not pre-ordering now.-
EA was looking pretty good back in 2008 or so, but now they're going full steam ahead with their strategy of "Our brand can carry a locked-in platform! We will be the Facebook of video games!"
It's disgusting; the EA Partners label that was previously lauded as a way for publishers to escape the publishing bullshit is most likely now trapped in the same bullshit. DICE is a lost cause; they're EA-owned, so now they're shilling Origin. Same with Danger Close, with what will most likely be announced as the next Medal of Honor game to release Holiday 2012. Not that Danger Close has much good FPS pedigree; they were the chumps who took over Medal of Honor after EA took it away from 2015.
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ZAT ORIGIN IS A SPY!
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This is actually an incredibly appropriate topic for a gaming website.
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Discussing games on a gaming site!? I never!
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Let me know when there's a discussion spawned from the post that started this entire thread.
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Discussion is overrated. Shouting is a much better way of talking about things. Either way there is this little x in on the root post that Korban could always click.
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Well, what choices do we have ? Battlefield 3 is being made with the PC as the lead platform, when the F does this happen with Shooters anymore?? Supporting games made for the PC first is more important than anything these days, so long you are into them. If this was restrictive DRM, I'd feel the opposite but it isn't.
To all those saying No Sale or cancelling, that's just f'ing ridiculous. Instead of playing this, what? CoD and every other game out there that are console games first, PC second? F that, give me PC games.
I'm buying this as a hardcopy. Having to use Origin to patch the game isn't the end of the world. We have to take everything we can get as PC Gamers these days, period.
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