Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time!
Sujet : Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time!
De : spallshurgenson (at) *nospam* gmail.com (Spalls Hurgenson)
Groupes : comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.actionDate : 27. Jun 2025, 18:37:21
Autres entêtes
Message-ID : <5ljt5klr6q9mcjv9hjtcn7d06e55jpe3dt@4ax.com>
User-Agent : Forte Agent 2.0/32.652
I've said it before and doubtlessly I'll say it again in the future:
the best thing about Steam's seasonal sales is that it gives us the
opportunity to moan about how much better Steam's seasonal sales used
to be. And seeing as how Steam just started another Summer Sale, well
I'll be damned if I give up the opportunity!
But if Steam's sales are less exciting, it's only Steam that has
itself to blame. The joy of their sales used to be in the extreme
discounts you could find; sales of 75, 85, 95% off. These sales would
be extremely short-lived (sometimes lasting no more than an hour) but
if you were diligent, you could find some incredible bargains. And the
transitory nature of these sales meant that you had reason to keep
going back to Steam repeatedly over the course of thee sale. It became
a game to find the best bargains, and the rewards could be
outstanding.
But ten years or so ago, Valve by fiat changed how its sales would
work, largely because a lot of gamers stopped buying any time EXCEPT
during these sales. No longer would these extra-ordinary discounts be
allowed, and timed sales were right out. And their seasonal sales
became much less interesting. No longer could you find games for much
cheaper than you would otherwise, but there was no reason to visit the
store more than once during the sale.
Which, I think, probably works against Valve more than it helps. Many
is the time I'd visit Steam during their golden age, not find a game I
wanted at a super-low discount, and then bought something else in its
place. Then I'd be back again five or six hours later hoping the game
I /really/ wanted was on sale. That cycle would repeat throughout the
entire sale. Now, I go look, find nothing at a price I find
acceptable, and that's it. No need to return, no opportunity for me to
recklessly buy something else instead. Steam is still a terrific
launcher, but when it comes to actually buying things? Without a good
seasonal sale, I almost always buy Steam games from third-party
resellers instead.
Sadly, the days of games going for single-digit prices on Steam seem
mostly behind us, and since that's mostly the cut-off point for
anything on my 'must buy' list, I find there is less and less reason
for me to care about these seasonal sales. And even 75% discounts
don't help much when the base game price is $70 USD to start. Nor does
it help that most of the games that fall within my preferred price
range are games I already own. So this Steam Summer sale is mostly
wasted on me.
Join in on the bitchin'! Otherwise you'll have to wait 146 days until
the Autumn Steam Sale! ;-)
Date | Sujet | # | | Auteur |
27 Jun 25 | Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time! | 7 | | Spalls Hurgenson |
27 Jun 25 |  Re: Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time! | 1 | | Justisaur |
28 Jun 25 |  Re: Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time! | 5 | | JAB |
28 Jun 25 |   Re: Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time! | 4 | | Praetor Mandrake |
29 Jun 25 |    Re: Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time! | 2 | | Justisaur |
29 Jun 25 |     Re: Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time! | 1 | | Xocyll |
29 Jun 25 |    Re: Bitching Time... erm, I mean, Steam Summer Sale time! | 1 | | Mark P. Nelson |
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