Dragon Age 2 abducted from Steam, EA points finger at 'restrictive' terms of service as the culprit

by Ben Gilbert on Jul 28th 2011 4:30PM

The mysterious disappearance of Dragon Age 2 from Steam this week, just before the launch of the game's latest DLC, is yet another thorn in the side of EA's relationship with Valve's Steam digital distribution game service. As many had assumed, the game wasn't removed due to the recent (re)launch of EA's own digital distribution service, Origin, but in fact because DA2's latest DLC doesn't play nice with the Steam Terms of Service.

As the DLC -- named "Legacy" -- is delivered via an in-game store, rather than via Steam's own client, the game was removed. "Unfortunately, Steam has adopted a set of restrictive terms of service which limit how developers interact with customers to sell downloadable content," EA senior VP of global online David DeMartini noted in a statement. He also pointed out that the game is currently available on a variety of other "major download services," from GameStop to Direct2Drive, and that he hopes "to work out an agreement to keep our games on Steam." It's not clear why EA refused to deliver the DLC via Steam's client, but it appears the company won't be changing its stance just yet.

Dragon Age 2 (Legacy DLC)

Tags: bioware, david-demartini, digital-distribution, dlc, downloadable-content, Dragon-Age-2, ea, ea-bioware, electronic-arts, legacy, mac, origin, pc, steam, terms-of-service, valve, valve-software

Reader Comments (115)

Yeah that's totally the reason.

@riesza

of course the restrictive reason is that they want us to get their stupid service running, also it´s funny how EA is the ONLY ONE who is affected by this "restrictive" problem.

@Hunter141072 Actually you are wrong. There's a fair amount of DLC not available via Steam or steam versions of games that are available else where (look at Bioshock 2 for example.)

@riesza

I find it hilarious that we are so quick to defend a company ran by Gabe Newell (the self-proclaimed producer of Windows), who openly admits he used the passion, nativity and genius of John Carmack as basic slave labor to better market Windows to the masses.

Yep history is written by the winners, but we let them. I'm not saying Valve is any less evil as a corporation than any other, but they are damn good at pleasing fans and news outlets. Too bad gamers don't care enough to actually learn about the companies they worship or question anything at all.

This is just another instance of two corporations trying to ensure a competitor is not cutting in on their profits. Profits the company has grown accustomed to with their previously successful business model. And we act like one cares more than the other, lol.

@commonperson

Even if that´s the case the games are still there, they don´t just disapear magically just like crysis or dragons age 2, anyway i don´t know how "important" were those DLC as nobody seems to notice their absence, not to mention that no other company has complained about it.

@riesza

This sounds like BS to me.

I got stuff through the Cereberus Network (would much rather have used Steam because using Bioware's website sucks, horribly designed).

Also, EA, I DON'T want to interact with you. Know what I want to interact with? My Games and my Friends. Steam makes that easy, seriously back the eff off. People tolerate Steam because it's easy and we don't have to dick around with a bunch of crap to be able to play our games.

There's got to be more to the story here, I just finished Bioshock 2's DLC Minerva's Den on PC, which is not available on Steam (I bought it from GFWL Marketplace) and yet Bioshock 2 is available on Steam.

@Cranky Penguin,
It's not the fact that the DLC is not available on Steam, is the fact that they're trying to sell DLC through the game client instead of Steam.

@Cranky Penguin

Oh this definitely stinks. I installed my copy of Mass Effect 2 that I bought during the winter steam sale this morning, and when I went to download my Cerberus Network content, the website told me that it had already been used.

I called up EA support, and they were happy to give me a new key. But the representative on the line told me that the new key would ONLY WORK WITH AN ORIGIN COPY of the game. It turns out that he was wrong, but the fact that they went that far to push their software onto a paying customer makes me wanna puke.

EA is playing hardball. And I'm just about ready to walk away from the plate.

Doesn't Mass Effect 2 DLC work the same way? I bought ME2 day 1 from Steam and their DLC is all delivered via Bioware's website, I don't understand how this is any different.

@Valve fanboys: HAHAHAHA
I'm not incredibly pro-EA, I know they have made many questionable business decisions, but it's funny now to see the "incorruptable, always benevolent" Steam as the bad guy

@Nova17899: HAHAHAHA

Read what the people above you said. Steam is nowhere close to being the bad guy here.

@Nova17899

I'm not a valve fanboy but how in the world are they the bad guy here? EA broke a rule (possibly on purpose) and they were punished exactly the way they knew they would be. There's no bad guy here.

@Acosta02 Actually EA didn't break any rules, the rules changed after the fact. That's why games were up and then got yanked. I don't think either side is "Evil" in this equation but in the didactic brains of gamers there always has to be a bad guy and due to the patterns they so adore it's easier to fall back on EA than the "interminable under dog" Valve. What people forget is Valve is now the big boy in town so they can actually push people around.

@Nova17899 And here I thought you would root for the good guys

So, ea blames it on a Steam policy that was already existent, and even had some games to have their dlc's work under it. And now, they decided to go against it and blame steam for the game removal?

I think i'm not crazy or dumb enough to see how EA justify their actions as right yet. Better watch some Jersey Shore and try again...

I like how he words it in such a way to try and make Steam and Valve the bad guys. What they aren't telling you is this is basically how it worked for ME2, but Steam could sell the DLC for ME2 as well. They were not given the ability to this time, the in game store was being used as a way to circumvent Valve getting their cut for making sales. Being that's fairly underhanded, Steam removed the game.

@Jennacide If that's true, then why does Valve allow Bioshock 2 on Steam when their DLC is only available from the GFWL Marketplace (a kind of in game store that has nothing to do with Valve)?

@Cranky Penguin

But GFWL isn't an in-game store.

' "Unfortunately, Steam has adopted a set of restrictive terms of service which limit how developers interact with customers to sell downloadable content," EA senior VP of global online David DeMartini noted in a statement.'

I smell rubbish. Valve and Steam as a whole is famous for being incredibly lenient with their developing partners to deliver downloadable content to users. That's what Steam flipping does. I don't get it, EA. The joke isn't funny.

Someone said before that the relationship that EA has with Valve in terms of publishing could come to ruins if EA keeps up the buffoonery.

@Shadowbender

Whoa there, left my comment with a cliffhanger for some reason. I was going to end it with "I think that he/she was right".

@Shadowbender I remenber buying DLC's for Battlefield Bad Company 2 through Steam, aswell other EA games. Which means EA knew beforehand how stuff goes with Steam. Blaming a change of policy doesn't fly to me

Yep, which is CLEARLY why Mass Effect 2 isn't on Steam anymo-oh wait, it is.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/24980/

Sounds much like the showdown between Apple and big book sellers over the last few weeks.

@Courtney Not quite. That whole fight revolved around Apple forcing apps in their AppStore to have a fixed royalty price that they are required to pay to Apple on every book transaction. Apple then turned around and offered the same books for their discounted price, essentially undercutting the price they forcibly established on book selling apps with the royalty.

I'm told by devs the apps that Apple backed down on this. Probably a good idea on their part since they would've been sued into anti-compete oblivion if they'd tried to keep that up.

It looks as though EA found a loophole to get their games off of Steam

@Dance Mofo

Exactly.

While making Steam/Valve look bad to the unwashed masses.

Dr Evil is at work!

@Dance Mofo
That's most likely the reason. They obviously want as many "exclusives" as they can on Origin, but at the same time they can't just remove them without notice.

Instead, they're deliberately breaking the rules to get the games booted off Steam.

@PointlessPuppies

Oh snap. That's just evil enough to be true.

This could possibly just be a way to try to convince the average gamer that Steam isn't as reliable, benevolent or great as everyone thinks to get gamers to switch to Origin, despite EA being the one causing the mucky muck.

I'm not usually one for conspiracy theories, but this one seems possible, if not plausible.

@PointlessPuppies Good grief; they are not going to undermine their relationship with a company whom they published one of their top earning games with. Nor are they going to deliberately have their products yanked from the premiere game distribution platform on the PC. While we gamers seem to like having evil villians (Bobby Kotick for example) in this case it's probably just Legal at one side getting up in the face of Legal at the other side until it's sorted out. People just seem to be looking for excuses to call EA names.

@commonperson
Unfortunately for you, I don't really have a beef with EA.

Open your eyes. EA JUST opened their own digital distribution service, and have gone on record multiple times saying they want to compete with Steam as much as they possibly can. They know what Steam is capable of putting away in terms of sales and they want a piece of that pie.

You tell me why they're not doing anything about the removal of these games. If EA didn't have an agenda, do you SERIOUSLY believe that they're not batting an eyelash that they're getting booted off the most popular store in the entire PC platform? Do you seriously believe that they don't think they have anything to gain?

EA is guilty of inaction. They have every reason to try to keep their games on the most profitable store of the PC platform (if they didn't, why did they release those games on Steam in the first place?), but for some "mysterious reason", they aren't. You don't think this sudden disappearance of high-profile EA games and EA going "DAH OH WELLZ" isn't suspicious at all? If you don't you're highly naive.

@PointlessPuppies

If that was even close to being true then their games would be "disappearing" from all the other download services they are available on.

That's interesting because, wait, Apple's App Store has those very same restrictions. All in-app purchases must be made through Apple and not through the program. EA has made no public complaints about Apple? What's the deal?

This crap again? Ugh.

EA, just take ALL your games off, you're going to eventually anyway. Quit dancing around the obvious and just get it over with.

@zero2dash

If they do that, how can they trick people into thinking they're in the right on this?

EA just wants to pocket all the DLC money, and not give a cut to Steam. Just another case of EA giving the middle finger to the consumer.

@HappyFunBall

not really lol... just buy it off origin.... herp derp.

@HappyFunBall HOW is this a "Middle finger to the fans." They want to provide an in game venue to interact and provide DLC. They started this with Dragon Age in the people popping up and offering you missions (then routing to the DLC store.) They refined this with Mass Effect 2 and the Cerebus network, this continues in Dragon Age 2. Honestly, it's their games, they want to create a contiguous experience from front to back. Valve shouldn't block that. Really this is more a case of Valve wanting to maintain a revenue stream. And honestly, if this is "EA Breaking the rules" why has this just now become an issue when they've done this for other games in the past which are STILL on Steam. Steam needs to be consistent in message.

@commonperson

In-game, the DLC never goes on sale. The stuff you buy with Bioware points (or whatever the hell they're called) is always the same MSRP. The DLC that is purchasable through Steam does go on sale, and allows the consumer to purchase it at a reduced price.

EA is trying to get around other people selling their DLC, so they can sell it to you directly and control the price. That's the middle finger they're giving the consumer.

@commonperson

Valve isn't blocking anything. Dragon Age and mass Effect 2 were both allowed on Steam and sold their DLC in-game with no problem whatsoever. EA is doing this purposefully to gain Origin exclusives while throwing mud at it's biggest competitor.

@HappyFunBall

just buy it off origin.. herp derp

@commonperson

So you're saying a publisher should be able to upload a cheap and limited client to Steam, then use that client to scuttle money purely to themselves, while relying on Steam's prominence and infrastructure for that game to sell?

Now that Valve has added F2P games they've had to change how that is handled because these are abuses of their system. EA is wholly aware of these limitations, and had decided that pulling 100% DLC profits is better than sharing, Steam be damned. There are many ways that they could have worked together on this but it's clear that EA doesn't want to and wants to push its own service, and is using the opportunity to force Valve to look bad and toot their own horn with jingoistic language like "restricting how developers interact with customers," making themselves sound open and modern.

Meanwhile Valve can only sit there and get hammered by articles like this.

@ZTZ

Yet, the other download services seem to have no problem with allowing BioWare to distribute DLC via an in-game store.

Seems to me like Valve/Steam is the one being unreasonable and rigid, expecting publishers to have one set of rules for them, and another for everyone else.

@(Unverified)

....... you have any doubt that were the shoe on the other foot that EA would be behaving any differently than valve. If anything EA would be behaving way worse than Valve.

In fact they are ...... they don't like how valve is doing things and they can't buy Valve and run them into the ground so they are taking their ball and going home. Apparently they really don't care for how any of the other download services run things either (you know all charging their cut) so they are going to try to start up their own service .......

Really this has all the hallmarks of a spoiled child throwing a tantrum.

The levelheaded person who dwells deep within me wishes them all that they deserve, but I'm really going to be tickled when they crash and burn.

@MasterYogurt You know, I have a question for EA.

Does Valve LOOK like a b1tch?!
Then why'd you try to f4ck Valve like a b1tch, EA?

Seriously if EA continues with this behavior I swear to God that Mass Effect 3 will be the last EA title I buy!

@RX3115

EA > Valve...

Herp derp

@HedonisticKai How long have you worked for EA I notice you have been selling this "just buy it from Origin" retty hard here.

@alucard3000

Never worked for either company. Support both of them.. i was just in a trolly mood that day =)

but its pretty obvious.. EA > Valve..

Oh EA nice try blaming steam instead of admitting up front that your going to be their competition. It took steam years to build their digital empire , If you guys think you stand a chance just going to remind you Impulse(now own by gamestop) and D2D have also existed and even they having a hard time so good luck.

Well, at least they aren't blaming the fans...

| 1 | 2 | 3 | Most Recent | Next 50 Comments

Dragon Age 2

Dragon Age 2 abducted from Steam, EA points finger at 'restrictive' terms of service as the culprit

Dragon Age 2 (Legacy DLC)

Reader Comments (115)

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:33PM riesza said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:46PM Hunter141072 said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:50PM commonperson said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 10:10PM Anticrawl said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 11:18PM Hunter141072 said

Posted: Jul 29th 2011 10:18AM Sh1fty said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:33PM Cranky Penguin said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:45PM vmenge said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 5:21PM bigwhiteyeti said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:35PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:36PM Nova17899 said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:45PM ovenmittman said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:47PM Acosta02 said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:52PM commonperson said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 5:48PM Dance Mofo said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:37PM organiczero said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:38PM Jennacide said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:46PM Cranky Penguin said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:48PM Acosta02 said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:38PM Shadowbender said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:40PM Shadowbender said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:41PM organiczero said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:38PM DevilSei said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:40PM Courtney said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 11:36PM The Moof said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:40PM Dance Mofo said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:43PM Ashane said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:45PM PointlessPuppies said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:51PM Colin said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:56PM commonperson said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 8:32PM PointlessPuppies said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 9:29PM This Little Man Says His Name Is said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:47PM redcantelope said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:47PM zero2dash said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 6:20PM Gibbeynator said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:48PM HappyFunBall said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:58PM HedonisticKai said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:59PM commonperson said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 5:08PM HappyFunBall said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 5:13PM ZTZ said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 5:19PM HedonisticKai said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 5:23PM MasterYogurt said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 5:40PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 6:03PM Scuffles said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 6:16PM RX3115 said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 7:13PM HedonisticKai said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 11:47PM alucard3000 said

Posted: Jul 30th 2011 2:43PM HedonisticKai said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:49PM bargaingamer said

Posted: Jul 28th 2011 4:50PM Unreal Armos said

Dragon Age 2 Info

Description

MSRP

Release Date

Genre

Developer

Publisher

Rating

Breaking News

WB conjures up Harry Potter for Kinect this fall

Featured Stories

Weekly Webcomic Wrapup is a stranger in a strange land

Silver Lining: I Am Alive's unfeeling world

Game Of Thrones and the paradoxes of adaptation

Engadget

TUAW

Massively

WoW