Gametap only available in the States? [Archive]

anonima

10/14/2006, 04:33 pm

I don't know if there was already a thread about this, and I'm sorry if there was, but are us canucks going to have to wait until November to play the game? I was on the Gametap site today and it said it was only available in the States.

What is a canuck to do?

I just saw this too, and was a little shocked.

I must ask, though. What will happen in November that changes the situation?

As far as I know Gametap has been chosen to distribute the episodes, period.
Will they open up for the rest of the world in November?

Or is the rest of the world simply out of luck when it comes to playing the Sam&Max episodes?

I'm European myself, and was looking forward to playing these episodes.

Edit: Ok, I found the answer myself... Telltale will start distributing the game on its own.

Udvarnoky

10/14/2006, 04:48 pm

Gametap is actually launching in Canada (http://forums.adventuregamers.com/showthread.php?t=17220&page=2) on Oct. 17.

anonima

10/14/2006, 06:31 pm

Emily

10/14/2006, 06:34 pm

A little smarter? We're driving people to piracy? :(

GameTap *funded* this game. There wouldn't be a Sam & Max: Season 1 launching this year if not for them. With that in mind, it really irks me to see people saying Telltale's driving people to piracy by giving the company who made the game possible a brief exclusivity period. :( :(

After 13 years, 15 days is really not a long time to wait. Retail games often have much longer delays between North American and European releases (or vice versa).

anonima

10/14/2006, 06:54 pm

Indeed you do. I bet im not the only who doesnt understand why all fans located outside USA, arent as important. Why not just give all the people the game the 17oct. ?

Well anyhow to thread creator. You can just find a proxy server in the United States and go thru it. Then you can register on gametap.com and get the game here the 17 oct.

apignarb

10/14/2006, 06:56 pm

Don't be sad Emily, for every person that says that, there are thousands of us that don't care. We all know about the "the ones that shout loudest, are the ones who don't have a clue/the ones who are not pleased". it's like that in real life, and it really crystallizes on internet forums. not that you didn't know that allready, but i just wanted to make you smile again.

I'm getting the episodes two weeks after gametap subscribers, and i'm loving it!

Well ok, maybe not loving, but i'm pretty affectionate about it.

Let's just hope i can keep away from the forums during that period.

Haggis

10/14/2006, 06:57 pm

I'm getting the episodes two weeks after gametap subscribers, and i'm loving it!
Me too, and pirating any of Telltale's games hasn't even crossed my mind.

anonima

10/14/2006, 07:01 pm

It doesnt make it any better than other companies does it to. Because it will in the end, cause bigger piracy, because people doesnt wanna have to wait longer than some other, just because we arent located in the states, especially not when its an online download game. Where the reason lies for you're choice to give it to the people of the states first i dont know.

I just think next time you should stick to releasing the episodes on youre sites and giving it to all the fans at the same time instead of making a difference on us. :(

anonima

10/14/2006, 07:05 pm

didn say i was going to pirate the game, just stated it leades to bigger piracy. Im going thru a proxy server an downloading the game legit from gametap.com here the oct 17. dont wanna wait 2 weeks because im in Denmark. I always support good games. It just makes no sence they should have us waiting for 2 weeks. When there arent any media / cd's that has to me made and deliveret out to the countries.

Haggis

10/14/2006, 07:08 pm

Where the reason lies for you're choice to give it to the people of the states first i dont know.
Emily already explained that quite clearly. GameTap gave a big bag of money to Telltale so that they could make a game in 3D instead of a game where Sam and Max are stick figures, a game with great music instead of a game where the designers sing some tunes and record it to wav files, and a game that is easily distributed over the Internet, instead of a game that they have to ship across the Atlantic - with homing pigeons... drunk homing pigeons... drunk homing pigeons with families... drunk homing pigeons with families and a gambling problem...

Okay, okay, that's a bit over the top, but in exchange for that money, GameTap slammed their fist on the table, demanding that they get to release the game a whole fortnight before the rest of the world can get it. And rightly so. After all, they gave Telltale a huge bag, filled to the brim with shiny dubloons. So we should be thankful that GameTap even allowed Telltale to publish the game on their own web site as well.

And two weeks isn't all that long, when you think that other companies sometimes have months of delay between game/console releases in several territories.

anonima

10/14/2006, 07:37 pm

Man... people gets this upset about two weeks... Gee... :-/ Really Silly!
Haggis, I agree with you, we should be happy (I AM HAPPY :D ) that Gametap supports Telltale... Soon it is 1st Nov and I will be playing Sam and Max via Telltale now (and NOT some crazy proxy server....) I have waited a long time for this game... Can wait 2 more weeks! Again thx telltale for a new SAM & MAX!

Jake

10/14/2006, 07:39 pm

a game where Sam and Max are stick figures, [...] a game where the designers sing some tunes and record it to wav files[...] have to ship across the Atlantic - with homing pigeons... drunk homing pigeons... drunk homing pigeons with families... drunk homing pigeons with families and a gambling problem...

Actually that sounds like a pretty good game!

anonima

10/14/2006, 09:56 pm

Just be happy with GAMETAP. Don't bite the hand that feeds you, bru. Like, check it out okes. You being bookals. GAMETAP put money in a place for TT to make a game, and now you tuning GT are the bad okes?! Nooit bru. No wonder the industry is so bookalsed about funding things like these, you tuning one times skeefies china. Eish. YOU LACK TEH FUNNY.

anonima

10/14/2006, 10:07 pm

People are upset because we can't get GameTap simply because we are from overseas.. Americans have a choice..get gametap and get it early or wait.. we don't

anonima

10/14/2006, 10:42 pm

Serves us right for not living there! :D

Seriously, though, I don't see the problem. I mean, uh... Testers get to play the game earlier too. Right? ... Yeah.

--Erwin

anonima

10/15/2006, 02:27 pm

Hey bru, make your flippen' BAD TIMING game. Waiting for the right time? Sounds like L-A-Z-Y to me. I visited your website. I'll bet R100.00 that game will never see the light of day.

Prove me wrong, prove me wrong.

More on topic: Ya. GAMETAP. A necessary evil. Did you know George Bush has a stake in GAMETAP and it was his idea to make SAM & MAX availble for US residents only?

anonima

10/15/2006, 03:55 pm

anonima

10/15/2006, 04:37 pm

WHY ARE SO MANY PEOPLE FREAKING OUT ABOUT HAVING TO WAIT TILL NOVEMBER! You'll save loads of money getting them individually! And Gametap isn't all that great. So just wait like me. I'm not complaining.

STOP FREAKING OUT BRU! Hey, nobody here is freaking out!

SHEEZ! IDIOTS! TAKE A CHILL PILL BUDDY! I'M ALSO WAITING, BUT I'M NOT GOING BANANAS LIKE YOU!

JUST CHILL PUNK!

anonima

10/15/2006, 05:15 pm

WHY ARE SO MANY PEOPLE FREAKING OUT ABOUT HAVING TO WAIT TILL NOVEMBER! You'll save loads of money getting them individually! And Gametap isn't all that great. So just wait like me. I'm not complaining.

Actually, I'm intending to get the bundle from TellTale (then I get the a hard copy too (yay!) - So I'd have to wait even if GameTap was available in the UK.

Having said that, I've gotta agree with you man - People seem to be getting this way out of context -

Take a moment, step back from this and re-evaluate the situation - Do ya see now? Thats right; it's a freaking video game! It's supposed to be fun, not an obsession.

It's a form of entertainment to distract you from all the other things that make life worth while, like, being rejected by women, working in an unfulfilling, meaningless, high pressure job to ensure you can afford the latest heavily marketed product which your under the mistaken belief you want because the advertising marketing campaign beats you into submission by repeatedly telling you over and over again how much you desire and want the product, developing deep seated emotional neurosis and complexes, believing any/all news coverage at face value due to being conditioned to listening to music, tone and keywords instead of what the reporter/newscaster is actually saying, conforming as much as possible with the a social mindset that defines morality by the current marketing & fashion direction, and tells you that you are an individual as long as you buy the same clothes, food and gadgets as everyone else you know, being deeply unfulfilled and unhappy, which due to laziness and an atrophied skill of self-defined purpose and fear of social rejection, you attempt to fix as quickly as possible through purchased distractions and media sensationalism rather than any true attempt to understand who you are, what you are genuinely looking for in life, and so on and so forth, with maybe a few other ideas I've seen people on late night T.V. rant about over the past ten years that I can palm off as my own....

I guess you could always take up a hobby while you wait - how about smoking? Keeping the art alive baby!

(Anyone you're are going a pirate a game because you have to wait two weeks for it to become available? - This kinda reminds me of that reviewer on IGN who rates games lower if they are released in Europe before their released in the U.S.)

Udvarnoky

10/15/2006, 05:49 pm

I'd be pissed too, really, but people need to realize that this isn't an issue of localization or of either company wanting to screw over international customers. If Gametap funded the game, then we have them to thank for getting Sam & Max at all. Also from the sounds of it they might have been the only publisher who understood and appreciated the license enough to let it even be an adventure game. I know little about how this stuff works, but I'd imagine that a partner that not only gives financial support but respects the game enough to give it the necessary amount of creative freedom isn't easy to come by. Considering that, and the fact that Gametap is a subscription service business, getting a 15 day exclusive period for the game they paid for seems pretty reasonable. The downside is they're not yet international but the trade-off is probably worth it, plus the gap between the worldwide release is a lot smaller than with most games (even if ideally there'd be none at all). Also I suspect a lot of US fans will wait until Nov. 1 anyway so that they can buy and own the game instead of essentially renting it. The facts suggest that it makes more sense for Sam & Max fans to see Gametap in a positive light.

I happen to already be a Gametap subscriber, so I'll be getting the best of both worlds. Feel free to shift all the anger to me, because I'm sure going to be gloating enough to earn it.

anonima

10/15/2006, 06:27 pm

yeah i know. it sucks badly, they kinda **** on their fans with that. But in the end it will only cause bigger piracy of the game. Because seriously why do we have to wait longer, just because we dont live in USA. A fair company would release to all the people at the same time, instead of this USA first.

Hope telltale will be just alittle smarter next time..

Come on, it's just two weeks. Next to nothing really. Hardly a reason to even think about pirating a game.

Would id be in excess of a couple of months I might agree that you have something of a point there, but with two weeks - no.

Pvt._Public

10/16/2006, 03:42 am

The only real problem I have with the two week wait is that I'm going to be fighting myself the whole time to go and check out various forums and reviews or else they'll probably ruin some puzzles and parts of the game. In the meantime I'll have enough time to try to finish Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines which is pretty good so far apart from the occasional crashing back to desktop when going into new areas.

Also, I'm mostly annoyed that I can't get gametap outside of America because there are a lot of old games I would have to pay an obscene amount of cash for to buy otherwise which the service happily pimps away with little to no fanfare.

anonima

10/16/2006, 09:39 am

Pvt._Public

10/17/2006, 04:05 am

Is there really not enough porn on the net to keep you entertained for two weeks? B-)

Possible Answers:

1.) Hell no, ain't enough porn in the entire world to entertain me for two whole weeks!

2.) Good gracious no, I could never sodomize my vast intellectual mind with something so filthy as pornography!

3.) What ees thees porn? I no speaka the englandese very well.

4.) Nope, I've seen pretty much everything the internet has to offer.

5.) There's not enough snail related pornography for my liking.

6.) No comment.

Think of some more yourselves (bearing in mind that this site is meant to be child friendly)!

anonima

10/17/2006, 09:08 pm

Alright. Why have you been speaking of a release in October when the world-wide release is in November? I'm really really frustrated now. Seriously, you are trying my patience.

Why aren't there _any_ good publishers in this world? (speaking about Gametap) Their sole goal seems to be to make customers mad and get money.

I will see. Eventually I'll buy the game in November. Eventually not. The reviews say that the difficulty of the game is too low
anyways..

Legolas813

10/17/2006, 09:25 pm

Please.

Of course their goal is to make money. They are a business! Gametap has been good to us adventure gamers by making a game like Sam and Max possible.

The wait is two weeks. There really is no reason to complain.

anonima

10/17/2006, 09:48 pm

It would have been okay if they just would have said that all non-US people must wait until november when they hyped the release. I don't remember anything about that. Just a "Sam & Max available in the middle of October!" newsletter.

And sure, their goal is to make money. But do all publishers have to destroy the joy of gaming by being idiots? Has anybody here heard about Lucasarts? There are thousands of examples..

anonima

10/17/2006, 10:00 pm

It would have been okay if they just would have said that all non-US people must wait until november when they hyped the release. I don't remember anything about that. Just a "Sam & Max available in the middle of October!" newsletter.

As I remember it was written in quite bold letters and was advertised over and over. I do not say 'read the small letters', I do say - try to read after the second line.

And sure, their goal is to make money. But do all publishers have to destroy the joy of gaming by being idiots? Has anybody here heard about Lucasarts? There are thousands of examples..
now... canceling the Sam&Max game is being idiot, but delaying the worldwide release in two weeks?
gee... it's just a a game, and usually it takes more than two weeks after the release to get a standard boxed game in europe.

anonima

10/18/2006, 12:10 am

So ummm.. what was wrong with Steam? I'm sure that Gabe Newell would have chucked you just a big fat swagbag as gametap did. I'm prety sure that Steam has a bigger install base than gametap as well. In all seriousness, he hired the NuclearMonkey team to make Portal on the strength of the 3 level game/techdemo Narbacular Drop, so surely the devs that have the license for Sam & Max are worth some serious consideration?

Still, I suppose that you have "Premier Content" status on their service, which is nice for you and raises your profile somwhat. Not that you needed it that much, slashdot and 1up have pimped you like mad from your 1st press relaese onwards.

Anyrate, you guys obviously missed the lectures about the Consumer Generation. We were programmed by marketing companies since the early 80's to have massive desire for anything which happens to catch our imagination and subsequently told that we can have it all right now. This of course leads to massive frustration when companies build up your desire for a product, then don't let you have it. I remember a time when they advertised stuff, then you went out and bought it. It was a nice simple transaction and everybody won. We got our product, you got our money. These days, it's nothing like that simple. Product advertising is done months ahead of time, albums and singles have charted on airplay 2 weeks before their shop release, all manner of product gets oversold and underproduced leading to consumers waiting on mfr backorders for weeks or months. The amount of frustration for the people who have been programmed to want everything now is unreal.

Anyrate, you have released a digital download to about 1/3 of your intended market 2 weeks before the rest of the world can buy it. I would expect to see cracked versions on torrents within 48 hours. Given that you've just told everyone else that they're not as important as the US, which is a massive kick in the teeth for us all, you just stacked up the weights against you on the "hassle of finding a pirate copy" vs. "time to wait for a legit copy" scales. Honestly, who in their right mind is going to go to the hassle of finding a pirate copy of a game when you can get it off steam and be gaurenteed of playing it within a few minutes of it's global release?

So, the key points of this rant:

a) Use the available tools at your disposal to globalize.

b) Serve the consumer, it's your job to please us.

-Amphetamine

Heatherlee

10/18/2006, 01:24 am

Anyrate, you have released a digital download to about 1/3 of your intended market 2 weeks before the rest of the world can buy it. I would expect to see cracked versions on torrents within 48 hours. Given that you've just told everyone else that they're not as important as the US, which is a massive kick in the teeth for us all, you just stacked up the weights against you on the "hassle of finding a pirate copy" vs. "time to wait for a legit copy" scales.

So, the key points of this rant:

a) Use the available tools at your disposal to globalize.

b) Serve the consumer, it's your job to please us.

-Amphetamine

Hi Amphetamine...

I'm sorry you feel disappointed and I'm really sorry you have interpreted events this way. I wish GameTap was worldwide. Next year they will be and this will blissfully be an issue of the past. I wish everyone could play the game at the same time because that would be more fair and I know we have rabid fans in Europe for whom we have nothing but love. It saddens me that the Europeans are not feelin the love.

But the love will come! Hang in there!

a) We do our best.
b) Its our job to make and distribute games. Its in our best interests to please the consumers. :) We try, and we'll keep right on trying till the whole world is brimming with glee.

Pvt._Public

10/18/2006, 04:12 am

Hey, fellas, if you want to go and complain about the advertising by Gametap, go and complain to gametap. Still, I have to say that it stung when I went to the Telltale main page and saw the huge ol' "PLAY SAM AND MAX EARLY" sign plastered there by Gametap.

anonima

10/18/2006, 04:24 am

anonima

10/18/2006, 06:02 am

I do feel for those who litereally can't access gametap, but I've said this before and I'll say it again:

You should be thankfull for that two-week gap. Without it, the game may not even exist.

I actually think two weeks is pretty small considering the extent to which Gametap would love to claim the game as "exclusive content."

anonima

10/18/2006, 11:17 am

Possible Answers:

1.) Hell no, ain't enough porn in the entire world to entertain me for two whole weeks!

2.) Good gracious no, I could never sodomize my vast intellectual mind with something so filthy as pornography!

3.) What ees thees porn? I no speaka the englandese very well.

4.) Nope, I've seen pretty much everything the internet has to offer.

5.) There's not enough snail related pornography for my liking.

6.) No comment.

Think of some more yourselves (bearing in mind that this site is meant to be child friendly)!

Dammit - That's a really good reply B-)

anonima

10/18/2006, 11:18 am

Do you have any idea how childish you sound?
Trying your patience? IT'S A GAME!

It's a game that easily can be downloaded from the Internet at any time as soon as it's ready (as opposed to other games that must be shipped etc.).
But I'm not allowed to download it since I live in the wrong place. That's annoying, especially since I've been waiting for that "day in the middle of October" for a long time.

Sure, it's just a game. But the game costs money, and my interest of this game has been decreasing for a while now. That's not because I'm childish, it's because of other things that catches my interest. I'm not a millionaire so I can't buy every new game that gets released. However, I WAS indeed planning to buy Sam&Max yesterday....but something got in the way.

Legolas813

10/18/2006, 02:40 pm

Well it's your own fault for thinking the worldwide release was October 17. Telltale has not been keeping these release dates secret. Do a little research next time.

anonima

10/18/2006, 07:33 pm

Hi Amphetamine...

I'm sorry you feel disappointed and I'm really sorry you have interpreted events this way. I wish GameTap was worldwide. Next year they will be and this will blissfully be an issue of the past. I wish everyone could play the game at the same time because that would be more fair and I know we have rabid fans in Europe for whom we have nothing but love. It saddens me that the Europeans are not feelin the love.

But the love will come! Hang in there!

a) We do our best.
b) Its our job to make and distribute games. Its in our best interests to please the consumers. :) We try, and we'll keep right on trying till the whole world is brimming with glee.

Hi, sorry, I was a little harsh there. Guess listening to too much MSI had driven my angst levels into the danger zone.

In all seriousness though, why not Steam. It's the best online distribution service available and I can't see why anyone would want to distribute content via any other means.

I see this little scenario in my head every time I think about it:

Gabe Newell "So, you guys are here to talk about a game then?"

TTG Team "Yeah, we've got the license for Sam & Max and want to make a new graphic adventure in an episodic format."

Gabe Newell *presses intercom buzzer* "Linda? Have some lackys bring up a big sack of money and a pile of contracts. Oh, and have a fleet of Porches ordered and work on a press release so big that you'd have to be on mars to miss it"

TTG Team "Yayy!"

Maybe it wouldn't happen exactly like that, but it's a nice thought. I know you guys might not have felt at home sat next to HL2 and SiN, but You'd have the Popcap games to keep you company and who could wish for more than that?!

I am seriously interested as to why you'd take Gametap over Steam though, the equation doesn't add up in my head. Vavle love episodic content, and you've got a license under your belt that carries a lot of positive history.

On the subject of licenses, well done for getting this one back on the road as it were, there's too many old licenses that are being sat on by companies who will never do what the fans want with them. Like Microsoft/FASA holding the licenses for Shadowrun and Battletech and not listening to the thousands of mails that they had begging to make some new RPG's from them, or even Games Workshop producing a Warhammer Fantasy MMORPG instead of making WH40k at a time when the market is flooded with high fantasy games in that genre and people are crying out for more Scifi and Cyberpunk games.

Anyrate, congrats on doing somthing good with the license, I look forward to playing the game, eventually.

As for everyone that's telling people to calm down because it's just a game: When I see things that I think are wrong, I'll shout about them and try to raise as much hell as I can in the hope that someone will pay attention and things will change for the better. If you are happy to keep quiet when you see things that you think are wrong then feel free to do so, but also keep quiet when other people are trying to draw enough attention to get them changed.

Rant for the day over.

anonima

10/18/2006, 08:01 pm

My guess would be that Telltale wants to become a publisher of their own later on when they grow as a company. GameTap might've shown more interest in Sam & Max than Steam and/or offered a better contract. Who knows, Steam might've even wanted a more binding contract and if in fact TellTale wants to publish their own games in the future alone if possible, the contract would've been something TTG wasn't up for.

Speculation, speculation - but there has to have been some reason it's on GameTap and not Steam. I don't really care for it either way as I'm going to buy it straight from TTG anyways.

Udvarnoky

10/18/2006, 08:23 pm

I can only make guesses here, but I'd think the reason Sam & Max will not be on Steam is because Telltale has its own digital distribution system - Telltale Now. The reason it's also on Gametap (which I'd argue is not the same kind of service as Telltale Now or Steam), and the reason Gametap is premiering it, is because Gametap co-produced it, which is probably a less blunt way of saying they helped finance it.

You make it sound like you know Valve offered Telltale an ideal agreement and a boatload of money (or, for that matter, that they even talked at all) and that they refused it not because of important underlying reasons but simply because they didn't know any better.

A Telltale representative is the only person who could tell us the nitty gritty details involved with selecting their partner, but that's unlikely, and, really, unnecessary, because the reasons given make enough sense on their own. Nothing I'm about to say is necessarily factual, but darn it, if you can speculate then I can too ( :p ):

1) The way I see it, Valve is a competitor of Telltale. Telltale's trying to establish themselves as their own digital distribution system. It wouldn't make sense to give up control of their property to another company doing the exact same thing. From what I gather Telltale's trying to be as much a publisher as a developer. While for us consumers it would be convenient for there to be one single service for all digitally distributed games, a company has the right to sell their own games their own way without having to give up sales, creative control, or whatever compromises are inevitably made in such a contract.

2) Apparently funding was needed for the independently developed Sam & Max, so collaboration was necessary. According to Telltale they talked to a lot of partners before choosing Gametap, and I'd imagine Telltale would know more than you or I which deal would be best for them. Gametap is indeed a digital distribution service, but a totally different kind. They're a subscription service that mainly boasts itself as a kind of gaming library, with exclusive content (Sam & Max being the first) serving as added enticement for potential subscribers. The Gametap spokesman in that "Making of Sam & Max" interview described Gametap as an HBO with Sam & Max being their "Tales of the Crypt."

3) What appears to be the case is that in exchange for creative freedom and money for the game, as well as Telltale getting to retain control of their product, Gametap gets to showcase the game 15 days early. That seems very fair and makes a ton of sense in context. The fact the Gametap is not yet worldwide is unfortunate, but a two week delay is probably better than partnering with a company that mandates Sam & Max be a driving game (which may be an exaggeration but this was suggested in a Kevin Bruner interview).

4) We can't just assume that any theoretical contract between Valve and Telltale would have been the overall best situation for the game, for Telltale, and for the players.

So instead of equating the fact that Sam & Max is on Gametap two weeks before its full release with a slap in the face to Gabe Newell or the international gaming public, you should consider the possibility that Telltale had more on their minds than trying to personally piss you off when they were deciding who to join forces with for producing the games.

Of course, it's not like I can blame a lot of people who've complained about this. It's not every gamer's job to research the details of the publishing contracts for a game they want to buy - all they know is they're being screwed out of seeing a Sam & Max game for two weeks. In that light, knee-jerk reactions are expected. But I hope more people come to realize that the whole Gametap thing was probably for good reason.

And that's my rant for the day. (Hey, what else is there to do as long as Mojo's down?)

EDIT: Ack, Linque beat me! And, unlike me, avoided being overwrought. :)

Udvarnoky

10/18/2006, 08:45 pm

Who knows, Steam might've even wanted a more binding contract and if in fact TellTale wants to publish their own games in the future alone if possible, the contract would've been something TTG wasn't up for.

I think this is worth pointing out because in a Telltale interview from...maybe six months ago, Dan Connors was talking about the importance of having full ownership of their products so that their games could still make money for them in years to come. If someone discovers Out from Boneville 10 years from now, that's another sale for Telltale, a definite advantage of being an independent. And there's no doubt that this is most effective for story-driven games given they age much better than other genres. If LucasArts had the recognition to put their old classics like Monkey Island up on their site for pay download from the day they went out of print, I guarantee it would have made them, in the long-term, a significant amount of money. No, it wouldn't have been some immediate, gigantic source of revenue, but it would have been a consistent money-maker methinks. There's a market...you still see people, not in droves, but at any given time there's one or two people who go around forums asking where they can find a copy of Sam & Max Hit the Road or Monkey Island 1, and they're told their choices are: buying a grossly overpriced copy on ebay, or getting it illegally. With Telltale's games, long-term sales are probably as important, maybe even more important, than first week sales.

anonima

10/18/2006, 11:22 pm

A Telltale representative is the only person who could tell us the nitty gritty details involved with selecting their partner, but that's unlikely, and, really, unnecessary, because the reasons given make enough sense on their own. Nothing I'm about to say is necessarily factual, but darn it, if you can speculate then I can too ( tongue ):

Well, indeed, but I thought I'd ask one anyway.

And I never said anything like Valve would definately have offerend them a great deal off the bat, but it would be unlikely for them not to offer somthing good under the circumstances in my opinion.

Anyhow, am off to play Insaniquarium. I <3 Popcap. Who incidentally have their own online districution but still used Steam because they could reach a much wider audience due to the massive install base.

Anyhow, all online distribution is good provided it will be done right (Unlimited re-downloads and ability to play at times when you have no net connection available are a must). Every step that takes us further away from archaic disk protection schemes and typing in badly printed cd keys from an undisclosed location somwhere in the packaging is a step worth taking.

anonima

10/19/2006, 01:18 am

My only problem with this is whatever way you look at it. This is casual discrimination based solely upon where you live.

It isnt just Telltale who are guilty of it and to be fair it isnt 100% their fault that Gametap are US only. But you think they would have done better research beforehand before doing this. In todays modern society where information can be sent from one side of the world to the other in a few seconds rather than a few weeks, this kind of discrimination is totally unneccesary. The movie industry is slowly starting to realise this. More and more movies boast their "Simultaneous worldwide release".
This is good for the audience AND the movie company. The audience dont feel cheated and the movie company profits more because people who would have had to wait for a release are less likely to say "Screw em ill just pirate it"
It simply generates bad feelings all round to have something available to one group but not to another.

Just my 2 PENCE!

anonima

10/19/2006, 08:55 am

It's a game that easily can be downloaded from the Internet at any time as soon as it's ready (as opposed to other games that must be shipped etc.).

But I'm not allowed to download it since I live in the wrong place. That's annoying, especially since I've been waiting for that "day in the middle of October" for a long time.

Dude - to reiterate previous posters - IT'S A GAME!
That you have become so excited about having to wait 2 WEEKS for a video game to be released, that you are publically contenplating piracy seems more than a little extreme (actually it sounds like you 'really' need to get laid man, I mean c'mon get a little perspective here - It's 2-3 hours entertainment your crying over here)

& as Tell-Tale have already stated, if GameTap drop them a bundle of cash for two weeks exclusivity - By waiting two weeks you get to play a new S&M game - If they hadn't accepted GameTaps offer, there would be no S&M game at all

That's not because I'm childish,
Yes dude, yes it is.

it's because of other things that catches my interest. I'm not a millionaire so I can't buy every new game that gets released. However, I WAS indeed planning to buy Sam&Max yesterday....but something got in the way.

Nothing has gotten in your way - Man, I know it sounds like I'm ragging on you here & I'm sorry, but if you've so little else going on in your life that your getting this wound up over a two week delay, then you really need to take a step back and re-evaluate what kind of life you've set up for yourself here.

(besides, if you've only limited funds for game buying, another two weeks can be used to build up the anticipation for whe you do get your hands on it and allow you to start saving your cash for the next game you are after - S&M Episode 1 isn't a long game in itself)

anonima

10/19/2006, 09:09 am

Stupid film festivals that let people see movies before the rest of the world. DAMN THEM!

How about we pretend the game isn't even out yet and that November 1st is the real release.
Horay! Everything's back to normal!

(As soon as episode 2 comes out (and beyond), the whole gametap complaining thing will be gone (mostly) because everyone (gametappers /rest of world) will both have exactly one month between releases.)

anonima

10/19/2006, 07:11 pm

I admit that I was one of the many people who grumbled and groaned when GameTap was the only place to get Sam and Max on release. I ended up getting a free month trial for Gametap just to play it. But the service itself is really well done. I spent more time last night playing the old sierra classics - space quest, kings quest, and quest for glory than I did playing the new S & M.

The service is really great - they just need to make it available in other countries. It's a shame that customers lining up for a chance to pay need to wait 2 wee...erm it's only 12 days now.

Hold on guys, it's worth the wait - funny as can be.

anonima

10/19/2006, 07:12 pm

sorry other world wide fans, but canada is supported by gametap, we are having prob.'s with canadian zip codes with letters in it, but even that will be fixed shortly, we are planning to expand to the other countries, asap.

expanding the grounds at which we play on!

anonima

10/20/2006, 10:22 am

IronCladChicken: I've never said anything about piracy. Stop putting words into my mouth.

If I don't buy the game, I simply wont play it.

anonima

10/20/2006, 03:20 pm

Maratanos

10/22/2006, 08:33 pm

I'm kindof a latecomer here, but there's several things I'd like to point out.

These people you are talking about who will pirate the games because internationals can't get it early...

will have to be pretty persistent piraters. Trust me. The exe file for the game, as it is run on your computer, is located at the UNC address \\.\TGN131000150\Sam & Max - Culture Shock.exe, which as far as I can tell, is RELATIVE to something (you know, like ..)

I'd like to know if a single one of you who isn't a part of GameTap has any clue how to access this file...

You see, GameTap stores it's game data encrypted TWICE, until it is time for the game to be played, at which point it decrypts it to the aforementioned UNC address, which is not listed in the file allocation table...

Unless you know exactly how to decrypt it, or brute force the decryption (which probably takes more than two weeks on any computer available to people who are willing to do it), or know how to access the game while it's stored decrypted, you probably won't be able to release this game pirated...

And I have to say, finally, that people don't pirate games because they want to play them early. They pirate games because they want to play them FREE... I think it is more likely that piraters will be willing to wait 2 weeks until they can buy a copy, which will be MUCH easier to pirate...