Kingdom Come: Deliverance II - Henry's coming to see us on February 4th

[Gargaune]

It's sad that I have to ask this nowadays, but will this "Collector's Edition" include... the game? As in a standalone, DRM-free copy that one might actually own?

 

[DKunit]

It's sad that I have to ask this nowadays, but will this "Collector's Edition" include... the game? As in a standalone, DRM-free copy that one might actually own?

The console versions come with a physical copy, but the PC version does not. It still includes the game, but just a game box with a Steam code.

 

[Paul_cz]

The console versions come with a physical copy, but the PC version does not. It still includes the game, but just a game box with a Steam code.

Afaik Steam version of KCD1 is DRM-free so once you download it, you can make a backup and run it without Steam. Maybe the same will be the case with KCD2.

 

[Mortmal]

Looks overall better and more fun than the first

Does it? It looks exactly the same to me, for better or worse.

That's a good thing.

This could legit become GOTY if it doesn't launch with retarded bugs like the first game

The best time to play Kingdom Come is now. It’s bug-free, has tons of DLCs, and you can get a key for everything at just 7 euros. Plus, with the HD pack, it looks gorgeous fully maxed out in 4K on the latest hardware. Unfortunately, I think it will be the same for KC2.

 

[Toffeli]

It's sad that I have to ask this nowadays, but will this "Collector's Edition" include... the game? As in a standalone, DRM-free copy that one might actually own?

The console versions come with a physical copy, but the PC version does not. It still includes the game, but just a game box with a Steam code.

Well if it's only Steam and not GOG I think I pass.

 

[Paul_cz]

Well if it's only Steam and not GOG I think I pass.

It will be on GOG just not at launch. But again, steam version is likely to be DRM-Free just like the GOG one.

 

[Infinitron]

 

[Gargaune]

The console versions come with a physical copy, but the PC version does not. It still includes the game, but just a game box with a Steam code.

So... no.

Afaik Steam version of KCD1 is DRM-free so once you download it, you can make a backup and run it without Steam. Maybe the same will be the case with KCD2.

Even if that turns out to be the case, it's still idiotic, you're supposedly paying premium for a "Collector's Edition", not an IKEA nightstand. I don't get publishers anymore, they could just hand out Steam keys on release with a complete physical CE delivered within the year (with basic patching done, to boot), by which point their shit will be cracked anyway. But I especially don't get why anyone would buy a "Collector's Edition" missing the very centrepiece, this level of vapid consumerism is utterly braindead.

 

[Zariusz]

Yeah I will be getting that CE thanks. My collection needs refreshing.

Heh, it looks like Theresa is not happy with this view.

 

[Quillon]

Henry needs friends, he's in a gang, its called the devil's pack.. hm, I wonder if there'll be some campsite and/or base mechanics like in RDR2/band of bastards dlc?

 

[Paul_cz]

Even if that turns out to be the case, it's still idiotic, you're supposedly paying premium for a "Collector's Edition", not an IKEA nightstand. I don't get publishers anymore, they could just hand out Steam keys on release with a complete physical CE delivered within the year (with basic patching done, to boot), by which point their shit will be cracked anyway. But I especially don't get why anyone would buy a "Collector's Edition" missing the very centrepiece, this level of vapid consumerism is utterly braindead.

I don't quite get you, I mean most people (like 99% would by my guess) prefer Steam version and that's why it is included. And if it is DRM-free then there is no problem even for the "must be able to back up" purists. I don't even have DVD/bluray drive in my PC anyway.

 

[thesecret1]

I don't even have DVD/bluray drive in my PC anyway.

I think that may be the reason. DVDs and the like are seeming more and more like relics of the past akin to floppy disks.

 

[Alienman]

Even if that turns out to be the case, it's still idiotic, you're supposedly paying premium for a "Collector's Edition", not an IKEA nightstand. I don't get publishers anymore, they could just hand out Steam keys on release with a complete physical CE delivered within the year (with basic patching done, to boot), by which point their shit will be cracked anyway. But I especially don't get why anyone would buy a "Collector's Edition" missing the very centrepiece, this level of vapid consumerism is utterly braindead.

I don't quite get you, I mean most people (like 99% would by my guess) prefer Steam version and that's why it is included. And if it is DRM-free then there is no problem even for the "must be able to back up" purists. I don't even have DVD/bluray drive in my PC anyway.

Could get a code, and an actual “DRM free” version that works from the disc. Would please both. Buying the dvd version of Steam games just feels meaningless, even for the extra fluff.

I just mean, you are not getting the complete package with it only being a code. You are only paying for the extras, not to actually have a working disc, if Steam would ever go away, or maybe internet.

 

[thesecret1]

You are only paying for the extras, not to actually have a working disc, if Steam would ever go away, or maybe internet.

Since it's DRM-free, can't you just copy it on an SSD (or burn it on a DVD if you so wish)?

 

[Hag]

Heh, it looks like Theresa is not happy with this view.

Don't fuck with Theresa.

 

[Alienman]

You are only paying for the extras, not to actually have a working disc, if Steam would ever go away, or maybe internet.

Since it's DRM-free, can't you just copy it on an SSD (or burn it on a DVD if you so wish)?

I guess, I could, but it wouldn't be anything official

 

[WhiskeyWolf]

 

[Gargaune]

Even if that turns out to be the case, it's still idiotic, you're supposedly paying premium for a "Collector's Edition", not an IKEA nightstand. I don't get publishers anymore, they could just hand out Steam keys on release with a complete physical CE delivered within the year (with basic patching done, to boot), by which point their shit will be cracked anyway. But I especially don't get why anyone would buy a "Collector's Edition" missing the very centrepiece, this level of vapid consumerism is utterly braindead.

I don't quite get you, I mean most people (like 99% would by my guess) prefer Steam version and that's why it is included. And if it is DRM-free then there is no problem even for the "must be able to back up" purists. I don't even have DVD/bluray drive in my PC anyway.

Could get a code, and an actual “DRM free” version that works from the disc. Would please both. Buying the dvd version of Steam games just feels meaningless, even for the extra fluff.

I just mean, you are not getting the complete package with it only being a code. You are only paying for the extras, not to actually have a working disc, if Steam would ever go away, or maybe internet.

This is it. "Buying" a Steam game is by definition a disposable expenditure - contrary to public expectations up to this point, you're not actually purchasing a copy of the product for personal use, but merely renting indefinite (or, rather, vaguely defined) access to it, subject to other dependencies and third party factors.

So buying a "premium" Collector's Edition where the very centrepiece that all the other fluff orbits - the videogame itself - is a disposable component, is just an absurd instance of brainless consumerism. You're not getting some complete, "prestige" package to sit on your shelf and revisit at your discretion after years and decades, the most important part of your collectible is still in the hands of a third party online service and their discretionary post-launch treatment of it.

Even if a given title doesn't implement Steam DRM, it's still a crappy proposition for a Collector's Edition to have to "complete" it burning your own off-brand backup discs with no setup. Tolerable for a regular edition (as in, they're actually letting you have a copy), but not for a premium purchase, and it's entirely unnecessary - just include an official set of discs in the box, alongside the Steam code. If you're not worried about DRM anyway, you don't even have to delay the CE deliveries. And no, it's no issue having "two copies" of the game in the CE (the Steam code and the discs) because these things don't sell in such high volume and their purchasers are the least likely to cheat you, so it wouldn't make a dent in your bottom line.

 

[Paul_cz]

This is it. "Buying" a Steam game is by definition a disposable expenditure - contrary to public expectations up to this point, you're not actually purchasing a copy of the product for personal use, but merely renting indefinite (or, rather, vaguely defined) access to it, subject to other dependencies and third party factors.

This is only the case for games that use DRM on steam. KCD does not. Once you download it, you can delete steam from your PC and it will work, you can copy it to your dozens of home PCs and it will work on all of them.

Anyway, you are (no offense) an old man shouting at clouds. The DVD ship has sailed years ago, no amount of whinging is going to change that at this point. Yes it would be nice if that wasn't the case, but convenience already won.

 

[Gargaune]

This is it. "Buying" a Steam game is by definition a disposable expenditure - contrary to public expectations up to this point, you're not actually purchasing a copy of the product for personal use, but merely renting indefinite (or, rather, vaguely defined) access to it, subject to other dependencies and third party factors.

This is only the case for games that use DRM on steam. KCD does not. Once you download it, you can delete steam from your PC and it will work, you can copy it to your dozens of home PCs and it will work on all of them.

Anyway, you are (no offense) an old man shouting at clouds. The DVD ship has sailed years ago, no amount of whinging is going to change that at this point. Yes it would be nice if that wasn't the case, but convenience already won.

Dude, I addressed this in the rest of my post, why only reply to this particular bit? You're missing the point - while I'll happily shout at clouds over the demise of consumer rights in general, yes, the topic here is a Collector's Edition that doesn't actually include the core item you're "collecting." Even relative to the dismal contemporary landscape of videogame "ownership", this is taking a big step forward down Stupid Lane, you should have exceptional expectations of an exceptional, "luxury" purchase.

And I'm not picking on KCD2 in particular, I asked the same about Dragon Age: Failguard's "Collector's Edition, Trust Me Bro." The difference being that I was being snarky about that one, whereas Warhorse is one of the very few major modern studios I could've maybe, just maybe, imagined doing a proper CE. And you shouldn't take a defeatist "ship's sailed" attitude about it either - if you were gonna buy the CE, don't, and instead whinge loudly and proudly that you don't see a CE without the game as good value, and if enough people take the same position, maybe publishers will eventually take another look at the issue. Ships only sail so long with an empty cargo.

 

[Paul_cz]

here is a Collector's Edition that doesn't actually include the core item you're "collecting.

My point is, for most people - like 99% probably, myself included - this simply isn't true, because we actually prefer the Steam version over discs. What would I do with discs? When I do not have and do not intend to have a DVD drive ever again? Yes it would be nice if the discs were there for the few people like yourself who insist on them, but thems the breaks.

Hell, there are CEs that do not contain the game at all. Now that I do have a problem with. But as long as the game includes a Steam/GOG key (and is ideally DRM-free), I am fine with it.

 

[Gargaune]

My point is, for most people - like 99% probably, myself included - this simply isn't true, because we actually prefer the Steam version over discs. What would I do with discs? When I do not have and do not intend to have a DVD drive ever again? Yes it would be nice if the discs were there for the few people like yourself who insist on them, but thems the breaks.

Hell, there are CEs that do not contain the game at all. Now that I do have a problem with. But as long as the game includes a Steam/GOG key (and is ideally DRM-free), I am fine with it.

But then what's the appeal of a Collector's Edition? Just to have a box of cheap rubbish sit on your shelf? I can see some emotional value in a complete package, having the game and some celebratory paraphernalia to keep in your possession, safe from the tribulations of businesses and online services, maybe even pass on to your kids as a trinket, but absent the game itself it seems utterly hollow. Like having a rare edition book, but it's just the leather cover and all the words are on your Amazon account.

I don't have any CEs (except for UT3 which was cheaper than the regular edition, I shit you not), but I have collected a small number of boxed releases from days gone by. I didn't get big box games as a kid, so I have a fondness for them now. But all of them are complete, there are working game discs inside and if Steam or GOG go belly up, I could go back to my little collection. But with this new breed of CE, what do you do if Steam goes away, open the box and admire your plastic Henry? "Well, it's DRM-free so I can just install the Steam backup I made myself!" Well, yeah, but it should've been in the box! You could do the same with the regular edition, all your expensive CE got you is the plastic toys.

 

[Paul_cz]

But then what's the appeal of a Collector's Edition? Just to have a box of cheap rubbish sit on your shelf? I can see some emotional value in a complete package, having the game and some celebratory paraphernalia to keep in your possession, safe from the tribulations of businesses and online services, maybe even pass on to your kids as a trinket, but absent the game itself it seems utterly hollow. Like having a rare edition book, but it's just the leather cover and all the words are on your Amazon account.

So you hate the concept of CEs in general, I guess? Every CE is worthless for the stuff that's in it and only thing of value is the game itself?

For me it doesn't work like that. I like having some nice physical bonuses, like the statue or artbook (which is actually missing in KCD2 CE and that annoys me off infinitely more than absence of useless DVDs). I buy CEs (rarely) for two reasons: I want to support devs I really like, and I like having some cool physical merch to enhance my appreciation of the work that went into the game.

I don't expect Steam to die anytime soon and even if it did, games are digital so getting them elsewhere is a non-issue. I don't need DVDs for that.

 

[Gargaune]

So you hate the concept of CEs in general, I guess? Every CE is worthless for the stuff that's in it and only thing of value is the game itself?

For me it doesn't work like that. I like having some nice physical bonuses, like the statue or artbook (which is actually missing in KCD2 CE and that annoys me off infinitely more than absence of useless DVDs). I buy CEs (rarely) for two reasons: I want to support devs I really like, and I like having some cool physical merch to enhance my appreciation of the work that went into the game.

I don't expect Steam to die anytime soon and even if it did, games are digital so getting them elsewhere is a non-issue. I don't need DVDs for that.

I don't hate the concept of Collector's Editions in general, but I find the the idea of a CE that doesn't include the core object itself patently absurd and an exercise in vapid consumerism. It's a "prestige" item that adds and retains no value - it doesn't in and of itself provide some sort of "durable" ownership of the product, it can't be traded or passed on to others - it's basically just a bunch of grossly overpriced thingamabobs churned out of a 3D printer in China and peddled on the back of brand enthusiasm. A box with the game for keeps and some memorabilia? Okay, sure. But a box of memorabilia and a Steam code? Not a chance. Just like I'd find no pleasure in possessing only the cover of a rare edition book, I'd always see it on my shelf and remember something was missing.

 

[ferratilis]

God bless