A Message On Football Manager 2012 Activation

[João Miguel Pereira]

Just lost 1 hour trying to open an account with steam. Every time i would press "next", it would fail to connect to the server. On a 24MB connection that is not normal. After finally being able to register i decided to go offline on steam. BAD MOVE! Everything started to crash. Had to end 4 processes that stopped working and restart my computer.

[DeadPanda]

I still cant work out quite why people have such major issues with using Steam. Or why they are all getting so worked up over using it and what not. I use Steam, never had an issue. Everyone I know that has used steam hasnt had any issues, either. It works seamlessly, automatically updates things, and this only requires the internet to start with then never again. Being forced to use a program people dont want to use... not like it will kill you. I just feel people are making something out of very little here tbh. Ah well. I dont really care anyway, I'll be getting it still. Glad its been using steam, keeps my collection in one place. makes it easy to play anywhere, anytime.

[pigfacemonkeyman]

red alert!!! ONE user has had an issue with STEAM, and he is unable to grasp how to make a user.. Initiate abort procedure for FM12 STEAM activation

Why do you feel the need to post this?

EDIT: Check post #1096

[Rober82]

First off, its the wrong decision.

Secondly, youve left it VERY late on, when people will have pre-ordered the game, before releasing this info which changes evereything for a lot of people.

This stinks. You released all the new features, the trailers, the blogs, the articles.

And then 4 weeks before release: ( OH by the way, you wont be able to play the game like you used to!)

Shame on you.

[Alebit]

I can top that.

i'm not gonna buy fm anymore, because of steam "decision".

thanks SIGAMES for your decision, i don't agree with you.

quite upset about....but, that's all.

i will quit FM\CM after 10-11 years (i have all original copy of the game).

[data6930]

Excellent 2nd point.

This is pissing me off.

First off, its the wrong decision.

Secondly, youve left it VERY late on, when people will have pre-ordered the game, before releasing this info which changes evereything for a lot of people.

This stinks. You released all the new features, the trailers, the blogs, the articles.

And then 4 weeks before release: ( OH by the way, you wont be able to play the game like you used to!)

Shame on you.

[Cougar2010]

I still cant work out quite why people have such major issues with using Steam. Or why they are all getting so worked up over using it and what not. I use Steam, never had an issue. Everyone I know that has used steam hasnt had any issues, either. It works seamlessly, automatically updates things, and this only requires the internet to start with then never again. Being forced to use a program people dont want to use... not like it will kill you. I just feel people are making something out of very little here tbh. Ah well. I dont really care anyway, I'll be getting it still. Glad its been using steam, keeps my collection in one place. makes it easy to play anywhere, anytime.

Well thats great for you but you need to accept that whilst Steam is generally a good piece of software it goes wrong from time to time.

Overall its probably a fairly small % of users who have a problem, either minor which is fixed within a few days or a major one which takes longer if it gets fixed at all.

When these issues occur SI/Sega have zero control over the support and can do nothing to help you.

[pigfacemonkeyman]

I still cant work out quite why people have such major issues with using Steam. Or why they are all getting so worked up over using it and what not. I use Steam, never had an issue. Everyone I know that has used steam hasnt had any issues, either. It works seamlessly, automatically updates things, and this only requires the internet to start with then never again. Being forced to use a program people dont want to use... not like it will kill you. I just feel people are making something out of very little here tbh. Ah well. I dont really care anyway, I'll be getting it still. Glad its been using steam, keeps my collection in one place. makes it easy to play anywhere, anytime.

I hope you saw the funny side when/if you noticed what was posted just before you.

[Lord Rowell]

First off, its the wrong decision.

Secondly, youve left it VERY late on, when people will have pre-ordered the game, before releasing this info which changes evereything for a lot of people.

This stinks. You released all the new features, the trailers, the blogs, the articles.

And then 4 weeks before release: ( OH by the way, you wont be able to play the game like you used to!)

Shame on you.

Very good, original points, that add a new angle to the discussion.

Btw, might be worth editing the first line in your original post ;-)

[Wakers]

Sorry, I wanted to stay out of these threads after Eugene went on an utter tirade of twisting my posts into something that only he could read in them, but;

David - Sega is clueless. Steam is not a good anti-piracy measure. It just isn't. There's obviously other motives behind this (how do they not get more money from Steam when it sells games for higher prices than a lot of other retailers??) that they don't want to disclose, and, as we know from the past with Sega, they are not at all honest with their customers.

Steam is not 100% reliable, no piece of software is. So removing the ability to have an alternate method of playing is a) very poor customer service and b) a very questionable business decision.

[Just-Wool]

I have to admit, even though I have Steam and it has never been an issue for me, apart from the few times it has completely broken, the whole idea of being forced to use it is pretty poor.

I remember when I activated 09 through Steam there were issues to activate, people couldn't actually activate for a number of days. Then if you forget to change Steam to Offline (something I have done frequently) and have an internet shortage, then you are pretty much screwed.

Surely SI can come up with an in house authentication system using Sega's resources where you register with SI/Sega through the game on the disc that works; rather than using a 3rd party with a history of configuration or installation problems and a penchant to have random periods of not working. (usually when Steam needs to be updated and your update breaks it, ensuring you have to remove steam completely, delete everything, download a new version and install it again.)

Not to mention enforced patching and not allowing you to launch the game unless you update it. Something which is annoying as hell, if I want to download an update in the background while playing the game then I should be able to, not wait for however long it takes to update before being able to launch my game.

Obviously, the decision is made. Nothing can change it, but it is still an awful decision regardless.

[Alebit]

FM11 had no required activation. You could install and either play via disc-in-tray, or register via Steam and then there was no need to have your disc to play. And you could access FM on any machine via Steam. Last year we looked for a method to combat piracy, but didn't feel there was an acceptable solution that was balanced the battle against piracy without penalizing genuine customers. This year we feel we've found that solution.

you found the solution just for yourself (or your company), not for the customer.

your decision, ok, but lot of people didn't like it... no FM customer anymore.

[kabbom]

Hi,

i have registered on forum just to say that i support full Steamworks integration.

Steam is great service, and i use it all the time - i have spent hundreds of hours in previous FM games, all on Steam, without a single problem!

Achievements are fun, Cloud saves and SteamPlay are extremely useful, and a lot of people have all they gaming friends (and games) there.

I saw few complains about Steam memory usage...on Windows 7, while idle, Steam is using only 30-40 mb of ram!

And finally, Steam has huge, and fast growing, community of around 40 million active accounts, all because of great service they provide.

ps. Today, all services have "heaters" (who are speaking bad about service, without any valid\solid reason), and heaters gonna hate , but in case of Steam, vast majority of PC gamers are supporters!

Sports Interactive, keep up the good work.

[Piussi]

if i must install steam i won't be playing FM2012..

[stevetranmere]

I have to admit, even though I have Steam and it has never been an issue for me, apart from the few times it has completely broken, the whole idea of being forced to use it is pretty poor.

I remember when I activated 09 through Steam there were issues to activate, people couldn't actually activate for a number of days. Then if you forget to change Steam to Offline (something I have done frequently) and have an internet shortage, then you are pretty much screwed.

Surely SI can come up with an in house authentication system using Sega's resources where you register with SI/Sega through the game on the disc that works; rather than using a 3rd party with a history of configuration or installation problems and a penchant to have random periods of not working. (usually when Steam needs to be updated and your update breaks it, ensuring you have to remove steam completely, delete everything, download a new version and install it again.)

Not to mention enforced patching and not allowing you to launch the game unless you update it. Something which is annoying as hell, if I want to download an update in the background while playing the game then I should be able to, not wait for however long it takes to update before being able to launch my game.

Obviously, the decision is made. Nothing can change it, but it is still an awful decision regardless.

they could change their decision and release a patch on release day/before release day that allows users to activate by other means..

oh, but you wont be able to download it unless its through steam obviously!!

[Super Bladesman]

I've rarely had issues with Steam since it first came out with Half Life 2 all those years ago - I buy almost all of my games on it now; they do obscenely good sales on a regular basis. So many games I've bought and have yet to play

I'm pleased to see SI take this route. I've only read 3 of the 11 preceding pages, but there are a lot of folk complaining who don't seem to have read between the lines. If my maths is right, based on a comment either in the first post or on the first page: 80% of those playing FM haven't paid for it. That is shocking. For a game that gives us hundreds of hours of great quality entertainment, is generally one of the cheapest PC games at retail... there's just no excuse. I can't blame Sega for taking this route at all - they could be taking a route that is even more restrictive (like Ubisoft do with many of their games). They've a right to protect their IP against theft. It's not piracy - it's theft, plain and simple. I've met Miles, and Duffy, Bertie BG, the Collyers, and a lot of the team - they're all nice blokes. They deserve better than to have their work ripped off by thiefs. If this move deters 5% of that criminality, then it's fine by me.

And if they can somehow integrate with SteamCloud so that I can access my saves from anywhere... that'd be awesome!

[milnerpoint]

No, I don't think your suggestion is the sensible one at all. We as a community, whether against or in favour, need to give SI feedback on the decisions they have made.

As has been said by numerous people here, lots of us won't be buying the game and SI need to know this, know the reasons why, and begin to understand the consequences of their actions.

Do you not think they already knew that before making this decision?

[daevil1]

I think this sums up the issue of piracy (mgmgmg games aren't books!!111one):

[Neil Brock]

People are more than entitled to give their opinions, we're happy to hear them (even when it's the same people saying the same thing over and over again! ) but Sega obviously gave all the consequences a hell of a lot of thought before making this decision. No offence to some people who have made comments in this thread but it's not a decision that would have been made lightly without a vast amount of research so it's be nice if you waited until release before you judge Steam as a 'not very good anti-piracy measure'. Give us a chance before judging the decision as a bad one.

[pigfacemonkeyman]

FM11 had no required activation. You could install and either play via disc-in-tray, or register via Steam and then there was no need to have your disc to play. And you could access FM on any machine via Steam. Last year we looked for a method to combat piracy, but didn't feel there was an acceptable solution that was balanced the battle against piracy without penalizing genuine customers. This year we feel we've found that solution.

You obviously haven't, I'm a genuine customer and you are penalising me. You have made the decision to discard a proportion of your existing customers in the hope of turning a larger amount of pirates into paying customers. Good luck with that!

Might I suggest you get your consultancy fee back and look for something a little less naive.

[Alebit]

I've rarely had issues with Steam since it first came out with Half Life 2 all those years ago - I buy almost all of my games on it now; they do obscenely good sales on a regular basis. So many games I've bought and have yet to play

I'm pleased to see SI take this route. I've only read 3 of the 11 preceding pages, but there are a lot of folk complaining who don't seem to have read between the lines. If my maths is right, based on a comment either in the first post or on the first page: 80% of those playing FM haven't paid for it. That is shocking. For a game that gives us hundreds of hours of great quality entertainment, is generally one of the cheapest PC games at retail... there's just no excuse. I can't blame Sega for taking this route at all - they could be taking a route that is even more restrictive (like Ubisoft do with many of their games). They've a right to protect their IP against theft. It's not piracy - it's theft, plain and simple. I've met Miles, and Duffy, Bertie BG, the Collyers, and a lot of the team - they're all nice blokes. They deserve better than to have their work ripped off by thiefs. If this move deters 5% of that criminality, then it's fine by me.

And if they can somehow integrate with SteamCloud so that I can access my saves from anywhere... that'd be awesome!

i have got all the copy of the game since 2001 edition. All of them payed (just some for free because of the italian research\testing).

but i still don't agree with this decision. I feel bad because of that...sorry

[stevetranmere]

People are more than entitled to give their opinions, we're happy to hear them (even when it's the same people saying the same thing over and over again! ) but Sega obviously gave all the consequences a hell of a lot of thought before making this decision. No offence to some people who have made comments in this thread but it's not a decision that would have been made lightly without a vast amount of research so it's be nice if you waited until release before you judge Steam as a 'not very good anti-piracy measure'. Give us a chance before judging the decision as a bad one.

you had your chance with 09 and steam. Again, i wont be giving it another chance, so Again, what are you going to do for me? (like it or leave it i guess?)

[kevaggel]

I don't like "steam" and i am not going to use it.

[El Zar]

I still cant work out quite why people have such major issues with using Steam. Or why they are all getting so worked up over using it and what not. I use Steam, never had an issue. Everyone I know that has used steam hasnt had any issues, either. It works seamlessly, automatically updates things, and this only requires the internet to start with then never again. Being forced to use a program people dont want to use... not like it will kill you. I just feel people are making something out of very little here tbh. Ah well. I dont really care anyway, I'll be getting it still. Glad its been using steam, keeps my collection in one place. makes it easy to play anywhere, anytime.

My main issue with it, as evidenced by the Activity Monitor postings, is that on a Mac Steam is a bloated piece of crap. That memory could be put to good use running FM, rather than going on running that PoS in the background.

http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/274801-A-Message-On-Football-Manager-2012-Activation?p=7081598&viewfull=1#post7081598

I suggest you read some of x42bn6 posts - in which has gone through the points raised by SEGA about piracy and IMO has eloquently debunked them.

http://community.sigames.com/search.php?searchid=143884

[Guest]

Neil I think what can definitely be taken from this thread is that the timing of the announcement has been poor, this should have been the #1 announcement, it is the most important feature of FM12 as it is the only one that will stop people from playing the game.

As for Sega thinking long & hard about this decision I'm not entirely sold on that considering they have a huge tie-in with Steam in terms of new releases & access to their back catalogue

Once again I appreciate the fact that you guys have been active in this thread rather than just ignoring it until it goes away but from a small scale PR position it could have been handled better.

[El_Strict]

Cancelled my pre-order this morning :-(

Disgusting that this was announced so close to release when SI have known it would be the case for probably a whole year.

[tugboat]

You obviously haven't, I'm a genuine customer and you are penalising me. You have made the decision to discard a proportion of your existing customers in the hope of turning a larger amount of pirates into paying customers. Good luck with that!

Might I suggest you get your consultancy fee back and look for something a little less naive.

good post, and spot on

[Cougar2010]

I've rarely had issues with Steam since it first came out with Half Life 2 all those years ago - I buy almost all of my games on it now; they do obscenely good sales on a regular basis. So many games I've bought and have yet to play

I'm pleased to see SI take this route. I've only read 3 of the 11 preceding pages, but there are a lot of folk complaining who don't seem to have read between the lines. If my maths is right, based on a comment either in the first post or on the first page: 80% of those playing FM haven't paid for it. That is shocking. For a game that gives us hundreds of hours of great quality entertainment, is generally one of the cheapest PC games at retail... there's just no excuse. I can't blame Sega for taking this route at all - they could be taking a route that is even more restrictive (like Ubisoft do with many of their games). They've a right to protect their IP against theft. It's not piracy - it's theft, plain and simple. I've met Miles, and Duffy, Bertie BG, the Collyers, and a lot of the team - they're all nice blokes. They deserve better than to have their work ripped off by thiefs. If this move deters 5% of that criminality, then it's fine by me.

And if they can somehow integrate with SteamCloud so that I can access my saves from anywhere... that'd be awesome!

If those figures are correct than you're right it is shocking but piracy is only one part of the discussion and it seems to be overshadowing other issues.

I don't think you'll find any real fans who condone piracy and are onboard with SI/Sega doing their best to combat it. These fans, myself included, don't have an issue with anti piracy measures just with Steam being that measure (without an alternative).

Maybe at the end of the day there just isn't any better alternative and the people that made the decision have made the right choice but the posts from SI/Sega staff don't fill me with confidence that this is the case.

[SCIAG]

Cancelled my pre-order this morning :-(

Disgusting that this was announced so close to release when SI have known it would be the case for probably a whole year.

I think they've spent most of the year deliberating the decision to be honest, they've said that they haven't taken it lightly, though I don't think they were expecting the reaction to be this negative.

[jags4ever]

My main issue with it, as evidenced by the Activity Monitor postings, is that on a Mac Steam is a bloated piece of crap. That memory could be put to good use running FM, rather than going on running that PoS in the background.

http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/274801-A-Message-On-Football-Manager-2012-Activation?p=7081598&viewfull=1#post7081598

If your PC/MAC has issues running Steam with FM then its not fit to run either. Any decent modern machine should be 4Gb plus , FFS you can get that for well under £100 now and it will improve the overall performance of your PC no end.

Sitting with an I3 + 4Gb on this one and at any one time FM uses no more than 1.5Gb , Steam with about 35Mb and thats on a 3+ years old machine.

[milnerpoint]

I think they've spent most of the year deliberating the decision to be honest, they've said that they haven't taken it lightly, though I don't think they were expecting the reaction to be this negative.

If they didnt then they were very much kidding themselves. An FMer is one of the most protective gamers, any change to FM is met with a hugely divided opinion, any DMR announcments have been met with huge distain. If they honestly thought this was going to pass these so called "loyal" customers then they were burying their heads.

[juvito2k]

People are more than entitled to give their opinions, we're happy to hear them (even when it's the same people saying the same thing over and over again! ) but Sega obviously gave all the consequences a hell of a lot of thought before making this decision. No offence to some people who have made comments in this thread but it's not a decision that would have been made lightly without a vast amount of research so it's be nice if you waited until release before you judge Steam as a 'not very good anti-piracy measure'. Give us a chance before judging the decision as a bad one.

Anybody could find in 5 minutes cracked versions of 99% steam games, steam is great but the games get cracked anyway, the main advantage is that no one could play the game before the release!

[Neil Brock]

Neil I think what can definitely be taken from this thread is that the timing of the announcement has been poor, this should have been the #1 announcement as it is the most important feature of FM12 as it is the only one that will stop people from playing the game.

As for Sega thinking long & hard about this decision I'm not entirely sold on that considering they have a huge tie-in with Steam in terms of new releases & access to their back catalogue

Once again I appreciate the fact that you guys have been active in this thread rather than just ignoring it util it goes away but from a small scale PR position it could have been handled better.

I understand what you're saying but probably wouldn't describe it as a feature!

Nah we appreciate that so many people feel passionately about it and we totally understand that some people have a position in which they regard Steam. From my perspective I just people have enough faith in SI and Sega to give us a chance when the game comes out to give it a shot and see if we have made the right decision. We're very proud of the game FM12 is shaping up to be and of course we'd be saddened if some people choose not to play because of Steam, especially when they're doing so without knowing the full facts and are put off by speculation of 'hacked accounts' and a 'memory hogging' program which isn't true.

[Richey2008]

Been playing games with you for 15 years. 15 years!!! Thanks for pulling the rug from underneath us. You can count me out and all.

[champ19ns]

People are more than entitled to give their opinions, we're happy to hear them (even when it's the same people saying the same thing over and over again! ) but Sega obviously gave all the consequences a hell of a lot of thought before making this decision. No offence to some people who have made comments in this thread but it's not a decision that would have been made lightly without a vast amount of research so it's be nice if you waited until release before you judge Steam as a 'not very good anti-piracy measure'. Give us a chance before judging the decision as a bad one.

Im just wondering if SI/SEGA have a 'plan b' should this fall on its face?

If sales do infact drop as a direct result of the Steam issue, or there is a major problem with Steam activation, have SI/SEGA thought about making a patch so that people with the DVD can patch up and play with the DVD in the drive like normal?

[Alebit]

FM11 had no required activation. You could install and either play via disc-in-tray, or register via Steam and then there was no need to have your disc to play. And you could access FM on any machine via Steam. Last year we looked for a method to combat piracy, but didn't feel there was an acceptable solution that was balanced the battle against piracy without penalizing genuine customers. This year we feel we've found that solution.

that's wrong.

[Piussi]

I understand what you're saying but probably wouldn't describe it as a feature!

Nah we appreciate that so many people feel passionately about it and we totally understand that some people have a position in which they regard Steam. From my perspective I just people have enough faith in SI and Sega to give us a chance when the game comes out to give it a shot and see if we have made the right decision. We're very proud of the game FM12 is shaping up to be and of course we'd be saddened if some people choose not to play because of Steam, especially when they're doing so without knowing the full facts and are put off by speculation of 'hacked accounts' and a 'memory hogging' program which isn't true.

Even if its a great program i don't install it..

[kwillett]

I understand what you're saying but probably wouldn't describe it as a feature!

Nah we appreciate that so many people feel passionately about it and we totally understand that some people have a position in which they regard Steam. From my perspective I just people have enough faith in SI and Sega to give us a chance when the game comes out to give it a shot and see if we have made the right decision. We're very proud of the game FM12 is shaping up to be and of course we'd be saddened if some people choose not to play because of Steam, especially when they're doing so without knowing the full facts and are put off by speculation of 'hacked accounts' and a 'memory hogging' program which isn't true.

Surely to give it the chance you ask for, we first have to buy it, download steam and activate it on steam. If after doing this we find it does not "do the job" will you then refund the money we spent on it. No.. didnt think so.

[Guest]

Neil I have unquestioning faith in SI, unfortunately that does not fully extend to Sega & ii most certainly does not extend to Steam.

I've already has issues today when trying to get access to my Steam account which has been inactivate for over 3 years yet I am supposed to remember passwords & a answer an impossible secret question. I will give it another go but that is someting for another day.

[Ackter]

Surely to give it the chance you ask for, we first have to buy it, download steam and activate it on steam. If after doing this we find it does not "do the job" will you then refund the money we spent on it. No.. didnt think so.

I imagine the demo will be available on Steam, it usually is.

[Cougar2010]

I understand what you're saying but probably wouldn't describe it as a feature!

Nah we appreciate that so many people feel passionately about it and we totally understand that some people have a position in which they regard Steam. From my perspective I just people have enough faith in SI and Sega to give us a chance when the game comes out to give it a shot and see if we have made the right decision. We're very proud of the game FM12 is shaping up to be and of course we'd be saddened if some people choose not to play because of Steam, especially when they're doing so without knowing the full facts and are put off by speculation of 'hacked accounts' and a 'memory hogging' program which isn't true.

Is it not concerning that so many experienced Steam users are telling you its a bad decision?

[Scab]

The FM2011 demo is on Steam right now. Maybe try getting that running if you're unsure about Steam.

[El_Strict]

Sorry, I wanted to stay out of these threads after Eugene went on an utter tirade of twisting my posts into something that only he could read in them, but;

David - Sega is clueless. Steam is not a good anti-piracy measure. It just isn't. There's obviously other motives behind this (how do they not get more money from Steam when it sells games for higher prices than a lot of other retailers??) that they don't want to disclose, and, as we know from the past with Sega, they are not at all honest with their customers.

Steam is not 100% reliable, no piece of software is. So removing the ability to have an alternate method of playing is a) very poor customer service and b) a very questionable business decision.

This is the key, it is obvious we are being bullshitted. And it was obvious last year with the exclusive steam demo. I loved Sega when I was sega kid, but **** me they have become an absolute travesty of a company, and sadly it looks like SI are going the same way.

[Wiggins Top Boys]

I understand what you're saying but probably wouldn't describe it as a feature!

Nah we appreciate that so many people feel passionately about it and we totally understand that some people have a position in which they regard Steam. From my perspective I just people have enough faith in SI and Sega to give us a chance when the game comes out to give it a shot and see if we have made the right decision. We're very proud of the game FM12 is shaping up to be and of course we'd be saddened if some people choose not to play because of Steam, especially when they're doing so without knowing the full facts and are put off by speculation of 'hacked accounts' and a 'memory hogging' program which isn't true.

just proves that you're not even reading the concerns properly

[AVFCMIKE]

Hi

my 2 cents.

I personally have a lot of games on Steam, but this year I had my steam account hacked. This left me unable to play any game(online or offline) for a period of nearly 2 weeks, cos there was some problem with the steam support. So I gained a copy(....).

I'm not happy that I did this but I was a member of a clan and couldn't afford to miss game time, IMO steam forced me to do this, and I sure as hell wasnt paying for another copy when I always buyFM on the day of release.

On the brighter side I havent had any problems with steam since and hopefully nor will I

[El Zar]

If your PC/MAC has issues running Steam with FM then its not fit to run either. Any decent modern machine should be 4Gb plus , FFS you can get that for well under £100 now and it will improve the overall performance of your PC no end.

Sitting with an I3 + 4Gb on this one and at any one time FM uses no more than 1.5Gb , Steam with about 35Mb and thats on a 3+ years old machine.

That's not that point; Even though I've got 4GB of RAM on my computer I've disabled the Mac OS's dashboard, not because it uses up alot or memory, which it doesn't, but because I don't want to be obliged to waste it on something that I regard as being so pointless/unecessary.

Why am I, as a loyal customer, essentially being punished for the action of a pirate. If SI/SEGA, hell, the gaming industry, had any sense about them they would view these pirates as potential customers rather than a hindrance to their bottom-line.

[Lord Rowell]

People are more than entitled to give their opinions, we're happy to hear them (even when it's the same people saying the same thing over and over again! ) but Sega obviously gave all the consequences a hell of a lot of thought before making this decision. No offence to some people who have made comments in this thread but it's not a decision that would have been made lightly without a vast amount of research so it's be nice if you waited until release before you judge Steam as a 'not very good anti-piracy measure'. Give us a chance before judging the decision as a bad one.

The arguments are being articulated well IMO. For you to say its the same arguments being made over and over again as if that is a bad thing is a poor dismissal - the fact that the same arguments are being made should tell you that there is a consensus of opinion that SI should take notice of. Also, frankly, your use of the grinning smiley suggests a smugness that is inappropriate on this thread when there is already a great deal of bad feeling towards SI.

Whether the decision was taken lightly or not is moot. SI have take the decision, and here on this thread you see the reaction to the decision. In the poll that you yourself closed, you also see the reaction to the decision.

Re. your final comments, sounds like you are asking us to have faith and trust you. I don't see one good reason why we should trust you given these actions and indeed the manner in which some moderators and SI/SEGA staff have interacted with us here by closing polls, taking cheap shots at people who disagree with them, misrepresenting their arguments or plain dismissing them. Frankly, you sound like Tony Blair with the dodgy dossier in his hand asking for trust just before the bombs started falling on Iraq.

[Neil Brock]

just proves that you're not even reading the concerns properly

I said some people, not all people.

[kwillett]

Having spent good money on my PC, it is only correct that I should have control over what software is running on it. I will be actioning that control by not installing steam, FM2012 and any future releases on FM that rely on unrequested 3rd party software. Having played (having bought legitimately) every version since CM(1) this is not a decision I have taken lightly, but feel it is the right one (sic)

[stevetranmere]

I understand what you're saying but probably wouldn't describe it as a feature!

Nah we appreciate that so many people feel passionately about it and we totally understand that some people have a position in which they regard Steam. From my perspective I just people have enough faith in SI and Sega to give us a chance when the game comes out to give it a shot and see if we have made the right decision. We're very proud of the game FM12 is shaping up to be and of course we'd be saddened if some people choose not to play because of Steam, especially when they're doing so without knowing the full facts and are put off by speculation of 'hacked accounts' and a 'memory hogging' program which isn't true.

your proud of fm2012, theres no doubt it is shaping up to be an immense game.I WAS very excited about it, however now i am being forced to use steam i wont be playing the game. Get in touch with the people at SI, sit down and have another discussion over the options for activation!