Mass Effect 2 will see a download release on Steam on January 26th, it's been confirmed.
The news comes from a Steam shop listing that's just appeared, which, despite offering a pre-purchase reward (in-game Inferno armour, if you're interested), doesn't appear to let you hand over your cash just yet.
The Steam appearance will come as good news to PC gamers, who've been subject to some confusion of late as to where the sequel would see a digi release.
BioWare producer Adrien Cho told us in last month's Mass Effect 2 interview: "We do have plans for digital distribution but I'm not the one that says which service. There will definitely be a download service for Mass Effect 2."
This is going to make my decision of whether to buy on PC or Xbox even harder...I presume the PC version will support the 360 controller, the only thing it will miss are the achievements, but I can live with that for twice the resolution.
I may just have to buy it on both, playing it on my big screen downstairs just seems the right thing to do...
I just looked it up and the Collectors Edition up on GAME and the Digital Deluxe Edition up on EAStore also come with a Cerberus Network Membership
From EAStore "Cerberus Network is an in game service available when you register with an EA account. Once enrolled you will have access to exclusive in game content and updates via an in game feed. An exclusive character will be available from day one and shortly followed by new weapons, worlds, etc."
Yet the Steam Digital Deluxe Edition has no such listing, does that mean you wont get it?
I'm hoping not as its much easier for me to get my games through Steam and if it doesn't come with this I'll have to settle with the EAStore
Steam rarely has genuinely good deals on PC games. They can often be had for far cheaper prices at various online retail outlets such as Amazon and ShopTo. For example, "ME2" for the Xbox 360 costs 29.99 quid while the PC version costs 26.99 quid. Usually the console version would have cost at least 10 quid more!
Regardless, I do not subscribe to some PC users infatuation with having as many games as possible tied to what is essentially a "benign" DRM trojan gatekeeper on your PC. Ouuh! So you have to keep track of your gaming disc(s)! Big deal. It's called a shelf or a box or a drawer where you place the disc(s) while in the dvd case they came in! Not very difficult. If you are the type that leaves discs lying about willy nilly then yes, they may end up being scratched but again, how much effort does it actually take to open a dvd case and place the disc in it? Maybe 5 seconds if you take your time with it? It's the epitome of laziness, IMO.
Anyhow, I'm planning on buying the Collector's Edition of "ME2" for the PC at a local retail store that usually sells the CE version for the same price that they sell the standard version for. I can hardly wait!
This is going to make my decision of whether to buy on PC or Xbox even harder...I presume the PC version will support the 360 controller, the only thing it will miss are the achievements, but I can live with that for twice the resolution.
I may just have to buy it on both, playing it on my big screen downstairs just seems the right thing to do...
As others have pointed out, the PC version of "ME1" has achievements. "ME2" is likely to follow the same path I reckon. If you want to play on a big screen TV then simply hook your PC up to it if the TV supports that feature, then again if you primarily want to play it with a controller then you might as well buy the console version. One of the main reasons I want it for the PC is because of the better controls the K & M offers for games of this type, along with the increased visual options the PC provides.
P.S. Something else to consider is on which platform you kept your "ME1" saved games (if you kept them saved) and whether you wish to transfer one of those saved characters to "ME2" or not.
I just looked it up and the Collectors Edition up on GAME and the Digital Deluxe Edition up on EAStore also come with a Cerberus Network Membership
From EAStore "Cerberus Network is an in game service available when you register with an EA account. Once enrolled you will have access to exclusive in game content and updates via an in game feed. An exclusive character will be available from day one and shortly followed by new weapons, worlds, etc."
Yet the Steam Digital Deluxe Edition has no such listing, does that mean you wont get it?
I'm hoping not as its much easier for me to get my games through Steam and if it doesn't come with this I'll have to settle with the EAStore
I suppose you best contact Steam and/or EA/BioWare about that. If in doubt I would err on the side of caution and order that particular edition from a store you know will include that added content.
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