I'll say what he can't:

They better put it on steam if they don't want BF3 to TANK on PC. Cause it will. Big time.

No one wants origin, a small sector is getting into it, but the vast majority of people do NOT want origin, we already took steam, learned to love it - we're not doing it again with Origin. I'm not. And in congress, one letter is the voice of 20,000 people. SO, consider this the voice of at least a sizable chunk of their PC market.

EA is being stupid, they need to keep the games on steam, or they will flop on the PC market - we just don't want ANOTHER steam, ANOTHER service to risk investment with, we do NOT want competitors to steam which directly puts our past purchases in jeopardy. EA is truly being stupid here, and only hurting the consumer OR their own wallet.

The consumer if they are successful, and their wallets if they are not.

BF3 can't run on DX9 = 44% of people can't even run it according to steam hardware survey.

BF3 won't be on steam.

BF3 is 30 fps on consoles, and regardless what people say about their "powerful computer" and "outdated consoles", they don't know jack and if it's a 30 fps game on Consoles today, EXPECT to struggle to get the same frame rate on a windows PC without lowering all these over-rated graphics.

Bad choice. Especially when COD is directly partnered through steamworks.

Which shows you what is REALLY going on.

it is finally time for them to die. Good. F EA.

Another thing EA needs to consider is that by removing themselves from Steam, the are also downsizing their potential sales base. Origin is classified as a competitor to Steam, but it can not compete because it will sell ONLY EA titles. I'm curious to see if this is how Gabe will explain it to them (though more eloquently).

YOu people do not realize how big BF3 is to the PC and FPS communities. BF2 is still being played today... you can only say that for the last 2 COD titles... even then the communities are dying off.

BF3 doesnt need "steam" to be a huge seller, only rehashed games like COD tiles require a service like that to sell.

Agreed with Gabe. Also I don't like Origin... God plz! It's even don't have free avatar choose! Gabe we belive in u. You will do us to see BF3 and ME3 and many other things in Steam.

I think what YOU don't realize, Brian, is the fact that the people who want BF3 will buy it no matter what platform is used for digital distribution, and only a small fraction will boycott it because of Origin. So yeah, go and play COD on Steam :)

Your blind support of monopolies is everything wrong with the world today.

You speak for no-one but yourself, Many people will buy battlefield 3 regardless of what service is offered and EA is offering some really nice bonuses with a BF3 pre-Order and that's a great deal to any PC gamer.

The more competition the more we win.

I don't understand why people keep saying that Origin is good because it's creating competition.
It's not. It would only be competition if the same games were available on both services. But Origin is just EA games, and EA games are no longer on Steam, so it is not creating competition at all. The only thing it's doing is making it more of a pain for people to game on PC.

Well I agree with him so he does speak for me and any one else who couldn't be bothered to post.

Lets look at this from a business perspective and not a gamer "I want this" perspective.

Perhaps this has to do with Valve getting more involved with the Console Publishing game. When Orange box came to consoles it was published by EA. EA had the publishing rights and I don't think Valve took too kindly to them publishing a sub-par port on the PS3.

Enter Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2, both valve published but only on the Xbox 360 so perhaps they did not step on any contractual toes, than Portal 2 comes to PS3 with Steam support, I think that may have been the last draw for EA.

Valve compelled them into this marketplace, Valve stepped on EA's territory and EA is responding with Origin.

I am not convinced Origin is a full fledged competitor to steam, it seems to be more of just an online store for EA products and not the social hub like Steam.

The PC market is flat there is not much growth there, so I think you will see more of this and not less of this. Steam is well established, but that doesn't mean it is competitor free. If Origin steps up their game and offers more compelling features (I highly doubt Steam was in the form it is today on day 1) they could likely match steam in terms of capability. They would need a really good hook to try to move people away from Steam.

There is no reason why these 2 marketplaces can't exist unless you are just a publisher fanboy who wishes ill on one or the other.

The more competition the more options you have the more people are innovating their services to win your dollars. It's a win-win in my book.

Myself and almost every friend I have will not being buying BF3 simply because it is not on Steam. We all have Steam, we all love Steam and we don't want to use another digital distribution service since it defeats the purpose of having Steam, centralizing our PC gaming experience. Brian is speaking for myself and everyone else on the internet complaining about it not being on Steam. Don't take it lightly. Steam has a strong following because it is a nice service.

Here is another voice against Origin.

I understand why EA wants Origin to work but it is being built by great people under the direction of a publisher. Steam is built by Valve. I should be able to stop saying anything else and most of you will know what I'm getting at.

Yes, BF3 will top the charts for a long while because it is a great PC franchise. But that won't make Origin be successful. At some point I'll probably pick up BF3 but I won't use Origin apart from to launch the game.

Steam has made PC gaming brilliant. Sociable. Affordable. Fun.

What is Origin apart from an attempt by EA to cut out the middleman and offer PC gaming nothing in return?

I for 1 will not buy BF3 or any other EA game because thay now all require the Origin portal. I have been using Steam and Direct to Drive both for years now and buy from whatever has the best deals. And most games I buy from Steam. It will be no loss at all not having any EA games in my Lybrary because the only EA games I have now and were ever interested in were the BF serries and I can live without them. Now the only way I would buy BF3 or anyother EA game would be if I would not be required to run all their games through the Origin portal. But considering that Origin is required to play ALL EA games I will not be buying anymore EA games. It is just that simple.

EA is just unhappy they didn't think of Steam first. But Steam is to PC games what iTunes is to music. Ubiquitous. There are competitors, sure, but nothing that comes close. Pretty much every studio or artist who has ever bitched about iTunes has ended up on it, because it makes financial sense. At the end of the day it's about making money, so EA will back down and come back to Steam soon enough.

It's just sad that it had to come to this. I won't be installing "Origin" to play any EA titles any time soon. Just getting used to Steam was hard enough. They won't be able to compete with Steam since they will only have their own EA titles to begin with. A bad move. EA gutted OnLive as well by pulling off Dragon Age. Very disappointing.

It's not like I'm very happy with getting Orgin but I will get BF3 no matter what. And I stopped buying D2D on steam when they went loco with 1$=1euro.

those who want to buy ea's games will buy them anyways. But let's look at this with a sober mind. Who would want to pay a 30% cut to steam if they can have a service like that themselfs? On the consumer's end we have working dlc, no need for an aditional program running in the background (origin is just a downloader with some other features) and fully working deautherisation, and 1€ != 1$. You loose the comunity related features, simple means for backing up and the steam overlay.

I agree with Brian, DeathRay2K, and Dane.

I understand why they're doing it, but the fact is that I and many others simply don't want to use Origin. The whole point of Steam is so we have all our games in one place, and can play them easily with others in one centralized community. Having to use Steam and Origin at the same time is like having 2 cell phone plans for the same cell phone. It's just silly.

By creating Origin, they are fracturing the PC gaming community and making things more complicated for the customers. If they're going to be assholes, then I'm not going to buy their games. Simple as that. If you need me, I'll be on Steam.

You Steam whiners are a bunch of cry babies. Cry Some MOAR!

I have both Steam, Origin and they both live well together. Grow up.

I remember when steam was first introduced. A lot of people didn't like it at first and wasn't it originally just valve games? We got used to it and it got a LOT better. It's just like when steam just started but just for EA games. Don't get me wrong I would prefer to have everything on Steam but as long as they don't interfere with each other or my gaming I'll use them simultaneously.

This would be a really Pyrrhic victory for EA if they end up selling 1-100thousand units less than Modern Warfare. They would hit their heads against the wall all year thinking they could have "won" easily with the extra sales from Steam.

I was depressed a little at first when I found out BF3 wasn't coming to Steam but I got over it. How can you boycott the best game ever developed? I have been using Steam since about 2004 and love it but there is no way in hell that I'm going to miss out on BF3.

Aren't pre-orders destroying BC2 pre-orders but a huge margin? Doesn't seem at all like EA is going to feel anything from the loud by few Steam fan club. If you don't like Origin then buy it on D2D.

Ok, so you are in love with steam , don t you know to add a non steam game to your library?

And most important are u gamers? are you playing a game? or are u playing steam? no ofense but i really think is stupid to not buy a game because is not on steam.
It doesn t matter how you launch the game, it matters the game itself.
And no worry, battlelog has all your friend list so you can join their games easy.

I must admit, I like the Steam service. Everything is handy and centralized. Doing a computer upgrade and getting all your games back is a piece of cake. I would really prefer to not utilize another program for what Steam does very well. I likely will not buy it retail as I am tired of trying to keep track of cd's and the corresponding security keys. Will I buy Battlefield? - Maybe (and leaning towards no)...if it was on Steam I would have already pre-ordered.

Really, you guys are done with EA and not going to buy BF3? Sure thing. This is like the WoW forums when people threaten to quit, like anyone cares. How did that game do?

Face it, people will go to the game and contrary to the commenter above, dev forum posters do not represent a huge "silent majority." They represent a small, but highly engaged portion of the fan base - like Ron Paul supporters.

It's also hysterical to hear the praises of Steam after much fist shaking upon its release...

Honestly, I love STEAM. I have had nothing but great experiences with it as the years go by. EA on the other hand, I've been privy to their closed beta tests over the years, and their less than stellar record at having services like Origin. I won't be buying any EA games so long as EA is forcing me to utilize Origin. I may be in the minority, but if it shows EA how much fo a bone headed decision they are making, all the better.

I never really liked Steam anyway. Go EA!!! Create your own service! Competition is good. Go Battlefield 3 !!! I have already pre-ordered BF3 on Origin and EA has already given me a free game for ordering on Origin.

Steam needs competition. I too see why EA would prefer to get 100% profits instead of giving 30% to Valve. Why give Valve the complete reign over PC downloads? People were hating Steam back when it Valve forced it down people's throats. Everyone were saying the same things about Steam that they're saying bout Origin, and now they love steam.

what's BE3 stand for

Look, I love steam and Valve, it has a lot of good offers & promos (and hats) Why would I move from something I LIKE to something that I dislike?, of course I can use both or something like that, yet I don't feel like installing both, Origin will drown like BF3 on the PC, leading them to stop selling or making PC Games, why? because they'll complain about how bad it sold, just because it wasn't on steam, so ok, it was your decision, you saw an opportunity in the battlefield series when you released bad company 2, you saw how many people liked that game, yet it's not good enough to have its own platform, on the PC, I know they sell more EA titles aswell, yet we know that the true reason behind origin is Battlefield 3, we know that, of course it's true.

There's nothing else behind this crap.

Although the nature of competition in business can be a positive effect for the consumer, in this environment, it's not because corporations like EA have become a bit too complacent with their following. I've been playing and using EA products since the 90's and EA has a history of nickel & dime'ing their customers. For example, EA's Extended Download Service (part of the EA downloader for The Sims, .etc) provided something to the effect of X more months of download availability for $5 more on each purchase, basically meaning-the game's portability or re-installation could be extended, but regardless, after a period of time, you would be unable to re-install the game, so forget about reformatting your PC or buying a new PC without buying the game again.
This was a questionable business practice that other digital distribution services followed as well, but not Steam.
I suppose a couple counter arguments can be made that #1, it cuts the cost for future bandwidth expectancy to the service and publisher and #2, games do not last forever, so players should move on after a period of time (dictated by the publisher).

I've also used other services, such as Direct 2 Drive, Impulse, and Games for Windows Live (which is the devil), but everything I've used over the years seems to have culminated to Steam's service, which is what I buy all my games through now. I don't like having multiple launching platforms for various games because they completely dismiss the idea of interoperability and often (and possibly intentionally) break down because of issues, such as DRM.

I don't consider myself a fanboy because I simply don't care to peddle an obvious bias, such as "monopolies are evil" or claiming the ubiquity of BF3's existence is evident that whichever service not carrying the game is inferior. Isn't that what a company, such as EA, would want you to believe?

I like Steam because it's conventional, but also because it supports indie developers, which help PC gaming stay alive and provide competition to big names, such as EA and Ubisoft. Why is it that $10 Terreria gave me months of enjoyment, when $60 Splinter Cell gave me eight hours?

Well, without even reading what Origin actually is I know I wont buy this game if it's not on steam simply because I cant stand games that aren't on steam, I don't buy GFWL-poisioned titles and I wont be buying EA titles if they aren't on steam, steam makes gaming better, I can talk to my friends while I play, I can let them know that I'm not ignoring them, I'm just playing a game. steam shows me as ingame, and even lets me talk to my friends that aren't, and hey, I can take and upload screenshots from just about any game I own(even if it's not a steam title) beat that.

It's a shame, I was really looking forward to BF3, but now I wont get to enjoy it, bad move EA.

"I think at the end of the day we’re going to prove to Electronic Arts they have happier customers, a higher quality service, and will WE will make more money if they have their titles on Steam."

- Fixed.

I was ready to purchase Crysis 3 after the DX11 upgrade was released. Then it disappeared from Steam. I guess that's a good thing since it's been revealed that the DX11 update was half-baked. But I've become accustomed to Steam and probably will not install a second game market app on my machine. And especially not one from EA - I've had a really bad experience with EA's DRM crap screwing up my system in the past.

EA just wants what PC vets want, higher than console graphics, bandwidth, and a more adult gaming community.

plus steam is more hacked than a somaland rain forest.

Personally I probably won't buy BF3 if it's not on Steam. Not due to any particular dislike of the EA Origin service. But because BF3 isn't all that high on my list.

I've got the money to spend on it and it does look like it will be a good game. But everything else I play is on Steam. I prefer everything being in one place.

If EA release a game I can't live without and put it only on Origin, then I'll have to use it. But that will probably be the only game I will use Origin for.

Steam has become so tied in with my games that it would take something revolutionary for me to move to something else.

I wouldn't have minded buying BF3 on origin... until the news of spyware features in origin arose. That i cannot deal with.

I like Steam even though it is very harsh DRM, but at least it offers some benefits to outweigh the crap. The only way I would buy a game outside of Steam is if it's 100% DRM free (as I did the Witcher 2). But BF3 will have to slip me by for now, might pick it up in a couple years when it's dirt cheap in a sale.

Having read through the comments I have to agree with a vast majority of them. I don’t want *another* client on my PC to load my games - the only none steam games I buy now are DRM free from GOG.com (which I launch through steam).

I want my game all in one place – convenience is paramount. Being forced to use another client (anybody’s, not just EA) is simply not going to happen, and as such I simply won’t by EA games anymore.

Origin IS NOT COMPETITION.

In order for origin to compete with steam, 2 things would need to change:
1) EA games on Steam
2) Non-EA games on Origin.

The way it is now, expect EA to jack up prices, because they don't have anyone else selling their stuff. Steam sales? Won't happen on Origin.

Oh, and expect a new downloader from Ubisoft, Activision, 2K, Bethesda, and everyone else soon enough.

It's not rocket science. Steam, you have enough sales data now that you know the likely minimum sales for any given game. Based on that, you just need to offer minimum guarantees. That costs you no money - but to sophisticated developers, it allows them the opportunity to get bank financing to start a game without even a demo made.

But to do so, you need to be prepared to at least look at a game project in the pre-prototype stage.