Why I'm most excited for Steam

[TheGrimm.5624]

42 minutes ago, Quench.7091 said:

You can add non-Steam games to Steam by pressing the "Add a Game" button in the lower left corner. After adding the .exe you wanted to your Steam library, you then need to set up the controller settings you need, if you are using a specific controller. Steam -> Settings -> Controller -> General Controller Settings. While you have a controller detected by Steam, you may then go to your game in your library and click on the "Controller Configuration" button below the play button.

 

Ah gotcha, thanks!

[Izzy.2951]

On 3/25/2022 at 6:59 PM, Telgum.6071 said:

Does GW2 going into Steam has some direct benefit on us non-new players?

Yes? getting a lot of new players and more money for the game? isnt that beneficial, also for future content.

[TexZero.7910]

6 hours ago, Izzy.2951 said:

Yes? getting a lot of new players and more money for the game? isnt that beneficial, also for future content.

Do you have any proof that more money in means a better return for GW2 as a whole ?

Because the Quarterly reports don't seem to agree with this notion.

[Jin.8501]

21 hours ago, Stx.4857 said:

Everything you just said, you can do without steam.  So yeah...   like people use steam because they don't want multiple game shortcuts on their desktop?  

Let's just say there would be no PC gaming as it is now without Steam. At the time console gaming was dominant and Steam was an answer to that. 

[Jin.8501]

18 minutes ago, TexZero.7910 said:

Do you have any proof that more money in means a better return for GW2 as a whole ?

Because the Quarterly reports don't seem to agree with this notion.

Well at least we get better statistics from Steam. I bet that the doubled or tripled amount of players are just core game test accounts. How come you double the amount of players but won't earn more money. 

[Zzik.5873]

 

19 hours ago, KeoLegend.5132 said:

Its not good. The texts become too small or the game becomes too ugly if i scale it up

You need to axjust youre pc setting to match the visual quality of you TV. Not the in game setting but youre graphkc card setting. Because right out from the box yeah its does look ugly. But after ajustement its like any other pc monitor.

[Tyrian Mollusk.1563]

My partner and I have been playing GW2 on controller (xbox 360) through Steam for a few years, and it's quite enjoyable that way for us, even beyond the obvious reduction in keyboarding hand pain.  I'm just not going to run a game on a keyboard if I don't need to anymore, and while GW2 seemed an input challenge, I feel it actually fits surprisingly well.

Naturally, it's far from a trivial config, but using a controller hardly means we're afraid of some shifted buttons...  Game devs used to try a lot harder on controller, but nowadays it's gotten pretty sad, and the weirdly common PC bigotry toward controllers certainly doesn't help.  I seriously doubt Areanet would do any better than what we've got--kbm devs rarely seem to get their heads in the right place to do controller support well.  I've been trying what Path of Exile is passing off as controller support the past week, and it's just painfully bad and limiting, and they've basically blocked players doing anything else good.  Areanet's action camera is a fantastic compromise, where the game does just enough to both add value to mouse play and to let controller players build everything else.  Good on them for that 🙂

Thanks to Steam, we just start the game there and it manages the controller support automatically so we can just cozy up and get piling up those corpses, and anyone else with a similar controller shape can do the same without even having to build a config, since it handles saving and sharing configs too.  "Steam Input" certainly has issues (it has no way to version or document anything, they pretty much ignore bugs and feature requests, and you should see what nonsense I had to go through to get emotes working...), but it's got some commendable features and capabilities.

If anyone would like to try, here's the doc thread for the config I use: http://steamcommunity.com/app/353370/discussions/0/2149847423916655685

These Steam Input configs just control the game by sending keys to the game corresponding to your controller inputs, so there's zero reason one would need to remap anything to switch back and forth, if you make your controller config match your personal bindings.

Edited March 28, 2022 by Tyrian Mollusk.1563

[Wonderly.1324]

On 3/25/2022 at 12:18 PM, TheGrimm.5624 said:

 

I am afraid of this too, I do think Anet needs to restate that bit about existing accounts will not have access or update the community that they can port toons from one platform to another. I agree with the OP's statement about Steam's controller apps do have a lot of options and would allow for most if not all functions to be mapped to a controller, but would worry that enthusiasm turns to irritation when people find out they have to abandon their account's progress to gain access to Steam tools.  

 

Even if I had to re-purchase every copy of GW2 and expansions on Steam, I would be okay with that. I would NOT be okay with not being able to port my current account over to the Steam tools. I hope this won't be an issue, as I imagine the point of launching Steam was to infuse new players into the community, not create a separate one (e.g. the China release)

[Wonderly.1324]

On 3/25/2022 at 12:32 PM, Quench.7091 said:

You can run GW2 on Steam and a controller right now using the current client. The issue is that the input for GW2 movement is limited to 8 directions and 2 speeds on stick controls and you'll need to use certain buttons as modifier keys as a way to map +15 abilities and +9 mounts.

The even bigger issue for me is wanting to switch back and forth between keyboard and controller; I'd have to remap the keybinds every single time

[ugrakarma.9416]

Steam is good make more acessible to buy stuff on foreign countries.

Actually i buy gems from a "partner".

[Wonderly.1324]

On 3/25/2022 at 3:03 PM, Gotejjeken.1267 said:

Can we get a little controller icon on the nameplate so we know who is using one? That way we can avoid them.  

I'm kidding....sorta.  

No, you're not kidding... and that's okay. There's absolutely a limit to how skillful a player can be on a controller vs a keyboard. That's why in my post I said what I valued the most would be the ability to switch back and forth (without having to reset all my keybinds). I wouldn't do fractal/raid/strikes/CMs on a controller, but I think a controller can handle the story quest or Tequatl

[Wonderly.1324]

On 3/25/2022 at 5:42 PM, KeoLegend.5132 said:

Sadly GW2 is more of a piano play than ESO for example. I tried controller but it was clunky.

Sadly, i wanted so much to play GW2 on my Big TV screen...

 

The only way to make controler-viable is if Anet itself make this happen by giving us a "gamepad mode", kinda like ESOs

Yeah I was hoping something along the lines of ESO and FFXIV. FFXIV is even better than ESO in that, from what I understand anyway, you can freely swap between TV and PC on the same account

[Wonderly.1324]

On 3/27/2022 at 8:16 AM, Tyrian Mollusk.1563 said:

My partner and I have been playing GW2 on controller (xbox 360) through Steam for a few years, and it's quite enjoyable that way for us, even beyond the obvious reduction in keyboarding hand pain.  I'm just not going to run a game on a keyboard if I don't need to anymore, and while GW2 seemed an input challenge, I feel it actually fits surprisingly well.

Naturally, it's far from a trivial config, but using a controller hardly means we're afraid of some shifted buttons...  Game devs used to try a lot harder on controller, but nowadays it's gotten pretty sad, and the weirdly common PC bigotry toward controllers certainly doesn't help.  I seriously doubt Areanet would do any better than what we've got--kbm devs rarely seem to get their heads in the right place to do controller support well.  I've been trying what Path of Exile is passing off as controller support the past week, and it's just painfully bad and limiting, and they've basically blocked players doing anything else good.  Areanet's action camera is a fantastic compromise, where the game does just enough to both add value to mouse play and to let controller players build everything else.  Good on them for that 🙂

Thanks to Steam, we just start the game there and it manages the controller support automatically so we can just cozy up and get piling up those corpses, and anyone else with a similar controller shape can do the same without even having to build a config, since it handles saving and sharing configs too.  "Steam Input" certainly has issues (it has no way to version or document anything, they pretty much ignore bugs and feature requests, and you should see what nonsense I had to go through to get emotes working...), but it's got some commendable features and capabilities.

If anyone would like to try, here's the doc thread for the config I use: http://steamcommunity.com/app/353370/discussions/0/2149847423916655685

These Steam Input configs just control the game by sending keys to the game corresponding to your controller inputs, so there's zero reason one would need to remap anything to switch back and forth, if you make your controller config match your personal bindings.

Thank you for sharing this story! I do hope that with Steam release, ANet would put some resources into refining the controler experience and giving players more customization options from a controler perspective. It's great that we can already use a controller, but it would still have to be mapped in a 1 to 1 ratio; meaning if I use 8 buttons and 2 modifiers on the keyboard/mouse to cover the 10 skills 5 profession skills, and 6 mounts, I'd need at least 10 distinct controller buttons to do the same. And I'd need 2 more for interact and dodge... or am I missing something?
You are right that some communities could be snooty towards controller users, because it is a technical limitation, just as typing with two fingers instead of ten is. However the vast majority of the game can be played and enjoyed without requiring the upper limits of mechanical ability, and GW2's target demographic (judging from the type of content released) seems to target the audiance that enjoys such casual play. So I'm hoping this is one more step they'll take to target that demographic, because as you said, there are few games out there now who do controller integration well

[Tyrian Mollusk.1563]

49 minutes ago, Wonderly.1324 said:

The even bigger issue for me is wanting to switch back and forth between keyboard and controller; I'd have to remap the keybinds every single time

Like I said, there's zero reason you would need to remap anything back and forth.  You just take your existing GW2 keybinds and edit the controller configuration you want to use so your existing keybinds are what it sends to the game.

17 minutes ago, Wonderly.1324 said:

It's great that we can already use a controller, but it would still have to be mapped in a 1 to 1 ratio; meaning if I use 8 buttons and 2 modifiers on the keyboard/mouse to cover the 10 skills 5 profession skills, and 6 mounts, I'd need at least 10 distinct controller buttons to do the same.

No, you don't have the right model for how it works.  The controller does not just map one button to one key.  I mean, of course it could do that, but that would play awfully for most any nontrivial game.  You map one input action to whatever set of keys you want, and an input action can be a simple button press or various other things (eg, a double tap or a press held for a certain duration).  Just like a keyboard, you can do much more using button combinations and shift sets.

My configuration, for example, uses two shift sets for main play (which makes for three button-to-key-combo mappings, counting the unshifted buttons), another set for popping open various panels (eg, map, inventory, etc), and a fourth for mousing (I rarely use that because we are trackball users anyway, and those are easy to use on the couch, but it works fine).  All those are while-held shifts, but that isn't the only option.

So for example, if I want to hop on my raptor, I hold LT and tap right on the dpad.  If I hold dpad-right, it'll pop the beetle instead.  I have each of those input actions set to send the key combinations configured in GW2's settings (here, shift-x and shift-ctrl-x).  Someone who wanted different keyboard mappings than I use could just go into Steam Input's controller configuration and change the outputs so that it sends whatever they use for raptor and beetle, while not needing to mess with the structure of the configuration.

[EveningTempo.4796]

On 3/25/2022 at 1:59 PM, Telgum.6071 said:

Does GW2 going into Steam has some direct benefit on us non-new players?

Fewer clicks to go from running out of things to do in EOD to playing another game.

[Trejgon.9367]

On 3/25/2022 at 4:22 PM, Inculpatus cedo.9234 said:

You are excited to start an account from scratch?  Personally, I would not want to give up all that I have acquired these past 10 years.  🤷‍♀️

I mean they could always do what STO did and allow linking of existing accounts to steam?

or what STO did before they developped the account linking to steam, and still require login to GW2 account even when launching steam version of the game (and what alot of other MMOs on steam had tendendcy to do for quite a long while)

[Inculpatus cedo.9234]

1 hour ago, Lord Trejgon.2809 said:

I mean they could always do what STO did and allow linking of existing accounts to steam?

or what STO did before they developped the account linking to steam, and still require login to GW2 account even when launching steam version of the game (and what alot of other MMOs on steam had tendendcy to do for quite a long while)

They could, but said they won't.  🤷‍♂️

[Trejgon.9367]

3 hours ago, Inculpatus cedo.9234 said:

They could, but said they won't.  🤷‍♂️

citation needed

[Inculpatus cedo.9234]

2 hours ago, Lord Trejgon.2809 said:

citation needed

 

[Gibson.4036]

My apologies for my post earlier. It was intended as good-natured ribbing, but I should have thought about how it might be taken before posting.

I’ll probably get a bunch of confused emojis, because the post is gone now, but I just wanted to apologize for it to those affected.

[Trejgon.9367]

22 hours ago, Inculpatus cedo.9234 said:

 

You do realize there is a bit of jump between converting account to steam account and linking of accounts?

Anyway that was nearly two years ago, so while it may be one of "newest" bits of news on the matter it is not a be-all and end-all of what AN is or is not going to be doing.

PS. they could also do something what EvE online did, where while steam creates it's own linked account for you in-game, you can also use same steam launcher to log in to other accounts (non-steam) and benefit from steam integration there.

[Wonderly.1324]

On 3/29/2022 at 4:17 PM, Tyrian Mollusk.1563 said:

Like I said, there's zero reason you would need to remap anything back and forth.  You just take your existing GW2 keybinds and edit the controller configuration you want to use so your existing keybinds are what it sends to the game.

No, you don't have the right model for how it works.  The controller does not just map one button to one key.  I mean, of course it could do that, but that would play awfully for most any nontrivial game.  You map one input action to whatever set of keys you want, and an input action can be a simple button press or various other things (eg, a double tap or a press held for a certain duration).  Just like a keyboard, you can do much more using button combinations and shift sets.

My configuration, for example, uses two shift sets for main play (which makes for three button-to-key-combo mappings, counting the unshifted buttons), another set for popping open various panels (eg, map, inventory, etc), and a fourth for mousing (I rarely use that because we are trackball users anyway, and those are easy to use on the couch, but it works fine).  All those are while-held shifts, but that isn't the only option.

So for example, if I want to hop on my raptor, I hold LT and tap right on the dpad.  If I hold dpad-right, it'll pop the beetle instead.  I have each of those input actions set to send the key combinations configured in GW2's settings (here, shift-x and shift-ctrl-x).  Someone who wanted different keyboard mappings than I use could just go into Steam Input's controller configuration and change the outputs so that it sends whatever they use for raptor and beetle, while not needing to mess with the structure of the configuration.

 

Thank you so much for that clarification! My only concern with that approach then, would be if it violates the TOS "macros are allowed if it's 1 button 1 input" rule. I don't think we'd get banned for using a controller, especially since they've explicitly made exceptions to that rule (e.g. macros for musical instruments) so hopefully they'll clarify this fringe case as well.
For now, since playing on a controller isn't super urgent for me, I think the approach I'm going to take will be to wait for the Steam launch, hope that the integration goes well and that there will be some "direct benefits" for us "veterans" as well (e.g. access to Steam tools, access to design and tool polish like built in controller integration). If the Steam launch turns out to be disappointing in that reguard, I'll probably try to reach out to support and get an official stance on remapping a controller the way you described.

[Tyrian Mollusk.1563]

13 hours ago, Wonderly.1324 said:

My only concern with that approach then, would be if it violates the TOS "macros are allowed if it's 1 button 1 input" rule.

Why ever would that be an issue?  1 button 1 input is exactly how it works.  Shift-ctrl-z is one input.  People have already been playing on controller for years this way, since it's the only way that makes sense.

I could recode my config to use a keymapping where there were no key combinations and it would work and play exactly the same as it does now.  All that would do is inconvenience people by making them set a bunch of weird keybindings just to try it, and not be able to switch back and forth with kbm.

Edited April 2, 2022 by Tyrian Mollusk.1563

[Wonderly.1324]

@Tyrian Mollusk.1563Another question for you- does your controller config with steam integration allow you to access GW2 addons? For example, would I be able to do everything you described (not having to change the keybinds) and use the mount redial add-on using a controller?

[Tyrian Mollusk.1563]

On 4/2/2022 at 9:51 AM, Wonderly.1324 said:

@Tyrian Mollusk.1563Another question for you- does your controller config with steam integration allow you to access GW2 addons? For example, would I be able to do everything you described (not having to change the keybinds) and use the mount redial add-on using a controller?

I don't know how add-ons work, but Steam Input just fakes keyboard and mouse inputs.  It doesn't know anything about the program it's sending them to or expect the program to know anything about it.  I wouldn't think add-ons would matter there, unless they do something that interferes with the Steam overlay, since I think Steam Input needs that functioning for some reason.  If add-ons use a similar mechanism to put radial menus in front of the game (if that's even what it does--I just know Steam Input uses the overlay to do radial menus), they might conflict.

You should be able to just try it with some random Steam Input config, and see if they interfere with each other.  You don't need to be able to to do the whole game and match all the keybinds just to see if they work together, after all.  A little walking and camera/aiming, interspersed with trying your add-ons and whatnot should make that obvious.  You can also pick a button and have Steam Input's configuration tool set it to whatever brings up your mount menu, and see if they directly work together, if you hope to control your add-ons while on controller (you can also set Steam Input to do its own radial menus for things, although don't hope you can run emotes from that, since they require complicated action sequences to finesse out of Steam Input's janky typing handling).