Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Or is this the only game around you still have to order???

Thanks,

javaslinger

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

You can't, and it is.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

hmm, I just read the lengthy thread discussing why Shrapnel games will not offer Dominions 3 for digital download...

I have to say that I do not believe that offering digital download will not increase sales in a 'niche' game like this.

Frankly, in the last 2 years this is the 3rd time I have looked into buying Dominions 3. This will be the 3rd time I have ended up saying, 'Oh, I can't have this game now? Ok, nevermind..."

I don't like waiting. At all. And I know I'm not alone. I would rather buy another game I can have NOW than wait for Dominions 3, even if it might be better.

Sorry, I think you are losing sales.. and a lot of them.

Javaslinger

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Instant gratification generation. :re: This game is worth the two or three days that it takes to get it. And I'm sure they would send it via express mail if you payed for that service. :D

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

In all fairness, there is another reason for digital downloads: CDs can be lost. For example, I have lost my Dom3 CD. :(

That said, Shrapnel has answered this question. Many times. Edi even added to the FAQ. It's a done deal, folks. :horse:

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

And the demo can keep you happy until then.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

So, you have waited 2 years for the ability to not have to wait a week, and you are willing to wait still longer to be able to not wait?

Doesn't that seem a bit silly? You could have been enjoying this game for ages - it's not like they are going to steal your money. I ordered off of Amazon and I got the game in like 4 days.....

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

All of the arguments bear weight. But keep in mind that there are other factors. Its not that Dom3 cant benefit from being offered as a download. Its that it cant benefit ENOUGH to offset the many problems that it would cause. And they are aware both sides of it all. They do offer some of their games as download.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Yeah, this is also listed in the FAQ, but the first 'official' answers to this question are a bit 'odd'. The part about offering the game with additional food supplements because that would be what customers want is just weird.

I think that the only reasonable argument in the whole discussion was: Shrapnel did the Math, and showed that it would not increase profits.

(I second the horse statement, and I'm all out of death gems)

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

However with CDs, their longevity is something under your control (i.e. if you lose it, you can justifiably kick yourself).

With the current crop of online services (Steam, Impulse, GamersGate, etc) that require online activation, you can lose software due to events completely outside your control, like the publisher going bankrupt. Even worse, the terms and conditions can change at the publisher's whim - e.g. they can charge for re-activation or even impose a monthly/yearly fee to keep accounts open.

So online availability is only safe if done via normal (HTTP/FTP) download with a "once only, ever" registration system as used by most shareware.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Is it really necessary to have ANOTHER digital dist. topic only half a dozen threads above the previous one? Seriously.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Thats a battle as old as forums, and newsgroups before that.
Once it rolls off the initial screen then its fair game for a new thread.
Thats why FAQs (newsgroups) and stickies (for forums) were invented.
Not that they help all the time either

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Does it not say something about the need for digital distribution, though?

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

No, it only tells about demand. If there's not enough demand to balance out the costs, going with DD is not an economical choice. So far, Shrapnel's answer has been that there isn't enough demand for DD alone.

If there are enough threads like this, with hundreds of pages of discussion in several of them, demand might be big enough to balance the costs, but there aren't that many advocates for DD at any one time.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

As far as losing CDs, much the same as losing the manual, I'd contact Shrapnel support to ask about the possibility of replacement (contingent on purchase being verified, naturally).

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

I've read that lengthy Digital Download thread too, and I know the arguments for and against...I can't speak for anyone else, but I do know MY situation. Because of the cost, I've been on the fence with buying this game for about two weeks now. Last week I decided to buy it and was at the ordering screen; when I found out I couldn't get the game digitally, I decided against it and to wait until it goes digital, if ever.

My view- Retail is so last century. I don't care what it costs a game publisher to make games available by digital download...if they can't be bothered to do what it takes to get games to gamers like me, they won't get my business.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

So they should pay some huge amount of money to get someone to write them a safe managable download tracking system on multiple servers worldwide?
Yeah, that will make your purchase worth it for them :)

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

You and the other 3 people like you do not justify the monetary expense for a niche market publisher. When you feel that your unreasonable demands are reasonable, then the reasonable objections will probably sound unreasonable. Reality is not compelled to agree with the individual.....

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Hey, go easy on the guy. I was in his shoes once...

-Max

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

I'd also much prefer a DD version, although I bought both winSPs and Dom3 on CD... International shipping costs, longer wait, etc. That's why I usually buy games digitally.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

I buy most of my books digitally too, actually. Although I guess that's only true if you count quantity and not cost, since Baen ebooks are cheap.

-Max

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

I'd think that for every person who shows up here and says that he would like a digital download option, there are 25 others that didn't bother to register on the forums and write about it and just went somewhere else.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Sorry, I didn't want to seem like I was angry or dimissive, just disappointed. I know it sounds ambiguous to take the time to post in a forum but not purchase the game, but I feel strongly about the digital business model. Decry the possible downsides of models like Impulse and Steam, but the truth is they work, and they are the future of gaming. For me it's about all the little things when it comes to who I trust for my business. That's why I'm still on the fence with Shrapnel.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

I dont think anyone is arguing with you on that. Including Shrapnel.
But until a pre-made package is distributed for it then its not as automatically a good thing as those items that have such packages. Forums, blogs, our nice chat, the shopping cart. Shrapnel has all of those installed for us. Since those other sites you mentioned have not distributed their methods then its not available.

And Shrapnel does have DD also. But without an all-encompassing package its not likely that Dom3 will be included in the games they offer that way. Not yet.

As to the numbers of people who post and dont post, thats probably true. It would reflect the same percentages as those who do purchase the game.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

This is what I don't get. One of the key factors people cite when discussing digital copies is INSTANT GRATIFICATION. But, with the fact you've been on the fence for two weeks in that time you could have purchased the game and been playing it. While we can't do anything about customs in general transit time is really good. We had one customer from the island of Reunion in the Indian Ocean get his copy in about two weeks, and since most folks probably live in more civilized regions, transit time is going to be better.

Umm, we care.

How long have you been gaming? I'm assuming for a number of years, right? And for many of those years you probably only had the option of purchasing a physical copy, correct? Is having to buy a physical copy really that much of a burden?

And this is not meant to be argumentative, it just seems odd that in a world in which the majority of products still are physical (and will always be physical, you can't eat or wear bytes after all) that someone is so against the fact that they can't get a game digitally that you would do without rather than just get the game shipped to you.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Krol, my point about "not caring" is that a publisher can cite reasons for not having downloads available all they want, but what most customers will see and/or care about is whether or not it says "download now" on the order form.

And yes, in this particular case, it IS a burden. At the game's current price, I'm (quite figurately) on the fence about buying it. As for retail boxes...hey, I've been gaming since I was the coolest kid on the block for having Pacman for the Atari first. And I'll never forget lovingly thumbing through the Pirates! and Darklands manuals. But there are some games that I want to just get and play.

Let me put it to you from a different angle. My gut tells me this game is too expensive, but I was willing to make an impulse purchase of it anyway. That impulse petered out as soon as I got to the order form.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Is your impulse strong enough to have downloaded and played the demo? The four nations in the demo were enough to keep me entertained for the few days the manual + CD took to arrive. Although I was very happy to get to play all the new nations once it did arrive.

And if you get the demo and play it for a while and decide it's not your thing, hey, you saved fifty bucks! Everybody wins.

-Max

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

This game is not too expensive. Even if you just played 5 or 6 games and never looked at the game again, you would probably get as much play time out of that as most games you've bought. And if you played the demo and were intrigued enough by it that you considered buying the game, you're almost certain to get that much playing in.

Personally though I hate the idea of direct download. All availability issues aside I much prefer having something concrete and solid that I can hold onto, so if my computer goes to hell or a file gets corrupted I'm not suddenly out $50. You have to keep track of a disc and keep it safe, but with dominions you don't even need the disc in to play, so wear and tear on the disc is extremely minimal.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

My sentiments exactly. Digital copies are all fine and well, but what happens if your HD conks out? And if your backups get shot too? I've had one external HD suffer mechanical failure and that cost me six months worth of accumulated schoolwork because there was a virtual server environment on it that I couldn't run on my home machine due to lab work requirements. I managed to recover the important documentation files that were on the HD before it gave out all the way and making up for the rest of it in two weeks was a real pain in the ***.

As long as you keep track of a commercially produced CD, it generally doesn't degrade, whereas self-burnt ones can die in anywhere from one to ten years depending on CD quality due to the laws of physics that govern chemical reactions.

And if you lost a digital copy, how do you arrange for a redownload? Verification of purchase etc, but that goes back into the need for a downloads management system and we're right back in square one.

Obviously your mileage may vary on how long and how often you would play Dom3, but considering I've been managing the bug reports for near enough two years now and have had time to do the DB and otherwise put all kinds of extra effort into this, it's certainly been worth it in my opinion.

And that's before considering that the hobby project of the Dom3 DB and the bug list actually helped me secure a second professional IT degree. With just minimal modification, I was able to present a working prototype database and project experience that I could present as fait accompli for some sections that were required to demonstrate prior experience. I'd already invested my time into making them, so I used them to my advantage. As games go, for me Dom3 has been an investment that has paid itself back many times over and will keep on doing as long as stay in the IT profession precisely because of this. I'd be (literally) a poorer man indeed if I'd be that hung up on instant downloads.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

I'm completely with you on this. If your gut tells you it's too expensive and after a couple of weeks consideration you haven't convinced yourself to the extent you can ignore the delivery, I don't think you should buy it. Be aware it's not going to go down in price.

From my limited experience Krol is pretty fond of insulting customers/potential customers when they express opinions he doesn't like, so you may have that coming in a moment. He also completely missed your point - you say you've been on the fence for a couple of weeks, musing the decision to buy,.. and his response? You could have bought it and had it by now. Classic. But he doesn't in any way shape or form represent the dom3 community, to be clear.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Just to comment on this, I don't see anything insulting in his post as such. He just said he does not get the objections and lays out the reasoning for it, which from where I'm sitting is pretty solid. It's already been established that Dom3 won't be available for digital download, so in that context his position makes perfect sense.

Scott may have insulted some people at some point in time or another, but as far as I can see, he hasn't done so in this thread. Or maybe I don't perceive what the insult supposedly is.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

No he definitely hasn't in this thread. That's not what I was saying.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

JustAName: While it's possible you might find dealing with Shrapnel frustrating, don't let them put you off Illwinter's game; it's more than worth dealing with a little inconvenience, I promise.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Wow do NOT do that. This is not a game for an impulse buy. Get the demo and convince yourself, or dont buy it. The demo is abit out of date with the main game but its enough to give you the impression of it.

If you do like the demo then the game will most likely be the best money-to-value game purchase you ever make. Ive paid as much for games that lasted me a month. This one tends to last for years. Even the experts at it still argue and have not come up with the "killer strategy" that ruins many other games within their first year.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Tangent: Baen has a really cool system (via Webscriptions.net) that makes universal availability one of the main reasons to buy their ebooks. All your purchases, ever, are tied to your account (email account typically) and you can always log in from any computer and read your books online, or download them in a number of formats including plain HTML (with no DRM) or emailing it your Kindle. No chance of losing them, ever, and no need for storage space. Obviously this universal-availability thing wouldn't work as well for software because it *doesn't* run in a web browser, but Baen Webscriptions is a classy service and if you're into books you should check them out. And there's no DRM. At all.

-Max

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Well said, Gandalf.

Total tangent: that thread on "What do you do when you're not dead", plus Baalz's thoughts in the Helheim thread on Black Bow of Botulf + Black Heart, have me wondering which of the other items and spells I've overlooked that have potential for pyrring your conqueror's victory, even moreso than just sending gems to his enemy. Banefire crossbow has potential--I think it's AoE 9 and only 5 death gems.

-Max

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Actually Gandalf, playing the demo is what PUT me on the fence. I certainly like the game (or I wouldn't be here), but I've never been a fan of multi-player when it came to turn-based strategy games (Alpha Centauri being the sole exception). It seems that the game is tailored more toward MP play, which is fine, but I can't envision taking advantage of that too often, thus lowering the expected value of the game for me. That's why I said that my being on the fence is a case particular to me.

Returning to digital distribution...I imagine that people who see fit to find fault with the established outlets haven't yet taken the time to see how advantageous it can be. EA and Impulse admittedly have a ways to go in terms of customer satisfaction, but Steam is something I think everyone should at least check out before continuing any discussion on the topic. They've found a great balance between DRM security and availability of the software you purchase, whenever and wherever you want it.

Maybe I got spoiled with Steam and expected it here. :rolleyes:

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

I think Shrapnel has more of a synergy with StarDock than Steam.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Honestly, I think it would make tremendous sense if Shrapnel made an agreement with StarDock/Impulse for DD. Just don't move the forums over there, they're even worse. >.>

Also bear in mind, once Impulse is further into development (it's still essentially in Beta2), it will be a redistributable package that can be used for any business, and is supposed to be dirt cheap compared to other DD packages available. Just to bear in mind that they've barely started using it for the general public, and it still has a lot of performance tweaks needed. ;)

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Im surprised Steam considers itself out of beta. I dont think that the rest of the world does quite yet. The thing about playing your game on any machine still screams for a possible abuse. I wish it well but Im not ready to declare it the "winner" from the company side of things.
IMHO

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

For what it's worth, I played dominions in sp for about a year before ever joining an mp game. The game is in a way more tailored to playing mp, but even the singleplayer game can keep you occupied for a long time. There are still nations and mod nations I've never played, spells I've never cast, items I've never forged....

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Ive been playing Dom3 for about a year longer than most of the people here, and I still mostly play solo. :)

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

As a huge fan of Stardock and Impulse, I think that putting the Shrapnel catalogue (not only Dom3, but the full version of Stell Panthers as well, for example) on Impulse would be a great move. The gaming crowd certainly is similar enough to appreciate good turn-based titles.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

They have done mutual advertising and special deals. They have a working relationship. But I dont think Shrapnel can buy StarDock yet.

Re: Can you buy Dominions 3 online for download?
 

Never mind sorry for reviving an old post.