Did I mention how much I love Stardock and Gas Powered Games?
Because if I didn’t, I should have. Though I’m pretty sure I did at one point or two. What brings them up today though? Get this…Stardock is going to publish Gas Powered Games next big game, Demigod. Yeah, that’s right. The fuckers are working together to make gaming even better. It’s like if you really loved chocolate and peanut butter but had never tried a Reese’s peanut butter cup. You’d be blown away by the love that it is. That’s EXACTLY how good this going to be. Assuming Demigod is going to be a good to better game (and I hear it is), now it’s being published without copy protection or cd check or whatever:
Like Stardock’s other games, Demigod will be released without any on-disc copy protection and has been budgeted to receive many months of free post-release feature updates.
Wow. I know what you’re saying…how could this possibly get any better? Normally I’d be all, "shut up, you asshat, of course it can’t get better." Of course, I’d be wrong.
Impulse, like Valve’s Steam service, will allow gamers across the world to download a wealth of Stardock’s titles, as well as the company’s other, non-gaming software, from the comfort of their own homes. Unlike Steam however, Impulse will not require users to have an active internet connection to use the software. In addition to Stardock’s own software, the service will host a number of games from other "major PC developers." Stardock’s stated goal is "to have equivalent game content as Direct2Drive and Steam by end of year." Impulse will also include friends lists, Xbox 360-style "Achievements" and "clan, team, friend game night scheduling."
Well smack me and call me suzy. Done? Good, because this is really impressive shit. Impulse will be a Steam-like system that won’t require you to be connected to the internet to play games. That’s nice, though I don’t really notice it with Steam since I’m always connected. But it’ll also Live style friends, clan systems and other spiffy ass features. And to boot, it’s going to handle all of the match making aspects. If your game supports multiplayer, you should be able to patch it, with too much effort, to support Impulse’s match making service. That’s effing awesome and incredibly needed. Oh, and saved games and the like…they can all be stored on Impulse.
Now, that’s a lot of talk about features of a system that isn’t actually out for public consumption yet, so it might not live up to promises, but if there was one company with the experience, the know how and the vision to create such a service, I’d have to say it’s Stardock. They’ve been cutting edge in lots of ways for awhile now and I’m extremely happy that not only are they going the Impulse path, but that GPG is involved and going with it. Know how we talked a bit back about saving PC Gaming and what should be done? This is very much step in the right direction. Maybe a few large steps.
What Would Matt Do: Impatiently bite my nails and try to get in on the beta!
Note: You can talk with Brad Wardell directly and get more details on qt3.