I need to spill my guts out!

[SE_JonF]

@Chosker;567768

well the steam DRM can be bypassed by the use of a crack. like I said before a crack is just an extra step that doesn’t represent any setbacks for anyone trying to surpass the license of use.
you say this:
“Just because piracy exists doesn’t mean we should have to make it easier for people to steal our products.”
and I can say this:
“Just because there are pirates out there doesn’t mean we have to treat everyone like one.”
it’s two sides of the argument and I don’t think one is greatly more valid than the other one.

I don’t assume all refundees are always good users. with the current system eventually the unlawful users will go away from the refund system and just do the regular pirate route. you might never even know a pirate stole and used your assets in a game because you won’t be playing every game out there. but they will still be pirates and they will still be there, you just won’t be aware of it.

do realize I’m only playing the devil’s advocate . I’m not saying that an open refund system is just better, it’s just that the drawbacks are different.
but once again, I can’t stress enough that the problem with the marketplace is that no amount of pictures, videos and technical descriptions will accurately tell you if the asset it suited for your project. in the case of art, not until you see and evaluate for yourself. assets might be good and dandy it’s important to see if the polygons and texel density is suited for this or that camera angle, if the materials are not relying on overly complex calculations, etc. in the case of blueprints and code, if the algorithms are efficient or if there’s major architectural differences that would make the integration troublesome.
not being able to try anything before buying it, but also not being able to get a refund, is the real problem for me.

anyway I didn’t realize the marketplace had a more open refund system before, and I can understand if they went for the current more closed system. but even then it’s clear that the marketplace has issues.

and about the marketplace barely breaking even, I can understand it based on the amount of work that goes into making a marketplace item. moreso with all the changes the engine has gone through and still goes through (every major release means making sure the stuff still works. expecting something to work from 5-6 releases ago is usually a stretch).
even more with how unclear it is about the time you’re meant to support your items. as a creator if you want to keep selling you become a slave of sorts, you can never really close and just move on.
this are the reasons I always stayed away from making marketplace stuff. if it works for you and you’re actually making some money, honestly man you deserve a cookie

I’m not saying we treat every customer like a pirate. I’m saying I am not in favor of giving out refunds for obviously false claims. If for example someone has a legitimate claim, and I go ahead with giving them a refund there is still a that they will keep that content. But if the customers complaint was valid, I wouldn’t care so much about that because I would have failed to deliver on my end of the bargain.

On the flip side if someone makes up false claims that are easily disproved, I wouldn’t be in favor of giving them a refund. Keep in mind that the marketplace refund policy says the package has to be broken in order to get a refund, but if a claim doesn’t fall within the guidelines of the policy sellers can still a refund of their own volition. I want nothing more than to make my customers happy, but if someone is making obviously false accusations of a product of mine and I give them a refund outside of the policy - that validates their false claim.

Maximum-Dev makes a good point with his Movie example. Digital goods aren’t the same as physical goods, and are considered to be consumed once purchased/“opened”/viewed. Many digital distributors have a similar policy to the marketplace for this very reason. Steam is an outlier, but again there are DRM reasons for that.

To your point about not enough information, the marketplace requires we provide detailed descriptions, technical details and sometimes videos. If some find that to still be lacking, there is a support email which can be used to acquire more information about the product. I’ve had a few buyers contact me before purchasing over the past year, usually to inquire about VR support. The point is, if you don’t see enough information to help you make an informed purchase then contact the seller. I am more than happy to discuss my products with potential customers. Hell I’ve even recommended SciFi packs from other sellers in the past when seeing a potential customers desires wouldn’t have been satisfied with my product (mobile game support).

You were probably wise to stay away from the marketplace. It really is a lot of work, not just making the products but maintaining it and giving customer support. There is no sun setting of content, if you stop supporting a product it gets removed. I can’t imagine how it is for people with 10+ products, especially solo developers as myself. Many of us have begun to question whether it’s really worth it lately given a lot of the issues going on behind the scenes that most are unaware of.