Hangout The Games Hangout Thread

[scav]

@Jammin holy shit XCOM2, game is so good i've even stopped playing smash lately because of it. But i kinda hate that they can't let you do a scan in peace before giving you missions so shit get hard when my main squad is injured and i go with the rookies lol Also what was your main lineup? i go 1 sharpshooter, 1 specialist, 2 grenadier and 2 ranger.
And wtf is the avatar project? lol should i be worried?

 

[Jammin]

@Jammin holy shit XCOM2, game is so good i've even stopped playing smash lately because of it. But i kinda hate that they can't let you do a scan in peace before giving you missions so shit get hard when my main squad is injured and i go with the rookies lol Also what was your main lineup? i go 1 sharpshooter, 1 specialist, 2 grenadier and 2 ranger.
And wtf is the avatar project? lol should i be worried?

Haha, yes you should be worried. Always. Though you can do things to bring down that timer so don't get too tense about it.

As for squads, depends on who is alive and healthy. Ideally I go with at least 2 rangers and 1 specialist as well. The rest just depends on what I've got. I like to mix rookies in pretty often too. So when missions start going sideways, and they always will, it's a little easier to adapt to it as long as you have a lot of backups with those first ranks.

I'm not sure if you're playing the War of the Chosen expansion or not but if you are then that's where you can expect things to really get spicy.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 8, 2019, Original Post Date: Mar 8, 2019 ---

Also I'd like to request you rename a soldier after me. Then let me know when and how he dies.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 8, 2019 ---

Dammit! I was going to finally finish Valkyria Chronicles 4 but now you got me thinking about X-Com again.

May redownload it and do a Mangahelper run where I name all of my soldiers after mangahelpers users.

 

[SonOfDaws]

Warframe is probably the best F2P game I've ever played, but I started to get burnt out just because of the lack of guidance when it comes to getting the gear I really want and progressing with the game's systems. The game really doesn't do a great job of teaching you how to progress in general, outside of going planet to planet without caring much about drops.

Overall, I really like the game, but I felt like I had to study just to get into it. Plus, I've still got Bloodborne, Nier: Automata, Nioh, DMC5, Monster Hunter World, and Overwatch waiting for me. So, I kinda just fell off of Warframe.

 

[scav]

Haha, yes you should be worried. Always. Though you can do things to bring down that timer so don't get too tense about it.

As for squads, depends on who is alive and healthy. Ideally I go with at least 2 rangers and 1 specialist as well. The rest just depends on what I've got. I like to mix rookies in pretty often too. So when missions start going sideways, and they always will, it's a little easier to adapt to it as long as you have a lot of backups with those first ranks.

I'm not sure if you're played the War of the Chosen expansion or not but if you are then that's where you can expect things to really get spicy.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 8, 2019, Original Post Date: Mar 8, 2019 ---

Also I'd like to request you rename a soldier after me. Then let me know when and how he dies.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 8, 2019 ---

Dammit! I was going to finally finish Valkyria Chronicles 4 but now you got me thinking about X-Com again.

May redownload it and do a Mangahelper run where I name all of my soldiers after mangahelpers users.

I guess they'll complete that project sooner or later. that's also true for the rookies, i need to get some good backups

nah i never buy expansion until i finish a game and i feel like i want more.

there, my favorite hacker, there's no way i'll let him die lol. i dunnot how you look like so i just went with the feel

i tried the demo of Valkyria Chronicles, i didn't like it. Maybe i'll give it another try once i'm done with XCOM2

 

[Jammin]

The image isn't loading for me sadly. Hopefully you made me look properly ridiculous.

 

[scav]

The image isn't loading for me sadly. Hopefully you made me look properly ridiculous.

try that link https://1drv.ms/u/s!AukK7_r_4SIRhg6ILalTii1wjqVi

 

[Jammin]

Warframe is probably the best F2P game I've ever played, but I started to get burnt out just because of the lack of guidance when it comes to getting the gear I really want and progressing with the game's systems. The game really doesn't do a great job of teaching you how to progress in general, outside of going planet to planet without caring much about drops.

Overall, I really like the game, but I felt like I had to study just to get into it. Plus, I've still got Bloodborne, Nier: Automata, Nioh, DMC5, Monster Hunter World, and Overwatch waiting for me. So, I kinda just fell off of Warframe.

That's fair. Warframe is a game you really have to dig into. It's gotten better at that over the years. But the depth of it's systems go so deep that to there is a very real investment there in learning it. Part of the fun is pealing back all the layers of that proverbial onion. If that's something your not into, it's going to be a long road.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 8, 2019, Original Post Date: Mar 8, 2019 ---

try that link https://1drv.ms/u/s!AukK7_r_4SIRhg6ILalTii1wjqVi

Is that a onedrive link? Can't access that either.

 

[scav]

That's fair. Warframe is a game you really have to dig into. It's gotten better at that over the years. But the depth of it's systems go so deep that to there is a very real investment there in learning it. Part of the fun is pealing back all the layers of that proverbial onion. If that's something your not into, it's going to be a long road.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 8, 2019, Original Post Date: Mar 8, 2019 ---

Is that a onedrive link? Can't access that either.

yeah usually when i take a SS from my xbox, i just upload it on one drive. quite practical. I wish nintendo had a cloud service, i wouldn't have to take out my SD Card whenever i need to take my screenshot (i dislike social media)

 

[Jammin]

yeah usually when i take a SS from my xbox, i just upload it on one drive. quite practical. I wish nintendo had a cloud service, i wouldn't have to take out my SD Card whenever i need to take my screenshot (i dislike social media)

Haha, that's awesome! I mean, could not look less like me but that just makes it better.

FYI, I'm told I look like Owen Wilson...which hurts my feelings.

 

[xi0]

Jesus christ man... This is the type of exclusivity bullshit that PC is supposed to have over console. Leave it to Epic games and their dirty Fortnite/Tencent money to do their best to ruin that though.. This news plus the news last week that The Division 2 won't be sold by third party vendors after it's released on the 15th (they're fine with it for preorders since it'll inflate their release sales figures) just cements that this practice won't be stopping any time soon.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 13, 2019, Original Post Date: Mar 13, 2019 ---

And you juxtapose this kind of news with Microsoft announcing they're putting Halo on Steam... what a time to be alive

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 13, 2019 ---

Looks like they're teasing a Borderlands 3 announcement at PAX East perhaps

 

[scav]

hahahaha sound like bullshit indeed, i didn't even know it was a thing. Should we call it stores war

Microsoft trying to bring their games everywhere to sell subscriptions. There is a rumor they gonna bring gamepass on the switch and on mobile. which gonna be awesome. Halo MCC is dope, if you like shooters you should get it.

 

[Jammin]

Really have my fingers crossed that Borderlands 3 continues the tradition of the previous games and is a first person co-op Diablo with a strong and funny story element. Like if it is announced as a live service or a MMO-lite I'm going to be so disappointed,

With the Epic getting Phoenix Point. I'm actually not too annoyed by that because I've got a lot of doubts about that game. We already have several great variations on the X-Com formula (Phantom Doctrine, Hard West, Battletech) Firaxis has kind of already made the definitive edition of those games too. So I'm not sure where Phoenix Point is going to fit. It's zone based aiming mechanic is interesting but aside from that...

 

[xi0]

Really have my fingers crossed that Borderlands 3 continues the tradition of the previous games and is a first person co-op Diablo with a strong and funny story element. Like if it is announced as a live service or a MMO-lite I'm going to be so disappointed,

It's Randy Pitchford, so there's a decent chance it's going to be crap... or him being such an outspoken critic of Valve in the past and the game being made in UE4 creates a perfect scenario where it'll be gobbled up by Epic and be yet another Epic Game Store exclusive, benefiting no one but the executives at Epic and Gearbox and defended by corporate shills and naive fans who think less consumer choice is somehow a good thing. Or praising the idea that Epic taking a smaller cut of sales for offering demonstrably less features is somehow a superior moral choice because publishers just can't wait to pay grunt developers more, they just need more revenue to do it! Somehow Trickle-down economics will be a thing in the games industry even though it's a myth everywhere else. Yeah, they just need to cut out evil Valve so they can finally give their low-mid range level employees a raise since they weren't making enough before.

Thanks Tim Sweeney!


sighs in Totalbiscuit

With the Epic getting Phoenix Point. I'm actually not too annoyed by that because I've got a lot of doubts about that game. We already have several great variations on the X-Com formula (Phantom Doctrine, Hard West, Battletech) Firaxis has kind of already made the definitive edition of those games too. So I'm not sure where Phoenix Point is going to fit. It's zone based aiming mechanic is interesting but aside from that...

If you backed the game on Kickstarter or Fig based on the promise that you'd be getting a game on Steam or DRM-free on GOG, you would be annoyed. There appeared to be many withdrawing support already and requesting refunds based on a recent change in art direction, among other things. People are now refunding en-masse, but it probably won't matter much due to the sum Epic gave them. And somehow this move isn't breaking antitrust laws due to shaky language used on those sites, which just doesn't seem like something that should be a thing, but what do I know. I'm just an "entitled gamer".

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 13, 2019, Original Post Date: Mar 13, 2019 ---

hahahaha sound like bullshit indeed, i didn't even know it was a thing. Should we call it stores war

Microsoft trying to bring their games everywhere to sell subscriptions. There is a rumor they gonna bring gamepass on the switch and on mobile. which gonna be awesome. Halo MCC is dope, if you like shooters you should get it.

People seem to like the gamepass. It even has crossplay between console and PC for stuff like Forza. Their client still sucks, but at least it'll be on Steam. We're in some sort of bizarro world where Microsoft is some sort of pro-consumer example and people who actually make games like Epic aren't...

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 13, 2019 ---

Director of Publishing Strategy for Epic Games Store agrees that “gamers are unpleasant aggressive assholes with hysteric requirements who should fuck off”.


E P I C

 

[Jammin]

It's Randy Pitchford, so there's a decent chance it's going to be crap... or him being such an outspoken critic of Valve in the past and the game being made in UE4 creates a perfect scenario where it'll be gobbled up by Epic and be yet another Epic Game Store exclusive, benefiting no one but the executives at Epic and Gearbox and defended by corporate shills and naive fans who think less consumer choice is somehow a good thing. Or praising the idea that Epic taking a smaller cut of sales for offering demonstrably less features is somehow a superior moral choice because publishers just can't wait to pay grunt developers more, they just need more revenue to do it! Somehow Trickle-down economics will be a thing in the games industry even though it's a myth everywhere else. Yeah, they just need to cut out evil Valve so they can finally give their low-mid range level employees a raise since they weren't making enough before.

Thanks Tim Sweeney!


sighs in Totalbiscuit

Borderlands 1 & 2 were great games. If they can do that again it's going to be great. No matter which platform it releases on. I don't have any strong feelings about Pitchford, He's not really the guy making Borderlands. Just the CEO.

And I don't think Unreal has anything to do with it. Phoenix Point is Unity. Metro has it's own engine. Epic is just snapping up whatever it can to try and make us get used to using there store. Which is not working for me.

If you backed the game on Kickstarter or Fig based on the promise that you'd be getting a game on Steam or DRM-free on GOG, you would be annoyed. There appeared to be many withdrawing support already and requesting refunds based on a recent change in art direction, among other things. People are now refunding en-masse, but it probably won't matter much due to the sum Epic gave them. And somehow this move isn't breaking antitrust laws due to shaky language used on those sites, which just doesn't seem like something that should be a thing, but what do I know. I'm just an "entitled gamer".

That's gotta suck but "broken promises" and "Kickstarter" are practically synonyms.

I just wonder if this game would ever have released at all if not for Epic stepping in. Like the creator of X-Com the kickstater campaign was advertising is Julian Gollop. And I'm a huge original X-Com fan but his track record is not awesome. He is not a Kojima or someone like that. Part of the reason X-Com died originally were some bad design decisions in the sequels.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 13, 2019, Original Post Date: Mar 13, 2019 ---

The real problem with this Epic situation is my eyes is how they're going about this. Like I don't have any problem with somebody trying to compete with Valve and Steam but forcing people onto said platform with third party exclusivity is a bad move.

What they should be working on the services they offer and making them better than Steam. Valves store is a damn mess. Everybody knows it. Just like everybody knows Valve is never going to do anything about it. If Epic was to curate and polish their storefront. Offer a better social options. Trophy type systems. Maybe even some free older games. Incentivize developers and publishers with a bigger cut and the assurance they won't get lost in an daily avalanche of shovelware. Incentivize customers with better services. That's how you pull customers away from Steam.

This Epic store exclusivity thing just forces people into a one time transaction they will have lingering bad feelings about.

 

[xi0]

Borderlands 1 & 2 were great games. If they can do that again it's going to be great. No matter which platform it releases on. I don't have any strong feelings about Pitchford, He's not really the guy making Borderlands. Just the CEO.

And I don't think Unreal has anything to do with it. Phoenix Point is Unity. Metro has it's own engine. Epic is just snapping up whatever it can to try and make us get used to using there store. Which is not working for me.

I should clarify that it might be shit based on what Gearbox has done recently. I never got into the Pre-Sequel, but people were a bit lukewarm on it. Everything else Gearbox has done since then has been pretty lackluster. From the Aliens: Colonial Marines fiasco, to the Battleborn debacle. Pitchford isn't making the game, but he would almost certainly have a say in whether it would be an EGS exclusive or not. And there's zero chance Epic wouldn't be interested in that.

And when you couple this with Pitchford being on record complaining about how big of a cut Valve gets from Steam, the fact that it's in Unreal Engine 4 this time around, I'd say there's a pretty good chance. And I know Phoenix Point is in Unity and Metro is in their own proprietary 4A Engine, but those games were/are developed by smaller studios and that can be more about what developers are more experienced/comfortable with. But the biggest thing about this is if a game is put on the EGS and is developed in UE4, the 5% royalty cost is waived. So that would be even greater profit to Gearbox, on top of however millions Epic would be willing to give to them for it being exclusive. So at this point I'd be more shocked if it wasn't an exclusive...

The real problem with this Epic situation is my eyes is how they're going about this. Like I don't have any problem with somebody trying to compete with Valve and Steam but forcing people onto said platform with third party exclusivity is a bad move.

What they should be working on the services they offer and making them better than Steam. Valves store is a damn mess. Everybody knows it. Just like everybody knows Valve is never going to do anything about it. If Epic was to curate and polish their storefront. Offer a better social options. Trophy type systems. Maybe even some free older games. Incentivize developers and publishers with a bigger cut and the assurance they won't get lost in an daily avalanche of shovelware. Incentivize customers with better services. That's how you pull customers away from Steam.

This Epic store exclusivity thing just forces people into a one time transaction they will have lingering bad feelings about.

Oh I don't resent EGS existing. Same reason I don't care about GOG, Twitch, or Discord selling games either. Steam could absolutely do better, and a compelling alternative wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. But doing that through brute force and shitty anti-consumer nonsense such as this pretty much solidifies me never give a cent of my money to Epic again. The only thing worse than that are the people defending it, trying to claim Steam is a monopoly, and/or trying to claim that if publishers get a bigger cut, developers will be paid more, and the savings will eventually be passed down to the consumer. Absolute bullhockey.

 

[Jammin]

I should clarify that it might be shit based on what Gearbox has done recently. I never got into the Pre-Sequel, but people were a bit lukewarm on it. Everything else Gearbox has done since then has been pretty lackluster. From the Aliens: Colonial Marines fiasco, to the Battleborn debacle. Pitchford isn't making the game, but he would almost certainly have a say in whether it would be an EGS exclusive or not. And there's zero chance Epic wouldn't be interested in that.

And when you couple this with Pitchford being on record complaining about how big of a cut Valve gets from Steam, the fact that it's in Unreal Engine 4 this time around, I'd say there's a pretty good chance. And I know Phoenix Point is in Unity and Metro is in their own proprietary 4A Engine, but those games were/are developed by smaller studios and that can be more about what developers are more experienced/comfortable with. But the biggest thing about this is if a game is put on the EGS and is developed in UE4, the 5% royalty cost is waived. So that would be even greater profit to Gearbox, on top of however millions Epic would be willing to give to them for it being exclusive. So at this point I'd be more shocked if it wasn't an exclusive...

The Pre-Sequel was good. Though my understanding was that game was more 2K Australia than Gearbox itself, much like Borderlands 2's DLC (Except the final one). I beat it a couple times. Not as good as Borderlands 2 from a character/story standpoint but the gameplay was great. Better than Borderlands 2 in some ways.

I would be fairly surprised if they signed up with Epic.

The problem there is the sales hit it would inevitably take on PC. Gearbox needs a win and they know that. They aren't as big as people think they are. They are a private company. Borderlands 2 was a huge hit and that has kept them going but that won't last forever. Even if they get a bigger cut, if they sell less copies, it doesn't make sense for them. And that would be the likely result (on PC at least) because thier audience is all on steam. And considering their recent image problems I'd think they'd want to come out in the most PR friendly way possible. Previously they have also published Borderlands in partnership with 2K Games. And I don't think 2K would care for an Epic deal either. The risks outweigh the benifits for them. Epic would have to pay out a LOT of money to offset that risk.

Oh I don't resent EGS existing. Same reason I don't care about GOG, Twitch, or Discord selling games either. Steam could absolutely do better, and a compelling alternative wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. But doing that through brute force and shitty anti-consumer nonsense such as this pretty much solidifies me never give a cent of my money to Epic again. The only thing worse than that are the people defending it, trying to claim Steam is a monopoly, and/or trying to claim that if publishers get a bigger cut, developers will be paid more, and the savings will eventually be passed down to the consumer. Absolute bullhockey.

Yeah, there is no question how they are going about this is anti-consumer. Especially for a PC audience that is already pretty fed up with being forced to use additional software to play games that is completely unnecessary from a user end standpoint. Like Origin and Uplay,

Though the platform exclusivity doesn't bother me nearly as much as it does you. That's annoying but I can live with it. What bothers me is that they are doing it after pre-orders have gone live. That's feels dirty.

 

[xi0]

The Pre-Sequel was good. Though my understanding was that game was more 2K Australia than Gearbox itself, much like Borderlands 2's DLC (Except the final one). I beat it a couple times. Not as good as Borderlands 2 from a character/story standpoint but the gameplay was great. Better than Borderlands 2 in some ways.

I would be fairly surprised if they signed up with Epic.

The problem there is the sales hit it would inevitably take on PC. Gearbox needs a win and they know that. They aren't as big as people think they are. They are a private company. Borderlands 2 was a huge hit and that has kept them going but that won't last forever. Even if they get a bigger cut, if they sell less copies, it doesn't make sense for them. And that would be the likely result (on PC at least) because thier audience is all on steam. And considering their recent image problems I'd think they'd want to come out in the most PR friendly way possible. Previously they have also published Borderlands in partnership with 2K Games. And I don't think 2K would care for an Epic deal either. The risks outweigh the benifits for them. Epic would have to pay out a LOT of money to offset that risk.

It was a collaborative work, yeah. Had story people from Gearbox and the existing Borderlands 2 as base and 2K Australia took over from there.

I guess we'll find out on the 28th. I personally wouldn't be surprised. Epic has spent a lot of money already, but they don't have a title exclusive to their client that could even be remotely on par with Fortnite. In other words, something that will keep them using their client for more than just the time it takes for complete a singleplayer game. I guess that's sort of dependent on what type of game Borderlands 3 ends up being though. But even if it's another Borderlands 2/Presequel-esque game, I imagine it would still have more replayability than the other current EGS exclusives (The Division 2 doesn't really count because you're still using Uplay regardless of where you bought it).

I would have thought the same thing about Metro Exodus too though. The situation is different since Metro games are all 4A makes, but the fact that we've heard no sales figures boasts from them or Deep Silver a month after release speaks volumes to me regarding the games reception on PC. Granted, it's a smaller share of sales compared to consoles but still... if it was good, we would have probably heard something.

Yeah, there is no question how they are going about this is anti-consumer. Especially for a PC audience that is already pretty fed up with being forced to use additional software to play games that is completely unnecessary from a user end standpoint. Like Origin and Uplay,

Though the platform exclusivity doesn't bother me nearly as much as it does you. That's annoying but I can live with it. What bothers me is that they are doing it after pre-orders have gone live. That's feels dirty.

You know, I wonder if Epic would bother doing stuff like this if they actually had something to sell other than Unreal Engine assets and VBucks. I don't like that Origin or Uplay exists, but at least EA and Ubisoft are selling something they made. It's annoying but can I really be that bothered? Granted, I've probably had less issues with those two than what I've seen online though. And at least they haven't tried buying exclusives... (yet lol). Even still, Origin makes more sense to me because it completely cuts Valve out. Uplay doesn't since you can still buy Ubisoft games on Steam, so I'm still sort of confused as to why it even exists.

Why is that? Because of your console gaming? Well, the Metro shit was super shady, but the paid exclusive thing is the real problem to me. If you preordered Metro on Steam you still got a key on Steam. The Division 2 preorders never actually went on sale on Steam AFAIK, they just used Steam to advertise their game for free LOL.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 14, 2019, Original Post Date: Mar 14, 2019 ---

Welp... I guess we'll find out what "support" means

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 14, 2019 ---

Never mind, I guess we already did...

 

[Jammin]

Why is that? Because of your console gaming? Well, the Metro shit was super shady, but the paid exclusive thing is the real problem to me. If you preordered Metro on Steam you still got a key on Steam. The Division 2 preorders never actually went on sale on Steam AFAIK, they just used Steam to advertise their game for free LOL.

Because I just consider it a minor inconvenience. I don't like it but I'm not upset about it either. What actual effect does it have on me as a gamer? Click a different icon? I'd rather have all my games in one place, of course. On my list of problems I have with things in the game industry exclusivity deals probably aren't even in the top 10. It's an problem a can deal with. Unlike..

1. Microtractions and lootboxes (This stuff is like cancer)
2. The mindless trend chasing that murders good studios (First shooters, then MMOs, then mobile games, then MOBAs, then open world games, now live services.)
3. Charging into an all digital future before the actual infrastructure is in place (Where I live it is not)
4. Steam's absurd "We don't want to be bother with it" store management is. (Hire some quality testers and fix your recommendation algorithms you assholes!!)
5. Insufficient testing/bug fixing and a "patch it later" mentality. (Gone gold doesn't mean anything anymore)

I'm not defending Epic. What they are doing in forcing people to use their platform at no benefit to them. That sucks. But to me it's a small thing.

 

[scav]

The mindless trend chasing that murders good studios (First shooters, then MMOs, then mobile games, then MOBAs, then open world games, now live services.)

lol i got burned out from shooters due to years of Halo and titanfall, from MOBA due to years of League of legends and lately i'm taking a break from open world. But yeah Fallout got ruined because they wanted a game where they could stuff micro transactions and obviously that wouldn't work with the good old one and done single player game. Same reason that motivated BioWare/EA with Anthem. EA destroying everything they touch with their "single player game are dead" mentality.
Also "selling online subscriptions" kinda killed couch multiplayers games, i remember i didnt get much into Halo 5 because they removed the split screen multiplayer mode. they'll put it back on Halo infinite lol. kinda why i love the switch, nintendo sticking to their way of doing thing. i kinda feel bad for siblings growing together nowadays, like they wouldn't even find a good car game to play together unless the parents buy 2 separate gaming gears.

 

[TrienDarkform]

1. Microtractions and lootboxes (This stuff is like cancer)
2. The mindless trend chasing that murders good studios (First shooters, then MMOs, then mobile games, then MOBAs, then open world games, now live services.)
3. Charging into an all digital future before the actual infrastructure is in place (Where I live it is not)
4. Steam's absurd "We don't want to be bother with it" store management is. (Hire some quality testers and fix your recommendation algorithms you assholes!!)
5. Insufficient testing/bug fixing and a "patch it later" mentality. (Gone gold doesn't mean anything anymore)

Ugh, totally with you there on all those; not a huge fan of many current-day game/development practices at all.

As for the store exclusivity, besides the basic anti-consumer premise of it... to answer the question of the guy above, "who cares which store you get your games from?"

I do. There are certain stores I would prefer to support, and certain stores I disagree with so I choose not to support, and this applies both to online game stores, and physical stores as well. I don't shop at the local Walmart, and I prefer shopping at locally owned businesses, for example. I'm a fan of GOG for their lack of DRM as well, so also like to support them. The EA store is on absolute blacklist, and I haven't bought anything from EA for 20 years now, and their "Origin" store just drives the point home every time I see the name, since Origin was a game studio which produced some of my favourite games back in the day, which of course EA bought and subsequently ran into the ground (see Jammin point #2). So seeing their good name, which of course EA now owns, plastered on EA's store just ticks me right off.

Ubisoft and UPlay generate similar sentiments as well, for other philosophical reasons.

As for Phoenix Point, I have no stake in this game personally; these days I don't play a whole lot of different games, but would rather pick a few good games and spend more time playing them each (obviously said games have to be good enough to accommodate that). I have no opinions on the Epic store either. But having the GOG option removed is rather distasteful for me.