current status of the Steam project

[Turban]

i also find it hilarious that he is talking about putting batch files and installers on steam, which reveals he knows nothing about how steam works

PS everything he said indicates he is only willing to take the laziest, easiest route and is unwilling to do any work at all

and as a consequence of his laziness, we will all be permanently locked in as priits slaves, which apparently is something he enjoys, with no chance of adding new features or making use of the steam workshop

we can't claim ownership of the game and get on Steam, which is basically what SSC is attempting to do in a nutshell by trying to modify the game client. we would be breaking the license agreement, and thus it would be really easy for brilliant digital entertainment to get us pulled out of the platform. not to mention it would also put this zone, and Extreme Games, in a very shitty position as we would lose our reliable host who is covering all our expenses, granted he is at times slow to respond. these two are arguably the biggest zones in the game with some of the most colorful history.

is it really worth risking it? we would simply be giving SSC more control over the game, even though a new biller would finally allow more zones to be added SSC directory list -- however, based on what i have heard, the plans are to actually modify the game client and that would is when we lose all our rights of actually launching on Steam. i would rather tie our hands than take a gamble which is hard to win.

[Turban]

"I don't know how, learning US laws is hard, and I (we) don't feel like it" ?


So we are going to make our most important decisions ever with the mindset and reasoning skills that is akin to the reasons a third grader tells his parents why he doesn't want to do his math homework.



Nice.

i'm willing to do the first step because starting June i will not be around at all for two months. no one seems to be willing to actually figure out all the laws, which vary state by state, procedures required of forming one, requirements, setting up bank accounts (which have to be in the US), organizing a meeting with a lawyer, figuring out the all the costs and expenses, and whatever else could possibly be involved when creating an LLC or non-profit organization in the US. it would be much simpler if they would accept a Finnish company, or player, but that's sadly no the case. fact is that my only proper steam contact is M_M god and he said nothing about a project of forming a NPO, nor the status of it. someone else can try to shine some light in that regard, of course -- such as roxxkatt who seems to be ever so involved.

we can use our donation funds, but i'm not even sure if we could be able to cover all the expenses. we could, naturally, start a kickstarter to collect more funds if needed, but that would indirectly violate the license agreement. whoever is actually working on that, let us know as soon as possible -- i don't really like waiting, especially when this could be done the simple way which is having one person doing it all with our help.

[Turban]

it was a quick writeup done in the hopes to shine some light of the current status, and what would be the quickest way to actually make any progress as this zone (and every other zone) are in a dire need of help and activity. there is a clear lack of motivation which could be reignited by making some progress with this project.

alas, as stated above, i can not help with the creation of a non-profit US organization, or an LLC located in the US, as i'm not a US citizen and not well-versed in their various laws, requirements and procedures required for actually forming one. we would likely have to hire a lawyer to help with setting up of one, which would also cost a fair bunch, along with the initial payment required to forming one.

sadly, there seems to be no one willing to actually do the hard work, hence it's currently not an option unless someone steps up their game and volunteers to do it all; checks out all the information that we need, such as which states offer the best deals, exact procedures and sums, finds the people willing to sign the deal, open a bank account tied to the organization/company, and the list goes on. someone can try to prove me wrong, and actually do all the hard work, but i would rather take the easy way out where i can actually actively help while i still have the time and motivation.


@ cheese: there is no need for a new client. we do not need compability with steam workshop. we don't need to separate ourselves from the current biller right now. heck, some of those would violate the license agreement, and unfortunately certain people seem to want to fuck over the game for good to gain "more control" over it which would put the sole individual who signed the contract in a shitty position.

we can't claim ownership of this game, and the license agreement clearly states that we can not modify the client or the game which means SSC needs to stop trying to kill the game. i'm not going to abandon the ship this early, especially not after actively playing the game for over 15 years, and i'm sure others are in the same boat with me.

truth is, i don't want to put the two biggest zones (Trench Wars and Extreme Games) and whoever signs the contract to be put in immediate danger simply because certain individuals want to make changes that would clearly piss the wrong people off, which in return would actually jeopardize the entire project and our chances of actually getting or being on Steam. you may have good intentions, but it's not helping in either short or long term.

alas what i want is simple: results. i don't want to wait around to see the game die because we decide to further delay this project by another 10 months to finish everything, and even after that time Trench Wars would most likely be fucked over due to the lack of a reliable server host and funding as these people want to separate all ties with Priit Kasesalu -- our server and biller host. it would not even be guaranteed that we would get on Steam after all that wait, especially if we start doing modifications, thus it's a risk we should not be willing to take.

the easiest way to actually make any progress is to find a certain individual to take the first step for us, or someone actually to do the hard work and set up an organization or company. unfortunately, i can't not do either as it has to be someone from the US.

however if i'm wrong, and everyone wants to further delay this project while jeopardizing our chances of actually getting accepted on Steam, be my guest. i won't have to waste my efforts and time, and will finally be able to move on. it's really that simple. also, if i didn't make myself clear enough in the other thread, i'm not going to be around soon for a prolonged time thus someone else would have to lead the charge if we don't go with the first option.

[Godzero]

Wait I'm confused, the NPO is seriously the back-up option now?

linking a bank account to either one of them, and finding a set of players to form the company or organization. this is the safe way of doing it, but would require us to find a larger number of players, someone to set up a bank account for the company or organization

I was under the impression all of the zone heads were already being contacted (and had already responded) to help setup this NPO.
What is going on here ...

and we would be forced to use a fair chunk of our donation funds.

We can't use a tiny chunk of the donation funds we already have for that?
You can't need EVERY penny of that for the marketing. We quite literally have thousands of dollars at our disposal,

I'm sure the ENTIRE player-base would agree that a NPO for Steam is worth spending it on.

i would not be able to help with this one, as i don't really know all the laws in the US, thus someone else would have to take over.

Let me get this straight,
we are really just trying to take the 1st option( IE: the easy way) because (and I'm paraphrasing here):

"I don't know how, learning US laws is hard, and I (we) don't feel like it" ?


So we are going to make our most important decisions ever with the mindset and reasoning skills that is akin to the reasons a third grader tells his parents why he doesn't want to do his math homework.



Nice.

[roxxkatt]

Why does it have to be an American bank?? There are many euro developers on steam???

valve is a us company and is subject to us laws and taxes, so they force everyone they interact with to be bound by the same laws to reduce their liability

[roxxkatt]

i also find it hilarious that he is talking about putting batch files and installers on steam, which reveals he knows nothing about how steam works

PS everything he said indicates he is only willing to take the laziest, easiest route and is unwilling to do any work at all

and as a consequence of his laziness, we will all be permanently locked in as priits slaves, which apparently is something he enjoys, with no chance of adding new features or making use of the steam workshop

[roxxkatt]

no seriously is this a joke

is ashton kutcher going to jump out soon

[roxxkatt]

is this clown seriously considering having 1 person put their name down and fucking over other every other zone in ss when there are many thousands of dollars of unused donations funds for a $400 nonprofit org

[Jessup]

Why does it have to be an American bank?? There are many euro developers on steam???

A non profit business startup filing fee is 750$ but will be reduced to 350$ if you are not expecting to make more than 40000$ a year which means us. 350$ is what it will cost us to make a nonprofit license for Continuum. I'm totally scratching my head about this you need to be American and use American banks though?? Can't be...Euros play steam and many games are from Europe. That said.. making a banking account is free and euros can open banking accounts in America too. You need to file a w-8 form to the bank. Easy pz.

[Rough]

Lol this clown with these useless threads....

Anyone who participates/willing to sign this agreement should be aware of the consequences. It's not a easy quick and sign at all, you can easily be prosecuted financially.

No one from this game, especially staff will even help you out when/if something bad comes around...maybe Turban will give you a speech on how to handle the situation then swim in the Bahamas with the tw funds.

[Ephemeral]

LOL

[Ravos]

yeah i got the same info from M_M god xD

[Turban]

this is going to be a short status report explaining where we currently stand in regards to the Steam project, and what exactly needs to be accomplished before we can launch on their platform.


UPDATE: everything cleared out. we are good to go, an announcement is made soon.