Steam or original CD?

FireFox · Feb 21, 2018

Hi people.

Short question:

Which is the fastest way when installing a game, directly from Steam or from the original CD, are there any pros and cons?

Cheers.

qubit · Feb 21, 2018

Answer: it depends.

If you have a reasonably fast connection such as mine at 20mb, then definitely download the whole thing, even if it's 50GB or more. If you're on a really terrible connection, perhaps a few hundred kilobits and the connection tends to drop out say, then I'd install off the disc and then update it to reduce the download size.

I recently redownloaded all my games at 1.4TB.

_JP_ · Feb 21, 2018

Steam if you have a server nearby and 100Mbps or higher ISP speeds, otherwise CD. (I'm ignoring key activation, which requires an internet connection and nowadays, the whole Steam ordeal).
Pros and cons regarding what exactly?

dorsetknob · Feb 21, 2018

If the Game is on Steam or Gog then that's the best option ( easy activation)
if its not on steam then your reduced to DVD/CD and you may have Activation problems with older games
(those can be overcome

)

FireFox · Feb 21, 2018

qubit said:
If you have a reasonably fast connection such as mine at 20mb,

I have 5MB/s

dorsetknob said:
If the Game is on Steam

I bought a few Games today at a shop.

_JP_ said:
Pros and cons regarding what exactly?

Well, maybe installing from Steam gives you updates that you don't get when installing from a CD.

basco · Feb 21, 2018

i can only think of gta V which has 8 CD´s and took forever. maybe when its a game with only 2 or 3 cd´s
even if there are updates missing you will get it after first starting the game.

FireFox · Feb 21, 2018

I forgot to mention that i have an external portable DVD/CD reader which works via USB and i guess the speed it is not the same like when using an internal one

qubit · Feb 21, 2018

Knoxx29 said:
I have 5MB/s

That's kinda slow, but still useable. Do you have a data cap, or is it unlimited.

I missed the data cap angle in my first post here. :laugh:

FireFox · Feb 21, 2018

qubit said:
is it unlimited.

Yeap.

basco said:
i can only think of gta V which has 8 CD´s and took forever.

Today i bought Dirt4 and it comes in 5 CD's

_JP_ · Feb 21, 2018

Knoxx29 said:
I have 5MB/s

A USB DVD reader should be around 5x as fast, depending on the data being copied.

Knoxx29 said:
Well, maybe installing from Steam gives you updates that you don't get when installing from a CD.

Only regarding automatic installation as soon as a developer makes it available. In my memory, I have no case of game patches being Steam-only, DLCs maybe.
But okay, I can see your point. There are differences. GTA Vice City and Fallout 3, for example, can't be modded with the steam installation. Race 07 wasn't too until a couple of years ago. That is a factor in using Steam installs vs. CD ones.
Special flags used in the executable might not work with Steam versions.
Saved games get could support in Steam, CD versions will usually end up in your "Documents" folder or somewhere in the depths of the %APPDATA% directory.

EarthDog · Feb 21, 2018

Yikes...DVDs? 2018? But that 5Mbps DL... oof. Both lacking.

I dont know the answer, but you can do the simple math of your max DL speed divided by size versus max speed of your optical device.

Updates between a disk a game would quite obviously be the same. Also obvious is the disks are only updated, if at all, to a point and you would have to DL the rest of the updates.

FireFox · Feb 21, 2018

EarthDog said:
Yikes...DVDs? 2018?

Yeap, DVD and if want to know why it is because i like to have the DVD/CD's, you buy a Game on steam and you get a code i buy it at the shop and i have the DVD/CD

plus i like to hear the noise of the DVD/CD reader while installing the Game, it remains me the old days :laugh:

As i can see it is better from DVD/CD because while installing Steam doesn't use your Bandwidth plus as shown Auto updates is enabled so no updates will be missed

EarthDog · Feb 21, 2018

Knoxx29 said:
As i can see it is better from DVD/CD because while installing Steam doesn't use your Bandwidth plus as shown Auto updates is enabled so no updates will be missed

Sorry... what?

Who cares if your bandwidth is being used while DLing... thats what its for, no? Then you say steam is better for updates???????????? Im confused what you are trying to say there.

FireFox · Feb 21, 2018

EarthDog said:
Who cares if your bandwidth is being used while DLing... thats what its for, no?

I care because if i download a Game from Steam and i let it uses all 5MB then i wont be able to use internet or play any Game till the download it is not finished, of course i could limit the download bandwidth to 3MB but then the installation it is going to take more time.

EarthDog said:
Then you say steam is better for updates

I dont know where you read it because i never say it.

qubit · Feb 21, 2018

_JP_ said:
Only regarding automatic installation as soon as a developer makes it available. In my memory, I have no case of game patches being Steam-only, DLCs maybe.
But okay, I can see your point. There are differences. GTA Vice City and Fallout 3, for example, can't be modded with the steam installation. Race 07 wasn't too until a couple of years ago. That is a factor in using Steam installs vs. CD ones.
Special flags used in the executable might not work with Steam versions.
Saved games get could support in Steam, CD versions will usually end up in your "Documents" folder or somewhere in the depths of the %APPDATA% directory.

You should clarify the difference between Steam discs such as Half-Life 2 and non Steam discs which can't be activated on Steam. Your example of GTA V is like this.

EarthDog · Feb 21, 2018

Knoxx29 said:
I care because if i download a Game from Steam and i let it uses all 5MB then i wont be able to use internet or play any Game till the download it is not finished, of course i could limit the download bandwidth to 3MB but then the installation it is going to take more time.

I dont know where you read it because i never say it.

Have you never DL a game? Surely it slows things down a bit, but doesnt render it unusable. You can also limit bandwodth for DLs in steam as you astutely mentioned already. I mean, it is what it is.. 5Mbps is slow... DL games at night where possible....right?!

You didnt directly say it, but you alluded to it being better because of auto updates. It was a weird set of sentences is all. The first part 'hates' on steam and downloading, you then say 'plus' attaching the two sentences which should have a similar meaning, then proceed to praise steam for auto updates.

phill · Feb 21, 2018

I'd guess that a decent 16x DVD drive is faster than slower internet?? Mine sucks at 3Mb/sec download (upload sucks about 700kb/sec) for those lucky to be on 100Mb or better internet connections I envy you.. Trying to download Doom I think it was, is about 60Gb?? Took me hours to download.. It sucked having to wait!!

I miss buying games in the shops, having those big boxes... Ah well...

AsRock · Feb 21, 2018

qubit said:
Answer: it depends.

If you have a reasonably fast connection such as mine at 20mb, then definitely download the whole thing, even if it's 50GB or more. If you're on a really terrible connection, perhaps a few hundred kilobits and the connection tends to drop out say, then I'd install off the disc and then update it to reduce the download size.

I recently redownloaded all my games at 1.4TB.

This, how ever some will just install steam and for the most part the CD content will be ignored and downloaded anyways.

Hockster · Feb 21, 2018

I remember when games discs made the jump from multiple cd's to dvd's. It's was heaven. Hell was floppies.....

phill · Feb 21, 2018

Hockster said:
I remember when games discs made the jump from multiple cd's to dvd's. It's was heaven. Hell was floppies.....

I still have floppy disks for my Amiga lol 880kb of awesome!

Shruddering at the thought of backing up Windows 95 onto 35 disks.... Thankfully when I started PC gaming it was on CD's, then DVD's.. I think some have gone over to bluray now??

FireFox · Feb 21, 2018

EarthDog said:
Have you never DL a game? Surely it slows things down a bit, but doesnt render it unusable.

Oh Man, i have download tons of Games, and yes if i download a Game and i dont limit the bandwidth it slows things to a point where i cant use internet for nothing not even to connect my Phone via Wifi.

phill said:
I miss buying games in the shops, having those big boxes... Ah well...

Many of my Games i have bought it in shops just a few on Steam.

2018 but who cares

qubit · Feb 21, 2018

Hockster said:
I remember when games discs made the jump from multiple cd's to dvd's. It's was heaven. Hell was floppies.....

It was possible to get Windows Vista on floppies too, by special request. I of course, ordered them for the shear nerd factor, but never got around to trying the install with them. I would have waited with baited breath for a disc error on the last sector of the last disc, trashing the installation after a grewelling 3 hour install. :laugh:

FatLeeAdama · Feb 21, 2018

qubit said:
I recently redownloaded all my games at 1.4TB.

Thats one way to blow through a Comcast data cap. I really wish there was another ISP worth it where I live.

FreedomEclipse · Feb 21, 2018

If you already have the CD then CD all the way and leave steam to update the game for you (If its a steam game or a game thats available on steam)

Unless you have ridiculous bandwidth with unlimited data. I have fiber optic and i hit a speed of 89mb/s quite easily. 5gigs would probably take me around 8-10mins at full DL rate.

Only game ive reinstalled off CD most recently was Battlefield 2 otherwise before that it was guildwars 2 or something.

qubit · Feb 21, 2018

FatLeeAdama said:
Thats one way to blow through a Comcast data cap. I really wish there was another ISP worth it where I live.

Oh yeah, it was epic. Took 9 days of 24/7 downloading. :rockout:

My ISP advertises its services as truly unlimited, ie download 24/7 at max speed (20mb/s for me) the whole month and they wouldn't bat an eye. Going by that I believe them.

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