Steam

[typhoon]

First off let me state I am neither an advocate nor an anti steam person.I have seen many pro and anti steam threads in my time. Just wondering though if JTS has ever considered this option.My main reason for asking is I am a state nut and would love to see some stats for these titles.For myself this would be most interesting in tracking hours spent within each individual title.If steam is a big no no does anyone know of any software that could do this?

Thanks for reading

[Compass Rose]

It has been a while since watching the latest interview with Strela where the Steam question was asked to him.


If I recall his answer, it was that Steam wouldn't be an option while John Tiller and team is active, like they are now.


I believe he also stated that maybe somewhere down the road, offering the games on Steam could be an option, however, they would address that when they come to that crossroad.


I think one of the biggest hangups for not doing Steam now, per Strela, is that JTS and WDS is making very little money now and if they introduce steam, their income would be even smaller.

Also, if on steam, they would have to worry about customer support and I don't think they have the resources to deal with that, since they are already maxed out with what they are doing now.

[typhoon]

Thank you for the very prompt and detailed answer. If it is going to loose people money then it sure is a no go. Though I will add I would gladly provide customer support for these series of games for nothing if it would allow things to grow. We are getting older all the time and my fear is that these games will vanish with my generation and that would be very sad indeed. 
   Now anyone for the second part the hours played question really do love the stats that steam provide. Probably to many American football stats books in my youth. Would be great to put together the same for the Panzer Campaign series what a read.

[Xerxes77]

I think one of the biggest hangups for not doing Steam now, per Strela, is that JTS and WDS is making very little money now and if they introduce steam, their income would be even smaller.

Income per unit sold, yes... but the exposure provided by a massive storefront would be comparatively huge. There's precious few resources on the web for these games, even on Youtube, and even for games of this niche. I wonder if the general income wouldn't balance out in the end, or even come out ahead.

IMO, the age of the series itself is both a big advantage and a big hurdle. The Tiller games are unique and are renowned for the research and attention to detail that go into them, but they do look archaic and intimidating, and the interface remains largely stuck in the Talonsoft era. WDS is doing a great job at adding (apart from visual updates) some essential usability features, and I believe any efforts in that direction are a sound investment. 

The support issue is another story, but I guess it's an inevitable result of getting new customers? New players showing interest could easily get help from established veterans in the forums.

[Xerxes77]

My main reason for asking is I am a state nut and would love to see some stats for these titles.For myself this would be most interesting in tracking hours spent within each individual title.If steam is a big no no does anyone know of any software that could do this?

Thanks for reading

Oh hey, fellow stats nut!  

Oh, how I wish Tiller had implemented some sort of log function to get juicy stats like global effectiveness/kill counts per unit, more granular AAR info, etc. 

I had to resort to my own wits to get some IMO essential but obscure stats out of the Squad Battles series (namely, the kill chance of any shot based on range, terrain, unit status, etc).

If tracking game time is what you need, you may want to take a look at  Gameplay Time Tracker-- it runs in the background and automatically logs your activity with any game (note that you will probably have to add the Tiller games manually as the proggie's autodetection routine seems to rely on full-screen display).

[typhoon]

My main reason for asking is I am a state nut and would love to see some stats for these titles.For myself this would be most interesting in tracking hours spent within each individual title.If steam is a big no no does anyone know of any software that could do this?

Thanks for reading

Oh hey, fellow stats nut!  

Oh, how I wish Tiller had implemented some sort of log function to get juicy stats like global effectiveness/kill counts per unit, more granular AAR info, etc. 

I had to resort to my own wits to get some IMO essential but obscure stats out of the Squad Battles series (namely, the kill chance of any shot based on range, terrain, unit status, etc).

If tracking game time is what you need, you may want to take a look at  Gameplay Time Tracker-- it runs in the background and automatically logs your activity with any game (note that you will probably have to add the Tiller games manually as the proggie's autodetection routine seems to rely on full-screen display).

Thanks for the answer will check out Gameplay Time Tracker you also make some good points on steam

[typhoon]

My main reason for asking is I am a state nut and would love to see some stats for these titles.For myself this would be most interesting in tracking hours spent within each individual title.If steam is a big no no does anyone know of any software that could do this?

Thanks for reading

Oh hey, fellow stats nut!  

Oh, how I wish Tiller had implemented some sort of log function to get juicy stats like global effectiveness/kill counts per unit, more granular AAR info, etc. 

I had to resort to my own wits to get some IMO essential but obscure stats out of the Squad Battles series (namely, the kill chance of any shot based on range, terrain, unit status, etc).

If tracking game time is what you need, you may want to take a look at  Gameplay Time Tracker-- it runs in the background and automatically logs your activity with any game (note that you will probably have to add the Tiller games manually as the proggie's autodetection routine seems to rely on full-screen display).

Thanks again have now got all games being time recorded using gameplay Time Tracker a very useful tool.

[Xerxes77]

Thanks again have now got all games being time recorded using gameplay Time Tracker a very useful tool.

Awesome, glad to be of help