Hi,
I saw where another Boomer was asking about adventuregamers.com,
and their shop online that links to adventure shop whether it was a good place to buy digital downloads. Good news, this is where I bought my digital download of darkness within. Since I live in the Republic of Ireland it is not easy to get the new releases.
I am so pleased at how quickly the Download server was, and this is the place I will continue to purchase my digital downloads. In less then a half hour I was playing Darkness within without any problems. So if any of the Boomer family are like me and need to purchase digitally download games, I highly recommend it.I love buying my games by digital download because I save gas money, time, and fighting the crowds, or finding out the game is not available. For me it is the only way to get the new releases. I hope this will help others if they need digital downloads of games.

Happy Gaming to one and all
Sherryah

Must admit I would prefer the cd but where I am to it can be difficult to get these games and if I cant get them through trade or get my son to send them as he lives in the USA .I guess I am lucky .I to would use down loads for some of us there is no other way and so I guess it is progress and I will get used to it like every one else .

Thanks Sherryah -- good to hear from a happy customer.

Ah, questions, I have questions...I am a firm 'needer' to hold that silly CD/DVD in my hot little hands! And I wonder just what kind of 'mess' I would be in if I were to BAAG downloaded games to my computer, spending the same amount on a new game as if I were to BAAG it in a store (not discounted is what I understand) instead of thru our Trading Post used, and then something happened on my computer to corrupt a or some files of that download after I start to play it...Am I then out the money I spent and unable to use the game I downloaded? For instance, I think CSI Hard Evidence is offered as a download from somewhere, and I wanted very much to play this one (love the others in this series), but a friend loaned me hers first (DVD) and I installed it only to find out it won't run on my computer! Tried several things suggested by GBers in GLITCHES and it still wouldn't run, and it took me 3 days to get my computer running correctly after all the tweaking I did to get CSI to run, with no success. NOW, if I had paid and downloaded this game to my computer, then found out it would not run, how do I prove that to the seller/distributor and get my money back? You have no idea how much I hate not getting something I can use when I spend good money on a product! So I tend to shy away from downloading these new games coming out, would rather have the CD/DVD in my possession, I can then at least sell or trade it on TP for something else I don't have. AND, if I have trouble running a game that I downloaded, how do I tell the distributor/seller that I want my money back. Tweaking my computer for this or that game turns out not to be very smart or helpful in some cases, just messes up the computer for other games and stuff.
Love, Betty Lou

Good question Betty Lou -- if you can't get a downloaded game to run on your computer, how easy is it to get your money back from the publisher/distributor?

Has anyone had this experience?

Sherryah

In case you did not know, Dave at Interact ships games to Europe for $10 an order. Service is excellent and prices are pretty good too. There is a link at the top of the page. Many boomers are customers and rave about this store. Link at top of page. thought you'd like to know.

I'm not crazy about downloads because you can't trade or resell. Many come with nasty "conditions" and I don't see lower prices than what you pay for a hard copy. But there is the quick delivery if it works.

Hi, Sherryah

I agree with Oldmariner...InteractCD is an excellent place to buy your games...and the customer service Dave supplies is second to none.

But, for the English releases of games or cheaper older games, you could try Play.com, they are based in Jersey and they do post (free of charge) to Ireland, so it is worth considering checking them out...I have dealt with them for years and never had a problem so far.

Sue

Quote from the fine print at Adventure gamers new download site:

If you think about it, it makes sense. It is just like a boxed retail version, they are only responsible if it is defective. The downside is, you are not allowed to trade or sell it to recoup your loss as you would be on a boxed version.

Ana

Thanks Ana. Then that is just another reason for me to avoid purchasing my games, new releases, as downloadable instead of on a CD/DVD. 1. price is the same as boxed hard copy version - 2. incompatibility with my computer is not guaranteed, no refunds, returns or credit issued toward another game - 3. no more game on the computer if I lose my hard drive or a file/files become corrupted for some reason after downloading. BAD DEAL all the way around for me!
Love, Betty Lou

They should have a demo so you can try it and if it works then you know you arnt going to loose your money

Hi dragon -- if you're looking, you'll find demos for many recent adventure games on this page.

If you buy through downloading, do they allow you to make a backup copy on disk for your own use in case your puter takes a nosedive for some reason? If not, I see no advantage to downloading except for being able to buy the game sooner.

Adorable -- some download sites do explicitly allow you to make a backup copy, so you can reinstall the game later on another computer. The difference is that you can't trade a backup copy the way you could a boxed copy of the game purchased a store or the game's website.

I meant demos to see if the game will run befor you down load the game

Dragon -- I agree that would be a handy feature on a download site. What I meant was that you could look at the Adventure Gamers store, see which games look interesting, then click over to GameBoomers to see which ones have a demo to try. In most cases, if you can get a demo from the game to run (even one you link to from another site), I would think you could also run the entire game on your computer.

Hi family of boomers,
Thank you Old Mariner and everyone that gave me good advice
about buying games from Dave, I appreciate all your feedback.Old
Mariner, thanks again for all your help in Culpa Innata, I really enjoyed it and sad to say I finished it tonight.
Happy Gaming to all
Sherryah

Thank you Tyke for your recommendation. I really am limited when I try and find buy and download on demand sites for Europe. I will check out the site you mentioned because of the free to Ireland. Wow! There is hope I will get a boxed game again. LOL I would really appreciate it if someone could direct me to more sites I can download on demand from Europe for the newest releases. Thanks in advance
Happy Gaming to all
Sherryah

EDIT: Hi Dragon, I see your in Europe also so we have the same problem, needing to find a site that has newest releases for buy and download on demand. May I ask another European where do you purchase your games on line? I live in the republic of Ireland so new games at computer stores are about a year or more behind. LOL I can't even find longest journey 1 for a download on demand. Any suggestions?
Happy Gaming to you
Sherryah

Hi Sheeyah -- you could also check out Gamersgate.com, and Manifesto Games, both of which have a nice selection of adventure games for download. You might even also consider Big Fish Games -- it's a casual game site that is getting more adventures for download, which it lists in the "Puzzle" and "Simulation" categories, for some reason. It has an unusual pricing scheme, so you'd need to read about that before you decide to join.

The Adventure Shop will also be adding more downloadable games, so you should continue to stop by there to see what's new.

By The Way -- I'll be putting your two recent posts together into one post -- no need to stack posts like that. Just use the "Edit" button to add more info if no one has posted after you and you realize you have more to say.

Here is what troubles me about the download aspect. In the Adventure shop mentioned above they list some confusing conditions found under "Terms and conditions of Sale". This link is at the bottom of the page. Yes do say you can burn the download to a disk. But they also say in Item 7 the following

"In order to prevent fraud the user may only use the games on a limited number of machines (and reinstall a limited number of times)."

What does "reinstall a limited number of times" mean?

If you look at "How it works" easy to see at the top of their page, that is where they tell you that it is ok to burn it on a cd. They also tell you that you can uninstall and reinstall as many times as you like. That conflicts with the other message they buried in the fine print.

I just wonder if the serial number you " Immediately receive a serial number and personal download links via email" somehow has limiting purposes. In my suspicious mind the activation number you get in that e-mail could easily be incorporated in the download. So I think there is something else going on in this method. They do not say but is this one of those sites where you have to be connected to the internet to install? They do claim to record your ip address to prevent fraud. This seems to add a limiting factor to your ability to install and reinstall. Especially if you do have to "connect" to install. What if this venture does not fly, they go bust? Simple you can't connect to install later, therefore your burned backup is useless.

These are questions to ask Adventure Shop. I am just tossing them out there so you guys can ponder them before paying full price for a game you might not be able to use next year or on your next computer. Oh don't change your internet provider either. It just seems to me half price may be worth considering but top dollar, I doubt it.

Old Mariner -- I agree that there are pros and cons to downloading. I hardly ever delete games from my hard drive, so I personally don't worry about reinstalling -- but I know that other gamers keep better "house" than I do, and it would be an issue for them.

From what I understand, full price has to be charged for the downloads because of agreements with the publishers who are offering the same game on disk. So lower prices for downloads will only occur when a developer feels that he can sell so many downloads that he needn't approach a publisher to get the game out on disk.

Once that stage comes, gamers who prefer their games on disk only are not going to be happy either.

We're just at the beginning of this process and it's going to be interesting to see what happens with the technology and how gamers react to this.

hello Sherryah I go to play.com just adventure and the interractive site here .Amazon and rarely ebay and I also get games to trade from gameboomers and mystery manor and spyglass .I am lucky as my son lives in Pittsburgh and some times I get him to send me a game or when I visit .Most games I get are via trade or sell games I have played and buy new via the internet .It is a lot harder to get these games in Europe I must admit and if I had to down load a game I guess I would but up to yet I seem to be lucky .I prefer the cd as I like to sell or trade its fun and you get to talk to other people and learn about differant places .Guess I am nosey lol

Thank you Becky,I am right now downloading dreamfall longest journey at adventureshop. I am grateful to be able to do so. I relocated from America (Alaska) to the beautiful Republic of Ireland, and getting new releases for adventure games isn't easy. Becky could you or another of the Boomer family tell me where I can find the 1st longest Journey, the origional one to buy and download on demand? Becky did you like dreamfall longest journey? I hope there is no timed sequences in this, I hate that, or fighting.Gametap is not for Europe it seems. Sad to say.

Happy Adventuring to you all
Sherryah PS nice to meet you Dragon,nice to meet another European in the Boomer family. PM me if you have some new games you are looking to sell.

Err...Dreamfall does have combat and stealth in it. You can get around a goodly portion of the combat if you exit as soon as it starts and go back to a saved game and try a different way to get past your opponent (the GameBoomers'walkthrough by MaG will help if you get frustrated while looking for alternate solutions.)

I liked the game a lot despite the combat and stealth, though. It looks and sounds gorgeous, the characters are compelling, and the story is thought-provoking.

I don't think I've seen the original The Longest Journey in a purchaseable and then downloaded form. Maybe someone else has and can direct you to a site where it can be downloaded.

EDIT: It looks like you can purchase and download it (a good price too) via Steam. I haven't used Steam, so I don't know the ins and outs, though. Maybe another member can say whether they'd recommend Steam or not.

The owner of Adventure Gamers posted in the last few days that they hope to have The Longest Journey available for download from the Adventure Shop in the next few days.

Thanks Marian -- that's good news!