Silicon Echo Studios leaves game industry after Valve rips down most of their games from Steam - Sensationalist Headlines

[quote]After Valve pulled more than 200 of the company’s titles off Steam last week, notorious “fake game” seller Silicon Echo Studios tells Polygon that it has been forced to leave the development industry. Valve pulled Silicon Echo’s entire catalog from Steam last week after users reported that its games were examples of “asset flipping,” or games made on a shoestring budget with pre-made assets, which are then sold cheaply with the purpose of turning a profit through the Steam trading card marketplace. In an email to Polygon, a representative for Silicon Echo spoke out against Valve’s decision to abruptly remove the studio’s games from the storefront. “The only information we have been given is that our games were consistently at the top of user reported titles primarily for practices that are deceptive to the customers,” Silicon Echo said. “This did not fully explain the reason for complete account and business termination, so naturally we sent an email to Valve politely asking some additional questions.” Even as it defends itself, Silicon Echo admitted that some of its business practices were questionable. “We are no heroes, we have indeed sometimes been conducting our business with some practices people may call shady,” the studio said. “For example, creating more developer names even though they were on the same account and listed under the same publisher. This was done primarily for easier statistical tracking as we did not believe it to be a problem since all the games were publicly listed under the same publisher and there was no deception included.”[/quote] [url=http://archive.is/KZj1C]Archive of Polygon article[/url] To give an idea of the scale Silicon Echo's release schedule, here's a taste of their games. [quote]Ball 2D: Soccer Online 6 days ago Head Goal 6 days ago Ball 3D: Soccer Online 6 days ago Crazy Flying Squirrel 6 days ago Helium Skies 1 week ago Burger in Partyland 1 week ago Black My White Again 1 week ago Black My White 1 week ago Hexa Faction 2 1 week ago Hexa Faction 1 week ago Gravity At Its Finest 2 1 week ago Gravity At Its Finest 1 week ago TOREj 2 1 week ago TOREj 1 week ago RINGOӘͶIЯ 2 1 week ago RINGOӘͶIЯ 1 week ago Staplers! 3 1 week ago Staplers! 2 1 week ago Staplers! 1 week ago Pins 3 1 week ago Pins 2 1 week ago RunZ 2 1 week ago Pins 1 week ago RunZ 1 week ago Mr. Jumpington 2 1 week ago Mr. Jumpington 1 week ago Paper Knights 1 week ago Laseronium: The Beam Focus 1 week ago Laseronium - The Reflexion 1 week ago Laseronium 2 1 week ago Point Connect 4 1 week ago Point Connect 3 1 week ago Point Connect 2 1 week ago Point Connect 1 week ago SlingSkull Zombies: The Dawn 1 week ago SlingSkull Zombies: Gravedigger 1 week ago SlingSkull Zombies: Graveyard Shift 1 week ago SlingSkull Zombies 2 1 week ago SlingSkull Zombies 1 week ago Sketchy 4 1 week ago Sketchy 3 1 week ago Edges 2 1 week ago Edges 1 week ago Laseronium: The Line 1 week ago Blu Bandana 1 week ago Laseronium 1 week ago The Safeguard Garrison: Space Colonies 1 week ago AironBall: The Floating Lands 1 week ago Wild Goo Chase 1 week ago Run, Goo, Run 1 week ago Airon Ball 1 week ago The Safeguard Garrison 2 1 week ago The Safeguard Garrison 1 week ago Tracks of Triumph: Good Old Times 1 week ago Tesla's Best Friend 1 week ago Tracks of Triumph: Summertime 1 week ago Tracks of Triumph: Industrial Zone 1 week ago The First Spark 1 week ago The Last Photon 1 week ago Sketchy 2 1 week ago Sketchy 1 week ago Sphere Toss 4 1 week ago Sphere Toss 3 1 week ago Sphere Toss 2 1 week ago Sphere Toss 1 week ago Whait Bandana 1 week ago Purpul Bandana 1 week ago Grin Bandana 1 week ago Yello Bandana 1 week ago SHAPES8 1 week ago SHAPES7 1 week ago SHAPES6 1 week ago SHAPES5 1 week ago SHAPES4 1 week ago SHAPES3 1 week ago SHAPES2 1 week ago SHAPES 1 week ago Raccoon Hero: Monkey Business 1 week ago Raccoon Hero: Among The Cacti 1 week ago Raccoon Hero: Starlight 1 week ago Raccoon Hero: The Frost 1 week ago Raccoon Hero: The Marsh 1 week ago Raccoon Hero: Under The Sea 1 week ago Raccoon Hero: The Sunrise 1 week ago Raccoon Hero 1 week ago Flipper Hazard 5 1 week ago Flipper Hazard 4 1 week ago Flipper Hazard 3 1 week ago Flipper Hazard 2 1 week ago Match and Crash 1 week ago Sweet Berry Crush 1 week ago Crush The Berries 1 week ago Berryblast Matchmaker 1 week ago THREE CANDYBERRY MATCH 1 week ago Fruit Candypop 1 week ago Sugar Fruit Match 1 week ago Berry Pop Match 1 week ago Carnival Ball 1 week ago Paint Polygon 1 week ago Paintsplash Ball 1 week ago[/quote]

Wait they made ball3D? I liked that game. Were they just the publisher? edit: Apparently it got removed from Steam a few days before for soliciting reviews for in-game currency, then they uploaded it as their own title, so fuck these guys.

[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB36aNoZuVA[/media] This explains the situation, don't let them try and play innocent.

[quote]“The only information we have been given is that our games were consistently at the top of user reported titles primarily for practices that are deceptive to the customers,” Silicon Echo said. “This did not fully explain the reason for complete account and business termination, so naturally we sent an email to Valve politely asking some additional questions.”[/quote] I love how they're basically given all the information they need but still think they need more info. Fuck these guys and everyone like them.

I'm glad that Valve is cracking down harder on asset flippers nowadays. They're actually doing their job at long last, and things are getting better! Who'd have ever thunk it?!

[QUOTE=ironman17;52742072]I'm glad that Valve is cracking down harder on asset flippers nowadays. They're actually doing their job at long last, and things are getting better! Who'd have ever thunk it?![/QUOTE] What worries me is the sheer fucking amount of fraud required to get Valve's attention. It's better than them not doing anything at all but let's not forget that fraudulent garbage like Fidget Spinner Simulator (which sells you empty DLC) is still allowed on Steam, that they rarely won't do shit unless it directly concerns Valve as a company (threats, insults, or anything regarding their own games), and that this problem exists to begin with because they didn't care enough about their platform's integrity to curate the shit [I]they[/I] sell on it.

[QUOTE=Ganerumo;52742200]What worries me is the sheer fucking amount of fraud required to get Valve's attention. It's better than them not doing anything at all but let's not forget that fraudulent garbage like Fidget Spinner Simulator (which sells you empty DLC) is still allowed on Steam, that they rarely won't do shit unless it directly concerns Valve as a company (threats, insults, or anything regarding their own games), and that this problem exists to begin with because they didn't care enough about their platform's integrity to curate the shit [I]they[/I] sell on it.[/QUOTE] What they need is the courts lighting fires under their arse. They're not quite a monopoly, but they're damn close since they're the major player in the world of digital distribution.

Maybe you should start creating actual games and not cow-milking trashes. Valve did the right thing.

I'm curious which part of Distribution or Subscriber agreement disallows doing what those people did. Not defending devs, just curious.

[QUOTE=Megalan;52742367]I'm curious which part of Distribution or Subscriber agreement disallows doing what those people did. Not defending devs, just curious.[/QUOTE] I'm almost positive the Distribution agreement has a clause saying that Valve maintains the right to purge your existence from the Steam store. Something along the lines of this: [t]https://i.imgur.com/MUNs1o3.png[/t] Mixed with this: [t]https://i.imgur.com/oaRfbHF.png[/t]

Heeeyy Silicon Echo, go fuck yourself lads

[QUOTE=WitheredGryphon;52742415]I'm almost positive the Distribution agreement has a clause saying that Valve maintains the right to purge your existence from the Steam store. Something along the lines of this: [t]https://i.imgur.com/MUNs1o3.png[/t] Mixed with this: [t]https://i.imgur.com/oaRfbHF.png[/t][/QUOTE] Yeah, there's no way Valve would agree to a legal responsibility to have to have someone's game on their store. It'd be a nightmare if something really offensive slipped past them (it probably would) and they had to negotiate a settlement to get out of it

Though it's not like they can't afford to take the hit, right? I mean, taking 30% from every game they've ever let onto the store must add up to SOME definition of a dragon's treasure hoard, right?

[QUOTE=WitheredGryphon;52742415]I'm almost positive the Distribution agreement has a clause saying that Valve maintains the right to purge your existence from the Steam store. Something along the lines of this: [t]https://i.imgur.com/MUNs1o3.png[/t] Mixed with this: [t]https://i.imgur.com/oaRfbHF.png[/t][/QUOTE] Hm... I guess I either have a pretty old copy of distribution agreement or there are additional agreements. Anyway yea, I'm sure they have this right, I was just curious where exactly it is stated.

If only there was some sort of quality assurance to allow quality games onto the steam platform while barring low-effort asset flips from even getting on there in the first place.

[QUOTE=redBadger;52742463]If only there was some sort of quality assurance to allow quality games onto the steam platform while barring low-effort asset flips from even getting on there in the first place.[/QUOTE] Valve is like Youtube in that regard. Brace for botched AI's being implemented instead of allocating human resources.

[QUOTE=ironman17;52742272]What they need is the courts lighting fires under their arse. They're not quite a monopoly, but they're damn close since they're the major player in the world of digital distribution.[/QUOTE]They're far less of a monopoly than they used to be. And that's not really the issue at play here.

Considering the fact that they have went under a shitload of different company names before, it wouldn't surprise me if they just changed the name of their company again and continue doing this.

[quote]Black My White Black My White Again[/quote] I haven't looked it up but I already love this franchise

This sucks, I was really looking forward to Helium Skies 2.

[QUOTE=Van-man;52742472]Valve is like Youtube in that regard. Brace for botched AI's being implemented instead of allocating human resources.[/QUOTE] The future we are currently living, sadly. Having actual humans responsible for the painstaking task of quality control does not scale well with an otherwise mostly-automated distribution system.

"Gravity at its Finest" is a great title that I wish a real game used

[QUOTE=dai;52742724]I haven't looked it up but I already love this franchise[/QUOTE] Sounds like the name of a porn flick and its sequel.

:/ Flipper hazard 3 was big part of my childhood sad it gone

Damn, I was really looking forward to SHAPES9

[QUOTE=Seth2492;52744294]Damn, I was really looking forward to SHAPES9[/QUOTE] Ehh the series is kind of overrated.

Laseronium was a third person shooter similar to Call of Duty. Laseronium: The Line though managed to break the mould, and it focused on the morality of firing mega-ultra-laser beams off into space. [sp]It makes you murder innocent space aliens and travel through the mayhem that you created, honestly an excellent game[/sp] /s

Bumping this due to the similar theme. A developer previously banned from putting up their games on steam actually managed to sneak back onto the platform and have been uploading drivel for a while now. [media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-RIC7GbtUU[/media] :why: