FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage requires Games for Windows Live

Tek7

Tek7

CGA President, Tribe of Judah Founder & President
Staff member
I recently upgraded from a 160GB 5400 RPM hard drive to a 500GB 7200 RPM hard drive, so I've been installing games that I previously had to remove to clear space.

Several months back, I bought FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage when it was on sale on Steam for $4.50. The game looked like fun, it cost less than 5 bucks, and I figured I could always install it later.

Well, today is "later."

Unfortunately, when I try to launch the game from Steam, it doesn't launch. No error. No warning. Just...nothing.

So after reading on the FO:UC Steam forums, I disabled the "Enable Steam community in-game" option under the game's properties in the Steam Library window. When I tried to launch the game after making the change, it threw the following error:

"The program can't start because xlive.dll is missing from your computer. Try reinstalling the program to fix this problem."

/facepalm

Apparently Games for Windows Live is REQUIRED to play FO:UC. If I knew this in the first place, I wouldn't have spent a penny on it, let alone $4.50.

Seriously, GFWL is a cancer on gaming--not to mention redundant and completely unnecessary for a STEAM GAME.

</rant>

So if you see FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage go on sale on Steam soon, I advise skipping it. As it is, I'm seriously considering deleting the game files and considering the $4.50 as the cost of my lesson.
 
Yo dawg, I heard u leik gaming, so I put a overlay in ur overlay so you can game while u game.

What's wrong with GFWL again?
 
Keero said:
Yo dawg, I heard u leik gaming, so I put a overlay in ur overlay so you can game while u game.
Click to expand...
I see what you did there.

Though I admit I'm slightly disappointed that you didn't generate an Xzibit meme image to go with the post.

Keero said:
What's wrong with GFWL again?
Click to expand...
  1. It's a gaming service from Microsoft.
  2. It exists.
 
Microsoft created DirectX, BURN EVERY GAME YOU OWN.

Also, why should that have any impact on playing the game? I mean, it's not exactly SecuROM (which Bioshock 2 has, sadly. ;P)
 
Keero said:
Microsoft created DirectX, BURN EVERY GAME YOU OWN.
Click to expand...
DirectX is not a service.

Keero said:
Also, why should that have any impact on playing the game? I mean, it's not exactly SecuROM (which Bioshock 2 has, sadly. ;P)
Click to expand...
I suppose I come from the KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid--not the rock band) school of game design. It seems inane to have a Steam game include additional DRM (which is why tacking SecuROM on to Steam games is just plain stupid) and/or additional multiplayer services (if I wanted a GFWL game, I would buy a game from the GFWL--not off Steam).
 
Corpfox said:
Well, here is a list of GFWL games you should avoid, Tek.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Games_for_Windows_–_Live_titles
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Bookmarked. I'll be checking that list before making any more PC game purchases. Thanks, Corp. :)

So while I still think tacking GFWL on to the Steam release of a game is inane, I played FO:UC last night for about 15 minutes and have to admit that the game is actually fun. It's quite possibly the LAZIEST console-to-PC port I've ever seen in my life, though; even the navigation controls are identical to the 360 version (A to continue, B to go back, Y to view Leaderboards, etc.).

If I had it to do over again, I'd probably have skipped FO:UC entirely and just purchased Burnout Paradise on the PS3 when I had a bit more spending cash. (To be fair, though, I didn't have a PS3 when I purchased FO:UC.)
 
Tek7 said:
Though I admit I'm slightly disappointed that you didn't generate an Xzibit meme image to go with the post.
Click to expand...

Yo dawg, I heard you like yo-yos and yo dawgs

tumblr_l9zk6ifJKA1qdyg0do1_500.jpg
 
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