“Ha ha ha! I, Scarecrow, have made you think that all of your saved games have been corrupted! … oh wait, no, sorry that actually happened.”
Following BioShock 2’s successful surgery, another pair of games have gone under the knife to have Games for Windows Live removed before the service (maybe that should be ‘service’?) shuts down for good next year. Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City are now updated on Steam and GfWL-free. Securom DRM was removed too.
This update applies to both basic and ‘Game of the Year’ editions of both games. Hurrah! Right? Well, mostly hurrah. There were complications with the surgery and unfortunately all of your saved games had to be amputated.
“Unfortunately, you will not be able to continue playing from your current save. You will need to start a new game,” say the developers. “Oh dear,” says me.
That’s a pretty annoying side-effect. I mean, real-life side-effects like dizzyness and brain tumors are worse, but as videogame side-effects go that one is pretty bad. You can blame GfWL for that too though – the saved game progress was linked to its servers.
Still, at least some things have been added. Batman: Arkham Asylum now has Steam achievements, and both titles now have trading cards. Players who owned the regular versions of the games on Steam are reporting that they now have Game of the Year editions in their libraries as well. That may not take away the saved game pain, but hopefully it’ll help.
Also, if you bought either of the Batmen from somewhere other than Steam, you’ll need to input your CD key to begin your exciting GfWL-less adventures in Gotham. Here’s how:
1. Click ADD A GAME….
2. Select Activate a Product on Steam..
3. Click Next.
4. Click I Agree.
5. Enter your CD Key and select next once the game finishes downloading you will be able to play the game.
I hope if/when Dark Souls takes steps to rid itself of the GfWL curse it doesn’t accidentally remove all of my saved games. Otherwise there will be Imminent Tears.
By thrilling coincidence (yes … coincidence,) GotY Editions of Arkhams Asylum and City are 75% off on Steam at present.
