Sweeney: Microsoft Will Force-patch Windows 10 To Make Steam Progressively Worse And More Broken

According to Ballsy founder, Tim Sweeney, Microsoft is forcefulness-patching Windows ten to brand Steam progressively worse and buggy.

Sweeney said as much in a recent interview with EDGE magazine ( thanks to Neogaf user GoFreak for the heads up).

In the interview with EDGE, Sweeney farther outs his recent warnings that Microsoft is locking down the PC ecosystem with its Universal Windows Platform. The Epic founder states that this lockdown initially started with some "sneaky" PR moves from Microsoft.

"They've been able to [commencement] this via some sneaky PR moves. They make a bunch of statements that sound vaguely like they're promising openness but actually they're not promising annihilation of the sort", Sweeney told EDGE.

According to a recent Tweet from Sweeney, he nevertheless stands by his expressed thoughts on the matter.

Nothing noun has changed since I chatted with the author, then my thoughts are current. Just I oasis't seen the article withal.

— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) July 25, 2022

Downwards below yous'll observe what Sweeney said nearly Microsoft locking down the PC ecosystem, and how they are trying to 'bug' Steam through Windows 10 patches.

How exactly do you retrieve Microsoft is locking downwards the PC to get in a closed platform?

At that place are ii programming interfaces for Windows and every app has to choose one of them. Every Steam app - every PC game for the past few decades - has used Win32. It'due south been both responsible for the vibrant software market we have now, but also for malware. Whatsoever plan can exist a virus. Universal Windows Platform is seen as the antidote to that. It's sandboxed - much more locked downward. The hazard here is that, if Microsoft convinces everyone to use UWP, then they phase out Win32 apps. If they tin succeed in doing that then it'southward a small-scale jump to forcing all apps and games to be distributed through the Windows store. Once nosotros reach that point, the PC has become a closed platform. It won't be that one twenty-four hour period they flip a switch that will break your Steam library - what they're trying to do is a series of sneaky maneauvres. They make it more and more inconvenient to use the old apps, and, simultaneously, they endeavour to get the only source for the new ones.

Given that Steam is so widespread and popular, how could Microsoft truly win that boxing, in terms of games at to the lowest degree?

Slowly, over the adjacent 5 years, they will strength-patch Windows ten to make Steam progressively worse and more than cleaved. They'll never completely break information technology, but will continue to pause it until, in five years, people are then fed up that Steam is buggy that the Windows Shop seem like an platonic culling. That's exactly what they did to their previous competitors in other areas. At present they're doing it to Steam. It's simply just starting to become visible. Microsoft might not be competent enough to succeed with their programme only they are certainly trying.

Isn't it the example that Microsoft is simply mimicking Apple's model, given how lucrative information technology's proven to be for software distribution?

Certain, that's the motivation. They're trying to copy Apple tree's model, but they realise you tin't just flip a switch. It has to be achieved in modest step changes.

Several months ago, Sweeney already urged developers to "fight" against Microsoft and its "first apparent step towards locking down the consumer PC ecosystem". According to Sweeney, Microsoft's UWP initiative was Microsoft's nigh aggressive move Microsoft to date to monopolize app distribution and commerce.