Changes to playing previous versions of BATTLETECH

[emmasterakia]

Hi everyone,

Previously you were able to revert back to earlier versions of BATTLETECH at will on Steam. These specific versions predate the enactment of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) - hence they are not compliant with the new policy.

In order to continue our endeavor to reach full GDPR compliance, we have designed a new system regarding the access to earlier versions of our games, including BATTLETECH: from the 1st of October 2018 onward all previous versions of BATTLETECH are locked under a Steam password.

After 1st October, you will need to log into the Paradox Plaza website with your Paradox Account to access the code for previous branches of the game. In an effort to comply with the GDPR, this is something we had to put behind the Paradox logins as it requires agreement to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use to adhere to the GDPR guidelines.


To get the code for previous version:

1. Go to https://accounts.paradoxplaza.com/games and log in (or create) your Paradox Account.
   
   
2. You will have to link your Steam and Paradox accounts to see your games - where your code will be shown.
   
   
3. To link your Steam and Paradox Accounts: simply go to the Settings tab. Under Steam account click connect (you will then be redirected to Steam to confirm your action).
   
   
4. With that done the Games tab on Paradox Plaza will show the code needed to revert to previous version.
   
   
5. See below to revert to older version under passlock.

How to switch to old branch versions:

1. Go to your Steam Library and select BATTLETECH.
   
   
2. Right-click and select Properties.
   
   
3. Under the “BETAS” tab.
   
   
4. Enter the relevant code retrieved from Paradox Plaza and click “CHECK CODE”.
   
   
5. Select the version you wish to play and wait for Steam launcher to finalize the switch.
   
   
6. If the previous step fails, exit the game, right click properties, local files, Verify integrity of game files and wait for all files to be verified.

FAQ

Steam automatically updated my game to the latest version, why?
On 1st of October, to ensure compliance with the GDPR as well as with the new rules regarding the possibility to revert back to a previous patch version, we had to update your game to its latest version.

What if I do not have a Paradox Account?
You need to have a Paradox Account to access the previous version of BATTLETECH. It is currently the only way for us to be GDPR compliant.

My games do not sync properly on Plaza, will I still see the code?
The fact that not all your games show in your My Games page WILL NOT AFFECT this function. The passwords necessary for access beta versions will be provided in the My Games page AS A SEPARATE LIST, NOT attached to the games there. Plaza only needs to recognize a valid Steam account.

Which version of BATTLETECH will NOT be password protected?
BATTLETECH 1.2.0 and onward.

Does it only apply to versions predating the GDPR changes? Those from now on, will be available via Steam normally?
Yes.

I am confused about the GDPR, where can I read more information on the subject?
You can read more information regarding the GDPR on our Privacy Policy page.


EDIT (October 5, 09:00 CEST): Due to a visual bug stemming from the connection between your Paradox and Steam Accounts, we have decided to remove the following steps for the sake of clarity:

Spoiler: Previous Steps Removed

2. You will have to link your Steam and Paradox accounts to see your games - where your codes will be listed.
3. To link your Steam and Paradox Accounts: simply go to the Settings tab. Under Steam account click connect (you will then be redirected to Steam to confirm your action).
4. With that done the My Games tab on Paradox Plaza will show the list of codes needed to revert to previous versions.

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Understood. And in my opinion, very necessary. I am glad to see Paradox on top of GDPR concerns. :bow:

 

[mjbroekman]

Thank you for keeping them available, if under password, rather than simply removing all access to them.

 

[Kurnn]

Hi everyone,

Previously you were able to revert back to earlier versions of BATTLETECH at will on Steam. These specific versions predate the enactment of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) - hence they are not compliant with the new policy.

In order to continue our endeavor to reach full GDPR compliance, we have designed a new system regarding the access to earlier versions of our games, including BATTLETECH: from the 1st of October 2018 onward all previous versions of BATTLETECH are locked under a Steam password.

After 1st October, you will need to log into the Paradox Plaza website with your Paradox Account to access the code for previous branches of the game. In an effort to comply with the GDPR, this is something we had to put behind the Paradox logins as it requires agreement to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use to adhere to the GDPR guidelines.


To get the code for previous version:

1. Go to https://accounts.paradoxplaza.com/games and log in (or create) your Paradox Account.
   
   
2. You will have to link your Steam and Paradox accounts to see your games - where your code will be shown.
   
   
3. To link your Steam and Paradox Accounts: simply go to the Settings tab. Under Steam account click connect (you will then be redirected to Steam to confirm your action).
   
   
4. With that done the Games tab on Paradox Plaza will show the code needed to revert to previous version.
   
   
5. See below to revert to older version under passlock.

How to switch to old branch versions:

1. Go to your Steam Library and select BATTLETECH.
   
   
2. Right-click and select Properties.
   
   
3. Under the “BETAS” tab.
   
   
4. Enter the relevant code retrieved from Paradox Plaza and click “CHECK CODE”.
   
   
5. Select the version you wish to play and wait for Steam launcher to finalize the switch.
   
   
6. If the previous step fails, exit the game, right click properties, local files, Verify integrity of game files and wait for all files to be verified.

FAQ

Steam automatically updated my game to the latest version, why?
On 1st of October, to ensure compliance with the GDPR as well as with the new rules regarding the possibility to revert back to a previous patch version, we had to update your game to its latest version.

What if I do not have a Paradox Account?
You need to have a Paradox Account to access the previous version of BATTLETECH. It is currently the only way for us to be GDPR compliant.

My games do not sync properly on Plaza, will I still see the code?
The fact that not all your games show in your My Games page WILL NOT AFFECT this function. The passwords necessary for access beta versions will be provided in the My Games page AS A SEPARATE LIST, NOT attached to the games there. Plaza only needs to recognize a valid Steam account.

Which version of BATTLETECH will NOT be password protected?
BATTLETECH 1.2.0 and onward.

Does it only apply to versions predating the GDPR changes? Those from now on, will be available via Steam normally?
Yes.

I am confused about the GDPR, where can I read more information on the subject?
You can read more information regarding the GDPR on our Privacy Policy page.

I have used steam for almost 10 years. They have always been really good and I only buy games through Steam.

This change for Paradox is because of Steam [Mod edit: language], isnt it?

Steam has a detailed history about their steam client updates and what version does what. With options regarding your client version.
NOTHING like that for games. And now Steam forces games to jump through hops to be able to offer the players options regarding the game version?

Paradox, you are not saying this, but I dont believe for a second that this is your idea. You are forced to change this because of Steam.
I hope you do not get to many angry players at YOU, when the rage should be directed to Steam.

Thank you for an awesome client service.

 

[Havamal]

I have used steam for almost 10 years. They have always been really good and I only buy games through Steam.

This change for Paradox is because of Steam [Mod edit: language], isnt it?

Steam has a detailed history about their steam client updates and what version does what. With options regarding your client version.
NOTHING like that for games. And now Steam forces games to jump through hops to be able to offer the players options regarding the game version?

Paradox, you are not saying this, but I dont believe for a second that this is your idea. You are forced to change this because of Steam.
I hope you do not get to many angry players at YOU, when the rage should be directed to Steam.

Thank you for an awesome client service.

The post you quoted has the reasons in it.
New privacy laws for companies who intend to do buiness in the Euro zone

 

[stjobe]

This change for Paradox is because of Steam [Mod edit: language], isnt it?

As specified in the OP, this is because of GDPR, the European General Data Protection Regulation.

They probably saved some personal information they had to get rid of in order to be GDPR compliant (note that max penalties for GDPR violations are 4% of world-wide turnover or €20 million, whichever is higher, so there's good reason to try to be GDPR-compliant if you want to do business in the EU).

 

[Edmon]

Paradox / HBS must have had data-collection that violated GDPR in old versions of BattleTech (and maybe in current verisons but they will obtain your "consent" via the terms and conditions of the paradox account).

GDPR only applies to the collection of personal data, I literally was just making sure my previous workplace was compliant not 4 months ago so I am pretty deep on the subject. I am guessing they collected information about your system at the very least and/or your configuration and/or your drives and maybe even what was on them or more.

Otherwise, it wouldn't be an issue. GDPR only cares about the collection of personal information against your will or without your consent (or with your consent, but in that case, it cares only that it's used only for the purposes that were consented to).

It would be interesting to know just what exactly, the old versions of BattleTech are writing home to HBS/Paradox about. If you don't think this kind of thing is going on, just look up "Red Shell".

 

[stjobe]

It would be interesting to know just what exactly, the old versions of BattleTech are writing home to HBS/Paradox about.

It's not necessarily something nefarious - "personal information" in the GDPR is a rather wide-ranging concept and can be e.g. your IP-adress.

 

[Edmon]

It's not necessarily something nefarious - "personal information" in the GDPR is a rather wide-ranging concept and can be e.g. your IP-adress.

I could tell you anything you wanted to know about someone if I had their IP address and they were based in the channel islands, back when I worked for a telecom company. This is true for any ISP and any customers based in their region.

IP address(es) should not be collected, but everyone does it because we can't say no. This is why GDPR is here. To allow us to say no to things like this.

If I play Single Player BattleTech and I'm not logged in to online features, it shouldn't be saying *anything*. But I would hazard a guess that it does (and steam on offline mode still reports if a game is running to my secondary PC, to prevent it being played there).

I did a little research on this and found out that various HBS games were pulled from googleplay for having "usage package(s)" installed in them, that report back to HBS.

The thing is, everyone does it and you just have to accept it if you want to be a gamer, but lets not pretend like this is a good thing for the privacy of anyone. Anyone who wasn't collecting personal data and/or made it such that their games did not overtly take identifible information about players without their direct concent had no "GDPR" concerns to address in the first place.

If you don't collect data, GDPR is not something you have to make changes for. GDPR exists because companies take liberities with data collection and it's reached a point where only an intervention of this scale will do anything about it.

And prehaps not even then.

But I just want to say here, that this is not an attack on HBS. As I said, EVERYONE is doing this and they are united in simply releasing new policies and/or work arounds so they can carry on taking all the data they want.

Which is why old version now require an account and a policy agreement...

That policy will say, that you agree to let them collect x, y and z, which they used to collect. Just that you've actually "concented" this time.

 

[Edmon]

Here is all the data that is collected when you play a game, found in "the small print":

Data we collect when you use our Services or games:

• Profile and usage data. This includes the profile you create to identify yourself when you connect to our Services and internet protocol (IP) address and cookies that may uniquely identify your browser. It also includes other data about how you use our Services and games. We gather this data from devices you use to connect to those Services, such as computers and mobile phones, using cookies and other internet tracking software.
• Payment and transaction data
• Location data
• Platform type, such as distribution platform (for example, Steam, GOG, Paradox launcher) or hardware platform (PC, Android, iOS, Xbox, PlayStation®4)
  
• Preferred language
• Gender
• Information about your device, hardware and software
• Referral pages and page exit time
• Steam ID, PSN ID, Gamertag/Xbox ID, IDFA (iOS), Advertiser ID (Android) or other game platform IDs like IP address, Google Play Advertising ID, Windows Phone Device ID, Twitch user ID, GOG ID or MAC address.
• In-game activity including but not limited to what games you play, own, how you play, how often and for how long
• Game crash report(s) and error dump information from your device
• Activity carried out within our Paradox Launcher application, including install, uninstall, and update event information
• Multiplayer sessions, when these sessions were played and which players were in them
• Friend relations added to the Friends List in chat systems in games on the Paradox Launcher

Basically, they are reserving the right to collect pretty much everything they possibly can about you, short of your keystrokes.

But once again, this is not an attack on HBS or Paradox. Everyone is doing this.

Without using a Pi-Hole or Zone alarm or similar, there is little you can do to stop it.

Naturally, this kind of extreme collection is what GDPR is trying to stop.

 

[stjobe]

Full disclosure: I worked with "big data" solutions for several years, among other things to tailor ads, content, and offers to existing and potential customers, so I have a pretty good grasp of how much data there is to be collected, and how freely it was collected. I am very pro-GDPR as a result of that work (and I did spend the better part of a year making sure our code was GDPR compliant. Ask me sometime how fun that was...)

The only thing I meant by my comment is that just because someone changes things in order to be GDPR-compliant doesn't necessarily mean they were doing something nefarious; it just means that whatever they were doing (or, more likely, how they handled and stored the data they collected) is no longer allowed under GDPR, probably because there's some way to connect the data they collect to personal data (as a simple example, a dxdiag file contains several items that can be considered personal data, among them your username on your computer). Don't store those things, and the rest of the information should be okay to store.

 

[The Mole's Revenge]

Is it possible to download earlier versions of the installer if you had the game from GoG rather than Steam?

 

[ronhatch]

Is it possible to download earlier versions of the installer if you had the game from GoG rather than Steam?

It's convoluted, but appears to be possible (I did not, however, actually go through with the download).

First off, your Paradox account needs to know that you own the game so that you can get the relevant code.

1. Go to the https://accounts.paradoxplaza.com/games link.
2. If your copy already shows up there, great! Skip to step 7 below. (Click "Show".)
   
3. Ignore all of the "Link your Steam and Paradox accounts" stuff.
4. Get your Serial Key for Battletech from gog.com. (IMPORTANT: I was not able to find this in GOG Galaxy, only on the website.)
   1. Log into your account.
   2. Go to Battletech in your Library.
   3. Select "Serial Keys" from the "More" drop-down menu.
5. On the Paradox Plaza page, click "Redeem" and enter your serial key there.
6. Go back the Games page.
7. Next to "Access Earlier Versions" underneath your list of games, click the "Show" button.

Secondly, in GOG Galaxy you need to turn on the private beta channel using the code from above. (IMPORTANT: I was not able to find this on the website, only in GOG Galaxy. This is the REVERSE of where you need to go in the prior section.)

1. Go to Battletech in your Library.
2. Select "Settings" from the "More" drop-down menu.
3. Set "Beta Channels" to "On" (top right side).
4. In the "Channel" drop-down, select "Add private channels".
5. Enter the code from the Paradox Plaza Games page.
6. Select whatever version you would like to switch to in the "Channel" drop-down.

 

[The Mole's Revenge]

Many thanks!

[Update]
I have successfully used these steps to install earlier versions of the game via GoG Galaxy, but it appears I cannot download the files needed for an offline install

I had been hoping to be able to have multiple versions of the game installed simultaneously so I could experiment with the differences between them.

 

[ronhatch]

Many thanks!

[Update]
I have successfully used these steps to install earlier versions of the game via GoG Galaxy, but it appears I cannot download the files needed for an offline install

I had been hoping to be able to have multiple versions of the game installed simultaneously so I could experiment with the differences between them.

Yeah, the way to access the offline installer is from the website, and it doesn't seem to have beta channel features.

However, since the game is not copy protected, you can install via GoG Galaxy and then copy the installed files to some other location on your hard drive. That will get the multiple versions you want.

Edit: Come to think of it, there is a risk that those multiple copies might save settings and such in the same place in an incompatible way. No way to know without giving it a try, but older versions may not be able to read saves or skirmish mechs from newer versions. Or could just flat-out crash if it attempts to read something it doesn't understand on startup.