As far as I know, the other publishers (ie. Activision, THQ, Paradox etc.) have the final say as to when and where their games are available on Impulse. I don't know any more than you do about how much pressure Stardock applies to get certain titles available in certain regions.

Besides, it's preposterous to assume that Stardock hates all of Europe. Maybe they hate a certain country, like Luxembourg (who likes them?  ), but to hate an entire continent? That's taking it a bit too far...

Luxemburg > U.S.

Damn Luxembourgians...  Ruining it for the rest of Europe, how dare they?!

stardock can't cater to everyone you know...just go buy the games at a store

It's the fault of those narrow minded publishers.

Have you tried looking at this game?
http://www.impulsedriven.com/ceville

The first thing it says in its description is that its not available in North America. I quote:

Since I can't get it, could someone who has got the game tell me if its any good?

It would be nice if I filter those titles out, because i can't buy them anyway... Or do the publisher pay Stardock for this advertisement?

oh oh oh I know the answer *puts hand up

First off not stardocks doing if you look and any direct download sites try D2D your get the same and I think it's about tax as all of them games on the list I can get off a european DL site.

Well, that was *obviously* a joke, an exaggeration.

What I mean is simply they don't care about. Looks like they don't try too much to change this stuff.

Maybe they are trying really really really really really hard. So hard they are losing sleep over it, getting divorces, abandoning children, losing weight, and finally have to see psychiatrists. Because after all of their trying those darn publishers still won't let their software be available outside of North America.

So on a scale of 100 your perception of their trying is at 5, but in reality they may be at 100.

Well... they've just lost themselves one purchase of prototype... wanted to buy... could not... 

I'll have to try other channels then...

We'd love to be able to sell all third party stuff worldwide, but we're limited by what the publishers are willing or able to allow. As time goes on and Impulse gains in popularity we'll be able to get more favorable contracts.

A little Chicken and egg problem there...

Steam charges 49,99 euros for prototype which i think is too much.

Impulse had it for $48.50 (€ 35,11 EUR)*, thus not thinking that $1 = €1... that's more fair to me so I wanted to buy it on impulse... too bad I can't

I will not buy it for 50 euros...

Costs EUR 38:99 including shipping from Play.com.

it's not so much the price that bug's me. more the fact i could get a game (far cry2) without any sercu*rap.

*sigh*

I'd imagine Stardock's policy of not screwing Europeans on the prices is why a lot of publishers don't want them to sell their stuff to Europeans.. why settle for 35 Euros off Impulse when they can get 50 off Steam?

Catch-22?

Edit: Though I think there's been a case or two in the past where the publisher did set the price in Euros and pissed off a lot of forum people too, who blamed Stardock for jacking the price up

Basically every game from Paradox and some of the THQ-Stuff (50$ for CoH - Tales of Valor)