The Age of New DRM

[ramza]

If they just asked kindly...

 

 

 

 

But then again, there are benefits to piracy...

 

Edited January 28, 2010 by ramza

[Gorgon]

Offline mode works, sometimes. Mostly you are not allowed to launch games in offline mode. Maybe you have to have booted up steam first which requires connectivity, so offline mode would be for people who have logged in but lost their internet. Pretty useless.

 

Offline mode always works and you can always launch your games. The problem is getting into it. It'll often try to update Steam for 5 minutes before it gives you the offline mode option, but it IS there, even if you try to turn that mode on with no net on a fresh boot.

 

Edit: As it stand nows, my Steam folder is about 180gigs and my GOG folder 30 or 40. I always try to buy on GOG first to avoid ALL DRM, but Steam has been extremely pleasant. None of the nastiness I was expecting.

I get 'could not connect to steam' and that's that, nowhere to launch my games. If I lose connectivity while logged in it says 'game not available at this time'

[Purkake]

And just what other platform could one move to play then?

 

Right now as from the posts I've seen many PC games are moving closer to limiting what the end user csn do. So does this mean since no one wants to help the markets for Linux or Macs that the console is the next platform to switch to? What if console games start going this route?

 

The companies have to understand that not all have high speed networks to use and or tolerance of always having to be linked to a server just to play a game. Case in point. FF11. I will never buy that game. Online should be an option and not a requirement. Being a Mac user I am getting use to not playing games now a days on the computer since OS X has debuted. Was tempting to think of getting a larger external HD for Bootcamp so I could play some PC games but now I will scrap that plan. I will stick with my PS2, PSP, and Wii until I no longer enjoy palying these games I have.

 

Sorry for my rant on here guys.

 

Solo

By other platforms I meant the various consoles. When console games start doing the same you can either put up with it or not. Ranting on the internet about it is not going to change that.

[Orogun01]

And just what other platform could one move to play then?

 

Right now as from the posts I've seen many PC games are moving closer to limiting what the end user csn do. So does this mean since no one wants to help the markets for Linux or Macs that the console is the next platform to switch to? What if console games start going this route?

 

The companies have to understand that not all have high speed networks to use and or tolerance of always having to be linked to a server just to play a game. Case in point. FF11. I will never buy that game. Online should be an option and not a requirement. Being a Mac user I am getting use to not playing games now a days on the computer since OS X has debuted. Was tempting to think of getting a larger external HD for Bootcamp so I could play some PC games but now I will scrap that plan. I will stick with my PS2, PSP, and Wii until I no longer enjoy palying these games I have.

 

Sorry for my rant on here guys.

 

Solo

By other platforms I meant the various consoles. When console games start doing the same you can either put up with it or not. Ranting on the internet about it is not going to change that.

It will make you feel better. The Internet is everyone's hole on the ground to scream the things nobody wants to hear about.

[Monte Carlo]

Here in the UK, furious with the dessicated state of the music scene and reality TV pop stars, a couple of folks started an online campaign to get an old Rage Against the Machine track to Number One, thus frustrating the reality TV pop star du jour of his moment of sugary glory.

 

It worked, and RAtM was no. 1 for Xmas. Bwuahahhaahahaaa!

 

The Internet is still in it's infancy as an advocate of consumer power, but I think the games industry is chancing it's arm with this development. so don't completely write off the internet.

[Purkake]

It will make you feel better. The Internet is everyone's hole on the ground to scream the things nobody wants to hear about.

If you scream the same thing enough times, it might be time to seek professional help.

Edited January 28, 2010 by Purkake

[Humodour]

Offline mode works, sometimes. Mostly you are not allowed to launch games in offline mode. Maybe you have to have booted up steam first which requires connectivity, so offline mode would be for people who have logged in but lost their internet. Pretty useless.

 

Offline mode always works and you can always launch your games. The problem is getting into it. It'll often try to update Steam for 5 minutes before it gives you the offline mode option, but it IS there, even if you try to turn that mode on with no net on a fresh boot.

 

Edit: As it stand nows, my Steam folder is about 180gigs and my GOG folder 30 or 40. I always try to buy on GOG first to avoid ALL DRM, but Steam has been extremely pleasant. None of the nastiness I was expecting.

I get 'could not connect to steam' and that's that, nowhere to launch my games. If I lose connectivity while logged in it says 'game not available at this time'

 

If you let it do it's thing for long enough, restart the app every time it quits, maybe end task on it a few times, it gets through to offline mode. I haven't figured out the exact trigger, but it's perfectly possible and takes 2 mins of fiddling. A bit annoying.

 

Of course, if you're on the net, just hit 'go offline' and that's that.

[Hurlshort]

It amazes me how many people mention piracy as a solution to DRM. You do not actually need to play these games. This whole sense of entitlement people carry around is really sad.

[Purkake]

It amazes me how many people mention piracy as a solution to DRM. You do not actually need to play these games. This whole sense of entitlement people carry around is really sad.

That's the internet for you.

[deganawida]

It amazes me how many people mention piracy as a solution to DRM. You do not actually need to play these games. This whole sense of entitlement people carry around is really sad.

 

I'm not sure entitlement plays into it as much anymore. I'm getting the impression that people are beginning to pirate the games just to spite the publishers who make such draconian schemes as this. I see more and more people posting (and, in conversation, saying), "This sucks! I'm not a criminal! If they do this, then I'm going to pirate the game!". Doesn't make it right, but it does appear that measures such as Ubisoft's are increasing the piracy problem, rather than decreasing it, simply because people are contrary and do not like being treated as though they were already criminals.

[Oner]

It amazes me how many people mention piracy as a solution to DRM. You do not actually need to play these games. This whole sense of entitlement people carry around is really sad.

I think it's sadder that people can't enjoy games without this crap, can't play them without it (well, legally anyway), are treated by companies like idiots, the whole DRM crap is somehow still spreading, and when they dare not like it, they're told to ignore the whole thing.

[Malcador]

I'm always amazed at how often "entitlement" comes up with regards to anything in gaming, heh.

[Nightshape]

I love the way the supposed law abiding citizen complain about DRM. You wanna blame anyone blame the damn thieving pirates.

 

PIRACY IS THEFT!

 

I don't know what kinda jobs you folks out there are working, but if I went into a shop and stole something I'd be a thief, if I didn't pay for a service, the same again.

 

If people were honest they wouldn't need DRM, and we all know that will never happen. SO GET OVER YOURSELF!

[Purkake]

This will end well...

[RPGmasterBoo]

I love the way the supposed law abiding citizen complain about DRM. You wanna blame anyone blame the damn thieving pirates.

 

PIRACY IS THEFT!

 

I don't know what kinda jobs you folks out there are working, but if I went into a shop and stole something I'd be a thief, if I didn't pay for a service, the same again.

 

If people were honest they wouldn't need DRM, and we all know that will never happen. SO GET OVER YOURSELF!

 

Ridiculous. No major publisher has ever provided evidence that piracy has really hurt their sales. I quote this from a rock paper shotgun article.

 

That aside, many forms of DRM are in no way connected to piracy or at least its hard to prove they work against it.

 

Btw the DRM and hassle people have had activating their DLC over Mass Effect 2 served absolutely no purpose. The pirated version was up three days before the official release, free of all DRM, and even included the DLC.

 

Thus DRM is useless and pointless.

 

And Mass Effect 2 was a very light case of DRM.

 

the Ubisoft case is completely senseless.

Edited January 28, 2010 by RPGmasterBoo

[Mikhailian]

I love the way the supposed law abiding citizen complain about DRM. You wanna blame anyone blame the damn thieving pirates.

 

PIRACY IS THEFT!

 

I don't know what kinda jobs you folks out there are working, but if I went into a shop and stole something I'd be a thief, if I didn't pay for a service, the same again.

 

If people were honest they wouldn't need DRM, and we all know that will never happen. SO GET OVER YOURSELF!

No, I'm quite content to blame the publisher for choosing securom/steam/gfwl instead of coming up with some better solution. If it were just a matter of having unintrusive and effective piracy protection, you'd never hear me complain. However, the deal we have right now is neither unintrusive (steam/gfwl are huge resoursce hogs), nor is it effective (securom is as easily bipassed as an unlocked door). Furthermore, with caps on installs the situation has become a matter of my software purchase becoming a temporary software license. It would be like buying a car that can only have regular maintainence done a few times; after that, "tough titty, time for the rube to buy another car".

[Oner]

Honestly, people still believe this ****?

 

People like Nightshape should live in Hungary for a bit.

 

HERE COMPANIES DON'T COME UP WITH HALF-ASSED EXCUSES BECAUSE THEY DON'T CARE. AND THEY GET AWAY WITH IT. ALL CAPS, FOO'S!

 

[...]copyright law on the basis of public performances to be paid, but there are exceptions. For example, the royalties are not due for music played at non-profit school feasts. The resisting leaders in the school prom balls interpreted [the rules] as such, but the Artisjus says that the "school ceremonies" last only till the ribbons are pinned up, then "dance fest" follows, and royalties must be paid for the music played there - and not just a little: according to some interviewed directors the tax is instead of thousands now in the ten thousands (for comparison: 1 USD ~ 200 HuF). The firmer leaders do not understand this, because there is no profit to be gained from such feasts, and the royalties payed to Artisjus only increase the costs. In addition, if the association is not alerted to the event beforehand, and then the school gets "caught red handed", it will be required to pay double the royalties under the law.

No mention of piracy.

[Hurlshort]

Ridiculous. No major publisher has ever provided evidence that piracy has really hurt their sales. I quote this from a rock paper shotgun article.

 

Ridiculous. Games cost money to develop. Then they are offered for sale. Not paying for them is stealing.

 

How exactly do you expect developers to track who pirates instead of buying a game? Should they take a poll? Just because something is difficult to monitor does not mean it does not exist.

[Oner]

How exactly do you expect developers to track who pirates instead of buying a game? Should they take a poll? Just because something is difficult to monitor does not mean it does not exist.

Yet somehow they still have "accurate" counts on the money they lost to piracy.

Also, I fail to see how "malware" that get's cracked immediately is supposed to prevent piracy. It didn't work. It annoys the honest buyers. So why use it?

[RPGmasterBoo]

Ridiculous. No major publisher has ever provided evidence that piracy has really hurt their sales. I quote this from a rock paper shotgun article.

 

Ridiculous. Games cost money to develop. Then they are offered for sale. Not paying for them is stealing.

 

Not paying for them does not in fact mean you would pay for them if you couldnt get them free.

 

There is no money lost unless you presume the pirate would actually buy the game. Which, common sense suggests - he/she wouldn't.

 

Name one dev that kicked the bucket because of piracy (not because their games sucked and no one would buy them), and I'll agree to everything you say.

Edited January 28, 2010 by RPGmasterBoo

[kirottu]

I love the way the supposed law abiding citizen complain about DRM. You wanna blame anyone blame the damn thieving pirates.

 

PIRACY IS THEFT!

 

I don't know what kinda jobs you folks out there are working, but if I went into a shop and stole something I'd be a thief, if I didn't pay for a service, the same again.

 

If people were honest they wouldn't need DRM, and we all know that will never happen. SO GET OVER YOURSELF!

 

As a law abiding citizen what really gets on my nerves is the attack against second hand games. It is a right to resell any product you have bought, as when you bought it it became yours. No company has any right what so ever to make that impossible or restrict it.

 

Also, accusing people to be thieves when they criticize something that only affects LEGIMATE users is really stupid. Let me make this even more clear for you: thieves have no reason to complain, because it doesn

Edited January 28, 2010 by kirottu

[RPGmasterBoo]

Also, accusing people to be thieves when they criticize something that only affects LEGIMATE users is really stupid. Let me make this even more clear for you: thieves have no reason to complain, because it doesn

[Oner]

Also, accusing people to be thieves when they criticize something that only affects LEGIMATE users is really stupid. Let me make this even more clear for you: thieves have no reason to complain, because it doesn

[neckthrough]

As a law abiding citizen what really gets on my nerves is the attack against second hand games. It is a right to resell any product you have bought, as when you bought it it became yours. No company has any right what so ever to make that impossible or restrict it.

Well they're trying to establish the notion that your ability to play a game is a limited service they're providing you instead of a product that you can use as you please. Also you can only use the service under their watchful eyes, and you have to agree to install their supervisory applications on your computer (temporarily turning over complete control of your computer to them). Oh, and they'll continue to charge the same $50-60 for the rental that they used to charge for the unrestricted product. Really, I'd have no complaints against this model if (a) these new rental games were to cost $15 instead of $50, and (b) they didn't install nefarious hidden software on my personal computer.

[Mikhailian]

Well they're trying to establish the notion that your ability to play a game is a limited service they're providing you instead of a product that you can use as you please. Also you can only use the service under their watchful eyes, and you have to agree to install their supervisory applications on your computer (temporarily turning over complete control of your computer to them). Oh, and they'll continue to charge the same $50-60 for the rental that they used to charge for the unrestricted product. Really, I'd have no complaints against this model if (a) these new rental games were to cost $15 instead of $50, and (b) they didn't install nefarious hidden software on my personal computer.

Nail on the proverbial head.