^- Probably only valid in the US until they force TISA/TTPA down our throats then we can all enjoy DMCA and the death of retro. (But wait, now companies can re-release old titles as new by slapping a fan patch and a “HD” on the title name!)
You should be able to do whatever you want with code running on your computer system, but you may not have permission to distribute the code you obtained from a third party (i.e. the software you bought).
But if the code is restricted with DRM, you are suddenly not allowed (through some countries laws) to do anything with the code - be it to make it compatible with other systems, fix problems, discover issues, make cheats or anything else.
Then, once the license/auth servers are removed, you are SOL, as the code will no longer run.
Hopefully in time it will be cracked fully, and not just emulated/bypassed. DRM is never ok - it is an abomination.
Why should gaming be the wrong hobby for him? Tinkering with video games has been a thing pretty much since the beginning, and it’s been one of the cornerstones of PC gaming in particular. So because companies like Valve forced online DRM on a flaccid user base who lapped it up in exchange for cheap games—all but assuring its success across the platform (only to then, ironically, bitch and moan about having to use Uplay and Origin)—you now think people who don’t support it should find another hobby?
Steam doesn’t prevent people from tinkering with games, there is an entire mod community with built-in support for a huge number of titles (called Steam Workshop). He didn’t say “tinker” he said “tamper”. It sounds like, if you’ve followed the thread, the days of tampering with games and pirating them are numbered. He mis-likes he doesn’t feel like he “owns” the games, but a game is just a piece of software, if you want to feel like you own something tangible, that can you tweak, tamper, and play with, I suggest getting into automotive mechanics. I’m not being snarky, it’s a cool hobby.
Just saying that for me they are shooting themselves in the foot. Ever since I can remember I’ve been downloading the “free” version of a game, if I liked it I would buy it and transfer my savegames. A recent example is “Underrail”. I heard it had a demo, searched for it and didn’t find it, torrented the game, played for 5 hours, then bought it on Steam, knowing that it was well worth the money. (it really is, it feels like an ambitious 10 year old game that was locked away until now)
Take a game like R6 Siege. I hate it. I couldn’t try it before I bought it so I only had youtube and reviews to go by. Never again. If I can’t demo it and I can’t torrent it, forget it. I need to actually play something to know for sure if it’s for me. Put a ton of DRM on it, I can’t play it, thus I won’t buy it. Skip.
Not only did he say he had no issue with DRM if it were there solely to protect the product (without interfering with legitimate customers), he said nothing about pirating games, so I can only assume the “tampering” he’s referring to has nothing to do with it. He did, however, in all but the last half of the last sentence of his post criticize the direction the industry is heading as it pertains to online DRM.
With the proliferation of Let’s Plays, streams, and more online these days, the above arguments never hold water for me. You played that game for 5 hours to decide you liked it. What about a game like Gone Home, that’s no more than a couple\few hours long? If you complete the “free” (ugh) version, do you purchase it even if you liked it? How does that even make sense?
Not sure you are even familiar with Underrail. The game can easily be 100+ hours long and it supports multiple playthroughs because of the diversity of the build mechanics. 5 Hours is nothing.
There’s a very simple solution to achieve world peace. Just get all chiefs of state in the world to sign a pledge promising to not fight and try to work together.
If they start making demo’s again I don’t care what DRM they put on there. If they want people to go in blind, they’ll use it time and time again to hide a shit game.
If they had no other way to test the game, I’d imagine Steam refunds growing exponentially as a result.
It’s like buying a new car. You like how it looks, you like what people have said about it so far, you’ve seen other people drive it but you haven’t driven it yourself. You don’t know. The dealership says look at this fine car, “can I take it for a test run?”… “no”.
I “steal” the game because it’s the only way I can test it without a demo. The majority of games today don’t have demos. You have no way of knowing how it runs on your machine, how it feels to play. Steam refund has a two hour limit or something like that, I’ve only ever refunded a game once.
Build a demo for your game then you don’t force me to go in blind. What incentive is there for developers of shit games to build a demo? None. They want to sell games regardless if you like them or not. R6 Siege forum. Search for “refund”. That’s how these bastards do business.
