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Geek Culture / Finally a company that cares about its gamers.

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Steve J
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Joined: 22nd Apr 2006
Location: Vancouver, Washington
Posted: 23rd Jun 2006 23:12
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Over the years many of you have seen starforce, and other crappy quality game protection software that shows that the company doesnt really care about the gamer, they just want the money. ( I am sure many will disagree, but please continue with the post) Stardock, creators of Galactic Civilizations 2, and many useful applications, have stopped copy protection.
Their game, Galactic Civ 2, doesnt require the serial included, unless you want updates! Now, I know this sounds stupid, but it has been successful.

Sure there will always be piracy, but it has been selling great, and well higher than anticipated.

http://forums.galciv2.com/?ForumID=161&AID=120662

It has also gotten high ratings.

A scandel just occured, where starforce admins posted illegal links of the game, saying "This is what happens when you dont use starforce!". Eventually starforce removed the link and apologised, but still.

The main reason I posted this is, we have seen so much copy protection in recent years, it is becoming harder and harder for an actual buyer to install and play games. Some copy protection software makes you uninstall apps, and some just wont run if you dont have certain apps. It makes the company who made the game look like complete idiots, mainly because they dont stop pirates, but they do stop users... Stardock may be on to something, and thats a sign of progress in the industry.


Team Artist, and Storyline Designer. [Team: Steve, Saikoro, and help from Megaton Cat]
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Wandering Swordsman
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Posted: 23rd Jun 2006 23:37
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Steve J:
Quote: "A scandel just occured, where starforce admins posted illegal links of the game, saying "This is what happens when you dont use starforce!". Eventually starforce removed the link and apologised, but still. "

StarForce should have to pay Stardock compensation for all the copies downloaded from the illegal sites they linked to.

I like this idea. Copyright protection shouldn't stop me from playing the games I buy. Like I bought Tribes 2 but it didn't like my CD-rom or something, so it shreds the install.

I've seen it printed on some of the game boxes (One of the Prince of Persia series has it on it I think) Due to copyright protection software some hardware may not be compatible. (Or something like that.) But they don't list which ones?!

When I dream,
I carry a sword in one hand,
a gun in the other...
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BatVink
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Joined: 4th Apr 2003
Location: Gods own County, UK
Posted: 23rd Jun 2006 23:39
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Civ 4...doesn't run if you have 2 CD drives. You have to download a dodgy utility to get it going.



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CattleRustler
Retired Moderator
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Location: case modding at overclock.net
Posted: 23rd Jun 2006 23:40
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my guess is everything will move towards an online authentication system like steam, regardless if the game is multiplayer or not.

Science, Mathematics, and Physics do not lie - only people do.
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Bahamut
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Location: Brighton
Posted: 24th Jun 2006 00:05
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I hate copyright protection, I remember the serial for neverwinter nights was a nightmare. D O and 0 all looked the same, as did 1, and I. It took me about 50-60 tries to guess the combination...

IceBound Melodic rock/metal band with loads of lead guitar, clean female vocals, and more guitars! What more could you want?
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Fallout
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Location: Basingstoke, England
Posted: 24th Jun 2006 00:50 Edited at: 24th Jun 2006 00:51
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hehe. I remember the old days ('93 I think) when I bought UFO: Enemy Unknown. Their copy protection was a set of keycodes printed on every other page of the 120 page manual. When you started the game, it asked for a code. My mate wanted to copy the game, so he used to phone me up to ask for the keycode. Eventually I got a piece of paper and wrote down the code to give him a copy. It took me about 3 minutes. Now that's hardcore oldskool copy protection.

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Tinkergirl
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Location: United Kingdom
Posted: 24th Jun 2006 01:39
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The problem with the Starforce thing, is that Starforce copy protection installs itself quietly on your machine, and (allegedly) do horrible nasty DRM-style things to it. (If you've not been following it, the Sony DRM scandal was where every Sony CD came with PC crippling copy protection on it that opened you up to viruses etc etc).

Starforce and other copy protection companies exist off the fear of developers. I'm sure on some level they thought that 'proving' the terrible things that can happen if you don't use their software was a good idea - and not just one step away from blackmail.

"Would you like extended warrantee with that?"
"No thanks."
*SMASH!*
"Whooops! Aw, what a shame - should have got that guarantee, eh?"

Bento Lunch
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Bahamut
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Posted: 24th Jun 2006 02:04
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Quote: "I remember the old days ('93 I think) when I bought UFO: Enemy Unknown. Their copy protection was a set of keycodes printed on every other page of the 120 page manual. When you started the game, it asked for a code."


It was really fun when you lose your manual though. Ahh...the good old days.

IceBound Melodic rock/metal band with loads of lead guitar, clean female vocals, and more guitars! What more could you want?
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adr
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Posted: 24th Jun 2006 02:07 Edited at: 24th Jun 2006 02:09
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Old School Copy Protection Methods:

Cartridges - obvious when you think about it. The game medium becomes part of the console's circuitry. Gonna need some pretty specific hardware to pirate those bad boys.

Data Matricies: As part of the literature, available with the boxed game, provide a huuuge table of codes, printed in black on burgandy (so that it couldn't be photocopied). Player needs to type in the code at coordinate x,y in order to play. Either that or a 3-piece cardboard wheel. I remember a flight sim which came with such a wheel - you had to turn 3 circuar pieces of cardboard to specific points - a cutout hole in the wheel then presented a 5 digit code or something. Very secure


The good ol' "Page x, paragraph y, word z, word i" from the Manual. That was pretty effective in something like Elite II, where the manual was 200 pages. With one particular game (possibly on the Amiga), I remember being young enough not to understand a paragraph, so I'd just hope that it'd ask for paragraph 1.

[center]
But you see, I have the will of the warrior. Therefore, the battle is already over. The winner? Me!
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BearCDPOLD
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Posted: 24th Jun 2006 06:31
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Argh I hate that old manual keyword thing. I could get by on a game like Dune II when it asked "What is the speed of a motor trike (whatever)?" "Uh, FAST, duh her ". But then I'm playing Hillsfar or something (which I bought legally and all that) and it asks for a special character off this spinning wheel thing, except I left the spinning wheel somewhere because I was playing out of my house on my laptop. Talk about lame.


I'm going to eat you!
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Steam Assassin
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Posted: 24th Jun 2006 06:36
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HL2 had EXTREME copy protection.

Ich bin heiss...
Don't mess with Texas!
...Internet? What the hell is that!
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Teh Go0rfmeister
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Posted: 24th Jun 2006 18:13
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Quote: "Finally a company that cares about its gamers."


dam... i came here looking for an article about EA.

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Steve J
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Location: Vancouver, Washington
Posted: 24th Jun 2006 21:12
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hahahahha.ahahahhahhahh! HAHAHAHA! . That sir, is hilarious. I think EA and gamer care are near polar oppisites.


Team Artist, and Storyline Designer. [Team: Steve, Saikoro, and help from Megaton Cat]
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Cian Rice
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Posted: 24th Jun 2006 21:13
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There I was thinking you were talking about Blizzard. Glad I was wrong. Other wise you would've just been badly injured.

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code spinneker
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Posted: 25th Jun 2006 22:17 Edited at: 25th Jun 2006 22:17
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Dear Whatever religous icon you worship I was so pissed off at Blizzard for Cancelling starcraft ghost and killing any customer appreciation they had. I DONT WANT TO BUY WOW I WANT TO BUY THEIR OTHER GAMES! But Blizzard is only doing WOW now. LAME.

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Steam Assassin
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Posted: 26th Jun 2006 04:37
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WOW is very addictive. My friend had to go to WOW rehab.

Ich bin heiss...
Don't mess with Texas!
...Internet? What the hell is that!
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Megaton Cat
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Location: Toronto, Canada
Posted: 26th Jun 2006 05:03 Edited at: 26th Jun 2006 05:05
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And they're making World Of Starcraft so they can end even more lives.

"I hear something that sounds like a cash register opening and closing."

I still love Blizzard for Battle.Net though. Atleast they made that part of my childhood happy.


It's like a Megaton Cat radar, 24 hours a day.
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code spinneker
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Posted: 26th Jun 2006 07:11
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Umm world of starcraft was actually an April Fools joke/An unfounded rumour so dont even start quoting that but yes the cash register opening and closing is a correct metaphoric (or is it a simile? I dunno I never liked english) All Blizzard wants is money and the fact that they cannot see that a title like Starcraft2 would bring a HELL OF A LOT of money in is their shortfalling.

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Gil Galvanti
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Location: Texas, United States
Posted: 26th Jun 2006 07:25
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I hate serial codes. People are so paranoid about piracy that they forget about the user convenience. And then when I want to install a game on a new computer, I get to go digging through all the manuals for that game's manual, and then i get to search the manual for the code...fun . They need to stop being so paranoid .

Pirates of Port Royale
Live the life of a pirate.
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Les Horribres
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Posted: 26th Jun 2006 23:55
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The future...

games will come with radioactive tags which form a two hundred digit code which changes every ten seconds. This code has to be entered correctally in 10 seconds before the next reset everytime you play the game. Failure to do this results in the game turning off you fan and overloading your processor.



Besides, regarding WoW... what can you expect from a company that can never anticipate the demand for it's own games. They currently are making alot off of WoW and don't see any reason to do anything otherwise.

Your Mod was deleted by the Government.
One can only know so much, only comprehend the world to a point. After that we exist as impressionable beings. Doing nothing, being nothing, forever nothing.
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code spinneker
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Posted: 27th Jun 2006 00:49
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Touche With a french little accent thing that I don;t know how to do on the keyboard.

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Les Horribres
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Posted: 27th Jun 2006 04:45
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alt+0233

touché

Your Mod was deleted by the Government.
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code spinneker
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Posted: 27th Jun 2006 04:50
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Touché

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Cian Rice
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Posted: 27th Jun 2006 05:07
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Altaïr. Touché.

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