Denuvo 5.6, Used in Metro Exodus, Has Been Cracked in Five Days

Megalith

24-bit/48kHz
Staff member
Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
13,000
The latest version of Denuvo didn’t last long: hackers have managed to crack version 5.6 in five days, opening recent releases such as Metro Exodus and Far Cry New Dawn to pirates. Gamers are calling on Deep Silver/4A Games and Ubisoft to remove the anti-tamper tech, as it is obsolete and may potentially reduce performance. Hackers have also managed to crack Microsoft’s UWP protection for Crackdown 3.

It will be interesting to see whether this crack will impact the game’s sales and whether gamers will download the pirated version in order to immaturely show Deep Silver their displeasure over the Steam/Epic Store controversy. As always, we strongly suggest supporting the developers for their hard work. If you are not interested in a game, there is no point at all downloading a pirated version of it!
 
Five days? That took longer than I thought. Lets all laugh at an industry that never learns anything Tee Hee Hee!

ltmsgq666vh21.png


unc6r7nmnii21.jpg
 
Have always been curious how much companies pay to use/license Denuvo. Seems like every AAA title launched typically sees it broken within a week of launch. If they hedge their bets primarily on console these days, seems odd that it'd be worth the time, money, and effort.
 
Just another DRM on the wall of it got cracked. There will always be wind in the sails.
 
Have always been curious how much companies pay to use/license Denuvo. Seems like every AAA title launched typically sees it broken within a week of launch. If they hedge their bets primarily on console these days, seems odd that it'd be worth the time, money, and effort.

I personally think all they want is that first week, just like box office for a movies the first week is huge then it tapers along. They can't remove it because then it would show that there is a performance hit with the DRM and people would be up in arms.
 
Want a gimped, intrusive program installed with your game? Then actually buy it. Don't want that and want a game that just works, pirate it.

What was the game a while back that went down because of the anti-hack software server wasn't working, but the people who pirated the game were all playing just fine?
 
Want a gimped, intrusive program installed with your game? Then actually buy it. Don't want that and want a game that just works, pirate it.

What was the game a while back that went down because of the anti-hack software server wasn't working, but the people who pirated the game were all playing just fine?

These Denuvo bypasses and exploits don't remove Denuvo though. They only trick it into functioning similarly to a legit copy.
 
Want a gimped, intrusive program installed with your game? Then actually buy it. Don't want that and want a game that just works, pirate it.

What was the game a while back that went down because of the anti-hack software server wasn't working, but the people who pirated the game were all playing just fine?

Seems like a good way to spot pirated copies in the wild LOL
 
Good. Now if the developer patches out Denuvo together with some performance optimisations (or simply adds in more detailed settings), then I'll consider playing the game.
 
I personally think all they want is that first week, just like box office for a movies the first week is huge then it tapers along. They can't remove it because then it would show that there is a performance hit with the DRM and people would be up in arms.

I would agree with you except take into consideration the refund period on EPIC store caused by Steam refund policy.

They aim for 45 days and previously 90 days.

There is conjecture i cant prove that denuvo is partially refunded to the publisher should it be cracked inside of a undisclosed negotiated time window
 
In these benchmarks, it appears that Denuvo can make a significant different in performance:



It can, but it seems to be heavily game dependent. His original Denuvo test had more games that didn't have much difference at all. Its too bad Ubisoft refuses to ever remove DRM from their titles. I'd be really interested in seeing something like AC: O with Denuvo and VMP removed to see what, if any, difference it makes in terms of CPU usage and over-all performance.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mkk
like this
I would agree with you except take into consideration the refund period on EPIC store caused by Steam refund policy.

They aim for 45 days and previously 90 days.

There is conjecture i cant prove that denuvo is partially refunded to the publisher should it be cracked inside of a undisclosed negotiated time window

I can defiantly see a contract between denuvo and the game company to the effect of what you said.

However, refunds in my opinion are not important to companies, don't get me wrong they would not even offer one if they could, these companies actually believe they are losing tones of "potential revenue" (it's in the bag if people can't pirate) to pirating and will use protection to get this "potential revenue".

I don't know what the new studies show but if someone was not going to pay for it they are not going to pay for it if they have to wait a week or a year, but that is just my speculation on the matter.
 
Doom 3 losing Deneuvo cut load times from 30 seconds down to 10 seconds for me (three ties faster)

I didn't notice a performance difference, but then again Doom Vulkan was already one of the best-optimized CPU use games out there. With smaller studios, I could see there being more of a performance hit.
 
i forgot to mention i think epic has a 2 hour played window, i forget what steam's is.

fuck denuvo

i pirate every game i can for a demo. and reward the publisher with money for any that i enjoy. DRM is anti consumer. In the last 12 months i've spent over a grand USD on games.

Epic's refund policy is the same as Steam's, just Epic lacks an automated refund system like Steam has.
 
  • Like
Reactions: nimer
like this
Epic's refund policy is the same as Steam's, just Epic lacks an automated refund system like Steam has.

I have first hand knowledge of a end user being refunded for exodus on the EPIC store at 5 hours played. the circumstances dont really matter but its a interesting data point .
 
I personally think all they want is that first week, just like box office for a movies the first week is huge then it tapers along. They can't remove it because then it would show that there is a performance hit with the DRM and people would be up in arms.

Well there are only two groups who can consistently crack it. One often takes long breaks. Now that there is another group and there is "competition" they may not take these long breaks. Essentially one group, CPY, would crack games somewhat quickly then disappear. The number of non-cracked games would pile up and then CPY would return. Until the games get consistently cracked in around 5 days or less I don't see developers dumping Denuvo. You may get lucky and release the game when the cracking groups decide to stop cracking games for 4-6 months, or you might get screwed and have it cracked in a few days. Even then, patches, DLC and whatnot often lags behind. It certainly isn't like how it used to be where each game was cracked day one and each patch/DLC was essentially cracked day 1.

I assume Denuvo will come out with a new version soon enough that will give the two cracking groups some trouble and we'll be back to 1-3 months between cracks until they get better. Or maybe Denuvo can't innovate much more in its current form and cracking will get simpler. I wouldn't know. But unless more groups come around so that each game and DLC Is cracked day 1 consistently for a year or more, I don't see publishers dropping Denuvo.

Waste of money? Yes, I think at this point the value proposition isn't there anymore. Of course this is yet another reason why publishers/developers want to go streaming only. Would make pirating much harder.
 
Thank god for hackers!
Always thought recommended system requirements for games were really meant for DRM infestation.
 
These Denuvo bypasses and exploits don't remove Denuvo though. They only trick it into functioning similarly to a legit copy.
If a thief uses a fake key to jack my truck does that mean my truck is any less stolen?

Bypassing is cracking. If you build a 20-foot wall people won't blast a hole in it they will just build a taller ladder.
 
If a thief uses a fake key to jack my truck does that mean my truck is any less stolen?

Bypassing is cracking. If you build a 20-foot wall people won't blast a hole in it they will just build a taller ladder.
Its more about the narrative that games with Denova rule like ass so I'm happy about piracy, when the fact is there still is Denova in the game
 
It will be interesting to see whether this crack will impact the game’s sales and whether gamers will download the pirated version in order to immaturely show Deep Silver their displeasure over the Steam/Epic Store controversy. As always, we strongly suggest supporting the developers for their hard work. If you are not interested in a game, there is no point at all downloading a pirated version of it!

I haven't pirated a game since I was a kid and we all passed our floppies around. Once I got older I realized the importance of developers actually getting paid.

Pirating Metro Exodus as a form of protest did actually strike my mind, (It has been up on IPTorrents now for more than 5 days, but this came before the recent major update, so it is less than ideal) but I have a large enough backlog that I'll probably just wait until it is back in Steam in 2020.

I prefer paying for my games.
 
I sympathize with gaming studios. It's a lose-lose. Really they just end up punishing their paying customers.

Though it's hard to quantify how much piracy results in lost sales vs more sales from greater exposure and word of mouth.

Single player only games seem to bear the brunt. Multiplayer gamers are a minority of gamers but a majority of pc purchases. Too bad not my cup of tea. Life is challenging and I'm forced to interact with ashhole strangers constantly. I play games specifically to get a break from those things not to double down.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: DocNo
like this
Re piracy and car theft.

Many people would not steal their neighbors car leaving their neighbor vehicle less and stranded.

But what if you could take a picture of your neighbors car then go home and 3d print your own? How much of the people bell curve would shift?
 
I am guilty of pirating games. I do it as most of these devs don't make demos. If I cannot demo a game, then I will not purchase it blindly. I have gamed for a couple decades and demos were the best thing. Test the game, if you like it, buy it. Over the years they've stopped doing this and I cannot just trust another's view of a game until I try it. I wish devs made more demos. My most recent game purchase was Monster Hunter and it was only due to a few friend's recommendations. I trust my friends more than some reviewer, as far as how a game is.
 
Should've done what the devs of Devotion did. Nobody will pirate your game with Winnie the Pooh purity seal.
 
I am guilty of pirating games. I do it as most of these devs don't make demos. If I cannot demo a game, then I will not purchase it blindly. I have gamed for a couple decades and demos were the best thing. Test the game, if you like it, buy it. Over the years they've stopped doing this and I cannot just trust another's view of a game until I try it. I wish devs made more demos. My most recent game purchase was Monster Hunter and it was only due to a few friend's recommendations. I trust my friends more than some reviewer, as far as how a game is.


Steam has a no questions asked refund policy if requested within 14 days of buying the game, and it has been played for less than 2 hours.
 
I am guilty of pirating games. I do it as most of these devs don't make demos. If I cannot demo a game, then I will not purchase it blindly. I have gamed for a couple decades and demos were the best thing. Test the game, if you like it, buy it. Over the years they've stopped doing this and I cannot just trust another's view of a game until I try it. I wish devs made more demos. My most recent game purchase was Monster Hunter and it was only due to a few friend's recommendations. I trust my friends more than some reviewer, as far as how a game is.
You guys are always making new excuses!
 
Steam has a no questions asked refund policy if requested within 14 days of buying the game, and it has been played for less than 2 hours.

They'll lock your account if you do it too frequently. The FAQ mentions (or used to) that the refund policy is not a game rental service. So if you constantly purchase games to try and then ask for a refund your account will be locked, which isn't practical and certainly isn't the same as a demo. I don't disagree with their policy though.
 
They'll lock your account if you do it too frequently. The FAQ mentions (or used to) that the refund policy is not a game rental service. So if you constantly purchase games to try and then ask for a refund your account will be locked, which isn't practical and certainly isn't the same as a demo. I don't disagree with their policy though.

They won’t lock your account what they do is lock out the ability to use the automated refund system.
 
Back
Top