Insane PC Game DRM Drove Me To Piracy

Syntax Error said:
Gamer "entitlement" is all it is, really.
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Except he bought the game, and went back and forth with their customer service reps trying to get it working, and only then downloaded the fix (crack). He is entitled to a game that works correctly.


They were offered a more than fair chance to get the software working, they did not, so the customer turned to a third party. Crackers....
DMCA or not, I hardly see a problem with it on moral grounds. I do vote, but don't have pockets deep enough to get the law fixed, so where do I go for justice?...........
 
He paid money for a working game. The fault for the game no longer working lies with the company. The company gave him no support, and would not have returned his money if he wanted to return defective merchandise. He had no alternative. There is no problem with what he did, morally, or ethically. He didn't steal anything. He made his purchased game work.
 
BladeVenom said:
A game crack is a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, so he is a pirate. He also used a torrent to get the game, so not only did he download an illegal copy of the exe, he also likely distributed an illegal copy.
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Think you need to go back and read.

He did not, in any way, download the game via a torrent. He purchased the game, installed the game, but could not activate the game. Thus, he downloaded a crack for the game.
 
Steve said:
Does this guy have a legitimate argument here or is this just another excuse to pirate a game? One thing is for sure, it is pretty damn sad that we even have to ask a question like this.
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I'm with Phide, this guy didn't do anything wrong. If what he claims happened, did, in fact, happen, then the publisher needs to fix an issue in their CS department and or their activation process.

With that said, when i buy games, if the CP has any downside to it, I head off to (insert name of site that is probably banned on the forums) and download a crack.

I understand why they have copy protection, and if it helps them sell a few extra copies during the first week or 2, then I'm all for it, but companies have to do better. I'd say they have to look at Valve. Steam is definitely a good way to do copy protection. IT's probably not bulletproof, but it's good enough for most publishers and easy enough to use for most users....though I still like having those disks and boxes, even if they all end up in packing boxes at some point.
 
is using a cracked exe considered piracy if you own the game? hell i download the cracks for basically every game I own that requires a cd to play just so I don't have to carry a sleeve full of games when I move around. I don't then sell the game of course but as long as you own the copy it doesnt seem like piracy to me, correct me if I'm wrong
 
Why is it consider piracy at all if the guy use a crack exe file for a game he purchased? He's just using a modified exe file, he did not steal anything or use a game without paying
 
Parmenides said:
Hard to blame him. Going 1mph over the speed limit is breaking the law too. Not purchasing health care will be against the law too.
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actually you wont get in trouble unless you go more than 5 over the limit:D
 
cthulhuiscool said:
is using a cracked exe considered piracy if you own the game? hell i download the cracks for basically every game I own that requires a cd to play just so I don't have to carry a sleeve full of games when I move around. I don't then sell the game of course but as long as you own the copy it doesnt seem like piracy to me, correct me if I'm wrong
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I believe it would be against their EULA.
 
Using a cracked exe on a game you purchased and currently own, is not piracy. It's still breaking DCMA or whatever, as it's circumventing the DRM.

Using a no-cd crack can be copyright infringement, but not software piracy. Piracy would be the unauthorized reproduction and distribution of the software. Piracy is copyright infringement, but not all copyright infringement is piracy.
 
It is a sad state of affairs when you have to resort to piracy to utilize what you purchased.However, I'm certain that publishers would prefer if people purchased the game, and then utilized a drm-circumvention mechanism as opposed to straight up piracy. I do not think they will publicly admit such a thing.

I don't generally mind DRM, although I have to admit that AC2 internet connection requirement is annoying. My service provider goes down several times a day, and a few times it happened in the middle of gameplay. But if we don't deal with DRM, and purchase the games developers will not have sufficient revenue to make a business case for PC-Development. It's unfortunate that the state of pc gaming is so dismal where generally all optimizations are for console games. There isn't such a huge difference in appearance in most PORTs, especially when you consider the power of the 360 vs a core2duo/quad and the latest batch of video cards.
 
I just purchase Battlefield: Bad Company 2 from EA download store last week. Right after the download, the DRM got flagged by my anti-virus as a virus, and I was forced to re-download all 5.5gb again, this time w/ my virus protection turned off.

Apparently this is a known issue, since EA's own trouble shooting site tells you the solution is to re-download w/ no anti-virus protection on.
 
krotch said:
Think you need to go back and read.

He did not, in any way, download the game via a torrent. He purchased the game, installed the game, but could not activate the game. Thus, he downloaded a crack for the game.
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I think you need to reread the DMCA. You also need to learn what's in an exe, and how torrents work.
 
I would throw out the easy response which is "what do game companies expect when they put DRM in their product and then it fails to activate/let you play the game" but then again I can also say I don't know what they could do that would be considered "fair" DRM but "safe" to them in terms of protecting their product.

CD checks are annoying. CD keys don't work. Both are easily bypassed.

I hate to be a Steam kool-aid drinker, but I am. Anytime I buy PC games now, I buy them on Steam (and usually during a sale). Steam isn't the end all be all answer to everyone's problems (both the end user and the developer/publisher), but it solves quite a bit of the problems.
 
An executable alone is practically worthless without game content, which was apparently not downloaded. It's also unclear as to what he actually downloaded -- whether it was a patched executable or an executable patcher. Even if the former is the case, he could have probably acquired the executable through legal means, as most game patches contain replacement EXEs rather than directly patching installed ones.

The function of BitTorrent is irrelevant to this discussion.
 
I am in no way advocating piracy because its wrong and is hurting the industry, but the publishers and developers are in turn treating their paying customers like criminals and are just making them turn to piracy instead.
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Time to dust off my mathbook. Transitive property, isn't it?

If DRM drives people to piracy, and piracy hurts the industry, then...

DRM hurts the industry!
 
anime4u said:
If the DRM is too difficult to bear, just don't buy it. There is plenty of software and games out there to buy or download that has acceptable protections.
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You sir, are an idiot.

What about after you have ALREADY purchased the game? You think you can return it because the DRM is too much to handle? They will laugh at you and show you their return policy on software.
 
nicknations said:
What about after you have ALREADY purchased the game? You think you can return it because the DRM is too much to handle? They will laugh at you and show you their return policy on software.
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Yeah unless stores start carrying some sort of 'DRM exception clause' in their return policies, all they're going to offer you is another copy of the game, in most cases they also open it up for you as well so you can't turn around the following day and return a sealed copy for a refund.

I doubt we're going to see DRM "features" listed on the boxes like the other bullet points, let alone the ratings info. I would think that would scare off potential buyers. :D
 
Of course I don't think there is anything he did wrong morally. Technically speaking, according to the letter of the law, what he did is a crime (violation of the DMCA). Of course the law does not exist in a vacuum and must be interpreted by individuals, and I for one do not think his violation warrants any punishment (of course the interpretation would depend on who is interpreting). As far a civil damages are concerned, there are tons of questions about EULAs and their enforceability, and I wouldn't really be worried about any monetary punishment from the publisher.
This particular case does lead to a bigger question though, as the person who purchased the game would likely be counted as a sale for the company (legit), but also a pirate for the hacked exe (for justification of further DRM and copyright enforcement). Many generally assume that the numbers that the industry uses to justify their case against piracy are a little inflated (considering their source), but it would be really interesting to see just how many legitimate buyers are also counted as pirates for the purpose of justifying these costly and time-consuming DRM schemes that ultimately don't work (there's really got to be a better way).
I am a PC gamer (which is really getting harder and harder every day), and I also try avoid any games which have any forms of draconian DRM (I got Bioshock after the Developer/Publisher removed the token verification system), and I was really looking forward to Assassin's Creed 2 (I got the first one for my birthday and really enjoyed it) until I found out about it's DRM and I've got no plans to purchase the game (and have asked others not to waste their money on it as well). There are many games I find like this now that I would like to play, but I can't purchase because of my conviction not to support DRM, but I find other games and other ways to occupy my time/money. Perhaps they are doing me a favor in the end, but they certainly aren't winning any customers this way...
 
This is the problem with the DRM software, it's becoming such a monster now, it's effecting game play, and potentially the profit margins of the publisher, Assassins creed 2 could have done better with sales, I didn't buy it for the PC due to the DRM needing a constant connection, Splinter Cell Conviction might well be the last Ubisoft game I will buy if the DRM insists on fecking around with my progress, and no amount of freebies will make that a forgettable issue.
 
I think he is completely in the clear.

What would happen if the Police and the SPA came knocking on his door?

He would hand them his retail copy of the game with receipt, and show that is was installed on only one working computer.

What are they going to do? Arrest him for modifying the game code on software he legally purchased?

That would open up a huge legal can of worms, as suddenly every person who made or used mods would now be a wanted criminal as well.
 
Outamyhead said:
This is the problem with the DRM software, it's becoming such a monster now, it's effecting game play, and potentially the profit margins of the publisher, Assassins creed 2 could have done better with sales, I didn't buy it for the PC due to the DRM needing a constant connection, Splinter Cell Conviction might well be the last Ubisoft game I will buy if the DRM insists on fecking around with my progress, and no amount of freebies will make that a forgettable issue.
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Ubisoft already said the DRM is going to be on Splinter Cell Conviction and their upcoming Ghost Recon.

Ubisoft is dead to me now.
 
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