3DS is Watching You: Activity-Logging and Anti-Piracy Features

[The Unworthy Gentleman]

This may help combat piracy but it's technology like this that scares me. I live in fear that we're going to end up in a V for Vendetta style world where the government has absolute control and having technology that tracks every movement and action as well as games just makes it a little more real. Add onto that the enitre 'always online' feature and I end up feeling like I'm just being endlessly watched, I would end up feeling the need to put a towel over the DS just to do something private.

I like that it combats piracy, but it's just promoting my fear that little bit more.

 

[Azure-Supernova]

Uhhh, what. No, it's people pirating shit coz they are to cheap to buy the games and use the systems properly that cause companies like Nintendo to implement these kinds of things. They have to do it to protect their investment. Also there is no indication that false-positives will be an issue. I mean if you are not pirating shit this won't be a problem. The only people should fear this are the nutters in tin foil houses and genuine pirates (and users of pirated software).

As for invading my privacy... it's a DS. A DS! It's not my bank account or my home. Plus by buying it you are agreeing for them to do this.

As much as I hate to say it, it's a bigger issue than it seems.

Much like the Wii, the DS has this measure which can brick consoles with an update if 'pirating tools' are used with the console. Out of the 20+ people I know that own a Wii, the only reason they use homebrew is to edit the region settings. These are people who purchased their Wii on release, purchased a JP game that had no EU release.

Let's face it, it's not only screwing over pirates it's going to hit importers. Any 'Tales of' announced for the 3DS will undoubtedly have JP exclusive releases (damn you Bamco!). I can guarantee that it will bother pirates for about a month, if that, whilst they learn the ins and outs of the 3DS and then later crack this features like a bothersome fly. Leaving us paying customers with Nintendo leering over our shoulder like Big Brother.

It's Psycho Mantis all over again! "So you like to play Castlevania!?"

 

[Smooth Operator]

Police state much?
Seems alot of people do like the idea...

 

[teebeeohh]

conspiracy mode on:
what if they decide to take and transmit a picture every 5 minutes while you are connected? for market research to see where exactly you play.
if nintendo really wanted to do that or if the government kindly asks them because DS-users appear on terrorisms watch lists too, you couldn't stop them because there is no legal way to disable the update.

conspiracy mode off:

for some reason this makes me more uncomfortable because the DS is a mobile device. Despite the fact that the exact same thing happens when i use my phone

 

[Dana22]

The question is, whether or not that information is clearly presented in the Manual, and/or a box. And would shop accept return if I wouldn't like that feature.

 

[lord canti]

I wonder how many people have realized that NOA will probably a different set of rules for the american 3ds. In america@

 

[lord canti]

.I wonder how many people have realized that NOA will probably a different set of rules for the american 3ds. In america@

 

[manaman]

Or people who don't want Nintendo knowing everywhere they go, and everything they do. I guess you are perfectly okay with spyware on your computer right? You okay with the government tracking every move you make? I mean only guilty people have something to hide. You wouldn't ever not tell someone about something because it embarrassed you right?

I already realize the answer to these questions. You like everyone else appreciates a bit of privacy, which means tracking people so you can controll what they do with property they purchased is just a bit to far. Okay a bit more then a bit to far, but you get the idea.

Nintendos stealin mai naughty secreetz!!!!!!!


Seriously, take your tin foil hat off. The 3DS can't track where you go or what you do, only what you do to/with it.

People gotta realize that technology is a COMMODITY. It is not a necessity nor a right. Companies have the right impose whatever rules they want on their customers, and the customers have the right to choose to buy the product or not.

Now if the companies try to impose rules not expressed or agreed to at purchase then yes, the customer has every right to whatever they want, but since the 3DS will launch with this agreement there is nothing anyone can do about it.

How do you think it uploads data? It finds active WiFi connections, automatically connects and uploads through them. It's pretty easy to track where you are through that system. It also says right there in the information they gave that it tracks thing like how far you have traveled with it, so obviously it tracks more the just what buttons you press and games you stick in it.

People like you actually make me a little disgusted. So eager to roll over. It's not right that a company feels a product still belongs to them after you paid money for it. It shouldn't and demanding such doesn't make one crazy. It make one sensible, the crazy thing it to believe you shouldn't have any say in how something is used by you the consumer just because it isn't food, water, or shelter. I know the company can, but just because I can call someone a jackass doesn't make me right.

 

[Dys]

Oh, glad I caught this. I now know to wait until the 3DS has been properly reverse engineered before I buy myself one....I want to play Ocarina of Time 3D, not give nintendo easy access to stalking me.

 

[lord canti]

So did anybody read the part where it say "here in japan" and " japanese retailers" or did you all just read the words recording your information and remote bricking?

 

[brendonnelly]

Um, guys, You do realize the Escapist does this, right? That's how you get your badges.

The Escapist won't brick my computer if they don't like what I type.

No but they will ban you from using their service for violating the terms of agreement to the site. Just the same, you violated the Terms of Service for the DS, and most likely failure to comply with the DS would result in it being bricked. Its a legal contract.

 

[ZombieGenesis]

Good luck being always online, I don't have the internet in half the places I stay.

 

[lord canti]

So did anybody read the part where it say "here in japan" and " japanese retailers" or did you all just read the words recording your information and remote bricking?

And you think this won't be happening anywhere outside of japan because...?

who knows all I'm saying is this might not happen outside of japan. And once again the members of the escapist are blowing things out of proportions on both sides of the argument.

 

[Juventus]

Police state much?
Seems alot of people do like the idea...

only because it's nintendo. if it was sony or microsoft, it would be the most evil thing ever! but for some reason nintnedo gets a free pass from some people.

 

[WaderiAAA]

I really can't believe so many people support this. It is akin to Ford remotely breaking your car if you go over the speed limit, it can't be legal. There is a law against vandalism.

There is also a law against driving over the speed-limit. If Ford did that without warning about it in the car description, it probably would be illegal.

Metaphor aside, how exactly does this hurt the average user who buy their games legally?

 

[Double A]

I'm not a pirate, but this is just crazy. I don't want people to know what games I play, or anything like that. I don't care if it's meaningless dribble, it's still private information, and personally, I like not making that privy to other people.

Yeah, it's not like Steam, XBox Live, or the PS3 do the same thing or anything...

Sorry for the double quote, but I realized the word I was looking for was creepy. It's stalkerish of Nintendo to do this. They are way to obsessed that people are doing piratey things on consoles they make. Consoles are, in a way, like computers, and you should be able to do whatever you want on them (within the law) when you get them. I'd be perfectly fine if I thought this was just to fight piracy, but game publishers and console makers have proven repeatedly that they don't like modifying consoles. For example, if someone wanted to install Linux on their Mac, Apple wouldn't care, but if they did it on their Wii, they've suddenly broken some law that Nintendo thinks exists.

 

[Dogstile]

Really, you agree to monitoring by buying the thing. They've told us the consequences, they can very much lock your DS if you break contract. Why complain unless you're a pirate? (not accusing, just saying)You don't like it? Too late, you've agreed by handing over your 250 bucks. Besides, it'll probably be very easy to appeal a wrongly bricked DS- customer's don't like it when you do shit like that, and Nintendo knows its customers VERY F**KING WELL.

You think it's wrong? Take it to court, not a forum Nintendo will probably never see.

The reason they /can't/ brick it is because they don't make you sign an agreement when you buy it. The average person isn't going to know about it, and if they accidentally brick a legitimate customer, shitstorms are going to be ahappenin'.

I shall watch this with amusement

 

[Xanthious]

This is going to inconvenience pirates for all of about a week or so until the first custom firmware gets released that rips out the information logging "feature" and adds a way to shut off automatic updating and always on wifi. Again, it will be the legitimate customers that will be the only ones dealing with this in the long run.

However, judging by some of the responses I've seen on here there is a large portion of the population that's more than happy to roll over and take it up the rear from Nintendo all while screaming "Thank you sir may I have another".

 

[D Moness]

[
Much like the Wii, the DS has this measure which can brick consoles with an update if 'pirating tools' are used with the console. Out of the 20+ people I know that own a Wii, the only reason they use homebrew is to edit the region settings. These are people who purchased their Wii on release, purchased a JP game that had no EU release.

Let's face it, it's not only screwing over pirates it's going to hit importers. Any 'Tales of' announced for the 3DS will undoubtedly have JP exclusive releases (damn you Bamco!).

I can understand that for the wii since that is region locked but for the moment it appears region locks on 3ds games is all up to the publisher. So as long as the publisher doesn't reion lock there games you can import and play them(what i really hope for).

 

[Salmaras]

What do they mean by "how many steps you've taken"? If it has an accelerometer they could track your movement but that seems too far for me. I don't think that's ok. Do you think they are just going to sit on the information they gather? Waste "space" on some server farm for that?

It has an in-built pedometer, it tracks your steps taken for an activity log which you can view, that ties in to another feature but i'm too lazy to explain it