BioWare Lifts the Lid on Dragon Age 2 DRM

[Macrobstar]

god i hate drm, but if it stops pirates its fine by me, im gettin on console anyway

 

[Macrobstar]

god i hate drm, but if it stops pirates its fine by me, im gettin on console anyway

It doesn't stop pirates and soon the online checks DRM will become part of console gaming.

ugh ffs, then whats the point?

 

[Sovvolf]

You seem to be missing the point:

1) A publisher determines if a title has DRM, not pirates

2) A publisher determines the type and severity of the DRM, not pirates

I get your point, I have from the beginning. I know that DRM is a piece of shit, and I know that the publisher can chose to have it and how severe it will be. However that still doesn't make them the blame of it all.

Look (another analogy and I apologise for it) if I was in a rough neighbourhood and the stores around the area had put metal detectors up at the door, security guards every where and the shopkeeper was hidden behind 5 layers of bullet proof glass, with a machine gun mounted onto the video camera... I'd feel the fellow was being over protective, paranoid an it would be very uncomfortable to buy a loaf of bread and dear God I'd be scared if I didn't have the right change. However I wouldn't be blaming him for the extreme measures he's had to take. I'd be blaming the thugs in the area who frequently try to rob his store.

I can see your point, that without pirates there would be no need for DRM but that's also false seeing as DRM is also about keeping the used market dead and making sure that you can't share the game with your wife (ie, each person has to buy their own copy).

Yes, I've suspected this and its been pointed out to me in posts on this thread (which I didn't reply to and I hope they forgive me... I'm sorry I didn't but I was already in the middle of enough debates... Would be stretching my self a little thin). IF this is true (and it does make sense) then yeah... I'm not happy with it (I wasn't happy with it before neither) however our debate was more on the principle of the matter.

My last question for you is, is there a line that DRM can cross that is beyond simply "responding to pirates"?

I think they already have, I think DRM is a shit system and they should take other measures. I'm no fan of DRM, however I blame the pirates for it and not the company*

One last point. Publishers should spend more time making games for paying customers and less time responding to pirates. This is also a choice by publishers/developers.

Yes they should, that or they should find a better system of dealing with pirates that doesn't involve hurting paying customers. The CD check which they had was pretty adequate. I don't mind having to fill in a few forms neither or even having to register it... So long as I can play online and it can be installed on other systems then I'm fine.

*That is if yours and my suspicions on it being to control the pre-owned industry proves false.

 

[Twilight_guy]

And people will still complain and hack it and make a big mess. Man, I miss the good old days when nobody really worried about this thing and DRM was silly. Why does the world need to be so hostile?

 

[Loonerinoes]

We'll see how long this one lasts. As usual, it's all up to the execution though the principle of it sounds solid. However, then there's all kinds of tiny details that could make this DRM intrusive - are the internet checks going to really be unintrusive, or will servers have problems with making so many? Where will the servers be based and how much money will be spent to maintain them for what is still essentially a single-player game?

I guess paying customers will find out, though I suppose under this system Steam might prove to be the better alternative heh...I can imagine the numbers of Steam downloads being much higher than usual and retail numbers being lower than usual, simply because of the whole 'contains DRM' flag, no matter how well executed it might or might not be. Not to say Steam isn't a form of DRM too, but it's a proven one whereas these custom ones - less so.

But as usual it'll prolly get cracked in a month or so and piracy will of course sprawl over it again. Still, if they want to catch the initial buying rush this badly, sure - go right ahead I guess.

 

[Twilight_guy]

And people will still complain and hack it and make a big mess. Man, I miss the good old days when nobody really worried about this thing and DRM was silly. Why does the world need to be so hostile?

In the old days of consoles the DRM was still there but it wasn't something the honest consumer ever had to deal with. Ever see the Earthbound DRM?

In the old days pirates weren't as sophisticated and DRM wasn't as sophisticated. We've escalated into a full blown war and both the publishers and the pirates fail to see the casualties because both are blind to the facts. Developers want to be paid and pirates don't want to pay. So long as no one budges DRM will never go anywhere but both sides can do nothing but complain about the other and build more nukes for the fight. Aye me.

 

[unwesen]

Its funny, about a decade or so ago, thats how PC games were normally released. With lots of extra's, minimal DRM, and basically stuff that rewarded legitimate buyers. And now they don't do that.

I remember

 

[wordsmith]

Five computers in 24 hours? Who the hell installs on five systems?

Er... I'm going to be "that guy" and say that I do. I'm part of a group that runs LANs, we've just bought up 4 rental rigs for people who want to pay and play. In theory, I could run a retail version on the rental rigs and then use the last copy myself...

 

[ThreeKneeNick]

Pirates will still enjoy a DRM-free experience while the rest rave about the "generosity" of the DRM. Its not about the generosity, its not about having an internet connection and not having to worry about activation, its about WHY someone is making you go through that for nothing? DRM does not work. Stop it. And stop being forgiving towards those who refuse.

 

[Henrik Moeller]

damn you steam for not having the game before 11th of jan.

 

[SenseOfTumour]

I wish Steam had the BioWare Signature Edition available for pre-order.
They didn't start their sales until after the Signature Edition promotion was over.
I had to pre-order it on Direct2Drive. D:

How is the Steam DRM any better than the retail DRM? They both require an internet connection.

Steam sweetens the deal of having some minor, background DRM that never gets in the way after install, in exchange for community, achievements, auto patching, steam cloud online saving, friends lists, and epic sales.

Other DRM offers you nothing and can be more intrusive.

However, while I understand the annoyance of invasive DRM that forces you online, can anyone really give a decent reason how having your one copy of a game limited to be installed on 5 PCs at once is really crippling your freedoms?

Again, I'm in favour of scrapping the lot, but as DRM goes, limited installs on multiple machines at the same time shouldn't affect anyone but internet cafes trying to drag one cd key over 20 machines.

My steam games, I have em here at home, and I have a few installed at a mate's house and at my parents, 3 covers me, 5 should cover pretty much anyone.