EA: Making DRM Disappear in One Easy Step

[Keslen]

Putting aside all the obvious crap related to this topic, much of which has been touched upon ad nauseam in previous posts, there's a really interesting idea at the core of this that says volumes about society as a whole.

In a nutshell, had it not been for Ubisoft's debacle, EA would have probably gotten away with this.

That's right, if Ubisoft had not recently shipped popular games with an always-connected-to-the-inernet requirement labeled as DRM, this exact same announcement from EA would have likely been welcomed with open arms by the vast majority of the population, even those in "a position to know" and definitely myself. The recent coupling of that feature with that label is the only thing that brought the footnote of the internet connection in that announcement to the forefront of anyone's attention, except possibly those who didn't have a near constant internet feed active and (no offense intended to anyone here) wouldn't have been willing or able to make enough noise to sway the general population.

Don't get me wrong here, I recognize this for what it is - a thinly veiled DRM that will give pirates more benefits (jubilation at cracking the tougher system) than detriments (hours, maybe days, extra time for fully functional cracked versions are readily available to the public) and cause the actual paying customer with nothing but inconvenience as thanks for actually shelling out their cash. But that recognition is only because of the education that Ubisoft afforded me when they helpfully labeled the feature for what it is. I'd have missed it otherwise.

 

[theultimateend]

Well the good news is there is absolutely no DRM on Pokemon.

That obvious fanboy pandering aside, this is getting way out of hand. It is almost as if game companies are trying to see just how many people they can push away without going bankrupt.

Putting aside all the obvious crap related to this topic, much of which has been touched upon ad nauseam in previous posts, there's a really interesting idea at the core of this that says volumes about society as a whole.

In a nutshell, had it not been for Ubisoft's debacle, EA would have probably gotten away with this.

That's right, if Ubisoft had not recently shipped popular games with an always-connected-to-the-inernet requirement labeled as DRM, this exact same announcement from EA would have likely been welcomed with open arms by the vast majority of the population, even those in "a position to know" and definitely myself. The recent coupling of that feature with that label is the only thing that brought the footnote of the internet connection in that announcement to the forefront of anyone's attention, except possibly those who didn't have a near constant internet feed active and (no offense intended to anyone here) wouldn't have been willing or able to make enough noise to sway the general population.

Don't get me wrong here, I recognize this for what it is - a thinly veiled DRM that will give pirates more benefits (jubilation at cracking the tougher system) than detriments (hours, maybe days, extra time for fully functional cracked versions are readily available to the public) and cause the actual paying customer with nothing but inconvenience as thanks for actually shelling out their cash. But that recognition is only because of the education that Ubisoft afforded me when they helpfully labeled the feature for what it is. I'd have missed it otherwise.

People shit bricks before release, during release, and after Ubisoft released AC2 in response to that DRM. So I'm not sure how EA would have gotten away with it. Unless there is a company you'd like to blame for ubisoft getting sour members before the debaucle.

 

[Pink_Pirate]

i never played C&C for the story, and since C&C4 has done away with the gameplay i enjoy i think ill just stick with RA3 for now. Oh and EA can suck it, it's still DRM, just a more annoying version of it.

 

[Cody211282]

Ah damn it to hell, I was really hoping the out cry on the Ubisoft crap would stop this, only problem with my current means of protest wont work here(I just refuse to buy anything from Ubisoft, and i am going to very much miss the new Splinter Cell) because EA has Biowear, this better not be on Dragon Age 2 or Mass Effect 3

 

[Audioave10]

No DRM...is a lie.
Cake...is a lie. Both of those problems are EA's fault.

 

[KeyMaster45]

-EDIT-
This was applied to Portal and Half-Life through steam and many other single-player game, why is this such a shock now?

I'm pretty sure i can play steam games in offline mode

Hmm, to my knowledge no. The last time I tried to boot up Portal (or any of my games bought through them) when their servers were down for maintenance I was unable to play because it could not connect to the server.

-EDIT-
Well I feel like a dumbass, I didn't realize Steam had an offline mode and I've been using it for close to 2 years now. (I just found it after it occurred to me I'd never looked for one.)

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

To be completely fair, DRM in the most general sense refers to anything a company does to prohibit unauthorized use of intellictual property. That said, traditionally this has been local programs and whatnot that attempt to prohibit copying and so forth and for all it's efforts had achieved little more than frustration (and more than one game that I could literally not get to run in spite of having paid for it in a legitimate store and everything).

This "new" approach is quite clearly DRM, but it isn't really of the same kind. I respect the attempt of a company to protect their property and if they can find a way to do so that does not interfere with my ability to play then I applaud the move. Still, I can't help but think those that would be fooled never had a legitimate opinion on the subject anyhow and there is always the crowd that will assert that any attempt to protect IP is a violation of some fundamental right or another.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

Great, another company to add to the "Do Not Buy" list. Well, it's EA, so no big loss in quality. Speaking in terms of quantity, however, it is a blow.

So, developers, if you want my money, do not publish with:
Ubisoft
EA

You are aware that most major publishers deal in DRM right? This would include Valve (Steam IS DRM along with being a handy retail channel, and many games distributed on that system have additional measures added.) Activision ought to be on that list too, as should Sony, Microsoft and any other multibillion dollar sofware company really. To be fair, I'm only aware of one company that NEVER used DRM and that's Stardock. Also, Stardock makes awesome games.

 

[Booze Zombie]

I would argue that this form of DRM works... in the worst possible way.
The game is rendered so amazingly unfun by the DRM that even pirates getting the game for free don't want to play it... now, there's only one issue with this, take a guess what it might be.

I personally think all DRM should work on the Arkham Asylum method.
Pirated version = gimped game
In AA, Batman couldn't jump in the pirated version, so he always falls to his death in about the first hour and the game is pretty much turned into a big demo where Batman sucks.

If they had a version of Assassin's Creed 2 where Enzio can't freerun or attack with anything but his fists (no disarms), it would work better than "big brother".

 

[Dys]

I've been kinda confused on this whole matter. Yes its DRM, but isn't it the same type of DRM employed by using the Steam client? Everyone seems to be cool with that, yet they're up in arms over it being applied to specific games not sold through Steam?

"There...ARE....FOUR....LIGHTS!"

Best ending to a TNG episode ever XD

-EDIT-
This was applied to Portal and Half-Life through steam and many other single-player game, why is this such a shock now?

Everyone is not fine with the steam DRM, we simply accept it as being among the less retarded forms of DRM (it can't compete with impulse in terms of usablitiy, but stardock just don't have the same distribution rights or marketing power of steam/valve).

It's also a completely different scenario, as steam (usually) let's you play offline (unless of course the steam client updates, resets your "do not update" options and decides to partially update a game, thus rendering the game useless until it's fully updated). There's no DRM stopping me from playing portal or half life 2 when my ISP is down (which is, incidentally, the only time I play single player games).

 

[Yokai]

They can call it whatever they want; as long as I require constant connection to the internet to play, I am never buying their games. At least until a massive, free WiFi cloud hovers over the entire planet.

 

[Auric]

Ridiculous.

I wouldnt attempt to play Assassins creed 2 or C&C4 if i got them for free, my internet spikes far to often for it to be worth it.

Effin idiots.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

In AA, Batman couldn't jump in the pirated version, so he always falls to his death in about the first hour and the game is pretty much turned into a big demo where Batman sucks.

That issue was cracked about a week after it was discovered.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

I don't consider a required constant internet connection to be DRM, I consider it to be built in obselescence (sp?). What better way to encourage new sales in a franchise than shutting off the servers to the older titles? Dick move, certainly, but when have big companies been afraid of making dick moves?

 

[Booze Zombie]

That issue was cracked about a week after it was discovered.

Could just make it so that if the file that gimps the game is tinkered with at all, the game doesn't work full stop.

 

[Samurai Goomba]

This seems less convenient than typical DRM would be for most people.

And yeah, I realize how obvious that statement is. Just thought I'd bring it up again, seeing as how not everyone has 24/7 perfectly stable internet at all times in order to prove to a game company they aren't thieves, when the thieves aren't even affected at all by this crap.

 

[Markness]

I have bought and loved every candc game and every expansion pack and loved them all, but this is taking it too far. My internet connection can be somewhat unreliable so its ridulous that ea would expect me to put up with being kicked from the game that i bought. I hope no-one buys it and ea learns their lesson.

 

[blarghmoomoo]

Could just make it so that if the file that gimps the game is tinkered with at all, the game doesn't work full stop.

That issue was cracked about a week after it was discovered.

Could just make it so that if the file that gimps the game is tinkered with at all, the game doesn't work full stop.

Then you tinker with the stuff that checks tinkering.

Every check you put into place are coded by someone which means that someone else can write code to get around it.

 

[Dodgy]

There will never be a DRM that can't be cracked. I think the best thing against piracy is Steam.

 

[Eleima]

Oh, there's something, of course. C&C4 requires an internet connection in order to run, and if that connection happens to drop in the middle of a game, players will be kicked out, with all progress lost. "The online requirement," EA_Apoc wrote in his message, which has since been edited, but fortunately not before pretty much every C&C site on the planet had posted a copy of the original, "is tied directly to your player profile login, stats/achievements, and experience progression." But it's not DRM!

How is this not DRM??? I'm getting awfully tired of all the hoops they're making us jump through. What if we want to play our games in 5, 10, 20 years, and the servers aren't up anymore, it's preposterous! They can call it whatever they want, it's still just as bad as DRM...

It's amazing how dense of a mindset it must take to use this form of DRM in particular. I know we've hashed this a million times now on this forum, but do they really not see that they've created a weapon that only hurts their customer. Companies that sell digital products need to get it through their heads that pirates should not be part of the equation. The guy that was gonna pirate C&C 4 is not going to be discouraged by the fact that a crack wasn't available on day 1 and go out and buy a legit copy. He'll just wait til its finally cracked, or forget the game. The pirate is not a customer, no DRM will turn him into one. However, cumbersome enough DRM can lose customers, and in some cases even turn customers pirate.

I agree wholeheartedly with you, you've put it very clearly. I, too, am of the opinion that this might discourage honest, paying customers...