Modern Warfare 2 Was 2009's Most Pirated Game

[appleblush]

Because it isn't that people just have the inherent desire to steal. It's that they can't afford it.

No, it's because people have the inherent desire to steal. Human beings have an amazing ability to rationalize anything as long as it's to their advantage.

And when you hype something that much

You mean the sequel to one of the most popular video games ever? How much hype would have been appropriate, then? An small ad in the Sunday Times? Hype is supposed to get people worked up. If you can't discern the difference between hype and reality, what you have is a maturity issue.

then sell it at a price that shames the running price of most illegal drugs,

I think Starbucks is expensive, but that don' mean I can leap over the counter and steal me a Frappuchino.

then you're bound to get a bunch of people not wanting to be left out.

Operative word; "want". Not "need".

Not to say it's okay.

Well, that's strange, because your whole post seems to be diverting blame like a dam diverts water.

But to talk so much about how piracy is bad and not do anything retroactive to stop it, you're pretty much asking for it.

"Retroactive"? What, does IW have a time machine I don't know about?

I've been around this big internet for a long time and never before have I been so utterly misquoted.

First of all, you're wrong. People may seek ways to rationalize what they do but that doesn't mean they inherently steal things just to steal things. They steal for reasons they believe are justified. That's a far cry from "I have $60 that I wasn't spending on anything else and there's this game I want. But rather than spend the $60 I'll just steal it." A person will usually only steal something because they can't afford it or as a statement.

Secondly, I never said anything about the company causing all the hype. It was everyone. I wasn't even blaming anyone for the hype. I was saying that it was hyped, hence why people want it.

Thirdly, that's a horrible comparison. Because Starbucks isn't $60, it isn't a form of media that can be downloaded. Piracy is similar to stealing but it's a far more complicated scheme. It's more akin to buying the ingredients and making a coffee identical to how they make it at Starbucks, which of course isn't stealing so even that isn't a direct comparison. Far closer than yours though. Also I never said "It's expensive so it's okay to steal". I said that when things ARE expensive, and easy to get without paying, people will steal.

How very observant of you. People like to get things they want.

Fourth, you didn't get what I was saying. I wasn't saying they should go back and fix it. I'm saying they should've done something ahead of time. Obviously it's too late but hopefully companies will think about this mistake in the future.

You seem to not really understand my post and the fact that you think I'm diverting blame is the telling factor. Because I'm not diverting blame. I'm just not immediately going "OMG THIEVES GO TO HELL". Instead I'm providing reasons for the high number of illegal downloads and WHY people do it and what companies can do to prevent it. Ignoring it, trying to alienate individuals to scare others, things like that, don't help. Lowering prices, offering alternatives, offering better incentives to purchasing? That is called retroactive. It's where instead of punishing people for doing wrong you reward them for doing good. It's far more effective and before you argue with me on that take a basic psych class and one of the first things they teach you about human motivation is that humans are more motivated to do what you want them too when the reward for doing it is greater than the punishment for not doing it.

 

[appleblush]

Wonder why people call it MewTwo?

Sorry if it's been said before but MewTwo= Mod~ern~warfare~Two becuase that shorthand version is speakable and is a pokemon.

But the Pokemon is considerably more awesome than the game.

 

[USSR]

..just shows how badly people wanted it.

I don't take it as an insult to the game.

 

[appleblush]

LOL @ Spore and Sims 3.

Who the hell would pay for a Maxis game?

Uuuuuh, yeah. That would be...dumb.

*bought the entire Sims 2 and Sims 1 collection out of pocket*

 

[SenseOfTumour]

Facts are, piracy isn't going away, and the bigger you are, the more you'll make, and the more you'll get pirated.

As you can't change the fact that you'll get pirated, why not concentrate on the half a billion and try smiling

To me there's a few kinds of pirates too

The ones who download everything and never buy. A lot of these being spoilt kids who've grown up on a culture of 'everything should be mine for nothing', now I'm not defending them, but if they're kids, you ain't getting $50 a week from them anyway.

The ones who download stuff to try then back it up with sales later (they do exist, lets not have that argument again). To me, if you're selling a decent product, these guys ain't so bad, because you're at least getting a sale, even if its coming later, and probably at a discount price.

I'm now in a place where I can't run any new stuff on my PC even if I wanted to, so therefore I'm loving buying things from Steam for £2-5 that'll entertain just as much and as long as the $55 games, but without the crashing disappointment of blowing all that cash on a dud, I've bought some duff games on Steam, but when it's a couple of quid I don't mind so much, even knowing I can't trade em in.

I used to pirate a LOT, but now I tend to check steam first, and if I can get it under £10, I'll buy, knowing there's no cd keys, no key generators, no viruses, no messing around with isos and rars and the like. Just a click and I'm playing.


What I'd suggest for the next gen of consoles is a 2TB drive in them, not these stupid tiny 20gb drive for exorbitant prices, I mean, it still costs £15 for a 8mb PS2 memory card.. that's eight mb!

Imagine the PS4, with a 2TB and a DVD writer to back up purchased games. Now put the entire PS2 back catalogue up for download at $5 a pop, maybe $10 for the PS3 stuff, and watch the money flood in for ancient stuff you couldn't sell for a $1 in a thrift store.

To me, the only place I'll find older PC games is in charity shops and on ebay, and I don't trust either of them to supply me with a good working copy of a game at a reasonable price.

 

[Pyode]

Starbucks isn't $60, it isn't a form of media that can be downloaded. Piracy is similar to stealing but it's a far more complicated scheme. It's more akin to buying the ingredients and making a coffee identical to how they make it at Starbucks, which of course isn't stealing so even that isn't a direct comparison. Far closer than yours though.

How is that even remotely close? The only way that that would be "akin" to it was if someone went out, got a team of game designers and artists, payed the literally thousands of dollars for all the computers, software, and dev kits, and sat there with a copy of MW2 and replicated it texture by texture, map by map, game mechanic by game mechanic and then released the finished product. Even then it would still be stealing because there are things called intellectual property laws that protect peoples ideas and creations.

P.S. You still used retroactive wrong. I think you mean proactive

 

[Abedeus]

I thought that less than 100k copies were sold on the PC. Last time there was a news about it, there was under 60k, so maybe...

 

[Nurb]

comparing digital copying to physicly stealing something.... speaking of screwed up logic

I know what you are trying to say. Your saying that, because the product is digital, copping it doesn't actually incur a cost to the developer. In other words "No harm no foul."

To that I say bullshit.

The actual production of disks is ridiculously cheap. I'm talking pennies per disk. When you buy a disk you're not paying $60 for a single burned disk and a shitty plastic case. In the case of digital distribution it's even cheaper.

No, you are paying for the literally thousands of hours of work put into a game. You are paying for the computers, dev systems, and many other items that go into the development of the game.

If you think you are entitled to reap the benefit of all of that time, effort, and cost for free, then you are a spoiled little brat who needs to grow the fuck up.

what you say and what is fact are two different things, sadly.

Games that have demo's sell more copies, and video games are one of the ONLY products that force consumers to make blind purchases that are non-refundable. A lot of money goes into making TV's too, but no one is going to buy one if they can't try it out at the store, or only go by reviews in a magazine, then be unable to return it if it's unsatisfactory, and finally be told to piss off if they complain about the situation.

 

[Cyberjester]

And when you hype something that much then sell it at a price that shames the running price of most illegal drugs, then you're bound to get a bunch of people not wanting to be left out.

Ecstasy pill: 15AUD
MW2: 100AUD for basic version

No competition there.


On topic, nothing more annoying to a gaming studio than downloading the thing. Boycotting is all well and good, but it only makes a point. Downloading it drives the point home. Worked with Spore and Red Alert 3, they dropped DRM massively on both games after everyone downloaded instead of purchasing it. With any luck, it'll work for MW2.

I haven't downloaded it and I haven't bought it, thanks to the Steam sale, I spent my monies on much better games. Stalker, Mirrors Edge, Beyond Good and Evil, all those games I've been meaning to get around to playing.

But I can see the point in downloading it. Show IW just how much $$$ they could have gotten if the game was good.
Again, it worked with Spore and RA3.

Indeed, let us play Mafia II when it comes out and laugh over this whole affair.

There hasn't been a shred of new info on my baby for weeks - they need to give me something!

Don't lose hope, IT WILL BE GLORIOUS.

Am I derailing again? Damn.

Which version? Console and it will be dumbed down to their level with simplistic controls and and enemy AI so mind-numbingly brilliant it will be the savior of insomniacs everywhere. On PC it will be a port of the console version, but it's flaws will be so enlarged that the merest glimpse will put you into a coma for the rest of your life.

Seems to be the pattern nowadays anyway.

 

[Low Key]

You take a risk any time you buy a new product. If you buy a candy bar and it turns out to be a "turd in a candy wrapper" then you know damn well not to buy that product again and you will tell all of your friends not to buy it and you will probably go online and tell everyone else no to buy it. That's how capitalism works.

You do have a point though. It's not necessarily a bad idea for companies to let customers try a hole candy bar and see if they like it, but that is a different business model based on repeat sales. After you have had your first bar for free you will come back and buy more. Games don't work like that. Once someone gets the full version they have no reason to come back. So, all a company can do is give you a small taste and, even then, if they chose not to it still doesn't give anyone the right to steal the full game.

Contracts on things like even houses can be remitted if the purchaser isn't happy. Why should that be any different with games? Or how about refrigerators? You only need one of those to last you for about 10-15 years. Yep, they can be returned too.

I know the reason why stores won't take back games and it's silly. They are worried that the person who bought the game will go home and copy it, then bring it back, but little do they know of a service called renting. That's how damn near every pirated game gets on the internet. It's either that, or they are worried people will return bunk copies they bought before because they can't return them, so they had to go out and buy it again.

And that's why people like me wait for games to go down in price to $10. If the industry wants to be shady to it's customers, I can be too. They may have worked long and hard on their creation, but it's not worth $60 every time I feel like playing something new. I have better things to spend my money on. Things like games are bought with disposable income, something many people just don't have right now.

 

[Signa]

Games don't work like that. Once someone gets the full version they have no reason to come back. So, all a company can do is give you a small taste and, even then, if they chose not to it still doesn't give anyone the right to steal the full game.

I'm not sure if I agree with that. Yes, games are not repeatedly consumable as a candy bar is, but there still is incentive to buy a game you like. In today's gaming climate, sequels are almost guaranteed for good franchises that sell well. If I say tried a candy bar and liked it, I might buy it so that the company would have more money to make more candy so I could eat that as well. The same holds true for games because people will hope for sequels to the games they like, or at least other quality games from the same developer. I know more than a few people who are willing to try a new game just based off of the name of the game or the name of the developer if they made some golden games previously.

I think more and more pirates are understanding this because I'm hearing more and more often of people using piracy as a "full demo" to evaluate the games they are interested in. You will still have the pirates that steal games because they can, but everyone just needs to ignore them. If they aren't going to buy a good game, then they aren't going to buy games at all. They aren't a customer and therefore should have no bearing on anything paying customers have to deal with or developers have to think about. I think it's critical to educate as many people the necessity of buying the games you like. There is no way you can stop piracy, and you really can't compete with free, so what else is there? Throw a temper tantrum about how many copies were played without being paid for? That's not going to get anyone anywhere.

 

[Pyode]

what you say and what is fact are two different things, sadly.

Games that have demo's sell more copies, and video games are one of the ONLY products that force consumers to make blind purchases that are non-refundable. A lot of money goes into making TV's too, but no one is going to buy one if they can't try it out at the store, or only go by reviews in a magazine, then be unable to return it if it's unsatisfactory, and finally be told to piss off if they complain about the situation.

Let's say I build an awesome gaming computer in my garage and I put it up for sale on Craigslist or whatever. I say I want $500 for it but I say I won't accept returns. Are you telling me that if you want that computer, but you aren't sure it's worth the price, it would be OK for you to steal it?

You are not entitled to that computer and you are not entitled to that video game. The developer has every right to put whatever restrictions they want on a product because, you know what, until you pay for it it's their property.

-snip-

You have a good point, but there are some problems with that. MW2 was already a sequel and yet way more people pirated it then the original. Not to mention the fact that the franchise has been around for a long time now with Infinity Ward having developed many of the installments. If someone wanted to find out the Call of Duty franchise was good, then they could have gotten one of the older games for cheap and use that to help make a decision.

On top of that, as I have said before in this thread, even if it was a completely new IP sometimes making a purchase is a risk. If you are so unsure about whether or not something is good or worth the price, don't buy it or wait for the price to drop. You don't have to buy the game the week it comes out and you don't have to buy the game at all.

 

[Nova5]

Well, this is unsurprising. I still have yet to play it, don't really have any shortage of games on my list after that sweet series of Steam sales the last few days. Here's hoping for some good ones tomorrow.

I do have to ask how IW hasn't found a way to ban pirates from their servers, considering it's their own proprietary servers. Or are the pirates playing with the mod giving players their console/dedicated servers back? Would be interesting to know - could use this is my Anth class next semester.

 

[Mcupobob]

Good for MW2 for being more popular then breathing.

 

[Compatriot Block]

So, when IW doesn't make a PC version of MW3, who wants to take bets on the tidal wave of tears from these same people?

 

[Signa]

Let's say I build an awesome gaming computer in my garage and I put it up for sale on Craigslist or whatever. I say I want $500 for it but I say I won't accept returns. Are you telling me that if you want that computer, but you aren't sure it's worth the price, it would be OK for you to steal it?

You are not entitled to that computer and you are not entitled to that video game. The developer has every right to put whatever restrictions they want on a product because, you know what, until you pay for it it's their property.

Thirdly, that's a horrible comparison. Because Starbucks isn't $60, it isn't a form of media that can be downloaded. Piracy is similar to stealing but it's a far more complicated scheme. It's more akin to buying the ingredients and making a coffee identical to how they make it at Starbucks, which of course isn't stealing so even that isn't a direct comparison.

Both of you are unbelievably terrible at making correct analogies. Everyone always forgets that piracy is the duplication of information. Information is an unlimited resource, and comparing it to a physical item always results in some fallacy. The analogy you both need to be using is the magazine stand. Is it ok/not ok to read a magazine at a stand? You can get the info you were looking for, and it doesn't cost the stand owner any money if he can still sell the magazine after you've looked at it. You still have the option to buy the magazine for your collection or to finish reading it because you liked what you skimmed through. There is no theft unless you go home and start publishing what you just read into your own magazine and tried selling that.

 

[Compatriot Block]

Let's say I build an awesome gaming computer in my garage and I put it up for sale on Craigslist or whatever. I say I want $500 for it but I say I won't accept returns. Are you telling me that if you want that computer, but you aren't sure it's worth the price, it would be OK for you to steal it?

You are not entitled to that computer and you are not entitled to that video game. The developer has every right to put whatever restrictions they want on a product because, you know what, until you pay for it it's their property.

Thirdly, that's a horrible comparison. Because Starbucks isn't $60, it isn't a form of media that can be downloaded. Piracy is similar to stealing but it's a far more complicated scheme. It's more akin to buying the ingredients and making a coffee identical to how they make it at Starbucks, which of course isn't stealing so even that isn't a direct comparison.

Both of you are unbelievably terrible at making correct analogies. Everyone always forgets that piracy is the duplication of information. Information is an unlimited resource, and comparing it to a physical item always results in some fallacy. The analogy you both need to be using is the magazine stand. Is it ok/not ok to read a magazine at a stand? You can get the info you were looking for, and it doesn't cost the stand owner any money if he can still sell the magazine after you've looked at it. You still have the option to buy the magazine for your collection or to finish reading it because you liked what you skimmed through. There is no theft unless you go home and start publishing what you just read into your own magazine and tried selling that.

I think what some people are trying to get at is that you shouldn't get to read that magazine if you don't pay for it. It doesn't matter if you think it's worth the price.

I think the movie theater is a good analogy. If you want to see a movie, but you don't want to pay for the ticket, you shouldn't just walk in and sit on the floor. Sure, it doesn't affect anyone else, but you're still benefiting from something that others paid for without cost. You'd end up thrown out of the theater, possibly facing some punishment.

Which, in the end, is what this comes down to. Pirates are benefiting from developers work for free, because they know that they most likely will not be punished. If every computer had a virtual bouncer that could catch you pirating and throw you out of the internet, no one would steal things. But, since this is impossible, pirates follow the incredibly childish logic of "I can't get caught, so it's ok."

 

[Pyode]

-snip-

I see your point, but their are problems with that.

First of all, I'm not saying its a bad idea to be able to let someone play a game before they buy it. It would be cool if I could download a full game for 5 days for a fraction of the cost and, if I don't buy the full copy, it completely deletes off my hard drive. The problem is there is no real secure way to do it so there is no way to rent PC games.

You also kind of shot yourself in the foot with the argument in regards to console games. You admitted that you can rent a console game. Then if you aren't sure about a game, don't buy it, rent it. Then, if you like it, go buy your own copy.

And even without all of that, you still don't have the right to steal it just because you don't want to take the risk of buying the game.

 

[Plinglebob]

I would just like to say that this was so obviously going to happen, I predicted it back in November.

Who bets that it will break 3 records, most pre-ordered, top selling ever and most pirated?