Poll: Pirating out of print games

[Firerush]

I've been struggling with a moral dilemma for a while now. I've firmly believed that piracy of games is wrong because it denies funds to companies that make the games, but I've been trying to decide how that works when a game is out of print, in other words when the game is no longer being manufactured yet is not available for free download.

I'm not sure if the whole world is doing this, but in Canada is has become illegal for any legitimate business to sell used computer games (but still legal to sell console games), so it's almost impossible to find old PC games that won't be in print anymore, like Dungeon siege, especially if they are not being sold on places like steam.

So if I want to play a very old computer game that isn't being manufactured and sold anymore and is impossible to acquire without going on eBay and paying upwards of four times it's value to get it, would downloading it be wrong. The game is old, not being manufactured, or the company that's making it is out of business, in either case, there's no way that anyone, other than a current owner, could make a profit off of the game because no one is making it anymore and without the ability to buy a used copy, people have to get into bidding wars to acquire it, so would it be wrong to download a game that out of print and can't be bought used because of current laws?

 

[Radeonx]

I'd pirate it. But then again I may or may not pirate games all the time.
If the game is old, and you can't get it without paying outrageously high prices, to someone that isn't the game company, I see no reason not to pirate it.

 

[Irridium]

This is one of those very grey areas of piracy.

I personally don't think this is "wrong" per-say, however if possible I would say buy it legitimately. This does not include paying hundreds of dollars for it off of some guy or anything like that. If you can't get it from a store or anything like that, well then I don't know.

As I said, this is one of the grey areas of piracy.

 

[Carnagath]

Seriously? Yeah...no, it's not wrong. You're not hurting anyone. On that note, I downloaded Z the other day. Kicked my ass when I was 15 and it still kicks my ass today.

 

[Audioave10]

Its not really pirating if you are not taking away a "sale opportunity".

 

[Thaius]

It's technically illegal, but think about this. Well actually, you already did. Good job.

Piracy hurts developers because it's depriving them of money that they would have gotten if you legitimately bought the game. But in this case, even if you went onto Ebay and bought it, it would benefit the original creator in absolutely no way. To be completely honest, I think that when something is no longer manufactured, it should become public domain: no one's going to be making any money off the product, so why not allow people to access it for free and expand the fanbase? It's smart, and it simply makes more sense.

So it would be technically illegal, but morally... seriously, there's nothing wrong with it. You can't steal something that the owner no longer wants.

 

[subtlefuge]

I don't know, I mean I was definitely wondering the same about Mother 3, which is a similar situation since it has never been printed outside of Japan.

 

[Vuljatar]

I'm not sure if the whole world is doing this, but in Canada is has become illegal for any legitimate business to sell used computer games (but still legal to sell console games), so it's almost impossible to find old PC games that won't be in print anymore, like Dungeon siege, especially if they are not being sold on places like steam.

Seriously?

What the fuck?

What the FUCK?!

When did that happen? How did that happen?

That is the dumbest shit I've read all day.

 

[obliviondoll]

If the copyright holder goes out of business, and the rights aren't sold on, the product is public domain.

If the copyright holder has taken the product out of print, and there are no new copies still available, then the product CAN be legally copied, one the condition that nobody makes a profit in doing so.

That's the standard international copyright law. Most countries have their own variation on this though. Check it out. Regardless, if you're asking if it's immoral to copy a game when no money you could spend would go to the developers anyway, then I say no. i won't even call it piracy, because you're not taking money from the pockets of the creators anyway.

Also, by New Zealand copyright law, if you buy a game, and someone steals it, you can actually legally download a pirated copy of the game, because you already own it. The person who stole it can be charged with piracy if they sell your original copy of the game and it can be proven.

 

[Miumaru]

Some games it would be a bigger crime to let fade away.
(Torment)

 

[dmase]

There are plenty of rom sites i know of for console games where you actually pay for the game, around 5 bucks a game i think. There definitely has to be different sites for every old computer game where you actually have to pay. Just check them out first so you don't get fucked or give money to some company in the netherlands fucking you and the compnay over.

 

[Terramax]

I'm not sure if the whole world is doing this, but in Canada is has become illegal for any legitimate business to sell used computer games (but still legal to sell console games), so it's almost impossible to find old PC games that won't be in print anymore, like Dungeon siege, especially if they are not being sold on places like steam.

Seriously?

What the fuck?

What the FUCK?!

When did that happen? How did that happen?

That is the dumbest shit I've read all day.

Yeah, my eyes grew wider when I read that bit.

Was that a typo or something, because why on earth is that law in place? Am I not getting something here?

Anyways, I don't even consider it piracy if it's long out of print.

 

[benoitowns]

Assuming we are under the premise that pirating is wrong: If you want to get all technical and stuff, you are hurting someone. You are devaluing the property of someone else and taking ownership of a limited quantity item. Since there are more copies, it is not as rare, and is not worth as much. On the other hand, who the fuck cares anyway? Intellectual property is allowed through a system where government takes a monopoly on legal power and stuff where you have no choice but to obey. I mean still who cares, but do you honestly care about the value of the few copies that are left up for grabs? That's right you don't. Therefore you can view it as either its not wrong, or you are doing........something that hurts.....someone.....Maybe?

 

[Durxom]

I'm not sure if the whole world is doing this, but in Canada is has become illegal for any legitimate business to sell used computer games (but still legal to sell console games), so it's almost impossible to find old PC games that won't be in print anymore, like Dungeon siege, especially if they are not being sold on places like steam.

Seriously?

What the fuck?

What the FUCK?!

When did that happen? How did that happen?

That is the dumbest shit I've read all day.

Yeah, my eyes grew wider when I read that bit.

Was that a typo or something, because why on earth is that law in place? Am I not getting something here?

Anyways, I don't even consider it piracy if it's long out of print.

I dunno if its a law per say...but ya, you can't find a used computer game anywhere up here. Used video games are fine, but computer games...

[sub]...and the little computer gaming rack at my local EB Games/Gamestop is so small too.. x-x[/sub]

 

[Signa]

The way I see it, the most damage you are doing is making that guy on eBay lose value on his sale. Although, if he's selling a game worth hundreds of dollars on eBay, then it should be considered a collector's item, and not a game. Gamers want to play games, collectors want to own games.

In other words, it is a purely victimless crime.

 

[Humble85]

Are you aware of Abandonware? Very very old games sometimes get declared abandonware, and therefore "free" to download or whatever. You may check abandonia.com or a similar site. Maybe you find what you are looking for.
As for your moral dilemma: Go get it! Theres nothing wrong with it. If I'd do that i would assume the developer would be happy for my interest in a game released years ago.

 

[Feriluce]

Firstly I'd check out Good old games (gog.com), they have quite a few nice old games and they constantly expand their catalog. If you cant find it there, theres nothing wrong with pirating it I'd say.