EA calls Sims 3 leak its 'demo program'

"A huge amount of the gameplay is an overlay for the community," he said, "where you are sampling assets created by other people. So for the pirate consumer, they don't get the second town, they don't get all the extra content, and they don't get the community. It was only concentrated on Poland and China, but I think of it as not being that different than a demo."
This kind of piracy only serves as a test for EA's ongoing move to online content. Riccitiello believes that EA is moving toward selling "services," by which he means longterm online games for which the initial purchase is either nonexistent or a small portion of the total payment for the game. "By the way, if there are any pirates you're writing for," he told IG, "please encourage them to pirate FIFA Online, NBA Street Online, Battleforge, Battlefield Heroes... if they would just pirate lots of it I'd love them. [laughs] Because what's in the middle of the game is an opportunity to buy stuff."






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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
ben @ Jun 23rd 2009 9:38AM
Wasn't the entire game torrentable a few days later?
I don't think anyone that pirated the "demo" version would buy full game
captain underpants and the bringdown gang @ Jun 23rd 2009 9:43AM
if the game was good enough I would buy it.
....
....when its 9.99 in the bargin bin.
Ghen @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:03AM
The "demo" version is very much a fully featured sims game. If you downloaded that you would have no idea that something was missing. I had to check and re-check my wife's copy before I figured out it was the incomplete version.
Markusdragon @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:55AM
You'd be surprised at just how many illegal downloads later translate into sales. Whilst there are those that won't buy goods they can pirate, others want physical copies of the things that they enjoy.
Matthew @ Jul 23rd 2009 6:06PM
I bought the sims 3. The extra content in the game itself wasn't huge (another town built out of the same buildings in the first town, rearranged, on a different landscape), but the dlc and free dlc is pretty cool.
Piracy caused me to buy Fallout 3, too, and the creature creator unfortunately convinced me to buy spore.
captain underpants and the bringdown gang @ Jun 23rd 2009 9:45AM
Although what EA fails to mention is that the full game with all the stuff from the sims online store (at the time of release) was torrented.
I just will wait for the next expansion pack to become a "demo"
Jack Hollow @ Jun 23rd 2009 9:49AM
An EA suit not mad about piracy? Isn't this the same company that caused a lot of noise with their incredibly annoying DRM on Spore?
I am perplexed.
Ghen @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:05AM
When you try one business method and it backfires on you, wouldn't you try the exact opposite to see what the result would be? From those two theories going forward you can create the best mix of both.
Storm Eagle @ Jun 23rd 2009 9:51AM
I laugh at this. The retail version still has speed problems...among others. Demo version my steel ass.
LordToastington @ Jun 23rd 2009 1:29PM
Your shiny metal ass, perchance?
Zexion_VI @ Jun 23rd 2009 9:52AM
Nice save there, EA. Clever. Not really...
siraru @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:01AM
Give the man a chance, I'm cool with him saying this.
Now why can't I buy it online from Mexico? You want me to pay in pounds?
What the hell does VAT stand for?
Just put it on Steam already :3
hector88 @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:04AM
It's a trap!
Temidien @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:11AM
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Shagittarius @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:05AM
I'm glad you crashed my car.
You better NOT eat all of those vegetables.
I'll only stick the head in.
Temidien @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:09AM
Haha, totally snorted Coke on that last one. +1
zhine @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:36AM
unintenional drug reference +1
dissolutus @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:11AM
Most of the community content is crap anyway. Why would people playing the "demo" want to pay $50 just to get access to dumb stuff like this rug http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=333343 ?
LordToastington @ Jun 23rd 2009 1:30PM
That's a nice fucking rug.
DocZoid @ Jun 23rd 2009 1:53PM
Because it really ties the room together?
xtremeholymuffin @ Jun 23rd 2009 8:17PM
feng shui?
Fulluphigh @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:16AM
Well, now I know better then to buy any of those games listed, since I'll just have to pay even more in the middle of the game. He wants me to pirate his games, who am I to argue with the man.
wicko @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:18AM
"So for the pirate consumer, they don't get the second town, they don't get all the extra content, and they don't get the community"
So why are all these content packs that aren't available to pirates all over the torrent sites?
Danny F. @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:32AM
There was a second town????
PedoJokerBear (aka Deeznuts) @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:42AM
yeah, riverview (i think)
Shiaoran @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:44AM
EA suit: OH SH- *serious'd* Yes, my pirate gamers, get your games for free, for this is totally part of our marketing plan.
Me:... Ok... *'buys' full game for $0.00* On a second thought, it's not worth the HD space. *deletes torrent task+data*
DrNicodemus @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:51AM
I'm glad EA is seeing the value in online distribution, but, I wish they would give on their own crappy store and just do everything through Steam. I would have already bought the Sims 3 if it was on Steam.
Temidien @ Jun 23rd 2009 11:16AM
If the lack of Steam distribution is the only thing stopping you from picking up the game, maybe you just shouldn't pick it up to begin with.
seniorgato @ Jun 24th 2009 10:36AM
You sir have never used EA's store.
arisc2 @ Jun 23rd 2009 10:57AM
The only reason this guy is so happy and laughing is because at the end the game was a huge success with more than 1.5 copies sold in one week, if the game would have failed we´d been reading: sims 3 leak causes huge sales failure!!!!!
"today is a sad day" EA CEO John Riccitiello said of the large-scale piracy of a pre-release version of The Sims 3.
The problem here is that when a game fails is piracy, when it succeed it´s magic.
And nobody seems to understand that piracy is NOT a main sales factor at the end of the day, don´t believe me? tell me that again when sims 3 reaches more than 5 million copies, very likely at the end of the year.
VyX @ Jun 23rd 2009 11:14AM
Sims will always be successful because of their target audience...
Temidien @ Jun 23rd 2009 11:17AM
... tweens and MILFs bored at home?
Collymilad @ Jun 23rd 2009 11:24AM
Yeah, no thanks EA.
I'll continue BUYING (and yes, I know about all the "you are just licensing it" pish, but at least you get something tangeable and you do "own" that copy) from other people, you can keep your "services"
Meh @ Jun 23rd 2009 11:47AM
If that was the "secret marketing campaign", it worked on me at least. I wouldn't buy the game if it didn't turn out to be awesome when I downloaded it. The copy is still unpacked btw.
dgautreau86 @ Jun 23rd 2009 12:31PM
me too, all of my game content copied over seemlessly when I installed the retail copy. This was nice since I had about a weeks progress invested into the "demo"
ducttapeBigSexy @ Jun 23rd 2009 11:47AM
This is pretty funny, actually. A lot of hardcore pirates think they're bringing down corporate America by stealing software. Whereas, in reality, they're just playing into EA's hands!
VyX @ Jun 23rd 2009 12:22PM
*ding ding ding*
terry @ Jun 23rd 2009 6:46PM
"...for the pirate consumer, they don't get the second town, they don't get all the extra content, and they don't get the community."
yes, we do.
elprogramer @ Jun 23rd 2009 2:19PM
Called it.
Chris Miller @ Jun 23rd 2009 2:50PM
Question. I know you can obtain the second town, Riverview, through means not entirely unlike piracy. I haven't been able to figure out, through outside research and speculation, what else is missing from the "demo" version of the game. Anybody know?
spate @ Jun 23rd 2009 2:48PM
Poor fellow's off his rocker. Mad as a march hare.
In related news, the EU's Pirate Party has renamed itself the Demo Party..
Spiritsnare @ Jun 23rd 2009 2:50PM
If they did it on purpose...
...wouldn't that mean that people were playing a copy of the game that sorta *is* authorized?
Jose @ Jun 23rd 2009 3:20PM
Heh, kinda reminds me of those Zeno Clash devs who commented on the torrent sites. You can't stop it, so just take it as exposure; not that Sims needs any more exposure... Sims, ick.
BigD145 @ Jun 23rd 2009 4:26PM
Like most lies, you have to keep them going.
Manly Mcbeefington (Mr. ESC) @ Jun 23rd 2009 4:36PM
Told ya.
gcountach @ Jun 23rd 2009 4:41PM
Did I read that right?
He wants us to "pirate" free-to-play games now? God, I feel so dirty now. All this time I thought I was legitimately downloading them.
Xeno Mezphy @ Jun 29th 2009 3:40AM
"Because what's in the middle of the game is an opportunity to buy stuff."
That's basically what's there even if you buy the Sims 3, isn't it?