Assassin's Creed 2 has yet to even arrive on PC, but ever since PC Gamer got an early hands-on with the final retail version, Ubisoft's ... somewhat cumbersome (to be very polite) internet-based DRM has caused a bit of a worry for some gamers. As it would seem, regardless of consumer complaint, the publisher is allegedly moving ahead with plans to implement the anti-piracy software in many of its upcoming titles.
Softpedia reports that an Ubi rep (speaking with PC Gamer) has confirmed Splinter Cell: Conviction, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, Silent Hunter 5: Battle of the Atlantic, and the recently announced Ghost Recon: Future Soldier to employ the DRM tools. The publisher also specifically pointed out that different titles handle the loss of data differently -- for instance, AC2 depends on checkpoints and The Settlers 7 saves wherever you last were -- though PC Gamer supposedly pressed for an answer to the question on all our minds: Will every PC game from Ubisoft in the future have this DRM?
Cryptically, the publisher replied, "It's hard for us to say, yes, from now until the day that we all die all of our games are going to include this but most will." While we can appreciate the efforts of publishers to diminish piracy of their games, we can't help but wonder what the logic is in seemingly frustrating your already dwindling legitimate consumer base with measures targeting the folks who probably wouldn't purchase games anyway.
[Via Shacknews]
Reader Comments (93)
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:01PM (Unverified) said
60 dollar price on all future ubisoft games as well. If Ubisoft made good games other than AC2 and Chaos Theory, I'd be pissed!
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:10PM BrianH said
that's another reason i', not buying the PC version, it cost 60.
not saying that good games aren't worth that, but i don't see the point in paying 60 dollars for a 6 month old game, when i can go and buy it used from gamestop for 20 or so dollars and play it on my bro's 360, or even 40 new.
Even considering the "free" dlc, i can buy the game new or used for console, buy all the dlc, and still come out with more money than spending 60 dollars.
So yea, even ignoring the DRM, it really is not worth 60 at this point.
Bad handling of this UBI
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not saying that good games aren't worth that, but i don't see the point in paying 60 dollars for a 6 month old game, when i can go and buy it used from gamestop for 20 or so dollars and play it on my bro's 360, or even 40 new.
Even considering the "free" dlc, i can buy the game new or used for console, buy all the dlc, and still come out with more money than spending 60 dollars.
So yea, even ignoring the DRM, it really is not worth 60 at this point.
Bad handling of this UBI
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 6:34PM BrianH said
http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/6518/1540652.png
http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/7641/1540654.png
http://img40.imageshack.us/img40/1979/1540647.png
seems the game has already been "pirate patched" in russia
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 8:13PM sigma8 said
Seriously.. I won't get the PC version--but I probably wasn't going to do that anyway. But because I don't want my message to be misinterpreted in a way that is detrimental to PC game production, I will just not buy any version for as long as the company employs such anti-consumer DRM. It's a lose-lose situation, as I will lose out on fun, and Ubisoft will lose out on money. I can only hope others will follow suit as publishers become increasingly and stupidly anti-consumer.
I think publishers need to realize that they're not selling us water or oxygen. These are luxuries. If they become too ridiculous, people will and/or should find other hobbies. Say, curling looks kinda neat.
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I think publishers need to realize that they're not selling us water or oxygen. These are luxuries. If they become too ridiculous, people will and/or should find other hobbies. Say, curling looks kinda neat.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:04PM spin cycle said
All these companies concentrate on the number of copies pirated when they should be looking at the number of copies sold.
I can't see how this restrictive DRM will lead to increased number of legit copies sold, as it just devalues legit copies far too much. Whether it can actually prevent piracy is really beside the point.
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I can't see how this restrictive DRM will lead to increased number of legit copies sold, as it just devalues legit copies far too much. Whether it can actually prevent piracy is really beside the point.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:10PM Cap Morgan said
Personally I have no problem with online DRM if it's done right.
Would be better if you just had to be online at least once a month to validate the install. Better than SecureROM IMO
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Would be better if you just had to be online at least once a month to validate the install. Better than SecureROM IMO
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:17PM Haggard said
Well, it's still just bullshit because whether Ubisoft like it or not, people are going to crack this and every game they make. After the initial week or two it takes to do that, this measure is ONLY hurting legitimate customers. And I'm not sure they're really the people who deserve to be punished.
Just think, you can buy the game and be tied to a landline and servers that will probably go out of service in a couple of years, or you can get a free copy that will work anywhere. Hooray for DRM!
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Just think, you can buy the game and be tied to a landline and servers that will probably go out of service in a couple of years, or you can get a free copy that will work anywhere. Hooray for DRM!
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:18PM spin cycle said
5 seconds every month would be better, until they turn off the servers.
I load up and play Rallisport Challenge 2 once or twice a year. Live for Xbox (original) will be shut down in a month. But I want to keep playing it.
With this kind of DRM you can be sure that the companies will shut off support for the games you already own when they rerelease them on new platforms (XBLA, Wii Arcade), thus forcing you to re-buy them if you want to play them further.
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I load up and play Rallisport Challenge 2 once or twice a year. Live for Xbox (original) will be shut down in a month. But I want to keep playing it.
With this kind of DRM you can be sure that the companies will shut off support for the games you already own when they rerelease them on new platforms (XBLA, Wii Arcade), thus forcing you to re-buy them if you want to play them further.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:48PM Rawrmander said
Well said good sir.
I used to buy games and crack them to get around their crappy "anti-piracy" measures. (Remember when the only measure was CD keys and having the CD in the drive? Those where the days.)
Now I refuse to buy games that feature restrictive DRM. That doesn't mean I pirate the games though. If I don't buy it I don't play it; I'm not going to lallygag around the issue. These companies know as well as I do that these measures stop piracy as well as whipped cream stops HIV. We all know it's meant primarily as an anti-second hand market measure. and nothing more. Pirating just gives them a crappy scapegoat of an excuse for doing it.
My PC gaming is now reserved to Steam games alone. Thank god TF2 and indie games have been holding me over for the last few years.
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I used to buy games and crack them to get around their crappy "anti-piracy" measures. (Remember when the only measure was CD keys and having the CD in the drive? Those where the days.)
Now I refuse to buy games that feature restrictive DRM. That doesn't mean I pirate the games though. If I don't buy it I don't play it; I'm not going to lallygag around the issue. These companies know as well as I do that these measures stop piracy as well as whipped cream stops HIV. We all know it's meant primarily as an anti-second hand market measure. and nothing more. Pirating just gives them a crappy scapegoat of an excuse for doing it.
My PC gaming is now reserved to Steam games alone. Thank god TF2 and indie games have been holding me over for the last few years.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:53PM BananaBoat said
@The Baron - They're counting on the extra week or two it takes to crack the DRM, figuring that they'll convert a lot of pirates in that time (which is idiotic because free plus a week wait is still more appealing to them than 60 dollars for immediate access). Either that, or they really are trying to convert people to console purchases, which was the basis for my theory when they announced the AC2 DRM.
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 5:21PM xGeneral DEATHxDEETH82 said
@why not the LS2LS7?
Amen to your original post.
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Amen to your original post.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:06PM Captain Planet Planeteer Power said
Why not just use a proven system like Steam and/or GFW?
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 5:48PM Ballistic H said
A lot of Steam-only or GFWL-only games have been cracked. I'd say the only initiative close to help reduce piracy would be EA's Project Ten Dollar. Ubisoft's PC DRM actually turns me away of their PC versions.
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 6:31PM Premature ejaculation man said
Why would they do that? They'll go to a "proven" system such as steam as a last resort. If for some incredibly strange reason, this DRM proves to be successful and curbs piracy, then Ubisoft can license it to other vendors and BAM! More profit.
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:09PM Funkmaster General said
If I were a real PC gamer (I use GoG and Steam to play older games) I'd pretty pissed about this. I'm interested if this will create as much of a fuss as the Modern Warfare 2 debacle.
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:12PM RudyHuxtable said
Well, really, you did me a favor because now you've helped narrow down the list of games I'm going to buy in the future to games you don't distribute. I refuse to pay for a product only to have you tell me I can't use it cause you can't verify I paid for it, meanwhile the douchebag who pirated it gets to enjoy it on his laptop on an airplane that has no wifi or Internet connection.
Yay!
And F off.
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Yay!
And F off.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:22PM NaeemTHM said
I just realized I was thinking of Jaimee Foxworth. She played Judy Winslow on Family Matters.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaimee_Foxworth
My fault Rudy!
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaimee_Foxworth
My fault Rudy!
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 5:58PM Chris DPSN AggieCEO XBLThe Aggi said
shame on you Naeem....wrong black child star....lol
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:12PM Skorpeyon said
Thanks for the warning. I won't be purchasing any of those games for PC. I will gladly buy them for PS3 or Xbox 360, but I refuse to put up with overly-restrictive DRM with the high chance that the system could break or (god forbid) the company could go out of business and then I'm left with a $60 video game I can't play.
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:17PM Aperture said
Ubisoft abandoned PC gamers quite a while ago. While I appreciate that they continue to release PC versions of their games, they're far too often poor ports of the console version with even worse support and extremely spotty patching. For me this is the last nail in their coffin as far as PC is concerned (although I can't say I purchase many console games). I dropped my preorder of Conviction.
Normal DRM is fine by me, it's a bit annoying, but I can live with it. I can't, however guarantee having a connection to the internet when I want to play a game.
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Normal DRM is fine by me, it's a bit annoying, but I can live with it. I can't, however guarantee having a connection to the internet when I want to play a game.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:17PM Cranky Penguin said
I like to support PC but I bought AC2 for PS3 since it was only $40 and if I finish it quick, I can probably resell it for about that much. As I am now seeing on the PS3, relying on internet authentication for everything is not a real good deal for the consumer. It is inexplicable to me that DLC I paid for and installed is now unavailable, that should never happen no matter what time the system thinks it is. But I digress, the end result is that consumers keep getting screwed.
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:51PM SuperShiggs said
The problem with "voting with our wallets" is...
We don't buy their games, they see low sales numbers, and thus blame piracy, futher justifying their crappy decisions.
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We don't buy their games, they see low sales numbers, and thus blame piracy, futher justifying their crappy decisions.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 5:28PM spin cycle said
What do you care what they blame?
You're not buying the games anyway, right? What do you care their justification for screwing them up?
If you're boycotting (including not stealing the games), then you're hands off now. What do you care if they want to continue to not get it?
If they stop making PC games it will ultimately be to slow sales, not high piracy. Does it really matter if they correctly identify the reason for the slow sales?
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You're not buying the games anyway, right? What do you care their justification for screwing them up?
If you're boycotting (including not stealing the games), then you're hands off now. What do you care if they want to continue to not get it?
If they stop making PC games it will ultimately be to slow sales, not high piracy. Does it really matter if they correctly identify the reason for the slow sales?
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 8:48PM DevilSei said
"We don't buy their games, they see low sales numbers, and thus blame piracy, futher justifying their crappy decisions."
Thats why every pirated copy of the game must have a disclaimer that plays at the beginning every time you start the game up.
"Disclaimer: This game was pirated explicitly due to the unjust DRM that the publisher had decided upon, wherein a constant internet connection must be established, otherwise the game shall be rendered unplayable. If you pirated this game for any other reason, shame on you... SHAME!"
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Thats why every pirated copy of the game must have a disclaimer that plays at the beginning every time you start the game up.
"Disclaimer: This game was pirated explicitly due to the unjust DRM that the publisher had decided upon, wherein a constant internet connection must be established, otherwise the game shall be rendered unplayable. If you pirated this game for any other reason, shame on you... SHAME!"
Posted: Mar 2nd 2010 4:11PM boomshadow said
Yeah, but if we _do_ buy their DRM-infested games, it seems to validate their decision. The solution is to politely, but firmly state our case to the company and to the press. We need to explain why we are spending our money elsewhere. We should not expect to be treated like crooks.
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Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:33PM zero2dash said
I would only pick up the game on Steam anyway, notably when on sale, so...yeah, I'm not so worried about this.
Steam is so perfectly executed IMHO (and IME) that I don't really care about having retail copies of PC games anymore. Granted, you can't exactly resell a Steam game (short of selling your entire account which is a stupid idea and against the TOS IIRC), but oh well. Steam sales FTW.
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Steam is so perfectly executed IMHO (and IME) that I don't really care about having retail copies of PC games anymore. Granted, you can't exactly resell a Steam game (short of selling your entire account which is a stupid idea and against the TOS IIRC), but oh well. Steam sales FTW.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:48PM onan said
So basically they put tens of thousands of dollars developing a new puzzle that the programming wizzes on hack teams can't wait to get a crack at, and ultimately put out packaged solutions that make it incredibly easy for anyone else to take advantage of their work, garnering them even more of the praise that fuels their activities.
Meanwhile, retail buyers have loads of problems and due to bad experiences, you lose a lot of repeat business.
Yeah, I suppose you're right, Ubisoft. If you follow the causal chain, piracy does hurt sales. After all, your behavior as a company is static and can't be changed, so it's ultimately the pirates' fault you lose revenue.
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Meanwhile, retail buyers have loads of problems and due to bad experiences, you lose a lot of repeat business.
Yeah, I suppose you're right, Ubisoft. If you follow the causal chain, piracy does hurt sales. After all, your behavior as a company is static and can't be changed, so it's ultimately the pirates' fault you lose revenue.
Posted: Mar 1st 2010 4:53PM RKN said
At least the $60 price includes the two DLC packs bundled in. I'm really curious to see how the game will do. I'm still open to buying it, if I can crack it. Us PC gamers just can't win. We pirate, we're evil and they don't develop for PC anymore, we buy the game with the DRM, we support the practice, we just don't buy, they don't develop for PC anymore.
Jeez man!
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Jeez man!
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