I Am Alive creative director amends comments on PC release, piracy

by Jessica Conditt on Nov 26th 2011 6:30PM

I Am Alive creative director Stanislas Mettra is citing the English language as the reason for his controversial comments about PC gaming and piracy. Mettra, who is not a native-English speaker, previously said that making I Am Alive for PC wouldn't be worth it because it would largely be pirated, even though Ubisoft had "heard loud and clear that PC gamers are bitching about there being no version for them."

We don't know how "bitching" translates between languages, but Mettra has amended his statements in an email to IncGamers, saying he would "love" to see a PC version and Ubisoft is "working to see the feasibility of it, which is not necessarily simple." Mettra continued, "I gave some examples to illustrate the problematic [sic], but obviously it is not in my hands and not my part to talk about this.

"Honestly, which game maker would not love his game to be playable on as many platforms and by as many people as possible?"

This retraction may have held more weight if it weren't so easy for us to imagine large men in tailored Ubisoft suits standing behind Mettra as he wrote the email. For now it appears I Am Alive is still up for a PC release, but given Ubisoft's tense relationship with potential pirates, we're not holding our breath.

Via: Escapist
Source: IncGamers

Tags: i-am-alive, microsoft, pc, piracy, playstation, ps3, stanislas-mettra, Ubisoft, xbox

Reader Comments (70)

To late now.

@chrono

yeah, he already pulled a "Romero" with his bitching comments, now i don´t want to hear his bitching excuses or play his bitching game, really... i´m going to give my money from now on to REAL developers call it big companies or indy guys who are really making money in the p.c. market thanks to their original and most important BUG FREE, games....... when UBI stops trying to blame us for their lack of quality, originality and when they FINALLY release a PROPER PATCH for: From Dust... then will see........

@chrono
He's jussst too little too late (...and I forgot the rest of the lyrics...!)

Um. Ubi DOES know that all of their games are pirated on every other system too, right?

@mietha PC piracy is a bit more direct and requires less effort than a console game. For a console you have to get items (hardware and software) with questionable legality that could easily destroy your system if used improperly. PCs usually just require downloading a crack and no hardware modification so it's likely more people will pirate it there.

If they have a problem with theis game on PC it must have something to do with deciding what type of DRM or registration lock would keep it from being played. And he seems to be saying they havent found anything that will work they way they want it too yet.

@PN04

yeah, it´s very hard and complicated to insert a flashcard on the NDS or that ps3 jailbreak, just the thought of inserting a USB dongle on the port of the PS3 gives me nightmares.........

@mietha
I don't think Ubisoft is even aware how long software piracy has been around, and their DRM is an example how not to approach piracy and how not to combat it. Piracy happens to any system and there's nothing anyone can do to completely eradicate it. The best any developer can do about it is making content that will make people who pirate purchase it later. Gotta make content worth the purchase.

@Hunter141072

Bro man, Console Pirating V. PC pirating are very different. and since you did use PS3 for your argument, my counter argument is that it took since the launch of the PS3 till this Year for there to be some sort of pirating/playing "backed-up" games.

Consoles do have piracy, let Nintendo tell you that, but to say it's near the Par to where PC pirating is, then you are a fool. Remember, Vidya games are not the only things that get pirated on the PC. I mean, who here is not guilty of getting Photoshop or MS Office Suites.

@ComedyInK
Me. I went to school for graphic design and thus got my CS4 for $700 (compared to 2k) and I use Open office for my productivity...So me. I am apparently elite in your mind. Also, I've never pirated a game in my life, not even a song. Did you know it's not that hard to live this way? It's too late for you to try it, but I'll continue to stay this criminal virgin. (Ha Ha, he said virgin. Yeah I knew it, and I did it on purpose. Love you Internet.)

@Hunter141072 I don't think that was his point. Nice way to strawman his very reasonable argument.

Even I agree that while it is simpler on the PC, it is also much more cheaper -- overall -- to pull the same thing off on a console with the right kind of help (which is offered plenty in this information age). I think we're all on the same page here. . . why argue over small degrees of difference?

Look at them PR reps earning their checks

Sorry, I'm not going to even think about cuddle up with you. My fan relationship with Ubisoft has been dead for the longest time.

I really don't even care about this or Ghost Recon: Future Solider. When playing your games becomes a hassle to get through, while pirates are having the time of their lives. This is what happens to someone.

Plus, they keep butchering up the Ghost Recon name. The game plays nothing like the roots the game was created on, on the PC.

Sorry Ubisoft. Maybe if you start being nice to me, a legit consumer, and appreciated the business I give you, then I would be your fan again.

@xiLeShadow

YEah, pretty much. There is only like a few games that I want from Ubi now. They are Ghost Recon 3DS, Call of Juarez, COJ Bound in blood, Farcry 2, and the Heroes of Might and Magic Series.

Gamers bitching?! PC gamers at that? Lies I say! Slander and Lies! But serious people, lets se if the game is any good first.

@Doppel A Draconius mka Aguiluz

That's more like a legitimate complaint. Bitching is unconstructive and excessive.

@Palacios agree 100%, lets see if its any good first

@Mechazawa Prime I have yet to see an article about PC games that doesn't wind up turning into PC gamers whining about consoles no matter the actual topic.

@Doppel A Draconius mka Aguiluz
Just like when PS3/360s users blame each other for an inferior version.

Difference is simple, though. PC games have a lot more potential and it can be annoying when there's a lazy port. You don't have to gussy it up if you don't want to, but if it's ugly make sure it runs appropriately. When consoles get lazy ports from PCs people "bitch" about that as well. For good reason too.

Your point is that you have no point except that you don't like seeing people criticize games all the time. Next time realize that valid points are being raised and if you don't disagree with them, GREAT!. Move on instead of whining how others are "whining".

@Doppel A Draconius mka Aguiluz

You can take any topic that has a side that's upset and there will be idiotic bitching and rage posts, especially on the internet of all places. I'm just saying that if someone thinks, "their precious uber PC system is getting 'shafted' by 'console ports.'" as you so snidely put it, that's not automatically bitching. Do they think they're entitled? Maybe from a console-only player's perspective, but I play on both and I see their side and understand their complaints.

Oh, and just so you know, that DX11 patch for Crysis 2 barely did anything. It was almost completely fluff, a way to win back the community. The game was not designed with DX11 in mind, period.

@Mmmmz Thank you for the voice of sanity!!!

@Doppel A Draconius mka Aguiluz I can't wait for console gamers to whine if they get dumbed down smartphone and tablet ported games in the future as they are the larger market , and when they complain about their unfair treatment, they are called whiny elitists. It would be the perfect revenge! : )

I did find Bowling's 1600+ ban post to be at least funny because the wording gave us Permadouche. I still find the initial comments he made to be full of contempt.

When will developers and publishers learn that having good consumer relations and making good products are the best medicine for piracy? If you (a developer or publisher) think you have both, and your game tanks complain to your marketing department.

To be fair to him, PC gamers do seem to have a much greater sense of entitlement than most other gamers.

@(Unverified)
How do you even figure? Because we defend the constant idiotic claims coming out of Ubisoft about how "rampant" piracy is, while ignoring the actual statistics behind it.

@(Unverified)

I disagree. Although you are going to always get a vocal minority complain about everything, no matter the platform. FYI.

Asking for a proper working game, with proper Keyboard and Mouse controls, proper configuration settings that are in-game, a proper respect from developers and publishers, etc aren't asking for entitlements.

PC and Consoles aren't the same. They both have different traditions and different ways of approaching things. Yes there are similarities but when developers/publishers ignore the differences that is when people complain.

The elitist that cry about every game going onto consoles are just the radical vocals ones. I personally don't care if games are mutli-platform, just give us PC gamers a proper game.

@(Unverified)
Maybe we are just heard more due to the nature of the platform?

I don't see how it's entitlement when we want a game just as much as a console player and that we want that game to work like it should, relatively well, and without bullshit DRM riddled through it.

Perhaps we DO get shafted more than console players. We want every platform to be treated equally. I have consoles too but I enjoy PC gaming as well. There's no need to have camps. It's gaming. We all love some.

I don't see people throwing around "entitlement" when 360 users want DLC that only PS3 users get or vice versa.

@(Unverified)
To all of the replies to this: It doesn't have to be one way. It's entirely possible that the vast majority of PC gamers are indeed a bunch of entitled whiners which nitpick to such an extent that it continually drowns out and denigrates the argument of those with legitimate concerns.

Next time, tell the guy who's whining that he can't dual-box with his draw distance set to Pluto with FSAAx800 and Direct X 17 enabled to shut up. It's not helping anyone; he helps the cause like PETA helps with animal rights.

@(Unverified)

Next time a PC game gets ported to a console and the tutorial says to use AWSD to move, Shift to sprint, H to interact, and Left Click to attack, then I'll allow console players to start whining.

It seems far too often that I have to keep a sticky note on my desk to remind myself what A, B, X, Y, Triangle, Square, and Circle mean on the keyboard.

@jchan Wow, really? That's common? That's hilarious, I had no idea developers could be that lazy.

@Hoops
It's especially common among Capcom games (read i think every release in the last 5 or so years I played by em had that problem), but not exclusive to them.

@(Unverified) You need to step into the shoes of PC gamers before understanding them, that's all I can see to many console-only gamers.

@Hoops Yes, when Crysis 2 first came out for PC, the beginning screen said "Press Start to Begin", and when we complain, we are called whiny, self-entitled elitists. Sheesh! : /

How would console gamers feel if they got rushed ports of games from smartphones and tablets, no more games with buttons, not taking full advantage of their superior hardware, etc?

@(Unverified) You're absolutely right. Even when PC fanboys (which I see as distinct from PC gamers) have a legitimate point, they always blow it way out of proportion and turn it into some grand crusade for justice. A good example would be with the CoD series - all the whining about how it turned its back on the "people who got it there," blah blah. Well, folks, sometimes other people don't do exactly what you want; you can either sit around and complain, or move on with your life. If PC fanboys don't want to be accused of b*tching, they should stop b*tching all the time. Now they're b*tching about being accused of b*tching. Kinda ironic.

@(Unverified)

They're the worst out of the 3 camps, as far as I'm concerned. Elitist too..."blah blah blah my hardware outclasses both consoles...blah blah blah...I can afford to swing my big dick around and spend the money for the latest and greatest hardware to run Battlefield blah blah blah"

"Hey, can we have a PC release?" "No, you'll just steal it." "But we could just as easily steal it on console." "SHUT UP! STOP POKING HOLES IN OUR LOGIC!"

@Doppel A Draconius mka Aguiluz

You mean you "patch" your own game if you pirate it on PSP? I'm pretty sure every site I've seen has it already done for you. More like..

1. Google Game
2. Download File
3. Throw on Memory Stick

Don't try to act like it's that much easier on PC, people go through the same process and do everything for you there as well.

@Vocality You don't have to mod your pc to play these games though, and you won't not be allowed to play other online games that your purchased legitmately by doing this on PC either, like you face on the consoles.

Not only that but the cost of the system is factored in. Everyone owns a PC, not everyone owns a console. A 15 year kid can download whatever game he wants and play it on his pc, but he can't download a 360 or PSP. That's another reason why pirating is more ubiquitous on consoles than pcs.

PC gamers always want to act like the pirating rate is the same on pcs and consoles and it's simply not true. Yes, both systems have piracy, but it's like comparing the crime rates in Sandy, Utah vs the crime rates in Compton. Sure, they both have crime, but one has significantly more than the other.

@Vocality
You dont sound like anyone that's ever tried to mod a PSP, the example above is valid and sure maybe once you convert a console to play a pirated game it may be good to go until they change the SDk to account for the custom firmware but because of those changes there's always a need to keep flashing and thus risking a brick that can only be fixed by buying a new system unless you're far more aware of how to fix it than an average user.

if an average user kills a PC, which you normally cant do unless you go looking for viruses, all you have to do is slap a new (sometimes pirated *gasp*) copy of windows on it or restore point it and start again, at no cost.

@Hoops
I didn't say anywhere that Console games were pirated as often as PC. I said it's just as easy to get a pirated console game as it is to get a cracked PC game. I pirated The Third Birthday before I bought it, because I had no idea what it was. I wanted to see how it tied into Parasite Eve at all. Took me less than 2 minutes to find it and get to playing it on my PSP.

I'm well aware piracy's a bigger issue on PC, and I deal with console ports all the time. Truth be told? I find that most ports play just fine. Sure, they could use DX11 and be prettied up, but Skyrim still looks pretty damn good.

Funny you mention Sandy though, I live in downtown Salt Lake.

@PN04

Pro-B took. You push X, it does the rest.

@Doppel A Draconius mka Aguiluz

You just forgot one of the biggest sellers of nintendo the NDS

1-insert rom in flashcard
2-insert flashcard

YAY!!!!!

@Hunter141072

oh, and just for the record i know a lot of guys who have modded their xbox, ps3, wii, etc...no a SINGLE ONE has had any problems with it, and for the few games that they want to play online they have another xbox, just plug that one and in that case they do buy the original, but all their one player games are pirated, and nobody knows or checks this because those consoles are normally offline, you can´t really know if they have a pirate game or not........

@Doppel A Draconius mka Aguiluz If piracy was as easy on the consoles as PC, the piracy rate on consoles would be as high, if not higher. Console gamers are not inherently more moral than PC gamers.

The PC is a more open platform which allows for great things such as mods to games I see many console gamers drool over, yet also allows much easier access to piracy. : (

@Doppel A Draconius mka Aguiluz

Right, someone does. But do you actually do that yourself? My 3rd Birthday, I got pre-patched and ready to go from the start. What I'm saying is, there are a few people who the patching work and the enduser doesn't have to do any more than put it in a certain folder or burn it on a disc.

His problem wasn't English it was speaking truth off the cuff. Marketing no happy, Mettra issue PR approved statement.

im glad they sorted this one, i am alive looks B-A-U-S-S

It's cool, as dumb as his statement was, Stanislas made the even dumber one with the blatant claim of "95% piracy rate" for Ghost Recon.

Back peddle all you want Ubisoft, we aren't morons. I greatly enjoy that during Steam's sale you can check the top sellers, and Ubisoft hasn't shown up on it at all, except the occassional showing of Assassin's Creed Revelation in the low 20's, despite how many games they've put on sale so far.

Erryday I'm DRMing
-SHAKE THAT-

Eh, to be fair, I wasn't going to buy this game on PC anyway. Not because it looked bad, but because it was an Ubisoft release on PC.

However, I'm not buying it on console either, but that's mostly because I'm filled with spite and hate and I WILL NEVER FORGET WHAT HE SAID.

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I Am Alive

I Am Alive creative director amends comments on PC release, piracy

Reader Comments (70)

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:32PM chrono said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:20PM Hunter141072 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:52PM arucious said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:34PM mietha said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:25PM PN04 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:44PM Hunter141072 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 9:59PM ColorblindMonk said

Posted: Nov 27th 2011 2:11AM ComedyInK said

Posted: Nov 27th 2011 9:49AM SSGeorgiecomingthrough said

Posted: Nov 27th 2011 4:15PM Kade Storm said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:36PM Ramen of Doom said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:38PM xiLeShadow said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:44PM LOMDR said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:39PM Palacios said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:48PM Mechazawa Prime said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:49PM tanooki equipped said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:26PM Faceless Troll said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:30PM Mmmmz said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:47PM Mechazawa Prime said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 9:16PM nerdydesi1 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 9:17PM nerdydesi1 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:40PM LOMDR said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:46PM Mechazawa Prime said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:55PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:09PM Jennacide said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:27PM xiLeShadow said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:34PM Mmmmz said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:58PM RickGhastly said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:00PM jchan said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:21PM Hoops said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 9:18PM LordSkyline said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 9:21PM nerdydesi1 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 9:24PM nerdydesi1 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 10:43PM maxwell97 said

Posted: Nov 27th 2011 12:43PM kentuckyfried said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 6:57PM Gibbeynator said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:16PM Vocality said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:26PM Hoops said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:36PM PN04 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:42PM Vocality said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:44PM Vocality said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:47PM Hunter141072 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:50PM Hunter141072 said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 9:26PM nerdydesi1 said

Posted: Nov 27th 2011 1:49AM Vocality said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:03PM kagai said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:04PM Oli Hanshi said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 7:08PM Jennacide said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:08PM rullers said

Posted: Nov 26th 2011 8:11PM Pugnaciousturtle said

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