EA Copies Ubisoft's Restrictive Internet DRM

[Modelworks]

There is already a single play server emulator in the wild.

 

[Modelworks]

HUGE Settlers fan, but when i seen the "alwasy on" internet connection crap .. First BLU BYTE Settlers game i wont be purchaseing.

Ubisoft has gone insane. They even put the DRM on the demo version of Settlers.

 

[EvilComputer92]

The article I linked to is dated 3/18/10. There are also many other articles from late last week about the same topic. http://tinyurl.com/yf8dpqj



Hummm.. http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2045614&highlight=

Someone above posted a link to a story from last year, but you seem to want to ignore all the posts that contradict anything you say.
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/14/command-and-conquer-4-requires-constant-internet-connection/

And for Bad Company 2, I'll just quote what you wrote yourself

Ok, so this is something i'm fully willing to support. I'm completely fine with a disc check and it's also nice to have the option to authenticate online to get rid of it if you want.

What about Dragon Age and ME2, seems you want to ignore those also.

 

[mindcycle]

Someone above posted a link to a story from last year, but you seem to want to ignore all the posts that contradict anything you say.
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/14/command-and-conquer-4-requires-constant-internet-connection/

And what exactly am I saying? Seems to me I simply posted a recent news article I found on Tomshardware, so i'm not sure how i'm ignoring anything given I haven't even commented on this story myself. This was news posted on various gaming websites last thursday. I even link to the original forum post on the C&C 4 message board that prompted these news articles.

What about Dragon Age and ME2, seems you want to ignore those also.

Ignore what exactly? Do you feel that every post regarding EA and their use of DRM needs to mention every other game EA has released?

 

[mindcycle]

Command and Conquer 4 Having DRM Problems

According to Eurogamer, Electronic Arts' Command & Conquer 4 is reportedly having playability issues due to its DRM scheme, which requires a persistent Internet connection. The issues are similar to the ones Ubisoft has been facing with the PC version of Assassin's Creed II, which also requires a persistent net connection.

It is not clear, at this time, if the issues with C&C4 have anything to do with denial or service attacks or pirated versions of the game, but the game's community manager is asking for more information from players experiencing problems in this forum post.

DRM that requires a constant Internet connection is becoming a bigger issue as of late, especially when it is required to play singleplayer content. The logic follows that gamers would want to play offline games when they are without connectivity.

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/62913

 

[Bateluer]

hey look more games i wont be buying

Me as well.

 

[matas]

I think that is a new kind of DRM that every developer/publisher is gonna use from now on, because it's not crackable, as of yet at least.

 

[Raduque]

LOL, EA copying Ubisoft. EA had this requirement in place since Day 1 of CnC4's introduction. Sadly, because of this, CnC4 is the first CnC I'm skipping.

I think that is a new kind of DRM that every developer/publisher is gonna use from now on, because it's not crackable, as of yet at least.

As somebody already mentioned, there's single-player server emulators already available for CnC4. As well, any developer that uses this gets placed on my "Do Not Buy" list.

Right now, if I had bought ACreed2, SH5 or CnC4, I would not be able to play. My internet is down and will be till Friday, at the soonest. This is completely unacceptable for a single player game. However, had I pirated any of these games before my Internet went down, I would not be limited in any way.

 

[Karsten]

Ubisoft has gone insane. They even put the DRM on the demo version of Settlers.

That would be the reason I never installed it! Sad, I have fond memories of Settlers. Played it in Germany. I actually downloaded the demo, but deleted it because I wasn't gonna buy this DRM scheme. Ubi has lost 3 game purchases so far on me. I was going to buy all the last couple games, starting with Assassin's Creed 2. But with this... no GO!

 

[Karsten]

I think that is a new kind of DRM that every developer/publisher is gonna use from now on, because it's not crackable, as of yet at least.

I have seen Silent Hunter 5 run and played for a couple hours that was not purchased. So, no... UBI likes to claim that. But I have seen it different with my own eyes.

 

[zerocool84]

It comes down to it time and time again, this does nothing to stop pirates and only hurts the legit consumer.

 

[sandorski]

How come there were no cheers when they stripped down DRM for DD versions to the bare minimum for Dragon Age and ME2?

For the same reason your Mama didn't cheer when you used the Potty when you were 7.

Doing the right thing is expected.

 

[matas]

I have seen Silent Hunter 5 run and played for a couple hours that was not purchased. So, no... UBI likes to claim that. But I have seen it different with my own eyes.

pretty sure that AC2 has not been cracked. And it has been what like 2-3 weeks? Also, didn't it take like a year to crack one of the splinter cell games?

 

[BladeVenom]

Isn't EA the company that turned off console servers 18 months after the game launched?wouldn't that stop the game from working?

Yes, so who's going to want to buy games from EA now, when this years games get shutoff next year when the 2011 version comes out.

 

[WhipperSnapper]

Support Stardock Games. Play Sins of a Solar Empire. Send a message.

 

[EvilComputer92]

Yes, so who's going to want to buy games from EA now, when this years games get shutoff next year when the 2011 version comes out.

Must be why Madden 2010 sold millions of copies. The common casual gamer doesnt care about this stuff. Madden 11 will also sell millions, even if its a exact copy of the previous year.

 

[Nik]

EA people have always been fuckheads when it comes to DRM. This is no surprise. Those idiots really just don't give two shits about their customers.

 

[mindcycle]

EA's mouthpiece foiled by Command and Conquer DRM

When you have to be connected to the Internet at all times to be able to play a single-player game, something has gone terribly wrong with this industry. EA's first-party blogger and outspoken mouthpiece Jeff Green found this out the hard way, and spread the word. "Booted twice—and progress lost—on my single-player C&C4 game because my DSL connection blinked. DRM fail. We need new solutions," he posted to Twitter.

He then goes on and says that calling it a single-player game may not be fair. "However, C&C4 experiments w/what a "single-player game" is—given it's constantly uploading progress/stats for unlocks. It's complicated... I think if we think of C&C4 as an 'online-only' game—which it basically is—then maybe we'd adjust our expectations accordingly."

Making single-player games effectively online-only is a bad solution to any problem, especially after we've explored how many people live without reliable Internet connections. You could save the points and progress and upload them when there is a connection, as Green points out, or simply design your games assuming players may not always be where there is Internet.

Green sent a warning to prospective players. "The story is fun, the gameplay is interesting and different at least—but if you suffer from shaky/unreliable DSL—you've been warned."

http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/eas-mouthpiece-foiled-by-command-and-conquer-drm.ars

If it wasn't clear, this is being posted by the Editor & Chief of EA.com.

 

[coloumb]

I really think they've gone to far this time - sure they want to protect their IP and try to ensure more profits -but for cripes sake, we're not little kids who need supervision every single second we want to go outside and play in the back yard. Could you imagine if we had the same type of "drm" when driving our cars? Your car loses connection to a master server and refuses to work - this unfortunately happens when you have to get to the hospital... or strands you on railroad tracks...

How about a randomized check - say during auto-saves or checkpoints [they could be loading screens with bits and pieces of information which would keep the gamer busy]. Or hell - a little mini-game related to the actual game to keep you busy while the "drm" check is happening. Bonuses in the mini-game would actually help you out in the game...

 

[Wag]

What if you want to play a multiplayer game on a Lan? Why would you need an internet connection for that? It still makes no sense.

 

[BladeVenom]

Must be why Madden 2010 sold millions of copies. The common casual gamer doesnt care about this stuff. Madden 11 will also sell millions, even if its a exact copy of the previous year.

They sold zero copies on the PC.

I'm willing to give the casual/console gamers a little more credit than you. I'd bet Madden 2011 sells at least a little bit worse than 2010 because of them shutting down the 2009 servers so soon.

 

[AlgaeEater]

I don't know what's worse, activation limits or constant online. Both are terrible, but I remember not being able to re-activate one game (Sacred 2) since I ran out of activations literally. The constant online at the very least, kinda seems like the old fashioned MMO model. I guess I'm so jaded with "roll-backs" from server crashes that I see it as normal.

 

[shingletingle]

I really think they've gone to far this time - sure they want to protect their IP and try to ensure more profits -but for cripes sake, we're not little kids who need supervision every single second we want to go outside and play in the back yard. Could you imagine if we had the same type of "drm" when driving our cars? Your car loses connection to a master server and refuses to work - this unfortunately happens when you have to get to the hospital... or strands you on railroad tracks...

How about a randomized check - say during auto-saves or checkpoints [they could be loading screens with bits and pieces of information which would keep the gamer busy]. Or hell - a little mini-game related to the actual game to keep you busy while the "drm" check is happening. Bonuses in the mini-game would actually help you out in the game...

I'm not sure why you think a randomized check is a better idea. If it's random, then you might as well be online all the time because you don't know when the check will occur.

 

[Pia]

Ubisoft has gone insane. They even put the DRM on the demo version of Settlers.

I strongly disagree with their initial decision to use draconian DRM, but when you take that decision as a given, the extra step of also using it on the demo is relatively sane. Non-DRMd demo executables have occasionally made it easier for crackers to pinpoint and eliminate the DRM in the retail version. Furthermore (again, taking the DRM on the actual game as a given) us who are bothered about DRM are a lost cause. An unencumbered demo might result in me playing the demo, but it would not result in me buying the game. I no longer have an effect on Ubi's bottom line.

Now for insane DRM, let's talk about how the PS3 has HDCP always enabled, even when it's running a game. This doesn't serve any security or bottom-line bolstering purpose I can conceive of, and excludes people (those short on HDCP displays) who would actually bring in money.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

I already wasn't buying anything EA releases. This changes nothing.