The anti-DRM thread

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BFG10K

Lifer
Aug 14, 2000
22,674
2,824
126
I picked up Halo MCC on Steam which requires an xbox live account. No big deal right? People always tell us "oh, it just takes 5 minutes to setup a free throwaway account". So I did that.

Played for an hour, then came back the next day to find my account had been locked due to "potential fraud". That's right folks, a free account with no emails, no purchases, and no credit card information was somehow committing fraud.

To unlock it, all I had to do was provide my cellphone number to Microsoft who promised never to share it with anyone. Sure, sure, and when they get hacked it's "please change your passwords, kai thx bai".

Screw you Microsoft. I setup another account and so far it's still working. But if they ban it again I'm asking for a refund. Luckily in this case it's Steam that controls actual ownership, so I only lost some campaign progress.

But it really does show that DRM is basically an assessment of your "worthiness", checked at every game launch. And at the snap of their fingers companies can remove it without warning, for whatever reason.

"Oh, this sort of thing never happens", we're repeatedly told.

Yes it does.
 
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DrMrLordX

Lifer
Apr 27, 2000
21,583
10,785
136
That's sloppy. MS should be able to use your Steam credentials instead of having to make you use an Xbox Live account.
 
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SMOGZINN

Lifer
Jun 17, 2005
14,202
4,401
136
That's sloppy. MS should be able to use your Steam credentials instead of having to make you use an Xbox Live account.

Then they would have to abide by Steam's rules. This way Microsoft can promise you anything, then change it next week in a 200 page TOS change that flashes on your screen in the amount of time it takes to his the OK button. Then they have all the data, and can do basically anything they like with it.
 

GodisanAtheist

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2006
6,719
7,016
136
I ran into a problem trying to launch FarCry Blood Dragon off my steam account the other day (looks like a quick, quirky game. Should be fun to burn through).

Except it looks like I already registered that game with a Uplay account years ago and... I have no idea what that Uplay account is.

I know I have a host of games with other launchers places, but now my "worst nightmare" of the multi-launcher scenario has come true: I clearly own the game in steam, but without the associated Uplay account the game is just dead weight.

I'll go back and give the thing another crack, there were a handful if e-mail addresses and passwords I tried to stick with, so hopefully its some combination of those.

Really reinforces my desire to stick with one platform at most, and for better or worse at this point that Platform is Steam.
 

DrMrLordX

Lifer
Apr 27, 2000
21,583
10,785
136
Denuvo has been removed from Metro Exodus about a month ago.

I think the basic idea is that now that Metro: Exodus has its DRM removed, performance comparisons can be run on the game showing how bad Denuvo was for end-users.
 

Artorias

Platinum Member
Feb 8, 2014
2,106
1,380
136
I dont doubt that DRM slows performance, but wasnt there also a recent Windows 10 update that brought performance increases with the latest NVIDIA drivers as well?
 

DrMrLordX

Lifer
Apr 27, 2000
21,583
10,785
136
GOG has done way better with GOG Galaxy then I predicted they would. I really expected the other stores to make minor changes in order to intentionally break GOG galaxy on a regular basis, but so far it has been really stable. Hopefully Epic does not start the trend.

Well if it kinda drives traffic fluidly between stores then maybe it's best for publishers to leave it alone. It may well be that the walled garden approach suppresses sales.
 

SMOGZINN

Lifer
Jun 17, 2005
14,202
4,401
136
Well if it kinda drives traffic fluidly between stores then maybe it's best for publishers to leave it alone. It may well be that the walled garden approach suppresses sales.
I can hope so, but I imagine that Epic and Steam did not spend all the time and money building a storefront for people to use GOG.
I think it is all going to matter if one or the other of them thinks they can still corner the market by making people use their platform.
 

Craig234

Lifer
May 1, 2006
38,548
348
126
I can hope so, but I imagine that Epic and Steam did not spend all the time and money building a storefront for people to use GOG.
I think it is all going to matter if one or the other of them thinks they can still corner the market by making people use their platform.

GOG supporting EPIC does not mean purchases happen on GOG instead and Epic loses their cut. Epic makes the same amount with or without GOG supporting them.

IIUC, also, this means GOG supports LAUNCHING games you bought on the epic games store, not that you PURCHASE them on GOG instead of Epic. That makes the Galaxy client GOG making things easier for customers for 'free', the benefit they get simply being that games see the Galaxy client more, helping GOG sales.
 

BFG10K

Lifer
Aug 14, 2000
22,674
2,824
126
I can hope so, but I imagine that Epic and Steam did not spend all the time and money building a storefront for people to use GOG.
Galaxy doesn't replace other storefronts, it just integrates them into one launcher. You still have to buy the games elsewhere.

And Epic/Xbox live is officially integrated which means the respective parties want to support Galaxy.
 

Craig234

Lifer
May 1, 2006
38,548
348
126
And Epic/Xbox live is officially integrated which means the respective parties want to support Galaxy.

Well, it means it wants the increased sales of people who say 'I don't want another launcher, but if I can play through Galaxy, I'll buy it.'
 

SMOGZINN

Lifer
Jun 17, 2005
14,202
4,401
136
[/QUOTE]
GOG supporting EPIC does not mean purchases happen on GOG instead and Epic loses their cut. Epic makes the same amount with or without GOG supporting them.

IIUC, also, this means GOG supports LAUNCHING games you bought on the epic games store, not that you PURCHASE them on GOG instead of Epic. That makes the Galaxy client GOG making things easier for customers for 'free', the benefit they get simply being that games see the Galaxy client more, helping GOG sales.
Galaxy doesn't replace other storefronts, it just integrates them into one launcher. You still have to buy the games elsewhere.

And Epic/Xbox live is officially integrated which means the respective parties want to support Galaxy.

I understand all that, but GOG made this launcher in the hopes that when possible you will buy the game from them instead of the others. They created the launcher to drive sales to their platform, if not by direct advertising as GOG has taken a really laid back approach to the store integration into Galaxy, at least by moving you away from the other peoples launchers. EPIC, Steam, and the others definitely intend their launcher to primarily be advertising for their platform, so it would seem strange that they would be copacetic with a system that lets people get around their advertising.
 

DrMrLordX

Lifer
Apr 27, 2000
21,583
10,785
136
it would seem strange that they would be copacetic with a system that lets people get around their advertising.

There are some people - like me - that will not buy Epic or EA titles that are exclusive to one launcher/storefront. I MIGHT start buying stuff from Epic or Origin if I can just launch GoG Galaxy and get what I want. Haven't tried it yet. For the moment, I'm still in boycott mode.
 

pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
12,975
7,892
136
It's gotten a bit ridiculous, really (the DRM thing).

Firstly I have a load of old games that I originally bought on CD that don't run on Windows 10 (or even 7) because they removed something from the OS that the DRM depends on. I even have an old box running XP with the vague idea of eventually putting those games on it (though turned out I could never be bothered to actually sort it all out, not least becuase some things have to be updated on XP to get them working).

I also have several games that I got 'free' with hardware purchases that require various non-Steam services to run (Origin and uPlay I think...or did my unconscious make up that latter name? That's a real thing, right?). Never played them, never bothered to figure out how to install those services, struggle to even remember what they are called.

Finally there are even some Steam games that won't work on current hardware unless I faff around with third-party mods.

Can't even play Solitaire anymore because MS have stuck so much intrusive advertising into it.

I usually end up deciding I'd rather go out on the bike.