[The E]

Because this ****: http://support.uk.ubi.com/online-services-platform/

Just. Doesn't. Happen.

[Spoon]

The title for this should be:
Why I won't be buying any ubisoft games anymore.

[The E]

To elaborate on this: I don't like piracy. If $DEVELOPER makes an awesome game that I love to play, they should get the money they deserve so that they can make more games.

But, and this is the crucial part, if I buy a game, I expect that copy of the game to be mine. And that I am free to do with that copy whatever I want to do. And that I can play that game whenever I feel like it, and not be bound to some online activation/DRM scheme that relies on the benevolence of the distributor (Note that there's a difference between developers and distributors).

[BloodEagle]

So... they're adopting a Steam system?

[The E]

Except that, unlike steam, this doesn't even offer the option to go offline.

[CP5670]

I like how unlimited installs and having to put your saved games online are considered "added services."

[Mongoose]

But, and this is the crucial part, if I buy a game, I expect that copy of the game to be mine. And that I am free to do with that copy whatever I want to do. And that I can play that game whenever I feel like it, and not be bound to some online activation/DRM scheme that relies on the benevolence of the distributor (Note that there's a difference between developers and distributors).

Seriously.  With the PC market as small as it is these days, publishers who treat their customers like potential criminals are going to discover that they've actually driven them to be criminals instead, which just makes the market that much smaller.  On the other hand, publishers who have a basic level of trust in their fanbases tend to see said trust rewarded; for instance, based on how much GOG has managed to expand their catalog, I'd assume that their business model is doing pretty well for them.  It really isn't a difficult concept to understand, and I have no idea why publishers keep persisting in efforts like these.

[Droid803]

Yeah. It won't stop pirates.
The pirates will just cut out the part that checks for an online connection. :\

All this stuff just alienates people who actually buy games, as it inconveniences them alone. The more crap you pile on the less likely people are actually going to buy it. They're just going to pirate. If you just be nice, more people will actually purchase.

I'm an example of a person that follows "the more DRM/Copy protection, the more likely I'm going to pirate" route. What I do isn't legal, but if they want me to be a thief, I'll accept the invitation...(well, if its worth stealing, somethings I just won't even bother).

[TrashMan]

No modding on consoles.

Nuff said.

[Bob-san]

I'd recommend that Ubisoft takes a look at what Bethesda initially did with Fallout 3; a simple CD verification at install and a way to play the game without a disc. That means that I don't need to crack the game if I lose the key, I don't have to search for a no-CD crack, I don't have to do any of that **** to play a game.

On the other hand, Bethesda did **** up a bit. Windows Live is a PITA and you can't change graphics settings without the DVD.

[Colonol Dekker]

The PSP go is disc / umd free. Ie it uses roms downloaded only. I'd bet sony is going to guage reaction and success as a feasibility study for deploying it on the PS3 and phasing out solid retail mediums.
 
Blah blah blah blah. . . . I like my shiny game box shelf. And what if I have an HD crash, that's what.

[asyikarea51]

What bothers me more is actually the part about game rentals - and this is coming from someone who actually falls into the so-called "desired category" of "buy, don't rent" (despite the possible chance of buying something that's sub-par in whatever way).

Not at this time? Then when?

And no, I don't like consoles - especially not when the first Xbox died as soon as the 360 came out and developers jumped ship wholesale. What am I supposed to do with a perfectly working gadget? Collect dust?!? It sure is now!

(Another reason is partly related to Forza DLC but that's not totally relevant to the topic.)

I have to wonder how the PS2 can still survive even today - though I should say I'm neutral on the console front, not a fanboy to any camp.

[BloodEagle]

I'd recommend that Ubisoft takes a look at what Bethesda initially did with Fallout 3; a simple CD verification at install and a way to play the game without a disc. That means that I don't need to crack the game if I lose the key, I don't have to search for a no-CD crack, I don't have to do any of that **** to play a game.

On the other hand, Bethesda did **** up a bit. Windows Live is a PITA and you can't change graphics settings without the DVD.

Didn't FO3 use game-crashing [shake]Secu-ROM[/shake] <echo>?

[CP5670]

Fallout 3 contains Securom in the launcher instead of the game exe, and the installer and patches (they still use that ancient RTPatch system) automatically load that launcher when they're finished. That means there is no way to prevent the Securom install on your PC, unlike most games.

[Droid803]

Securom doesn't even work. All it does is crash the computers of people who bought the game =.=.

[Enkidu]

Well I certainly won't buy any games that have this latest "feature". Really, I don't know why they bother with this stuff, nothing short of selling every game with it's own personal bodyguard to watch the disc is going to stop piracy. They really just need to accept that fact, and the fact that doing this kind of stuff only drives away their customers.

[Mongoose]

No modding on consoles.

Nuff said.

And modding has what to do with this discussion, precisely?

The PSP go is disc / umd free. Ie it uses roms downloaded only. I'd bet sony is going to guage reaction and success as a feasibility study for deploying it on the PS3 and phasing out solid retail mediums.

The PSP Go has been getting fairly savaged in the press I've seen, to the point where I don't see its sales numbers being all that spectacular in the long run.  And I'd imagine that most AAA-scale PS3 games take up far too much space file-wise to be feasible for download-only sales.

And no, I don't like consoles - especially not when the first Xbox died as soon as the 360 came out and developers jumped ship wholesale. What am I supposed to do with a perfectly working gadget? Collect dust?!? It sure is now!

This is the way the gaming industry has always functioned: new generations of hardware come out with greatly-expanded capabilities, developers start creating new games for said new hardware that take advantage of said expanded capabilities, and the previous generation of hardware is allowed to slowly fade away into pleasant memories. It's not really any different from a functional standpoint than what happens to deprecated PC hardware: you don't exactly see anyone out there designing games for a Voodoo 2 anymore, do you? If you're not interested in keeping your old hardware for nostalgia's sake, just sell it to someone who is and use the money to buy something for the next generation.  The point's all sort of rendered further moot by the fact that the XBox 360 is almost completely backwards-compatible with the original XBox, so selling the old console for its sequel doesn't mean you lose all of your old games.

I have to wonder how the PS2 can still survive even today - though I should say I'm neutral on the console front, not a fanboy to any camp.

Easy:  look at its install base.  It's only exaggerating slightly to say that everyone and their mother owns a PS2, if for no other reason than the fact that it's been on the market for so long, whereas the PS3's userbase is far smaller.  It's also substantially cheaper to develop for the PS2 than the PS3, and developers have those many years of experience with the former to apply.  Even heading into 2010, with the PS3 having been on the market for a few years now, some developers still find it more profitable to release particular sorts of games for the older console; this is especially true of more niche titles like anime-based games.  Why spend the extra money and hassle prepping a game for the PS3 when your target userbase is far more likely to own its predecessor?  I think we'll finally see the PS2 essentially retired by the end of this year, but it's a true testament to its ubiquity that it's managed to survive as an actively-developed console for as long as it has.

[General Battuta]

Peter Moore actually made the decision to kill the Xbox when the 360 came out because of the massive losses Microsoft was taking including a hard drive with every console.

[Scooby_Doo]

Just wait till they start shutting down servers or start charging 

[BloodEagle]

No modding on consoles.

Nuff said.

And modding has what to do with this discussion, precisely?

*points at thread title* 

And no, I don't like consoles - especially not when the first Xbox died as soon as the 360 came out and developers jumped ship wholesale. What am I supposed to do with a perfectly working gadget? Collect dust?!? It sure is now!

This is the way the gaming industry has always functioned: new generations of hardware come out with greatly-expanded capabilities, developers start creating new games for said new hardware that take advantage of said expanded capabilities, and the previous generation of hardware is allowed to slowly fade away into pleasant memories.

I personally think that it's poor practice (even if it makes sense from an economic standpoint) to do it so quickly. :/

It's not really any different from a functional standpoint than what happens to deprecated PC hardware: you don't exactly see anyone out there designing games for a Voodoo 2 anymore, do you? [...]

No, but you do see them making new games for the Dreamcast.