In light of Ubisoft’s recent unveiling of its new digital rights management (DRM) technology, Savy Gamer asked a variety of game industry people for their take on the current state of DRM.
The responses were varied, and shockingly, seemed to be formulated based upon what role the person in question has within the game industry.
TIGA CEO Richard Wilson on DRM and game packaging:
I think that it should be made absolutely clear on the packaging if games require constant internet connection. In time, this will probably be the case.
The PC games market will probably come to depend on this type of technology. Most consumers will probably not find this to be a problem but clearly they should be properly informed before purchasing a game.
Wilson when asked if publishers should make some concessions to consumers regarding the fact that DRM makes games difficult or impossible to resell:
No. It is not the responsibility of publishers to sustain a secondary market in games. In fact, some game developers believe that their businesses have been damaged by the secondary market in games.
Direct2Drive UK Product Marketing Manager Nihal de Silva noted that his service is “DRM agnostic” and was “happy to work with publishers/developers whose products carry DRM as well as those with DRM free products.”
de Silva was asked if he thought customers would be happy with Ubisoft’s new DRM initiative. He replied, “no comment.”
Developer Cliff Harris of Positech Games, which releases DRM-free games, was asked if he thought a lack of DRM contributed to piracy of Positech games:
I don’t think it has made much difference at all. Maybe a few of the more honest people now buy the game rather than pirate it, but this sort of thing is impossible to measure.
It seems any game, even if its $0.99 has a five hour demo and is DRM-free and done by a nobel-peace prize winning game design legend, will be cracked and distributed on day one by some self righteous teenager anyway.
StarForce’s Deputy Marketing Director Dmitry Guseff was asked how long it typically takes a cracker to bypass StarForce’s DRM technology:
If we take huge titles like “STALKER Clear Sky”, it took them 3 weeks to bypass which is very good result for AAA class game. For example “Mount and Blade” is still holding since the beginning of December.
So, basically AAA titles hold around a month, less important titles much longer. I have to add that if we hadn’t implemented some consumer friendly features those titles would have been held much longer.
Comments
Re: Opinions on DRM
Most of these companies approach to kill piracy through DRM is the equivalent of trying to kill a housefly with a baseball bat: You will never hit the fly and you will have a lot of collateral damage as a result. Obviously the fly is the pirate and the damage is the customer relations that is constantly being destroyed in a futile battle. Making games is a business and no one wants to lose profit for things they work on. Unfortunately their approach to combating the problem is beyond screwed up. First and most important of all you don't try to eliminate your piracy problems by stepping all over the legit customers to get at the pirates. That attitude encourages legit custromers to say F**k this and get a torrent, and who can blame them? Game developers also need to cut the BS out. They try to say how justified their approach is to stop any piracy. They can't tell us if they were in our shoes they would just sit back and let companies put all that invasive crap on their personal PC because it supposedly reduces piracy. And last as many have already pointed out, DRM IS AN EPIC FAIL!!!! If DRM actually reduced piracy by a large amount, maybe they would have room to talk. These developers keep bragging about new fullproof DRM that is already cracked by the time they finish their sentence. They're practically begging hackers to crack the DRM by challenging them saying it can't be done. My don't you all look like buffoons now.
Also the second hand market is almost certainly the real motive for DRM. Again from a business POV I can see why they would object to that. But on the other hand what's the difference between reselling a game or reselling furniture, cars or other miscellaneous goods at a yard sale or just giving items away as charity? Whoever profited from the original sale isn't gonna profit from the resale. So either go to the Supreme Court and make a case to make it illegal to resell ANY itmes or give to charity after initial purchase (which you'll never win) or suck it up. There's not a single developer who can say they never resold something or even gave to charity where the original seller makes no extra profit. So why would or should they expect extra profit from the resale of video games?
Re: Opinions on DRM
IF I was in the gaming industry, and work my way to the top, I would scrap DRM from my games, because originally being a gamer first before making my way into the industry I will have gathered the knowlage to understand from a consumer point of view.
People who have money on their minds, and want to protect that money, will do things regardless if they are bad for the consumer,
DRM is perhaps the worst kind of system and that is what made me turn off from PC market all together unless if I was buying Japanese Dating Sim games.
So yeah, from the experience of what it was like being a gamer, I would never go with DRM technology considering how easily it can be hacked and how painful it is for many honest consumers.
Remember, just like with the music industry, if you treat your customers like criminals, they will be criminals.
Re: Opinions on DRM
"IF I was in the gaming industry, and work my way to the top, I would scrap DRM from my games, because originally being a gamer first before making my way into the industry I will have gathered the knowlage to understand from a consumer point of view."
Ha, I used to think exactly the same way about ten years ago. Once you see job losses and/or cut salaries caused by piracy - either for yourself or your buddies - you soon change your tune.
IMHO, the only problem with this DRM is that you always have to have an online connection. Steam has the best DRM around, which serves the consumer whilst protecting the game's creators.
To my mind, the only have a problem with Ubi's system is that fact that you have to maintain your online connection at all times to play their games. This for me is a total deal breaker.
Re: Opinions on DRM
"Ha, I used to think exactly the same way about ten years ago. Once you see job losses and/or cut salaries caused by piracy - either for yourself or your buddies - you soon change your tune."
Except due to the fact that DRM pretty much fails to stop piracy... the most well "protected" games can easily become the most pirated games. When you recognize that DRM is not stopping piracy, it makes your point utterly meaningless... the companies sales numbers would probably be pretty much be just about the same with or without DRM, as DRM protected games STILL get pirated by the thousands-millions.
Re: Opinions on DRM
Sorry man, I'm not trying to be a jerk but you are going to have to qualify that "once you see job losses and/or cut salaries caused by piracy" comment with some facts.
I used to work in the gaming industry and still have a lot of friends still in it and it is well known in the hallways of a development studio that the "piracy" claim is a red herring to cover up bad management, bad sales, or poor quality of the title.
The only people who make the "piracy" claim are upper management types who don't really want to state that it was their poor management or rushing the (clearly beta) product out the door too soon and use "piracy" to sweep it all under the carpet when sales of the title tank.
It's just not true that a pirated copy=lost sale. It is however a convienient scapegoat for a product manager who blew it.
I'm not saying piracy isn't an issue, it is, but does it equate to the reason thousands get laid off from a company? No, I think the economy has more to do with that than piracy does.
Re: Opinions on DRM
Umm all I have to say in response to this is SEGA Hardware Division.
The Dreamcast was (at the time) the most advanced system on the market and offered amazing value.
It died because there was 0 (that's zero) copyright protection on the game discs to stop free sharing of the software, and is the entire reason SEGA never made another console.
Like it or not, do it yourself or not, piracy has a severe impact on the industry.
Re: Opinions on DRM
IMO the DRM situation is a self perpetuating cycle. Companies put DRM on their games. Many gamers pirate copies to get around it. Companies see this and impose stricter DRM. This angers the legit gamers so they turn to piracy to avoid the hassle. And so on.
Now I'm not some misty eyed hippy and do recognise that games ARE a busniness. But DRM will ALWAY be cracked (usually on day one) and every game will find its way to pirate sites. Overtly strict DRM is a waste of time and will only put off legit gamers.
Re: Opinions on DRM
An interesting interview quote from one of the founders of CDProjekt/GOG on the subject
One of the things we love most about GOG.com is its DRM-free philosophy. Why do you guys hate DRM so much, and why is "DRM-free" such an important cornerstone of GOG.com?
Indeed DRM-free is in the heart of our philosophy, and the reason is quite simple - we are all gamers here and we are really p***ed - or to be politically correct, I should rather say not very satisfied - when we come across DRM - especially the intrusive kind.
The business where we originated is games publishing and distribution in Eastern Europe. We started 15 years, so I can say we do have quite a bit of experience as far as piracy is concerned, and believe me, there is no copy protection that can't be cracked. The only successful way to convince a gamer to buy a legal copy is with the value for money you offer and their experience with the product.
So you buy a game, a new game, you pay, what, $50-$60 for it, and although it's a single-player game, it still requires you to be permanently online in order to play. On top of this, you can only install it 3-5 times, and after that you have to call some hotline and prove that you have a legal copy. This sucks big time.
What is the alternative, you may ask? For a lot of people the alternative is a cracked version, usually available right after release. It's free (yes, it's illegal) and as far as freedom of what you do with the game is concerned, it does offer better value than the original game. You can install it where you want and as many times you want it, and using our example of a single-player title, you do not have to be online to play it or even to have the DVD in the drive. That's totally crazy!
For us here at GOG, from the very beginning it was all about the value we deliver and the experience the gamer has with our games, so that's why, from the very beginning, we decided to abandon DRM altogether. The idea of compromising that vision has never crossed our minds.
Yes, it was tough at the very beginning - I still remember our first pitches to publishers and people not getting the idea at all. Now, with almost 200 games up and running on GOG.com and lots of happy gamers, I think I can say it does work and it works really well. Moreover, with the value we offer there is not much piracy going on. Is it really worth looking for an illegal version of a game if you have a fair deal right here, right now? Maybe for a few people, but the vast majority of gamers will go for the fair deal with good value attached, and we really do appreciate their busines.
Re: Opinions on DRM
GoG is the *only* online service I'll get anything from. No Steam, no D2D.
Don't like that my CC gets a "foreign purchase" surchage for buying there though :-/
Re: Opinions on DRM
I think that "3 weeks" timeline is crap. I don't recall a major release that hasn't been available for download DRM free by the official launch date of the game.
Here's the best kind of DRM: make the benefits of buying the game worth the price you pay. One example, people buy valve games becuase there's benefits (TF2 and L4D servers, etc). You treat the person buying the game like a customer, and you try to make sure they're satisfied with their purchase. What does this mean? 1) Don't make shitty games (in other words, don't make 90% of the games you currently make). 2) Don't treat your customers like criminals.
Re: Opinions on DRM
I know with Saints Row 2 buying new got you codes to more vehicles, and buying Mass Effect 2 new gave you access to some free DLC.
THAT is how you motivate someone to buy new.
Re: Opinions on DRM
What happens when all the DLC comes with the hacked game?
Until lobbying is a hanging offense I choose anarchy! CP/IP laws should not effect the daily life of common people! http://zippydsmlee.wordpress.com/
Copyright infringement is nothing more than civil disobedience to a bad set of laws. Let's renegotiate them.
---
http://zippydsm.deviantart.com/
Re: Opinions on DRM
Mount & Blade comes with StarForce?. Wow, didn't know that. Glad I didn't buy it, I don't want that POS malware near my computer ever again, one broken DVD drive was enough.
Re: Opinions on DRM
Starforce is still in business? I wonder how many more torrents they've distributed of DRM-free games?
Re: Opinions on DRM
Only way to know would be find out who no longer does business with them. What's worse is people likely used those torrents, which made Starforce feel vindicated and right.
Re: Opinions on DRM
If you don't want to spend money on something, then you have every right to pirate it. It's the fault of the game companies for making us want things and daring to ask for money. It doesn't matter anyway, because game designers are rich and deserve to have their work stolen.
Re: Opinions on DRM
*facepalm* So somehow that justifies destroying someone's 500 dollar computer all because someone MIGHT not have paid for a piece of software?
Re: Opinions on DRM
The point of DRM is fou logic driven like most of corporate logic, somehow paying more to make it that much harder to crack seems a justifiable defense because of potential profit gain, its that potential profit gain they lust after even if they would save more money on skipping all DRM so everyone wont fear buying it. Damned if you do damned if you don't..........
Until lobbying is a hanging offense I choose anarchy! CP/IP laws should not effect the daily life of common people! http://zippydsmlee.wordpress.com/
Copyright infringement is nothing more than civil disobedience to a bad set of laws. Let's renegotiate them.
---
http://zippydsm.deviantart.com/
Re: Opinions on DRM
Three weeks? Wow, great job. I'm sure the sales to the half-dozen people who would have pirated it, but were too impatient to wait a few weeks were totally worth it. </sarcasm>
I have to add that if we hadn’t implemented some consumer friendly features those titles would have been held much longer.
The nerve of those people who actually want to be able to play the games they buy.
Re: Opinions on DRM
Buying is the new renting to them.
Re: Opinions on DRM
I agree with the statement that it is not the responsibility of a publisher to sustain the secondary market. But to talk about it taking "3 weeks" as some kind of great result is ludicrous. Your game was cracked, your DRM was defeated, like every other DRM before and like every other DRM since.
Simply put, DRM doesn't work and it doesn't work because the people who crack it aren't doing it to play the game, they're doing it to crack it. That's their goal. They don't care about the game at all.
Here's something to chew on, people who pirate games are going to pirate them with or without DRM. They want the game, they don't want to pay, that isn't going to change if you take DRM off.
But I didn't buy Spore because of the insulting attitude of EA towards consumers.
So there...guess what...your DRM CAUSED a lost sale.
Re: Opinions on DRM
"But I didn't buy Spore because of the insulting attitude of EA towards consumers. So there...guess what...your DRM CAUSED a lost sale."
I'm with you. I still have never played Spore due to the insulting attitude EA had regarding the DRM. In fact the only other EA game I have bought since is Warhammer Online, but that was more because I have friends who work at Mythic/EA on that game and I want to support them.
DRM is bad no matter how you look at it. I still want to see a cost analysis on how much money is lost in game development by implementing DRM.
Re: Opinions on DRM
As sad as it is my purchasing power is completely decided by does it have DRM ... now don't get me wrong I don't mind disc check I think its annoying but that is not the end of the world to me. Call home devices though are a big screw you and frankly a lost sale. I refused to buy Spore because of this, I didn't buy Mass Effect until it was on Steam (a Drm model amazingly enough I don't mind because it provides me a service instead of just being annoying), and frankly I will continue this. Ubisoft, EA, etc ... might not care but my one lost sale is not just one every friend I have that is a hard core gamer is a lost sale cause I encourage them to not buy the game also (and they turn around and do the same to their friends) . So go ahead and keep the mindset that DRM is good you still lost a sale (and as a sidenote I refuse to buy certain games on consoles that includes FPS and true RPGs, not jap ones).
Re: Opinions on DRM
"It seems any game, even if its $0.99 has a five hour demo and is DRM-free and done by a nobel-peace prize winning game design legend, will be cracked and distributed on day one by some self righteous teenager anyway."
Why would a DRM-free game need to be cracked?
In all seriousness, the point that every game gets cracked, usually immediately, should be the beginning and end of the argument. I happen to believe, strongly, that DRM is unethical, but, short of a judge agreeing with me, that's not going to sway anyone in the industry. The point is that it doesn't work, and it WILL never work -- even black boxes eventually get cracked. If you can see what's in RAM, you can bypass encryption.
StarForce tries to pooh-pooh this point by saying it sometimes takes people all of three weeks to crack its product (and suggesting it would take longer if only they were allowed to be less consumer-friendly), and perhaps it doesn't matter if a game gets cracked as long as it survives release week. (Following this argument to its logical conclusion, why don't they release DRM-free versions of games two weeks after release?) On the other hand, I find it hard to believe that three weeks of successful copy protection are worth the cost of a class action suit.
Re: Opinions on DRM
"Why would a DRM-free game need to be cracked?"
Sorry to play the devil's avocate, but I can give you an answer. I tried to introduce DRM-free (and with good pricing) solutions to many of my friends, and unfortunately most (but fortunately not all) just shrug it and tells me "I don't need that crap. I can get it for free on torrents."
I don't like DRM as much as you do, but each time I hear that (or, when I'm playing a game, someone asks me "Where can I find the crack"), I feel that we kinda deserved it.
Re: Opinions on DRM
Yes that was Cliff Harris' argument, but Thad's point was the analogy wasn't thought out.
"Cracked" means the removal of DRM on a copy of a game, saying a DRM-free game will be cracked is like saying a door without a lock will be unlocked.
Re: Opinions on DRM
So basicly CEO'S of DRM comapny are in support of it. How surprising.
http://www.magicinkgaming.com/
http://www.killatia.com/
Re: Opinions on DRM
Thats what I thought wow go figure the person who is making money off of making intrusive DRMs is in support of intrusive DRMs ... and his suggested titles where two games I could care less about (and may even argue that they aren't triple A titles just cause the shop says they are)