Does Sony own EA? It sounds an awful lot like Sony.

GOOD!
Take Two is now BETTER OFF. As for EA what goes around comes around. Produce crap and eventually you get crap'd on!
Install limits on game you buy only promotes pirates. I know ppl who have bought games and priate so they don't have to deal with such b.s.

Shame on EA! Didn't they know that by putting restrictions on Spores they had encouraged players to search for the pirated version where there would be no restrictions? This is the complete opposite of what they wanted. People want to OWN their software not have a "three time rental and then you're out" type purchase.

You can't make any product difficult for its legitimate users without causing sales to decline. They weren't hurting the hackers out there, they were hurting their own customers.

EA needs to learn how to run its business or find another line of work. It's not up to the players to protect THEIR product.

You have never owned the software you bought a license.

Yep, and because people don't agree with the license they download instead of buying.

s*** product = pick the alternative. :p

With these types of DRM installed isn't EA assuming that all it's loyal customers are also pirates?

I for one like to have a retro game session every once in a while and can imagine that when I come to install theses types of games in years to come they won't activate as 'big brother' isn't there anymore to validate my use of the product as they 'no longer support..' etc.

Surely if I buy a product I am licenced to use it forever in which case aren't they screwing us all over by limiting how we as consumers use a product that we have bought and paid for.

I used to detest companies who used strange ways to protect their software in the early days of the PC. And it shows that they still haven't learned from it.
Give people a reason to buy the game and they'll buy it. Look at non-DRM music, I am more likely to buy it than download it because it doesn't have that nonsense protection crap.
Who are they protecting? The consumer is the one who suffers, its the real pirates that find a way around it and get the best of both worlds free and DRM-free.
There will always be people who steal, but when you treat everyone like a thief they are more likely to steal because you made it so hard to be honest.

Take a look at Stardock they don't use copy protection yet produce some very successful games. People are willing to pay for good product.
Wake up EA you are too domineering and are going to cause a huge downfall in the gaming industry if this keeps up.

Try cracking Windowblinds and let me know how that works out for you, genius.

Validation is a form of DRM and Stardock has plenty of it.

Pass around whatever it is your smoking, will ya?

Are you stupid?

Info.................:

1) Install WindowBlinds
2) Close activation window (twice)
3) Start task-manager and kill:
-> vista: WbVista.exe (and VistaSrv.exe if listed)
-> xp: WBINST~1.exe
4) Start the keyfilemaker and apply the patch toWbSrv.dll
5) Generate a keyfile and save it in the same folder

problem solved no need to *Try* it's been done to death.

Okay...Moron....try to pay attention:

He said Stardock products do not contain DRM.

I responded, stating that they do, in fact, contain DRM.

You, being the genius that you are, posted a way to crack the Windowblinds DRM....on a public forum...apparently in an effort to get your a** banned, which I'm sure we all can agree is a noble effort.

Thanks for playing, nimrod. Now go play in traffic.

...oh, and BTW...that "crack"? Yeah...it doesn't work. Well, not after the first restart, anyway. But enjoy playing catch-up with Stardock. I'm sure their happy to oblige by making the DRM even more cumbersome than it already is.

well actually i didn't provide links or any information on the tools needed.

i mearly provided info how to close a few running processes and what DLL files are used.

Wasn't promoting piracy was just making an example of you saying about "Software DRM cannot be removed on applications i was pointing the fact it has and can, and you also just admitted trying stardocks products with the said DRM removal tools, so you should also be put under the watchful eye

When was Freedom of speech restricted? or banned because of it.

Well since the article is on the subject of PC games, Stardock's Sins of a Solar Empire is DRM free. I think that was the point originally.

Just because he knew the patch didn't work on reboot does not mean that he tried it himself. He could have gotten the information from elsewhere.

was just making an example of you saying about "Software DRM cannot be removed on applications

No, you weren't. Because I *never* said that.

Not once. Reading comprehension not your strong suit, I take it?

i mearly provided info how to close a few running processes and what DLL files are used.

O RLY? Did you not also claim it worked? It doesn't. Nice of you to be running your mouth off about something when you've obviously never actually verified any of what you are saying.

and you also just admitted trying stardocks products with the said DRM removal tools,

I also own Windowblinds. :) Purchased legally the same day I received my copy of Vista. See, I actually verify my claims. it helps to actually have a clue what you are talking about. Experience beats Google every day of the week.

Two swings, two misses, care to strike out or would you like to give it up already?

When was Freedom of speech restricted? or banned because of it.

freedom of speech does not apply to Companies, or the sites they run...or the clueless imbeciles who post on them.

I believe that's strike three.

Don't like the attitude? Don't start your first post on a site with, "Are you stupid?".

Downloaded it from TPB, in fact.

Of course, I also *own* a copy of it. Tested it and verified it on a VM. FAIL.

Experience is no substitute for Google, which is where I assume he tabbed out to get that lovely little gem.

gee AsaA your computer(s) must be crap cause all my windows boxes have last 2-3 years without a total reinstall. there slow but they do not totally crash. mind you i do a clean up once a year. my pc's can last 2 or 3 years without reinstalling windows

Its not that my computers are crap, its because windows gets destroyed by adware/spyware/viruses and general bloat because most people don't take care of them. Often, if you install a program and then remove it later, it leaves trash in your system and your registry. When this happens enough your computer will become too slow to use.

You mentioned that your computers are slow, try a full reinstall if windows and see how much difference it makes. As long as you aren't using DRMed software like spore a backup and reinstall is a good solution for a slow computer.

edit: my time might be a bit off, but the point still stands, windows will have to be reinstalled.

If you backup is an installation image, with the spore client installed, this may not be as big of a deal...

I wonder if that'd work...

No interest at all... Spore will not even make it on my radar, nor will C&C Red Alert 3 if EA continues with their bad business decisions in regards to activation restrictions. And that one will definitely be painful considering how big a C&C fan I am.

Hell most of my games sit on a shelf till I have some free time to play one for a few weeks. and going by their activation rules they have adopted every one of them would no longer work as they have been installed several times and been wiped from the drive from formats or just to make room cause I'm not playing anymore whatever... Doesn't change the fact that I legally purchased the game and have a right to use what I purchased does it?

And what if this was in place say 10 years ago... Games like say. Myst series or IDK maybe masters of orion, Or even the aforementioned C&C series which the originals of are no longer available. Then what? How can I play my legally purchased content from then on?

This particular activation concept ultimately is bad for consumers and I will not support the company producing it in any way. I encourage everyone to not buy it and not to bother with it at all. Send a real message as a consumer that treatment like this is unacceptable.

If you absolutely MUST buy the thing get the drm hack for it and store it for next year when you find you can't reinstall the thing.

Or even the aforementioned C&C series which the originals of are no longer available.

FYI: the original Red Alert Series comes with the new version (at least on pre-orders, so far).

When the game works on Linux under Wine, I'll probably buy the game and hack the DRM out of it.

for anyone that thinks 3 activations is more than enough for anyone, there is no time restriction between activations. If you're running Windows, Windows will crash. It might take 6 months, it might take a year, but you will have to reinstall and use your next activation. Then guess what will happen in another 6-12 months. What happens when you upgrade to a newer computer? What happens when your hard drive fails and you have to reinstall?

If you go back to the late 80s early 90s, copy protection on games backfired horribly in the consumer markets.

20 years later, and they are repeating the same mistakes, and it is backfiring again.

I realize there is a big online community and torrents up the wazzu, but most people don't have the time or resources to download 5gb DVDs ISOs easily.

Even if they do, if the people like the game, they will pay for it, especially if it has an online component that have to individually register for.

A game Key and a User Id are enough to stop piracy, look at how MMOs are virtually immune to it.

Also if you let users 'borrow' the games, they most often go out and buy it.

Think back to how Windows 3.0 became successful so fast... Finally a functional GUI with good DOS support and even DOS hounds were running out to buy it after playing with a copy they got from a friend.

EA has a large stake in the gaming market and they better start putting their GAMERS first, or they will cripple the developers that are trusting EA - like Bioware.

A game Key and a User Id are enough to stop piracy, look at how MMOs are virtually immune to it.

www.xtremetop100.com

That's right, a list of the top 100 private WoW servers, where you can play without a key or Blizzard account.

You're talking apples and oranges here.

First of all, no one has managed to pirate WoW and gain access to a legitimate server. Accounts get hacked from time to time, but I can't go to a warez site, get a WoW key, install the game from a buddy's CD's and expect to play. Nor could I use my buddy's key either. Therefore, the original poster is correct.

The "100 private WoW servers" you mention are not Blizzard-run, and are so f'ed up that it's a completely different experience. Encounters don't work the way the ones on the legit servers do, spells don't work, weapons and armor completely unbalanced and God-like, and you can automatically become max level within minutes after creating a new character with the best armor and weapons in the game.

Look at the quote I italicized.

Look at my response to that quote.

"Legitimate" server or not, it's evidence of a huge amount of pirating of the most popular MMO, directly contradicting his statement.

Pirating!=playing on legitimate servers. Never has. Try getting a pirated version of FlatOut 2....or Warcraft 2. Legit servers? Really? That's your argument?

The OP is "flat-out" wrong.

As to your comments on the quality on the non-blizz servers, I play on many of these. While some of them are quite horrible to behold, many are *quite* stable and nearly 100% functional. The top 13 on that site, for example, work very well. I personally play on the WoWgasm Servers.

Encounters don't work the way the ones on the legit servers do

Sure they do. You're playing on the wrong servers...or haven't tried it in years. Instances are now scripted, mobs react in the same way they do on the blizz servers (if you're on a blizz-like realm)

spells don't work

Most do. I think there are one or two on WoWgasm that are currently bugged. No big.

weapons and armor completely unbalanced and God-like,

Depends on the server. Many are "blizz-like", some are "funserver" with buffed items, faster XP rates, etc...

and you can automatically become max level within minutes after creating a new character with the best armor and weapons in the game.

Depends on the server again. The blizz-like servers are just like the actual blizzard servers. There are "instant-70" servers, there are "instant gear" servers, and combinations of them all. One of the servers I play on allows you to go to level 254, has custom mobs, custom gear, and while the gear is buffed, so are the mobs....

this is my theory on DRM's real purpose.

I assume EA is smart enough to realize that DRM does not stop piracy. So why do they still put it in if all it does is hurt honest users?

I think its real purpose is to keep users from reselling the game.

And what's to stop them reselling it with a crack, or pointing them to where the crack can be obtained?

It is a good point, but I think that violates the eula and probably won't let you use the online stuff. That person is basically buying a pirated game(sorta), that they ,by EA's pov, are not allowed to play. In that case why bother buying it resale and just pirate it?

Also try selling it to gamestop, they cannot legally resell the game.

EA is to Video Games, as MTV is to Music... They offer me little in reliable enjoyment, and try to charge me extra for the things that other games offer for free. Will Wright was wrong to go with EA on creating Spore

"We simply changed the copy protection method from using the physical media, which requires authentication every time you play the game by requiring a disc in the drive, to one which uses a one-time online authentication," said EA corporate rep Mariam Sughayer in a Gamasutra interview.

Yea, what this means too is that each time you want to play the game, it probably calls home (EA)!

BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING!

Plus with DRM in general, they assume "Everyone is a theif".

I am sure some hacker group will (Or has) come up with a Crack in some way.

to be fair, it only phones home the first time you run it to validate. As for online functionality it probably does that every time, but that's nothing new.

watching what?? that you have a valid game? If it does more then they should be SUED!!

DRM sux and is pointless if you're an honest consumer and a moot point if you steal it. Be careful with spreading half facts though, they're dangerous.

I don't have the game, but it sounds like they give you a blanket 3 installs without the option to de-authorize one computer in order to install it on another. If that's the case, that's insane!

EA - Egotistical As......

Well, I'm sure you get the idea.

LOL isn't it a stronger company tries to buy a weaker company? it almost seems the other way around now. EA is still making low quality games to this day

Technically its 3 installs per license, not 3 machines. If you reinstall windows, that's another install you've lost. I disagree that piracy is the solution though.

Whatever happened to boycotting what you found morally offensive? Why help spore's popularity by pirating it?

EA would brush low sales off as it being rubbish game-play (or such like excuse), and would say they won't make the same mistake again.

With Piracy, it's obvious that people like the game, but are sick and tired of DRM.

It shows EA they were on to a winner, but went about it the wrong way. It's something they should learn from, but probably won't.

It is finally obvious proof that putting DRM in to a game is only going to make your poor profits worse than if the game had no DRM. You're still going to get piracy (with no DRM), but to a lesser degree.

I personally haven't pirated it as I have no interest in any of EA's games.

You don't get it...

With Piracy, it's obvious that people like the game, but are sick and tired of DRM.

No, they would instead, take it as proof that they need to strengthen DRM and make it harder for the pirates to provide an easier route to the software.

Yes, this DRM sucks. As such, I won't be playing this game, which is ridiculous considering I've been looking forward to it since it's announcement. Needless to say, I was one of those posters on Amazon that rated it poorly, and I have sent 2 letters to EA.

They lost a sale, and I will not support piracy. They know I would have bought it, but I refuse to even play the game and allow them to think "it's a good game". Not getting off the hook that easily....

I'm suggesting this is on such a scale that maybe even their piracy arm will start suggesting that they made a mistake on this one.

I think it's been shown to them that no matter how hard they try it will be cracked, and it will be downloaded. It only gets worse the more ridiculous the DRM becomes.
This is proof of that.

Piracy has been around since the Spectrum. It won't go away, but there are ways to lessen it.
This is not the way.

"Whatever happened to boycotting what you found morally offensive? Why help spore's popularity by pirating it? "

I know, but people need their "medicine". A good game is like a controlled substance.

Companies do not get it, they believe they can make something bulletproof and they can't.

Until they realize this they will keep trying.

More piracy = harsher DRM

Thanks, duly noted!

And im glad you rated it a 1.

I seriously hope they fix this.

There goal is not to make it bulletproof.

Never has been.

The goal is to make it harder for the average user to get illegally than legally.

It's that simple.

Yes people really should just boycott the game instead of pirating it.

Even so I don't think you would be hearing about this if people decided not to buy the game verses pirating which has a measurable number of downloads to compare to. So what will the publisher do if people just didn't buy the game? They will determine that the game didn't sell well and not produce any updates/sequels to that game. They can possibly decide that PC games are worth producing. I know that's a big stretch for EA.

Amazon ratings was probably the best idea to get the message out.

OK maybe bulletproof was the wrong choice of words, but if they are going to continue to use DRM they need a way that doesn't punish the people who are buying it

If you take these people out all you have then is people pirating it.

No sales, I bet EA is going to get a lot of calls on this once the average consumer realizes that only one person can have an acct.

Finally a company is being shown that the public have had enough of DRM s*** to a massive and obvious extent.

Do something about it you cretins.

DRM needs to go! I know most of us have Internet, but lets say the Game was bought for the Kids or someone that does not have Internet, why do I have to activate this???

Plus, even legit, what if your Legit game Serial gets Hacked / Pirated and installed on that 3rd machine without your knowledge. Now you the Legit owner has to go through the process of re-activating a game / software that you paid for.

Don't get me wrong, I know a lot of stuff gets pirated, but for those of us that are legit get punished for this.

You want to keep the Copy Protection that we need to Install CD/ DVD... OK, but all this Activation crap has to go!

Way to go EA more of the same.