Piracy in the gaming industry: Am I the only one seeing a pattern here?

[Raven Gold]

I agree with Isengard here. It's the whole basis of whati've been trying to say. PC gamers get shafted because there the only ones who stand up for them selves.

When I 1st heard of MW2, I was really excited, the R500 pricetag would well have been worth the greatest game ever when I 1st heard about it. Than everything elce that was part of the game slowly got leeched away. Than I just got a R10 DVD, copied it from someone, and just played the SP because I was curious about what happened to Soap and the lot.

That is NOT worth R500. It was barely woth the DVD and the effort to put it on there.

Some games I'de gladly pay R1000 for. Even the PC versions. But games as great as those are become fewer and fewer. And I won't get a console because than I'll just be supporting that trend.

Gaming is my passion. It's almost a religeon to me. And it pisses me off when it gets flooded with heathens that don't apreciate it. If you're not going to do something because you love it, don't do it at all.

 

[Azimuth]

Gaming is my passion. It's almost a religeon to me. And it pisses me off when it gets flooded with heathens that don't apreciate it. If you're not going to do something because you love it, don't do it at all.

Gamers who don't pay for their games don't appreciate them. The guy who buys Ponies IV is giving back more to the industry than you.

 

[Venom]

end of the day there must be balance ....
why are games pirated in the first place cause they are 2 expensive ....
We are gamers in fact PC gamers are the original gamers , last year I bought at least 8 games ...if they had to cost me R500 each that would be the same as buying a new LCD or better card , Why are they so expensive ....its a 2 rand disc in some packaging R100 bucks sounds fair .

If games become cheaper why would you need to pirate them

 

[Tsar]

end of the day there must be balance ....
why are games pirated in the first place cause they are 2 expensive ....
We are gamers in fact PC gamers are the original gamers , last year I bought at least 8 games ...if they had to cost me R500 each that would be the same as buying a new LCD or better card , Why are they so expensive ....its a 2 rand disc in some packaging R100 bucks sounds fair .

If games become cheaper why would you need to pirate them

People will still pirate. As why should they pay a cent when they can just download it.

 

[Azimuth]

We are gamers in fact PC gamers are the original gamers

No. Gaming started on console. Do some history homework, please.

And if games are too expensive for you, find a hobby you can afford. Simple. If you took up golf, and couldn't afford the equipment, would you just walk into a shop and take it? Probably not.

 

[Raven Gold]

And if games are too expensive for you, find a hobby you can afford. Simple. If you took up golf, and couldn't afford the equipment, would you just walk into a shop and take it? Probably not.

It's not about price and being able to afford it. It's about is the guy in the golf store busy smuggling drugs or ripping people off. Than I'de take the golf clubs (without paying) and smash the guy's face in.

The industry is starting to become corrupted. And there needs to be vigilantes.

 

[Azimuth]

It's not about price and being able to afford it. It's about is the guy in the golf store busy smuggling drugs or ripping people off. Than I'de take the golf clubs (without paying) and smash the guy's face in.

The industry is starting to become corrupted. And there needs to be vigilantes.

Your arguments are so completely retarded, there's no point in discussing this with you any further.

But I'll say this - you're a fucking parasite. You take, and you give nothing back. You are not a gamer. If you really feel that game companies are ripping you off, don't play their games. This business of stealing shit and pretending you're some sort of gentleman highwayman is absolute rubbish.

 

[MooDy]

People will still pirate. As why should they pay a cent when they can just download it.

Have to agree with this - Even if AAA titles were released with a R99 price tag people would still pirate them.

It's not about price and being able to afford it. It's about is the guy in the golf store busy smuggling drugs or ripping people off. Than I'de take the golf clubs (without paying) and smash the guy's face in.

The industry is starting to become corrupted. And there needs to be vigilantes.

 

[Necuno]

just waiting for the win reply of 'lets nationalise the publishers' or 'lets nationalise the developing houses'

Gamers who don't pay for their games don't appreciate them. The guy who buys Ponies IV is giving back more to the industry than you.

then they come and complain that casual gaming is fuckering their AAA titles

Why are they so expensive ....its a 2 rand disc in some packaging R100 bucks sounds fair .

sure lets pay you R10 your days work... it seems fair:

there goes a lot of effort and time into making a game; art, music, video and actual programming. been thinking about how much should a developing house charge for a title to return their budget spent in creating it. one of the questions then would be how much should i pay per hour being entertained by the game ? R45 like a short movie ?

If games become cheaper why would you need to pirate them

no V they wont ->

Have to agree with this - Even if AAA titles were released with a R99 price tag people would still pirate them.

exactly. who wants to pay R99 when you can dcc it for free.

Pffft all of you don't have my mighty stash of games. I still have most of my games. My hole chest of draws(six draws)are full of games, from heart of darkness(pc game) To S.T.A.L.K.E.R Call of pipyat(Must say best stalker game ever.)

we just don't feel the need to brag avoub it . still have my very first legal game in it's original form... star wars rebel assault 1.

 

[larch]

It's not about price and being able to afford it. It's about is the guy in the golf store busy smuggling drugs or ripping people off. Than I'de take the golf clubs (without paying) and smash the guy's face in.

The industry is starting to become corrupted. And there needs to be vigilantes.

After reading all of your drivel I got a big sense of deja vu and now I know why:

Just like our friend Julius you seem to have lost touch with reality and what is going on in the gaming industry. And it has made you arrogant delusional thinking that your some Robin Hood of the gaming industry. It is a sad day for the gaming industry when people like you are what represents the gamer as a consumer or should I say thief?

 

[Necuno]

After reading all of your drivel I got a big sense of deja vu and now I know why:

Just like our friend Julius you seem to have lost touch with reality and what is going on in the gaming industry. And it has made you arrogant delusional thinking that your some Robin Hood of the gaming industry. It is a sad day for the gaming industry when people like you are what represents the gamer as a consumer or should I say thief?

the fix to that is

 

[MooDy]

Sorry Nec- but I'm still over the drug smuggling crack smoking golf shop assistant

 

[tehNihilist]

Away for a few days and I miss all of this! YARR!!

Oh well, not to 'ye dead old horse', I do not agree with piracy in general. However, as deluded as Raven can sometimes sound, I can sort of understand the underlying sentiments. The industry is becoming more and more money mad. They seem to be always looking for a way to fleece another buck from the consumer. Not all the companies are as such, but I am ever seeing this as a growing trend. I would like to hope common sense will kick in sooner than later on the consumers behalf regarding voting with ones wallet, nevertheless it is not going to happen anytime soon when looking at gamers spending habit (Collectors Editions and such).

I do not mind the idea of pirating a game to 'try' it, but often human nature kicks in and once it is finished, a person would rather go buy something new than pay for something they just had.

On DRM and the like, I agree it is a vicious circle, but as much as it irks me sometimes, the publishers / developers have all the right to try protect their interest when confronted with the anonymity of piracy and its criminal mentality.

 

[Tsar]

I personally think collectors editions are rubbish. Unless it has a stack full of goodies.

 

[Lydon]

So you dont mind someone breaking into your house and "shares" your stuff? It boils down to the same thing, I think once people stop justifying what they do and be consumers like they are supposed to be things like piracy well lessen.

As long as they don't literally break anything and copy it instead of take it

Gamers who don't pay for their games don't appreciate them. The guy who buys Ponies IV is giving back more to the industry than you.

Oh how I lol'ed!

 

[larch]

Away for a few days and I miss all of this! YARR!!I do not mind the idea of pirating a game to 'try' it, but often human nature kicks in and once it is finished, a person would rather go buy something new than pay for something they just had.

Do you walk into a car dealership steal a car off the showroom floor drive it around for a week decide if you like it then pay for it? If you want to "try" a game play the demo or borrow the game from a friend or even go rent it at BTgames. But this pirate and "try it" for awhile is one of the sorriest excuses ever.

The industry is becoming more and more money mad. They seem to be always looking for a way to fleece another buck from the consumer. Not all the companies are as such, but I am ever seeing this as a growing trend.

So that gives him the right to take what is not his? Do you how much it cost to develop a game? A typical modern video game can cost from $1,000,000 to over $20,000,000 to develop . Now take that and times it by R7.6 and that is not even considering the advertising and PR that goes with it not to mention the packaging manuals and everything else that goes with it. Then there is import taxes and shipping fees all of these add up this isn't 1996 just like food and everything else the price of any goods will increase.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_development

If you can afford the consoles and the big screen tv`s you play it on not to mention paying for PC upgrades each year or less then you can afford to actually buy the games simple as that. To suggest otherwise would be hypocritical. The developers need to make money the gaming industry isn't a charity they aren't here to make us games at their loss or expense it is an entertainment form just like movies and if we want to keep seeing good AAA titles we have to pay simple as that.

I would like to hope common sense will kick in sooner than later on the consumers behalf regarding voting with ones wallet, nevertheless it is not going to happen anytime soon when looking at gamers spending habit (Collectors Editions and such).

I would gladly pay for my gaming habit, by buying a game you are showing support for your favorite developer which means you get better and better games and more sequels. But this vigilante piracy crap is what got the PC industry into the mess in the first place. Blame the developers? No no no. Lay the blame squarely on the gamers who keep on pirating and justifying it with their 5 grader excuses.

 

[tpex]

Do you walk into a car dealership steal a car off the showroom floor drive it around for a week decide if you like it then pay for it? If you want to "try" a game play the demo or borrow the game from a friend or even go rent it at BTgames. But this pirate and "try it" for awhile is one of the sorriest excuses ever.

FFS Larch stop equating copyright infringement with theft!
2nd, demos are not always released and I have played a few demos, gone an brought the game and been sorely disappointed, demos are just like movie trailers, how is borrowing a game from a friend and copying a game from a friend different? and BT games rent is only for console games

If you can afford the consoles and the big screen tv`s you play it on not to mention paying for PC upgrades each year or less then you can afford to actually buy the games simple as that. To suggest otherwise would be hypocritical.

You shitting me? Just because somebody can splurge on one thing doesn't mean he can on everything

 

[larch]

FFS Larch stop equating copyright infringement with theft!

So what do you call it when you take something without paying it? Taking something weather or not physical or digital is theft plain and simple. You are taking something that does not belong to you and that you haven't paid for ergo we call it theft. Downloading a game from a torrent is exactly the same as walking into a shop and stealing it from the display. Only reason why people can justify it so easily is because the chances of getting caught is slim and its easy to stay anonymous.

2nd, demos are not always released and I have played a few demos, gone an brought the game and been sorely disappointed.

It is called reading reviews there is a single website dedicated to compiling all of the reviews and spitting out a average: http://www.metacritic.com/ Then there is forums like these were people talk and post about their favorite games, and word of mouth of course. SO by playing a demo reading some reviews and listening to word of mouth you can easily avoid buying crappy games.

how is borrowing a game from a friend and copying a game from a friend different?

There is a massive difference. Borrowing a game is not piracy because you aren't making duplicates or copies. If you're borrowing a game from a friend, only one person can be playing that copy of the game at a time. The company is still getting their money's worth as they sold one game and one person is playing it. If you pirate a game and your friend buys the game, two people are playing the game and the company was only paid for one copy.

and BT games rent is only for console games

Sucks to be you I guess.

You shitting me? Just because somebody can splurge on one thing doesn't mean he can on everything

So you buy a Ferrari then bitch about how much petrol costs? lol! If you can spend money on upgrading a pc which we all know isn't cheap then you can pay for the games you play on it.

 

[Xero]

Ok, I've seen this argument countless times, both on our forums and on this one.
It seems some people are still unclear on the simple facts of how the gaming industry as a whole works.I've seen people argue that games are too expensive,that they aren't worth the retail pricetag and that DRM is not a viable solution.I've been approached by various local groups attempting to get iGame to host servers that are illegal or that require no cd key checks to play on.

My answer to all of these has always been :

STOP BEING AN IDIOT !

Games retail for their current value, both locally and internationally because they are a commodity, a format for digital entertainment delivery, the product of entire development teams working around the clock in an attempt at delivering a game that will be popular amongst the members of our little subculture.I used to work full time as a developer, still do some development in the little spare time I have and I can assure anyone who think that all developers sit around and play games all day that this is not the case.
It's hard work, just like any other.Frequent all nighters, insane deadlines and abusive publishers are some of the "perks" that development carries with it.

To have something you've worked months on, something you had to sacrifice for, sometimes on levels that a sub 21 year old simply cannot comprehend, simply copied and distributed over he internet or at LAN's is heart shattering.
Developers develop because they are passionate about gaming, you copy games because you are presumably so ignorant that you simply cannot fathom the impact every copied game has on the industry as a whole.

Why do we have DRM, DRM is a last ditch attempt at preventing situations where so called gamers are physically busy destroying an entire industry.
It is there so that the developers at the end of the day can afford not to drive that Porsche, but to feed his/her family.
By copying games you are not only further adding to this issue, you are making a direct attempt at taking someones livelihood, think about what that implies for a second and then start complaining about the fact that GFWL needs you to log in to save your games.
You are not only hurting the original developer and publishers, but on a local front, retailers are feeling this influx of piracy as well.
Retailers like Zaps, who deliver a quality service and go to extra ordinary lengths to be able to support the local gaming fraternity have their business stolen every time a game is copied as well.

As for games being worth less in overall experience than the retail price tag, if you can read you can find a review, if you can't understand the big words in the review itself, ask an adult to read it for you.


As for iGame, we will continue to decline offers to get involved with pirated or private servers and software of any kind.
We will continue to enforce cd key check on our servers, if that means that eventually no one plays on them, so be it.
We actively work with the BSA and SAFACT in an attempt to curb the influx of pirated software and online services into our little corner of the world.

In conclusion, if you think you are a hero for pirating games, I'll repeat my standardized response that that mindset

STOP BEING AN IDIOT !

 

[Necuno]

Xerowing - well put. software developing is really hard work [software dev myself....] and that is just one part of which makes a game. there is also art and the composition of music for example.