Ubisoft's Draconian DRM

[mr burns 132]

Apparently some people woke up to the following sight this morning.

http://img682.imageshack.us/i/fuykpd.jpg/

hahahahaha - made my day :D

The old guard coming to the rescue!

Still no reason to get either SH5 or AC2, but that pic alone gave the whole dilemma around new drm´s and ubi stalling a once great series at least something to smile about.

[fincuan 0]

Looks like a photoshop to me. That very same pic has been circulating around different forums for a while now. If the servers were actually hacked one would think more than one out of the thousands of visitors would grab a screenshot.

The site was indeed down a few days ago and the announcement looked exactly like the one in the pic, with the "slight" difference that the text said something about it being down for maintenance. The actual cause is rumored to be a DDOS-attack.

Edited March 16, 2010 by Fincuan

[Barely-injured 0]

I guess when it comes to the point where people like me who don't even care about these games in the first place, are actually rooting for the pirates, and hoping that they will crack this system soon. I guess it goes to show that this system has utterly failed.

Really, the only sense of "guilt" that I get from saying such a thing in a public place is that I hope I am not breaking this forum's rules and that's it !!

[krycek 349]

You know if this shit spreads around and all the companies starts using this DRM I'm asking myself why should I even bother to upgrade anymore.I have money for upgrades(not top of the line) but why should I invest in something where you don't play games when you want it,but only when they want it.

I have other hobbies and although I enjoy pc gaming it's not like I'm a crack addict and can't stand without it.

Besides I have quite of collection of games and always can play those if worse comes to worst.

[chiefredcloud 10]

I'm not smart enough to crack thisor any other game but in principle all you have to do is fool the game/program into thinking it's online. And I too would bet money someone has or will crack this.

As for the game, well I support UBI in their edevour to protect their property. I do NOT however like or agree with this method. For all the reasons stated above.

I did however buy the game and to be honest with you it isn't as good (so far) as the first. I hope I'm ok in critiqueing the game as well as it's unorthidox copyright scheme.

Well it isn't like I didn't know it was a console port (as the first one was). But seriously, their is little reference to the PC controls within the game itself. Neaningless icons or, wait for it, console keys, are used. Now in all fairness if you go to the disk and browse the manual you'll find key referances. That's right no paper manual and yu pay $10 dollars more for the game. Economic times I guess.

No tutorial, aka sparing rings to bring yourself up to speed on fighting. Good luck and may your patience hold out as you Re-Learn everytihing.

Now back to the copy right scheme. I tried to get on this past Sunday and was presented with "you gave the Wrong Password" Which I knew I hadn't. So I tried again. This time "You need an Internet Connection to play" I had internet and still did. I tried to go to the UBI web sight and came up on a page that stated the sight was "DOWN for maintenace".

And this IS why I could NOT play THIS single player game.

So in 5000 words or more I have said what most of you have siad in very few. Basically, this idea really, really sucks.

[Hans Ludwig 0]

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 PC Patched; SecuROM DRM Removed from Steam Version

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/62826

[Zipper5 74]

DICE just keeps capitalizing on other developers'/publishers' idiotic mistakes. More power to them! :D

[Bulldogs 10]

And I too would bet money someone has or will crack this.

Yep. My sources tell me it's already been done. Won't get into any more detail than that.

[Heatseeker 0]

Gabe Newell on DRM. He begins at this subject around 5:00.

What an hipocrite.. if he relied solely on their own developments to stay in business i bet he wouldnt go around saying what people want to hear just to promote their distribution services..

[NoRailgunner 0]

CVG news article is saying that even Steam service in UK dont like to offer such DRM products - here you go: http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=239684

Just curious if EA is going to try a similar way with their upcoming products?

[krycek 349]

Just curious if EA is going to try a similar way with their upcoming products?

Well they didn't take long http://www.afterdawn.com/news/article.cfm/2010/03/18/ea_follows_ubisoft_will_sell_titles_with_always_on_drm (not sure how reliable is that source)

Damn my future gaming purchases keeps shrinking,Crysis 2,ME3 and that unnanounced Syndicate game.I could care less about the 1000 Sims&Nfs sequels.I truly hope this will bite them in the ass.

You know I would fully agree with this crap if they would remove it after 6 months max but that not gonna happen.

[Bulldogs 10]

I was talking to the guys at my local EB and they said that they've had to give refunds on most of the Assassins Creed 2 copies they sold due to faulty software.

Apparently there's a flaw in the system that if you get a big enough lag spike (which is every 5 mins for most Aussies, not enough to be noticeable normally but enough to interrupt the connection to the servers), you don't get disconnected, instead the game re-establishes the connection to the servers which takes a few seconds, in which time the game glitches.

The glitches vary but usually you'll end up stuck in a wall, or floating, or invisible. There's no autocorrection in the game or software so once it starts glitching you have to restart the game. On a good day you could play for 30 mins, but most of the time you're lucky to get 10 mins of play without a restart.

I think it mainly only effects people a good distance from their local exchange but it's still pretty unacceptable.

[Heatseeker 0]

CVG news article is saying that even Steam service in UK dont like to offer such DRM products - here you go: http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=239684

Just curious if EA is going to try a similar way with their upcoming products?

Thats just more crap, someone else has exclusive distribution for ubisoft in the UK, something like that.. you really think Valve doesnt want to distribute ubi's titles in the UK?

http://www.develop-online.net/news/34148/GDC-DRM-damages-the-value-of-games-says-Newell

Newell exploits an oportunity to promote himself and the great service Steam provides to gamers (cough..), claiming that the DRM diminishes the value of the game, yet its available on steam (wich is another DRM itself) for 49.99, twice the price of a retail copy available on amazon (minus shipping ofcourse).

As for this DRM, unfortunetly there are problems with the servers but once they solve the problems it doesnt sound that bad to me..

[IronTrooper 0]

Here's a nice discussion about this kind of DRM used in Rise of Flight:

http://www.forum.aerosoft.com/index.php?showtopic=28300

You'll see how some people imagine the future of gaming (computers being nothing but internet terminals).

[mr burns 132]

Here's a nice discussion about this kind of DRM used in Rise of Flight:

http://www.forum.aerosoft.com/index.php?showtopic=28300

You'll see how some people imagine the future of gaming (computers being nothing but internet terminals).

In regards to RoF i´ve found this particular post by guod at simHQ rather terrifiying: http://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/2918878/two_cents.html#Post2918878.

And @terminals: It´s gonna happen. simHQ, again, has a topic somehwere describing how the new MS Office beta fully depends on cloud computing.

As a wise man once said: This sucks more than anything that has ever sucked before.

[Gen_Protection 10]

Not alone on this but just pointed out to Ubi that having to be online for Sp is insulting for longterm paying customer. No idea how many games I have registered on their reg servers over the years.... a lot hmmm 20+ over the years I would guess. Every single one was registered. Same email, same name, but nope my track record is ignored, registering was just for advertising trawling I guess. Despite spending more with them than I would admit to my wife ;) I guess to them I am suddenly going to become a pirate.

Unlike others who may purchase after DRM removed, after how they treat me (a longterm repeat and honest paying customer) as a would-be pirate, I will NOT be buying even if they remove DRM in future, they just utterly blew it for me and I told em so. Totally insulted. Bye bye SH5 and Settlers7, and Bye Bye Ubi permanent.:mad:

When British Telecom had monopoly in UK they always say Hey we are great value, our costs are very very high. When 1st competition arrived at half the price, they matched price... instantly...miraculous. it continues to this day 30 years later. And 30 years later I will still never be British telecom customer because they ripped me off. 30 years later they STILL have adverts on vans saying come back to BT (so I am not alone and they know it). LOL if I live on desert island with only 1 phone company and it was BT I would have no Phone on principal! This is where Ubi is going too I believe. Treat customers with enough contempt and eventually they WILL have had enough. That's where I am at. Supply and demand/ freemarket I accept but it's 2 way street and excessive is unbalanced relationship= divorce

No aversion to online registering, no aversion to needing Dvd in PC if mp online(like Arma2) against piracy, against costing software companies hard earned profit and maybe longterm future, but I am NOT going to be treated as guilty before proven innocent. Bad move! And dont give me that you can save online load anywhere guff, so what I have a usb stick.... phew that was hard..NOT

It made me smile when a response on Ubi forum said very small % find it objectionable.... Whilst watching new people sign up to their forum for just 1 reason and one message... to state their disgust and note they 1 had cancelled pre-orders (varifiable) 2 they would not consider purchase anymore.3 they had been looking forward to specific titles and had the prev titles in the various series. Also raised was that most people register with forums only if they have a problem with app.... Hmmm I guess they haven't seen this forum then :).

It's interesting because given the track record of BIS over the years it's unlikely I would have felt THIS strong a reaction to the same scenario (don't get ideas BIS :) ) if it had have been BIS pulling this "stunt". Hmmm so I ask my self why?.. interesting that... any comments on that one?

Apols for long post this stuff just gets me wound up to be treated like this.

Good news, so now I have the ££ for OA lol..... bring it on guys I have every confidence in ya :)

Gen

[Flash Thunder 10]

Vote with your money people, just dont buy the games that support this kind of monstrocity.

[Tonci87 163]

The customer needs to grow up, stop giving money to companies like this, you have Freedom of Choice

[TangoRomeo 10]

It made me smile when a response on Ubi forum said very small % find it objectionable

With the wall of Flak coming at them, i guess you could have expected nothing less than their PR machine being kicked into gear, coming up with some self-righteous PR babble. The sad thing is, the PC games market has grown rather insignificant to the big companies producing AAA titles, to have a major impact on the revenue generated. In shows in the ignorance displayed towards the customer. From reading PR statements and browsing corporate forums one could arrive the conclusion, that not buying their PC titles anymore would rather result in them abandoning the market altogether, before stepping on the brakes considering consumer feedback. They want to make me believe there is no option, there always is. Hopefully this will be a chance for smaller companies, who exercise better business ethics, to step up the plate and deliver.

[Hans Ludwig 0]

Hopefully this will be a chance for smaller companies, who exercise better business ethics, to step up the plate and deliver.

As long as the market is allowed to work without government interference, there will always be someone or some company that will supply a need in the PC community.

[MrBump 10]

Wow just looking at the Settlers 7 forum and there's a lot of angry gamers having server connection issues esp. in my country Australia. Shame, I really want to get this one...

[nomdeplume 0]

Agreed... very disappointing. I stopped tracking the series when they tried to make them more like standard RTS games, but this looks to be a return to form. Just a shame they decided to use such a ridiculous DRM scheme.

I really think it's in even worse than StarForce. Hopefully it won't last very long. Really sad for the developers to be hurt by their publishers like this.

[h - 169]

Didn't see this posted yet:

Ubi is now trying to "bribe" the people who have problems with the DRM and AC2 by offering them via e-mail free downloads of their games Prince of Persia, Heroes Over Europe, Endwar or H.A.W.X...

Source (how reliable I have no idea..)

Apparently SH 5 buyers have been getting similar e-mails.

[MrBump 10]

Didn't see this posted yet:

Ubi is now trying to "bribe" the people who have problems with the DRM and AC2 by offering them via e-mail free downloads of their games Prince of Persia, Heroes Over Europe, Endwar or H.A.W.X...

Source (how reliable I have no idea..)

Apparently SH 5 buyers have been getting similar e-mails.

Yeah, I saw that in the subsim forum, they were all laughing cause when they clicked the link to get their game the Ubisoft server gave them a server error instead.

[MrBump 10]

Agreed... very disappointing. I stopped tracking the series when they tried to make them more like standard RTS games, but this looks to be a return to form. Just a shame they decided to use such a ridiculous DRM scheme.

I really think it's in even worse than StarForce. Hopefully it won't last very long. Really sad for the developers to be hurt by their publishers like this.

some kind of guy - have you tried Anno 1404? It's very similar to old Settlers, it's by the same dev...