The thing is, we all have different level of tolerance for various things, not just DRM. For example, there are places in this world where people quite normally live with things which some of us would consider unbearable in every sense of the word.

To bring the issue closer to the western world, take civil rights for example. There was that big stink raised over the Patriot Act precisely because a lot of people *didn't* think that the infringement on their rights and liberties was "not that bad".

Same thing here. When I buy a product, it is mine. I did not lease it, I did not steal it. I paid for the game and the storage medium, and they are mine to use as I see fit. I can play it, I can destroy it, I can even reverse-engineer it as long as I do not abuse what I learn.
Maybe the publisher *thinks* they can dictate to me what I can or cannot do with my things, or even the manner in which I should use them, but then the publisher is mistaken. They no longer own the product, nor do they own me.

What they own is copyright on the product line. While this means that I am obliged not to distribute, resell, yadda yadda, it does not mean they can dictate what I do with the product in the privacy of my own home.
And yet they do that, but using invasive DRM, installing unwanted and often unstable software on my computer, which in some cases even forces me to adapt my wherewithals because it demands that I also own an internet connection even though the same is not needed for the software to function.
Maybe I forgot to pay the bill. Maybe my net line is down. And now I can't play a game I paid for because someone thinks its ok to check up on me like I'm some sort of criminal.
While the guy who downloaded Mass Effect off some torrent site is happily blasting away without a care in the world.

The lesson here? You tell me. I don't feel exactly appreciated as a paying customer. Maybe I should be grateful they *allowed* me to buy their game...

I get ID'ed at bars all the time. Does that mean I can't drink the beer I paid for? Only if I'm underage or don't have an ID.

I want to go to a store and buy a game, or go online to buy one, for the simple satisfaction of owning a game and advancing the industry. Thus, I try to avoid those who waste too much time on DRM (I'm boycotting EA, even Battlefield Heroes), or those who pump out the same ol' thing again and again (Again, EA). Pirates are merely those who don't enjoy a good contribution. I don't like the carnivore-herbivore relation, though. It's the way I'm made. (I eat a lot of steak)

Do you get ID'd when you open your six pack at home that you were already ID'd to puchase in the first place?

Are you retarded or something?

nope, and kids drink all the time at home and at parties. they get busted sometimes, but no one really cares. so it'll keep happening. are you retarded or something?

Good ideas, but please try not to glorify piracy by saying its cool to be a "carnivore". If you only buy games without DRM because that's what you want, then you are doing exactly the right thing. That is as long as you aren't stealing the other ones.

I never said that. I just find the carnivore part bad! It's inaccurate. What about the herbivores and plants? I eat a carnivorous diet, so is it bad to eat cattle, or are they there for the higher purpose? It isn't taking advantage of others, it's being pragmatic.

Well, if they didn't exist, they wouldn't be needed. They aren't really necessary. Herbivores would find some other way to control their populations. Carnivores started as parasites of autotrophic species, and then the two co-evolved. The reason carnivores exist is that they can. They may serve a purpose now. But, originally, they were pirates.

On the other hand, I don't see our favorite pirates as ever contributing to the software ecology. They are more like the influenza of games. There's no mutualism or even commensalism there, and there will almost certainly never be.

I'm not an evolutionist, don't forget, and us ex-parasites played an important part as waste disposal, or limitation.

Pirates will never destroy a company while there is still a legitimate demand for the service it provides.

Tapeworms never kill their hosts.

Pirates are annoying for two reasons:

1) They are thieves, criminals, and cheats. The moral outrage alone is unsettling, regardless of the actual damage. Maybe you could give your desert to a bully everyday without feeling hungry, but do you really want to?

2) They decrease the quality of the games we see. The fact is that some pirates would buy PC games. The fact is that pirates really, really want them. Otherwise, they would not steal them. If gamemakers project less profit from a game, there is less incentive to invest in them. Less games will be made, and the games will not be as content enriched as they could be.

Err... you know, I spend a LOT of time developing a high quality mod/addon for the Sins of a Solar Empire. And I mean, high-quality, on par with what you get with the vanilla version (or at least I so aim). And you know what, I sort of doubt there is a couple of million dollars waiting for me out there as a reward for my effort.

I do it for free. Because I love the game, I love to spend my creative energy that way and to top it all, other people get to have fun with what I make in the end.
That you have to spend top dollar on quality is simply not true. What companies spend money on is actually fluff.

You can make a shallow and boring game which looks great, and you can also make a deep and fun game which was made practically without a budget. The fluff, the superb voice acting, crisp visuals, great sound effects, that costs money. Its a bit sad, but you can make a lot more money as a graphic artist than as a writer, because *everyone* wants their games to look good, while the storytelling takes a back seat.

So when we take all this into account, your claim that pirates decrease the quality of games we see simply does not stand. You can make a great game in your garage. Sure, it won't look like Crysis, but it doesn't have to. Quality means more than just expensive special effects. It means depth, it means creativity, and you know what?
People who have the urge to express themselves creatively do not care too much about making millions of dolars. Big publishing companies do. But they do not make games.

I'd say it is actually the big publishers who have the longer track record of destroying the quality of games, than pirates.

While that may be true, $10,000,000 dollars can buy you a much better anything than what can be made in a garage, story or graphics or whatever.

With that much, you could do what MASS EFFECT did and hire a whole team of writers to build a game containing more than 300 novels of script. And the visuals looked great, too.

Garage games are fun. Mortal Kombat is still fun, and so is command and conquer. But you get what you pay for. No one is going to work as an organized team for free. Not many, anyway.

Well, I think I ought to say my piece...

1. The EULA of most programs states that it is OK to modify the game that you own at your own risk; ergo no-cd/DVDs are perfectly legitimate in my book, as long as you bought/own a legit copy.

2. I think that it's pretty friggin' ridiculous that a PC gamer is supposed to spend even more money to get more licenses if they want to play games over a LAN connection when you're dealing with manufacturers such as EA. Many manufacturers aren't too strict along these lines, and I thank them. However, if I was playing it on console, it would have split-screen or other such multiplayer capability a lot of the time, ergo I believe keygens are acceptable as well.

3. Some companies' DRM is a bit ridiculous as well. I have, on many cases, wanted to make a backup of my games, because I have younger siblings who have broken 2 of my games thus far. However, I am just forced to pray that my discs aren't thrown onto the floor and stepped on/run over, etc. because often the CD copy protection is too stringent and I cannot create a reliable image on my PC due to my recent hard drive failures. I would like to be able to copy the discs for legitimate reasons, so I think programs like Alcohol or Daemontools are just fine.

4. On game borrowing: if it was a console game, the developers wouldn't care if you and your friends set up a sort of gaming commune and shared the games around; yet another reason why keygens should be legal or they shouldn't force you to install the software onto only 1 or 2 machines.

That said, I do think that sites dedicated to downloading full versions of games that you do not own is pushing it. If you want a game, support the developers that put effort into making it, k? If you enjoyed the game, let them know!

I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of you make fun of me for this, but I'm just stating how things should be. People should police themselves, but they won't in the foreseeable future...

Best fps of it's time, Counter-strike. Most innovated fps of it's time, Natural Selection. Half-life mods that far surpassed the original game, made for free.

Best fantasy turn based tactical game on the market right now is Battle for Wesnoth, a free game.

I'm all for capitalism, but I'll take BfW over Heroes 5 any day, and the mods were the only reason I purchased Half-life. Money can get you a good game, but it's hardly the deciding factor. Pong tends to be a better game than most.

As for Mass Effect, if only they'd hired a few less writers. The one that wrote the EULA really fucked up. No mention of SecuROM 7, no mention of the 3 activation limit, and a termination clause that will qualify as fraud the first time someone takes them to court.