GTA IV (PC) Will Employ SecuROM Copy Protection; Video Game Enthusiasts Collectively Sigh

Good grief, Charlie Brown.

 

great. Rockstar

, what the hell?!

 

Hi.

Thats why i now play my games on consoles

This is killing PC gaming.

If only you could add a mouse for aiming on a console.

Regards

John.

 

According to Rockstar you'll only need to activate it once but you'll need the DVD in the drive to play. Here's the source: http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/56133.

 

so it will have to be the steam version then?

 

doesn't look that bad. still steam seems the way to go

 

having to have the DVD in the drive to play is simply unacceptable. How can me and my brother both play when he's in Grenada, and I'm in the uk? There better be a cracked EXE available, soon after release, or the game is going back.

 

Having the CD or DVD in the drive to play games have been around for years. If you are so worried just buy the steam version.

 

I've always had a crack available though, and looking at that page it says SecuRom will affect game play while using a crack.
And I don't use steam as I like to have the box on my shelf.

 

I accept both Steam and having to have the disc in the drive to play the game as acceptable forms of DRM.

I praise Steam for putting out front any 3rd party DRM b.s. that the distributors decide to put on top of Steam and as long as they continue to tell me what games NOT to buy, I will continue to utilize Steam.

We, the consumers, can not complain about SecuROM and other intrusive DRM methods unless we decide to do something about it. The only way to let the industry know we will not tolerate their methods is to simply ignore the games. Yes, that means boycotting full and outright.

If you pirate the game, they will just argue "this is why we need SecuROM". If you purchase the game, they'll just ignore you as they have your money. Until the consumers speak loud enough with their wallets, all the complaining is falling on deaf ears.

Nothing will hurt a game company more than continually putting millions of dollars into a product that doesn't sell.

 

Yeah cos the millions of casual gamers out there who don't have a god darn clue will go and do that won't they. Not.

I haven't had any problems with secuROM yet, but I don't like the fact that I just bought C&C RA 3 and only have 5 installations available at any time.

And seeing that GTA IV will have even more intrusive secuROM just puts me off totally.

It's all very well to say buy the steam version but that is what has led to this situation, where we are forced to use Steam or a malware infested product, because people simply go "oh well, I'll buy it on Steam then" without questioning the control and privacy issues that surround such methods of sale.

There are too many sheep following the shepherd...

 

SecuRom is treating innocent consumer gamers like criminals. And incase anybody wants to know, my pre ordered copy of the game is now no longer pre ordered. I'm making own little stand. I hope I'm not alone!

 

This is where those that are understand have to do their part and educate the "casual gamer". If they continue to not care, then the industry wins and it's a lost fight. It all comes down to money. If they game industry continues to make it, they won't change...why would they.

To buy or not to buy...that is the question.

I'm not really sure what control and privacy issues Steam violates as I haven't felt violated yet. I also greatly appreciate Steam putting forth 3rd party DRM very plainly. It tells me that I won't buy the Farcry 2's, the Crysis', etc.

But again...the loudest voice you can have is with your wallet.

 

Yes you are quite right, the loudest voice you can have is with your wallet and we do need to educate the casual gamers, but like I said there are too many sheep following the shepherd.

Casual gamers who don't have a clue and gamers that just don't give a f are far too numerous. So it's a near impossible task to educate them, we the knowledgeable come across as a small bunch of raving paranoid loonies...

The privacy and control issues where Steam is concerned, at least imo, is that I pay for a game, I don't then want to be told that I HAVE to use a 3rd party app to run the game that I just paid for. I should be able to decide for myself how I run the game on MY system and if I am online playing a game I don't want data being collected either, I am a private individual, I would like to stay that way.

Just my view of Steam and similar ways of online gaming though.

And yeah to buy or not to buy... I don't like Steam so that leaves me with a DVD option and if there is not a fixed exe available I won't be buying, I'd rather not have to have a DVD in the drive for any longer than I have to, for one thing it's a little on the noisy side...

 

Its simply appaulling. The principle of securom is there, but it's been delivered in a completely illogical manner. I've never, NEVER kept the CD in the drive for more than an hour (installation and finding a fix) then it goes on the shelf and gathers dust. I haven't changed that, and I don't plan on starting now. I'll buy GTA if and when a working fix is available, and not a minute earlier!

 

im wondering if i buy the game from the shop and use a fied exe will i still be able to play online - thats one of the main reasons im interested in the game 32player online sounds sweet! i dont really like have the discs in the drive in order to play the game

 

The "fixes", while they appease your needs, still tell the industry that you are willing to buy a game with intrusive DRM and therefore will do nothing to encourage them to stop implementing such methods. After all, they still got your money...and the cycle continues...

 

well, I guess I'm selfish then. I've wanted to play this game ever since it came out on console, and still haven't hadnthe oppertunity to do so, so I was always gunna buy it, however it is a shame that it impedes only of my other strong views.

You should still be able to play the game online... All the fix does is makes the game playable without that noisy CD in it!

 

okay cool if thats true then i will most likely get the game then - though too be honest i dont really understand what this SecuROM does, well i know that its meant to try and prevent piracy of the game but i believe it limits the amount of times you can install it but i think 5 times for me anyway should be enough

 

Are you guys serious??

There's no install limit. That's GOOD news!
Just get the disc, install, get no-cd .exe, put the disc back in the case, and that's it.

This is nothing compared to, uhm, say Mass Effect!!

 

if theres no install limit why is everyone acting like this for?
thats fine then

 

the only bad thing is rockstar said using a cracked exe could alter gameplay. This could just be propaganda to stop people doing it... But hey, if there's no install limit, I'll try anyway!
And don't even mention mass effect lol!

 

so what could it actually affect in the game play?

 

no noise from the dvd, hence more enjoyable game play

 

Do you remember the infamous chicken bullet in Warhead? That's one of the way to affect the gameplay... Or it could automatically corrupt your saves...

 

And prey tell what was the chicken bullet in Warhead? For those of us who didn't play Warhead...

 

i remember that but was that a issue with using a cracked exe?
i think if i do get the game i wont bother using a cracked exe then.

 

i saw a video of it on youtube.
its instead of bullets being shot from guns by you and the enemy they are chickens and if i remember correctly it rains chickens as well

 

is this somewhat similar to what happened to mass effect???!!!

 

New PC gamer here.. So bare with my stupid question.
But what does this even mean..?
They're trying to prevent people from getting the ISO off the disc and than burning it over and over again?
That wouldn't even prevent mounting the ISO though would it?
This is kind of stupid.

 

people whine too much over this...

 

Ah I see, funny, but annoying.

 

I really need to get crysis and crack it...

Who needs bullets when you have chickens!

 

check this:
http://ru.youtube.com/watch?v=AvYCqLbR-6o

 

whatever~ big woop~
there are enough PC pirating community to come up with a working crack in less than a day

 

If there's no install limit then I personally don't care, but because it has securom, I won't buy it. If they want to treat legit buyers like criminals, then I won't be a legit buyer. Besides, I already bought and beat this almost a year ago...

 

Ummm, buy two copies of the game?

 

eh, as long as it doesnt have install limits im fine. keeping the cd in the drive isnt too bad. i mean, somehow console gamers can stand it, so why cant i?

 

that sounds awesome. i'd buy that game.

 

>.> isn't selling games on cd/dvd's pretty much a dieing way to sell games. So why not just use steam and download it. Sure makes it easier to find people to play with when there is a whole nbr community on steam. I think where up to 100+ people now.

 

Another stupid question:
What do you guys mean by Steam?

 

This is Steam http://store.steampowered.com/
Its a digital download site that you purchase games from. Not only that, but after you download the game you can make a hard copy backup to your choice of storage such as dvd's, flash drives usb drives ect. It can take a little longer for the game to actually be available on steam for purchasing, but in the end it's proven to be a very effective way to purchase games.

Edit" also since there is no install cd involved in installing steam games there is no requirement to have a cd in the cd drive.

 

Ohh, so in other words, instead of buying the disc and everything from a store, you buy the download and it installs on your computer, no disc or anything needed.?
Wouldn't you have to mount it and everything with something like alcohol 120% or something.?

 

Nope no mounting needed. As soon as the game finishes downloading it goes right to installing it. You can also access your games and play in offline mode once they have been installed. You won't be able to play online with others, but as long as the game has some form of single player content you can play it on a laptop where ever when ever you want. As I stated in my previous post you can also make a backup of the game once it's downloaded. Its more like a quick install for the game in case you have to reformat your computer or decide to uninstall a game for whatever reason. There is one flaw to this download system and that is it makes it completely impossible to resell your pc games "legally". All your downloaded games are tied to your steam account so the only way to sell the actual game is to well "rather obvious so I won't go further".

 

Yeah I understand.
Thanks.
That's pretty bad on the companies part though. Only makes it easier for people to sell them illegally.

 

just copy a cracked exe from gamecopyworld.com after you've installed it, and no cd needed. If only consoles had that ability.

Honestly, I'm sick and tired of people ing about securerom this and anti-piracy that. "This is why I choose consoles" and things like that. Um, consoles require a disk to run too, you know...

Every single game I've bought has a cracked exe available somewhere that allows me to run the game without the disk in. Everybody is ing and moaning over stuff that doesn't matter. If you care about PC gaming, quit pirating the dang stuff and just play it!

 

Whattttt? How the heck does Steam help people sell games illegally?

 

.... I wont post on here so I don't end up getting in trouble in some way but lets just say, remember your downloading the setup and everything... Think real hard about it..

 

That's pretty much what it's gotten down to for me, and I think that as long as the original EXE is not first run, SecuROM never gets installed (I so do hope I'm right here )

Yeah, disc checks have been around forever, like the F-19 flight sim I played on my 386. I think it finally crossed the line with StarForce, which apparently physically messed up people's hardware, and there was such a big backlash that Ubi stopped using StarForce. Then there was the whole Sony music CD rootkit fiasco, and since then everyone has been distrustful of Sony, and by extension SecuROM. People also got mad with the online activation and phoning-home business that seem to be quite the rage since Bioshock and Mass Effect.

Second Take loves talking about the DRM issue. I believe they suggest in one of their videos that the activation business is to shut down the resale market.

 

I don't see how it's possible seeing how all Steam games are tied directly to your account.

I'm also wondering if you actually read this up somewhere, or you simply thought this up, seeing how just 6 hours ago you had no idea what Steam is.