Halo 2 Available on the Net

syberanarchy writes "Gamespot reports that Halo 2 has already been leaked to the internet via French newsgroups and P2P networks, almost a month before release! Any chance this bombshell move could force MS/Bungie to push up the release date?" See also gamesindustry.biz and The Register.

Comments

Why am I not surprised.

[SHiVa0]

This has been like this for years. For as long as the "scene" exists. Nothing to see here, move along. But frankly, the more intermediate poeple getting their hands on the Gold master before it's heading out to press, the easier it is to leak.

Re:So?

[Indras]

Nobody expects them to delay their release, the question was: "Any chance this bombshell move could force MS/Bungie to push up the release date?"

Knowing that it is available now on the internet, they would be wise to release it sooner to the public in order to turn would-be downloaders into sales. Halo 2 has such a high demand that the hardcore fans will download it if they can get it sooner, and once they have it, why bother paying for it?

However, the percentage of customers who have modded xboxes, a fast connection to download a DVD image in a reasonable amount of time, the means to get it running, and who also won't buy the game when it comes out on shelves (and can stand playing the PAL version with French dialogue) are probably too small to matter to MS/Bungie, and not enough of a threat to their profits.

I don't approve of this, of course...

[Pantero Blanco]

...but it's insanely amusing that it happened right before the "US Declared War on Intellectual Property Theft".

IP Theft pre-emptively attacked!

Gone Gold

[Dracolytch]

If I remember correctly, Halo 2 has already gone gold. It'll be difficult to increase the speed of a release at this point. There are a lot of logistical factors that they'll have to overcome to increase production for an immediate release.

If they DO release sooner, and there aren't enough copies, that will also cause a case where people will go to the 'net for the game.

~D

Re:Bittorrent...

[alatesystems]

PAL works just fine on a modded NTSC xbox. So does any other signal format. It's just digital video being rendered at a certain resolution and being pumped out in a certain way, depends on which av pack you have.

Chris

This is Sad

[shplorb]

Whether you like Microsoft or not, this is bad. Many people have poured their hearts and souls into making that game not just because they like making cool stuff, but because they like to bring happyness to people. The person who leaked this clearly has no respect for the creators of the game.

As a game developer, I urge you to show some respect for the creators of the game by not downloading or distributing it. My first game came out a couple of weeks ago on PS2 and XBox and it's both frustrating and disappointing to see it readily available on P2P networks. How would you like to see something you've worked on for 50+ hours a week for months on end being freely copied around?

If you're intent on doing it, at least wait until the game has been released and if you like it, please buy it to support the developers. $50 isn't much to pay considering the number of hours of entertainment you get from the tens of thousands of man-hours and millions of dollars that would have gone into producing it - infinitely better value than a movie.

Re:This is Sad

[Diabolus777]

I'm a game developper for a really small company and let me tell you this:

Once the game's gone gold, it's in the publisher's hands. They bought the title and now hold the rights to it. So, if they decided to send promo copies to journalists (where 99% of leaks come from), then only the publisher is to blame.

It's the business dynamic to send promos in order to get maximum exposure, make people drool by reading the reviews that are largely biased most of the time.

If I see my game leaked and available before it's time, I wash my hands of it. I got paid for my work, and we sold the title. I'm not saying it's ok for people to distribute, but it's beign made so easy and tempting for them that nothing I'll say will make a difference. . .

Re:This is Sad

[shplorb]

But what about royalties? Yes, a lot of studios essentially do 'work for hire' like that now - but what if something goes FUBAR and you run over budget and can't negotiate extra from the publisher, or the publisher decides to shitcan it?

That's when you need royalties from your games to keep you afloat. Royalties can also provide enough revenue to allow the studio to break-away from doing licenses, invest in improving and developing their technology and not always being beholden to the publisher and getting larger royalties because the studio is then taking the risk by providing their own funding.

I thought that was the dream of every developer - to have the financial security to do their own thing, but you seem to feel differently.

Re:Bittorrent...

[SilentChris]

My question, though: who'd honestly want a pirate release they can play only on a modded Xbox, when the big draw of Halo 2 is Xbox Live compatibility (which automatically bans anyone who mods their Xbox)? I'll pony up the $50. It's worth it.

But what will the cost be, in Freedoms?

[Alzheimers]

As sad as it is, is anyone suprised that it happened? I mean, it's only the most anticipated game of the year (HL2 was the most anticipated game of last year, it's just coming out this year). I've got my preorder in, and I know a lot of other people who won't bother with it either. However, there are people who will always look to cheat the system, and as much as we hate it there's no use crying or screaming or starting flamewars that this will hurt 'the programmers'. But that's not the worst of it.

My main concern is the response and backlash from the Corps. It's not that I condone the behavior of these thieves, but I'm desperately afraid of the cure will be worse than the disease. Already we have games that can't work in everyone's PC, or disable programs you legitemately install. We have operating systems that require you to phone home every time you change your hardware, just so that the company can make sure you're not stealing .00001% of their yearly profits. What's next, that each copy will be biometrically tied to us, so we need to activate out consoles with a thumbprint identification before we can turn it on?

And what's going to be the target of the corporation's wrath, you ask? In this case, it's going to be USENET, BITTORRENT, and IRC. Three out-of-the-mainstream networks that corporations will try to convince law makers are nothing but havens for pirates and thieves. You'll hear the words "Terrorists" and "Child Pr0n" before this is over, too.

It's a tough world we live in. No matter which side you stand for, this much is certain: you're going to get screwed.

Re:Bittorrent...

[llevity]

I'll pony up too, but I'll also be playing it a month early.

The big draw isn't Xbox Live. The big draw is it's a new Halo, and any Xbox Live support is just icing on the cake.

Halo 1 did fine without it. You can still play with your friends locally, or even use XBConnect to use it to play over the Internet.

Re:Bittorrent...

[ifitzgerald]

I was going to mod this article, but I decided to post instead.

I hear a lot of people posting comments saying that most people with modded XBOXs are just going to download the game and put up with the French audio and UK subtitles rather than ponying up the $50. Having a modded XBOX, I take offense to that. I've played Halo for years now, and it is the best game I have ever played. I have spent so long waiting for Halo 2 to come out that another few weeks won't make a difference to me. The true diehard fans of Halo will not download the game. Rather, they will buy legit copies of Halo 2, and pay the developers the respect, and money, that they deserve for producing such an awesome game. People who steal from Bungie are not true Halo fans.