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Microsoft Clears MechWarrior4 Free Launch
Vamman writes "If you've been following the drama surrounding the free release of MechWarrior4, then you're probably aware that the initial announcement, made last summer, was a bit premature. Now, nearly a year since that announcement was made, MekTek Studios has announced that Microsoft Legal has given clearance for the free release of Mechwarrior4. This move by Microsoft Games couldn't come at a better time for the community, as the owners of MechWarrior are attempting a reboot of the franchise."
No, Microsoft is still evil, but this certainly helped their karma
my karma will be here long after I'm gone
Not many publishers do so, and Sierra and LucasArts still after ~20 years send cease & desist letters to abandonware sites if they distribute their old games.
I think Microsoft Games was the most sensible part of the company anyway. Age of Empires, Midtown Madness, Motocross Madness, Flight Simulator.. I have great memories of those. It's a shame that division isn't what it used to be, but are only working 360 and such now.
(posting as anon as someone used their 15 modpoints to burn my karma and posting ability for the day. when will slashdot fix that?)
It makes little sense to classify a company as evil or !evil over an extended period of time. They are a company, run by an often-changing group of people. They have no sentimental ties to their previous behaviour, and as such, they can turn on a dime. Microsoft releasing mw4 today doesn't mean they won't sue Linux contributors for patent infringement the next (I know, bad example).
You know, there is a difference between trolling and pointing out the flaws in your reasoning. Just saying.
And they're both members of that very rare and elite group, 'companies that have been around that long.'
Vintage computer games and RPG books available. Email me if you're interested.
More companies really need to do this to older games! Starcraft sort of did it by including a no CD "crack" in one of their updates a few years back. Dungeons and Dragons Online went free to play after several years of falling $15/month subscriptions. Now I think they have more players than they did at the peak of their subscriptions! Newegg included a free copy of Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 in one of my orders just labeled "free gift" and I totally love it! It made me seriously consider playing other versions (until the reviews said they sucked). There's no better way to get someone involved in a series of games than giving them an older version of it for free. It reeeeeally makes them wonder how awesome newer versions of the game are.
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