Patch For The Witcher 2 Removes DRM Shortly After Release

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Patch For The Witcher 2 Removes DRM Shortly After Release

Posted by Soulskill on Monday May 30, 2011 @07:41PM from the minimizing-inconvenience dept.

A reader writes with this excerpt from Ars Technica: "A little over a week after its release, The Witcher 2 is getting its first patch, and with it all versions of the game will now be DRM free. 'Our approach to countering piracy is to incorporate superior value in the legal version,' explained development director Adam Badowski. 'This means it has to be superior in every respect: less troublesome to use and install, with full support, and with access to additional content and services. So, we felt keeping the DRM would mainly hurt our legitimate users. This is completely in line with what we said before the release of The Witcher 2. We felt DRM was necessary to prevent the game being pirated and leaked before release.'"

166 comments

Min score:

Reason:

Sort:

No DRM for me anyway by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 19:45 · Score: 2, Insightful

I bought it from gog so there wasn't any DRM in the first place for me. Still, great attitude for them to take. Hope more companies follow suit.
1. Re:No DRM for me anyway by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 20:49 · Score: 0
  
  Interestingly, the company that produces Witcher 2, also owns GOG.
2. Re:No DRM for me anyway by mcvos · 2011-05-30 21:24 · Score: 1
  
  They mentioned that as the reason why only GOG would sell DRMless: they trusted them not to leak the code before release. Whether that's a credible reason, I have no idea.
  I also get the impression there were some problems with the DRM causing people to be unable to play properly (aren't there always?), so maybe they just removed it to get rid of those problems quickly.
  In any case, I'm glad they make a big point of removing DRM. I hope The Witcher 2 sells well, and other publishers will take that as a sign that DRM hurts sales.
3. Re:No DRM for me anyway by Tridus · 2011-05-30 21:45 · Score: 1
  
  They don't mention that when the game first went on sale, the main selling point for the GOG version was that it "was the exclusive DRM-free version!"
  This excuse is bullshit. It was marketing. They wanted more sales on the service they own, so they stuck everybody else with an inferior version and finally had to back down when it turned out to be breaking the game for too many customers.
  
  --
  -- "So they told me that using the download page to download something was not something they anticipated." - Bill Gates
4. Re:No DRM for me anyway by hairyfeet · 2011-05-30 22:38 · Score: 2
  
  Why is this "bullshit"? Did anyone stick a gun to your head and make you buy it off of Steam? You had the choice of the (IMHO superior) GOG version, with no need for crap running in the background (like Steam), incredibly easy to backup, and all around hassle free version, or you could buy the DRM version from Steam and D2D.
  It was completely up to you which version you bought so don't bitch that 'Wahhh I had to make a choice, wahh!" especially when Steam has been allowing third parties like Ubisoft to add more DRM on top of Steam killing the whole damned point for using Steam in the first place.
  I just hope you were smart and bought the GOG version, I myself just bought the first one and will be getting the second as soon as I'm done with the first. I believe in putting my money where my mouth is and have been buying from GOG almost from the day it opened. If more would support DRM free then hopefully we will one day see DRM games go the way of DRM music. In both cases it only hurts the buyer while the pirate enjoys their stuff DRM free.
  So instead of whining about D2D and Steam having DRM (shock! Surprise!) why not simply always buy from GOG where possible? not to mention as owner GOG gives them 100% of the proceeds from the game VS a percentage with the others, so why the hell shouldn't they support GOG? It would be kinda stupid to give the ones that only give you a cut the same as your own site.
  
  --
  ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
5. Re:No DRM for me anyway by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 23:04 · Score: 0
  
  I bought it from gog so there wasn't any DRM in the first place for me. Still, great attitude for them to take. Hope more companies follow suit.
  
  Are you listening, Gearbox?
6. Re:No DRM for me anyway by makomk · 2011-05-30 23:15 · Score: 1
  
  Did anyone stick a gun to your head and make you buy it off of Steam? You had the choice of the (IMHO superior) GOG version, with no need for crap running in the background (like Steam), incredibly easy to backup, and all around hassle free version, or you could buy the DRM version from Steam and D2D.
  You're forgetting that some users don't have good enough internet connections to download large games or just want the physical bits that come with the boxed edition. (The boxed version had DRM too by the way.)
7. Re:No DRM for me anyway by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 23:52 · Score: 0
  
  OH! How terrible.
8. Re:No DRM for me anyway by Luckyo · 2011-05-31 00:50 · Score: 1
  
  Considering that their initial statement was "no DRM whatsoever", yes, it's terrible. I was very surprised to find DRM on my DVD version.
9. Re:No DRM for me anyway by Lumpy · 2011-05-31 01:29 · Score: 1
  
  "Did anyone stick a gun to your head and make you buy it off of Steam?"
  No they came to my house with a bag of headcrabs and waved one at me.
  
  --
  Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
10. Re:No DRM for me anyway by PitaBred · 2011-05-31 02:21 · Score: 1
  
  From what I gathered, their DRM implementation didn't really keep people from playing, but it was much slower than the non-DRM version of the game. A common fix going around message boards was to replace the DRM executable with the GOG version. Looks like they're just making that the "official" fix and spinning it. Can't say I blame them for it, really.
  
  --
  My blog. Good stuff (when I remember to update it). Read it.
11. Re:No DRM for me anyway by mcvos · 2011-05-31 03:50 · Score: 1
  
  I thought there'd been plenty of announcements that only the GOG version would be DRM-free, and everything else would have DRM.
  Of course it would have been way better if all versions had no DRM, but CDProject is not a major publisher, so it's quite possible that Atari demanded that they include DRM. Or maybe they decided to do that themselves for whatever strange reason. So yes, I guess they're not quite as noble as Stardock or the other few DRM-less publishers, but they're still way ahead of the likes of Ubisoft, EA or most other major game developers/publishers.
12. Re:No DRM for me anyway by hairyfeet · 2011-05-31 04:41 · Score: 1
  
  Uhhh...hadn't tried GOG have you? Not only do they split the games into 1Gb chunks if you desire, but they also have an Adobe AIR app that lets you set bandwidth speeds, and resume broken downloads from where you left off, so even if you have an intermittent connection you can still buy from GOG.
  That said if your net is so shitty you can't even download a single game you might seriously want to upgrade or even move. So much is becoming based around the net that not having a reliable broadband connection is becoming like not having electricity in that you are relegated to second class citizen status. Hell if I in the middle of BF Arkansas can download the thing surely you can too.
  I'll be the first to admit I still buy plenty of games off Amazon but in those cases it is simply to pad out an order to make the $25 free shipping (they have tons of games under $10) or because I just add a cheap game to an order just to give me something new to play. But considering how big of a difference buying from GOG makes (No DRM, no hassle backup, unlimited installs for any machine you own, no worry about it not running on new OSes, etc) it really is nuts to not buy from GOG when given the choice and I never buy retail if there is a GOG version. The extras and DRM free trumps the buck or two I might be able to save at Amazon.
  
  --
  ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
13. Re:No DRM for me anyway by makomk · 2011-05-31 20:22 · Score: 1
  
  Uhhh...hadn't tried GOG have you? Not only do they split the games into 1Gb chunks if you desire, but they also have an Adobe AIR app that lets you set bandwidth speeds, and resume broken downloads from where you left off, so even if you have an intermittent connection you can still buy from GOG.
  Wow - that would allow download of the game within at most a year of its release even with fairly bad internet access. Wait - that's not amazing at all!
  
  That said if your net is so shitty you can't even download a single game you might seriously want to upgrade or even move. So much is becoming based around the net that not having a reliable broadband connection is becoming like not having electricity in that you are relegated to second class citizen status.
  Because obviously that's an option available to everyone, even if they don't have the money or it would involve moving countries (you are aware just how immigration-hostile the governments of most nations with decent internet connectivity are, right?)
14. Re:No DRM for me anyway by Tridus · 2011-06-12 09:29 · Score: 1
  
  The "bullshit" part is them now claiming that removing DRM is a customer friendly thing they're doing for us. It's not. The DRM was only there in the first place because they wanted to give their own store a competitive advantage.
  They're removing it now because the DRM is *breaking the game* for too many customers. They should be honest about it rather then giving out the marketing bullshit.
  (And yes, I did get the GOG version. That doesn't make this something other then marketing bullshit.)
  
  --
  -- "So they told me that using the download page to download something was not something they anticipated." - Bill Gates
Someone gets it by Fjandr · 2011-05-30 19:48 · Score: 1

Finally, a company that understands the DRM is irrelevant past the release date.
1. Re:Someone gets it by Svippy · 2011-05-30 20:12 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  *cough* paradoxplaza.com/thewesterfront/2010/9/the-drm-dilemma *cough*
  What the summary fails to mention is that the company still will actively be looking for pirates on torrent sites. Paradox Interactive's approach is not to bother at all, but rather provide those with unique CD-keys additional benefits.
  
  --
  Clicked pie.
2. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 20:23 · Score: 1
  
  What the summary fails to mention is that the company still will actively be looking for pirates on torrent sites.
  Which is completely fine by me. If you want to have something someone else did work for and decided to sell, then there are two options IMHO:
  1.) I'm fine with the package they offer and the price they demand for it. Then I go and buy it.
  2.) I don't think the package is worth the money. Well, then I don't buy it.
  Everything else is just not fair.
3. Re:Someone gets it by MareLooke · 2011-05-30 20:32 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Which is just another form of DRM and it makes the resell value of your game basically zero (which of course is the entire idea). 0-Day DLCs and forced online activation (so you get access to all the content you already paid for) are even worse than the other crap as they require you to give up personal info (to be able to sign up) to companies that have your privacy as a very high priority (hello Sony)
4. Re:Someone gets it by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-30 20:58 · Score: 1
  
  Heck the only personal info you give away is a custom login and a CD Key and an email address. You still can play the game without registration, you still can get the patches without registration, and given CDPs history you probably will get the additional content without registration in the long run as patch. (They did the same for the enhanced edition)
  All there is is that you get the DLC (which is free) early if you register.
5. Re:Someone gets it by MadJo · 2011-05-30 21:07 · Score: 1
  
  How about option 3?
  3.) I think the package they offer is nice, but I'm not sure if it's worth the price?
  
  --
  80 CC D8 AF AE D3 AB 54 B7 2E CE 67 C7
6. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:09 · Score: 0
  
  This sounds like a system that could work very well.
  Use a uniquely generated key system with two levels:
  - level 1: trial keys, demo keys and comprimised level 2 keys
  - level 2: purchased keys (matched with publishers's datbase), and perhaps even 'rewarded' keys
  Once a level 2 key becomes comprimsed (it is used by more than 1 player) it will fall back to level 1 (reduced playability, perhaps -50% weakness or something, anything that makes the game less enjoyable or more difficult, but still playable). If falsely accused (keygen generates a key for an unsold game and someone uses it before the legit copy is sold) then there should be a system (upload a scan of the receipt, or original packaging) to overrule the system, which downgrades the level 2 key to level 1 and awards the legit gamer another level 2 key.
  This could even work for a game like World of Warcraft (level 2 would be stuck at lvl 60 or so).
  I guess the most difficult part here is having two levels of game contents in your game.
7. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:15 · Score: 1
  
  ...That's option 2...
8. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:22 · Score: 0
  
  Its called waiting, you see most games become cheaper eventually. I dont buy anything over 20 euro's. Which is the upper upper limit for me. I can still play a lot of good games, am not tied to the latest release cycle, and the coop games I play with friends are usually a couple of years old anyway.
9. Re:Someone gets it by mcvos · 2011-05-30 21:30 · Score: 1
  
  What the summary fails to mention is that the company still will actively be looking for pirates on torrent sites.
  I don't care. Since my version is DRM-free, I don't need a torrent.
  Of course there's also try-before-you-buy. I don't think there's a demo for The Witcher 2, which is unfortunate, because that would have killed that reason to torrent.
10. Re:Someone gets it by mcvos · 2011-05-30 21:34 · Score: 1
  
  I guess the most difficult part here is having two levels of game contents in your game.
  That's not hard. Games that are a playable demo without a key and turn into the full game when you purchase a key, are well-established technology. The real problem with your idea is downgrading existing keys for single-player desktop games.
11. Re:Someone gets it by evilbessie · 2011-05-30 22:19 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty or any free stuff which may have come with the original purchase, free services, road tax, insurance offers etc. Not entirely sure why you think a secondhand purchase should be the same as buying new. Being as this is a relatively effective and less intrusive way of reducing piracy it's better this direction than others have taken.
  If you can come up with a good solution to reducing piracy and rewarding genuine purchasers of software then you could make a lot of money.
  Also when I buy a car I am generally required to give lots of personal information, are you suggesting that you should be able to just have software like a book. Well it comes with some services (online content, updates, support) and it is reasonable to request registration for such services.
  You however seem to want the moon on a stick, which I am unable to assist you with.
12. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 22:35 · Score: 0
  
  There was a high profile demo released, what's more it was actually representative of the game.
13. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 22:43 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty or any free stuff which may have come with the original purchase, free services, road tax, insurance offers etc.
  Perhaps it is different in the US, but in the UK you can transfer benefits like free services when you sell your car. Obviously they don't recreate the exact same sales package as they do for new games.
  Pretending that this is the same as 0-day / new only offers in games is naive or misleading. I doubt many players have any issue at all with the odd novelty addition for new games, however games have moved well beyond that now. People who buy second hand, get the game with significant content or entire areas of functionality removed. Game devs are no longer even pretending to add extra for people who buy new, they are openly nerfing games for people who buy second hand (removing aspects like multiplayer, or campaign segments).
  Given how much they some companies hate the second hand games market, I don't understand why companies like EA don't simply make their games so they don't work at all if not bought new, or require a ~£5 payment to activate a 2nd hand copy. At least that would be clear, easy to understand and honest (even if I don't like it).
14. Re:Someone gets it by Kjella · 2011-05-30 22:47 · Score: 1
  
  When the online content exist only to reduce a sale into a non-transferable personal license, don't expect consumers to be happy about it. Software licenses for single player games have all the essential characteristics of a sale - a one-time payment for a one-time delivery, except you don't get any of the rights and benefits of a sale.
  
  --
  Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
15. Re:Someone gets it by mcvos · 2011-05-30 23:05 · Score: 1
  
  There was? How did I manage to miss that so completely?
  Doesn't matter, though. I was already sold.
16. Re:Someone gets it by TheRaven64 · 2011-05-30 23:13 · Score: 1
  
  That's not a third option. Either you agree that it's worth the price, or you don't. That's the entire basis of trade, and has been for thousands of years. They have something you want (a game), and you have something that they want (money). Either you agree on an exchange rate (number of currency units per game), in which case you can make a trade, or you don't agree and you can't. The entitlement mentality, that if you disagree with the terms of the trade that you should be able to take what they are offering without giving anything in return, is sickening. If you believe that copyright is wrong, then donate to projects that are released under a permissive license.
  
  --
  I am TheRaven on Soylent News
17. Re:Someone gets it by tepples · 2011-05-30 23:17 · Score: 1
  
  Software licenses for single player games have all the essential characteristics of a sale
  
  Then the studios' solution is to end development of single-player games.
18. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 23:19 · Score: 1
  
  When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty or any free stuff which may have come with the original purchase, free services, road tax, insurance offers etc.
  The original owner is able to sell any such stuff on to you, or should be.
  
  Not entirely sure why you think a secondhand purchase should be the same as buying new.
  A little thing called the doctrine of first sale.
19. Re:Someone gets it by MareLooke · 2011-05-30 23:27 · Score: 1
  
  This might be true in CDPR's case but they aren't exactly the norm when it comes to these kinds of things (they've proven to be nice guys that are passionate about their games, let's hope some big publisher doesn't come along and fuck them up *cough* EA *cough*), loads of games require registration and validation to get access to release day "DLCs" (EA/Bioware is starting to get on my nerves with this, for example) requiring varying amounts of personal information on signup and resulting in varying amounts of trouble with the entire kaboodle (as in: bugs, servers not being available, no access to the content in offline mode or there just not being an offline mode at all (because nobody plays from hotel rooms or during a network outage or whatever)).
20. Re:Someone gets it by malkavian · 2011-05-30 23:48 · Score: 1
  
  Actually, the option 3 is the "sampler". In games, this would be the Demo.
  If you're not sure about the trade (is the quality sufficient, etc), then a small, limited quantity is supplied by the vendor to show the quality that you'll be paying for, and entice those who are reticent about the trade.
  But once you have the 'sampler', then yes, you're back at options 1 or 2. You shouldn't expect the whole cargo for free.
  For some reason though, some game companies seem to insist on placing DRM on the demo, which really breaches the whole concept and makes it almost worthless for many (is this game worth putting up with onerous restrictions? Oh, to see if it is, I have to accept the onerous restrictions first!).
21. Re:Someone gets it by TFAFalcon · 2011-05-31 00:01 · Score: 1
  
  When I buy a book it only rarely comes with half the pages stuck together, missing chapters or set to self destruct when you reach page x.
  It's also rare to have the book tell you : 'If you want to know what happened in chapters 3, 5 and 9, please send 10$ to the author now'.
  And buying a used car doesn't allow the manufacturer to prevent you from getting it registered.
22. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 00:03 · Score: 0
  
  >When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty
  My used car had 36,000 miles on it. The dealer's warranty carried over. So I'm calling bullshit on your post.
  It was a Ford, BTW.
23. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 00:15 · Score: 0
  
  "When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty or any free stuff which may have come with the original purchase, free services, road tax, insurance offers etc. Not entirely sure why you think a secondhand purchase should be the same as buying new. "
  You certainly DO get the warranty when you purchase a used car in Britain. If the car had 1.5 years left on its warranty before you purchased it, it has 1.5 years left on its warranty AFTER you have purchased it. But I don't think the examples you use with your analogy is very good. Yes, there may be stuff that only comes with a new car (i.e. free car washes when you purchase a new car from us), but the important things always come as part of the sale.
  In contrast, downloadable content is now being used to "fill in" features that really should be part of the game in the first place. It is thus more like a car coming with air conditioning or a radio that will disable themselves for second hand buyers.
24. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 00:40 · Score: 0
  
  No medals for registering online = book with missing chapters? What have you been smoking?
25. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 00:41 · Score: 0
  
  When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty
  Um, you do if the vehicle is still under the warranty term's mileage. Also, not having a warranty on a vehicle doesn't completely disable the functionality of said vehicle.
26. Re:Someone gets it by toxickitty · 2011-05-31 00:49 · Score: 2
  
  Which part of the article you linked to said "Weill actively be looking for pirates on torrent sites"? All I see relating to the web in the article you linked to is this: "This does not mean, however, that we support piracy or think it is ok to share our games freely over the web. We still believe people should pay for the games they play. After all, this is what keeps this industry running." There's nothing I can find about pursuing pirates online, unless I am missing something? After reading the article I feel like buying the game, is it good? Going to watch some trailers in a bit.
27. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 00:59 · Score: 0
  
  The main problem with the scheme is pirate/hacker decrypts your executable and then removes the key check. Your unlockable demo is now a full copy of the game and you are paying for the bandwidth to give it to them.
28. Re:Someone gets it by laughingcoyote · 2011-05-31 01:05 · Score: 2
  
  No it's not.
  There used to be a pretty decent trade in going up the side of a mountain, bringing down a block of ice, and selling chunks out of it. Then along came freezers, and everyone could make a "copy" of that ice chunk right in their own home. Now ice hauling is no longer a viable business model. Times change, technology disrupts, and sometimes something that was once lucrative becomes superfluous or worthless.
  The selling copies model is dead, and it's only thrashing at all through enforced monopoly (an enforced monopoly over thoughts and numbers, no less). That's not going to work, with a machine designed to make copies in every living room. You are correct that asking nicely for a donation often does, and I often give one. But it's tough to demand money for something people can easily do themselves. If a chef develops a delicious recipe, but it's relatively easy to cook, a lot of people will cook it rather than going to the restaurant. Those who do go to the restaurant will see some benefit in paying that premium (added convenience, the atmosphere, what have you). And no, it makes no difference that in this case the cooking only takes a button press-if anything, that means less reason to go to the restaurant.
  When you develop something that's not actually scarce, don't be surprised if you don't make a ton of money from it. Ideas spread easily, especially now that we've got a global network designed to do exactly that. We're well into a new paradigm here, and if the lumbering old giants want to ignore that-well, we all know what happens when you fail to adapt.
  
  --
  To fight the war on terror, stop being afraid.
29. Re:Someone gets it by Goaway · 2011-05-31 01:11 · Score: 1
  
  So when those dinosaurs who make games and expect people to actually pay money for them finally do go out of business, then... What exactly are you going to be copying?
30. Re:Someone gets it by Lumpy · 2011-05-31 01:31 · Score: 1
  
  "When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty or any free stuff which may have come with the original purchase,"
  really? you must suck at buying used cars.
  My honda Civic came with the original warranty and the free oil changes that were left from the new car purchase. I even have the floor mats, manual, dvd, and the honda first aid kit that was in the back.
  
  --
  Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
31. Re:Someone gets it by sremick · 2011-05-31 01:31 · Score: 2
  
  When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty
  Not sure what brand you're buying. Maybe you need to buy a better car brand. When I bought my used car (private sale, not a dealer), it still had almost 2 years left on the warranty. And I know it transferred because I made use of it.
  It was a SAAB, and I live in the USA.
32. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 01:34 · Score: 0
  
  Parts of main plot in DLCs = book with missing chapters. For example, Mass Effect 2 and 3. The beginning of 3's plot follows from a DLC of 2, not from the end of the "main" game.
33. Re:Someone gets it by LanMan04 · 2011-05-31 01:45 · Score: 1
  
  When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty or any free stuff which may have come with the original purchase, free services, road tax, insurance offers etc.
  And because that's common practice, that makes it OK?
  
  --
  With the first link, the chain is forged.
34. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 02:15 · Score: 0
  
  The entire basis of trade has been scarcity. In places where scarcity was not present, trade was severely limited (for instance, nobody would have paid for apples when they were freely available in the forest, Eskimos don't buy ice, etc). This new trade is trying to create artificial scarcity where none naturally exists - maybe you're right and the way to deal with this is to treate it like a physical product, maybe the no copyright crowd are right and we should be looking for a new business model, but to say this is representitive of trade through the ages is missing a key factor.
35. Re:Someone gets it by delinear · 2011-05-31 02:22 · Score: 1
  
  If the game has DRM then it would be a gross misrepresentation not to put DRM on the demo, in my opinion. Considering how many installation/runtime errors DRM seems to be behind, it would be incredibly misleading to demo the product DRM-free and then sell an encumbered version - that totally fails to demonstrate to me that the game will run on my system. It was this kind of garbage that convinced me to leave the PC gaming scene and switch to console several years ago (aside from one or two games that either weren't on console or that I knew I'd prefer on the PC like DoW2, Witcher and Orange Box) - I know DRM also exists on console games but at least it's transparent to me as a user. Anything that stands between me and content I have paid for is worse than inconvenient, it should be criminal.
36. Re:Someone gets it by benhattman · 2011-05-31 02:27 · Score: 1
  
  are you suggesting that you should be able to just have software like a book.
  That's a fine idea. I should start a publishing company that sells you books; but, if you want to read all of the book, you're going to have to come to my website, agree to a 9000 word EULA, and bind your book serial key to your facebook account so I can verify that you are the only reader who gets to read the whole book.
  After all, both products are only covered by copyright (meaning only I can copy, but anyone can resell), so the only way I can prevent you from loaning or reselling the book I sold you is to add "features" to your purchase where I circumvent copyright law. Happy reading.
37. Re:Someone gets it by delinear · 2011-05-31 02:31 · Score: 1
  
  There are already other models out there for delivering games without charging an up front fee - subscription models, free games with a built in market to sell in-game content, ad sponsored games, games where you pay a subscription to a third party for an all you can eat rental affair, community developed free games. Claiming that games wouldn't exist if people weren't paying up front for them is just the kind of short sighted behaviour the companies behind those games are demonstrating, and it doesn't change GP's point, if your old business model doesn't stand up to a sea change in technology, you can either try and force your customers down the path you want or you can look for a new model - I suspect, given time, the latter will be the approach that succeeds, albeit after several years of enduring the DRM death rattle.
38. Re:Someone gets it by Riceballsan · 2011-05-31 02:32 · Score: 1
  
  Well are you just advocating that games not be developed at all then? I mean I fully agree with and back the people that say games need to come down in price drastically and hope to make up for it with quantity, but you more or less seem to be advocating a system of "just pray for donations". With the amount of investment that goes into a game, that just isn't going to work, you've still got 50 developers to pay. Don't like what the big guys are charging, play the indi games that are out, if you succeed in bankrupting the big guys, that's what's going to be left anyway, a ton of games with possibly better gameplay, but most likely much lower budget when it comes to graphics etc...
39. Re:Someone gets it by jittles · 2011-05-31 02:41 · Score: 1
  
  When I buy a used car I don't get the original owners warranty or any free stuff which may have come with the original purchase, free services, road tax, insurance offers etc.
  Incorrect. If you transfer the car while it is still under the manufacturer's warranty, the warranty transfers with the vehicle. Been there, done that.
40. Re:Someone gets it by TheRaven64 · 2011-05-31 02:55 · Score: 1
  
  There is still scarcity. The creativity is the scarce resource. When you buy a game, you are paying for someone to create it - the payment for the copy is incidental. If you disagree with selling copies as a mechanism for funding the creative endeavour, then put your money where your mouth is and pay groups that release their creative output under a license that permits redistribution. Don't just say 'I disagree with how you fund your creativity, therefore I am entitled to your creative output for free'.
  
  --
  I am TheRaven on Soylent News
41. Re:Someone gets it by delinear · 2011-05-31 03:01 · Score: 1
  
  And paying the support costs for all the legitimate customers who are getting screwed over by the DRM that's failing to do what it's there for (unless the company comes up with DRM that is hassle free, but as far as I can see, if they ever managed that they'd probably make more money selling the DRM than the game).
  Seriously, when will companies acknowledge that if DRM is failing to stop people cracking the game AND it's costing money to develop/implement AND it's costing money to support AND potentially losing you a bunch of frustrated customers AND spoiling the overall experience (using space and resources that could be better used delivering a better game or more of it - I don't know how many CPU cycles DRM eats but I'm sure it's non-zero) then it's in everybody's interests to ditch the DRM...
42. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 03:01 · Score: 0
  
  Reminds me of the days when a computer can have to be verified by some phrase or code in a certain page of the manual.
43. Re:Someone gets it by laughingcoyote · 2011-05-31 03:08 · Score: 1
  
  It could look like what you say. Or we could see more open source games, or more online ones, or free/ad-supported, or any combination thereof, or things no one's even thought of yet. (Think how much different the world looks in 2011 than we imagined it would in 2001, let alone 1991!)
  I can't tell you exactly what the new era will look like. If I were that good, I'd be awfully rich. I can tell you, however, that it will not look like the "pay per copy" model of the last century. That paradigm died the moment we developed and mass-marketed machines capable of making billions of copies at near-zero marginal cost.
  What I seem to continually see here is the argument from consequences fallacy. "Well if this were true, then XYZ bad thing would happen..."! Even if it's correct that the death of the pay-per-copy model is bad (I'm not convinced it is, but for the sake of argument), that wouldn't change whether or not it's true. Even draconian laws and draconian technical measures haven't made the slightest dent, so I don't know what more proof of truth we'd need. Its death will be lingering, certainly, but the arrow's already through the heart.
  Most likely, at least part of the new model will look like most everyone else's job-continued pay depends on continued work. If you want to make money as a musician, tour. If you want to make money as a programmer, develop custom software for people who want it or fix bugs for people who are willing to pay you to. I've got no problem with that-I'm not still getting paid for what I did yesterday, either.
  
  --
  To fight the war on terror, stop being afraid.
44. Re:Someone gets it by Mashiki · 2011-05-31 03:28 · Score: 1
  
  I don't know where you live, but where I live, most dealerships offer at least 1-3 year depending warranties on used cars. The little el-shittio shop(aka fly-by-nights) may have deals with warranty farms for the same thing. So yes, if I buy I used car, at least in most of Canada? I have a warranty. And in general it's just as good as a new car.
  
  --
  Om, nomnomnom...
45. Re:Someone gets it by DigiTechGuy · 2011-05-31 03:29 · Score: 1
  
  Also when I buy a car I am generally required to give lots of personal information
  Strange, every time I've bought a car/bike/boat I've never had to give any information. All the seller knows about me is my first name, because I choose to give that information. Granted I know a fair amount about the seller as this information is on the title when he hands it over, but I maintain my privacy when buying.
46. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 03:43 · Score: 0
  
  *cough* paradoxplaza.com/thewesterfront/2010/9/the-drm-dilemma *cough*
  What the summary fails to mention is that the company still will actively be looking for pirates on torrent sites. Paradox Interactive's approach is not to bother at all, but rather provide those with unique CD-keys additional benefits.
  What an awesome RPG. Not the usual shoot or hack everything that gets in your view. Thanks for the story development and humor. I bought the game - these devs deserve the support so much more than the group that murdered mass effect II. Mass Effect I was an awesome game - great stepping stone to something better - and they blew it. Maybe it is up to the small game devs to save the genre.
47. Re:Someone gets it by Missing.Matter · 2011-05-31 04:49 · Score: 1
  
  So? Dune Messiah takes place 12 years after Dune. Does that Dune is missing chapters? Mass Effect 3 will be completely playable without playing the DLC, and even the entirety of Mass Effect 2.
48. Re:Someone gets it by VortexCortex · 2011-05-31 05:16 · Score: 1
  
  I don't understand why companies like EA don't simply make their games so they don't work at all if not bought new, or require a ~£5 payment to activate a 2nd hand copy. At least that would be clear, easy to understand and honest (even if I don't like it).
  Epic Megagames did this with Bulletstorm.
  I've been a paying customer of Epic Megagames since Epic Pinball, I've purchased every game they've ever made, some multiple times. They've made great progress, even introducing a female heroin (Jill of the Jungle) who saves the Prince to buck retarded gender roles. The were once a great company...
  I have two Xbox360s and two game players in my home. Only one of us can be playing one copy of Bulletstorm at a time. The "game" servers are other players' consoles; MS provides Matchmaking and stats on XBL; Only one of us can be "stressing" their stats server at a time -- Yet With this new "online pass" system, the second player has to pay US$10 just to be able to play the game too.
  Hint: I've already paid twice for two separate XBL subscription plans so that we can both play online!
  Result: I've added Epic to the list of greed focused abusive companies that I boycott.
49. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 06:08 · Score: 0
  
  But it's tough to demand money for something people can easily do themselves.
  I had no idea that developing the next CoD/Portal/MassEffect/whatever was so easy.
50. Re:Someone gets it by Yunzil · 2011-05-31 06:29 · Score: 1
  
  I can't tell you exactly what the new era will look like. If I were that good, I'd be awfully rich.
  You know another way people are getting rich? Making and selling video games. For money.
51. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 07:30 · Score: 0
  
  and it doesn't change GP's point
  Which was unfortunately demonstrated by a piss-poor analogy. A chef developing a delicious recipe that is relatively easy to cook is not at all like developing a game that is relatively easy to copy. In true /. fashion, a better analogy would be designing a new car.
  
  Designing a new car takes a lot of time and money. Once designed, it's trivial to make a copy of the design specs. But you're not paying for the cost of copying the design, you're paying for all the time and effort that went into producing the design in the first place.
52. Re:Someone gets it by Kalriath · 2011-05-31 14:14 · Score: 1
  
  Paradox are pretty much pioneers at scummy regional pricing (e.g. $1USD=$3NZD, and $1USD=$1EUR, despite the exchange rates being nothing like that) - when they even deign to sell to you at all, so they can shove it too.
  
  --
  For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
53. Re:Someone gets it by Goaway · 2011-05-31 23:18 · Score: 1
  
  subscription models, free games with a built in market to sell in-game content, ad sponsored games
  And how much do people complain about all of these?
  
  community developed free games
  And how many actually good games like this are there? Sure, they exist, but they are miniscule in comparison to commercial games, either on a large or small scale. Most people who have the skills and dedication needed to actually make a good game seldom have the time and resources to do so for free.
  
  games where you pay a subscription to a third party for an all you can eat rental affair
  This is the only one that has any chance of success, and it is entirely unproven, and also suffers from piracy just as much as the current game model.
54. Re:Someone gets it by Anonymous Coward · 2011-06-02 20:21 · Score: 0
  
  Then the studios' solution is to end development of single-player games.
  Then my solution (and that of many, many others as well) is to end purchasing products from said studios. Funny how that works.
Discipline? by wandernauta · 2011-05-30 19:49 · Score: 1

I always thought games being leaked and pirated before release was about rogue developers, sharing raw builds with shady pirate folk for kicks. How would DRM help there? Does this mean Badowski tried to substitute some good old team discipline for technical measures?
1. Re:Discipline? by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 19:56 · Score: 2, Interesting
  
  Most pre-release games come from people working at factory level. People that can swipe a freshly pressed disc. Alphas and Betas are the ones that are either leaked internally, or hacked (like we saw with Half-Life 2).
2. Re:Discipline? by beowulfcluster · 2011-05-30 20:13 · Score: 1
  
  Games are sent out through the manufacturing+distribution chain before they are released. Most prereleases come from there.
3. Re:Discipline? by petermgreen · 2011-05-30 20:16 · Score: 1
  
  This clearly wouldn't help against a rogue dev.
  What online activation could help with is reducing the risk of usable copies being leaked in the time between "going gold" and release. For example if the online activation scheme involved encrypting the copy on the disc with the decryption key released through the activation servers and the activation servers were configured only to accept special test keys before release then the set of people who could leak the game code/data before release could be limited to a far smaller set.
  
  --
  note: i'm known as plugwash most places but i screwd up registering that here somehow in the past and now can't register
Thank you by Skylinux · 2011-05-30 19:50 · Score: 1

I bought the game from GoG because they offered a DRM free download. I would not have purchased the DVD edition.
We see a lot of ATARI victims on the GoG forums crying about their games running slower then ours. The DVD version comes with built in DRM so customers can finally see the difference.
DRM sucks!

--
Everyone who buys Wild Hunt will receive 16 specially prepared DLCs absolutely for free, regardless of platform.
1. Re:Thank you by MareLooke · 2011-05-30 20:27 · Score: 1
  
  We already knew that from the previous Witcher, which was notorious for the insane loading times (up to 5minutes in some cases!) and crashes caused by the DRM. Good thing they removed it eventually (and fixed a bunch of other issues with the game). Shame they didn't just release the second installment entirely DRM free through all channels to start with though, guess the publishers still had to have their way.
2. Re:Thank you by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-30 20:56 · Score: 2
  
  It was mainly the publisher, the CDProject guys never were happy about the DRM to begin with. Btw. the same goes for the price fixing on the publishers side. They wanted the same price for Europe and the USA, the publisher wanted to charge more in Europe and hence GOG (which is owned by the same company as CDProject) simply gave refunds for various other games in their catalogue to make up for the price difference.
  CDProject are really nice guys and I hope they sell a load of games everyone who pirates this game really is a criminal they went great lengths to be customer friendly.
3. Re:Thank you by Spikeles · 2011-05-30 20:58 · Score: 2
  
  I bought the game on GoG($45 USD) because it was $30 cheaper than the Steam version($75 USD) on the Aussie store. DRM free was just the icing on the cake.
  
  --
  I don't need to test my programs.. I have an error correcting modem.
4. Re:Thank you by Kjella · 2011-05-30 21:37 · Score: 1
  
  Personally I love ordering from amazon.co.uk to Norway. Since it's just below the 200 NOK import duty limit and amazon gives me free shipping, I got the DVD version for about 22.86 euro, or less than half than on Steam's 49.99 euro. Steam is silly expensive, they just got people hooked.
  
  --
  Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
5. Re:Thank you by Luckyo · 2011-05-31 00:53 · Score: 1
  
  Not sure how "charge more" part came to life, other then the fact that we pretty much always pay more for games here in Europe in general.
  That said, GoG was about 30% more expensive then play.com when it came to buying w2.
6. Re:Thank you by Kalriath · 2011-05-31 14:17 · Score: 1
  
  Good point - and as a reminder to our Aussie friends, Amazon.co.uk is currently offering free shipping to Australia and NZ as well for anything above 25GBP - could be even cheaper in some instances than GoG!
  
  --
  For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
Interesting Strategy by Brianech · 2011-05-30 19:50 · Score: 4, Insightful

This is a new take on DRM and piracy. On the plus its temporary, BUT if it fails to prevent being cracked before the release it could just annoy legit buyers for a week. I for one think its an interesting and positive strategy. They could gain with day 1 sales, and legit buyers get a DRM free product in 1 week. Personally I would put up with it, some may disagree. If you are super anti-drm simply wait 1 week before playing. Seems like a new, positive step in the right direction, and I'm at least happy to see a company try something new.
1. Re:Interesting Strategy by quadrox · 2011-05-30 20:08 · Score: 2
  
  I think I am one of those super anti-drm people - but I agree with you. I just wouldn't buy the game until the DRM has been removed. When the DRM has been removed, my concerns are gone and I'll be happy to pay money for it. Ok, I'll have to wait one more week, but I can deal with that.
2. Re:Interesting Strategy by mcvos · 2011-05-30 21:38 · Score: 1
  
  Or in this case you could buy the game from gog.com, where it was DRM-free from the start.
3. Re:Interesting Strategy by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:39 · Score: 0
  
  I'd love that. I usually wait several months before I buy games anyway (they're simply too bugged at release, plus prices go down). That'd convince me to buy games which I still wouldn't buy for 1$ due to certain DRM systems.
4. Re:Interesting Strategy by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:49 · Score: 0
  
  Meh, forgot to add:
  Realistically, I'm not expecting this though. It's a freak occurrence. Publishers have too much of a hard-on for DRM. Aside from the Witcher 2, the only instances where I saw DRM being removed in a patch was due to the massive technical problems it caused; certainly not because it would be a feature for customers.
  So I stick to my usual procedure:
  If DRM and no crack for latest patch, then no buy.
5. Re:Interesting Strategy by hedleyroos · 2011-05-30 22:33 · Score: 1
  
  I made a similar suggestion on an old Ubisoft story as to how to counter piracy. At that stage I thought 3 months would be a good period. A week sounds a bit short, but let's wait and see.
6. Re:Interesting Strategy by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 23:33 · Score: 0
  
  It looks a lot like a new implementation of copyright - for sale for a while, and freely available thereafter - but starting over again with a reasonable term.
7. Re:Interesting Strategy by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 00:41 · Score: 0
  
  Personally, I'm still reluctant to buy the game since there's still DRM on the disc. Even though it will get patched out the first time the game gets patched, I'd rather not stick any DRM software on my PC in the first place (with the exception of Steam). There have been too many horror stories about DRM that affects the PC even when the game isn't running.
8. Re:Interesting Strategy by Hatta · 2011-05-31 00:53 · Score: 1
  
  Who buys games on release day anyway? Not only is there DRM to deal with, but prices are highest then too. It's not like you miss anything by waiting 6 months for the price to drop. There are plenty of other games to keep you occupied until then.
  
  --
  Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
9. Re:Interesting Strategy by Luckyo · 2011-05-31 00:55 · Score: 1
  
  The thing is, they saved money with this move. Vast majority of issues with the game that strained their tech support was DRM problems. They either had to massively up the tech support costs or drop DRM.
  And with the fact that cracked game ran much better because it stripped DRM, they were left with very little realistic choices.
10. Re:Interesting Strategy by gmueckl · 2011-05-31 01:11 · Score: 1
  
  That's totally in line with what copy protection schemes are actually expected to provide for the publisher. No (good) manufacturer of copy protection software claims that their scheme is unbreakable. It can be done with time and effort. Their goal is to extend this time span so far that the initial release sales peak is covered as much as possible, i.e. cracks start spreading only after a majority of the copies have been sold. After that it doesn't matter if the protection stays or gets removed.
  
  --
  http://www.moonlight3d.eu/
11. Re:Interesting Strategy by Abstrackt · 2011-05-31 01:26 · Score: 1
  
  I think removing the DRM after a week was a brilliant marketing strategy, everyone's talking about it and it's a small enough window that less people who are on the fence about DRM will pirate it.
  
  --
  They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it's not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance. - Terry Pratchett
12. Re:Interesting Strategy by jittles · 2011-05-31 02:45 · Score: 1
  
  The problem is that the game on the DVD will still have the DRM and you have to deal with it. For instance, I own DIRT 1. It has tons of on DVD DRM that, later can be removed by patch. However, I can't install the game without it wanting to install all the DRM tools in the first place.
13. Re:Interesting Strategy by delinear · 2011-05-31 03:17 · Score: 1
  
  Depends on the game - the strategy we're starting to see more of now is DLC content free with pre-orders, paid for everyone else. I suspect it's things like that that drive a lot of day one sales for most games (aside from the odd anomalous "Triple A" title that everyone wants to play right away). If you know you'll be getting the game anyway, and the price of the DLC is greater than what you expect the price drop to be in six months, it still makes sense to buy it early.
14. Re:Interesting Strategy by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 04:06 · Score: 0
  
  Ok, I'll have to wait one more week, but I can deal with that.
  Pretty sure pirates will adopt the same strategy. Hell, I don't even find out about most games until they show up on TorrentLeech anyway. This will also help crackers, as they can now bindiff the executables to discover whether they truly removed all the hooks of a given copy protection mechanism or what they might have missed, thereby potentially harming titles that opt not to remove their DRM. AND it will help rule out bad cracks as a source of game issues, increasing the value of piracy.
  Don't get me wrong, I'm 100% opposed to DRM, but if you're going to be "DRM-free" then do it right or not at all. As is often the case, being half-assed about it only makes things worse.
15. Re:Interesting Strategy by MobileTatsu-NJG · 2011-05-31 04:58 · Score: 2
  
  The other thing it gains is that they don't have to support unlocking the game in perpetuity. I'm surprised companies like EA haven't figured out that their profits would go up if they didn't have to support a call center for people who installed Spore more than 5 times.
  
  --
  
  "I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
16. Re:Interesting Strategy by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 11:16 · Score: 0
  
  New take? Id Software and Epic remove their CD checks in their big games after a few patches.
17. Re:Interesting Strategy by DarwinSurvivor · 2011-05-31 13:56 · Score: 1
  
  EXACTLY what I was thinking. I can see the patch removing the need to be online/what-ever while playing, but 50% of DRM issues are encountered at INSTALL TIME. Hopefully this means that future sales of the game will come without the DRM to start with (sort of a patch slipstream). As for already purchased copies, I hope they make some tools to make installation as easy as possible.
  
  Actually, this is a PERFECT example of how DRM is useless. If the game company is able to make a patch to remove the DRM of a game after it's release, then ANYONE could have done it!
days later.. by crossmr · 2011-05-30 19:57 · Score: 1

slashdot gets to the story..
1. Re:days later.. by Lokitoth · 2011-05-30 20:40 · Score: 2
  
  The story was DRMed until now.
Waste of your potential profits by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 20:01 · Score: 0

So they spend a tonne of time and cash trying to get DRM to work with their game, it doesn't stop it getting pirated before/at release anyway, then they remove it.
Seems like a total waste of resources to me *rolls eyes*
Or maybe, they just couldnt get the game to run properly with the DRM they never intended to remove (because well DRM sucks and has a habit of wrecking things), and they thought they could create some positive spin by removing it to fix a broken game.... who knows *shrug*
1. Re:Waste of your potential profits by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 20:23 · Score: 0
  
  Majority of sales are made in the first week.
2. Re:Waste of your potential profits by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 20:25 · Score: 0
  
  Or maybe, they just couldnt get the game to run properly with the DRM they never intended to remove (because well DRM sucks and has a habit of wrecking things), and they thought they could create some positive spin by removing it to fix a broken game.... who knows *shrug*
  You do know that Witcher 2 was available for pre-order DRM-free from GOG? This is CDProjekt, the usual paranoia is unnecessary.
3. Re:Waste of your potential profits by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-30 20:48 · Score: 1
  
  The GOG version never had DRM, one of the reasons why I bought it instantly, I normally wait til a game hits the bargain bins.
4. Re:Waste of your potential profits by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:39 · Score: 0
  
  So are a majority of cracks. Also, even if that wasn't true, a determined pirate (read: someone who wants to get something for free) would just wait a little while until a crack comes out or the DRM was removed.
5. Re:Waste of your potential profits by mcvos · 2011-05-30 21:42 · Score: 1
  
  Or maybe, they just couldnt get the game to run properly with the DRM they never intended to remove (because well DRM sucks and has a habit of wrecking things), and they thought they could create some positive spin by removing it to fix a broken game.... who knows *shrug*
  That could be it. Mind you, the game was available without DRM right from the start, and widely publicized as such, so I think the complete story is that retail publishers demanded that they include DRM, they didn't get it working properly, and after release they dropped it as soon as they could.
That's great and all.... by rebelwarlock · 2011-05-30 20:07 · Score: 1

...except that DRM leaves crap on your hard drive even after its removal. You have systems like StarForce that leave hidden drivers, registry keys, and even data written to normally user-inaccessible parts of your hard drive. I almost bought this game based on what they had said about no DRM to encourage this behavior. Good thing I didn't rush out and buy it on release day.
Very nice. by anomnomnomymous · 2011-05-30 20:23 · Score: 4, Insightful

Wow, I'm really liking this move, and I think it makes sense. Still, quite admirable that they don't leave the DRM on there for longer.
The first few weeks is when a game is most at risk of being pirated. Nonetheless, this game is already on several torrent sites, so it's not as if the DRM worked in the first place.

Anyhows, this is sortof obligatory: Penny Arcade's view on The Witcher :-D

--
When you shoot a mime, do you use a silencer?
1. Re:Very nice. by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-30 20:47 · Score: 2
  
  Actually Penny Arcades view is not entirely correct. First the fight is not the first one, it is just the first one if you play that submission before another one which comes earlier int he intro story.
  Secondly, the game has in game help but in the middle of a fight it is hard to read the hings, but luckily they are also stored in the journal and there is also a manual which explains a lot.
  There is only one thing which the game definitely does not do, it does not do handholding and you cannot master the fights with simple button smashing.
  And with normal and hard they really mean normal and hard btw. not like normal is advanced easy like so many others do.
  Btw. I died on the mission Penny Arcade talks about also 12 times but only because it was the first submission I played. Everything became more sense when I did the entire prolog in a linear fashion. And I am not really such a good gamer, how anyone can die 47 times on that mission is beyound me.
2. Re:Very nice. by Gadget_Guy · 2011-05-30 21:25 · Score: 2
  
  Nonetheless, this game is already on several torrent sites, so it's not as if the DRM worked in the first place.
  As others have mentioned here, this game was always available without DRM if you bought it from GOG.com. Presumable it was this version that got pirated. Even if it wasn't that version, I doubt that they paid top dollar for the best DRM solution if they knew that they would abandon it so soon.
  I just noticed something annoying. When you go to the page that I referenced above from an Australian IP address, you end up paying over US$75 for the game. Bloody region crap! I wont blame GOG for this too much, as I am sure that it is just part of their deal that they can't undercut the official distributors in other regions of the world. At least they say:
  
  Since the AU price is almost $26 more than the price in USD, weâ(TM)re giving you a $26 USD credit to spend on GOG.com.
  
  Which is fine for me, but if you are not interested in old games then it would be annoying. Finally, Aussies get a cut down version of the game due to our stupid ratings system because our government will not trust us. Oh well, at least GOG trusts us to enter our details correctly on the account settings page...
3. Re:Very nice. by tdelaney · 2011-05-30 22:58 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  GOG no longer relies on IP geolocation services to determine what country you're in, although they use it as an initial determinant. But if you happen to have one of the very very many IP addresses that are "incorrectly" identified as Australian, you can go into your profile and tell them what country you're "really" in.
  Strangely enough, GOG decided to stop relying on geolocation services shortly after they were forced to give higher prices to Australians on The Witcher 2 by the local publisher.
4. Re:Very nice. by Luckyo · 2011-05-31 01:01 · Score: 1
  
  1. Version that was pirated first was DVD version.
  2. Game included two layers of protection:
  a. You must activate the game online
  b. Securom protection
  There was a crack for both in the DVD version that was online the day after release. Funnily many of people who bought DVD version like myself, ended up getting the crack to strip securom because it caused so many problems.
  P.S. As far as I know, online activation part of DRM is still in the game, even after this patch.
5. Re:Very nice. by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 01:35 · Score: 0
  
  wait, you willingly expose yourself to potential botnetting even when you actually have the legit game?
6. Re:Very nice. by Luckyo · 2011-05-31 02:53 · Score: 1
  
  Did you willingly expose yourself to botnetting this week by visiting any site whose advertising network may have delivered same kind of malware through a zero-day exploit in your browser?
  The risk is there no matter what you do on the internet, but I trust well-known crack groups that have been releasing stuff for years far more then random advertisement networks.
7. Re:Very nice. by delinear · 2011-05-31 03:31 · Score: 1
  
  The points you mention in your first paragraph are addressed in the PA article - the comic is exaggerated for comedic effect (the first game was similar, you could run around and fight things and always run away if they were too powerful, but the unavoidable fight at the end of the first village was tough if you went into it underpowered, and unavoidable if you went into it too early, it was a "point of no return" situation).
  As for dying 47 times, he does also mention that he was trying to do something that the developers didn't intend him to do because he was curious. If you're a regular PA reader you'd probably not have such a hard time understanding how "Tycho" could die 47 times in that case :)
8. Re:Very nice. by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 04:43 · Score: 0
  
  And shortly after they had to release a censored version there, as well.
  Seriously, there's literally no reason to complain about GOG at this point. Everyone's from the US if they want to be, their brand new game came out DRM free, we had it 95% pre-loaded before launch, anyone who got stuck paying a European price hike got 2 free games. Everyone got one free RPG from their site as part of the pre-order bonus (I had them all, so GOG just said, pick any game on our site you don't have, and they honored my choice).
9. Re:Very nice. by Squiddie · 2011-05-31 06:10 · Score: 1
  
  I bought this game and I've been wondering about that. I don't think that you have to activate to play, though. The game will install without activation and then you can just patch it.
10. Re:Very nice. by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 06:27 · Score: 0
  
  I bought the game on Steam so I don't have the manual myself (unless they make some digital version available that I've missed). Also, I haven't been able to find a description of what the various signs do in the in-game journal.
11. Re:Very nice. by Luckyo · 2011-05-31 07:30 · Score: 1
  
  From what I heard (warning: hearsay), patch will not install on DVD version installation until it has been activated. So when installing 1.1, you have to:
  1. Install the game from DVD
  2. Activate the game
  3. Patch
  4. Play
  You cannot reverse 2 and 3.
12. Re:Very nice. by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-31 18:03 · Score: 1
  
  Mhh I have to check the in game journal, but in the gog version the manual came as pdf and was installed with the game on the hd. Not sure how it is with steam, in steam often the manual is a separate download link within the games page.
  If you dont have descriptions to the signs you can forget about the game there is no way to even go through the intro section without using Aard (push) ,Yrden(magic trap), or the shield spell (the last on the list dont know its name currently, think Quen)
13. Re:Very nice. by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-31 18:05 · Score: 1
  
  Ok I checked steam, the versions site is exactly the same as the one which came with gog there is a manual and a full game guide (soluition) included so you might check your install.
Now I dont need to download a copy from the bay! by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 20:28 · Score: 0

I bought the game, and had loads of trouble installing it due to my antivirus viewed the DRM as a trojan.
I waited some days untill clamAV updated its definitions.
Starting my game now is shakey at best if I dont dissable AV. Also, if the network is slow, the loader just halts.
I was very close to searching for a cracked version, since they usually works better.
Will be nice to not having to do that now.
Re:Now I dont need to download a copy from the bay by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-30 20:51 · Score: 1

You also could have bought the DRM free GOG version :-)
News little old by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:02 · Score: 0

Patch and info coming from the last friday.
Anonymous C.
Related News: The Witcher 1 is still not patchable by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:03 · Score: 0

As the authentication servers for The Witcher (the first part) are still down (for at least three weeks now), people who want to reinstall the first game are still out of luck, because they can't patch it. Yes, CD Project is really very customer friendly: Introducing authentication to patching and then closing down the servers.
Not from the goodness of their heart by flimflammer · 2011-05-30 21:06 · Score: 2

The DRM was causing severe issues with the game. The only logical move they could make aside from telling their users tough luck was to remove the DRM.
It's certainly a nice story but it's not for the right reasons. They're just aiming for some good press by putting a positive spin on the fact that their DRM was defective to the point of breaking the game for its users.
1. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:27 · Score: 2, Interesting
  
  Actually, they always intended to remove the DRM ASAP. I have been a supporter of CD Projekt since they took similar action with The Witcher 1 (removing the godawful TAGES crap).
  Originally it was their intent to have no DRM on the Witcher 2. When I found out they did a U-turn on that (a month or two ago) I contacted their customer support to express my disappointment. I got a very nice e-mail back telling me exactly why they included DRM on some versions of the game (publishing requirements, stopping before-release leaks etc.), where I could get a non-DRM version if I preferred (GoG.com) and that they intended to get rid of it as soon as they were allowed to. They delivered on this promise, which is why I am likely to buy their games again.
2. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by mcvos · 2011-05-30 22:15 · Score: 1
  
  They're still nicer than Ubisoft or Sony, who would have told their users to suck it.
3. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 23:19 · Score: 0
  
  Err, its exactly for the right reasons. CDProjekt, the developer of the game, also runs gog.com. Heard of it? Its a DRM free game store.
  CDProjekt has ALWAYS been against DRM. The copies they sell from gog.com don't have, and have never had, DRM.
4. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by Luckyo · 2011-05-31 01:08 · Score: 1
  
  "Godawful TAGES crap" stayed in the game up to version 1.4, at which point they got tired of paying for tech support having to keep answering people about problems with it.
  Witcher 2 DRM was pure marketing. GoG got "exclusive DRM free" game which is sold for more then many other retailers, and everyone else got screwed by broken securom, which apparently caused vast majority of technical issues with the game. Just like original.
  This time, folks at CD Project decided they didn't want to pay too much for tech support until 1.4, and axed securom in 1.1 (long after securom was cracked anyway). It's a purely financial decision, and is pretty unlikely to have anything to do with gamers (other then positive publicity). Fact remains that if you wanted to run DVD version of witcher2 properly before 1.1, you had to crack securom.
5. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by Abstrackt · 2011-05-31 01:31 · Score: 1
  
  They're just aiming for some good press by putting a positive spin on the fact that their DRM was defective to the point of breaking the game for its users.
  They also released a DRM-free version from the start. I have this romanticized notion that the DRM was deliberately bad to make a point and that this will push more users to ask for DRM-free games.
  
  --
  They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it's not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance. - Terry Pratchett
6. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 01:36 · Score: 0
  
  That's the real problem, temporary DRM is no better than permanent because it still messes up your machine.
7. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 02:07 · Score: 0
  
  The DRM was causing severe issues with the game. The only logical move they could make aside from telling their users tough luck was to remove the DRM.
  It's certainly a nice story but it's not for the right reasons. They're just aiming for some good press by putting a positive spin on the fact that their DRM was defective to the point of breaking the game for its users.
  Nothing you've said necessarily invalidates what the press release said. It actually sounds like this problem is one of the reasons the devs were hesitant to put DRM in to begin with. Now that it's accomplished its goal (pre-release security), and given this problem, they're REALLY ready to chuck the DRM.
  I know this is /. and we're all hardcore jaded regarding devs/SW shops, etc (thanks EA, Ubi, et al.) but not everyone is evil. These guys are known for being light on DRM and I'd rather think (perhaps somewhat naively) that this is an honest press-release.
8. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by 0123456 · 2011-05-31 02:40 · Score: 1
  
  It's certainly a nice story but it's not for the right reasons. They're just aiming for some good press by putting a positive spin on the fact that their DRM was defective to the point of breaking the game for its users.
  While that's true, they sold the game DRM-free from day one through gog.com. From what I understand the DRM was only there because the retail publisher demanded it.
  And from what I've read the DRM was cracked by day zero, as the Polish retail version was available a day before the rest of the world and apparently available on torrent sites.
9. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by supersloshy · 2011-05-31 03:17 · Score: 1
  
  CD Projekt, the developer/publisher of the game, also owns GOG.com. The version they sold themselves was completely DRM-free, as is every other game on GOG. Why do you think that is? It's because, like they said, they have a stance against DRM. They hate it as much as we do, and they removed it very shortly after release not just because it caused issues, but because they never planned to keep the DRM on all versions of the game (which would that be stupidly inconsistent if they didn't remove it). What evidence do you have to believe that they approve of DRM? Your assertions are rather unfounded, and it would help if you actually did a little bit of research on CD Projekt before commenting.
  
  --
  "Our country is not nearly so overrun with the bigoted as it is overrun with the broadminded." -Archbishop Fulton Sheen
10. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by squidguy · 2011-05-31 04:42 · Score: 1
  
  TAGES...a total suckfest. Started getting weird unsigned driver errors in Win 7...after some digging discovered it was TAGES. WTF...mass market and can't even comply with OS vendor requirements? And while undocumented, the assholes at TAGES had a Win64 patch. Now, if only they'd fix the crash problems in Witcher2.
11. Re:Not from the goodness of their heart by PhxBlue · 2011-05-31 08:34 · Score: 1
  
  The DRM was causing severe issues with the game.
  And that's different from most other DRM how, exactly?
  
  --
  !#@%*)anks for hanging up the phone, dear.
Heavily overpriced at GOG by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 21:09 · Score: 0

In Poland (witcher's producer country) u can buy this game for 80z (polish zloty). In the same time it costs 49.99$ at GOG.
49.99$ x 2.75 makes 137,4z vs 80z from retail.
Funny.
1. Re:Heavily overpriced at GOG by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-30 22:44 · Score: 1
  
  ah ok, here in Austria it was the same retail and on gog, but on gog I got a rebate for additional gog games for the difference of the Dollar-Euro price.
2. Re:Heavily overpriced at GOG by Luckyo · 2011-05-31 01:03 · Score: 1
  
  GoG was still massively overpriced. Play.com offered DVD version for about 10€ cheaper including delivery anywhere in EU (and of course you got all the boxed game goodies with it).
Witcher 1 by zyzko · 2011-05-30 21:16 · Score: 1

About time - maybe they learned something from customer feedback about the first game which is a pile of drm-facepalms. The DVD version has protection that won't work on 64bit Windows7 machines properly. It also has server-authentication. And good luck with their customer support, I think they try their best but English is not in my experience the language you will get serviced the best.
1. Re:Witcher 1 by paziek · 2011-05-30 22:41 · Score: 1
  
  I have bought Witcher 1 a few days ago, its Platinium edition or whatnot, patched to latest 1.5 and DRM free. No need for any activation or whatever, but I hear it was bad before they removed DRM. Back in the days I doubt they expected it would get much attention outside of Poland, so they might have lacked ENG support - it was pretty big surprise for everyone, that this game got so popular. Witcher was well known even before its got its game here - heck, my dad knows Witcher, so their target market was local one most likely. They might have diverted a bit from that with Witcher 2, so maybe try again if you like - I expected improvements in areas that you mentioned and were lacking.
2. Re:Witcher 1 by zyzko · 2011-05-30 23:21 · Score: 1
  
  Well, I have the DVD which doesn't install on Windows7 64bit - it is so bad that it once messed totally up my DVD drive and I had to dig through forums to find uninstall for the DRM driver. So not very funny because there is chicken-egg problem here. But if I get adventurous I'll try if I can manage to get the 1.5 patch installed without ruining my access to DVD's.
  Right now the GOG version of 2 does it for me (it was expensive compared to retail but DRM-free from day 1 so I bought it despite my lack of confidence to CD Projekt) and hey, it has uncensored rendered boobies, lot's of them and they have done a pretty good job on that part ;)
3. Re:Witcher 1 by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 02:10 · Score: 0
  
  I had no problem installing Witcher 1 on Windows 7 x64 (I started out with the UK version however). I did have a small issue putting in the 1.4 patch but that was resolved by executing the files in Windows XP Service Pack 2 compatibility mode AND by using the 'unreg' patch which removes the registration check from the 1.4 patch executable (the old registration servers for Witcher 1 are apparently _gone_ now). Once 1.4 is in the patching to 1.5 was routine.
4. Re:Witcher 1 by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 03:00 · Score: 0
  
  I bought the game Day 1 from Fry's (hard to beat $35) and it installed and worked fine on 64bit Win7 home premium. A friend on Win7 64bit ultimate couldn't play the game until the patch came out though. I suspect it's because I set myself up as an administrator on my machine and he's running as a power user account.
  Not trying to say the DRM wasn't causing problems, just that there are 64bit machines it was working on.
Been DRM-free from day one by Kjella · 2011-05-30 21:21 · Score: 1

Been DRM-free from day one on gog.com. So no big surprise there, also the idea that you need DRM to protect it before release is not meaningful. Encrypt the whole thing, release a universal one-key-to-decrypt-them-all on release day.

--
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
1. Re:Been DRM-free from day one by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 15:02 · Score: 0
  
  yeah I am also confused about this. Why do you need to protect something before release? If it's not released yet, then nobody should have it to copy in the first place. (If you're sending out all sorts of advance and review copies, then somehow it is released though.)
Huh. by AlphaBlade · 2011-05-30 21:34 · Score: 1

Kinda feel like buying it now, just to encourage the trend.
1. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 22:16 · Score: 0
  
  and because it's also an awesome game
2. Re:Huh. by slackbheep · 2011-05-30 22:43 · Score: 1
  
  It helps that the game itself is fantastic as well. Fun, beautiful, and wonderfully detailed. Unfortunately it sort of falls flat at the end as they seemed to want to leave themselves lots of room for DLC and/or expansions.
Re:Related News: The Witcher 1 is still not patcha by Tuidjy · 2011-05-30 22:39 · Score: 1

At the time of your posting, CD Project had already released a patch that upgrades the retail version of the original Witcher to the Enhanced Edition without checking registration.
But the only way that I know this is because I read a bit of Polish. As far as I know, there is no announcement in English and a bunch of frustrated people are complaining about being unable to play the original Witcher.

--
No good deed goes unpunished...
The Witcher 2, after 1 - again leaving a legacy. by diorcc · 2011-05-30 22:39 · Score: 1

For such a small game studio (how they started) in Poland - they really managed to impress me with The Witcher 1 (enhanced edition). The quality of the content, storyline and also game play were worthy of a great book. But one you can swing a sword in, flirt with the ladies and form what felt like well emulated human relationships through your character's choices. This move shows that they're getting it right. If anything piracy may increase their reputation and "fanbois" like me -- and I rarely make a stand about a game. I also enjoyed Assassin's Creed 2 etc - but the DRM annoyed the **** out of me. A paying customer. After owning a few ubi titles - I still heavily dislike the firm. Although I am hooked on AC and will be buying the new one as well. I haven't had a chance to touch any time-intensive games due to finishing uni - but this one is on my list. And with one fell swoop CDPROJEKT won even more of my respect.
Re:Related News: The Witcher 1 is still not patcha by Tuidjy · 2011-05-30 22:44 · Score: 3, Informative

Just in case someone wants to reinstall the original Witcher: The Patch 1.4 on this page http://www.en.thewitcher.com/the-witcher/1/ will remove the DRM that comes on the retail CD. You will need to download the appropriate language patch in the same directory. And then you can apply patch 1.5 for extra content.
CD Project are trying. They fucked up big time with the registration servers, but I do not think it was trough malice. Never attribute to malice that which, yada, yada...

--
No good deed goes unpunished...
I was on the fence by chuckymonkey · 2011-05-30 23:38 · Score: 1

I read about this a couple of days ago. I wasn't sure if I was going to buy the game or not, with a wife, kids, and career I have to be careful where my gaming dollars go. As soon as I read this I went out and bought the game, if for no other reason than to encourage more acts like this and I couldn't be more pleased. It's a fun and beautiful game.

--
"Some books contain the machinery required to create and sustain universes."-Tycho
Thumbs up by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-30 23:55 · Score: 0

I like thier attitude, and more importantly, the game is amazing
Where is the publisher in all of this? by HaZardman27 · 2011-05-31 00:24 · Score: 1

If I'm not mistaken, Atari has been publishing CDProjekt Red's games; I'd like to hear their opinions on this whole ordeal. It's not that surprising to see a developer against DRM, it'd be interesting to hear the same from a major publisher.

--
Apparently wizard is not a legitimate career path, so I chose programmer instead.
No rootkits then? by lucifron · 2011-05-31 00:27 · Score: 1

After having my pc ruined by rootkits installed along with the game, DRM-"removal", i.e. patching out cd-checks or whatever just doesn't cut it for me.
Fuck you publishers, I'm not touching any of your DRM laden crap ever again..
1. Re:No rootkits then? by lucifron · 2011-05-31 00:34 · Score: 1
  
  By "the game", I'm not referring to the witcher, I guess it could be read that way.
just once is enough by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 01:38 · Score: 0

I downloaded the game (legit copy, from GOG) and fired it up. I watched the leading video. I selected an intro choice randomly from the menu on the screen. My first controlled game play began. Ooh, look, there's an instruction on the screen about how to move my character. I started reading the sentence. I got about halfway through when I died a fiery death under dragon's breath.
I died only once. I haven't played since. *shrug* I didn't have to die 47 times to decide that the game wasn't worth the learning curve. If I die within seconds while reading the game-provided instructions... I don't want to waste hours of my life to discover all of the other ill-designed "features" of the game.
1. Re:just once is enough by MemoryDragon · 2011-05-31 05:21 · Score: 1
  
  You could have opened the journal and reread the tutorial
  also you could have played from the first mission to get a nice step by step intro
  you are missing an awesome game.
2. Re:just once is enough by Yunzil · 2011-05-31 06:35 · Score: 1
  
  The problem is the manual contains some things that are wrong.
  And there's no indication that you should play the intros in the order given. I picked the dragon one also, because it sounded cool. Very shortly after that I was nearly ready to snap the disk in half.
"We felt DRM was necessary to prevent the game.." by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 01:57 · Score: 0

"We felt DRM was necessary to prevent the game being pirated and leaked before release."
Actually, it didn't. I had this game installed for about an hour. Then removed it. So, it was (lack of) quality instead of DRM that prevented me from using it.
I'm happy, i got the pirated version instead of paying then throwing it away.
but now they locked down the aspect ratio by Anonymous Coward · 2011-05-31 02:31 · Score: 0

Before the 1.1 patch, I was able to play Witcher 2 in windowed mode at 6048x1200 resolution using eyefinity.
It is an amazing game across 3 monitors.
But now they have locked it down to 16:9 preventing gaming across 3 screens.
I hope they relax this in the 1.2 patch.
Re:"We felt DRM was necessary to prevent the game. by supersloshy · 2011-05-31 03:25 · Score: 1

Actually, it didn't. I had this game installed for about an hour. Then removed it. So, it was (lack of) quality instead of DRM that prevented me from using it.
I'm happy, i got the pirated version instead of paying then throwing it away.
I'm not so sure that the first hour of a pirated, hardcore CRPG is a good indicator of whether or not the game is worth playing (especially since, due to being pirated, it might have issues in it not in the official release). A lot of very good games had slow starts, including many Zelda games (especially Twilight Princess), Final Fantasy XII (which got great critical acclaim, even a perfect Famitsu score, despite it's slow start), the Monster Hunter series (I've put 11 hours into Monster Hunter Tri and I haven't even learned how to capture monsters yet), and so on. I'd give the game WAY longer than an hour before you decide if it's good or not. Some of the most engaging games I've played had slow starts.

--
"Our country is not nearly so overrun with the bigoted as it is overrun with the broadminded." -Archbishop Fulton Sheen
Fantastic. by Anonymous Coward · 2011-06-12 04:50 · Score: 0

Soulcommander here..........Now if Ubisoft could get us a patch for a very old game that started our anti Starforce campaign.....Silent Hunter 3.....needs a Ubi patch to remove that piece of trash copy protection. Ubisoft is so lame and gives no concern for its customers past or present.....But thank you Witcher 2 for removing the DRM with a patch. I can now install without having to be connected to the net.