Nevermind the fact that its written on the box that an internet connection is REQUIRED to play. They told you up front, don't cry about it if you don't meet the minimum requirements.
But hey, I guess you'll just steal it and crack it with your 'non-existant internet connection' to really show your cival disobediance. Go you, showing yet again that stupid will always prevail over logic and reason.
This would have been the first post, but it was delayed due to pending litigation between myself and my publisher ^_^
Really, its sad when a publisher, who really didn't do anything to produce the game, makes loyal fans (who in turn are going to buy the game and therefore pay their salaries) wait just 'because thats how they want it.' In the end, they are only hurting themselves AND the developers, because most people will get angry over something as little as this and NOT buy the game. (Ive heard many people say they wouldn't support Valve or VU because of the constant delays and BS between the two companies.)
Considering how good this game is, I doubt anyone will actually stick to it and NOT buy it, but thats all due to Valves Hard work. VU just gets to laugh all the way to the bank.
It's people like you that are the problem.. Please learn to read.
Problem 1) The VENDOR sold a game that was clearly marked not to be sold UNTIL 11/16/2004. (NOTICE THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE CUSTOMER BUYING IT, BUT RATHER THE VENDOR SELLING.)
Problem 2) Because the VENDOR made a mistake, that does not give the purchaser a right to "HACK" the software so he can play it. The rules still stands that the game has *NOT* been officially released, and therefore should not be played.
Think of it like buying software over the internet.. say Windows.. You purchased a legit copy, and its 'in the mail'.. so instead of waiting 2 days, you just go ahead and download a copy of bittorrent and use a stolen CD key and your up and running.. you DID pay for the software right?
-WRONG. That's unethical and against the user agreement of the software (in most cases).. (You probably have never read one, which goes to show why you responded the way you did.) You are licensed to use the software you purchased, with the KEY you purchased.. Not any version of the software with any key you can find.
And FYI - Bypassing ANY copy protection is unethical unless you have been given permission by those that have put the copy protection on the system. It doesn't matter how you THINK it should be, it's still unethical.
I'd say no - Technically it wasn't proper for the vendors to sell the copies of HL2 until the 16th. Thats why the authentication is in place to begin with.
Cracking the Authentication, even though you have purchased the retail copy, is still unethical..
"Two wrongs don't make a right" probably fits...
it was mentioned I believe in the Steam Forums (or possibly another of the 5billions places this story was posted) that this might not be such a 'foul up' as originally thought.
HL2 has been marketed mostly by word of mouth and videos on the web.. Everyone with a video card worth over 100$ knwos about this game 'somehow' so a hard marketing drive hasn't been needed...
But consider the way Steam works and the set up where even if you buy retail, you still have to authenticate through the system... This ensures NOBODY can play before the official release date (short of hacking the authentication) - so who cares if its sold early or not? The ONLY thing that is going to happen is more people are going to buy the game by the 'release date'.. And considering this is now being posted on every gaming or semi-informational tech website, think of all the free publicity! I think EVERYONE who knows ANYTHING about this type of game has been somehow reached and is ready to shell out their 50+ hard earned bucks to pick up a copy. This seems like a final quick push to grab a couple extra sales..
(Or of course, it could be that Best Buy are a bunch of idiots and just plain didn't bother to look at the release dates) =)
Slashdot Mirror
That is *EXACTLY* what I did. Although technically no matter how you buy it I would think VU is getting some sort of kickback through their contract.
Nevermind the fact that its written on the box that an internet connection is REQUIRED to play. They told you up front, don't cry about it if you don't meet the minimum requirements. But hey, I guess you'll just steal it and crack it with your 'non-existant internet connection' to really show your cival disobediance. Go you, showing yet again that stupid will always prevail over logic and reason.
This would have been the first post, but it was delayed due to pending litigation between myself and my publisher ^_^
Really, its sad when a publisher, who really didn't do anything to produce the game, makes loyal fans (who in turn are going to buy the game and therefore pay their salaries) wait just 'because thats how they want it.' In the end, they are only hurting themselves AND the developers, because most people will get angry over something as little as this and NOT buy the game. (Ive heard many people say they wouldn't support Valve or VU because of the constant delays and BS between the two companies.)
Considering how good this game is, I doubt anyone will actually stick to it and NOT buy it, but thats all due to Valves Hard work. VU just gets to laugh all the way to the bank.
It's people like you that are the problem.. Please learn to read. Problem 1) The VENDOR sold a game that was clearly marked not to be sold UNTIL 11/16/2004. (NOTICE THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE CUSTOMER BUYING IT, BUT RATHER THE VENDOR SELLING.) Problem 2) Because the VENDOR made a mistake, that does not give the purchaser a right to "HACK" the software so he can play it. The rules still stands that the game has *NOT* been officially released, and therefore should not be played. Think of it like buying software over the internet.. say Windows.. You purchased a legit copy, and its 'in the mail'.. so instead of waiting 2 days, you just go ahead and download a copy of bittorrent and use a stolen CD key and your up and running.. you DID pay for the software right? -WRONG. That's unethical and against the user agreement of the software (in most cases).. (You probably have never read one, which goes to show why you responded the way you did.) You are licensed to use the software you purchased, with the KEY you purchased.. Not any version of the software with any key you can find. And FYI - Bypassing ANY copy protection is unethical unless you have been given permission by those that have put the copy protection on the system. It doesn't matter how you THINK it should be, it's still unethical.
I'd say no - Technically it wasn't proper for the vendors to sell the copies of HL2 until the 16th. Thats why the authentication is in place to begin with. Cracking the Authentication, even though you have purchased the retail copy, is still unethical.. "Two wrongs don't make a right" probably fits...
it was mentioned I believe in the Steam Forums (or possibly another of the 5billions places this story was posted) that this might not be such a 'foul up' as originally thought. HL2 has been marketed mostly by word of mouth and videos on the web.. Everyone with a video card worth over 100$ knwos about this game 'somehow' so a hard marketing drive hasn't been needed... But consider the way Steam works and the set up where even if you buy retail, you still have to authenticate through the system... This ensures NOBODY can play before the official release date (short of hacking the authentication) - so who cares if its sold early or not? The ONLY thing that is going to happen is more people are going to buy the game by the 'release date'.. And considering this is now being posted on every gaming or semi-informational tech website, think of all the free publicity! I think EVERYONE who knows ANYTHING about this type of game has been somehow reached and is ready to shell out their 50+ hard earned bucks to pick up a copy. This seems like a final quick push to grab a couple extra sales.. (Or of course, it could be that Best Buy are a bunch of idiots and just plain didn't bother to look at the release dates) =)
So thats where all the Spanish people are during "Star Trek" Episodes!