Ubisoft games - poster children for piracy?

[Syt]

Exhibit 1: "I Am Alive" http://iamalive-game.ubi.com/iamalive/en-GB/

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-11-23-why-i-am-alive-is-unlikely-to-launch-on-pc

Post-apocalyptic survival game I Am Alive launches this winter on PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade. Why not on PC?

For the game's creative director Stanislas Mettra, the reason is simple: PC gamers probably won't buy it, despite their moaning about it not being available.

"We've heard loud and clear that PC gamers are bitching about there being no version for them," Mettra told IncGamers.

"But are these people just making noise just because there's no version or because it's a game they actually want to play? Would they buy it if we made it?"

Ubisoft has had a troubled relationship with PC gamers in recent years. Many of its PC games force players to always be online to work.

Ubisoft game Driver: San Francisco came under fire recently for particularly stringent DRM that required gamers to be online all of the time. Ubisoft later tweaked this so an online sign-in was required once, at game launch; Driver: San Francisco can then be played offline.

PC game piracy, a subject Eurogamer recently investigated, is often blamed when publishers explain their PC-related decisions. Ubisoft has claimed its policy is a success, insisting it has seen "a clear reduction in piracy of our titles which required a persistent online connection".

Mettra said piracy makes porting games to PC financially difficult.

"It's hard because there's so much piracy and so few people are paying for PC games that we have to precisely weigh it up against the cost of making it," he said.

"Perhaps it will only take 12 guys three months to port the game to PC, it's not a massive cost but it's still a cost. If only 50,000 people buy the game then it's not worth it."

Exhibit 2: "Ghost Recon: Future Soldier"

http://www.pcgamer.com/2011/11/23/ghost-recon-online-being-free-to-play-is-a-counter-to-piracy-says-ubisoft-producer

Ghost Recon Online producer Sébastien Arnoult says that free-to-play games are a response to piracy – and an alternative to the restrictive DRM that's annoyed PC gamers in so many recent Ubisoft games.

"We are giving away most of the content for free because there's no barrier to entry. To the users that are traditionally playing the game by getting it through Pirate Bay [ ], we said, 'Okay, go ahead guys. This is what you're asking for. We've listened to you – we're giving you this experience. It's easy to download, there's no DRM that will pollute your experience.'"

While Ghost Recon Online is exclusive to PC, Ubisoft's other Ghost Recon game, Future Soldier, uses a traditional payment model and will only be available on console.

"We're adapting the offer to the PC market. I don't like to compare PC and Xbox boxed products because they have a model on that platform that is clearly meant to be €60's worth of super-Hollywood content. On PC, we're adapting our model to the demand."

The perceived value of PC games is heavily affected by piracy, Arnoult says – both for players and publishers.

"When we started Ghost Recon Online we were thinking about Ghost Recon: Future Solider; having something ported in the classical way without any deep development, because we know that 95% of our consumers will pirate the game. So we said okay, we have to change our mind.

"We have to adapt, we have to embrace this instead of pushing it away. That's the main reflection behind Ghost Recon Online and the choice we've made to go in this direction."

It's a different stance to that of Stanislas Mettra, Creative Director on console-exclusive Ubisoft title I Am Alive. In an interview with IncGamers, he questioned the value of porting games to the PC at all.

"Perhaps it will only take twelve guys three months to port the game to PC, it's not a massive cost but it's still a cost. If only 50,000 people buy the game then it's not worth it."

Both agree that it's a question of commercial viability, but the difference in approach is alarming. While it's great to see the Ghost Recon team treating the PC as a distinct platform with its own needs, we'd like to see that attitude reflected by Ubisoft as a whole.

Ghost Recon Online closed beta is currently active in France and Germany, and is due in the UK in the next few months.

[Razgovory]

I blame Slargos.

[Razgovory]

I found this article very interesting in regards to Piracy.

http://www.tweakguides.com/Piracy_1.html

[Josquius]

Would explain the lack of PC Red Dead

The solution to stopping piracy is already known; lots of stuff from connecting online.

[Razgovory]

Would explain the lack of PC Red Dead

The solution to stopping piracy is already known; lots of stuff from connecting online.

Yeah, that was one I really wanted to play. I like Westerns.  If having the game constantly connected online for PC gaming to be a viable market I'm willing to tolerate it.

[Cerr]

Would explain the lack of PC Red Dead

The solution to stopping piracy is already known; lots of stuff from connecting online.

Not really. They released GTA 4 and LA Noire for the PC.

Forcing people to be always online for single player games is idiotic. DRM like that punishes the people that are willing to pay for games, not the pirates.

[Razgovory]

Would explain the lack of PC Red Dead

The solution to stopping piracy is already known; lots of stuff from connecting online.

Not really. They released GTA 4 and LA Noire for the PC.

Forcing people to be always online for single player games is idiotic. DRM like that punishes the people that are willing to pay for games, not the pirates.

What do you suggest then?  If you can come up with something, I'm sure they'd like to hear it.

[Ed Anger]

Dongles.

[Josquius]

Forcing people to always be online is crap. I've never encountered a game with such fortunately.
They should use the carrot, not the stick, giving rewards, extra modes of play, etc.... for connecting online however.
One of the big reasons half life did so well was people had to buy it so they could play counter strike online.

Not really. They released GTA 4 and LA Noire for the PC.

Why then not Red Dead if they have released LA Noire?

[Grey Fox]

Would explain the lack of PC Red Dead

The solution to stopping piracy is already known; lots of stuff from connecting online.

Not really. They released GTA 4 and LA Noire for the PC.

Forcing people to be always online for single player games is idiotic. DRM like that punishes the people that are willing to pay for games, not the pirates.

What do you suggest then?  If you can come up with something, I'm sure they'd like to hear it.

Demos

[crazy canuck]

Forcing people to be always online for single player games is idiotic. DRM like that punishes the people that are willing to pay for games, not the pirates.

Is that because the pirates can still play those games without being online?

[Razgovory]

Demos

Still get pirated.

[Grey Fox]

Demos

Still get pirated.

Everything gets pirated. You can not stop it. What you can stop is make the people that are on the shelf about buying your game try it & then buy it instead of not letting them try it & thus point them toward the pirated copies.

Plus it would help if they let us return our game. That's a god damn travesty.

[Tonitrus]

The obvious solution is code wheels.

[Syt]

Would explain the lack of PC Red Dead

The solution to stopping piracy is already known; lots of stuff from connecting online.

Diablo III will take "always on" DRM to the next level. Parts of the game will remain on Blizzard's servers (like in an MMO), so even in single player you won't be able to do much without logging onto their service.