TOO ANGRY FOR WORDS: Stalker 2 to have "permanent online DRM"

Dia on 8/10/2011 at 22:47

Okay, so I don't have a cock, but I am REALLY PISSED OFF ABOUT THIS. Same goes for all my Stalker friends on other forums. I honestly hope GSC gives a listen to this backlash; but then again, maybe it'll take all of us not buying S2 to make them come around.

DAMMIT SERGEI: I GAVE YOU SOME OF THE BEST MONTHS OF MY LIFE AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME?!!!??!

just fuck off then

:( :mad:

gunsmoke on 8/10/2011 at 22:49

I didn't buy Clear Sky because of how cocked up it was, so I am certainly capable of skipping STALKER games. Consider this the 2nd time that will happen.

gunsmoke on 8/10/2011 at 23:12

Oh, and as buggy as STALKER games already are, this will guarantee a super fucking glitchy mess at release.

Muzman on 8/10/2011 at 23:54

Oddly enough, you missed Call of Pripyat which was one of the most stable games I've encountered in years (not that I encounter that many)

Anyway, it's weird. Whoever runs GSCs twitter has heard nothing about any of this.

Bjossi on 9/10/2011 at 00:09

Wouldn't this also kill any modding potential?

ANTSHODAN on 9/10/2011 at 01:14

Bjossi: There's only speculation on whether there will be any effect on modding. Most folks are guessing that since certain parts of the game; (text, code, quests etc) will be streamed from a GSC server, it will be difficult or impossible to actually mod them. I suppose if graphics and sound assets are client-side then they can be modded. Similarly, I expect the main chunk of how the game actually works will be client side. Probably...

Some of the comments on the Official Stalker facebook group through the day have been pure facepalm material . Some people seem to think that this DRM is a good thing because they've convinced themselves that it will work similar to OnLive:erm: while throwing accusations that anyone who doesn't like DRM obviously never paid for any Stalker games in the first place. Others are making wild claims (remember, there has been no proper confirmation from GSC yet) about how loading a new area will take half an hour because itll download ALL the assets on demand. We gamers sure know how to stick together, huh? :laff:

Bjossi on 9/10/2011 at 01:36

The big problem with these implementations is not necessarily the DRM itself but the fact it is never, ever patched out. As soon as a game is cracked and available on file sharing networks and torrent trackers the DRM is rendered completely useless. Yet it is never patched out, not even when the critical period of the game's life has long since passed. DRM is in its very nature a temporary solution, there is no DRM that can't and won't get cracked, it is just a matter of when. But for some reason, I suppose a financial one, this is being treated as a permanent solution.

I would go as far as to say that there should be a legal requirement to remove all form of DRM from a game when it has met certain conditions, like time since release, time since it got cracked, average sales per timeframe, etc. Since the companies lack the iniative to play fair and reasonable with their loyal user base it seems that a legal enforcement is necessary. It never ceases to amaze me how low people are willing to go just because there isn't a law that forbids it. What happened to just being nice to other individuals and enjoy the feeling of doing a good deed?

I would be a lot more willing to buy a game on release and live with draconian DRM implementations if I KNEW it would get patched out in the near-ish future. Didn't Atari promise to remove the DRM from Riddick Dark Athena? Unless I have been living in a cave the DRM is still present and that game is well over 2.5 years old and was cracked at most 0.01 years later.

HamburgerBoy on 9/10/2011 at 01:40

I was going to complain, being that the STALKER games are among the few games of the last few years that I actually purchased. Then I remembered that Clear Sky had DRM and that I only bought it once they removed it and had a ~$5 sale on Steam for it. I'll wait for that to happen again this time.

Dia on 9/10/2011 at 02:27

Quote Posted by ANTSHODAN

Some of the comments on the Official Stalker facebook group through the day have been pure facepalm material . Some people seem to think that this DRM is a good thing because they've convinced themselves that it will work similar to OnLive:erm: while throwing accusations that anyone who doesn't like DRM obviously never paid for any Stalker games in the first place. Others are making wild claims (remember, there has been no proper confirmation from GSC yet) about how loading a new area will take half an hour because itll download ALL the assets on demand. We gamers sure know how to stick together, huh? :laff:

From what I've been reading on the Official Stalker FB site ((http://www.facebook.com/officialstalker)) it doesn't sound to me as though anybody (okay, well, ONE guy, and that was 7 hours ago) is thinking this DRM is a good thing. Are we talking about the same FB site?

Ostriig on 9/10/2011 at 22:20

GSC's response on the matter:

Quote:

Originally Posted by (http://twitter.com/#!/gscstalker/status/123028034835062784) Twitter gscstalker, via (http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/10/09/gsc-respond-on-stalker-2-drm-issue/) RPS

The idea of implementing DRM came in as a possible anti-piracy solution. You know the severe level of commercial piracy we have here in ex-USSR region. This said however, there is no firm decision to go for DRM with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 as of now. Be assured, we do realize how uncomfortable this solution is for the players, so we’ll continue looking for most effective, yet acceptable for all, way of protecting the game by the time of its release.