The Digital Rights Management controversy is a puzzling imbroglio. 
Here we are, thriving in the computer-spawned convenience of the 
twenty-first century, and there are still dinosaurs out there who think 
the only way to handle digital theft is to keep raising the bar of copy 
protection schemes.

These game publishers are blindly painting themselves into a 
dangerous corner. It's become obvious to most observers of this 
ongoing debacle that the revenue-loss motivations of the past have 
been replaced by a dig-the-heels-in, vindictive anger against the 
crackerz. It's been clearly demonstrated with one hundred percent 
consistency that all the money these game publishers spend on copy 
protection is completely wasted. How much better would the "protected" 
games have been if the publishers had taken those large sums of 
squandered cash and instead invested them where they belonged, with 
the developers?

The money is wasted because there hasn't been a protection scheme 
created that hasn't been cracked, most within a week of release. Only 
stubborn pride could possibly spur these publishers to continue 
crusading for the Holy Grail of copy protection. Meanwhile, in the 
wake of these futile skirmishes stand the growing numbers of 
resentment-filled gamers who paid for their games and are forced to 
deal with completely unnecessary obstacles to their enjoyment. These 
gamers are getting increasingly fed up with each game they purchase 
that compels them to jump through more and greater hoops.

"Sins of a Solar Empire" has sold (and is still selling) many, many
units. Why does that matter? This 2008 game is proof positive that
DRM is entirely unnecessary! A full month after release, SoaSE was
selling more than any other PC game, including very popular offerings
from much larger development studios. Read the following BetaNews
article to fully appreciate the unbridled success of a game released
with no DRM on their retail ROM version:
click here


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An open letter to the DRM-crazed Publishers:

I currently own over 500 PC games. I not only possess the original 
retail discs of course, but I also still have all the boxes and manuals. 
I'm a bit of a collector, you could say. I've bought the majority of 
these games at reduced prices or as classic releases, which means I've 
paid a fairer sum than the inflated prices you demanded for them 
when they first hit the shelves. It's gratifying how much money 
gamers can save just by waiting a few months.

With so many games, I possess potentially endless hours of fun.
This means if I never bought another game, I wouldn't regret
it in the least. I already have more than one lifetime's games to
play. And don't think the urge to play the newest game is so great
that most gamers can't say no; that is a foolish miscalculation on 
your part. Your impudent disregard of my consumer experience
makes your DRM-laden games superfluous to me.

My unwavering approach to all games old and new is this: before I 
purchase, I check the Internet for specific information regarding the 
game. If the game carries DRM, and the DRM

is invasive (like StarForce or SecuROM),
places restrictions on my personal use, such as installment 
maximums or requiring online activation, or
has blacklisting code that dictates which software(s) I am
allowed to legally purchase and use...

Then I don't buy the game. Period.

Clearly, Publishers, you've lost touch with one very important fact:

We don't need you; you need us.