Starcraft II DRM?

[shortylickens]

I demand you supply me with a legal Retail copy of the game. :twisted:

Sorry, I'm not rich.
But had I seen your post earlier I would have given you a guest pass. Would you like a WoW guest pass instead?

 

[Patrick Wolf]

Stupid question guys, but is SC2 cd-key permanently tied to your B.net account? What if one day you want to sell it?

No that's a good question. They could make it so your key is unregistered once you uninstall the game, but this is Blizzard so there's about a 99 percent chance it will be permanent. After all DRM doesn't deter piracy, only 2nd-hand sales.

 

[taltamir]

Stupid question guys, but is SC2 cd-key permanently tied to your B.net account? What if one day you want to sell it?

You CAN'T sell it, that is the whole point. The DRM is targeted in second hand market, not piracy. Pirates had a working crack within 2 hours and 22 minutes of the game launch, but you will never be able to sell your game if you bought it.

 

[vhx]

You do realize all these issues have been addressed multiple times before and after the release, right?

And its the job of EVERY business to make money off their customer. Thats what business is. No one is forcing anybody to buy their games. If customers choose to pay 60 dollars each for 3 complete games that will provide thousands of hours of entertainment, thats their choice.

I really think everyone on Anandtech should be forced to take a basic supply/demand seminar before they are allowed to post here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVzx8fts8Ng

I don't care if they were addressed. If the options aren't in and won't be for a while, they aren't getting my money. Simple as that.

I am not sure what exactly you are ranting about regarding the price and economics, considering I never discussed the game's price nor expressed to people not to buy the game.

I really think everyone on Anandtech should be forced to take a basic reading comprehension seminar before they are allowed to post here.

Anyways, enjoy bending over for Activision.

 

[MikeyLSU]

well, if you just register a new battle.net account and just have SC2 tied to it you could just sell your account.

Just make sure not to leave any sensitive information on the account. I'm sure it is against the official rules somewhere to sell an account, but it isn't really that big of a deal.

 

[shortylickens]

I don't care if they were addressed. If the options aren't in and won't be for a while, they aren't getting my money. Simple as that.

I am not sure what exactly you are ranting about regarding the price and economics, considering I never discussed the game's price nor expressed to people not to buy the game.

I really think everyone on Anandtech should be forced to take a basic reading comprehension seminar before they are allowed to post here.

Anyways, enjoy bending over for Activision.

 

[bullbert]

Sorry, I'm not rich.
But had I seen your post earlier I would have given you a guest pass. Would you like a WoW guest pass instead?

Naw, but thanks. I was just playin' with ya.

 

[Bun-Bun]

I did a quick skim of the thread and could not find this information posted.

Not only is the Starcraft II DRM a one time activation on install, it also requires a 30 day reactivation. Meaning you have to log into your battle.net account at least once every 30 days to keep playing.

I will not buy this or any future Blizzard games.

I only found this out after e-mail Blizzard to confirm the online authentication.

Quote from e-mail.

"Greetings!

You would need to connect to the internet at least once every 30 days to re-authenticate your StarCraft II account in order to continue to player the game in offline mode, that is correct. StarCraft II requires an active internet connection to play. This is stated in the System Requirements on the retail box, as well as our online System Requirements. Without an active internet connection, you will not be able to log in to Battle.net to authenticate your copy of StarCraft II.

When in offline mode, you can save your games and those games will be saved locally on your computer. If you play while logged into battle.net, your autosave points in the campaign will be saved on our servers. When transfering to a new computer, there is always the option of simply moving the entire game folder to the new computer's Hard Drive in which case you won't lose your saved game.

We are committed to making StarCraft II as enjoyable as possible. We appreciate your feedback. I will forward your report to the appropriate people. While I cannot guarantee a response, I can assure you it will be read.
If you have any further technical questions or problems, please feel free to contact us at techsupport@blizzard.com

Farewell,
Game Master Aurilaquet
Customer Services
Blizzard Entertainment
www.blizzard.com/support"

Please help me spread this information. I can not find it publically anywhere and I am appalled by this fact. I was so looking forward to buying the game and I am glad I researched this before dropping any cash on it.

 

[Qbah]

Dude... the campaign is like 20 hours... And you have to authenticate once every 30 days for the offline mode. Gameplay = 20h, offline time = up tp 720h. You can play one mission a day and still won't need to be online past the first authentication. A mission is 20-30 minutes... You need constant Internet for multiplayer anyway for battle.net so that's not a problem either. How in the world can that authentication be an issue at all, I have no idea... Really. :hmm:

 

[MikeyLSU]

Dude... the campaign is like 20 hours... And you have to authenticate once every 30 days for the offline mode. Gameplay = 20h, offline time = up tp 720h. You can play one mission a day and still won't need to be online past the first authentication. A mission is 20-30 minutes... You need constant Internet for multiplayer anyway for battle.net so that's not a problem either. How in the world can that authentication be an issue at all, I have no idea... Really. :hmm:

registered today and has 1 post. hmmmm, I'm guessing going forum to forum trolling this.

 

[Bun-Bun]

How is it trolling? I am not doing this specifically to incite anything. I am spreading knowledge that people need to know. Blizzard has been advertiseing they are against DRM and feel that battle.net is the only form of DRM they need. They release good games and with all the features and benefits of being on battle.net the pirates should want to get legit copies. Which is true.

But now they have gone and done this and kept it under wraps. It's deceitful and wrong.

So yes I am spreading this knowledge everywhere I can so that people know. The big uproar about Bioshock and a few of the other bad DRM's was that no one knew before purchaseing. The only difference here is still no one knows. I know I would have been extremely mad had I purchased the game without this knowledge. I am glad I researched it first so now I can save that money for a developer who actually cares about it's customers.

We won against DRM in music. No reason we cant do the same thing with games.

Dude... the campaign is like 20 hours... And you have to authenticate once every 30 days for the offline mode. Gameplay = 20h, offline time = up tp 720h. You can play one mission a day and still won't need to be online past the first authentication. A mission is 20-30 minutes... You need constant Internet for multiplayer anyway for battle.net so that's not a problem either. How in the world can that authentication be an issue at all, I have no idea... Really. :hmm:

Let's say its on your laptop and you haven't played it for awhile but they take your laptop somewhere where there is no interenet access. Now your bored and decide to play for a bit but wait you cant, because the game needs to be reactivated. Seriously how can you not see a problem with this? Esspecially the fact Blizzard has purposefully hidden it from the public.

And why does a single player game need this kind of activation? Seriously. Battle.net is already in place the game does not need more then that for DRM. The game was cracked within 3 hours of release so yet again the pirates are getting a better experience then those who pay and the DRM accomplished nothing.

 

[taltamir]

It isn't trolling, until bun-bun posted I did not know you needed to reactivate every 30 days.
And he has genuine reason to be upset at it.

 

[BladeVenom]

registered today and has 1 post. hmmmm, I'm guessing going forum to forum trolling this.

Are you sure he's a troll, and it's not you who is a Blizzard fanboy?

 

[Qbah]

(...)

Let's say its on your laptop and you haven't played it for awhile but they take your laptop somewhere where there is no interenet access. Now your bored and decide to play for a bit but wait you cant, because the game needs to be reactivated. Seriously how can you not see a problem with this? Esspecially the fact Blizzard has purposefully hidden it from the public.

And why does a single player game need this kind of activation? Seriously. Battle.net is already in place the game does not need more then that for DRM. The game was cracked within 3 hours of release so yet again the pirates are getting a better experience then those who pay and the DRM accomplished nothing.

While I agree they should inform their buyers about such restrictions and I find it disgusting they omitted this fact (as the buyer should be fully informed about his purchase), I still don't think it's a problem to use such DRM.

- what if you sit in your laptop by accident? you can't play
- what if your dog poops on your laptop? you can't play
- what if your laptop's HDD dies? you can't play
- what if...

If you're in a place where there's no internet for more than a month, gaming is probably the last thing on your mind. Now think hard and try to remember - when was the last time you weren't online for even a split second for more than a month? And wanted to game? And be honest about it. Not to mention the computer must be waiting for a month before it can't be used to play unless you re-authorize. You don't' get limited activations, you don't get special uninstallers or anything. You just have to log-in on your battle.net account in-game once a month.

 

[Bun-Bun]

I agree it's a lot less restricting then other DRM's out there.

However my my sister does not have internet and I know my brother in law would like to get this game and play it. He can not. They live 40 minutes outside of the city and there is no major ISP access out there.

It is very plausible for my laptop to go over a month without being connected to the internet. It goes like that quite often actually.

While I was working up north at the mines my computer I left up there went without internet access for for over 6 months. I was stuck out there for 1 week to 2 weeks at a time. I would be unable to play SC2 in that scenario.

Lets say I haven't played SC2 in a few months and I go to play at a time where I don't have internet access. Lets say I just finished moving and I have to wait two weeks for the intaller to come out (because they are that busy here) to install my services or a lighting storm took out the distribution box in my area and they can't get to it for a couple days (or its over a long weekend). I wouldn't be able to play in this scenario.

So yes the DRM is a lot more relaxed then that of, lets say, EA and Ubisoft. However the above scenario's are still very plausible and IMO unacceptable for a game that has a significant single player campaign. To me it is a single player game as I would never go on battle.net.

Diablo III is another matter as I would play that online. However still the issues around their DRM and esspecially their not being public about it... sorry Blizzard is not getting anymore of my money.

 

[MikeyLSU]

Are you sure he's a troll, and it's not you who is a Blizzard fanboy?

you are right, I'm the troll.

again, registered that day and this is his first post. Nobody else seems to think it is such a big deal. Anyone who has a regular internet connection won't be bothered much by this.

But I'll be straightforward, I'm a SC fanboy all the way. I would buy this game regardless of any DRM they put on it. Which is also why I'm not giving much of an opinion on this thread, but when it is that obvious...

EDIT: plus if this DRM is enough to stop someone from buying games, you won't play many games on the market these days.

 

[Bun-Bun]

Earlier in this thread there seemed to be quite a few people who didn't like the idea of a one time authentication on install let alone the 30 day re-activation. So how are there not people bothered by this? And you don't find it bothersome that Blizzard has kept all this hush hush and yet actively states they are against DRM and yet this was the exact problem people had with Bioshock? (Which for me was the game that introduced all this DRM BS with online activations and such)

I think you need to look up the definition of a troll.

There are plenty of games with nothing more then cd-checks and even some now with zero DRM whatsoever. And they sell very well (Fallout 3, Dragon Age (although the DLC is subject to DRM thanks to EA), World of Goo, Prince of Persia... etc).

 

[taltamir]

If you're in a place where there's no internet for more than a month

he didn't say that, he said "if you haven't played SC2 for a month" and THEN went somewhere with no internet...
you could be without an internet connection for only 1 day, but since your computer's clock shows it has been more than a month since your last battle.net connection...

I don't really think its that plausible a scenario for most... but:
1. It really screws the armed forces.
2. It is really unnecessary.
3. It is scummy they did not fully explain it.
4. It is only meant to harm the second hand market.
5. It means that the game stops working at some unspecified point in the future when the servers go down.

 

[Dumac]

Earlier in this thread there seemed to be quite a few people who didn't like the idea of a one time authentication on install let alone the 30 day re-activation. So how are there not people bothered by this? And you don't find it bothersome that Blizzard has kept all this hush hush and yet actively states they are against DRM and yet this was the exact problem people had with Bioshock?

It is pretty troublesome, especially the 30 day re-activation.

I bought the game, and will almost always have an internet connection, but it doesn't sit well with me. A lot of other things (plot wise) don't sit well with me in SC2 either.

Still, the game is damn fun. The campaign is the best RTS campaign I've played, and the multiplayer is the only one that keeps me coming back for more.

There are glaring issues with SC2, yet the sheer fun I'm having with the game outweigh them for me.

 

[Ancalagon44]

Face it - we've allowed these guys to take away our first sale rights and now the right to use the goods we legally bought. They control how and when we can play our games.

Its more convenient for them to sell us a license than a product, although its better for us if its a product. At least console games are mostly unaffected by this although they are trying hard (DLC etc).

Its a sad day when Blizzard treats its customers like criminals.

 

[Barfo]

Its a sad day when Blizzard treats its customers like criminals.

Does that mean they'll let me try a firebat suit?

 

[NYHoustonman]

I love exaggerated DRM drama... Seems to follow every major release .

 

[Rifter]

this 30 day reactivation is bullshit. will now have to consider if its worth it, maybe when it hits $20.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

this 30 day reactivation is bullshit. will now have to consider if its worth it, maybe when it hits $20.

It takes 10 years for Blizzard games to hit 20$. Maybe 20 years now that they're activision Blizzard. Maybe you could get it second hand for that much... oh wait...

 

[Bun-Bun]

Well after some more reading, discussing, and consideration, I realize this isnt' excessive DRM. This is only a function of the game as they call it a MMORTS.

This an even more disturbing thought then the DRM thing. Because this is a whole new classification of game that somehow gets around original EULA's that basically said you had to be able to play a game without any additional fee's. Premium services could be charged but basic gameplay had to be free after the intial cost. This tied in with no LAN support means they are pushing the subscription model. I beleive this has something to do with the loop holes between the EULA and ToU of MMO's. Then again I aint no law expert.

So they are basically saying Starcraft II is just like World of Warcraft and you are paying for the account and use of their servers, not to play the game. They actually have SC2 as a subscription model in other contries. This is a sad day for PC Gaming if this is going to continue like this with other games.

On a side note yes SC2 is a lot of fun. The single player campaign is amazing and very immersion for an RTS. I have been playing a friends copy. All he had to do was authenticate it on his account, I disable my ethernet while playing and reactivate it every now and then when I know he isn't online.

Terrible I know.

Question. Given how much I dispise what they are doing, is it justifiable to buy a copy of the game so that I can post on the SC2 forums about this? It is the only way to post on their forums. Been thinking it might be worth it in order post but then people may just call me a hypocrit for buying the game.

Face it - we've allowed these guys to take away our first sale rights and now the right to use the goods we legally bought. They control how and when we can play our games.

Its more convenient for them to sell us a license than a product, although its better for us if its a product. At least console games are mostly unaffected by this although they are trying hard (DLC etc).

Its a sad day when Blizzard treats its customers like criminals.

There is talk about consoles switching to the cloud model within the next two generations. Another of my favorite game makers, John Carmack, is in support of this.

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