Headlines - Spore and Mass Effect require online re-check every 10 days

[TheAnimus]

just a thought, but with Spore, don't you have to be playing it online anyway?

Its not so bad that their constantly doing validation checks every 5 days, if you can only play it online really is it!

[QPCloudy]

You know I DO hope they remember to do that, I really do.

Don't get pissy with me. I know exactly what a software license is; my point is that the "manner" is egregiously onerous. If they turn their servers off (because companies do), and fail to ever-so-generously provide a patch (as they well might - a forum post isn't exactly much of a commitment, now, is it?), then they'll be depriving the user of the benefit of the license. They won't be able to use the software in ANY fashion, specified or otherwise, and so will have had stolen the value of the license.

No. I haven't. You know what? I'm really not interested in MMORPGs or indeed in online gaming that much; I prefer standalone games where you don't need an Internet connection to...oh, wait...of course NOW you do. Seriously, WTF do MMORPGs have to do with this at all? They are online multiplayer games; Internet connectivity is a functionally essential requirement. ME is NOT an online game, and it is NOT a multiplayer game.

Will you still buy Mass Effect?

[nichomach]

Probably not. Which is a shame, as I was rather looking forward to it.

[QPCloudy]

You know I DO hope they remember to do that, I really do.

Don't get pissy with me. I know exactly what a software license is; my point is that the "manner" is egregiously onerous. If they turn their servers off (because companies do), and fail to ever-so-generously provide a patch (as they well might - a forum post isn't exactly much of a commitment, now, is it?), then they'll be depriving the user of the benefit of the license. They won't be able to use the software in ANY fashion, specified or otherwise, and so will have had stolen the value of the license.

No. I haven't. You know what? I'm really not interested in MMORPGs or indeed in online gaming that much; I prefer standalone games where you don't need an Internet connection to...oh, wait...of course NOW you do. Seriously, WTF do MMORPGs have to do with this at all? They are online multiplayer games; Internet connectivity is a functionally essential requirement. ME is NOT an online game, and it is NOT a multiplayer game.

Probably not.

lol, well there goes the whole "Then they did their job and it doesn't matter" comment, lol

[dangel]

Imagine if MS made Vista activate every 10 days. Course, that's only a product costing vastly more to purchase and for them to develop

I'm no fan of activation on Windows - but at least it's only going to prompt me when I try and use it on vastly different hardware. Seems securom could of been a little less lazy and done something similar - that way you'd never (probably) need to reactivate at all before you're done with the game.

Still, i'm sure the crack will fix the problem (again) for legitimate customers.

Plus sides - don't need a DVD and securom is packaged entirely in the main game's exe.

[kalniel]

I know exactly what a software license is; my point is that the "manner" is egregiously onerous. If they turn their servers off (because companies do), and fail to ever-so-generously provide a patch (as they well might - a forum post isn't exactly much of a commitment, now, is it?), then they'll be depriving the user of the benefit of the license. They won't be able to use the software in ANY fashion, specified or otherwise, and so will have had stolen the value of the license.

And you'll be able to get a refund on the exact value of the license that they've stolen from you. That's enshrined in British law.

No. I haven't. You know what? I'm really not interested in MMORPGs or indeed in online gaming that much; I prefer standalone games where you don't need an Internet connection to...oh, wait...of course NOW you do. Seriously, WTF do MMORPGs have to do with this at all? They are online multiplayer games; Internet connectivity is a functionally essential requirement. ME is NOT an online game, and it is NOT a multiplayer game.

The distinction between online game and offline game is blurring in many cases - single player games played on a remote server are perfectly feasible and in fact common in the case of casual gaming. But no-one is forcing you to like or even play every game out there. I don't happen to like Pippa Funnel 3, but that doesn't bother me as I'll just stick to games I do like. On the other hand I quite like the sound of Forza 2, but oh no my PC won't let me play it *shrugs* - I don't have the right to demand to be able to play it - if I want to play it then it's very clear what I have to get in order to be able to.

[TiG]

The whole point of spore was that you need the connection for the whole other people's races to fight against. You can't play spore offline to get anywhere near the game play from my understanding of the game.

Sorry Nichomach, but you seem to have a bee in your bonnet over nothing. Spore is mmorpg, ME might not be, there are other options, you could get it on console

TiG

[QPCloudy]

The whole point of spore was that you need the connection for the whole other people's races to fight against. You can't play spore offline to get anywhere near the game play from my understanding of the game.

Sorry Nichomach, but you seem to have a bee in your bonnet over nothing. Spore is mmorpg, ME might not be, there are other options, you could get it on console

TiG

I hate to disappoint, but the only real online aspect of Spore is to see other people's creations, then apparently you can import them into your game to play around with. You don't really go off to other peoples' worlds. I know, I was upset too. But it still looks to be a smashing great game!

[TiG]

Import a particularly nasty enemy race and see if your one can kill them tho?, isn't that the point.

TiG

[nichomach]

And you'll be able to get a refund on the exact value of the license that they've stolen from you. That's enshrined in British law.

No. It isn't. Firstly, there is no such thing as "British law". Secondly, you would be relying on things like UCTA and the sale of goods acts. Good luck trying to get any joy out of them two years down the pike.

...blather...

Seriously, are you proposing that there is some kind of equivalence between a desire to play a game that's on a completely different hardware platform and one which is written for PC, would work perfectly well on PCs without an internet connection, does not require an internet connection for any aspect of gameplay, but DOES require one so that it can phone home every 10 days in order to not cripple itself for no reason other than that it proceeds from the assumption that you are a dirty crook? Are you seriously proposing that these cases are in any way alike?

[QPCloudy]

Import a particularly nasty enemy race and see if your one can kill them tho?, isn't that the point.

TiG

What I hear is that you can import and upload content to a central server. Then you can use whatever is there to mold your game into what you want it to be. There are also, from what I gather, in-game races you travel to seek out. Either way, I'll be getting the creature creator next month! For $10, I'll be purchasing the full version. Free version only has 25% of the material. And when the full game itself releases in September, you can import whatever you have already created.

[kalniel]

No. It isn't. Firstly, there is no such thing as "British law". Secondly, you would be relying on things like UCTA and the sale of goods acts. Good luck trying to get any joy out of them two years down the pike.

My mistake - I thought the Sale of Goods Act was statutory.

Seriously, are you proposing that there is some kind of equivalence between a desire to play a game that's on a completely different hardware platform and one which is written for PC, would work perfectly well on PCs without an internet connection, does not require an internet connection for any aspect of gameplay, but DOES require one so that it can phone home every 10 days in order to not cripple itself for no reason other than that it proceeds from the assumption that you are a dirty crook? Are you seriously proposing that these cases are in any way alike?

Absolutely - the X360 environment is remarkably similar to the PC and I desire to play many games that are on that system. But for me the cost isn't quite worth the gain. With the choice of internet or not the cost is probably cheaper than the decision to buy a console or not, and most people already have it anyway, so the gain of enjoyment in playing the game doesn't even need to be that great for it to be worthwhile. But that's where market forces come in - no-one is forcing you to play the game so if you don't think it's good enough value for the total expendature then you don't have to buy it. EA have never struck me as a company that makes decisions to lose money so if enough people don't think it's worth it they won't do it again.

Personally I will be getting spore, but probably not ME - not really my kind of game. Looking forward to Dragon Age though.

[nichomach]

Sorry Nichomach, but you seem to have a bee in your bonnet over nothing. Spore is mmorpg, ME might not be, there are other options, you could get it on console
TiG

Yes, I've just been YEARNING to get an Xbotch... Seriously, though, it's a ridiculous requirement; if anything it WILL just encourage people to piracy - a phone home every 10 days (assuming that the servers exist or that if they don't the company remembered to put out that patch that everyone's trusting them to) or the game that you shelled out for is cacked? Does that really sound like a good idea to you?

[QPCloudy]

Yes, I've just been YEARNING to get an Xbotch... Seriously, though, it's a ridiculous requirement; if anything it WILL just encourage people to piracy - a phone home every 10 days (assuming that the servers exist or that if they don't the company remembered to put out that patch that everyone's trusting them to) or the game that you shelled out for is cacked? Does that really sound like a good idea to you?

If I have a simple internet connection, and don't have to ensure I have the disc everywhere I go, then yes. I'd wager maybe we won't need to have a connection if we do lug around the disc?

[nichomach]

...and you just lost your wager . It's not an either/or proposition; you can have as many disks as you like, you must connect with their servers every 10 days.

[TiG]

I've bought single player games from Online download stores, I have no issue with will they won't they be there in 3 years time. I still play lots of old games and I DO mean old (1995, Fantasy general, which I own from original via dosbox)

I'd actually have experienced CD failure twice in games BF1942 and Black and White where i've not been able to play the games for weeks where i had to send back the broken remnants of the disc +about £10 to get it replaced.

This is a step forward from my point of view.

I love not having to have dvd/CD's in the drive.

TiG