'Far Cry 2' to feature less-odious PC DRM
Based on a post on the Ubisoft forum today (via Blue's News), it sounds like the French game publisher is trying harder than its Electronic Arts to make digital rights management less cumbersome on its customers. An Ubisoft forum manager outlined the DRM plans for the PC version of its upcoming shooter Far Cry 2. Assuming it works as described, you'll get a bit more freedom to reinstall the game at your leisure than EA has offered with Spore and Crysis: Warhead.
According to the Ubisoft Forum Manager:
- You have five activations on three separate PCs.
- Uninstalling the game "refunds" an activation. This process is called "revoke", so as long as you complete proper uninstall you will be able to install the game an unlimited number of times on 3 systems.
- You can upgrade your computer as many times as you want (using our revoke system)
- Ubisoft is committed to the support of our games, and additional activations can be provided.
- Ubisoft is committed to the long-term support of our games: you'll always be able to play Far Cry 2.
The biggest difference between Ubisoft's and EA's DRM is that EA lacks the "revoke" function. Once you've installed one of its games on three systems, you need to contact EA's customer support and ask for authorization for future installs.
Far Cry 2 will feature a forgiving DRM scheme.
(Credit: FarCryGame.com)Interestingly, EA CEO John Riccotello was quoted yesterday by PaidContent saying, "We implemented a form of DRM and it's something that 99.8 percent of users wouldn't notice." That speaks to the question, who needs to load a game on more than three systems? We suspect that Riccotello is correct, and that install limits on its games won't affect the majority of its customers.
Still, we applaud Ubisoft for taking the extra step and empowering PC gamers to, in effect, manage their own digital rights. We'll also confess a personal interest, in that we've had our eye on Far Cry 2 as a new PC gaming benchmark. We still need to learn more about how it really works, but what we've heard so far sounds promising.
Rich Brown reviews desktops and various other components and peripherals for CNET. E-mail Rich.
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If that's the case, we might be 0 for 2 for new games to use a PC benchmarks. This is getting frustrating.
DRM is all risk for the consumer.
AaronMK makes an excellent point also: any kind of DRM that limits installs is a spit-in-the-face of gamers who re-sell when they are done with a game. This is no accidental side-effect though; the game companies get nothing from used game sales, and they know they are missing out on a large market there - so they are trying to prevent it.
The install limit that EA did with Spore (is doing with Crysis, and UBISoft is doing here) is annoying, but most can get over it. What EA did that was unacceptable was putting the rootkit-ish/malware-ish/spyware-ish files and registry entries on peoples systems, without telling people, AND making it difficult to remove.
Well, people routinely had to reinstall Windows once per one-two years to get rid off uninstallable software. Did that already twice. Also, during normal routine Windows reinstalls (after e.g. total total OS crash (== unbootable)) one would have to keep in mind that he also have to somehow magically uninstall something from OS which cannot be booted anymore.
Binding something important as revocation to "clean uninstall" in Windows is pretty much joke.
ing about
i bought Crysis about 6 months ago. Apparently that had SecuROM on it, i didnt know anything about it then because it was pre-Spore, so that cant be the spyware version. Hopefully the Far Cry 2 version is the same that was included in Crysis?