D4rk0n3 used our news submit to tell us about an interesting talk the folks over at the Firing Squad had with Starforce. The interview is pretty good and they ask some pointed questions. Of course, Starforce is under a bit of a contraversy in that it does install a driver on your system. This driver level protection kicks things up a notch.
|  Copy protection is getting more invasive. While we're not quite yet seeing dongles, copy protection has become a bigger hassle in recent years. First it was simply a matter of keeping the CD in the drive. Then we had CD keys. Then those CD keys began being authenticated online. Windows XP uses a scary validation system that I'm not looking forward to messing with when I upgrade my hardware in a few weeks. Now copy protection is disabling games if you have utilities that simply might help pirate a game - like Alcohol 120%, Nero or CloneCD.
Furthermore, copy protection denies users the right to an archival copy. We've all damaged, destroyed or lost discs and CD keys. Getting a replacement from a publisher can be and often is another hassle. Of course, if we honestly ask ourselves how many purely legitimate users of those utilities there are, odds are probably that deep down inside we have to admit "not many". |
We will always have some form of protection for our games software, that's for sure. But, has Starforce gone too far? To learn more about the Starforce protection scheme, the effect it has on your system and the company behind it, visit the Firing Squad. But then, please come back and give us your two cents here. In addition, you can always go to our Copy Protection Discussion Forum and view the latest topics, or visit with others that have Starforce protected games.
Source: Firing Squad
Discuss this article with your fellow community members! We appreciate your valuable input, but please keep the reaction policy in mind and make sure your reaction is constructive.
From the interview: "PC games will never go away, but if the market keeps shrinking due to the increasing ease of piracy - through the proliferation of CD burners, DVD burners and broadband internet connections - then the number and quality of games will almost certainly decrease."
This is a lie! The market has done nothing but GROW, GROW, GROW! What a load of crap.
Lets face it, the next generation of consoles will provide graphics and hardware that will surpase peoples gaming needs for a long time. The problem is pc gaming overall is just too expensive, too complicated and too much hassle for the average gamer. As consoles become more pc like in features this will further kill of pc gaming. Xbox2/PS3 will further cause a big decline in pc gaming/sales because why would people need to invest money in pc hardware when a console that is relatively cheap compared to a pc will play all the latest games with no hassle and have graphics and sound that match what the pc counterpart will do.
