Whoa! Hold on! On-line activation? Internet Explorer ONLY?
Okay, guys, I have a real problem with this one.
Exactly *what* kind of "activation" method is being used here? What if (God forbid and I hope that this does not happen) TTG goes belly up, assets get sold, and I try to reinstall the game? Seems to me like I would not be able to activate it because there is no "phone home" server available anymore. In that case I paid for something that I can no longer use but legally have a right to use.
It's bad enough that I'm being forced to use a browser that I refuse to use, but I have a deep hatred for any activation method that "phones home" and/or has the potential for preventing me from using the product at any time in the future.
Would someone from TTG kindly elaborate on this "activation" mechanism and what the customers' rights are after activation? Does the product "phone home" at any other time, such as product usage or checking up on the activation? Is "Bone" expected to have a similar authentication mechanism?
(Before anyone gets all high-and-mighty on me, I've been a UNIX and Windows system admin for over 10 years. Data security, data integrity, application availability, and customer privacy is in my blood, whether for the home or for business. Deal with it.
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Exactly *what* kind of "activation" method is being used here? What if (God forbid and I hope that this does not happen) TTG goes belly up, assets get sold, and I try to reinstall the game? Seems to me like I would not be able to activate it because there is no "phone home" server available anymore. In that case I paid for something that I can no longer use but legally have a right to use.
It's bad enough that I'm being forced to use a browser that I refuse to use, but I have a deep hatred for any activation method that "phones home" and/or has the potential for preventing me from using the product at any time in the future.
Would someone from TTG kindly elaborate on this "activation" mechanism and what the customers' rights are after activation? Does the product "phone home" at any other time, such as product usage or checking up on the activation? Is "Bone" expected to have a similar authentication mechanism?
(Before anyone gets all high-and-mighty on me, I've been a UNIX and Windows system admin for over 10 years. Data security, data integrity, application availability, and customer privacy is in my blood, whether for the home or for business. Deal with it.
) This discussion has been closed.
Comments
Does it actually work? I know my roommate pirated HL2 (he's a cheap jerk). I think TT is using activation because the game is only available as a download. Hopefully Bone will be available in stores and without that activation junk.
Anyway, anyone ever subscribed to mmorpg. You know were they screw you with a over the top price. Yeah that's it. You have to be online for that, and most of their systems look fine. Look, games and piracy go together. They are like Cher and plastic surgeons. Can't keep them apart. The only way you can stop piracy is to make a game nobody wants to pirate.
What it all comes down to is (A) assuming that a network connection is always available is a BAD assumption, (B) assuming that you'll always be in business to allow people to authenticate is a BAD assumption, and (C) foring people to use a browser that they choose not to use is unethical IMHO.
I still agree with you on several of your points though. I'm just poking a little fun.
"assuming that you'll always be in business to allow people to authenticate is a BAD assumption"
I don't think they assumed anything. They just have no other way of getting their games out.
The game can always be played (in demo or full mode) without an internet connection. The only time any internet connection is required is when the game is purchased.
We need to use Explorer for the time being because we need ActiveX. We're working on a Java solution, but it's not ready yet. We're not happy about this either.
Should we go out of business (thanks for the vote of confidence!), a patched version of the game will be made available to registered owners.
Hope that clears things up.
speaking of demo.... we going to see a bone demo anytime soon?
The fact that you're not happy about it is comforting since as you said that means that you're working on alternatives.
Oh, now stop that. You're reading far too much into that one!
I'm just being a realist. You've got some great talent behind you, but an excellent string of games does not guarantee permanence. I'm forced to think of companies that were considered to be *the* best at video games in their day, like Epyx. (Am I showing my age with that one?) They died hard and fast.
I'm still likely going to buy Texas Hold 'Em despite my reservations in my initial post for the sole purpose of showing my support. I always like to support the newcomers that hold promise, and for the price you're offering no one has any excuse to not buy it.
Now, cheer up. You most certainly do have my vote of confidence.
(A) Anti-piracy methodologies do not stop the hard-core ... dare I say? ... "pirates". Most games have cracks released within 48 hours after release. In some instances, cracks are available before the game is even released in stores! Fortunately, TTG's current pricing scheme and their status as a fledgling company will keep them under the radar of hackers for a while, I'm sure.
(B) They often end up hurting only the legitimate customer who now has to jump through hoops in order to utilize the game that s/he legally purchased. STEAM is the perfect example of this. Another example is the problem with older CD-ROM drives that cannot read newer, on-disc, copy protections, thus preventing the games from running. So, now the customer has to go out and spend additional money (not reimbursed by anyone, obviously) in order to play that particular game.
The other side, however, is that developers have every right to try to protect their intellectual property. There is nothing illegal, immoral, or fattening about copy-protection. The company, however, needs to balance their need for protection with the customer's need for convenience, otherwise they will risk a PR backlash that might be very damaging to the company's reputation, aka STEAM.
The legal rights of the company to employ copy-protection, however, vary. If I recall correctly, some governments require software to be copyable for archival purposes with the ability to guarantee that the software will run at any point in the future, effectively outlawing (or requiring the ability to bypass) on-disc copy protection and "phone home only" validation.
However, they might do very well to sell the game in comic book stores next to the Bone comics themselves.
Here
Also I don't want to speak for Telltale, but as I live within 5 miles of their base of operations I think I can speak with some authority when I say that people who live around here (San Francisco, CA) have a hard time dealing with the fact that not everyone has a broadband connection at both home and work. I am not exagerating when I say that almost everyone who lives here has that. I have been reminded many times that this is not the case everywhere in the world, but it is still hard to fathom - so cut these guys some slack. They are smart people, they will figure out a way to get everyone the games when they come out, and if not then we can complain.
Buck Buck Buck [~:>]
As my good old pal Confucius once said, " He who does not trust in the internet, doesn't trust in himself." Of course nobody knew what the internet was back then, but if they had, Confusius' online hat selling business would have really have taken off.
Even though encryption on the net does not use quantum cryptography (yet...), there are some pretty good encryption algorithmes that are used nowadays, and you don't risk too much by ordering something online (If the transaction is secured, of course). When I order stuff online, I am more worried for it to get lost by the postal service...
But anyway, If Bone is not released in stores, I hope that telltale will at least sell a CD-ROM that they will ship, because I don't want to download a full two-or-three-CD game.
Broadband or not.
Most if not all credit card services, if you call them, will offer you a temporary credit card number. It ties back to your main account but its authorized in a smaller amout or a one time charge so you can use that 'fake' number at online retailers and it goes back to your account. If someone steals that 'fake' number and tries to use it, its one time use is up and its declined.