That's some fine QFT there. I'm getting a headache with all the discussion( arguments recently) of steam and drm and the like. I mean they erupt half way through threads and you end up scrolling though shit on a stick to read opinions that actually contribute to the discussion.

Everybody's opinion is important but saying the same thing or theme time and time and time and time again in the space of weeks just devalues it.

Yes DRM is bad, yes DRM (can) be good. We all know that and I wish people would just move on with their lives and put their beliefs into action.

It's saddening the amount steam and others get mentioned here, even though we are supposed to be the anti-thesis of DRM.

Maybe you are. I just come here for the easily accessible old games. The fact that they do it DRM-free is simply a fortunate bonus :)

That may be the very best advise to come from these forums to date. ;-)

I can relate to the topic as I've been feeling disillusioned with the way the gaming industry is moving. But I shouldn't really care as I've already got more DRM-free games than I could ever hope to play. Downloading them all though is a big challenge as I'd have to pay over $19 per gigabtye. So spending $75 to download a 4GB game that cost me $6 would have to be pretty nuts. So that counters all the "It's so cheap that it's worth putting up with the rediculous DRM" arguments.

I appreciate it that many get annoyed with DRM discussions, but I think those of us opposed to extreme DRM need to make noise to get the attention of the people making the decisions to implement such DRM. And it's more of a principled stand for me. When I buy a game now, it's not because I need the game. It's to support the industry that has giving me many hours of fun over the years. I played Flatout 2 the other day and couldn't help laughing at how I managed to win a race despite how bad my driving was - and the replay was hilarious.

But I feel sad that I can't give money to the companies creating games like Skyrim and Diablo 3. I'd like to support them, but I can't :(

0100100001101001

Hi yourself!

...and greetings back to you on that side of the world.

I'm assuming this is with the thought in mind that you'd like to uninstall/reinstall them at some point? I would think DRM is not so much the issue here, rather simply not being very well suited for Digital Retail in general with such a horrible internet arrangement (be it due to location or whatever)

I do agree a local copy would be beneficial if you have expensive internet, but you could also simply keep it installed then. You'll need space either way.

Actually, I just keep getting confused by that line. I have trouble seeing the link between the two statements xD
From the looks of it it simply doesn't seem worth it for you to download your games, period. How then does that relate to putting up with DRM?

It essentially means that since it costs so much to download a game, I'm only going to buy games that I can hopefully download just once and then archive to hard disk drive, and install them to PC when I'm ready to play them. My gaming PC isn't connected permanently to the net, so having mostly DRM free games allows me to be very flexible as to when I want to play a given game.

Adapt, persevere, overcome. You have plenty of choices today including the one you've made to lay off the gaming and have something of a break, perhaps even a permanent one although I doubt it.

Nothing is perfect. There have always been issues. There will always be issues. In between all this there is still plenty of fun to enjoy in the way of computer and console entertainment. You don't have to accept what you find unacceptable. There are options: choose the ones that suit you.

This isn't intended as a dig but frankly I think you were just feeling moody and needed to vent. Thankfully, the audience here is far kinder than you might encounter elsewhere.

Go ahead and take a break. It will be fun and fresh when you feel like playing again.

In the grand scheme of life as perhaps you've been thinking about lately, the issues in video gaming entertainment are small potatoes indeed.

Relax. Be glad and thankful for every good thing in your life including the amazing entertainment available to you when you feel like partaking of it.

I don't like the relinquish ownership agreements any less than anyone else but the reason for them has to do with the worry about employees taking company ideas and making them their own like one employee taking an idea from another team and then producing it at home without giving any credit for the other employees.

Also, that along with the long hours of work at fixed pay doesn't excuse people doing things like pirating or plagiarizing other products which is what I was getting at. In fact, such acts make things harder for the more bottom-line employee since it increases risk of layoff, decreases chances for pay raise or promotion, and undermines retirement benefits.

It would be very worth it to you to foster a friendship with someone in another country with a less restricted internet... keep buying your games, but give them access to your account in order to dl them and send you a disk of it over.

If you get really stumped I'm positive someone here would do you the favour. That's a horrible 'surcharge' you have to pay on already bought games, dude.

EDIT.. sry, screwed up the quoting format.

They overdip.

They could write something in the contract along the lines of "Any intellectual material containing internal company information" (translate it into illegible lawyer talk).

Instead, they claim ownership over anything you create.

You could write your autobiography up to the point where you were hired by the company and they'd own it.

This, along with clauses like them being entitled to publish any picture thye take of you in their company promo without your permission drives home the point that they own your ass.

I guess some horses of labor are ok with all that, but it rubs intellectuals the wrong way.

I didn't say they stopped evolving, I said that I don't care enough anymore.
Should add, they just aren't evolving in a way that I am interested in. Most of the recent releases that would have been "must buys" for me (such as Deus Ex HR, Rise of Flight, several others, etc) have been saddled with some DRM or another (Starforce to Steam) that I don't want to deal with.

But then, in essence this isn't really an argument against DRM like I said. (which you seem to recognize with the 'mostly' DRM). Because even games linked to Steam can be backed up to save yourself the download later. (although it may have to reverify for some type of external DRM online once installed but that's not a bandwidth issue).

That said, if the game was forced to redownload completely every time due to the included DRM I can see your point.
Apoligies. I just assumed when you said 'even though we are supposed to be the anti-thesis of DRM'.

I do recognize there's a strong No-DRM base here, however there's also a base here who accepts/tolerates it.