DRM Grabbing My Goat

Piracy is a big problem in the PC gaming world, I think a visit to any torrent site would highlight this, in order to tackle the problem many publishers are turning to DRM (Digital Rights Management, or Digital Restrictions Management to its critics). The idea of DRM is simple - restrict the use of the end product in some way that will prevent piracy. Simple, right? Admirable, right? Wrong. Some forms of DRM are ok-ish, Steam for example requires that you register the game with them and it is then bound to your account. From this point you could throw away the disc if you want as you are now entitled to download the full game from the Steam servers at any time and install or uninstall it to as many computers you want so long as Steam is installed too. Steam will even let you make a hard copy of the game should you ever lose or break the original. Some people are still upset that they have to register the product online at all, but when you consider the alternatives Steam looks like a freakin amazing DRM deal. Other forms of DRM are horribly restrictive. SecuROM for example is classed as a rootkit by security experts and has been known to interfere with disc drives, preventing not only burning, but even reading normal discs, which is pretty unacceptable in my humble opinion. SecuROM is coupled with an online registration system like Steam, but unlike Steam carries an install limit - typically 5. Some Publishers offer this in a "simultaneous installs" manner, i.e. you can have the game installed on 5 machines simultaneously and uninstalling it gives you an install back - annoying but at least you can in effect install the game as many times as you like - albeit on a limited number of machines at any one time - for most people 1 simultaneous install is enough. However, other Publishers have made it so you can have 5 installs of the game maximum. The restrictiveness of this policy should be instantly clear. You might wonder if you'd ever use 5 installs in a lifetime, maybe you won't, but some people might and others definitely will. One may need to free disc space, get a new computer or format an existing computer thereby losing an install every time one of these actions is performed. Some PC users format their computer several times in a single year, therefore this sort of DRM means they are throwing their money away, or being forced to beg the publisher for another install - both completely unacceptable outcomes. The hardcore elite of PC gamers also like to keep their gaming rig internet free to protect it from various forms of online nasties - forcing them to connect to the internet to validate a game they've already paid for is again unacceptable The real kicker about DRM is that it isn't effective - it doesn't halt piracy in the slightest. Check your favourite torrent engine for some games bearing DRM, they can all be found on there with their DRM cracked and bypassed. This essentially means that DRM is having no effect on pirates but IS affecting the honest gamers who paid hard cash for their games. Note that I said DRM can be cracked and bypassed. If you own a DRM'd game and are concerned about running out of installs I would suggest you seek out the DRM bypasses for that game and free your software. And any games publishers or developers who might stumble across this blog - DRM is fine if you find a way to do it right, but at the moment you're failing hard, and you must know it. freedoms_stain, out.