Like I said, in comparison to everything the game is offering I really don't care about the DRM. I'd rather encourage indy game development.

That makes you part of the fortunate majority... many of whom seem to be too short sighted to realize that there really are problems here. Just because they haven't been affected yet does not mean it won't affect them at some point in the future.

You're shooting at the messenger.

It is a good game... I never said it wasn't... and I suspect Jutland will be as good, if not better. More's the pity that the developer is so paranoid, so stubborn and egotistical... not only to the point of being unwilling to listen to the voice of the customer, but all too willing to alienate them by making wild accusations and throwing temper tantrums in public forums.

I think you may have misunderstood the concern. It's not about the hard copy... it's a question of ownership vs a license to play. SES' position, as stated in the EULA, is that when you pay the $70 fee for the game you are not actually purchasing it, but only purchasing the right to install and play it on your computer... at the discretion and pleasure of SES. Meaning, if they judge that you have violated their EULA, they can literally pull the plug on you. For example, their EULA says you cannot resell the game, and this DRM system gives them the ability to enforce that, even if the legality is questionable. Here's an interesting thread on that subject.

There is one other aspect that I haven't yet mentioned, and that is what happens if SES gets bought out or goes belly up? L'Empereur assures us that it is his intention to "release the keys", so to speak, to all registered users should that happen. Nice thought... but is it realistic?

If somethng happens, say three or four years from now, will SES have your correct email address on file? Will they be able to contact you and every other registered user when they need to send you the files (or whatever) to make your game playable again after you upgrade to that shiny new computer system? But even if you assume that every registered user will be diligent about keeping their contact info up to date on SES' server, there's another problem with this idea.

Small companies often fold due to financial issues.... debt and cash flow mostly. When financial issues of that sort occur, disputes over company assets are not uncommon. What L'Emperuer is failing to consider, or neglecting to mention, is that these games, DG and Jutland, are in fact intellectual property owned by SES. As such the rights to those games, including the rights to those "keys" we've been promised, would most likely be forfeit to creditors... L'Empereur's good intentions notwithstanding.

Guess where that leaves us, the game "owners"?

How likely is this? I don't know... what percentage of small niche PC game companies have gone out of business or bankrupt over the years? But however you judge the risk, make no mistake that SES' policy in combination with their DRM system effectively places all the risk on the customer. I'm sorry but that just doesn't sit right wth me.

JD

Not only is it not realistic, it is ILLEGAL. If a company/factory goes into receivership, you can't just give away all the buildings/equipment. They still belong to the bank. Same goes with the 'keys' to the software. They are still owned by the receiver/creditor. The act of giving it away would be illegal. :down:

Jim Rose today announced on gamesquad they have a "release candidate 1" and said release may be next week.

He also told they have streamlined their DRM.

Z.

Uh-oh, now this is really going to make some people wet their pants :D
They say next week, so I suppose we're going to see it just before christmas on Dec 24th ;)

If it actually works, no one will be happier about that than me. I want to buy this game... but only if it hasn't been poisoned by it's designer's paranoia. If this new "streamlined" DRM is finally able to handle a common scenario like a forced OS re-install (eg, due to a hard drive crash) without assuming I'm a pirate and breaking my game, then I'm in... whatever they're charging for it.

JD

This is what Jim wrote:

"When Jutland ships (looks like it might be next week!), you will see teh 2nd generation of our License managemnt tech. It will streamline the move to a new PC. Also, it puts the re-authorization process squarely in the hands of the end user."

Z.

We'll see how it is when it gets here. Ultimately I don't think i'll care until it threatens to set my computer on fire for failing the login attempt twice in a row. This game just looks too damn good. I'm even going to be a fanboy poser and buy the special edition of a video game for once. Why would I do that? :doh:

If by "special edition" you mean the "Pro" version (vs the "standard" version) you might want to strongly consider doing that anyway.

The standard version will only come with a few canned scenarios and a 30 day mini campaign.

The pro version comes with all of the above, plus the full campaign (all of 1916 I think) and the long awaited full featured scenario builder (as opposed to the crummy battle generator thingie they put in DG).

That makes the Standard version a waste of time, IMHO. The Pro version is the real deal. The cynic in me guesses they were just afraid to throw it out there, naked-like, at a $70+ (USD) price point. The $50 version will at least get folks who wouldn't otherwise bother with such an expensive game to look at it. Then when the hook is set, they reel 'em in with the Pro version.

Sort of like what happens when you go to a car dealer with a Sunday paper ad in your hand...

:p

JD

If by "Pro" edition you mean my "special edition" then yes. :)

Really I can't imagine playing the game without Grand Strategy. No Naval game should suffer the ignomious fate of LINEARITY. Besides, I want to see what would happen if the High Seas Fleet was more aggressive and not "lets have this huge fleet and then never use it because Brits is still bigger".

I sometimes wounder why game developers behave like they never released software before?
Since Wednesday SES is announcing release dates for Jutland every 12 houres.
First it was Thursday, then Friday morning, then Saturday, then Saturday afternoo, then Sunday afternoon and now finally its in a few days.
Man i hate this kind of bs.

Yeah, it's totally weird when a developer decides to set his own schedule around the product he's put all his time and energy into. Christ knows what the fanboys will do if you tell them to wait a few days. :lol: