More on Spore
May. 8th, 2008 11:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jackofallgeeksI'm still very upset by the news of Spore's DRM. According to updates, though, you 'should' (might?) be able to get a new installation key from EA Tech Support once you've used up your three. That's nice, that's better, but if that's the case what's the point? If you can just call them up and get a new key, why limit it at all? They also say that if they ever kill the verification servers that they'll send out a patch to removed the phone-home code from the game (something Microsoft didn't do with their PlaysForSure, as I recall). And that's better too, but like someone pointed out: if your team is being fired, making a patch isn't high on your to-do list.
I really want Spore. Really, really, really want it. But with that kind of DRM it just feels like a waste. If nothing else, I don't want to support a company that thinks this is a good idea. Which means I probably won't be getting Spore. I think a lot of people won't be getting Spore, and that makes me sad.
Under the cut is a letter I wrote up to send to the board of directors at EA. There's no contact information that I can find so I'm going to have to fudge it and hope the letters make it. I don't expect anything to happen, but I wouldn't feel right not-saying anything. I'll give it a once-over after I'm rested, then send it out.
I am writing to express my extreme displeasure on hearing that the game Spore, due out from Electronic Arts in the later part of this year, is going to be using the SecuROM digital rights management system.
I have been following the development of Spore for the last four years, back to when it was little more than vague rumors. The game has been delayed and delayed, but everything we've been able to see of it promises that the wait is worth it. Spore looks to me to be the most innovative, most creative, most engaging PC game that I've seen on the market for the last twelve years. It seems to do everything right as far as getting the player invested in the game and keeping it interesting and fun. I am one of many who have been planning to get this game for years, and am more than willing to spend significant money on a new machine in order to run Spore, should the need present itself.
Unfortunately, I am also one of a great many loyal Spore fans who will not be buying the game if it ships as is currently planned, with the SecuROM digital rights management system. This system and the requirements it levies to ensure that only authorized copies of Spore operate so degrades the value of the game as to make it completely unjustifiable for purchase. A quick look over the Internet at what's been said about Spoor and Call of Duty 4 will show that I'm not alone in my position.
The SecuROM system would require the Spore application to verify and re-verify itself with a remote server when it is first installed and again every ten days. Failure to successfully verify or to fail to contact the remote server within some time period (rumored to be twenty days) would cause the application to cease to function until such time that verification can be made. What's more, the game would only be able to be installed from the CD three times, after which re-installation from that disk would not be possible. Both of these provisions are completely unacceptable.
The most egregious affront is the limited number of re-installations allowed. There are many different reasons why an application might need to be reinstalled over the course of it's lifetime, including anything from hardware failures to incompatible updates made by Microsoft to the underlying operating system and the eventual necessity of upgrading the computer system itself. I am a semi-casual gamer by hobby and a computer programmer by trade; I have had three personal computers in the last two years for different reasons, each upgrade requiring a re-installation of my software. Three is an absurdly low ceiling to put on the ability to re-install software which may be caused by events out of the control of either the user or Electronic Arts.
The need to constantly re-verify the game is, on the surface, a mild annoyance. I personally don't go without a connection to the Internet for more than a few days if I can help it. But there are two deep-seated concerns with this system which in and of themselves so fully degrade the value of the Spore software as to render it completely unjustifiable to purchase.
The first is that the system is designed, in part, to detect and disable unauthorized, or 'pirated' copies of the software. There have been many past systems with similar aims, notably the Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage system, used to verify the Windows operating system. None of the previous systems present a fool-proof 100% solution to the problem; they all have some margin of error and this margin of error is seen by users in the form of a false-negative rate. That is, the rate at which an authentic program is marked as invalid. As it is reasonable to assume that EA will want to minimize the false positive rate -- the rate that an invalid program is marked valid -- this means that there will be a non-negligible false-positive rate. Which means that as paying customer stands a significant change of being denied the ability to use the product he legally purchased. Windows Genuine Advantage is notorious for it's false-negative rate, and it is also notable that no system up to this point has made a significant impact on pirated software.
The more concerning problem though is the need to constantly re-verify the software, and if connecting to the remote server unsuccessful for a given period of time, being denied use of the product. This carries a particular sting as just last week Microsoft shut down the verification servers which it had used to managed it's PlaysForSure digital rights management system for music files. With those servers no longer functioning, every customer has been denied user of all of the PlaysForSure music files which they legally purchased. PlaysForSure is only a few years old. There is no guarantee that EA's SecuROM servers will have a significantly longer life span. How long can I expect to be able to play the game I purchase from EA when it relies on a system which could very suddenly be discontinued. If EA goes out of business, or is bought out, or simply decides that SecuROM is no longer profitable to support then I will lose access to the game I had purchased. I still play games that are more than a decade old, long past the time their parent companies offered any support for them. I expect Spore to be one of the most innovative and engaging games for the PC in the last dozen years, and would want assurances that I could play it for years to come. SecuROM offers me only the looming fear that eventually the servers will be taken down and I will no longer be able to use my purchased product.
I can appreciate that EA as a company has concerns over piracy rates, and that the use of SecuROM is meant to combat that threat, presumably in a way that will not be invasive to the customer. It is reasonable, after all, that most users have a broadband connection to the Internet and Spore's recurring verification would be unnoticed. However, the limited re-installs does not account for the realities of PC ownership, especially considering these games tend to be aimed at higher-end PC gamers who are more likely to alter or upgrade their systems. Further more it neglects the fact that SecuROM will not always be supported, that EA will not always be around, and that without this continual re-verification the game will not operate. As a consumer, I have no confidence in investing in Spore under these restraints.
What's more, every DRM system up to this point has been broken by pirates; there is no indication that this system or any other system likely to come into being will be uncrackable. Further,if a single copy is cracked it can be distributed to anyone who cares to pirate it. And the real finishing blow is that a Spore copy without DRM is more valuable than a copy with DRM. By placing these limitations on the software you're selling, you're making your product a much less attractive perchance and making illegal cracked copies that much better than your product. A cracked copy will not cease to work because of a false-negative in the verification scheme, and a cracked copy of Spore will not cease to function if EA, like Microsoft, decides that supporting the DRM servers is not cost effective. By putting this system in place you are encouraging people to not buy your product and you're giving the pirates an opportunity to provide a better product by cracking the DRM.
DRM makes your product less valuable, makes illegal copies more appealing, and angers your customers and fans who have loyally waited for the game's release. And it won't stop piracy. I see no good outcome for EA by going through with this plan.
I am not a pirate; as stupid as I think this DRM system is and as obvious as the added value of a cracked copy is, I believe in playing by the rules. But what this means is that I will not be buying Spore, the game I've waited four years for, which is an achingly depressing conclusion. There is no price which you could sell Spore that would make the investment in such a hobbled system worth my money, certainly not anything near the prices we've come to expect from high-end, highly-anticipated games like Spore.
In conclusion, I implore you to remove this DRM from Spore before it ships. If not, you will anger all of your customers, most of your most dedicated fans will not buy your product, and the last four years will culminate in severe disappointment for me personally.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
I really want Spore. Really, really, really want it. But with that kind of DRM it just feels like a waste. If nothing else, I don't want to support a company that thinks this is a good idea. Which means I probably won't be getting Spore. I think a lot of people won't be getting Spore, and that makes me sad.
Under the cut is a letter I wrote up to send to the board of directors at EA. There's no contact information that I can find so I'm going to have to fudge it and hope the letters make it. I don't expect anything to happen, but I wouldn't feel right not-saying anything. I'll give it a once-over after I'm rested, then send it out.
I am writing to express my extreme displeasure on hearing that the game Spore, due out from Electronic Arts in the later part of this year, is going to be using the SecuROM digital rights management system.
I have been following the development of Spore for the last four years, back to when it was little more than vague rumors. The game has been delayed and delayed, but everything we've been able to see of it promises that the wait is worth it. Spore looks to me to be the most innovative, most creative, most engaging PC game that I've seen on the market for the last twelve years. It seems to do everything right as far as getting the player invested in the game and keeping it interesting and fun. I am one of many who have been planning to get this game for years, and am more than willing to spend significant money on a new machine in order to run Spore, should the need present itself.
Unfortunately, I am also one of a great many loyal Spore fans who will not be buying the game if it ships as is currently planned, with the SecuROM digital rights management system. This system and the requirements it levies to ensure that only authorized copies of Spore operate so degrades the value of the game as to make it completely unjustifiable for purchase. A quick look over the Internet at what's been said about Spoor and Call of Duty 4 will show that I'm not alone in my position.
The SecuROM system would require the Spore application to verify and re-verify itself with a remote server when it is first installed and again every ten days. Failure to successfully verify or to fail to contact the remote server within some time period (rumored to be twenty days) would cause the application to cease to function until such time that verification can be made. What's more, the game would only be able to be installed from the CD three times, after which re-installation from that disk would not be possible. Both of these provisions are completely unacceptable.
The most egregious affront is the limited number of re-installations allowed. There are many different reasons why an application might need to be reinstalled over the course of it's lifetime, including anything from hardware failures to incompatible updates made by Microsoft to the underlying operating system and the eventual necessity of upgrading the computer system itself. I am a semi-casual gamer by hobby and a computer programmer by trade; I have had three personal computers in the last two years for different reasons, each upgrade requiring a re-installation of my software. Three is an absurdly low ceiling to put on the ability to re-install software which may be caused by events out of the control of either the user or Electronic Arts.
The need to constantly re-verify the game is, on the surface, a mild annoyance. I personally don't go without a connection to the Internet for more than a few days if I can help it. But there are two deep-seated concerns with this system which in and of themselves so fully degrade the value of the Spore software as to render it completely unjustifiable to purchase.
The first is that the system is designed, in part, to detect and disable unauthorized, or 'pirated' copies of the software. There have been many past systems with similar aims, notably the Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage system, used to verify the Windows operating system. None of the previous systems present a fool-proof 100% solution to the problem; they all have some margin of error and this margin of error is seen by users in the form of a false-negative rate. That is, the rate at which an authentic program is marked as invalid. As it is reasonable to assume that EA will want to minimize the false positive rate -- the rate that an invalid program is marked valid -- this means that there will be a non-negligible false-positive rate. Which means that as paying customer stands a significant change of being denied the ability to use the product he legally purchased. Windows Genuine Advantage is notorious for it's false-negative rate, and it is also notable that no system up to this point has made a significant impact on pirated software.
The more concerning problem though is the need to constantly re-verify the software, and if connecting to the remote server unsuccessful for a given period of time, being denied use of the product. This carries a particular sting as just last week Microsoft shut down the verification servers which it had used to managed it's PlaysForSure digital rights management system for music files. With those servers no longer functioning, every customer has been denied user of all of the PlaysForSure music files which they legally purchased. PlaysForSure is only a few years old. There is no guarantee that EA's SecuROM servers will have a significantly longer life span. How long can I expect to be able to play the game I purchase from EA when it relies on a system which could very suddenly be discontinued. If EA goes out of business, or is bought out, or simply decides that SecuROM is no longer profitable to support then I will lose access to the game I had purchased. I still play games that are more than a decade old, long past the time their parent companies offered any support for them. I expect Spore to be one of the most innovative and engaging games for the PC in the last dozen years, and would want assurances that I could play it for years to come. SecuROM offers me only the looming fear that eventually the servers will be taken down and I will no longer be able to use my purchased product.
I can appreciate that EA as a company has concerns over piracy rates, and that the use of SecuROM is meant to combat that threat, presumably in a way that will not be invasive to the customer. It is reasonable, after all, that most users have a broadband connection to the Internet and Spore's recurring verification would be unnoticed. However, the limited re-installs does not account for the realities of PC ownership, especially considering these games tend to be aimed at higher-end PC gamers who are more likely to alter or upgrade their systems. Further more it neglects the fact that SecuROM will not always be supported, that EA will not always be around, and that without this continual re-verification the game will not operate. As a consumer, I have no confidence in investing in Spore under these restraints.
What's more, every DRM system up to this point has been broken by pirates; there is no indication that this system or any other system likely to come into being will be uncrackable. Further,if a single copy is cracked it can be distributed to anyone who cares to pirate it. And the real finishing blow is that a Spore copy without DRM is more valuable than a copy with DRM. By placing these limitations on the software you're selling, you're making your product a much less attractive perchance and making illegal cracked copies that much better than your product. A cracked copy will not cease to work because of a false-negative in the verification scheme, and a cracked copy of Spore will not cease to function if EA, like Microsoft, decides that supporting the DRM servers is not cost effective. By putting this system in place you are encouraging people to not buy your product and you're giving the pirates an opportunity to provide a better product by cracking the DRM.
DRM makes your product less valuable, makes illegal copies more appealing, and angers your customers and fans who have loyally waited for the game's release. And it won't stop piracy. I see no good outcome for EA by going through with this plan.
I am not a pirate; as stupid as I think this DRM system is and as obvious as the added value of a cracked copy is, I believe in playing by the rules. But what this means is that I will not be buying Spore, the game I've waited four years for, which is an achingly depressing conclusion. There is no price which you could sell Spore that would make the investment in such a hobbled system worth my money, certainly not anything near the prices we've come to expect from high-end, highly-anticipated games like Spore.
In conclusion, I implore you to remove this DRM from Spore before it ships. If not, you will anger all of your customers, most of your most dedicated fans will not buy your product, and the last four years will culminate in severe disappointment for me personally.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
