Games with no DRM!

[infornography42]

I propose we make a running list of any games that come out clean of any DRM crap.

I would then encourage everyone to buy these games and reccomend them to friends as games that will actually work without having to jump through hoops and crack them.

DRM (Digital Rights Management) will be defined as anything that requires you to have the CD in to play the game and tries to enforce that with (generally buggy) software.

Here is a short list to start us off.
Fallout
Fallout 2
Galactic Civilizations II
Warhammer 40k Dawn of War: Dark Crusade
Company of Heroes

List any more here.

 

[GyRo567]

I bought GalCiv2 alongside a NewEgg order I was making during its launch month.

I still have yet to actually play it (I will soon!) but I'm DEFINITELY going to support anything of quality that's unhindered by that crap.

If the mainstream fools would stop buying mediocre games, then we could have the publishers bowing down to us, begging for us to buy their games, asking us our demands before we'll purchase, until copy protection went entirely away.

Until then, there's always cracking. I usually buy a game & install the real version I've already pre-downloaded just in case I end up getting it. Call me an honest pirate. I like to support the good & boycott the bad.

 

[BigMac]

You can add all games that have been released on Steam to your list.

 

[infornography42]

Is there software in those games that would prevent me from installing it in a different computer without jumping through hoops?

I have never used steam so I'm not sure. I know given the previous definition it would fit, but if they are using software to prevent copying or multiple installations then I probably won't trust it. Also I have 5 computers I might be playing games on at any given point, if I cannot install it on all of them then I have to kick people off of the one computer my game is installed on which isn't fun.

If I can do that, then by all means Steam gets my seal of approval ;-)

 

[GyRo567]

You can add all games that have been released on Steam to your list.

Yeah, while there are supposedly some people still having issues with Steam (I haven't had a problem for two years now & before that the only issue was the occasional down time of the system for maybe 10 hours every two months...) it's easily the best method for distribution I've seen yet that works on a large scale.

Purchasing is easier & faster. Installing is... Non-existent. You already have the game, you just unlock it. No more driving to stores or waiting in lines. It's always been a painless, efficient & convenient system in my experiences.

Then you have the cheaper pricing. Now I'm biased having only paid $10 to upgrade to Silver & $18 for Half-Life 2: Aftermath, but Valve's own games are cheaper than retail at launch.

And of course, THE DRM THAT DOESN'T ACTUALLY DO ONE DAMN THING TO HINDER THE USER!!! =D

No more No-CD patches for Steam games. =)
You can log in anywhere, any time.
Say goodbye crappy, over protective, buggy, slow copy protection software!

I love Steam. There, I said it. It's the best thing to happen to my games since the internet itself happened to DOOM & Quake.

 

[BigMac]

Is there software in those games that would prevent me from installing it in a different computer without jumping through hoops?

I have never used steam so I'm not sure. I know given the previous definition it would fit, but if they are using software to prevent copying or multiple installations then I probably won't trust it. Also I have 5 computers I might be playing games on at any given point, if I cannot install it on all of them then I have to kick people off of the one computer my game is installed on which isn't fun.

If I can do that, then by all means Steam gets my seal of approval ;-)

You can "install" a copy of your steam game on any pc you want to play it on, and leave it on there. I've put install between quotes because installing is just selecting it in the steam UI and it will download the game and install it on your machine automatically without any user input required. Also, games get patched automatically via steam.

The only thing you need on the PC is an internet connection, and you need to install the Steam application (which is a piece of cake). Also, when you log on to steam on a pc, you can only play the game on that machine. Someone else will not be able to log on to steam on your account, so if you want to share games in the family better use more than one steam account so that you can play different steam games at the same time. If you want to have the same game on a different steam account, you have to pay the game fee for that (no discounts).

 

[GyRo567]

Unless something has changed in the past year or two (which is, of course, quite possible) you can use the same Steam account for networked multiplayer games, singleplayer games, & I'd be willing to bet online multiplayer games that don't utilize the same server.

 

[BigMac]

It is a violation of Steam Terms of Service to have a Steam accoun active on multiple PC's at the same time. When you buy a game on Steam you get a single license (that you can use on any PC).

Whether there are loopholes in the Steam application that might let you circumvent the ToS, should not be discussed here because that would be a ToS violation of these forums

I do know that Valve does not take kindly to tampering with their system, and without any qualms they will close down any account if they feel they have enough evidence of tampering. Whether someone hacked your account or not is not their problem. I do feel that is one of the minor drawbacks of the system because password protection just isn't full proof anymore in this time and age, and your position as an (presumably) innocent victim against Valve is very weak. However if I knew of a viable alternative I would tell (err.. probably sell ) it to Valve immediately.

 

[GyRo567]

Are you honestly trying to imply that you've NEVER let a friend borrow a game, installed a copy of the same game on multiple PCs, or played a networked game with only one copy?

Suppose for example that your friend also owns the game, but this predates Steam & you would have to completely reinstall everything for it to be "legal"?

Have you honestly gone to all that trouble each & every single time?

And what about within Steam? I own somewhere in between 10 & 20 games on Steam (I've lost track these days - all the Valve games, Red Orchestra & Rag Doll Kung Fu)

Are you trying to imply that I can't be running one game on my PC & have somebody else playing a DIFFERENT game from an entirely SEPARATE purchase on another PC right next to me?

Honestly I had no idea it was a violation of Steam ToS, as they obviously have copy protection measures enough to stop the illegal uses of the system, but seriously, this in no way violates the spirit of the law.

And FYI, I do log in to my own account at my friends house. He doesn't own half the games I do on Steam.

EDIT: *ahem*, not that I'm trying to come off as rude or negative in this post, I just don't think there was anything wrong with what I said.

 

[BigMac]

Are you honestly trying to imply that you've NEVER let a friend borrow a game, installed a copy of the same game on multiple PCs, or played a networked game with only one copy?

This is not about me. With regard to Steam, this is about the ToS of this forum, I'm sure you understand (although seeing this post, I wonder).

Suppose for example that your friend also owns the game, but this predates Steam & you would have to completely reinstall everything for it to be "legal"?

Not getting your point, but it's also irrelevant because games that predate Steam are no longer supported. Even when you buy a ValvE game through retail, Steam will be installed on your system. The point is moot.

Are you trying to imply that I can't be running one game on my PC & have somebody else playing a DIFFERENT game from an entirely SEPARATE purchase on another PC right next to me?

Games you buy on Steam are exclusively bound to a Steam account. If you are using your Steam account on one PC, you cannot use it simultaneously on another system (not needed either because the account is bound to you, right?). You can have more than one Steam account, obviously (they probably keep track of how many accounts you have).

Honestly I had no idea it was a violation of Steam ToS, as they obviously have copy protection measures enough to stop the illegal uses of the system, but seriously, this in no way violates the spirit of the law.

It has nothing to do with the spirit of any law, it is a condition under which they grand you a license to play a Steam game.

And FYI, I do log in to my own account at my friends house. He doesn't own half the games I do on Steam.

This is completely besides the point.

EDIT: *ahem*, not that I'm trying to come off as rude or negative in this post, I just don't think there was anything wrong with what I said.

The ToS of these forums explicitly prohibit participants to discuss warez or ways of hacking software (including exploiting possible bugs). What you wrote is first of all wrong because something has changed in the last 2 years, and secondly we should not even be discussing it in the first place. I know you did not mean to cause harm or be rude, and I'm not trying to be rude either. Just pointing out facts of Steam and these forums. I suggest we leave it at that, you can PM me if you feel you've been wronged in any way.

Let's get this thread back on topic, there must be more games or distribution systems without DRM.

 

[robwright]

I think it may be time for Twitch to do a comprehensive article on the evolution of DRM and gamers' revolt against the technology. I think I've made my feelings known on the ethics of copying games -- I don't approve of what amounts to stealing copyright material -- however the DRM efforts today could be viewed as being somewhere between slightly annoying and out-of-control oppressive.

Somebody else keep this threat going and throw out some more games that don't have DRM.

 

[GyRo567]

I suppose America's Army kinda qualifies...

More directly on the subject of DRM, I think it's gotten to the point where people will just boycott or pirate for the sake of spite rather than actually buy a game they like. Personally I'm waving my money just about everywhere (though I certainly get drawn to the unchained games & I'm a little shy of the copy protected ones) but I think the sales prove it:

No copy protection is the new guarantee to lower piracy & higher revenues.

 

[BigMac]

I think it may be time for Twitch to do a comprehensive article on the evolution of DRM and gamers' revolt against the technology.

That's a neat idea. Please do. Also do some research on whether indeed games without DRM actually sell better and have higher revenues, like GyRo567 stated.

I can only say that I am pleasantly surprised whenever I buy a game that does not require me to keep the disk in my drive. It happens occasionally.

I am a little bit hesitant to just throw out (recent) game titles in this topic because it might be picked up by people that don't want to pay for their games. I guess it would not hurt to mention some companies that follow a policy of releasing games without DRM. A small european publisher in the Netherlands, Lighthouse Interactive seems to adopt this strategy. There must be more of those, also in the US.

 

[infornography42]

I would love for such an article to come out. Maybe it will catch the attention of some people who can make things happen (or stop happening). Ahh wishful thinking ;-)

 

[cafuddled]

I also think this is an issue that should be thrown out a lot more. Games that add 20 – 60 seconds start up time to check your computer for what you have running in the background before the game starts really is getting a bit ridiculous. It’s not like they are full proof either with use of 2 tools you can get any game to start with out having a CD in the drive.

With that in mind I think an article about the issues for the need of a CD to be in the drive would do well at this time. When highlighting the facts that it is simple to bypass any protection and the fact that an average PC user has enough HDD space to store on average 40 fully installed games.

Saying that though I can see things naturally progressing over to a Steam type system since that system is almost impenetrable. With users that do install illegal copies of the game being unable to install any updates and also being unable to play any games online. Which also points out the fact that all illegal installs over steam have been because people have hacked the retail disc version of the game and not the online system. This begs the question, is an optical storage medium really necessary anymore?

Hopefully an article will get more in-depth with some issues that need a bit more light shown on them, and with a toms hardware badge on the go hopefully we might get the light we seek.

 

[GyRo567]

That's a neat idea. Please do. Also do some research on whether indeed games without DRM actually sell better and have higher revenues, like GyRo567 stated.

I highly doubt if actual numbers in direct comparison will prove me anything but wrong, because it's generally only the small developers trying this path.

You can see (or at least hear about - I know I've technically never done any research, but have seen countless posts either about buying when they wouldn't have if there's no DRM or boycotting/pirating when they would have bought because of DRM, usually StarForce) from individual games' forum based communities what trends seem to be followed by a significant percentage of those people.

From all that, I'd be willing to bet there's a relative increase/decrease inversely relative (probably not proportional though - it seems to be an awareness or hype/anti-hype type of situation) to the level of DRM.

 

[infornography42]

You can see (or at least hear about - I know I've technically never done any research, but have seen countless posts either about buying when they wouldn't have if there's no DRM or boycotting/pirating when they would have bought because of DRM, usually StarForce) from individual games' forum based communities what trends seem to be followed by a significant percentage of those people.

Which is why I made this thread. I want to spread knowledge of which games don't have that crap in it and learn of more games myself.