Looks like SOPA has a little Whitehouse backing...

Dsan

Active Member
JFF Member
JFF Supporter
There is a similar attempt going through the Senate called the Protect IP Act (PIPA), so don't forget to contact your senators as well.
 

Alchymia

Member
JFF Member
well, it's one of the few things that I agree with the White House... lol... stupid bills... ><
 

Zynn

Member
JFF Member
Even if they did pass those, people in the 'scene' will find a way around it. At the very least they would go back to how we used to do it in the Commodore 64 days, where we had "User Group" meetings, which entailed a members bringing cases of games, programs, and boxes of blank floppy disks. I will let you guess what happened next...

In the end, the only people getting hurt would be the "legit" computer users, with only a temporary and minor inconvenience to the scary pirates, brrrrr.
 

Dsan

Active Member
JFF Member
JFF Supporter
I completely agree. And maybe it's because the lawmakers are ignorant to some of these subcultures, if you will, that they think the bills make sense. Best I can tell a "piracy" helps advertise, gives consumers a way to try before they buy. They don't all buy of course, but those are the ones that will find a way regardless.
Perhaps I'm being slightly paranoid about the matter.... but with the recent NDAA legislation, and other past decisions, it seems like it was an attempt to control the population a little bit more.

It's certainly possible that they had only good intentions but I think it's a waste of resources to pursue a goal that is unattainable.
 

Zynn

Member
JFF Member
I don't think they have the best interests of the populous in mind at all. It is all about pandering to the lobbyists, who give them money and incentives.

Now days, you need to have a way to try games before buying them. Here are my reasons/opinions:
1- Game demos really suck and don't really give you an accurate idea of how the game will actually play as you progress. For example, I played the demo of Reckoning last night. I couldn't change the resolution to what I use on my monitor. The textures are low resolution, to make the demo file size smaller, and able to play on more machines. After the tutorial, I got a message saying that I can explore the game for 45 minutes before the demo ends. There isn't much you can do in 45 minutes in that game. Walking around and getting aggroed by various mobs will take 90% of that time.

2- Return policies of games suck. If you buy a game, and open it, you can only return/replace the game for a copy of the same title. You can't return a game, because you fell for all of the advertising hype, and the game ends up being buggy garbage.

3- Renting a game is becoming a non-option due to the fact that once a code is used, it can not be used again, so you will miss out on features. Less games are available for rent. A lot of studios seem to be cracking down on rentals because it cuts down on sales revenue.

I admit that I will download a game and play a decent chunk of it. If I like it, I will surely buy it, as evidenced by my shelves full of games, and hard drive space being taken up by Direct-2-Drive and Steam games. If the game is buggy crap, like Rage, for example, or just thrown together with a movie title slapped on it, I do not buy it and am happy that I didn't blow $60.

I believe that good work should be rewarded with a purchase so that the good work continues and the studio is able to release more titles in the future.
 

SlipWraith

Member
JFF Member
JFF Supporter
This is my opinion but I honestly believe that a lot of these laws are aimed taking away rights slowly. In all honesty I don't know of one person with a computer that doesn't have at least something that is copy written and they don't legally own it.

I don't download games any more that I don't pay for. There was a time when I would demo a game like what Zynn is talking about but more and more I'm pushing to try and be a member of the Beta so I at least get an Idea of what the game is like. One thing I do with all of my physical copies is a rip a copy to ISO and store it digitally. I found out recently that in almost all cases this is NOT legal either. I'm sorry, but I do the same thing with DVD's. I have kids and kids destroy media. I keep the original CD in the case and try and have them use a burned copy so it if gets destroyed oh well. It doesn't make it any more legal...
 

Trekkan

JFF Administrator
Staff member
I follow laws that make sense, and ignore all others. I use my own moral compass to determine which those are (however right or wrong that compass may be. ;) ).
 

Alchymia

Member
JFF Member
Yay to freedom of speech! Thank you Google and Wikipedia for making sure EVERYONE knows about these! (And to those who contacted their congressmen)
 
Top