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THQ Director Blames Piracy for Iron Lore Closure

[Mar 03, 2008, 11:06 pm ET] - Share - Viewing Comments

GamesIndustry.biz reports on a post on the Quarter To Three Forums by THQ director of creative management Michael Fitch venting his frustrations with the state of PC gaming following the closure of Iron Lore Entertainment (story). The lengthy post outlines concerns about rampant piracy, how Titan Quest's reputation suffered when pirates reported crashes (which were caused by failure to properly crack the game's DRM), complaints about hardware vendors creating compatibility issues, stupid users and bad reviewers. He concludes trying to look at the bright side: "Alright, I'm done. Making PC products is not all fun and games. It's an uphill slog, definitely. I'm a lifelong PC gamer, and hope to continue to work on PC games in the future, but man, they sure don't make it easy."

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12. Re: It's only a matter of time.. Mar 3, 2008, 22:59 Jerykk
 
Some really good people made a seriously good game, and they might still be in business if piracy weren't so rampant on the PC. That's a fact.

Actually, that's a theory. A fact is that there is no evidence that a pirated game equals a lost sale. Even if piracy were non-existent, there is no way to know that Titan Quest would have sold better. Sure, you can assume so but that doesn't make it a fact.

Publishers and devs are so quick to point out how console sales dominate PC sales of the same title. How quickly they forget that consoles are far more mainstream than gaming PCs. Of course the console version will sell better. It's like selling a DVD and a BluRay version of the same movie: obviously the DVD will sell a lot more because a lot more people have DVD players. They also conveniently forget how very, very few PC games (like Titan Quest) get practically no marketing while console games get tons of TV spots, magazine ads, etc.

I also find it odd how some developers complain about how hard it is to develop for the PC. If I recall correctly, developers have made plenty of games for the PC in the past 20 years without complaint. The PC has also been the home to thriving mod and indie communities. If the PC is such a horrible platform to develop for, why didn't all the developers jump to Playstation when it came out? Now, I know that making your game work with a potentially infinite amount of configurations is a nuisance but I also know that it isn't quite as horrific as Fitch makes it sound. After all, you do have system requirements which helps filter out outdated or extremely obscure hardware.

Oh, and Fitch also blames piracy for TQ's reputation as being buggy? Right. TQ was a buggy game to begin with, as the three patches and numerous fixes therein can attest to. Also, the only reason why the improperly-cracked TQ crashed so much was because of the copy-protection that THQ used on the game. Had they not used any protection, the pirated game would have been a lot more stable and the supposedly influential pirate community impressions would have been far more favorable.

If there is one thing I regret about piracy's existence, it's that it's being used as an all-encompassing scapegoat for publishers and developers to place blame upon for all their ills. It makes selling out and developing games for the more easily entertained console kiddies all that much easier. I wonder what they'll do when the console populace realizes how easy it is to pirate console games.

  
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    Date Subject Author
  1. Mar 3, 22:24 It's only a matter of time.. Dreagon
  2. Mar 3, 22:32  Re: It's only a matter of time.. everyone
  5. Mar 3, 22:37   Re: It's only a matter of time.. Frosty
  4. Mar 3, 22:34  Re: It's only a matter of time.. Krovven
>> 12. Mar 3, 22:59  Re: It's only a matter of time.. Jerykk
  15. Mar 3, 23:23   Re: It's only a matter of time.. Overon
  3. Mar 3, 22:33 No subject space captain
  6. Mar 3, 22:42  Re: No subject MuzixMon
  8. Mar 3, 22:48   Re: No subject PHJF
  17. Mar 3, 23:27    Re: No subject Lorcin
  19. Mar 3, 23:32     Re: No subject Jerykk
  20. Mar 3, 23:33     Re: No subject Overon
  22. Mar 3, 23:41      Re: No subject Jerykk
  30. Mar 4, 00:21       Re: No subject manic half
  35. Mar 4, 00:59        Re: No subject Jerykk
  23. Mar 3, 23:42      Re: No subject elefunk
  42. Mar 4, 01:43       Re: No subject Alamar
  83. Mar 4, 13:50        Re: No subject Overon
  25. Mar 3, 23:56      Re: No subject Wowbagger_TIP
  73. Mar 4, 11:03     Re: No subject xXBatmanXx
  7. Mar 3, 22:47 No subject xXBatmanXx
  9. Mar 3, 22:49 No subject Bone43
  10. Mar 3, 22:49 No subject space captain
  11. Mar 3, 22:54  Re: No subject Yosemite Sam
  14. Mar 3, 23:11   Re: No subject Creston
  13. Mar 3, 23:05 Fuck you Michael Fitch Creston
  16. Mar 3, 23:25 moron... Wowbagger_TIP
  18. Mar 3, 23:31 It was a Good Game UConnBBall
  21. Mar 3, 23:35  ... Kosumo
  24. Mar 3, 23:53 No subject MMORPGHoD
  74. Mar 4, 11:05  Re: No subject xXBatmanXx
  26. Mar 3, 23:59 Michael Fitch Tumbler
  27. Mar 4, 00:10  Re: Michael Fitch Jonny5
  28. Mar 4, 00:17  Re: Michael Fitch Acleacius
  29. Mar 4, 00:18 No subject manic half
  31. Mar 4, 00:29  Re: No subject WebDemon
  34. Mar 4, 00:56   Re: No subject Asmodai
  36. Mar 4, 01:05    Re: No subject HellSlayer
  55. Mar 4, 04:17    Re: No subject Cutter
  32. Mar 4, 00:33 No subject zirik
  33. Mar 4, 00:42  Re: No subject Karl_L
  72. Mar 4, 10:54   Re: No subject zirik
  37. Mar 4, 01:19 No subject Scorpion67
  38. Mar 4, 01:21  Re: No subject Jerykk
  39. Mar 4, 01:32   Re: No subject Scorpion67
  41. Mar 4, 01:42    Re: No subject Jerykk
  54. Mar 4, 04:09     Re: No subject  cliffski 
  56. Mar 4, 04:34      Re: No subject Bhruic
  57. Mar 4, 04:34      Re: No subject Jerykk
  58. Mar 4, 05:17       Re: No subject Kajetan
  59. Mar 4, 06:15        Re: No subject NKD
  61. Mar 4, 06:44         Re: No subject Kajetan
  76. Mar 4, 11:28      Re: No subject zirik
  80. Mar 4, 13:22       Re: No subject  cliffski 
  82. Mar 4, 13:40        Re: No subject Lorcin
  87. Mar 4, 14:18         Re: No subject Jerykk
  89. Mar 4, 14:46          Re: No subject Earthworm
  84. Mar 4, 13:51        Re: No subject nin
  85. Mar 4, 13:58        Re: No subject Paketep
  90. Mar 4, 14:47        Re: No subject Bhruic
  88. Mar 4, 14:43       Re: No subject Wowbagger_TIP
  94. Mar 4, 20:04       Re: No subject Kash
  95. Mar 4, 20:11        Actually none of this matters. Kash
  96. Mar 4, 20:20         Re: Actually none of this matters. Wowbagger_TIP
  98. Mar 4, 20:44          Re: Actually none of this matters. Kash
  110. Mar 4, 23:39           Re: Actually none of this matters. Creston
  106. Mar 4, 23:08      Re: No subject Creston
  45. Mar 4, 02:03    Re: No subject Wowbagger_TIP
  53. Mar 4, 03:14     Re: No subject nin
  40. Mar 4, 01:41 RE Piracy RP
  43. Mar 4, 01:51 No subject manic half
  47. Mar 4, 02:08  I gotta question or 10... The Half Elf
  50. Mar 4, 02:20   Re: I gotta question or 10... Jerykk
  44. Mar 4, 02:01 RE: PC game prices RP
  49. Mar 4, 02:14  Re: RE: PC game prices Lorcin
  51. Mar 4, 02:24   Re: RE: PC game prices Kajetan
  52. Mar 4, 02:30   Re: RE: PC game prices Jerykk
  105. Mar 4, 22:58    Re: RE: PC game prices Creston
  112. Mar 4, 23:52     Re: RE: PC game prices Wowbagger_TIP
  124. Mar 7, 23:23      Re: RE: PC game prices Creston
  126. Mar 8, 16:22       Re: RE: PC game prices Ecthelion
  115. Mar 5, 01:41     Re: RE: PC game prices Jerykk
  116. Mar 5, 02:44      Re: RE: PC game prices Wowbagger_TIP
  123. Mar 7, 23:11      Re: RE: PC game prices Creston
  75. Mar 4, 11:21   Re: RE: PC game prices zirik
  46. Mar 4, 02:07 No subject Malvok
  48. Mar 4, 02:09  Re: No subject Wowbagger_TIP
  60. Mar 4, 06:16 This was almost believeable... Lesaonar
  62. Mar 4, 06:55  Re: This was almost believeable... Bhruic
  64. Mar 4, 07:27   Re: This was almost believeable... Lokust
  67. Mar 4, 08:54    Re: This was almost believeable... Bhruic
  86. Mar 4, 14:06  Re: This was almost believeable... Overon
  107. Mar 4, 23:14  Re: This was almost believeable... Creston
  109. Mar 4, 23:32   Re: This was almost believeable... Wowbagger_TIP
  111. Mar 4, 23:40    Re: This was almost believeable... FRAGaLOT
  113. Mar 4, 23:54     Re: This was almost believeable... Semir
  114. Mar 5, 00:08      Re: This was almost believeable... Wowbagger_TIP
  117. Mar 5, 07:29    Re: This was almost believeable... Paketep
  118. Mar 5, 13:37     Re: This was almost believeable... Prez
  119. Mar 5, 18:49      Re: This was almost believeable... Krovven
  125. Mar 7, 23:28       Re: This was almost believeable... Creston
  127. Mar 8, 20:57        Re: This was almost believeable... Krovven
  128. Mar 9, 00:02         Re: This was almost believeable... Prez
  122. Mar 7, 22:53     Re: This was almost believeable... Creston
  63. Mar 4, 07:13 No subject Paketep
  65. Mar 4, 07:36  Reminds me of the Amiga Recant
  108. Mar 4, 23:21   Re: Reminds me of the Amiga Creston
  66. Mar 4, 08:24 No subject dryden555
  68. Mar 4, 08:55  piracy apologists General Ego
  69. Mar 4, 09:01   Re: piracy apologists Wowbagger_TIP
  70. Mar 4, 09:05   Re: piracy apologists Paketep
  77. Mar 4, 12:03   Re: piracy apologists Krovven
  71. Mar 4, 09:17 No subject Kha
  78. Mar 4, 12:35 Maybe they should look internally? Nighthawk
  79. Mar 4, 13:22 No subject dryden555
  81. Mar 4, 13:37 No subject dryden555
  91. Mar 4, 15:39 No subject GalaxyAgent
  92. Mar 4, 16:06 PSP vs DS Ice Nine
  93. Mar 4, 18:37 No subject Silicon Avatar
  97. Mar 4, 20:27 Actually It Sorta Does. Ice Nine
  99. Mar 4, 20:49  Re: Actually It Sorta Does. Kash
  100. Mar 4, 21:14   Re: Actually It Sorta Does. Jerykk
  101. Mar 4, 21:32    Re: Actually It Sorta Does. Overon
  103. Mar 4, 21:36     Re: Actually It Sorta Does. Kash
  102. Mar 4, 21:33    Re: Actually It Sorta Does. Kash
  104. Mar 4, 22:42     Re: Actually It Sorta Does. Jerykk
  120. Mar 6, 12:14 No subject dryden555
  121. Mar 7, 19:07 ... theyarecomingforyou
  129. May 17, 15:26 nakliye ankaradan kardelen133


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