No PC Ghost Recon: Future Soldier [Nov 24, 2011, 1:09 pm ET] – Share – Viewing Comments
Though plans for a PC edition of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier was previously confirmed by Ubisoft, PC Gamer has word that the next installment in the Ghost Recon series is for consoles only, and that PC gamers will get Ghost Recon Online instead, which is apparently Ubisoft's new approach to PC piracy following their almost universally despised always-on DRM. Here's word from Ghost Recon Online producer Sébastien Arnoult:
We are giving away most of the content for free because there’s no barrier to entry. To the users that are traditionally playing the game by getting it through Pirate Bay, we said, ‘Okay, go ahead guys. This is what you’re asking for. We’ve listened to you – we’re giving you this experience. It’s easy to download, there’s no DRM that will pollute your experience.’
We’re adapting the offer to the PC market. I don’t like to compare PC and Xbox boxed products because they have a model on that platform that is clearly meant to be €60’s worth of super-Hollywood content. On PC, we’re adapting our model to the demand.
“When we started Ghost Recon Online we were thinking about Ghost Recon: Future Solider; having something ported in the classical way without any deep development, because we know that 95% of our consumers will pirate the game. So we said okay, we have to change our mind.
We have to adapt, we have to embrace this instead of pushing it away. That’s the main reflection behind Ghost Recon Online and the choice we’ve made to go in this direction.
WarpCrow wrote on Nov 25, 2011, 08:51:
1. Make buying and playing games easy and convenient, and let the consumer decide how they'll do it. Region locks should be rare or nonexistent. Services like Steam, GFWL, and Origin should not be forced on the consumer, nor should intrusive DRM. As soon as the pirate has an easier and more convenient time acquiring and playing the game, the studios have made a big mistake.
2. Stop charging sixty bucks for a linear, eight hour experience with zero replayability. People will pay a reasonable price for decent games, but sixty bucks will give anyone pause and make them wonder if the purchase they're about to make is really worth it.
3. Stop treating your customers like criminals. I pay for games because I want to, not because I have to, because I want to support a particular developer or do my part to make a particular style of game profitable. Piss me off enough and supporting you becomes much less of a priority.
I agree with #1 and #3. I think that when pirated games have higher value-added because of being less hassle, then publishers have failed at delivering content. And publishers do need to focus on paying customers as opposed to trying to punish the non-paying ones.
For point #2, I can't entirely speak for games pricing. However, $60 for a game today is cheaper than games were 15-20 years ago on an inflation-adjusted basis. And in the past, you'd still get games that would last 8 hours, yet would cost more in today's dollars. I think gamers are a little spoiled in this regard.
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