Piracy versus PC Gaming [Mar 09, 2007, 8:23 pm ET] – Share – Viewing Comments
Next Generation recaps a GDC talk titled "The Videogame Piracy Problem:
Fifteen Men on a Dead Man’s Chest" by id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead about the
impact of piracy on the game industry. They outline how Mr. Hollenshead says the
estimated $3 billion economic loss caused by piracy in 2004 does not include
piracy that takes place on the Internet. There is also an article about this
talk on
Joystiq that focuses on the statement that piracy is a factor in id's
embrace of consoles, quoting Todd as saying "Piracy has pushed id as being
multiplatform." On a related note,
Can PC
Gaming Survive in a Console World (thanks
Digg) recaps a panel discussion on the topic that brought up a similar
point:
Part of the problem is piracy. Big titles get stolen by cyber thieves, and it hurts revenue. "The market," said Capps, "that would buy a $600 video card knows how Bittorrent works."
Does that mean casual games, which exponentially outsell what PC gaming traditionalists think of as A-list titles, will one day rule? Hilleman made a point: casual is a poor choice of words. The average player on EA's Pogo "casual" game network plays "for 24 hours a week. There's nothing casual about that."
There is some light in the PC gaming world. World of Warcraft, for instance, is a massive hit, and the upcoming Spore looks not only creative and different, but promising. The MMO and other social networking games could become the norm for PC gaming, with big-ticket titles growing rarer with each passing year. Johnson added that MMOs are "successful because you can't pirate WoW. You cannot pirate an MMO. Period." Therefore, he said, "game design on the PC is going to bend toward persistence."
I will come steal 18 months' worth of whatever it is that you produce or provide for a living.While his using an authorized copy of your game is certainly illegal, you also have a very inflated opinion of what that one copy of your game is actually worth. You may personally have worked on the game for 18 months, but it certainly is not worth that price to each consumer.
Your exaggerated sense of self-importance illustrates exactly what is wrong with the game industry's sales practices. Almost every developer and publisher thinks their game is worth $50 to the consumer because they poured their heart and soul in it. Well, I hate to break it to you, but the market says otherwise. Your Starfleet Command games certainly weren't worth that to most gamers (Some of them aren't worth even $5.). So, stop blaming unauthorized copying when your $50 white elephant doesn't sell, and price the damn thing realistically for the crowded market that exists.
This comment was edited on Mar 11, 09:40.
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