Maniaplanet Forum

This sounds like a very nice solution
Thx for sharing this wraith40.

My opinion (and this is the last one I'll offer) is that Nadeo should team up with Massive to make their OWN anti-piracy device, because as far as I've seen, they have the two best piracy stopping methods in the business, at least for their type of games. If 99% of the fun is online (as it is with Trackmania and Massive's World in Conflict), simply make the game unplayable unless you have a valid license key, which has to go through the main servers for check. And it can only be "activated" when the game is legally purchased. Even IF you manage to crack the game and get a free copy, there's NO WAY that you would be able to play TM online. Same with WiC. And online's where all the action's at, so you'd just be left high and dry playing with yourself.

I don't see any problems that Nadeo is working together with Ubisoft. Looks to me like a great combination!

Well, actually, I do see one problem: that Ubisoft decides to add something that ruins the game for several groups of players.
(just like some say that the Rabbids ruined the Rayman games)

But I don't think that will happen.

(sorry for possible bad english, bad grammar in english or a difficult and confusing explanation)

wraith40 wrote:You only need to be online when you first register the game.
Once thats done you dont need to be online ever again.
You will only need to be online to play online.

Hope that helps.

Are you sure about that? I've found a source saying the opposite:

Now the games will no longer pause instantly if a connection is lost, but will still require an internet connection to validate the install every time the game is booted up.

(same article, last comment, I don't know the source of it... )
So it would be an advantage only for users with a bad connection.
I've found another (german) source for that, saying "Ein Start ohne Internetverbindung ist weiterhin nicht möglich." ("launch without online connection is still not possible.")

They better not make a constant internet connection a requirement... They'll lose a lot of Trackmaniacs if they do that.

I read most of this thread, but didn't have time to get through all 15 pages, so I skipped ahead when I realized I only have time to leave my comments, then go for now.

First off:
Thank you, Hylis, for starting a thread about this... it's been a burning question in my mind since the announcement of Ubisoft buying NADEO; and since their website listed TrackMania 2 as one of the titles that would publish under the Online Services Platform.

Most of my feelings have already been expressed by others, but I feel very strongly that I need to express it from extra perspective (hopefully in the posts I missed, someone hasn't already brought this up.)

I myself am a software developer, and have had to work on a product where DRM was developed and integrated into our product, then forced to be supported by our customer service for a time, then removed on a service pack and future release.

Hold that thought for a minute while I derail. I've always wondered why publishers never show numbers to support the theory that these harsh and draconian DRMs "protect sales." This implies a mindset that people only pay for games because some protection scheme forces them to do so; and that the introduction of the absence of a DRM would immediately turn them into pirates that would no longer pay for the games.

That makes me laugh about as hard as Ron Paul saying in one of the first Republican Presidential Debates this year, (paraphrased) "How many of you out there would immediately go start using marijuana as soon as the government made it legal?! Like you have to wait for the government's permission/them tell you what to do before you'd do it."

The facts in my experience are this (and some of this, if not all has already been stated):
1. People that don't want to pay for games aren't going to pay for games regardless of a presence of pirate protection.
2. People that DO pay for games do it because they appreciate the work and effort that go into the game and want to support the company that produced it so we can get more of the same in the future.
3. I believe no one has published numbers to support the theory, because, even if DRM actually DID protect some sales, the amount of revenue generated from that small number of those that pay only because DRM forces them too... when compared with the time/money spent on the initial development/integration of said DRM, the time/money spent on customer support after, and the time/money spent removing it from the game after far outweighs the "benefit" realized from the few "protected sales" that resulted from it.
4. The above makes one laugh anyway, because the DRM is hacked most of the time on/before release day and the imagined protected sales have still already been lost.
5. When the DRM is in place and doesn't work right, even those that paid for the game (and still desire to pay for the game) go download the cracked copy anyway so they can play without having to call support when it doesn't work.

Now let's talk about numbers that have been published:
Stardock, the makers of "Sins of a Solar Empire" wrote an informative and thoughtful article discussing piracy and PC Gaming, and why they made their decision to develop Sins without DRM (and told of its success.)

The point is, the game will still sell, because we DO want to pay for good quality entertainment and help the developers/publishers continue to supply us with more in the future. A lot of us even buy multiple licenses so we can play on our LANs, gift to our friends, get our kids online with us, etc.

Since the DRM is cracked so quickly, the only ones left being hurt by the DRM are the paying customers. So why waste so much time/money in the addition/support/removal of the stuff, when that same time/money could be spent making a better product that people would be willing to pay the same/more for than one littered with punishment for others' wrongdoings? Even if that time wasn't devoted to more/better quality content, the game could be released earlier and start making money earlier.

None of us like the piracy; we all wish everyone would be honest in all their dealings, but the sad truth is, as long as the world is turning there will be the dishonest; and they will always find the ways to steal what they want. Let's focus on keeping those that are honest paying customers wanting to come back for more.

I believe NADEO is trying to do that, or we wouldn't be having this discussion and TM2 would already be tainted with the Online Services Platform.

All that said, I have enjoyed TrackMania United Forever and the fact that I can install with my digital download, enter my key and play without a disc. If everyone really feels they still have to have something in place, make it something simple and easy to support like you have it with TMUF.

GG Nadeo! Keep up the good work.

--------------

PS: None of the developers/testers/etc on my team enjoyed coding the DRM. None of the support staff enjoyed trying to explain to customers and help them through its faults (or the inherent hassles while it was working correctly.) We all rejoiced and through parties when we were told to remove it, but then cursed it worse when we had to support several branches of code with its removal; which added more to the lost money/time required to support the supposed "protected sales."

Thanks for your time...
Go TrackMania Community! We'll pay for the game and help make it a success... help us keep wanting to help NADEO succeed by keeping the DRM (if any) reasonable like TMUF!

+ 1

Instead of UBI DRM you might think of Uplay Passport.

source:

http://inewp.com/?p=8135

leo234 wrote:You only need to be online when you first register the game.
Once thats done you dont need to be online ever again.
You will only need to be online to play online.

I read somewhere, that the next games of ubisoft will have the ubisoft game launcher ( permanent online needed)


I found the source:

http://www.newspoint.cc/artikel/Digital ... 54918.html

Ubisoft weiter auf Kundenfeindlichen Kurs:
Der Publisher möchte den umstrittenen Game Launcher nicht ausmustern - im Gegenteil.
Der Kopierschutz ist bei folgenden Titeln mit dabei:

Splinter Cell: Conviction
Iam Alive
Ruse
TrackMania 2
Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier

translation:
... The copy system(Ubisoft game launcher) will be included in the following titles.

....

Trackmania 2

...

the news are from 12.4.11

Omg I hope it´s a bad joke. If it´s true I must think about the game. I didn´t know this

regards, Jojo