games requiring online activation

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HL2addict

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i've noticed that more PC games require online activation for games that have no multiplayer, as well as securom security as well. (i've heard a LOT of bad rap over securom as well and also my PC has problems with it and I have no idea why, even though I have no cracked games on my PC and never have had any) There are gamers (me included) who do not have internet access at home because of either location or $$$. (a game you buy for 50 for 1 month, not 50 per month) Whatever happened to CD keys? they made sense, 1 key printed on the booklet and that was it. Even HL2 has a CD key and you still have to log on to verify that you bought a copy. Will next year require you to mail in a picture of you buying the game at the store, as well as the receipt, a CD key, and online activation? Why don't they have an online way AND a phone number to verify your copy like Vista does? make it fair for everyone so they have a maximum number of customers!
 
Coz game developers think we ALL have some sort of interent whether it be a 1k connection or 1 GIG connection. I agree its stupid because we can still crack these games that require onlline activation thus negating the point of having it in the first place.

I had installed DIRT on my PC then realised it used SecureROM and instantly uninstalled it.
 
i was about to buy bioshock but realized it needed online activation, so much for "game of the year"... I understand that game companies need to protect their software but if i go in to buy a pack of cigs i don't need a note from my mother, my birth certificate, a blood sample and a 5 page report on why I want the cigarettes, all I need is my driver's license. installing games shouldn't be harder than buying cigarettes or beer.
 
Games aren't cigarettes or beer, that's the thing.
 
I didn't purchase Bioshock for PC mainly because of the "You can only install twice" bullsh*t. Online activation is fine by me, but phone activation would be nice.

It wouldn't work for HL2 and TF2 though since they depend on Steam for patches and multiplayer.
 
You're only buying a license to play the game anyways. You can activate most games on 56k and it doesn't take much time...
 
The problem with CD keys are keygens and pirates who give their CD key. That's the reason we now have online activation as to prevent those keys.
And come on lets be honest most people have internet access now and game company's are not going to spend resources on phone activation.
 
HL2addict said:
i was about to buy bioshock but realized it needed online activation, so much for "game of the year"
Click to expand...


So because you are a poor ass and don't have high-speed and can't be bothered to activate Bioshock, it's a bad game?
 
Migating Circumstances. Arguably whining about Online Activation is equivilent to whining about requiring a console to play console games, or whining about the need to upgrade your computer to play the latest games.
 
haha
Someone was sneaky and got that in there.
 
I agree with the OP.

There are thousands of games I can buy that don't require internet access to activate, so their stupid online activation games are easy to overlook. I'd just be bored of the game in less than 20 hours anyway.

I bought HL2 when it came out, and it wasn't easy to get internet access installed at my old house.

I will never buy another game that requires online activation. I don't have internet access at home, and may never have it.

Just don't buy the games. Boycott the companies until their policies change.



I agree there should be alternate ways to activate a game.
 
DiSTuRbEd said:
You're only buying a license to play the game anyways. You can activate most games on 56k and it doesn't take much time...
Click to expand...

Ah you must be one of the ignorant. Bioshock downloads the games executable during the activation process. 20mb at 56k is a bitch. I raged for quite some time on the 2K forums about all the bullshit they threw at their customers. /Sigh at least I got a free T-Shirt out of it.
 
It doesn't make much sense for a company to have a phone activation service like MS if they just release a game every few years. There are always people calling in to activate an OS install. Wouldn't be the case for a single game. I guess they could for a couple months after release when it would get the most calls. But what then?

Although it would be awesome if Valve did that. They have so many games through Steam that it would be well worth it.
 
Whether it's phone activation or Internet activation, doesn't this limit the life-span of these games? 10 years down the road, will it still be possible to activate these games online? I don't know much about this online activation stuff.
 
We can still activate Starcraft and Diablo 2. It stays on forever. unless the company goes bankrupt.
 
online activation!? WTF? What next? Proof of purchase by mailing in a copy of the receipt of purchase or send in original UPC?
 
The company can disable Steam authentication, apparently. So if Valve went under your games should still work.
 
Say valve goes down in 50 years. Normally when your company begins to die you can see the warning signs. Valve being the good people they are would see to either patching everything to run standalone or allow the steam applications to be run by a third party.
 
PC's and the Internet are so interconnected that its perfectly reasonable to ask for an Internet connection for a PC game. Dial-up users have a bit more legitimacy in their complaints but not much more, the complaining should really be directed to whatever is holding them back from getting broadband.
 
VirusType2 said:
I will never buy another game that requires online activation. I don't have internet access at home, and may never have it.
Click to expand...

For a person claiming no home internet you sure do post a lot (mainly to complain about the latter), and forgive me if I'm wrong but I can't quite imagine that the State of Virginia is that backwards that the internet is impossible to acquire.
 
Kyorisu said:
Say valve goes down in 50 years. Normally when your company begins to die you can see the warning signs. Valve being the good people they are would see to either patching everything to run standalone or allow the steam applications to be run by a third party.
Click to expand...

NEVER.
agfdmagerthehertdhtdhd
DO NOT EVEN SPEAK OF SUCH THINGS.
 
I remember a few years back, Stardock released Galactic Civilizations II, and the people at Starforce were bitching about them actually achieving high sale targets even with the lack of disc security :p

The only time when you do need the key is when downloaded extra or modded content from Stardocks official site...
 
Some of those anti-piracy measures are absolutely ridiculous. Some people have literally lost the use of their cd roms because of them.

As for online activation, it's really a case of haves and have nots. I'm pretty sure there are warnings on the boxes of games that say "Requires Internet connection". Sure it might be easy to pass up, but you should really know by now that some do.

56kers, as slow as your download is, it's not impossibly slow. You will eventually get the download finished, even if it takes a day. I mean, go take a jog or go out with some friends...
 
i use the library for my internet and not everyone has good jobs or lives in a place that has high paying jobs. Most people now only use cell phones and no home phone as I do. even a dialup connection would cost as much as cable internet with the subscription to internet and a home phone line. Perhaps I could mail Valve a copy of my CD-Key and they would send me a patch? (doubtful, as they would be afraid it would be leaked to the internet somehow)
 
The HL2 box says "Internet Connection Required". If you can't afford 56k, somehow I don't think playing HL2 should be at the top of your priorities.
 
Dial-up blows, but secuROM blows even harder. Even though I'm using a dial-up connection, because broadband is not supported in my area, if I had to chose between secuROM and online activation, I'd chose the former. secuROM blows very hard.:p
 
Saturos said:
Dial-up blows, but secuROM blows even harder. Even though I'm using a dial-up connection, because broadband is not supported in my area, if I had to chose between secuROM and online activation, I'd chose the former. secuROM blows very hard.:p
Click to expand...

You mean the latter?
 
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