Why pirating doesn’t hurt video game developers
I can't really believe that I haven't updated in quite awhile; summer classes and getting a new job sucked the free time right out of me. Anyways, enough about my lack of updates.
Lately, video game publishers have citied declining retail sales as how piracy is directly hurting them. Well it seems that retail sales are only suffering because the increase in digital sales. According to the NPD report, digital download sales trailed closely behind physical box sales (21.3 million vs. 23.5 million respectively). During that same period, PC digital download sales made up to 48% of unit sales and 36% of dollar sales. So while retail sales may be declining, it's not necessarily because of computer video game piracy.
The big problem with trying to correlate X million in illegally downloaded games to X million in lost sales is that it simply doesn't work like that. There is no quantifiable number or study out there that shows a direct correlation between those numbers. So when you see these "studies" that claim piracy costs an industry millions in lost revenue, it's simply a load of made up numbers. In fact the U.S. Government has basically admitted that most piracy estimates are bogus. The Government Accountability Office said that it is "difficult, if not impossible to quantify the economy-wide impacts". What video game publishers should be doing is stop blaming piracy for their lack of sales and look at from a different angle.
See, since a video game publisher can't link a download to a lost sale, they should instead start looking at how they can make piracy work for them. Obnoxious DRM like Ubisoft's-always need to be connected to the internet-only affects the customers who pay for the game. Remove the costs of developing that DRM and accept the fact that people will download your game illegally. Take that saved cost to make the game cheaper or find a way to connect with your fans and give them a reason to buy. Look at indie game developers who embrace the fact that DRM is a failure and still make money from their game (Humble Indie Bundle). How many legitimate users is it ok to inconvenience in order to reduce piracy?" The answer should be none. Fans want to support artists, so who is to say that video game developers can look at experimenting with a new model revolving about a CwF +RtB model. Pair the infinite goods-namely a video game or such- with a scarce good to give more value.
Bottom line, video game piracy does somewhere between zero and slightly nothing in terms of damage to a developer. Think of video game piracy as word of mouth advertising for a game (the best, since it's free); all those "millions" downloading it are going to play it and recommend it to their friends to pass it along. Outwards those others may pay for it, or they may not. But by getting the (hopefully positive) word out, there is a much larger audience to connect with to give a reason to buy the video game. Look at successful crowd sourced projects for movies and tv shows that use places like The Pirate Bay to distribute their shows for free, and then generate money for additional content from fans who want more.
Make something that fans want to support; this means games that aren't rushed out to meet a deadline and buggy as all hell. Times are changing, and video game publishers should change with the times or become extinct like the dinosaurs. They can look at piracy in a different light and how they can use it to their advantage.
PlayStation Move: like a Wii HD
Reading through a ton of the E3 news, it seems that I called it when I said that the PS3 Move is exactly like a Wii (but just with HD and 3D). Gizmodo's Mark Wilson had a hands on of the PlayStaion Move and while the peripheral has it's pros and cons, it boils down to the first gen software.
If you have been living under a rug, the premise with the PlayStation Move (over the Wii motion controls) is that the PS3 can track Z motion (depth) and gives the player better control. So you should be able to stab somebody instead of just swiping at them with a sword. The PS3 Move is going to suffer from the same issues as the Wii has: Waggleware. Games that both console manufacturers should be sweeping under the rug. Who wants to wave a controller as fast as they can to move faster (PlayStations TV super star and Wii Sports Resorts).
The other downside to the PlayStation Move is noticeable input lag.
So I tried The Fight: Lights Out. This is game seemed like the antithesis to TV Superstar. It's gritty and violent, sure, but it also tracks two Move controllers rather than one, allowing you to punch an opponent into oblivion. Plus, the Move's camera would track my eyes, allowing me to rotate my position by turning my head (a good thing, since I was warned not to move my feet after calibration). I couldn't wait, even donning 3D glasses for the full effect. The combat? Laggy. And I never felt like my punches were registered the way I threw them onscreen. Rather, my uppercut registered a precanned animation. I understand that my punches probably looked too horrible to use, but a lag, combined with pure animation cues, stops you from feeling like you're fighting. Heck, even Wii's loosely controlled Punch Out! feels more like actual boxing.
While not everything is bad about the PlayStation Move (read more about the Eye pet, Sports Champions and SOCOM) I just don't see the need for more motion control in video games. While Mark Wilson says SOCOM is enjoyable using the Playstaion Move controllers, I don't see it as being comfortable for extended periods. Playing some of the "point and shoot" games on the Wii was great fun, but it gets tiring quick. It will be interesting to see if Sony can bring developers to write for the platform and produce games that use the controls in unique/innovative ways. Time will tell if Sony can capitalize on the more feature heavy control scheme.
Then again, once you look at the true cost of PlayStation Move, it may be hard for game developers to write for it. PlayStation Move pricing breaks down like this: $39.99 for the main controller, $29.99 for the sub controller (although you could just use a dual shock controller) and about $40 for the PlayStation Eye. High costs + optional peripherals will mean for low adoption and game developers being reluctant to write games.
DRM: A Tale of two Publishers
To quote Cool Hand Luke "What we have here is a failure to communicate". On one hand you have Blizzard on the record recognizing that DRM in video games is a "losing battle". Many gamers can readily get behind that idea; we know that restrictive copy protection does nothing to stop piracy and only serves to harm legitimate customers by restricting their use. Blizzard has recognized that its better to offer a valid and compelling reason to buy is what will put a dent in piracy. Or maybe they realized that people will copy, so build a business model around that. Frank Pearce from Blizzard explains:
“If we’ve done our job right and implemented Battle.net in a great way people will want to be connected while they’re playing the single player campaign so they can stay connected to their friends on Battle.net and earn the achievements on Battle.net. The best approach from our perspective is to make sure that you’ve got a full-featured platform that people want to play on, where their friends are, where the community is. That’s a battle that we have a chance in. If you start talking about DRM and different technologies to try to manage it, it’s really a losing battle for us..”
On the other hand, it is just depressing; Namco Bandai's Olivier Comte sees Ubisoft's always connected DRM as a "good strategy". It's a good strategy if you want to prevent your paying customers from playing their video games that is. Ubisoft has had nothing but problems with their "always on" DRM and it is not a road that should be taken for any video game.
Videogame developers need to realize that onerous DRM does nothing to prevent piracy and only adds to the cost of the game and pisses off people who actually buy. They need to realize that people are going to copy and there is nothing they can do about it. Change your business models and/or provide solid reasons for your potential customers to go out and buy your game. Include in-depth matchmaking, or social tools to stay in touch with friends. Treat your customers like people and they will return the favor.
Apple Gamers Rejoice: Steam for Mac goes live today
Edit:Here is how you can download the Steam for Mac client RIGHT NOW. Afterwards, go to their Mac beta page (in either Chrome or FireFox) and click on the ad to start playing Portal. Tell it to have Steam open the link and Voila! you can start downloading Portal for the Mac. Well, that is if the Steam servers stop having a nervous breakdown. To get to the other games, check the box for "view games library" or click "update news," which willl bring you to the main Steam screen
Good news Everyone! Mac gamers are no longer getting the shaft when it comes to gaming on their Apple of choice. Steam is releasing their digital distribution software for Macs; pretty much the only gaming platform the Mac has seen in years (or maybe ever). Steam for Mac will bring all of the Steamworks tools:copy protection, anti-cheat support, and key-based authentication to Steam community, Steam Cloud, and microtransactions. Will it be enough to convince publishers to convert their games to the Mac OS X platorm?
On the other hand, Valve has a lineup of nearly three dozen games launching with their Steam for Mac software. Valve also plans to release on "subsequent Wednesdays, additional collections of Mac titles will become available, each designed to highlight specific functionalities of Steam on the Mac." The first collection of games will highlight their "Steam Play", meaning games that allow Windows and Mac OS gamers to play together, in harmony. Maybe not in harmony, since most Macs only come with a single button mouse; FURIOUS CLICKING. Good luck with that in Portal Mac gamers.
All of the three dozen games in the Steam for Mac beta are currently available on Windows. Some of the more notable games include LucasArts titles, addicting PopCap games and Telltale's episodic games like Sam & Max and Tales of Monkey Island. Also listed for the Mac gaming pleasure is Valve's popular Team Fortress 2, even though it wasn't mentioned in their press release. Missing from the Steam for Mac lineup is Valve's very own Half Life and Left 4 Dead series, and other Mac-compatible games listed on Steam.
Source Engine performance on a Mac wasn't quite as good as on Windows in tests using the exact same hardware-thanks to Boot Camp-but comes close nonetheless. Not all Macs are created equal and those with the integrated intel graphics chips are in for a very painful surprise if they try to run any of the games. If you have a Mac mini or plastic MacBook made before the tranistion to the GeForce 9400M, run, don't walk, away from trying to play any Source based games. Otherwise, if you have any desktop/notebook from past 2008? good to go!
While I have no problem with Mac gamers finally getting REAL games (You guys almost had Halo.. it would have made me buy a mac to play it!). It boggles my mind that anybody would buy a Mac for soley gaming; a Mac simply doesn't have the price to performance ratio to make it work. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: If you want to play video games on a computer, build a sub-$500 gaming rig and be done with it. Now, if you already have a new Mac, what the hell, go enjoy the Steam for Mac client and come play some TF2!
Edit: Here is a list of games currently available for Mac:
Atlantis Sky Patrol
Bejeweled 2 Deluxe
Bob Came in Pieces
Bookworm Deluxe
Braid
Brainpipe
Chocolatier: Decadence by Design
Chuzzle Deluxe
City of Heroes: Architect Edition
Civilization IV: The Complete Edition
Cooking Dash
Diaper Dash
The Dig
Diner Dash: Hometown Hero
DinerTown Detective Agency
DinerTown Tycoon
Dream Chronicles: The Chosen Child
Escape Rosecliff Island
Fairway Solitaire
Fitness Dash
Football Manager 10
Galcon Fusion
Gemini Lost
Guns of Icarus
Hotel Dash Suite Success
Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
KrissX
Loom
Luxor
Luxor 3
Luxor: Mahjong
Machinarium
Mahjong Roadshow
Max and the Magic Marker
My Tribe
The Nightshift Code
Nightshift Legacy: The Jaguar’s Eye
Parking Dash
Peggle Deluxe
Peggle Nights
Portal
Professor Fizzwizzle and the Molten Mystery
Quantz
Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse
Tales of Monkey Island Season 1
Toki Tori
Torchlight
Trijinx: A Kristine Kross Mystery
Unwell Mel
Valarie Porter and the Scarlett Scandal
Wandering Willows
Wedding Dash 2: Rings Around the World
World of Goo
Zenerchi
Zuma Deluxe