Have GamePirates/Leechers gone too far???

Ok well we all know about the newest GTA4 news...the games been leaked.

theres even a petty l33t roxxor who is actually streaming the game as he plays....he got to be amazed at seeing the game in person for real for the first time ever.....so why not ruin that thrill for others right? for the record im not gonna spoil it for myself.

but heres my question...what are the ramifications?

how will this effects not just future rockstar releases, but games releases in general? this is probably one of the biggest game releases in current history...even bigger than halo3.

so how is this all gonna shake out? what should they do to this hacker if hes caught? whats fair? its one thing to pirate the game, but to then try and ruin it for everyone....thats just petty and selfish.

lets hear some thoughts....

is any one forcing you to watch it? nope? didn't think so.

also for all i know whoever it is could have bought their copy early. Pirate? Hacker? What's that to do with anything?

all R* can do is try and locate the leak and do something about that.

i preordered my copy the second it was announced, and im not looking at any real info on it until then. everything is leaked early. music, games, movies, even books! sure they go too far, but what can we really do about it? once you introduce the human element to any situation the potential for corruption is there. we can't even keep our police and government on the up and up, how are we supposed to do it for video games?

im not trying to belittle your argument or anything, i just have no real solution.

well clearly i havent looked at the spoilers, so lets not digress int a thread about looking at the video....

this is more about what this means, when compared to the magnitude of the launch title.

half life 2 was a great game, but it doesnt have the media attention and market value of a gta title...especially GTA4

ok so weve now heard from two people who are most likely downloading the game illegally....anyone else?

Escobahr

1. Most all major releases end up getting leaked like this in some capacity.

2. Even if someone is streaming themselves playing the game online, they aren't 'ruining it for everyone,' unless they were doing it in a fashion where /everyone/ is forced to watch them. This isn't the case, and it's voluntary to watch the leaked gameplay, so you only ruin it for yourself if you watch.

The main matter is, yes, it is a problem to some degree, but I don't think others see it in the same light you do, especially since we can't do anything about it in our position other than ignore the people who do the leaks, and try to avoid being spoiled, if that's the main issue.

well clearly i havent looked at the spoilers, so lets not digress int a thread about looking at the video....

this is more about what this means, when compared to the magnitude of the launch title.

half life 2 was a great game, but it doesnt have the media attention and market value of a gta title...especially GTA4

Escobahr

it doesn't mean anything. this has been going on for a long time

imagine your watching CNN....and there are several pundits who are brought on to discuss campaign corruption. imagine if each pundit said "hey politics are corrupt ....its not gonna change so why even discuss it" what would be the point in watching that?

well thats exactly the attitude some of you have. if the content of this thread is so painfully pointless, why did u even post a response. if u dont feel like participating in an open dialogue in an intelligent manner....then why even waste my time and yours?

so far ive been derided for even thinking about this issue, and belittled by those that feel breaking the street date/releasing the footage is no big deal at all.

if anyone actually cares to discuss the issue at ahnd...please do

if anyone actually cares to discuss the issue at ahnd...please doEscobahr

This isn't the first time this incident has happened, it's not going to be the last time. Is it a big deal? There are aspects of it that are a big deal. The problem is that you come in here, throw accusations at those who have an opposing opinion to yours, then act like a victim when people continue to have an opposing opinion on the matter.

My question to you is this - What are you thinking that should be done as a result of all of this?

Allow me to answere the original question.

" Have GamePirates/Leechers gone too far?? ..."

Yes. Specificly, when they started pirating stuff.

imagine your watching CNN....and there are several pundits who are brought on to discuss campaign corruption. imagine if each pundit said "hey politics are corrupt ....its not gonna change so why even discuss it" what would be the point in watching that?

well thats exactly the attitude some of you have. if the content of this thread is so painfully pointless, why did u even post a response. if u dont feel like participating in an open dialogue in an intelligent manner....then why even waste my time and yours?

so far ive been derided for even thinking about this issue, and belittled by those that feel breaking the street date/releasing the footage is no big deal at all.

if anyone actually cares to discuss the issue at ahnd...please do

Escobahr

if you feel that people disagreeing with you is belittling you, you wont last long in many discussions. the fact of the matter is you are acting like this is something new, with no offer of what to do about it as a solid topic of discussion. the ramifications are the same as they have been in the past, its just that its not really anything new that has some of us wondering what you really want to say on the matter?

the point of ruining it for everyone isnt really true as others have mentioned.

I think we're missing the point of the discussion here. What are the ramifications? What will piracy mean for the industry? When caught, what punishment is appropriate for piracy?

To truly see the impact piracy can have, we need look no farther than the disaster that has afflicted the anime dubbing industry. Already, prices have gone up, major players are closing thier doors, fewer titles are being liscenced and general quality has gone down. Piracy is no problem for monolithic industries like the Hollywood movie industry but it just kills the little guy. Video game piracy has the potential to cause serious damage to small, independent game development firms.

Discuss.

imagine your watching CNN....and there are several pundits who are brought on to discuss campaign corruption. imagine if each pundit said "hey politics are corrupt ....its not gonna change so why even discuss it" what would be the point in watching that?

well thats exactly the attitude some of you have. if the content of this thread is so painfully pointless, why did u even post a response. if u dont feel like participating in an open dialogue in an intelligent manner....then why even waste my time and yours?

so far ive been derided for even thinking about this issue, and belittled by those that feel breaking the street date/releasing the footage is no big deal at all.

if anyone actually cares to discuss the issue at ahnd...please do

Escobahr