Witcher 2 devs claim 100% accuracy of identifying pirates. Demands money.

ITT: people don't like the idea they're being tracked through what they thought to be "anonymous torrents."

Witcher 2 devs lie and support extortion.

RPS has a great article about this.

Baranga

I call BS. They should have kept there mouths shut. Theirs one thing you do not do and that's piss off Pirates, CD Projekt sold 1million copies of Witcher2 which was not that good of a game imo, and there going to nag about a demo on a torrent site. We all know the rules gentleman, if the game is good enough we will buy it no strings attached.

[QUOTE="Baranga"]

Witcher 2 devs lie and support extortion.

RPS has a great article about this.

achilles614

Wouldn't it cost a fair bit of money to pursue this kind of thing? I feel like they are doing this to prove a point more than actually regain losses.

with_teeth26

I really don't support this kind of thing - CD Project won't be seeing my money any time soon. Their "fool-proof" methods of identifying pirates is ANYTHING but - and is almost embarrassing to read for anyone who knows jack about computers and the internet.

I call BS. They should have kept there mouths shut. Theirs one thing you do not do and that's piss off Pirates, CD Projekt sold 1million copies of Witcher2 which was not that good of a game imo, and there going to nag about a demo on a torrent site. We all know the rules gentleman, if the game is good enough we will buy it no strings attached.

Travis_Odell

I hope this is sarcasm.

Hahah they're doing what all devs do before they go multiplat, ( pissing off PC user base). I'm calling it now, Witcher 3 will be heavily consolised.

[QUOTE="Travis_Odell"]

I call BS. They should have kept there mouths shut. Theirs one thing you do not do and that's piss off Pirates, CD Projekt sold 1million copies of Witcher2 which was not that good of a game imo, and there going to nag about a demo on a torrent site. We all know the rules gentleman, if the game is good enough we will buy it no strings attached.

Cwagmire21

I hope this is sarcasm.

[QUOTE="Cwagmire21"]

[QUOTE="Travis_Odell"]

I call BS. They should have kept there mouths shut. Theirs one thing you do not do and that's piss off Pirates, CD Projekt sold 1million copies of Witcher2 which was not that good of a game imo, and there going to nag about a demo on a torrent site. We all know the rules gentleman, if the game is good enough we will buy it no strings attached.

Travis_Odell

I hope this is sarcasm.

What percent of pirates would you say only use it as a demo? - not that it even making piracy okay. Your logic is flawed to begin with. That's like saying I can go into Walmart and steal a DVD to test it out and see if I really want it or not. I know it's hard to believe, but sometimes you have to pay for things you want.

[QUOTE="Travis_Odell"][QUOTE="Cwagmire21"]

I hope this is sarcasm.

Cwagmire21

What percent of pirates would you say only use it as a demo? - not that it even making piracy okay. Your logic is flawed to begin with. That's like saying I can go into Walmart and steal a DVD to test it out and see if I really want it or not. I know it's hard to believe, but sometimes you have to pay for things you want.

[QUOTE="Cwagmire21"]

[QUOTE="Travis_Odell"] It came straight from my heart.Elann2008

What percent of pirates would you say only use it as a demo? - not that it even making piracy okay. Your logic is flawed to begin with. That's like saying I can go into Walmart and steal a DVD to test it out and see if I really want it or not. I know it's hard to believe, but sometimes you have to pay for things you want.

Hahah they're doing what all devs do before they go multiplat, ( pissing off PC user base). I'm calling it now, Witcher 3 will be heavily consolised.

ShimmerMan

I doubt The Witcher 2 will sell very well on the Xbox 360, and that should help them realise that the money is in their PC fanbase. I mean, I realise that you're just making pointless troll posts, but I don't really see the logic there myself.

I call BS. They should have kept there mouths shut. Theirs one thing you do not do and that's piss off Pirates, CD Projekt sold 1million copies of Witcher2 which was not that good of a game imo, and there going to nag about a demo on a torrent site. We all know the rules gentleman, if the game is good enough we will buy it no strings attached.

Travis_Odell

So instead of challenging pirates, they should just roll over and put up with it? Why?

And, 'gentlemen' should know the golden rule - if you want to play it, you have to pay for it. That's the law, and that's the moral thing to do.
If you illegally play the game without paying for it, then punishment should follow. I don't even have a problem with high penalties for this sort of thing - there would be no deterrance if the penalties were any lower.

Anyway, as for CD Projekt...if their system works accurately, then I'm all for it.

[QUOTE="ShimmerMan"]

Hahah they're doing what all devs do before they go multiplat, ( pissing off PC user base). I'm calling it now, Witcher 3 will be heavily consolised.

Planeforger

I doubt The Witcher 2 will sell very well on the Xbox 360, and that should help them realise that the money is in their PC fanbase. I mean, I realise that you're just making pointless troll posts, but I don't really see the logic there myself.

I call BS. They should have kept there mouths shut. Theirs one thing you do not do and that's piss off Pirates, CD Projekt sold 1million copies of Witcher2 which was not that good of a game imo, and there going to nag about a demo on a torrent site. We all know the rules gentleman, if the game is good enough we will buy it no strings attached.

Travis_Odell

And, 'gentlemen' should know the golden rule - if you want to play it, you have to pay for it. That's the law, and that's the moral thing to do.
If you illegally play the game without paying for it, then punishment should follow. I don't even have a problem with high penalties for this sort of thing - there would be no deterrance if the penalties were any lower.

Anyway, as for CD Projekt...if their system works accurately, then I'm all for it.

CD projekt so called "system" is a joke plain and simple and if it does halfway work it would only apply to Germans, these guys don't have the pull to get someone in the US for a 50$ game neither would it be worth it. if there was a systen so sophisticated as Cd projack claims the haker group anonymous would be getting pounded in prison right about now.

[QUOTE="ShimmerMan"]

Hahah they're doing what all devs do before they go multiplat, ( pissing off PC user base). I'm calling it now, Witcher 3 will be heavily consolised.

Planeforger

I doubt The Witcher 2 will sell very well on the Xbox 360, and that should help them realise that the money is in their PC fanbase. I mean, I realise that you're just making pointless troll posts, but I don't really see the logic there myself.

I call BS. They should have kept there mouths shut. Theirs one thing you do not do and that's piss off Pirates, CD Projekt sold 1million copies of Witcher2 which was not that good of a game imo, and there going to nag about a demo on a torrent site. We all know the rules gentleman, if the game is good enough we will buy it no strings attached.

Travis_Odell

So instead of challenging pirates, they should just roll over and put up with it? Why?

And, 'gentlemen' should know the golden rule - if you want to play it, you have to pay for it. That's the law, and that's the moral thing to do.
If you illegally play the game without paying for it, then punishment should follow. I don't even have a problem with high penalties for this sort of thing - there would be no deterrance if the penalties were any lower.

Anyway, as for CD Projekt...if their system works accurately, then I'm all for it.

How does anyone identify a pirate, anyhow? With the use of dynamic IP addresses, an old pensioner with no knowledge of the Witcher 2 could get a letter from CD Projeckt demanding 1,000 euros from him. Is that fair? Is that even right?

This is not how you fight piracy. It's wrong, and amounts to extortion, i.e., "If you don't pay me 1,000 euros, I'll sue you and make sure you bleed money for a lawyer". I will no longer be support any CD Projeckt game from now on. This is as bad as the RIAA's BS.

[QUOTE="Born_Lucky"]

*double*

These guys did everything right - No drm, FREE DLC, the works.

How did the punks of the world reward them?

They mass pirated their games.

Pirates deserve whatever they get. I hope after they're forced to pay for what they stole, their ISPs ban them for life.

Baranga

Collateral victims be damned. Yeee-haw, etc.

If you are against 'collateral victims' under any circumstance, then you may as well be against Every Possible Law Ever Made. Don't get me wrong, if CDProjekt by any chance wrongly accuses someone, they should be held responsible for it, but every initiative to uphold virtually any law that was ever designed runs the risk of having not guilty people getting wrongly accused.

Personally, I really doubt this move will amount to much/anything at all though.

I call that system BS and doubt that it will even be allowed in all countries. Good luck getting tha by a judge.

I don't understand why people just assume that their system does not have 100% accuracy. What if it does? If they can sue pirates with 100% certainty of their piracy, isn't this a good thing?

I agree that the company should pay restitution to anyone wrongfully sued, but I ask again, what if their system really works? If we can one day find pirates with 100% certainty, then the need for DRM is gone. This could be an amazing breakthrough for PC gaming. Don't be so close-minded, people!

[QUOTE="achilles614"][QUOTE="Baranga"]

Witcher 2 devs lie and support extortion.

RPS has a great article about this.

drinkerofjuice

[QUOTE="EvOlVE_3"]

How is this bad or immoral? You pigs that pirate games should be held accountable for what you have done, end of story. You torrent you get caught you get fined. I torrent files but never games and if i do ever get caught ill take it to the chin becuase i know what i have done is wrong.

KleptoZ

I just don't get how some of you can be so oblivious to the fact that this was:

A. Not a decision made by a court of law. Just because CDP says you pirated something, doesn't make it fact until a judge deems it so.

B. An arbitrary amount of money was set as punishment. Once again, who decided pirating TW2 is going to set you back some $1k? Why isn't it $50? why isn't it $300? It's just a random number someone came up with that has no basis in any legal preecdence.

It's like if you got caught shoplifting from a store, and instead of calling the cops the owner of the store reaches into your wallet and takes whatever cash you have. It's just as wrong as pirating a game in the first place.

[QUOTE="KleptoZ"]

[QUOTE="EvOlVE_3"]

How is this bad or immoral? You pigs that pirate games should be held accountable for what you have done, end of story. You torrent you get caught you get fined. I torrent files but never games and if i do ever get caught ill take it to the chin becuase i know what i have done is wrong.

PurpleMan5000

I just don't get how some of you can be so oblivious to the fact that this was:

A. Not a decision made by a court of law. Just because CDP says you pirated something, doesn't make it fact until a judge deems it so.

B. An arbitrary amount of money was set as punishment. Once again, who decided pirating TW2 is going to set you back some $1k? Why isn't it $50? why isn't it $300? It's just a random number someone came up with that has no basis in any legal preecdence.

It's like if you got caught shoplifting from a store, and instead of calling the cops the owner of the store reaches into your wallet and takes whatever cash you have. It's just as wrong as pirating a game in the first place.

Until a court of law has absolute evidence that a person pirated a game, and set the fine, they can send whatever e-mails they like. This is not the way to get back at pirates.

[QUOTE="PurpleMan5000"][QUOTE="KleptoZ"]

I just don't get how some of you can be so oblivious to the fact that this was:

A. Not a decision made by a court of law. Just because CDP says you pirated something, doesn't make it fact until a judge deems it so.

B. An arbitrary amount of money was set as punishment. Once again, who decided pirating TW2 is going to set you back some $1k? Why isn't it $50? why isn't it $300? It's just a random number someone came up with that has no basis in any legal preecdence.

It's like if you got caught shoplifting from a store, and instead of calling the cops the owner of the store reaches into your wallet and takes whatever cash you have. It's just as wrong as pirating a game in the first place.

KleptoZ

Until a court of law has absolute evidence that a person pirated a game, and set the fine, they can send whatever e-mails they like. This is not the way to get back at pirates.

I just hope the blowback from all of this doesn't affect GOG.PurpleMan5000

I don't understand why people just assume that their system does not have 100% accuracy. What if it does? If they can sue pirates with 100% certainty of their piracy, isn't this a good thing?

I agree that the company should pay restitution to anyone wrongfully sued, but I ask again, what if their system really works? If we can one day find pirates with 100% certainty, then the need for DRM is gone. This could be an amazing breakthrough for PC gaming. Don't be so close-minded, people!

Falconoffury

It is possible to track down the ones who have downloaded the game via torrent sites, however it ;s not 100% possible to know and blame the same people if all of the downloaded copies were installed on the same machines on which the product was downloaded ... Not to mention that with dynamic internet protocols it's a bit hard to figure out the real adress of the machines. Unless they do that via some script integraded in the game for when the product is started it sends forward some data concerning the game on the internet ... probably :roll:

P.S. I like the fact that CDP RED have stood up so fiercly against pirates and stuff, but the way this is headed they will lose more than what they will gain (talking about money) ... but then again it's their and the pirates' money so meh, I don't care :P

[QUOTE="KleptoZ"]

[QUOTE="PurpleMan5000"] CDP can't really call the cops in this case. They are simply suing for the cost of the game plus court costs. I don't really see anything wrong here.PurpleMan5000

Until a court of law has absolute evidence that a person pirated a game, and set the fine, they can send whatever e-mails they like. This is not the way to get back at pirates.

When that happens, then I'm totally OK with that. But persecution needs to go through the usual channels, not sending e-mails to people demanding cash.

I find it humorous that if you're a pirate, you're the equivalent to a rapist or murderer in the eyes of many people posting on this thread.

it`s german ....

[QUOTE="PurpleMan5000"][QUOTE="KleptoZ"]

Until a court of law has absolute evidence that a person pirated a game, and set the fine, they can send whatever e-mails they like. This is not the way to get back at pirates.

KleptoZ

When that happens, then I'm totally OK with that. But persecution needs to go through the usual channels, not sending e-mails to people demanding cash.

....what are you even talking about? what does anything you say have to do with what is actually happening?DanielDust

I thought my post was pretty clear, but I will try to say it more clearly. If someone can track and identify software pirates with 100% accuracy, they should be encouraged to do so. They should be encouraged to demand settlement for the pirated products, or take the pirates to court for settlement. How is that confusing or off-topic?

some people reported they got such emails and they never heard of Witcher once in their life.DanielDust

Who? Do you have a source? The article doesn't say anyone has been wrongfully accused. It mentions past efforts where people were wrongfully accused for piracy, but that doesn't make it impossible to avoid this.

[QUOTE="DanielDust"] ....what are you even talking about? what does anything you say have to do with what is actually happening?Falconoffury

I thought my post was pretty clear, but I will try to say it more clearly. If someone can track and identify software pirates with 100% accuracy, they should be encouraged to do so. They should be encouraged to demand settlement for the pirated products, or take the pirates to court for settlement. How is that confusing or off-topic?

some people reported they got such emails and they never heard of Witcher once in their life.DanielDust

Who? Do you have a source? The article doesn't say anyone has been wrongfully accused. It mentions past efforts where people were wrongfully accused for piracy, but that doesn't make it impossible to avoid this.

If you know anything about computers then you would know that 100% accuracy is impossible.. I would question if they could even do 50% accuracy.. There are ways to hide your ip, to hackin or use aunpassworded network etc etc.. And yet again, software should not be treated like a physical product.. Just because you have 100 pirates, doesn't mean those pirates would have purchased the game if they couldn't pirate it.. And in the end the only "loss" profits are estimations based on if they were going to purchase it or not.. IN the end of the day I roll my eyes at the numerous pirate complaints about most devs.. I would take it seriously if the industry was being crushed by it.. When its not, mainstream games are now being released and EXPECTED to sell well over a million copies....

If you know anything about computers then you would know that 100% accuracy is impossible.. I would question if they could even do 50% accuracy.. There are ways to hide your ip, to hackin or use aunpassworded network etc etc..sSubZerOo

I'm not saying that they can catch everyone who pirates the game. Maybe they can narrow individuals down and be 100% certain that those individuals are pirates. If they can do that, I say make them pay. If only the super genius hackers can pirate the game in safety, I'm ok with that. At least go after the people who only know how to install the torrent software and download the torrents. Make it more difficult for them.

And yet again, software should not be treated like a physical product.. Just because you have 100 pirates, doesn't mean those pirates would have purchased the game if they couldn't pirate it..sSubZerOo

I'm not sure the purpose of this part of your post. Are you trying to say that piracy is ok? That's what it sounds like. Don't even go there. Piracy should be stopped by means other than DRM, and going after the pirates directly is a good way to do it.

maybe when we start using ipv6.

I find it humorous that if you're a pirate, you're the equivalent to a rapist or murderer in the eyes of many people posting on this thread.

Sheppard212

i honestly dont care what they do to pirates, they better just not email me when I bought their game twice...

[QUOTE="sSubZerOo"]

If you know anything about computers then you would know that 100% accuracy is impossible.. I would question if they could even do 50% accuracy.. There are ways to hide your ip, to hackin or use aunpassworded network etc etc..Falconoffury

I'm not saying that they can catch everyone who pirates the game. Maybe they can narrow individuals down and be 100% certain that those individuals are pirates. If they can do that, I say make them pay. If only the super genius hackers can pirate the game in safety, I'm ok with that. At least go after the people who only know how to install the torrent software and download the torrents. Make it more difficult for them.

And yet again, software should not be treated like a physical product.. Just because you have 100 pirates, doesn't mean those pirates would have purchased the game if they couldn't pirate it..sSubZerOo

I'm not sure the purpose of this part of your post. Are you trying to say that piracy is ok? That's what it sounds like. Don't even go there. Piracy should be stopped by means other than DRM, and going after the pirates directly is a good way to do it.

[QUOTE="Falconoffury"]

[QUOTE="sSubZerOo"]

If you know anything about computers then you would know that 100% accuracy is impossible.. I would question if they could even do 50% accuracy.. There are ways to hide your ip, to hackin or use aunpassworded network etc etc..red12355

I'm not saying that they can catch everyone who pirates the game. Maybe they can narrow individuals down and be 100% certain that those individuals are pirates. If they can do that, I say make them pay. If only the super genius hackers can pirate the game in safety, I'm ok with that. At least go after the people who only know how to install the torrent software and download the torrents. Make it more difficult for them.

And yet again, software should not be treated like a physical product.. Just because you have 100 pirates, doesn't mean those pirates would have purchased the game if they couldn't pirate it..sSubZerOo

I'm not sure the purpose of this part of your post. Are you trying to say that piracy is ok? That's what it sounds like. Don't even go there. Piracy should be stopped by means other than DRM, and going after the pirates directly is a good way to do it.

[QUOTE="red12355"][QUOTE="Falconoffury"]

I'm not sure the purpose of this part of your post. Are you trying to say that piracy is ok? That's what it sounds like. Don't even go there. Piracy should be stopped by means other than DRM, and going after the pirates directly is a good way to do it.

Captain__Tripps

Depending on the level of security implemented on the owner's internet connection, it's possible that he/she should have taken a great deal of the blame.

[QUOTE="Captain__Tripps"][QUOTE="red12355"] But they can't. What if a pirate uses their neighbors wi-fi? CD Projekt has no way of being able to tell the difference.PurpleMan5000

Depending on the level of security implemented on the owner's internet connection, it's possible that he/she should have taken a great deal of the blame.

http://www.youhavedownloaded.com/

This site does the same thing CDP's lawyers do. Check it for yourself and see how reliable it is.

[QUOTE="PurpleMan5000"]

[QUOTE="Captain__Tripps"] I believe there was a case of someone downloading kiddy porn in this way, and the internet connection owner got the blame, or at least some of the blame. Seems that is not always a valid excuse, but then maybe that was overturned or something...Captain__Tripps

Depending on the level of security implemented on the owner's internet connection, it's possible that he/she should have taken a great deal of the blame.

[QUOTE="Captain__Tripps"][QUOTE="PurpleMan5000"]

Depending on the level of security implemented on the owner's internet connection, it's possible that he/she should have taken a great deal of the blame.

PurpleMan5000