But what was wrong with the copy protection on the earlier SH games? I have them on disk and never had any problems with it. Having to ask permission to play a game I (should) own is just not acceptable.
And as far as I know not every publisher is doing that (or are they?). It seems to be Focus specifically...

@handsfree.

We cannot make two different protection, one for downloadable content and one for boxes content.

Also when you activating your game, you are simply login in, not requiring permission. Steam is working this way, if you don't log in to your account, you cannot play your games, that are installed locally. 40 millions players seem to be fine with it.

thehood, well stated! Thank you for coming here and showing everyone the other side. I am always happy when more money ends up in your pocket and if that means DRM, so be it. Since I am not planning anything illegal with the game, I do not see what it matters anyway.

Ana

thehood,

I do see what's driving you. You are doing everything you can to survive in a niche market so you can keep on doing what you enjoy doing, what you're good at. I understand also that you're not really talking to me, you're talking to everyone who might have reservations about buying your game because of some DRM. Don't worry, most people won't give it a second thought. What follows is just my response to some of the things you said.

> GOG doesn't propose boxed games, but downloadable, I thought you were interested in boxed games only?

I prefer boxed games, thehood, but if I can burn a game to disc, as I can any game I buy on GOG, I'll take that.

> GOG is proposing games that have no economic actuality and activity

No argument there, especially on Adventure games, but they have brought them back to life and, if you'll notice, the 2nd most requested game on GOG, after System Shock 2, is an adventure game, Grim Fandango.

> GOG belongs to CD projekt company, that released the Witcher 2, a game that require online activation to be played...Seems they agree only partly with the DRM free policy...

I was under the impression that The Witcher 2 was DRM free. My downloaded copy appears to be. Maybe they snuck some DRM in there when I wasn't looking. It surely isn't DRM free on Steam. GOG appears to be keeping to the policy on their website even for their sister company's game.

> The industry is not going to provide content for free, because people want it, or you'll end up with F2P games, that will be of lower quality and that you'll end up to pay much more to enjoy (E.g. mystery manor on IOS).

Free content? I'm sorry, I don't follow you. Every game I have, I've paid for - except the free games that GOG insisted on putting on my shelf.
If you mean the industry is not going to sell anything without trying to hold back some of the rights to it, there you seem to be absolutely correct.

> Unfortunately, you're making a point of not playing a game, whether good or not, I agree with you, not because it's good or not, but because you don't like the way it is distributed, and putting on the developer shoulder the responsability of how the world works....

The world works the way it does because we accept it and don't kick. Ed Murrow, a highly respected and unfortunately dead journalist, once said that a nation of sheep begets a government of wolves. Close enough. It seems most gamers are sheep. One who tries not to be shouldn't trouble anyone too much.

> So every side of the market have pros and cons, probably some of the cons is that you feel less free than before, while you are actually more, since you can have your games installed and playable on more machines simultaneously, and you can you use Steam cloud, to play at work, and at home the same game, without carrying your saves with you... a little loss compared to far more comfort of playing and more respect of games creators and less power to corporations...IMHO

You'll excuse me if I find that wacky logic: you're freer because there are restrictions on you.
I have one computer. One. No Playstation, no Xbox 360, no iPad or any type of appliance that I tote around texting on and walking into telephone poles or playing computer games on while I'm driving. I suppose that exposes the fact that I'm old.
I don't use Steam precisely because I do not want to give control of something I have "bought and paid for" to a distributor. They have no right to it. It's just amazing to me that more "comfort" in playing would lure anyone else into ceding their rights.

> Also when you activating your game, you are simply logging in, not requiring permission. Steam is working this way, if you don't log in to your account, you cannot play your games, that are installed locally. 40 millions players seem to be fine with it.

And if you don't log in, you can't play. Well, one who isn't fine with it makes little difference, right?

As for the respect due a game's creator, that totally depends on the game, not on how many platforms I can find it on. Your games have been top notch. I'm sorry I won't be playing this one, but, thehood, lots of people will.

I wish you well.


Gil.

I've just had a look on Amazon UK for the boxed version & it only lists Windows Vista & XP - is the game going to be compatible with Win 7?

The specs were posted on Facebook, here they are:

MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

OS: WINDOWS XP SP3/WINDOWS VISTA SP2/WINDOWS 7
PROCESSOR: AMD/INTEL DUAL-CORE 2 GHZ
RAM MEMORY: 2048 MB
GRAPHICS CARD: 256 MB 100% DIRECTX 9 AND SHADERS 3.0 COMPATIBLE
ATI RADEON HD 2600 XT/NVIDIA GEFORCE 8600 GT OR HIGHER
DVD-ROM: 2X DRIVE
HARD DISK SPACE: 14 GB
SOUND CARD: DIRECTX 9 COMPATIBLE
INTERNET CONNECTION REQUIRED FOR GAME ACTIVATION
CONTROLLER: KEYBOARD & MOUSE OR XBOX COMPATIBLE

I got an email this morning saying the game is now available for pre-order.

So... is the release date still set for September 25th? That's the main issue.

About Disks vs. Downloads-
Certainly, my early gaming experience (for me 1996) was more enjoyable, because it meant going to Fry's in Palo Alto and browsing --in person-- through aisles of games and other software boxes... physically picking them up to check out the artwork & synopses in order to choose which ones to buy.

Now, here we are in the next (download-only) phase. Didn't care for the idea at first. But after giving away most of my games to charity, I discovered how freeing, and how much better it felt to have less clutter in my life. If there's a downside (from someone like me for the game developers) it's that I've been slow at collecting as many downloads on my PC as I once did with boxes on my shelves. Overall, my exploration for new, unknown titles has waned. Maybe it's age & life events... and NOT the advent of downloading. Maybe not. In any case, I'll continue to browse here at GameBoomers.

I plan to buy and download the latest Sherlock Holmes game in a few weeks. And even though I cherish my Carol Reed cases/disks, I'll do the same should the Nyqvists change from CD to digital. Ditto: Jonathan Boakes' games.

The Hands-On Experience, sadly, is fast becoming a thing of the past. But the lack of it won't keep me from enjoying new & unknown download titles. It'll just give me something 'warm & fuzzy' to remember.

The release dates are still on track, Carrie. The European release is 20th Sept, and North America the 25th.

Thank you Rushes!

The Adventure Shop now has a per-order special $5 off if you order now. I was so pleased to see this as they are the only other site i buy from and i was worried that i might not be able to have this game after all the waiting so this is good news for me and it looks just great.

Hello,
I also got the same e-mail. so if we order from the adventure shop before the 19th. is the release date still the 25th or are they going to release it early.
thank you.
kathy

Here is what it says on TAC:



Ana

I pre-ordered from the Focus website and my confirmation email said:

Wow, I missed the whole discussion earlier. I'm definitely with traveler on this one, though I will eventually get the game. Probably not right away, though. I'll wait until the price comes down. If I'm going to "rent" my game, I'd rather not pay as much as I would for a game I would actually own. I understand that publishers are worried about piracy, but the current use of DRM does a disservice to the legitimate customers who are willing to purchase the game. I really hope this new trend eventually comes to an end, though I don't see that happening any time soon.