Piracy

[Xenirina]

I don't think there is a Debates section on GBAtemp, so this can go here for now.


What are your thoughts on piracy? I think we can all agree that it is here to stay. I personally don't think it is going to go because a few organisations are trying to stop it.

So, do you agree with it? Do you not? Do you only use pirated material because you simply cannot afford retail versions.

Let's hear your thoughts GBAtemp.

 

[BORTZ]

OMG NOT THIS AGAIN

Gbatemp does not need a debate section because no matter what the topic, it turns into a debate.

 

[Xenirina]

OMG NOT THIS AGAIN

Didn't know there was a duplicate thread.

 

[chavosaur]

This discussion has been discussed in this discussion thread multiple times.

 

[Gahars]

Gbatemp does not need a debate section because no matter what the topic, it turns into a debate.

Counterpoint: Shut up, no you.

 

[Icealote]

Winner of this debate shall receive the title : Master Debater. (yes lame, please dont hit me )

 

[Sicklyboy]

I'll throw this out there. I'm the first of four people to vote on this to say "No."

I do not agree with piracy.
I do not condone piracy.
If you ask me to help you pirate stuff, I will give you very vague instructions or Google unless you're very close to me.
I do not think it is right.

Yet I also do not feel it harms the industries nearly as much as they claim it does. It's not "lost revenue", it's "lost sale potential", and not even in all cases (I've bought games (duplicates, at that)/entire franchises from developers MULTIPLE times after pirating their games; Borderlands, for one (2 copies), then The entire Steam Bethesda pack just from having pirated Fallout 3 and Morrowind (which I hadn't even played much))

Again. I don't agree with it, I don't think it's right, but at the same time, it's something I do, primarily because I couldn't dream to afford even half of the stuff I download.

 

[Xenirina]

Well, if someone wants to delete this because there is a duplicate or move it, I'm fine with that.

 

[Tom]

I really do not think it affects anyone much , I honestly would not have too many games without pirating, When I had my gamecube, ps2 I only had 6 games each if that, However If I really like a game ( ALOT) I will buy it even if it already got pirated, I did that with COD BO2, Skyrim, Minecraft ect just to support the devs , I do regret buying skyrim though, Good game but bethesda screwed ps3 users

 

[Sterling]

Not to put a damper on your GBAtemp spirit, but this topic likes to come up every [other] month. I mean it isn't bad to discuss this but quite literally every argument for or against piracy gets posted and then the topic dies until some black magic resurrects it. Most of the time it's posted by someone who is much more active too. I think it's time to wait at least until 2013 before we get another one of these.

 

[Xenirina]

Not to put a damper on your GBAtemp spirit, but this topic likes to come up every [other] month. I mean it isn't bad to discuss this but quite literally every argument for or against piracy gets posted and then the topic dies until some black magic resurrects it. Most of the time it's posted by someone who is much more active too. I think it's time to wait at least until 2013 before we get another one of these.

Thanks for the info.
Didn't really know.

 

[Latiken]

Thanks for the info.
Didn't really know.

LAWL. Everyone's going off on you . What do YOU think of Piracy?

 

[Xenirina]

LAWL. Everyone's going off on you . What do YOU think of Piracy?

Me?
I agree with it. I don't think that piracy kills the music, movie or whatever industry we're pirating from. It may harm it, but these are multi-million dollar business'. It won't make much of a difference/

That being said, there is a part of me that doesn't condone it. For what reason, I'm not quite sure. But it's there for sure.

 

[pyromaniac123]

I don't agree with piracy. Those somali pirates are nasty people.

 

[Xenirina]

I don't agree with piracy. Those somali pirates are nasty people.

Let's rephrase.
Computer piracy.

 

[Sly 3 4 me]

Product-wise, if I were a developer I would hate it if someone stole my material. As mentioned, the companies that sell their games for $60 a pop, or $40 or whatever are not losing my money. That's largely due to the fact that I do not have much money to give them. At a peak level I do not think I would buy their games, there are exceptions in my judgement as there are some games that are truly worth their recognition, and in that respect, my money. I buy all the games that I enjoy from indie developers and companies where it matters with the cumulative amount for their sales.

 

[Hells Malice]

I don't agree with piracy, and I think it hurts more niche and under appreciated games a hell of a lot more than it'll ever even scratch juggernaut franchises.
With that said, I pirate damn near every new game I think i'd be interested in. If I love it, i'll buy it. If i like it, i'll grab it on sale for what I think it's worth. I have money to spend, but not so much that I can just buy every game that may interest me, just to be disappointed. I actually SUPPORT piracy if it's to combat overinflated PC game prices, like Skyrim or Dishonored...both of which sold for full console retail price. That's taboo as fuck, or it used to be. Back in the day, both of those games would have taken a massive hit if they tried to sell it to gamers at that price. These days people like to turn their brains off and willingly throw all their money at big companies trying to screw the little guy.

tl;dr: I support piracy if you use it (properly) as a 'demo' system. Support what you like, or it'll disappear.

I really do not think it affects anyone much , I honestly would not have too many games without pirating, When I had my gamecube, ps2 I only had 6 games each if that, However If I really like a game ( ALOT) I will buy it even if it already got pirated, I did that with COD BO2, Skyrim, Minecraft ect just to support the devs , I do regret buying skyrim though, Good game but bethesda screwed ps3 users

If you're going to support select games...don't feed the freakin' giants like ass of duty. Craptivision doesn't need any more money, they've got 95% of the worlds 12 year olds buying it already.

 

[Sicklyboy]

Yeah, that's another thing I ought to mention.

Out of all the games I pirate, I won't pirate indie games. THAT just isn't right at all, in my book. Considering they're usually dirt cheap anyway.

Unfortunately, I can't say the same (yet) of indie musicians, I pirate their stuff sometimes :/

 

[Vulpes Abnocto]

Let me phrase it this way:

There have been times in the past when I couldn't afford many games, and at that point I was rather prone to making mistakes about what was worth my money, and what was not.
I discovered the possibility of piracy, and learned just how many good and under-the-radar games there are.
When I found those games and their developers I didn't forget their names.
The truly excellent titles I went out and bought legitimate copies of as soon as I could afford to. And I don't regret those purchases.
And the more I learned about the game industry, the more I got away from piracy
I still screw up occasionally and pay for games that are not worthy of my money or time because I'm not trying-before-buying.
But if it had not been for the option of piracy, I would have given up on games entirely many years ago.
And none of these developers would have gotten my attention, time, or money.
Studies have shown that people who have pirated good music are more likely to go back and pay for that music later.
And in my opinion the same is true of games.
So I surmise that piracy isn't nearly as bad for game development, as the plethora of companies that just make fucking shitty games, betting that the history of their franchise will get them the profit margins they desire.
Piracy forces game developers to work harder in creating a superb product.
And that benefits every one of us, whether we take part in piracy or not.

You're free to disagree (and I'm sure there are a dozen or so people chomping at the bit to tell me how wrong I am with this line of thought) but the fact of the matter remains that I'm far more likely to go back and pay for a DRM-free game rather than some severely crippled one that requires online connections or physical discs to prove that you've paid your dues.

Yes, we've had this discussion before, but I don't intend to cut it short until it becomes ugly.

 

[TripleSMoon]

I already made a thread about this. But it was kind of old, so no big deal. You can find it in the general discussion, if you want to hear the views of myself and others who've commented there.