Officially boycotting all Ubisoft games on all platforms

[Varsh]

Not sure if any of you have heard this yet (or even mentioned this in another forum here) but Ubisoft not releasing "I Am Alive" and half giving the new Operation Flashpoint game to the PC because of "95% PC Gamers are pirates" has finally driven me past the last straw. I was being nice to them by purchasing Anno 2070 as it's without doubt one of the greatest strategy games I've ever played - despite its DRM that I couldn't play the game for several hours because the server was down, even in single player mode!!!

But that's it, calling me a pirate they can now finally go a fuck themselves, not only will I not purchase a game of theirs on PC (past or present) ever again but will also not support them on consoles neither.

I think it's time Ubisoft has felt the wrath of the consumers by not treating them like pirates and actually giving us games that are not bugged to death or don't actually work at all (From Dust for instance). They want purchases? Get rid of that always online DRM and implement an offline mode that actually works without you needing to be online - no I'm not kidding here. Couldn't play Anno 2070 in offline mode because I had to sign into the Ubisoft Uplay servers, that defeats the point of offline mode in the first place!

Now they say that they can't sell 50k copies of a game on the PC so they're calling us pirates. Let me get this straight, the Assassin's Creed and Prince of Persia sales on PC has actually been over a million EACH!

They need to stop plucking numbers out of their arse and sort things out because right now I'm honestly thinking the European court will be looking into a Trading Standards lawsuit, and we all know how tough they are on software companies (hell Microsoft still owe more than a billion Euros - that'll bail out Greece).

[keefy]

Not bought a game from Ubi for a while due to their shitty DRM, last game I bought was I think Far Cry 2 which was crap and boring.
The SPlinter Cell Chaos theory was a pain in the arse.

[Inzane2050]

So bcuz Ubisoft implemented extensive DRM and/or decided not to release on PC bcuz, frankly, everybody pirates on PC, you plan to show them your opposition to such by pirating said games on PC???

Great logic, bra! Now how about instead of coming up with yet ANOTHER excuse as to why you feel you are justified to pirate, you stop pirating and ruining PC gaming for the people who actually want it to stick around. Thank you.

[Varsh]

Who said I was pirating their games? I said I was boycotting and no longer purchasing, I never said anything about pirating games. I no longer support them end of, they're calling me a pirate because in their eyes everyone on PCs pirate, well like I said, Anno 2070 is officially the last game I'll ever purchase from them.

Now please tell me from where I said I was going to pirate anything? Your logic defies me.

Edit: Actually in fact what you just labelled me right there is their logic in thought thinking that I'm a pirate because I won't support them. Sorry mate but I actually BUY my games and I have over 7000 original games dating back to the early 70's. Hell on Steam alone I have hundreds of games already plus bought all of the Indie Royale and Humble Bundles, and on top of that own a GOG account of over 30 games too.

Am I a pirate? Whatever floats your boat but I know I'm not one so don't label me as one.

[keefy]

YAaaR that it be matey.

A few times I have had to resort to cracks to get a game working, its superb I love it when legitimate consumers fucked in the arse.

[Blacksite]

So bcuz Ubisoft implemented extensive DRM and/or decided not to release on PC bcuz, frankly, everybody pirates on PC, you plan to show them your opposition to such by pirating said games on PC???

Great logic, bra! Now how about instead of coming up with yet ANOTHER excuse as to why you feel you are justified to pirate, you stop pirating and ruining PC gaming for the people who actually want it to stick around. Thank you.

Do you not know how to read?

But yeah, that sounds awful. Low numbers have more to do with the actual gameplay mechanics and business model of said company than piracy. Some pirates might even purchase the game if they really like it.

[Cybertox]

If their games would be without DRM, it would be too easy to crack the game and let pirates download it.Thats why they have done this DRM, its like a defence from hacking and cracking.

[Fenix]

If their games would be without DRM, it would be too easy to crack the game and let pirates download it.Thats why they have done this DRM, its like a defence from hacking and cracking.

Considering there games with the always on DRM are pretty much cracked the day of release.. yeah. Not hurting noone but legit players. Lol

[Varsh]

So The Witcher 2, Street Fighter 4 Arcade Edition, Sins of a Solar Empire, and other games with zero DRM have sold poorly? In fact the complete opposite has happened. The reason other Indie Devs are outselling AAA games studios is for one reason alone, Publishers putting on DRM. Remember what happened when EA decided to no longer use the "always online"? Their game sales suddenly shot up on the PC, ironic isn't it?

Serial keys we don't mind about, Steam we don't mind about, but always online to play even in offline mode, server downtimes which means no one can play a single player game, and now calling us pirates? They need to look long and hard at themselves before accusing us.

The irony of all of this is that actually the Wii/DS and the X360 is pirated just as much - if not more - than the PC.

[F34R]

Who said I was pirating their games? I said I was boycotting and no longer purchasing, I never said anything about pirating games. I no longer support them end of, they're calling me a pirate because in their eyes everyone on PCs pirate, well like I said, Anno 2070 is officially the last game I'll ever purchase from them.

Now please tell me from where I said I was going to pirate anything? Your logic defies me.

Edit: Actually in fact what you just labelled me right there is their logic in thought thinking that I'm a pirate because I won't support them. Sorry mate but I actually BUY my games and I have over 7000 original games dating back to the early 70's. Hell on Steam alone I have hundreds of games already plus bought all of the Indie Royale and Humble Bundles, and on top of that own a GOG account of over 30 games too.

Am I a pirate? Whatever floats your boat but I know I'm not one so don't label me as one.

Awesome post. +rep

[keefy]

i just realised something, Ubisoft do not publish or develop Operation flash point.

[Naxi]

I would've definitely bought some of the games on the PC if it wasn't for the DRM.

[Varsh]

i just realised something, Ubisoft do not publish or develop Operation flash point.

My bad, I meant Ghost Recon.

[Dave-The-Rave]

I'm sure they don't care.

[F34R]

I'm sure they don't care.

I'm sure they do care.

[AaronSOLDIER]

Haven't bought ANY Ubisoft games this gen, not one of them interests me in the slightest. I've personally never really liked any of their games either tbh, only a couple on PS1 (Rayman 1, Driver - both of which went downhill) and that's about it.

[Yuuichi]

I agree with always online bs. It is a reason I am passing on D3. Sure I might be always online, but what if something happens and my net out, or their server is out, or I am traveling. I can not play SINGLEPLAYER because I am not online? BS

[Xelios]

Meh. All of their games suck anyway.

[Rapture]

If their games would be without DRM, it would be too easy to crack the game and let pirates download it.Thats why they have done this DRM, its like a defence from hacking and cracking.

You have it backwards. Without DRM there would be no need to hack or crack, but with it there is. When publishers or developers decide to enforce restrictive DRM all they're doing is hurting legitimate customers. Pirates and crackers have always bypassed the issue in little time, normally only taking a day or two. Sometimes the game is even leaked before release and already cracked. By enforcing DRM the publishers abuse their customers, and that's wrong. If they show their customers some respect they'll see an increase in sales, no doubt.

[F34R]

You have it backwards. Without DRM there would be no need to hack or crack, but with it there is. When publishers or developers decide to enforce restrictive DRM all they're doing is hurting legitimate customers. Pirates and crackers have always bypassed the issue in little time, normally only taking a day or two. Sometimes the game is even leaked before release and already cracked. By enforcing DRM the publishers abuse their customers, and that's wrong. If they show their customers some respect they'll see an increase in sales, no doubt.

Couldn't agree more... We've seen it several times over the past couple years where legit users weren't even able to play their games while people with cracked copies enjoyed them.

[*goo]

Ubisoft need to look at the monumental success of Skyrim on PC and learn that if you make a good game people will buy it. I don't know if it's true but I heard on a recent podcast that the PC version sold more than Oblivion did on all platforms. That's staggering.

It's no surprise that if you treat your customers like criminals that they won't buy your products. Their DRM 'solution' (used very loosely) did exactly that.

If you treat your paying customers like shit because someone else ISN'T paying you money, you're going to fail.

Ubisoft, take a long hard look at yourself. Cutting and running with some PR nonsense does you no favours. Many PC gamers (me for instance) buy games for more than just PC.

Will you get any of money on X360 or PS3 ? Not any more.

[Mael Duin]

Need to post this... Timing can't be just a coincidence?

http://gamingbolt.com/gabe-newell-pi...-in-more-sales

No one knows the PC market better than Valve, and in a recent interview with TCS, Gabe Newell explained why Valve is so successful. Recently we reported how Ubisoft were shunning the PC market due to Piracy, and imposing heavy DRM on their customers, but according to Newell that’s not really the right way to go about it.
He said that there is a general misconception about piracy, and it’s not really the high cost that forces people to pirate. It’s about the delivery service and how convenient it is to people with purchasing power.
“In general, we think there is a fundamental misconception about piracy. Piracy is almost always a service problem and not a pricing problem,” he said.
“For example, if a pirate offers a product anywhere in the world, 24 x 7, purchasable from the convenience of your personal computer, and the legal provider says the product is region-locked, will come to your country 3 months after the US release, and can only be purchased at a brick and mortar store, then the pirate’s service is more valuable.”
In a way, I agree with him. Imposing heavy DRM on software will only turn off the legit customers and that’s more detrimental to sales that being beneficial. Coming back to the Ubisoft example, they do make very good games for the PC.
The quality of the Anno franchise is inarguable, and they have released some quality exclusives now and then on the platform. But most of these software contain one type of DRM or the other, and it’s confusing why Ubisoft chooses to go this route.
Recently Ubisoft said that, “95% of people will pirate our game.” It’s a ridiculous thing to say without releasing any sort of data and they have also cancelled Ghost Recon: Future Soldier for the PC. Yes, they may be hurting due to piracy, but going from one extreme to the other is not the solution and Ubisoft needs to understand this.
Newell explained a lot more as to how they were providing better services and creating a sense of brand loyalty. He mentioned that piracy is basically a “Non-issue” for Valve.
“Our goal is to create greater service value than pirates, and this has been successful enough for us that piracy is basically a non-issue for our company.”
He also gave a nifty example as to why this is the case.
“Prior to entering the Russian market, we were told that Russia was a waste of time because everyone would pirate our products. Russia is now about to become our largest market in Europe,” he revealed.
If only Ubisoft and others could learn a thing or two from this man, the gaming industry would be in a much better position.
P.S. He has no idea about Half-Life 3.

;_;

[Azu]

I think you made a mistake with the thread title. I think you were going to write: "Officially boycotting all Ubisoft games on all platforms EXCEPT Michel Ancel's (Rayman Origins, Beyond Good & Evil 2), who's awesome and who deserves all the love the gaming community can give him", right? Ancel really is one of the only creative minds working at Ubisoft who is not only a genius, but he really wants to give the best experiences to gamers, not to go for the lowest common denominator (they decided early on to make Rayman Origins 1080p@60fps to offer the ultimate sharp & smooth gaming experience, a challenging one at that, not something you can get through with blindfolded). If you're at all interested in platformers and you don't buy Rayman Origins, then you are an enemy of gaming, fuck boycotting Ubisoft.

[Inzane2050]

"P.S. No idea about Half-Life 3." DAMNIT! XD

[Varsh]

Azu, frankly I wouldn't care if Beyond Good and Evil 2 was the greatest game ever by a country mile, the fact is Ubisoft need to learn respect and I hope that developers start leaving that company. A publisher can sell all the best games in the world but if they're going to start slagging off gamers like that and calling a user-base of hundreds of millions pirates then I don't care for their PR anymore. I play games to enjoy myself and reward the developers for what they have delivered to me with my hard earned cash, I don't purchase games to be slagged off and given a poor service at the same time.

So what'll happen next? Oh look the Wii/DS has only pirates, we'll not support that platform either! It's inevitable and Ubisoft have got to learn that customers comes FIRST not last. EA had to go through this and finally delivered and now Ubisoft have to, but at this rate and especially after this statement I don't think there'll be a turning back point for them.