rant.. sorry :/
I would suppose the conjecture that matters like DRM are, in fact, in place to force PC gamers away from the PC to game.
Think about it. Where do these developers get most of their income from?
Consoles.
The very platform that most developers, still, presume to be almost angelic, in that they cannot be copied, or at least making copies is damn near impossible.
Of course, we all know that not to be true in the least.
I'm 100% cynical about the whole reason behind DRM, as it's applied, almost without exception, to the PC.
Perhaps we need a company like Philips to oversee this sort of stuff. Sony, at one stage, wanted to introduce a type of DRM on music CDs.
Philips countered with 'fine, but then you cannot sell these as CDs'. Sony retracted almost instantly.
We all know just how much CD sales have plummeted because of a lack of DRM.
Wait.. maybe it was because of the illegalities of the implementation.
Nah.. the RIAA is always right, of course!
So they blame the mp3 format.
OK, that didn't work either.
Another issue is Intellectual Property. Many average home users (which pretty much excludes us TPU! members), do not understand that, yes, you own that Windows/COD4 CD/DVD. No, you don't own the program that's on said CD/DVD.
They get confused as hell about that bit.
The point remains, that if it's crackable, it will be cracked. Whether by digital means (let's ban peer-to-peer file-sharing!), or by simply using a black marker on the edge of the [cd/dvd]disc (let's ban all black markers!).
The support of one's favourite artist/game[developer] will be there, because you think it's worth it.
Piracy has become more rife because of DRM, in whichever form, rather than in spite of it.
In the end, read the box/FAQ before purchase. If it has a type of DRM you disagree with (including the 'must have internet to play' mantra/requirement), don't buy it.
/rant
My apologies for the four-letters use of Sony & RIAA
) but you can carry on. Therefore being online isn't strictly necessary?
