MAMEWorld Forums - The Loony Bin - EA to move to cloud gaming

> So you thought always online was bad?
>
> I guess I won't be buying any more EA games!
>
> New EA DRM
>
> "
> Electronic Arts’ policy of requiring its users to always be online when playing their
> games is going to continue but with a twist, confirmed Keith Ramsdale, the general
> manager of EA Northern Europe.
>
> This new version of the always online requirement will feature the implementation of
> “online universes,” where the games players purchase will exist on the servers rather
> than on one’s computer.
>
>
>
> Ramsdale explained the new vision for EA’s always online policy.
>
> Imagine a player gets up in the morning, plays an online match on his 360 before
> going to work. On the bus, on his way to work, he practices his free kicks on his
> tablet. At lunch he looks at the transfer window on his PC. On the way home he
> chooses his kit on his smartphone.
>
> Here’s the thing: when he gets home to play again on his 360 that evening, all those
> achievements and upgrades will be alive in his game. We’re very focused on
> transforming all of our brands into these online universes. That gives the consumer
> full control of how and when they play in a rich world of content.
>
> The new policy will be extended to all of EA’s franchises, including FIFA,
> Battlefield, Medal of Honor, The Sims, Need for Speed, and Star Wars games, among
> others.
>
> Ramsdale did not give a timeframe for this policy change.
>
> Analysis: Gaming’s a big business now, and that means that the stakes of piracy are
> much higher. For example, Crysis 2, last year’s most pirated game, reported an
> estimated 3,920,000 pirated copies, resulting in approximately $235,200,000 of lost
> income. Of course, it’s difficult to aggregate what percentage of pirates are actual
> lost customers, but when you’re losing $235 million dollars on a game from piracy, it
> doesn’t really matter anymore. The fact of the matter is that, even if only 10% of
> pirates were actual lost customers, then you’re still losing a painful $23 million
> due to piracy.
>
> Crysis 2 wasn’t an anomaly, either. In 2011, games like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
> 3, Battlefield 3, FIFA 12, and Portal 2 all recorded estimate piracy levels of over 3
> million copies, and it’s important to note that three of those games are titles that
> EA published.
>
> So I think the message here is clear. Piracy is a real, veritable concern to any
> publisher releasing high-profile AAA games for the PC. Therefore, EA has a right and
> a business duty to be worried about piracy and to try and think of ways to fix this
> issue.
>
> Now, before you all get your pitchforks and torches and storm my house saying that
> I’m pro-DRM, let me state for the record that I think, unequivocally, that EA’s
> always online policy is draconian, misguided, and repulsive. It’s a prime example of
> taking the wrong route of DRM; it’s punishing all of their players because of pirates
> rather than rewarding the paying customers for their patronage. It’s bad; it doesn’t
> work; it frustrates real customers; and I think that, ironically, it’s contributing
> to the piracy of their games rather than helping to correct the issue.
>
> As such, when I hear of this new development in EA’s DRM policy, I can’t help but
> feel that this is one step forward and two steps back. On the one hand, EA is
> actually trying to ease the pain of the always online requirement by adding helpful
> and customer-positive features to it such as cross-platforming and cloud saving.
> However, in the process of doing this, EA not only misses the point again on why
> their DRM sucks, they also go in yet another completely misguided direction by taking
> away even more game ownership from customers. With this new policy, EA is not only
> continuing but expanding their practice of making customers jump through hoop after
> hoop to gain the content they paid for, and those who do brave the obstacles are
> being rewarded with less actual ownership of that content. You know what that means:
> customers are going to grow tired and frustrated with the draconian DRM and look to
> piracy to try and circumvent all the hassle. It’s a vicious cycle, isn’t it?
>
> The fact of the matter is that you don’t “beat piracy,” and if that’s how you
> approach the issue, then you’re just going to frustrate everybody and get nowhere.
> What you really need to do is encourage people to be legitimate customers rather than
> pirates, and EA’s new policy most certainly does not attempt this in any shape or
> form.
>
> Ultimately, I’m disheartened to hear this news. If EA keeps up the pace with their
> attempts to bludgeon users into buying and using the game exactly how the company
> wants, then I think their future with the PC market might be pretty bleak.
> "

Sweet.

More ways for them to effectively break your game and force you to upgrade to the newer versions.