Ghost Recon Online says that free-to-play games are the industry's response to piracy. As a result, Ghost Recon: Future Soldier will NOT be coming to PC, leaving only Ghost Recon Online as the only upcoming option available to PC gamers.
Ghost Recon Online's producer, Sebastien Arnoult, has this to say about the decision.
Wait, what? That wasn't the problem at all. The problem was the DRM methods you at Ubisoft were using that required a user to perpetually be connected to the Internet, and as soon as that Internet connection faltered the game was suddenly unavailable. So instead of going the route of making transparent or far less strict DRM, you go completely off the deep end and offer an experience that is very dissimilar to what you're offering to the console crowd?
See, the big reason people probably pirate your games is because of the very strict DRM and how pirated versions of the game don't have to deal with that level of frustration. See, it just works for them! They don't have to be connected all the time on a pirated version. But in the end, even if they did pirate your software, it still means there is a WANT for those games on the PC. So why don't you just take a clue from the pirates, and make far less strict DRM on the same retail releases that are coming to console? You guys had actually ended up digging your own PC deficit by making more restrictive DRM and nobody likes that.
Oh right, the crew from I Am Alive had decided to question the value of porting anything to the PC gaming market. Creative Director on the project, Stanislas Mettra, had this to say.
Did we fail to mention that I Am Alive is a console exclusive title from Ubisoft?
Ghost Recon Online's producer, Sebastien Arnoult, has this to say about the decision.
“We are giving away most of the content for free because there’s no barrier to entry. To the users that are traditionally playing the game by getting it through Pirate Bay, we said, ‘Okay, go ahead guys. This is what you’re asking for. We’ve listened to you – we’re giving you this experience. It’s easy to download, there’s no DRM that will pollute your experience.’”
While Ghost Recon Online is exclusive to PC, Ubisoft’s other Ghost Recon game, Future Soldier, uses a traditional payment model and will only be available on console.
“We’re adapting the offer to the PC market. I don’t like to compare PC and Xbox boxed products because they have a model on that platform that is clearly meant to be €60’s worth of super-Hollywood content. On PC, we’re adapting our model to the demand.”
The perceived value of PC games is heavily affected by piracy, Arnoult says – both for players and publishers.
“When we started Ghost Recon Online we were thinking about Ghost Recon: Future Solider; having something ported in the classical way without any deep development, because we know that 95% of our consumers will pirate the game. So we said okay, we have to change our mind.
“We have to adapt, we have to embrace this instead of pushing it away. That’s the main reflection behind Ghost Recon Online and the choice we’ve made to go in this direction.”
While Ghost Recon Online is exclusive to PC, Ubisoft’s other Ghost Recon game, Future Soldier, uses a traditional payment model and will only be available on console.
“We’re adapting the offer to the PC market. I don’t like to compare PC and Xbox boxed products because they have a model on that platform that is clearly meant to be €60’s worth of super-Hollywood content. On PC, we’re adapting our model to the demand.”
The perceived value of PC games is heavily affected by piracy, Arnoult says – both for players and publishers.
“When we started Ghost Recon Online we were thinking about Ghost Recon: Future Solider; having something ported in the classical way without any deep development, because we know that 95% of our consumers will pirate the game. So we said okay, we have to change our mind.
“We have to adapt, we have to embrace this instead of pushing it away. That’s the main reflection behind Ghost Recon Online and the choice we’ve made to go in this direction.”
Wait, what? That wasn't the problem at all. The problem was the DRM methods you at Ubisoft were using that required a user to perpetually be connected to the Internet, and as soon as that Internet connection faltered the game was suddenly unavailable. So instead of going the route of making transparent or far less strict DRM, you go completely off the deep end and offer an experience that is very dissimilar to what you're offering to the console crowd?
See, the big reason people probably pirate your games is because of the very strict DRM and how pirated versions of the game don't have to deal with that level of frustration. See, it just works for them! They don't have to be connected all the time on a pirated version. But in the end, even if they did pirate your software, it still means there is a WANT for those games on the PC. So why don't you just take a clue from the pirates, and make far less strict DRM on the same retail releases that are coming to console? You guys had actually ended up digging your own PC deficit by making more restrictive DRM and nobody likes that.
Oh right, the crew from I Am Alive had decided to question the value of porting anything to the PC gaming market. Creative Director on the project, Stanislas Mettra, had this to say.
“Perhaps it will only take twelve guys three months to port the game to PC, it’s not a massive cost but it’s still a cost. If only 50,000 people buy the game then it’s not worth it.”
Did we fail to mention that I Am Alive is a console exclusive title from Ubisoft?
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