PC Gamer US Holiday issue: Diablo III, and 15 years of Diablo
15 years ago, the original Diablo hacked and slashed its way into PC gaming history. Now, on the run-up to Diablo III, we take a trip to Blizzard to look back at how all began, and forward at where it’s going—including insight into the Diablo III that almost was! Plus, we’ve got Battlefield 3 sniper survival tips, a special report on what Windows 8 means for gamers, and an emergency guide to wrestling your accounts back from hackers. Then read our reviews of Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad, Rage, Hard Reset, Driver: San Francisco, and more!
It’s all on newsstands now! Or, if you can’t make it to the store, we’re available on Coverleaf.com and Apple Newsstand.
Opinion: Ubisoft, piracy, and the death of reason
Last week, Eurogamer examined PC piracy in an attempt to discover how much it actually harms companies, and the effects of different approaches to DRM. Unfortunately, as the PC Gaming Alliance’s Christian Svennson admitted up-front, you can’t really quantify the problem or the efficacy of its remedies “because you end up having to do a set of cascading assumptions that you have no real ability to validate in any meaningful away.”
However, Ubisoft provides a test-case. We are almost two years into its aggressive attack on PC piracy. Recently, Ubisoft called its “always-on” DRM a success, claiming “a clear reduction in piracy.”
In terms of actual sales, however, the results seem decidedly mixed. Michael Pachter told Eurogamer that Ubisoft’s “PC game sales are down 90% without a corresponding lift in console sales.”
Pachter framed the problem in terms of piracy, as I’m sure Ubisoft frames the problem, but a 90% decline in PC sales is a catastrophic number. If piracy were the problem, then their “successful” DRM policy should have prevented such a free-fall.
Driver: San Francisco delayed on PC, no demo planned
Following the revelation that Driver: San Francisco will be constrained by Ubisoft’s always-online DRM system, Blues News have discovered that the PC version of the game has been delayed, and the demo that has just landed on consoles won’t be coming out at all on PC. While retailers are still listing a September 6 release date for Driver: San Francisco, Blues News have been told that the PC version will be out on September 27.
Ubisoft have recently made a habit of delaying their games at the last minute. From Dust was the most recent victim of a last minute delay. That’s now due to come out on August 17.
Driver: San Francisco trailer shows body-snatching multiplayer
Driver: San Francisco’s multiplayer modes look a bit like Mario Kart, if Mario had the ability to eject his soul from his body mid-race, float several miles above the Mushroom Kingdom and then dive inside the head of any Kart driver in the world. Other powers let you spawn a truck in the middle of the road, or change the car you’re driving into a better one from your garage. If wizards existed, this is how they would race.
We recently learned that Driver: San Francisco will require a permanent internet connection to work, even in the single player game. It marks the return of Ubisoft’s always-online DRM system that has previously been used with Assassin’s Creed 2, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood and Settlers 7. Ubisoft told us that the system “is a success,” and has lowered piracy rates.
Ubisoft: our DRM “is a success”
We recently reported on how Driver: San Francisco will require a constant internet connection to play. It’s a controversial measure put in place to defend against piracy, and we don’t like it. We don’t like pirates either, mind.
Ubisoft see the DRM as a success. Speaking to us earlier today, a Ubisoft representative admitted that the developer has seen “a clear reduction in piracy of our titles which required a persistent online connection, and from that point of view the requirement is a success”.
Ubisoft have traditionally been the developer with some of the harshest DRM in the industry. In the games that use their always online “connected services”, players can no longer to play if no internet connection is detected. The publisher first implemented this always-online DRM with Settlers 7. Since then, it’s featured in Silent Hunter V and Assassin’s Creed 2 and Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood.
Sadly, legitimate players often take the brunt of such security measures. Intermittent internet connections and server issues at Ubisoft’s end can stop PC Gamers from playing the game entirely. Not cool.
Similarly frustrating measures were also introduced in the recent Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition, where offline players were restricted to playing a small selection of the characters. Capcom later withdrew the DRM after fan criticism.
Driver: San Francisco is out on August 30 in the US, and September 2 in Europe. You can read our preview here.
Driver: San Francisco “requires permanent internet connection” on PC
A Tweet from Ubisoft community developer Mathieu Willem, spotted by Eurogamer, confirms that Driver: San Francisco will require player’s PCs to be constantly online to work.
This marks the return of one of the most controversial DRM systems of recent years. Ubisoft started using always-online DRM with Settlers 7, and included it in a few other titles including Silent Hunter V and Assassin’s Creed 2. Players with flaky internet connections struggled to play, and at were at one point locked out of their games for days when Ubisoft’s servers suffered problems.
Driver: San Francisco trailer brings back John Tanner
Police hero John Tanner is gearing up to take on his arch enemy, Jericho in the streets of San Francisco. The ex-racing driver turned high speed cop has a rough past, doesn’t play by the rules and is willing to do whatever it takes to take the bad guys down.
This sounds familiar even before you introduce his straight laced, by-the-book partner trying to keep Tanner on the straight and narrow. It may sound like the setup for every street cop procedural ever made, but it promises lots of fast, violent driving in a huge recreation of San Fran. For an idea of how the game will play, check out our Driver: San Francisco preview, or head over to the official Driver: San Francisco site.
E3 2011: Driver: San Francisco off-screen video shows ghostly possession
You know what the real problem with racing games is? Not enough ghosts. Driver: San Francisco realises this, and has put Excorcist style bodily possession in their game. The footage above shows the multiplayer mode in action, which lets you dive out of your car at will, and possess other drivers nearby. As far as I can tell, there is absolutely no explanation for this, beyond the fact that the character you play as, John Tanner, is in a coma, and as we all know, comas are magic.
The car-swapping power is called ‘Shifting,’ but it’s a limited resource, you have to generate power by completing drifts and jumps before you can hitch a ride in someone else’s mind. The game boasts a big, open world recreation of San Francisco, and, for the first time, a collection of more than a hundred licensed vehicles. The game’s due out at the end of August this year. Check out the official Driver: San Francisco site for more information.
E3 2011: Driver San Francisco trailer
Driver is getting back to basics, back behind the wheel and back to letters that are letters and not numbers like Driv3r. Plus you can jump your soul from body to body. Do not try this in real life.
Driver: San Francisco features upgradeable coma
Not many racing games can say this. Over 100 licensed cars, 208 miles of road, and the psychic ability to take over other drivers’ brains. Allow the video to attempt to barely explain the madness.
