HardCode said:
This is the dumbest fucking argument ever. If you can't afford a $49.99 game, then get a Saturday morning part-time job. In one month, that money can buy you 3 to 5 games. Then, play them Saturday night and Sunday. Lazy fucks.
Way to miss the forest for a single twig. I also would have accepted 'if you can't afford it don't buy it'.
The interesting question isn't how to save money for games, the interesting questions are: Why do people pirate games? Does piracy hurt profits? If so how much? and are current methods the correct way to recover those losses? Are any of the reasons justifiable? do they put other industry problems under the spotlight?
The legal debate is painfully droll:
a) Some games are like buggy, and I can't take it back if I don't like it.
b) Then your legal recourse is to demand a demo and don't buy games that don't have one.
a) Then I just won't get any games, because stupid fanboys buy buggy crap.
b) So? That doesn't justify stealing.
a) Ha Ha mother fucker, piracy isn't stealing unless you take physical media
b) Alright, you're right there. It's steal illegal dumbass.
a) but it's not fair!
Piracy excuses/reasons seem to come in three major flavors
1) I'm broke nigga.
Good luck stopping these people. The morality of the poor is tested much more than the morality of the rich. And if you really wouldn't buy the game, or would wait and buy it used, you're not taking money directly from the developer which makes it easier to justify.
2) Content providers have declared war on their customers, so I'm fighting back.
Now old white guys will tell you, the correct way to change a law is to contact your representative, blah, blah, blah. History, however tells us that the way to change a law is either disobediance, or spend billions hiring a lobbyist to bribe a majority of representatives.
For the most part, reviews and less sensible friends can resolve this issue legally.
3) pokemon - gotta have them all or l33t ha><0r syndrome
There's no hope for these people.
Like the music and film industries, game makers lose any sympathy for their loss they may have had from me. It's like if the local strike team turned in their sniper rifle for daisy cutters. It's like they don't mind wasting millions on stupid-ass anti-piracy measures that shit all over customers just so they can pad their loss numbers their lobbyist shows to congress while asking for the death penalty for pirating games. That effort could be spent on getting better games out and improving relationships with customers - which I believe would be more effective.