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Author Topic: Aquaria hit the P2P  (Read 111037 times)

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Offline KingAl

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #120 on: February 17, 2008, 05:43:15 am »
Well, trying to legitimize their actions is just a load of bologna.  The disclaimers on these sites say things such as "It is legal to download this game if the company has gone out of business" or "You are authorized to download one copy to replace your own if you lost or broke yours".  I remember claims on rom servers saying "You can download roms for 24 hours before being required to delete them".  The hell?  They're just confusing the ones who don't want to break any laws, and the real pirates are pretty much going to ignore it anyway.  It's just wishful thinking and vain attempts to avoid lawsuits.

How many games would have been lost to the cosmos if someone wasn't keeping a backup copy of it somewhere?  You could do a simple search for "roms" or "abandonware" and see huge lists of games you probably never even heard of.  Now, if you were saving these games for posterity, that'd be a commendable effort.  You'll be praised and lauded by others who appreciate the free exchange and preservation of data.  It's like being the Internet version of Robin Hood or something.  But these sites basically operate on the premise of, who's going to stop us?  I'm not an accountant or lawyer, but I would be willing to guess that with these games being thrown around in disregard of copyright laws, it basically means that your copyright is worth jack shit.  Why do we even have copyright laws then?  Why do they have a 100 year lifespan and not just die with the company?  (This is a whole different beast of a discussion though)

Maybe people who download abandonware consider themselves connoisseurs  or historians or anti-copyright activists.  Just realize that you're indulging in a guilty pleasure.
HotU, one of the best abandonware sites (though now, regrettably, dead), contains no such disclaimers, only hosts files if the game could not be found in online stores and removes titles immediately if a copyright owner or their representative requests it; clearly you use a broad brush. In practical terms copyright is 'worth jack shit', as is money, law and any other social construct - but, as you say, that's another can of worms. There is no legal basis on which 'abandonware' is legitimate, but do you honestly believe that enforcing arbitrary restrictions from which none gain is sensible? That the creators of the games would prefer them to gather dust than be appreciated? I have no pretentions of anarchism or connoisseurship, I'm simply pointing out that you conflate legality and morality, and so I remind you that abandonware is not a guilty pleasure,  merely an illegal one ;) No other form of piracy, to my mind, is in a similar position.
« Last Edit: February 17, 2008, 05:47:42 am by KingAl »

Offline inkblob

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #121 on: February 17, 2008, 07:52:26 pm »
good grief, you've typed more than almost everyone here tied together in 3 posts. I hope you arn't advocating this much on other forums, that would surely take up your days doing that! ok, got my facetiousness out. all of your points are well made, Fynn, and there is nothing to disagree inherently about them. 

But I am curious, why are you opposed to those who fight copyright infringement?  How will we be able to distinguish the "douche pirates" from the "college kid" (not necessarily mutually exclusive)?  If your best friend received a subpoena to appear in court for distributing copyrighted material, would you support him wholeheartedly with testimony to his good nature, even if his computer was hosting the equivalent of Suprnova?  For some reason, I'm reminded of the old anti-drug conundrum: Who's easier to go after, the drug dealers or the drug users?  I hate the MPAA and RIAA too, but can you honest-to-god tell me that they have no right to do it?  I feel bad for the musicians getting screwed by the record industry, and the writers by the entertainment biz.  But this is getting a bit off-topic now.

the paint stroke is invariably to broad, there rarely is any attempt to make the distinction. from my experience there is a certain type of character who is attracted to copyright advocacy and they often would sooner level an environment then coming to a solution. you know, the MPAA and RIAA don't bother me half as much because it's their actual job.  some of the methods employed by either amateurs or professionals are as underhanded and as criminal as the pirates themselves, but you could say that is the nature of going undercover and profiling. dos attacks, harassment campaigns, false identities and infiltration are the norm for bringing groups down and it's quite effective. when it's being done to a SAHM who has a Disney character in their email or forum signature then imo the advocate is being morally lower then the offending user of said graphic.

the RIAA have frequently and publically targeted the drug dealers, where if you want to make changes then they should be working at an isp level, with the web hosters and software makers. this problem is not going to go away, just like vcr's and mix tapes are ingrained into our society, there has to be a favourable solution for both parties. I'm not sure about where anyone else lives but here garage sales are not actually legal, and it's against municipal bylaws to put out furniture for free onto the boulevard. technically you have to have a permit to have a bake sale and almost no one declares the income they make from weekend craft markets.  there is a very grey area in real life, and sure, if these people were taken to task and prosecuted they'd have no legitimate excuse other than everyone else was doing it. these sorts of things are not really crimes especially in comparison to the real problems going on and that's sort of my perspective on internet matters as well.  prosecution of, yes hypocritical and guilty, people for downloading a game or album compared to someone hosting a few terrorbytes of media is silly. that's the douche distinction, and attacking students and grannies who might have partially added to the snowball but can't financially defend themselves is bullying and a poor allocation of offensive tactics.

anyone here ( or publically anywhere ) posting exactly what they illegally download is a bit silly but that's their choice. and since they typed it out and pressed post, they had the time to review if they wanted to or not, so you not reporting them to the 'cops' is not as a gracious or benevolent act as it might appear, they've made up their own minds and power to them.  all that said, you're obviously well informed, considered, and almost likable, maybe discuss the game or something on the forum?
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Offline Polysynchronicity

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #122 on: February 23, 2008, 09:13:47 am »
I registered here to say that I acquired a copy of Aquaria via a P2P source, and am loving it so much that I'm going to buy a legit copy as soon as I get my next paycheck. I'll probably look into getting the OS X version once it comes out, too.

Make of this what you will. Just wanted to let you know that not every P2P download is a lost sale for Bit Blot. I'll certainly be following whatever other games they make in the future, and paying for them. Judging from Aquaria, I'm in for a treat. ;)

Offline Cruxx

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #123 on: February 23, 2008, 06:35:31 pm »
Well your certainly an honest chap.

Offline inkblob

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #124 on: November 06, 2008, 05:36:08 pm »
this is a interesting article from the developer's side of the issue:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/sep/11/games.piracy1

wow, a quick scan through this thread and almost missing ol Fynn, sort of like how I'm going to miss Sarah Palin  :)
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Offline AĆ«rendyll

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #125 on: November 11, 2008, 10:25:02 pm »
I registered here to say that I acquired a copy of Aquaria via a P2P source, and am loving it so much that I'm going to buy a legit copy as soon as I get my next paycheck. I'll probably look into getting the OS X version once it comes out, too.

Make of this what you will. Just wanted to let you know that not every P2P download is a lost sale for Bit Blot. I'll certainly be following whatever other games they make in the future, and paying for them. Judging from Aquaria, I'm in for a treat. ;)

Same counts for me.  I pirated Aquaria at first because I just didn't know how to pay without creditcard or PayPal. I used P2P as a way to enjoy the game, but I want to support Alec and Derek in what they do, so I purchased the game eventually. I might even order some copies for friends, if I could help it. The game is certainly worth the 25 Euros I spend on it.

I've been refusing to give the files I downloaded to people I told about Aquaria, for obvious reasons. I keep telling people how Aquaria was and still is my favourite game ever. I'm certainly impressed by the game and I'd be happy if I ever become as talented and successful as the members of the Bit-Blot team. c:
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Offline Chibi

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #126 on: November 11, 2008, 11:03:14 pm »
I think Derek and Alec should create a donation system on the bit-blot website, to "further their artistic ventures" (PR-speak for making a load of well-deserved dough)  ;) It might even offset the money lost from the dread unrepented p2p'ers, although P2P is inexcusable.

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Offline inkblob

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #127 on: November 12, 2008, 06:57:02 am »
I think Derek and Alec should create a donation system on the bit-blot website, to "further their artistic ventures" (PR-speak for making a load of well-deserved dough)  ;) It might even offset the money lost from the dread unrepented p2p'ers, although P2P is inexcusable.

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Offline Chibi

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #128 on: November 12, 2008, 11:38:17 am »
Wait a sec... what does "dl" mean? Please excuse my ignorance.  ;)

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Offline Glamador

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #129 on: November 12, 2008, 04:33:35 pm »
download or downloaded

This...game...ROCKS!
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Offline Chibi

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #130 on: November 13, 2008, 12:50:39 am »
Thanks!
Answering Inkblob's post: Imagine what type of copy protection they will need when it actually becomes possible!

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Offline inkblob

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Re: Aquaria hit the P2P
« Reply #131 on: November 13, 2008, 04:17:05 am »
I'm finding it very hard to find the movie 'W' on teh torrents. it could be the most brilliantly copyright protected film ever titled. the next Spiderman movie should be called avi, it would be impossible to find in the search results ;)
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