A JRPG like Crono Trigger with no multiplayer or indeed, no online component at all is not exactly comparable to an always-online game like Darkspore. Somebody has to pay the server costs. Not only that, somebody has to be paid to patch the game for bugs and techincal issues, patch the game for balance, somebody has to be paid to moderate the game and any official forums, to run the Twitter and Facebook accounts, create new content to keep the game fresh, fix non-game-related server issues, and answer the phone or email when somebody can't log in because they live in eastern Russia and are trying to connect on their Nokia N-Gage via 56k modem.
The fact is it's expensive to run an online game, let alone one that's worth anything. An online anything isn't a complete unit that can be completed, uploaded and then just exists forever like a SNES cartridge (by the way, the batteries in those will die one day--damn Nintendo and their planned obsolescence). Maybe, instead of EA closing down Dark Spore because they're art-hating scum that just want to kill everybody's fun all the time... maybe nobody cared about Dark Spore and EA couldn't justify paying the bill for a game that very few people play when they have other, higher-profile projects to work on?
Don't defend EA's actions. That argument can be used for any game, including ones that can be played just fine without the online components, because of the push for "always online". That's their tendency, to ensure they control what you play instead of you, because then you can be used for more profit.
I don't expect companies to support games forever, but I do expect them to take responsibility for their creations. It is inherently wrong to permanently close off media from the world, because then you've taken the final step for the commodification of art. It ceases to be both a meaningful creation and a vector for profit, and is made into only the latter. Fuck that.
Every game with online components, servers, or DRM should be expected (by law if not by industry standards) to have an end-of-life plan. Just like Microsoft didn't send out a virus to wipe the kernel of every Windows XP system in the world when they stopped supporting it, companies have no right to supress abandonware. If you aren't selling it, you can't complain when it gets shared. They should be expected to distribute server software so that people can run their own servers at their own cost. They should be expected to deactivate all DRM or at least not stop cracks, because at this point cracking isn't just a piracy measure, it's a necessity to make the software function like its supposed to when an external server can't get a response. And, of course, any content on external servers should be made available as well. None of that is a lot to ask either. People are resourceful. There are entire communities out there for Resident Evil: Outbreak, Metal Gear Online, and Battlefield 2. And, of course, all of DosBOX.
It's funny you mention Nintendo, because they actually aren't an offender in this regard. They make durable products that don't fight the user, and despite their attitude towards fan projects are not killing their own games. As long as a dedicated archival community can continue to allow a game to be played so it doesn't end up permanently destroyed and forgotten like some 1920s film they only ever made one reel of before it was destroyed in a warehouse fire, everything is good.
Here's a video about Darkspore and the issues with it. The way games, especially console gaming, are going is frankly concernedly dystopian at this point. People will continue to try to fight it, but they really shouldn't be expected to have to go through ever more layers of security and obfuscation in the name of bullshit corporate greed. Piracy is alive and well despite all the efforts against it, and so are actual sales, for that matter. It doesn't have to be a war between gamers and publishers.
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Topic: Things that made you go "WTF?" today o_O (Read 14846248 times)