I haven't had any problems with this product but hear other people say they have some problems.
Even so I understand what you mean since playing some online MMOs they have some anti-cheat system that ends up causing more problems to normal users, since for example this one game i was playing was using x-trap which if you don't know causes all sorts of headaches, my buddy whom was using linux more or less bypassed it in 10 minutes with little effort, so while they can try to stop pirating it sadly won't stop a determined hacker from getting past the system in place if they want to which does somewhat suck since it's money out of the pocket of the eroge companies in question to at least some degree.
There is not much I can really do other than support the industry by buying all my games legit and hope more follow in suit.
I'm sure there is more to say on this matter but that's all I really have to say as for my stance on anti-hack/pirate/cheat programs, while I see your point completelyPeach Princess has mentioned several times, that they had [color=red]NO CHOICE[/color] with the software protection. It was put in place at the request of the original creators. PP only licenses and translates these games - they have to negotiate to make it happen… and that was one of the terms.
The fact that piracy of the game is so prevalent, is EXACTLY why the original creators wanted the software protection in the first place. Arguing if it actually works or not is moot and been beaten senseless. They wanted protection because they see the Western market as pirate infested waters… guess what? They were right.
It would actually be easier if people went to the pirate sites and made a request for THEM to go legit and take down the illegal copies of Princess Waltz. Asking PP to do something they can’t, isn’t going to get anything done.
ugh
This horse is so dead… I’ve got a late review to finish… 
I just felt like getting my 2 cents in even if it’s…
But isn’t the piracy just as rampant in the home markets? So the real problem isn’t piracy, it’s that the Western market is small, so piracy makes a good rationalization as to why they won’t allow localization of their IP (games).
The only problem that I’ve had is that often the first time I run the program I encounter an “Hourglass of Doom”, which is easily resolved by shutting down the process and starting the program again. (It has always started right up the second time I start the program.)
Exactly right. Which would you rather have Rashkae, a translated, uncensored version of the game that has a minor inconvenience (believe me, it could be much, much worse), or an untranslated, censored version of the game that most likely costs about twice as much (not including shipping).
:lol:
Quite true (in fact, I’ve sometimes heard it is worse). As Peter keeps talking about in his J-list newsletters, there is the way things really are, and the way things appear to be.
So basically, since file sharing the games is illegal in Japan (like most places in the world), in their eyes it doesn’t happen (or doesn’t happen very much). The truth, however, is that the games are being shared on high speed encrypted networks which can only be accessed if you are in Japan (from what I understand, feel free to correct me if I’m wrong).
To be fair, we don’t actually know if DRM is a contractual term. Peach Princess mentioned that they want to appease the licensor, but the wording is too vague to mean much.
[Does a DVD check also qualify as a form of piracy protection?]
[Is protection required, or is it merely a non-binding request, with all decisions left to the licensee?]
In another region even more notorious for piracy, a certain publisher continues to release Will games with no online activation or disc check.
From what I read, the situations are still quite different. Copyright infringement is a growing problem in Japan (especially among younger people - the otaku industry is afraid of what might happen five or so years down the road. Some compare Japan’s state of file-sharing to what it was like in America around the turn of the century/millennium), but the market remains driven by a collector’s mentality, where owning pricey merchandise is a big part of the culture.
In the west, we’re all about mass consumption at the lowest possible price, so there’s a tendency to attach little value to the product. After all, consumption is the same, whether you pay for it or not.
Actually it can be since some MMO’s have IP blocks in place to allow only those in that region to play the game which would be part of the contract (and I name cabal online and DOMO as two examples of this) that the licensor will have to abide by. So to put it bluntly if it is a contractual obligation to have IP blocks in place in a MMO then it would be exactly the same thing for the use of a DRM programme in a game.
goes and grabs his bat Alright where’s that dead horse. I might as well get my beatings in as well.
And just be thankful that they didn’t decide to use the more well known DRM solutions like safedisc or securom or even god forbid starforce.
Yes, but I’m referring to the specific case here with Will Japan and JAST USA. Without seeing the actual contract ourselves, there’s no way we’d no what kind of terms are specified. The fact that other Will Japan localizations (i.e. Haruka ni Aogi, Uruwashi no, Sincerely To You, etc.) are released elsewhere without DRM raises the question of whether contractual term is too much of an assumption.
Note that I’m not arguing against JAST USA’s decision to implement DRM. Given the state of the market, it makes sense for the company to protect their products, and I commend them for pursuing the best compromise - a one-time activation that’s of no inconvenience to most customers. IIRC, they shifted away from Virtual Mate (for physical copies of G-Collections games) despite initial enthusiasm, precisely because it caused too many concerns for users.
Nevertheless, as with all things, I’m just interested in the truth of the matter.
Oh for the love of God come on… this isn’t a plot to assassinate a world leader.
PP tells us that Princess Waltz has protection software because Will told them it would. Do Not Pass Go. The End. It was nice of PP to tell us that much. They didn’t even have to go that far and it was an honest courtesy on their part.
Now you’re asking they post the contract agreement, because you think they’re lying or performed overkill? Going on a tangent to think PP would stick DRM in a title of theirs, KNOWING their customers dislike DRM ¬ñ not to mention pointing out they didn’t want it either ¬ñ is being too paranoid. MangaGamers has DRM too: which they too have pointed out is not a choice of theirs either.
Japanese game makers want protection when they’re released in the West. How hard is that to grasp? Like those of other nations, the Japanese are shrewed and ruthless business people: that’s why they beat the snot outta US Capitalism during the 80’s. We don’t even know how the original makers get paid in the first place. Do they get a cut from the foreign sales? Does PP pay a full check upfront? Who knows. Frankly PP shouldn’t tell anyone either - things like that are trade secrets. Either way: the Japanese makers ALREADY got their investment back from the original sales. Also please note: not all companies care about getting rich. Some Japanese companies have officially gone on the record to state, they could give a rat’s ass about Western markets (Illusion and Touchy off the top of my head). Just because they don’t put DRM on a Taiwan version of something they release in the US, doesn’t mean they didn’t plan it that way. Different market, different rules.
In case you didn’t notice, Japanese are a LOT warmer with Korean and Taiwanese markets in general (not just eroge) than they are with the US. That’s because they all share the same economic region: the differential treatment between the US, Canada and Mexico are a lot warmer than they are with Japan, Korea, and Taiwan (hell… even Europe and Australia). It’s been like that for decades. What PP and MG are going through is no different that what Ford or Saab go through. To quote my old business professor (paraphrasing here… it’s been a number of years): “Sometimes during negotiations, to get what you want, you’ll take it up the ass. Just be happy to bring lubrication.”
Bringing this thread off topic (something I’m all too willing to do given how tense the thread has become), I must say your professor sounds like quite a character. Even if that isn’t his exact words, the sentiment of the quote is priceless.
Yea… my bad… I lapsed into my politics mode, when the PP forum is about ero and twincest. Sorry about that… getting worked over nothing…
As for the old professor: he was interesting. Wasn’t a PC kinda guy. He treated business like it was war… even liked to quote Sun Tzu. Basically he saw negotiations in three forms: a position of power, a position of equality, or a position of weakness. Money is always the equalizer… and those in a position of weakness have no lubricants. 
His other constant teaching that I still remember: “There are three things that stocks will never fail to return on: guns, sex, and oil. The best part is, you can use all three together.”
He was a total righwing nut job. 
From what little I know about business, I’d say he had the right approach. I don’t know if “The Art of War” is a commonly read work in the business world, but from what I have heard, Miyamoto Musashi’s “The Book of Five Rings” is commonly read.
Narg, that professor sounds like a great teacher! Or at least, he had great classes. I’d have loved to had a teacher like that when I was in school.