PC Mass Effect Requires Internet Activation Every 10 Days to Work; Blood Sacrifice to Follow?
Posted by Jonathan on Wednesday, May 7th, 2008 at 12:19 am under Bioware, Computer, Electronic Arts, Game Companies, Game Platforms, Games, Games Industry, Mass Effect
Remember how many people were up in arms about the PC version of BioShock’s copy protection, SecuROM, which limited people who bought the game legitimately from having it installed on more than two computers at once? Well apparently EA and BioWare don’t, since they’re using an even more restrictive version of the software in the upcoming PC release of Mass Effect. This version of the game will automatically authenticate your CD key with your PC every time you run the program, and will actually run this check on its own every five days as long as your computer is connected to the internet. If the game can’t find a connection, then it will still allow you to play the game for five days before locking up. At that point, you’ll have to contact customer support to get your beloved game unlocked again. Bottom line: you’ll have to re-authenticate your copy of Mass Effect online every ten days…forever. In other words, don’t leave your internet unplugged, don’t toss out an old computer without uninstalling the game first, and God forbid you should ever go on vacation and take the precaution of leaving your electronics unplugged.
Naturally, this raises a lot of issues with gamers. For one, nobody likes being treated like a criminal for legally purchasing a product for their own entertainment. Besides that, this makes you wonder if people will even be able to activate the game years later — seriously, I still crack open the original Fallout every few years without a fuss. At least they’re disclosing this now rather than after the game hit store shelves, like with BioShock. Of course, some people with enough free time won’t even need the ten days to finish with the game (hell, it took me three days to plow through it around Christmas time). Unfortunately though, it sounds like SecuROM isn’t going anywhere as far as EA is concerned, seeing as Spore will apparently use similar copy protection methods.
Via The Angry Pixel
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May 7th, 2008 at 12:29 am
LOL
It's gonna get cracked faster than god damn audiosurf
Morons.
May 7th, 2008 at 12:51 am
This won't stop the crackers, so i can only feel sad for the dumb fools that will support EA by subyugating to these 'extreme' playing conditions. Even legal owners will download cracks to get rid of this pesky (what kind of protection is this? anti-piracy? anti-cracking? anti-HUMANITY?!) protection.
May 7th, 2008 at 12:54 am
I'm buying it for sure. This game seems a worthy purchase…
Then I am going to use a crack and burn it to a DVD to have forever. I am not going to be hassled with this kind of crap. I still play Planescape Torment and Baldur's Gate 1 & 2 every now and then… Hey they were Bioware RPGs too. Bioware makes games I buy and like to enjoy for years and years. Bioware is king of CRPGs, but fuck EA and their stupid crap. Crack this fucker so I can enjoy the game I purchase for years to come.
May 7th, 2008 at 12:58 am
Well, it's a very nice game and all (haven't played it), but if you have an xbox, support that version (I know it's for a shitty console but you won't support this EA madness).
May 7th, 2008 at 1:01 am
Well, scratch buying this for PC then I guess. I was planning on picking it up for PC, since I prefer games on the PC over consoles, but screw this. I'll just add another game to my 360 collection.
May 7th, 2008 at 1:09 am
. . . Wow… this is just getting ridiculous. They punish the honest paying customer, in a vain attempt to prevent something that will happen anyway. Kind of like gun control… no matter how many laws are out there, criminals are still criminals because they -don't- obey the law.
May 7th, 2008 at 1:27 am
I'm filled with disgust.
May 7th, 2008 at 1:29 am
I loved this game on 360 and was planning on getting is for PC…but now I just dont know…
I cant handle being treated like this when I am the one in the right.
What the fuck Bioware…dont let this happen.
May 7th, 2008 at 1:38 am
Makes me appreciate games like Sins of a Solar Empire even more.
May 7th, 2008 at 1:58 am
Guess I'll just wait for the PS3 version.
May 7th, 2008 at 2:38 am
EAs probably got bioware by the balls, this is getting absurd, it takes me 15 minutes just to download a Steam update, so if i want to play for an hour thats 1/4th of my time wasted, i wonder how long this shit is gonna take, not to mention the fact that they SAID IT WAS NOT COMING OUT FOR PC, what the fuck was that? A strategy to get more people to buy both the xbox and PC version? We should refuse to buy is because they lied, if for no other reason
May 7th, 2008 at 3:32 am
This is insanity.
May 7th, 2008 at 4:37 am
Well crap, I was looking forward to having a new game to play at the end of this month. I am not going through bioshock again.
May 7th, 2008 at 4:59 am
This BS has sealed my decision to not buy this game. I will just wait 2 days and get a cracked version from BT and not support EA or their arrogance. Hooray for Tor.
May 7th, 2008 at 5:44 am
It's useless, it will be cracked.
May 7th, 2008 at 6:15 am
Its like they want people to play cracked versions
May 7th, 2008 at 7:32 am
I got a simple solution, Ain't gonn a buy it!
May 7th, 2008 at 7:40 am
Crack is wack!!
I like PC's the problem is that my job requires me to work with them all the time and unfortunately, I'm a technical consultant, the last thing that I want to do when I get home is get on my PC.
It sounds like EA is being a little rough on PC fans though making them re-authenticate every ten days, but I guess with the growing problem of software pirating they have to find some way to protect their property.
Go Marlins!!!!
May 7th, 2008 at 7:57 am
aye not gonna buy something that haves a re-authenticate every ten days forever and ever
thats just not right
May 7th, 2008 at 8:17 am
There are better means of copy protection than one that requires taking freedom from the player. Not to mention the potential tracking that the re-auth' gives EA of its customers.
May 7th, 2008 at 8:29 am
How is this going to solve piracy? It's just going to get in the way of people who plan on buying the game anyways. People who buy legit copys are going to now want to depend on the people to crack the copy protection so they don't have to bother with this crap. It's pointless.
May 7th, 2008 at 8:51 am
Yea, it’s like when the publishers put all those stupid ass movies at the beginning of the game. Yea sure, let it play the first time all the way through… but damn. Not every single time. Ok, I get it… EA published this game, can I please get to the game already. Not being able to hit esc to skip those movies really pisses me off. So they make modifications to the files to get rid of them.
I think your right about the game getting cracked but I think this one is going to take some time to get around. Obviously if they are checking the keys on your pc, who’s not to say they aren't recording ip’s where the keys are being used. Someone will probably have to come up with something that alters your key every time they do an authentication check. So if you plan on getting it "that way" its probably going to be at least a month after release date before you even get a working copy.
May 7th, 2008 at 9:30 am
Damn this sucks!! I'm just gonna play the pc demo when it comes out then sorry EA if you guys can loosen up on the protection thing then you will get more customers jeeez.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:33 am
Well, screw this game, was looking forward to it, but guess not, If I do buy it, which, I can say I probably won't, I may need to get a crack just because of internet policies on bases. From a veteran colonel of the military, I'd like to say Fuck you EA and Bioware, fuck you for not thinking about your military men and women that play games, but have security restrictions where they are.
Thanks, thanks one hell of a lot
May 7th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
I'll just wait till the day before and download the cracked version off bit torrent, pirates FTW
May 7th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
If I pirate a game, I buy it 90% of the time, the other 10% of the time I uninstall the game because it bores me. Now, with this piece of shit system, I'm going to get the crack, and play it. Forever. And, now I hold my grudge against EA. I'll boycott them, until they remove it.
May 7th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
I agree with what some said about the opening movies. Granted you can remove most of them by taking them out of the games folders but you shouldn't have to do that in the first place. Its like buying a dvd, blu-ray etc and forced to watch previews for movies that you don't want to ever see every time you try to watch the movie you bought. Another lets screw over the actually customers. I really hate those "you wouldn't steal a car, blah blah blah blah" commercials they have on some dvds. Yes I bought that damn DVD but no, go ahead and accuse me of being a pirate.. thanks.
May 7th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
Well if there is any better way to alienate yourself and anger your customer base leave it to EA find it. This is by far the single most moronic thing to date from EA. I kept trying to convince myself that the Bioware aquuisition was going to be ok…EA clearly saw some glimmer of hope in my eye and dashed it. Bastards.
June 2nd, 2008 at 4:14 pm
PC version will have just a buncha hacks and cheats for it, anyways better off buying it for a console.
but they'll never stop the crackers, they yearn for a challange.
I know i do.
June 13th, 2008 at 7:43 pm
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa… that why i canot play the game at my house because Internet is required!!!
Crap i was wait for this game for too long to have a PC version but seems that i've just wasted my moneyfor nothing 
… I even upgraded my PC for this…
Not i have (AMD 4400+, 1GB video card GF 8500, 3GB DDR2 RAM,)all of this for nothing since i can't still play the game since i don't have any internet connection..
June 22nd, 2008 at 9:14 am
i'm a morally bound gamer, that does not have a internet connection. know with this new activation crap a will no longer support EA games, but i guess they don't need their clients
June 26th, 2008 at 10:06 pm
Fuck u EA
June 26th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
The time i heard this game was gonna come out for pc i was so happy but then EA just had to make me n all the others disappointed. Now i feel like peeing on EA.