So, first of all its my very first proper thread so i hope it all goes smooth for me :P but yea i've read a lot of discussions on DRM techs like Denuvo, Secure-Rom CEG, etc and i've always wondered if the launcher being required to launch a game is itself DRM or not? Iam really interested to read others people's thoughts and opinions on this matter. GOG galaxy is excluded because its an optional launcher and not required to launch/play a game from GOG.
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Do you consider it being DRM when a launcher is required for launching a PC game(eg. Steam, Origin, uPlay, etc)?
- Thread starter AshenOne
- Start date
DRM means digital rights management. If the launcher is required to launch the game. Then it is a DRM mechanism by definition.
Yes and I think it is annoying. Even if it is only necessary to download the game.
I'm weird, I dislike launchers in general. That's why I prefer GoG, but would never touch their launcher as well.
I'm weird, I dislike launchers in general. That's why I prefer GoG, but would never touch their launcher as well.
Going by the strictest sense of the term: Yeah. If you need to authenticate to access the content then your digital rights to that content is being managed
Maybe it is like Stardock's GOO (aka the GoG model) where you only authenticate for the initial download and any patches. Maybe it is the old Ubi always on where you needed an active connection to get the logic to load the next level after Sam walked through downtown DC. Maybe it is the Stadia model where you never download anything in the first place.
But as The DRM Wars died down and Steam won, people basically redefined DRM so that they could claim they are playing DRM-free. GOO became GoG became "100% DRM free". And we have plenty of folk who feel the need to argue that parts of Steam are DRM but Steam isn't DRM or some bullshit (People tend to be less willing to make that last argument in favor of EA and Ubi for some reason)
At the end of the day: The lesson we probably should have learned was that DRM is not inherently bad. What matters is how intrusive it is. And modern launcher-based DRM tends to be a pretty reasonable middle ground... up until people go on international travel or take a laptop to visit family for an extended period of time.
Maybe it is like Stardock's GOO (aka the GoG model) where you only authenticate for the initial download and any patches. Maybe it is the old Ubi always on where you needed an active connection to get the logic to load the next level after Sam walked through downtown DC. Maybe it is the Stadia model where you never download anything in the first place.
But as The DRM Wars died down and Steam won, people basically redefined DRM so that they could claim they are playing DRM-free. GOO became GoG became "100% DRM free". And we have plenty of folk who feel the need to argue that parts of Steam are DRM but Steam isn't DRM or some bullshit (People tend to be less willing to make that last argument in favor of EA and Ubi for some reason)
At the end of the day: The lesson we probably should have learned was that DRM is not inherently bad. What matters is how intrusive it is. And modern launcher-based DRM tends to be a pretty reasonable middle ground... up until people go on international travel or take a laptop to visit family for an extended period of time.
Yes, of course it is. But I am aware that some games I bought through Steam can actually be run without launching Steam.
If it requires the launcher to run the game, yes.
As another poster already said, this isn't true.
As another poster already said, this isn't true.
Everyone saying yes: Do you consider it DRM when you have to use XInput? Because a "launcher" is the same type of middleware. Regarding "loggin in", you have to log into windows to use XInput in the exact same manner.
It's still DRM, yea, but I guess I don't think of Steam or Uplay the same way I think of Denuvo or SecuROM.
I don't really mind the launcher itself as long as the launcher isn't also included if you buy it through a store that has its own launcher.
Like, my issue with uPlay for example isn't that it is some sort of DRM, it's that I buy the game on steam and when I click the game it launches a second program that I need a separate username and password and account ecosystem for, that runs its own shit in the background and has its own set of functionalities.
The DRM aspect to me is (mostly) a non-issue, but the layering of multiple schemes bugs me.
Like, my issue with uPlay for example isn't that it is some sort of DRM, it's that I buy the game on steam and when I click the game it launches a second program that I need a separate username and password and account ecosystem for, that runs its own shit in the background and has its own set of functionalities.
The DRM aspect to me is (mostly) a non-issue, but the layering of multiple schemes bugs me.
Eh, If there is a tech that actively restricts other input methods other than Xinput then yes it is DRM in my opinion.
Yes, I do. I'd think by definition of what DRM is, it'd be hard to argue otherwise.
The issue for me has always been intrusive, aggressive DRM solutions that hurt the paying customer (i.e. me). So though it is by definition DRM, I have no issue with Steam or Origin authentication. There's enough value in their platforms for me to accept that caveat and I don't consider them in the same category as always-online DRM, SecuROM, or Denuvo which have no value and potentially my experience.
The issue for me has always been intrusive, aggressive DRM solutions that hurt the paying customer (i.e. me). So though it is by definition DRM, I have no issue with Steam or Origin authentication. There's enough value in their platforms for me to accept that caveat and I don't consider them in the same category as always-online DRM, SecuROM, or Denuvo which have no value and potentially my experience.
If you can't start the game without going through a launcher to prove you've bought it, it's DRM.
that's not how Xinput, nor any of the game clients (except, ironically, the Windows Game Store) work.
going through the steam client isn't required for proof of ownership, it's required because the steam client itself is a bundle of technologies, like XInput. To the point -- you can use the client offline indefinitely, because it's not actually authenticating your playing session. You can play a DRM-free game, through steam, without ever connecting to the internet to authenticate a thing.
Games that require steam to launch are most likely using this :
Which is being used as proof of ownership.
yes, steamworks DRM is DRM. The client is not. Logging into the client does not authenticate for steamworks DRM. Steamworks DRM authenticates when you launch a game online.
There are games, that are DRM free, that use the Steam client as an API. In that instance, steam never authenticates anything, there is literally no DRM. You can use those types of programs offline indefinitely, because they require no authentication, because they are DRM free.
The client itself is not, and has never been, DRM.
There are different levels, any game that requires a launcher to run the game is DRM in some fashion. As others have stated, it's not the same as something like Denuvo or something.
this is such a silly point you're trying to make here
one is the OS, the other is some rando program, that wants to be in the center of things and dictate how you get to launch an entirely different program.
this "bundle of technologies" is also mostly useless to me if I play offline. so if it's not a launcher, then it's just really poor, nonsense middleware in that case. doesn't really do it any favors either
Is it DRM if you need a computer to play the game 🤔 🤔 🤔
Given the way the topic is worded "launcher is required for launching", to me, that implies that it would be DRM. There are Steam games that do not require Steam to be open to launch them, but the ones using Steamworks DRM or having some kind of check if Steam is running otherwise, it would then be DRM.
To show I agree to a point: the launcher itself is not the DRM, the check in the game to see if the launcher is, is. It's tricky wording, for sure, but technically it (the requiring of the launcher, not the launcher itself) would/should be considered DRM.
No it isn't. You don't even know how fundamental some of these technologies are. And they are built into the game, even single player offline campaigns.