Would you think piracy is okay, if a PC launcher deletes a game/is out of business?

[Chairmanchuck (另一个我)]

Do you think it is morally right to pirate a game you bought on a launcher on PC if the launcher is getting out of business?

What I mean is let us say you bought Mass Effect Andromeda on Origin, 2 years later EA says "We will not support Origin anymore. You wont be able to access all your games."
Would you think, since you already bought it, that its okay if you didnt do a backup or maybe this version needs to contact servers, to pirate said game?

I think it is interesting. For some launchers I have games I literally bought there over 16 years ago. They are still there.
Other launchers like Desura went out of business.

 

[Deleted member 5028]

No. Unfortunately the deal is you pay for a licence to use on that launcher. The licence doesn't transfer should the company go out of business so that you can get the game by an alternate method (even illegally). This is why physical games are so important.

 

[3bdelilah]

Yes, I do, especially in your case when you've bought a game and then there's no other way to access said game.

 

[Kolx]

If you already bought it, then yes. If not, then it's hard to say but probably not since nobody is entitled to a game just because it's no longer available to buy.

 

[Cookie]

I'm not sure it's morally questionable even if it doesn't go out of business. If you already own it you're essentially just getting yourself a copy. I'm not sure why you'd need to but don't people do that exact same thing with movies?

 

[Raigor]

I had to download a crack for several PC retail secuROM games because they went out of business and i couldn't play with my legit copy.

So yes, piracy is ok in my book if i can't buy the game on any other platform.

 

[shaneo632]

Definitely.

 

[tuxfool]

No. Unfortunately the deal is you pay for a licence to use on that launcher. The licence doesn't transfer should the company go out of business so that you can get the game by an alternate method (even illegally). This is why physical games are so important.

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He asked if it was morally right, not legally right.

 

[Deleted member 48828]

Obviously. Unless you think we should willingly allow culture to be erased for the benefit of copyright owners.

 

[oni-link]

I think this thread will be locked, because untimely the law is the law and no one can endorse breaking the law

However, copyright law isn't perfect and we should voice concerns on areas where it doesn't work as well as it could, while remaining within the law, as piracy can't be endorsed

That said, I'm not going to get upset if people end up playing games they have legally paid for

 

[GrrImAFridge]

It could be argued that downloading a cracked copy of a game you've legitimately purchased and doing so in a manner that doesn't aid in its distribution (e.g. downloading it via Usenet instead of a torrent) technically isn't piracy.

 

[Deleted member 1659]

My Steam library at this point is 16 years old and is approaching 900 games. I ain't rebuying shit if for whatever reason they disappear from the landscape and I don't care what the EULA says.

 

[Deleted member 5028]

He asked if it was morally right, not legally right.

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Same thing really for me. Video games are entertainment first and foremost. I would say people take moral stands against things that have tangible impact in the world. I get that games are important to people too, but I guess the closest point of comparison is the content available on WiiWare. That'll be lost to history soon, along with your purchases if not already.

 

[tuxfool]

Same thing really for me. Video games are entertainment first and foremost. I would say people take moral stands against things that have tangible impact in the world. I get that games are important to people too, but I guess the closest point of comparison is the content available on WiiWare. That'll be lost to history soon, along with your purchases if not already.

Click to shrink...

Clearly you're not fan of things like MAME, then.

 

[Deleted member 5028]

Clearly you're not fan of things like MAME, then.

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That's outright piracy though since you're emulating arcade games you can't have ever owned. Emulation is fine if you dump your own ROMS.

 

[Dan Thunder]

Legally no. Morally yes.

 

[SquirrelSaysNuts]

Emphatically yes.

 

[Reinhardt Schneider]

Yes, if ir isn't accessible any other way and there's no way for the developer to benefit from you buying it. It's the reason why i keep for myself the isos of certain soccer games from the 90s, that won't bw picked up by any publisher because of the amount of money would take to republish them

If the game isn't on sale anymore, piracy won't make a difference

 

[nadbmal]

Piracy is already ok

 

[blueredandgold]

In how many countries until how recently was it technically illegal to record something on VHS/DVR?

Laws can change, and do. Often. What we have seen with a seismic shift to digital had been a testing of the boundaries of these laws. Not so many changes.

This example is about something that's never been physical to begin with.

In downloading said launcher there's always terms and conditions set out in the EULA. Would there not be a clause that covers the event of launcher/game ceasing to be "live"?

Or is it, you know, the vibe, your honour?

 

[oni-link]

That's outright piracy though since you're emulating arcade games you can't have ever owned. Emulation is fine if you dump your own ROMS.

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You can buy arcade cabinets

I'm not saying no one has ever pirated arcade games, but conflating emulation with piracy is against the sites rules

 

[eonden]

It could be argued that downloading a cracked copy of a game you've legitimately purchased and doing so in a manner that doesn't aid in its distribution (e.g. downloading it via Usenet instead of a torrent) technically isn't piracy.

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Pretty sure using cracks on games you owned is not illegal in EU as it counts as modifying files (good luck getting the "videogames are licenses!" go through court in the EU).

 

[Deleted member 26156]

Same thing really for me. Video games are entertainment first and foremost. I would say people take moral stands against things that have tangible impact in the world. I get that games are important to people too, but I guess the closest point of comparison is the content available on WiiWare. That'll be lost to history soon, along with your purchases if not already.

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People can have stands on and care about both "things that have tangible impact on the world" and stuff like this. Why would they be mutually exclusive???

Aside from that, suggesting that what is legal is anywhere close to being in line with what is moral is laughable at best. Lootboxes aren't moral and healthcare discrimination based on gender identity isn't moral, yet they're both legal in the United States!

 

[Shroki]

In a just world, it wouldn't be piracy at all.

Licenses for products that are not distributed by their license holders should become public domain far sooner than they actually do.

 

[GhostTrick]

Legally speaking, no.

Now, if we're talking about moral grounds, yes, totally, I'd be fine with it.

 

[Zoon]

Sure

 

[Deleted member 420]

If a storefront I have invested significant money in shuts down without offering a way to redownload my games I am never paying for a video game again

 

[JusDoIt]

If a game is no longer being published piracy is alright by me.

Licenses for products that are not distributed by their license holders should become public domain far sooner than they actually do.

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100

 

[Calibro]

If I bought a version of a game and then that version became unavailable, damn right I'm gonna pirate it lol, I fucking paid for it, I didn't rent it.

 

[Midgarian]

Game preservation is very important. Absolutely yes.

 

[MrCibb]

Doesn't make it okay from a legal standpoint unfortunately. Even if you paid for it.

But I don't think your average person would give a shit. I already don't really give a shit, but even less shit will be given. I will hand you the tiniest winnet of shit in this instance.

 

[Midas]

Morally? Of course.

 

[ColdSun]

While I can understand the hypothetical, the posts in this thread are likely going to violate forum rules.
Thread locked