Anyone else annoyed by Mass Effect being Xbox only?

[Perspex the Opaque]

Mass Effect has been confirmed for PC: http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/bioware-rpg/851417p1.html

 

Well that is some good news

[Landhow]

Somewhat disappointed on what Mass Effect had to offer. Good story and characters yes. But the dialogs feels very limited, like the choices I make doesnt matter, my char still says the same line. And the combat isn't my cup of tea either, actiongame like. As well as the inventory/lvl system, pretty dumbed down. Exploring the different planets that's not in the main storyline isnt fun at all, all the planets feel the same but with different textures and sky. And I have to explore it all to find the minerals.

 

Still enjoyed it though. Maybe the PC version will fix some things, like the controls..

[Simbriant]

Hey, it looks like Mass Effect on PC isn't going to be a simple port. Bioware is actually describing it as a conversion.

 

http://kotaku.com/369473/mass-effect-on-pc-not-a-port

 

And here is the Eurogamer link that directly leads to the article:

 

http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=94820

[aVENGER_(RR)]

The PC version of Mass Effect is going to require Internet access to play (despite being a single-player game), as its DRM system requires that it phone home every 10 days.

• As with BioShock, you only get to activate the game three times. If you reinstall, change some hardware on your PC, upgrade your OS, or move to another computer, you will “consume†one of these installations.
  
• Mass Effect puts every user on a system of permanent probation, where the program needs to “phone home†every ten days or it will refuse to run. That is, not only is there online activation when you install it, but it also requires a silent reauthorization every five to ten days, forever and ever. Just in case, you know, your legit copy ever… what? Becomes pirated?
  
• There is concern over what happens if you run out of activations, or your copy is flagged as a false-positive “pirate†copy. The BioWare guys say you can just “call EA†and they will be happy to resolve your issue. Here is the EA support site. I do not see a phone number. Testimonials in the BioWare forums suggest that EA email support has a turnaround time measured in days. I do not think they would behave that way if anyone could just pick up a phone and demand help, right now.
  They have not been forthcoming about what is sent to the mothership during the re-authentication.
  
• Nobody - BioWare guys included - seems to have any idea what sorts of hardware changes will trigger the need for a new registration. (Remember you only get three.) A new disk drive? A windows service pack? New graphics card? Plugging in a USB device? Cleaning the glass on your monitor?
  

 

Link

 

BTW, this appears to have caused an uproar on the official Mass Effect forum. As predicted, the majority of the fanbase is not very pleased with Bioware's decision to implement this kind of DRM into the game. Apparently, the mods are now locking every thread which even mentions the DRM except for this one.

[Lord Ernie]

Meh.

 

Meh meh meh meh.

 

Note that Bioware would probably be innocent here. Unless this sort of thing has changed drastically since I last checked, it's the publisher (EA) that makes these decisions.

[Cal Jones]

Sheesh. I've no doubt that it's The Borg's fault rather than Bioware's. (I work in the games industry, mostly on magazines between 93 and 2000 and now in recruitment. We used to call EA that due to their habit of assimilating great companies like Bullfrog and Westwood - I really hope the folks at Bioware do retain some autonomy as I would have to see them vanish).

 

I got a false positive on my Windows when the Windowns Genuine Advantage patch arrived. Mine was a preinstalled version that came with my PC which, over the years, has had almost every part replaced. I can verify what a giant pain in the ass that is when it happens (fortunately the IT guy I hire to fix it when it breaks took care of the problem).

I can foresee a lot of problems.

[cirerrek]

I dusted off Kotor 1 a month or so ago. Imagine my suprise when the game wouldn't run on basically the same system that I had beaten it on. Seems, I had forgotten that I had to download a hacked .exe just to get the game to run on my system after one patch or another prevented the game from running on any system with a disc burner installed.

 

I don't begrudge companies trying to turn a profit, but the whole net and computing experience is starting to get bogged down in layers of security and intellectual property protectiion schemes of one sort or another.

[Domi]

Really? KOTOR 1 runs on our new... er 2 year old system pretty good. We just dusted it off ourselves so we can have some quality time together... not that we managed to find much time for it, but it did work.

[Jazhara7]

Really? KOTOR 1 runs on our new... er 2 year old system pretty good. We just dusted it off ourselves so we can have some quality time together... not that we managed to find much time for it, but it did work.

 

 

The problem is not that it doesn't run on newer systems, the problem is that more often than not it doesn't run if your CD drive doubles as a CD or DVD burner.

 

You need a different, hacked exe file for that. I had to do the same, to get it running on my computer that has a DVD burner.

 

 

-

[aVENGER_(RR)]

A few snippets from the updated MEPC FAQ thread:

 

Q: What happens if I install and activate MEPC with an internet connection, but then do not have an internet connection after 10 days? Can I still play MEPC?

 

A: No. After 10 days the system needs to re-authenticate via the internet. If you do not have an internet connection you will not be able to play until you are reconnected to the internet and able to re-authenticate.

 

Q: How many installations will SecuROM allow from my copy of MEPC?

 

A: Since SecuROM has nothing to do with the installer, you can install and uninstall on the same machine over and over again without any problems. SecuROM also allows you to activate the game on 3 different machines.

 

Q: Q: What happens if I exceed 3 activations?

 

A: Your first 3 activations will still work, but any subsequent activation will not work.

[KIrving]

Welcome to hell! You've just got to love the use of careful and yet unsubstantiated language and claims that come out of BioWare these days. (Bad puppetmaster EA, I can see the strings!) I just know I'd be one of the people that would have major problems with this security system. I live in Aussie land where there is no such thing as a reliable internet connection.

Hmm...I wonder if there will be self-destruction systems implemented or anal probes or thumb print scans and photo ID and a citizenship test.

[Caedwyr]

Yep, looks like a decent game as I've mentioned before but this makes it too much of a hassle for me to install and play. Especially installing it on a laptop when I'll be working out of town in areas without reliable internet connections.

[Lysan Lurraxol]

Wonderful. After being told for months Mass Effect was Xbox exclusive, to waiting months for a port, I now can't play the game, as my gaming computer doesn't have an internet connection. Great work Bioware and EA! You've manage to piss off and alienate a large proportion of your fan base.

 

Entertainingly, the Bioware staff who are supposed to communicate with the fans, are ignoring any question on the security software, apart from obscure software requirements, so I can't even ask WTF I'm supposed to do.

 

Cue another reason for me refusing to fork out any more money on Bioware's stale RPGs with recycled plots and characters.

[the bigg]

Whining in this instance worked!

 

Now I think I'll start some whining threads about certain mod updates and wait for the 3 pages mark (which'll force, say, Ding0 to fix bugs in Questpack and icelus in UB).

[Lysan Lurraxol]

Yay. I still can't play it, but I can think of a workaround now.