Witcher 2 dev: 'no reason' for always online DRM
Tom Ohle, VP of public relations for "still PC-exclusive" RPG The Witcher 2, says that his team is keen on avoiding any Ubisoft-style DRM solutions for its game. "It's a single-player RPG. There's no reason to have to be connected to the internet at all times," Ohle said. If you'll pardon us for saying so: damn right. Full excerpt, plus eight minutes of juicy E3 footage from our Witcher 2 demo (there's a squid battle!) after the jump.
Ohle also serves as vice president of PR and marketing for CD Projekt and Good Old Games in North America. Clarifying CD Projekt's recent comment on its Facebook page about how it'd like to approach DRM, Ohle clarified the dev's stance on copy-protection.
"With GOG, our general kind of philosophy as a developer is that we want to make it as easy as possible for people to play the game. It's a single-player RPG, there's no reason to have be connected to the Internet at all times. Or even regularly. It's a single-player game--just prove that you own it, and it's your game, play the game, that's what we want you to do."
"Any DRM gets cracked. It happens in a week, it doesn't matter how awesome your DRM is. It'll get cracked. So make it easy for the people that play legitimately, and incentivize them. That's what we did with the enhanced edition--buy the physical game, and here's soundtracks, here's some making-of DVDs, here's some other cool stuff that you get instead of saying 'Okay, if you pirated it, we're going to make it hard for you.' Incentivize the people to want to buy the game and want to play legitimately and then you don't have to worry about it."
Very reassuring. Ohle also emphasized that The Witcher 2's final copy protection is a decision that will be made with the game's publisher, Atari.
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Evan's a hardcore FPS enthusiast who joined PC Gamer in 2008. After an era spent publishing reviews, news, and cover features, he now oversees editorial operations for PC Gamer worldwide, including setting policy, training, and editing stories written by the wider team. His most-played FPSes are CS:GO, Team Fortress 2, Team Fortress Classic, Rainbow Six Siege, and Arma 2. His first multiplayer FPS was Quake 2, played on serial LAN in his uncle's basement, the ideal conditions for instilling a lifelong fondness for fragging. Evan also leads production of the PC Gaming Show, the annual E3 showcase event dedicated to PC gaming.
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