Kotaku 
Enter your username and password.
Denver, 12:24 PM
Sat Nov 21
44 posts in the last 24 hours
Tip us: tips@kotaku.com
Editor-In-Chief:
Brian Crecente
Email | AIM | Twitter
Deputy Editor:
Stephen Totilo
Email | AIM | Twitter
Senior Editor:
Michael McWhertor
Email | AIM | Twitter
Senior Contributing Editor, Japan:
Brian Ashcraft
Email | AIM | Twitter
Contributing Editor, East Coast:
Michael Fahey
Email | AIM | Twitter
Contributing Editor, Oceania:
Luke Plunkett
Email | AIM | Twitter
Contributing Editor, Weekends:
Owen Good
Email | AIM | Twitter
Correspondent, San Francisco:
AJ Glasser
Email | AIM | Twitter
Columnist:
Leigh Alexander
Columnist:
Tim Rogers
Original material is licensed under a Creative Commons License permitting non-commercial sharing with attribution.
10/17/09
The way to go is to ban the console itself, then delete the Live Account from the servers and delete any and all content/games bought from Live from that account. Don't go with a tactical strike, hit them full scale. If you pirate, your not only gonna lose the account, but any content you bought from Live for good.
Oh, Flag the credit card and name too and any attempts to use it in the future will automatically be stopped.
10/17/09
I really doubt Microsoft will want to prevent the possibility of someone giving them money. #forza
10/17/09
10/17/09
10/17/09
Otherwise they wouldn't know the difference between a street breaking retailer copy or pirated copy. #forza
10/17/09
Some money is better than no money. #forza
10/17/09
I agree with ya, but that would take the money out of MS' pocket. They usually only hit modder's with a console ban. They know that those folks getting banned will go out and purchase a new console, load up their gamertag and get right back to playing. A gamertag ban is worse than a console ban IMO #forza
10/17/09
Microsoft could do the same thing. #forza
10/17/09
If someone pirates, all well and good, they can pay for it in spades. #forza
10/17/09
10/17/09
Back then of course we took large amounts of info for people returning games, so we would forward this to the other stories within the state along with pictures, thus banning them from the stores, as well as reporting them to the feds and anything else we could think of. One heavy pirate, we had the cops waiting for him when he came in to return a title 'he didn't like'. That was solid gold, watching him taken away. And most of this pirates attended the local flight college/state colleges, so arrests would have a rather..unwelcome effect. #forza
10/17/09
I think "zapping" the system would be the best course of action, much like satellite providers do when people are stealing cable. Flagging the account would help as well, but I'm not sure how effective or how much damage could happen with such an action, but I think you're on the right track.
I think pirates are bottom-feeders, and while not the most damaging dregs in society, they do irk me, so I'm glad when punishments are swift and just in situations like this.
I have a friend who had a modded system, and I tell him he's a scumbag for doing it, and I told him I couldn't wait until his system rrod so it couldn't get repaired. It did, and I laughed at his stupidity.
I've known him for almost 20 years though, so calling him a D-bag for something like this doesn't really carry much weight. But still, I let my position on piracy well-known, regardless of who it is. I guess that's my point.
10/17/09
i mean surely the pirated copy is a legit 1:1 clone copy of a retail game, they should all have the same file structure etc... so how are MS finding the ppl who are playing it illegally vs the people playing it legally?
surprised this didn't ban this guys Xbox if MS are so sure that this guy was playing it illegally and has a modded console... normally they ban the box itself rather than just the account, odd that.
also is there no way to appeal this? would suck if you were a false positive :( #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
1) Marketing - you know how those commercials or ads in the circular of your local stores list games as 'available on X' those are important. SO important that some stores will fine you if you miss your date and were printed in their circular (it will waste employee time answering questions about where your title is).
2) Sony/Nintendo/MS approval - before you get to play it the game must go through a ton of stability and console standards (X button does this on PS3 but is supposed to do this on 360, if your controller gets unplugged this message must be displayed, blah blah. These submission for approval take weeks and you are slotted into the queue with all the other titles trying to ship.
3) Box and docs - stuffs gotta be manufactured, the discs, the manuals the cover art, etc. This takes weeks.
3) Shipping - once its all manufactured the goods need to ship out to the stores (this is where all the bootleg copies come from, employess from the JVCs, the Technicolors, Sonopress, steal copies, etc.) either by ground or drop ship (if submissions take too long and you are short on time you can air freight at a huge cost), then it sits in stores until that 'Tuesday' release date. I'm still not sure why Tuesdays, I know it follows along with DVDs but I am not sure why. #forza
10/16/09
10/17/09
10/17/09
10/16/09
I mean, copies of Halo 3: ODST were floating around weeks in advance of the official release date, right? Why not just, you know, move up the release date if everybody's got it sitting in the back already? #forza
10/17/09
10/16/09
Sorry I just don't understand why a new post about illegitimate games being played online and the resulting punishments is put up so frequently. #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
PC has it pretty hard for Piracy accusations, but with R4, PSP CFW, and a ton of 360 copies (I don't think there's been a recent release I've not seen up on torrents) I'm thinking that its not really PC gamers that need to be getting the unfair shafting over piracy.
I think just hunting down gamers on a case by case basis will start getting pretty hard when 360 install base starts creeping up. And as SK has shown its not very effective.
Though I'm still amazed PS3 hasn't been broken yet, Blu-Ray FTW?(or they hit some luck with PS3 firmware compared to the PSP)
Actually has Kotaku covered console piracy in depth yet?
It does seem to be on the rise, cos just did a quick count n there's like 15 copies of the 360 borderlands up on the torrents, and probs more if you hunt about on rapidshare n the like
10/16/09
really, the PC gets all the flak and DRM because they say we're pirates while console owners with pirated copies of the games gets a smaller slap on the wrist than our invasive DRM does for the legit users... #forza
10/16/09
damn Nintnedo!
But yeah, its annoying that console piracy is fiarly rmpanyt (I'm not sure on any specific figures) yet PC gets all the flak.
Though I guess DRM is being dropped by more n more developers which is nice. #forza
10/17/09
PC does get the shit end of the stick though which is lame.... DRM is useless, it punishes legit players and is completely inaffective at preventing piracy... every game is still pirated on release day with the DRM removed in a crack.... hell the cracked versions are now better than the legit versions because they are DRM-free... quite sad really, whoever is responsible for this (ESA?) they really shot themselves in the foot... reminds me of the whole music industry and mp3, fighting a battle they could never have won, when instead they should have been doing something good to make people buy rather than pirate, e.g. price drops, better replay value in games, digital sales... blah
10/16/09
Seriously, how is this not common knowledge by now? Fail pirates are fucking fail. #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
Uh, people already have that game legitimately.
Or were you trying to give an example of that being truly nothing? Kotaku already reported that people had begun receiving their copies of Van Halen in the mail. #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
Just fyi to the others, his post said to the extent of
"thats nothing, I've got someone on my friends list who has Guitar Hero Van Halen on their gamertag already (link to gamertag)" #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
Prepare for incoming internet rage #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/17/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
"Xbox LIVE Enforcement Team." #forza
10/17/09
10/16/09
I guess it's more that I think more gamers actually read gaming news sites :( I keep forgetting that there's millions of average joe gamers that don't, and this happens....again. #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
Did you not read the article. Like, at all. #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
Those who got their copy because a retailer broke street date are safe, Stepto says.
Duhrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr #forza
10/16/09
Also, I know you just changed what you said from
"not at all"
to
"partially".
Not quick enough with your edit, mcgee. #forza
10/16/09
Some people are just so into internet arguing that they read one sentence in an article and just go on a rant. I think it's kinda funnaaaay #forza
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
If it was Microsoft 'leaking' copies a few days beforehand, knowing that people were going to leak it themselves anyways, and hiding trojan code on the disc images to let xbox live know it was a fraud copy.
I'd laugh pretty heartily. #forza
10/16/09
10/17/09