Yesterday, GameTrailers TV host Geoff Keighley revealed that, according to his sources, the PlayStation 4 will employ some form of digital rights management when dealing with used games. Twitter took it upon themselves to show Sony how bad an idea this is.
Spurred by Keighley’s words, numerous gamers on Twitter are currently bombarding Sony with messages about the PS4’s supposed used games DRM. The campaign was started by NeoGAF user famousmortimer who, in a forum thread, asked people to tweet several key Sony personnel, among them Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida, about their displeasure.
“The gist of it is that Sony is listening to the backlash that Microsoft is getting and they are basing decisions off of this,” wrote famousmortimer. He went on to request fellow forumgoers to respectfully voice their concern, to “help give a little more momentum to something Sony seems to be leaning towards already”.
And that is exactly what happened. Some asked Sony not to go down the same route Microsoft did, referring to their decision to implement an activation fee for used games:
While others tried a more emotional approach:
Sony has yet to comment on the issue, and we will update you should it do so. All we know is that the people have spoken: no DRM, no restrictions.
#PS4NoDRM [Twitter]
Is Sony listening? Let them know… #PS4NoDRM #PS4USEDGAMES [NeoGAF]
Comments
57 responses to “Twitter Rises Up In Protest Over The PS4’s Rumoured Used Games DRM”
Screw Sony! I’m going to get an XBone! /s
I wonder how many times people will change their ‘allegiance’ before the consoles actually come out?
most of the people complaining will probably buy both in the end anyway
Most of the people complaining will buy neither until they drop in price the Internet is full of dickheads who complain for the sake of complaining
This is why we can’t have nice things. People are weak, and don’t understand conviction.
I’m scared Lambie, I can’t afford a no used games console. Half of my games were bought second hand!
We’ll just have to wait for both parties to release information on how their used games systems are going to work. They both have systems thankfully, but we’re yet to see how much they’re going to cost.
I don’t think we’ll know for sure until close to the release anyway. I don’t think either party wants to tip their hand while there’s still time for the other to one up them.
I read a quote from a MS guy saying the cost to play a game on your friends console in his/her profile is the full price.
People keep telling me they’ve seen quotes from other MS workers that are the opposite, but I have never been given a link :-/
Pretty sure I can’t afford to own an XBone. Was thinking of PS4 because of JRPGs but if they have a similar system…then I dunno.
I have too many bills to pay.
It would be a pointless system if it wasn’t full price. Bear in mind that every game has to be installed to the hard drive and is then played off there. So imagine a new game comes out, you pay $100 (yeah yeah I know it’s just an example), install it, then give it to your mate. He installs it the next day and activates his for the cost of a $20 activation code. So 2 people get the game for a total cost of $120 instead of $200? Not gonna happen. They’re doing this so they can make MORE money, not less.
Obviously.
But if they didn’t start a new system then this never would have come up, no?
thats why i still refuse to download games online. Im currently selling all my old games and making a killing!
What you got?
A bunch of n64 games, snes and nes games…..they are the main ones but also GameCube and original Xbox. All the Consoles as well
easy solution would be you require to install it however you also require the disc to be in the machine for it to play. therefore your mate must have the disc otherwise his install is useless. cracks you say?…yeah well piracy has always been around not going to change.
it’s ok, you don’t need to buy games second hand, just buy them cheap from other regions….oh wait..
🙁
Are we still considered as the same region as the UK? I sure hope we are.
Yes. UK and Aus are both PAL.
That’s got nothing to do with videogames… necessarily, anyway. It might be correct, but it doesn’t have to be.
The xbox 360 is region locked by NTSC and PAL if I recall correctly. PAL games, wherever they’re from in the world, work on Aus Xbox 360s, but NTSC ones don’t.
which is dumb, seeing as any modern TV (and lots of not so modern ones) can support both colour formats.
I took the fuss everyone was making over Region Locking to mean that it is more than just a PAL/NTSC issue. The 360 already can’t play games from the US so there’s no news there. I figured the upoar meant MS would be be locking games to actual regions, like Europe, Asia, North America, and so on.
And that would be bad. For them. Coz then I won’t buy it.
thats what the new xb is, a bone, a fossil of a old age of gaming. Look at the poor exscuse of a console xbone is now. DRM’ing Region Lock. Tv focused. If sony doesnt put dmr’ing on there console and (i doubt they will) region locking, they have won this gen already.
I really hope they don’t go full retard.
lol bit late for Sony isn’t it? It will be interesting how they reboot themselves for the next gen, tho im confident they will screw it up in implementation as usual.
Bit late for all of them. Pc it is and has been.
well xbox just went full retard with putting region locking on there consoles. Sony now has the upper hand
Dw you don’t get it. I have to make it clear that yes I am aware the current consoles are region locked and I see you are too.
I think the Steambox needs to be released just for some LOL’s.
The steambox has already been released. It’s called a PC plugged into your HDMI input with a controller and big picture mode.
True. Heck, I run my Steam catalog of games through the TV via a PC. But for the casual gamer who’s just after a simple plug & play unit, without all the variable PC parameters, the Steambox is it.
It’s simple on two fronts: (1) I was an XBox user this generation; I’m currently planning to switch to Sony next generation, but DRM nonsense wil likely make me either stay put (if I have to suck it down I may as well keep my Achievements) or just retreat to the PC entirely. And (2) if Sony are going to stop my lending my games to people, then they’re going to have to have prices competitive with a PC. Do Sony’s publishers really hate DRM enough to knock $30-$50 off the price of their new releases?
Honestly, what can Sony do if publishers of the highest selling games push for DRM for used games?
Let those guys implement their own system?
How exactly?
I dunno, how exactly will Sony and MS do it?
EA Online Passes?
Mind you EA dropped those. I assume that’s because they don’t need it anymore because the XBone and PS4 have their own similar functions.
I can’t afford to own a console with no used games :-/
Well you could, I think the point you’re trying to make is that you wouldn’t be able to play as many games if you were forced to buy new at retail price only. For every 5 used game you used to play on your current console, you’d only be able to play 1 new game on a next-gen console.
So why would I buy a console if I can only play a game a year?
That’s exactly it; if Xbox does go ahead with this DRM scheme with no work around then the Xbox simply isn’t for you. Microsoft might think that there are a sufficient amount of people out there who are willing to pay full price to access games to warrant the removal of used games.
However, that being said, let’s just hold off until more information is released. From what I’ve gathered, there’s been talks over the last week from MS employees that games will still be tradeable i.e. if the game is activated on a different Xbox account, it is then deactived from the previous Xbox account.
MS have already flipflopped, there’s an article on Polygon stating that you can borrow games and they will be unplayable on the original console until the disc is in again.
Yeah, I am gonna wait. Only time I didn’t was with the DS, a console I love but that first year was empty of releases.
So, in a couple of years when I see what services each console offers and what games are available, who knows, I may end up with a Wii U.
THE SKY IS FALLING!!!!!!!
+1! Until an official confirmation of DRM is made by Sony, a lot of people are getting all stressed out about a rumor, chill out, you’ll live longer. 🙂
Quick call james bond !
I wasn’t going to buy the next gen consoles after buying my PC, but the PS4 changed my mind. Please don’t Sony!
It would be kind of funny if the console with a share button doesn’t allow people to share games.
Hopefully this mess will be cleared up at E3
i liked the response from CEO Kaz Hirai – “Sony has seen your #PS4NoDrM hashtag and took note. We now have absolutely no intention to release Dr Mario on PS4”
but seriously Sony, please dont have stupid used games block or activation fee
If this is true, I wonder if people will flock in support of the Wii U, in protest…?
If they do this, I will no longer be using consoles, which would be very sad considering I have been gaming since the Atari2600. I had a brief stint with PC games throughout 2007 and although I don’t generally buy used games, I won’t be buying a PS4 out of sheer principle if Sony takes the MS route. I own a Wii, PS3 & 360, so I am not a person who cares about brand loyalty. I have always gone with a console or any product which offers me what I personally what I want/need – I certainly don’t want any of this sickening DRM that MS have come up with.
Sony, I have already crossed the XB1 off my list, don’t make me do it to the PS4 as well! I have owned all of your consoles since the PS1, you will lose another customer if you take this route. My convictions are more important than video games, so after my PS3 & 360 dies that’s it for consoles. I won’t be buying a WiiU either due to the lack of any real games or true next gen hardware.
Butt hurt PS4 fanboys concerned that all their criticisms of the Xbox One may also apply to the PS4.
This may just explain why Devs are boycotting the WiiU
Yes, let’s trust the unconfirmed word of Geoff Keighley and Gametrailers; both of which have spent the better part of the last 2 weeks hyping the Xbone and has a huge focus on MS products over other systems.
I’m not paying $80+ to rent a game.
While I hope Sony don’t choose to include any kind of DRM against used/borrowed games, I still wouldn’t be surprised if they did. They’ll think that, despite the uproar now, we’ll just end up buying the consoles anyway. And we probably will. 🙁
Retarded fanboys thinking Sony/Microsoft gives a crap about them. They only thing they care about is how much money they can extract from you.
I’m semi-outraged by this, then I remembered that I buy all my games on Steam, which are tied to my account and non-transferable. Then I think back to the PS4 / Xbox scenario and think that it’s not that bad. Then I remember that Sony love to shove people down the path of UMD, MS-Pro Duo XD Mark III 2: Electric Boogaloo and other proprietary systems, and think screw those guys.
I think the problem here is that people wanted Utopia in the next generation – a DRM free, no hassles gaming wonderland… with beefier graphics… but what they are getting is the next iteration of what they already have.
Grayda makes a good point – Steam is very similar in its restrictions of use, so why the big issue here. Steam gets away with it through offering great pricing, easy downloads, etc. All these things are still to be sorted out in the Sony (and MS) ecosystems.
And I think that is the point here – ecosystem. We don’t expect to buy used iPhone/Android/Win8 games. Perhaps this is the new model of choice. I just hope that the benefits of the ecosystems outweigh the currently perceived detriments.