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We (still) want to hear from you!

We recently asked you guys for feedback based on some potential games that we may be able to sign in the future. The results were pretty clear--and we will be sharing them with you all soon--but we did want to ask you a single follow-up question with an actual real-world game example. One of the games that we would like to add to our catalog is Planetary Annihilation. This is an RTS with many modern gaming features, and we figured we'd use it as our test example.

<iframe width="590" height="332" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Xpze54xgqtg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Planetary Annihilation is distinctive for the following:

- Multiplayer and skirmish focused gameplay; there is no story-based single-player campaign, but AI skirmish matches provide a great single player experience.
- Optional persistent online features such as scoreboards, social features, achievements, and the online multiplayer campaign - a persistent galaxy-wide war; an account with the developer's online service is required in order to use these features.
- No activation, unique codes, or third-party accounts are required for single-player play or, LAN/direct connection multiplayer.
- A unique key is required for Internet multiplayer, and an account with the developer's service is only required for the persistent online features.

Now, that you know about the game's specifics, here's our question:
Post edited April 15, 2013 by G-Doc
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Palvikinkku: I see absolutely zero reasons to say "no" here.

So, yes.
Saw that nick and thought.. Where else he would be other than from finland. =)
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Palvikinkku: I see absolutely zero reasons to say "no" here.

So, yes.
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Antimateria: Saw that nick and thought.. Where else he would be other than from finland. =)
There's never enough Finnish people in the Internet.

Except when you play in Finnish servers maybe :3
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Neobr10: Allow me to make an analogy here (another car analogy). If you have one car and you need to go to work, and at the sime time, a friend calls you and says that he needs a ride to...
A car example can be also used for family living under one hood. You live with your partner and both of you drive to the same part of city each day. But you say, "No, you have to buy your own car".

I get what you're trying to say. It's just hard to resist to opposing the analogy :). Yes, it's illegal in many countries and sharing a copy with 10 friends can effectively crop sales however buying more copies for one household seems to go against common sense in my opinion.
Post edited April 17, 2013 by Mivas
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Antimateria: Saw that nick and thought.. Where else he would be other than from finland. =)
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Palvikinkku: There's never enough Finnish people in the Internet.

Except when you play in Finnish servers maybe :3
Infact, new games which have multiplayer, they almost automaticly have sound on from my camera, so I'm known to say when I tried Tomb raider multiplayer.. "saatanan palvikinkku, vittu mikä källi, kui ihmees jätkä osuu ja toinen ei kuole koskaan!" =)
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deoren: I answered the poll, but only with the expectation that question #2 was going to be, "Why did you answer yes/no?". I felt the reason for our answer was just if not more important.

Edit: Just read another response prior to mine which leads me to believe some folks were asked why? and I want to explicitly state that I only had a single question without an option to clarify why I was answering the way I did.
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mrkgnao: I guess you answered yes.
I answered no and got your expected question #2.
I did answer yes, but only because the game could be played offline, without activation and dependent on outside servers (biggest concerns to me) and because LAN & direct connect were available. Those are the reasons/finer points I had hoped to convey. Basically, "Yes, but only if ..." was what I was looking for.
Post edited April 17, 2013 by deoren
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Palvikinkku: There's never enough Finnish people in the Internet.

Except when you play in Finnish servers maybe :3
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Antimateria: Infact, new games which have multiplayer, they almost automaticly have sound on from my camera, so I'm known to say when I tried Tomb raider multiplayer.. "saatanan palvikinkku, vittu mikä källi, kui ihmees jätkä osuu ja toinen ei kuole koskaan!" =)
Hahaha, brilliant lad, brilliant!
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Antimateria: Infact, new games which have multiplayer, they almost automaticly have sound on from my camera, so I'm known to say when I tried Tomb raider multiplayer.. "saatanan palvikinkku, vittu mikä källi, kui ihmees jätkä osuu ja toinen ei kuole koskaan!" =)
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Palvikinkku: Hahaha, brilliant lad, brilliant!
I'm not your lad, I'm your son. *awkward silence* ..so how about that weather. =)
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Palvikinkku: Hahaha, brilliant lad, brilliant!
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Antimateria: I'm not your lad, I'm your son. *awkward silence* ..so how about that weather. =)
Dark clouds with chances of RAGE.
No time to read all the posts but I'm pretty much of the same view as a lot of others.
Provided the single player component has no DRM and requires no activation and the game is clearly described in what is required for the Multiplayer part then seems ok. LAN play without needing to phone home to the makers servers is also good.

Providing game patches and updates are available through GOG and don't require a sign up to another service all good.

So as long as everything those main points are made clear to buyers and those aspects don't get changed through future updates then I see no issues with these types of games.

Torn about this game itself. I'm more a single player gamer, but the game looks pretty cool from the trailer and I do miss LAN games back in the day, though they had the extra element of people you are playing being in the same room. Maybe I need to find some new LAN gaming friends or get out and try online gaming for once :)
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bernds: looking for ways to grow without upsetting the fan base too much.
This is what I want and expect from everyone I do business with. I want them to be successful so that they can offer me the products I like. I hate it when Companies fail or shrink that I enjoy doing business with. So, they need to be successful, AND they need to do it in a way that keeps me (the consumer) happy.

I don't understand why, but you put a negative slant on the most positive thing that a company can be doing. Growing while keeping their customers happy. The alternatives are to shut down which doesn't keep the customer happy, or to grow while making the customer miserable...
No problem with this...

...it is just Total Annihilation though, right? Even the storyline and units are the same.
Sneaky. Hats off to the person who dreamed up this question, it's a brilliant entrapment.

Oh well the first step on the slippery slope has been taken. Games that require DRM "only" for their multiplayer. The only question is how long till you start selling singleplayer games with DRM...
No matter how you ice the cake it still infringes on player rights. A unique key is required for Internet multiplayer. I hate this with a passion. To me it is a form of Securom, or the crap that THQ UBI soft and EA uses now. We already have an account with GoG.com so that takes care of the Registration part then to have to have A unique key is required for Internet multiplayer to play on top of that is just beyond what it needs to be. A major hassle and I for one if the only one do not like it.

Why doesn't GoG.com just say what they really want to say and that is We want to add new games but they require DRM and no matter how you like it we are going with DRM here on new games.

I have already stopped buying games that require A unique key is required for Internet multiplayer here already as that was not part of GoG when it first started up now little by little you are adding infringement to GoG.com. If this is where U are going I will just buy from SecurSteam from now on when they have sales and rent my Rent ware games from Steam.
Post edited April 17, 2013 by FlyByU
This is the important thing:
- No activation, unique codes, or third-party accounts are required for single-player play or, LAN/direct connection multiplayer.

I'm fine with a few online features, but single player and direct multiplayer should retain full features (or almost full features) without it.


Also - attempts should be made to obtain rights to update the source code for games which are more than 10 years old. If the source code can be tracked down this will help a lot in maintaining compatibility.

I'd love to see some of the older titles moved to open source as a result of being bought by GoG.
Post edited April 17, 2013 by Avimimus
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FlyByU: I have already stopped buying games that require A unique key is required for Internet multiplayer here already as that was not part of GoG when it first started up
. Release date of November 25, 2008. Not to mention [url=http://www.gog.com/gamecard/sacrifice]this, which has been on GOG from the very start.
So please, check your facts.

Additionally, Planetary Annihilation does not require an account for internet play. It requires an account to use the official servers.