Amongst other things, one nuisance that PC gamers have been suffering from the last few years is digital rights management. Recently Electronic Arts suffered the brunt of gamers when they tried to use SecuROM with Spore. Disgruntled gamers gave the game the lowest rating on an online retail site.
PC gamers were shocked when they came to know a few days back that Rockstar too was going to use DRM software for the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV. However, Rockstar has come out and defended the GTA IV PC DRM. An anonymous representative from Rockstar told IGN in an interview:
“Having copy protection allows us to protect the integrity or our titles and future investments, but at the same time we have worked very hard to ensure that our solutions do not persecute the legitimate players of our games. Implemented correctly, SecuROM is the most effective form of disc based copy protection and allows us to manage authenticity on a global level for Grand Theft Auto IV.”
According to Rockstar, they have made use of SecuROM for protecting their EXE until street date has passed. GTA IV PC is expected to be release later this week. Though Rockstar seems to have good intentions, let’s hope the GTA IV DRM does not turn out to be troublesome for the PC gamers.