- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
Call the police and contact Rockstar Games out of respect for the company and game.
Mailto: piracy@rockstargames.com
Mailto: piracy@rockstargames.com
San Andreas: Pirated!
- Thread starter Acid X
- 115 comments
- 5,273 views
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
I'm sure alot of places have this rule. In fact, I think we (Australia) do.Famine
Phrases like "Rockstar worked really hard on this" is not inciting that other game developers aren't working hard. Also, it's a valid statement. They did work hard on it, and a little appreciation from fans of the game doesn't hurt.Famine
And who cares if they don't care about us essentially. Like I said before, a little appreciation can't hurt. I don't see what's so wrong with saying that you are not going to download it out of respect for the company.
I would think that would be illegal, but probably not wrong. Unless it's different over there, but I don't exactly think there is an expiry date on illegality.Famine
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
Maybe. 
I would do it. I wonder if they do have a nice reward for it?
I would do it. I wonder if they do have a nice reward for it?
- 464
- delidingo
Wouldn't it be easier to have the game on a hardrive for copying, instead of a "Gold Disk"? I would think it would be a lot faster to mass produce copies of the game from hardrive's instead of DVD's. Also, I thought you could buy CD's with gold inside of them. 
- 583
I think they don't use hardrive's because that would be just data and data can be lost. Where as if you have a hard copy like a gold disk then its something physical that can't be lost in such things as power cuts or viruses.Deli DingoWouldn't it be easier to have the game on a hardrive for copying, instead of a "Gold Disk"? I would think it would be a lot faster to mass produce copies of the game from hardrive's instead of DVD's. Also, I thought you could buy CD's with gold inside of them.
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
Exactly.R32GTST/M
I don't quite understand what you mean.Deli Dingo
Think of the advanced equipment these guys would use.Deli Dingo
- 464
- delidingo
From http://www.datamediastore.com/ . . .
100 CD-R's for $118.90. You can buy CD-R's with gold in them from many places.
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
Oh that. Yeah. But I believe these are different, somehow.
I know what you're talking about now, I actually have a few Mitsui Golds at home.
I know what you're talking about now, I actually have a few Mitsui Golds at home.
Are you serious? Man, we get like a 100 pack for $50.00 max. here. Even the Golds are only $60.Deli Dingo
- 464
- delidingo
I was just pointing out that they are produced for consumers. I have also seen them for a lot cheaper than this particular website.Jimmy Enslashay
- 86,659
- Rule 12
- GTP_Famine
The computer in question was no longer supported since about 1996. Many of the games themselves were not produced after 1993. I came into possession of the floppy discs far, far after this point (although curiously I play my originals more often - SWOS, The Settlers, F19, Legend). I played no part in the copying, providing no demand for the duplication and as such didn't steal revenue from the company producing the games. Possession of duplicated material on a no-longer produced format is, as far as I am aware, not illegal. For that matter, many of the software houses which produced these games no longer exist. And further to that, you can download the games from websites like http://www.back2roots.org - which are regarded as format fan sites, not pirate games sites, dedicated to keeping the machines running. As mine does.
The Amiga was one of the most pirated formats ever. Some companies tried to get around it in varying ways - manual protection or dongles - but this didn't provide any real obstacles to the pirates. Had I come into possession of disks back then - thus providing a demand for the pirates to continue pirating - that would have been both illegal AND wrong.
Jimmy - You shouldn't download it because it's illegal. Not "out of respect for the company" - that's a moot issue - and implies that other companies are legitimate targets. It's like, ooooh, I don't know... not stealing Sony MP3 players from a shop, "out of respect for the company". Does that automatically make all other companies fair game?
The Amiga was one of the most pirated formats ever. Some companies tried to get around it in varying ways - manual protection or dongles - but this didn't provide any real obstacles to the pirates. Had I come into possession of disks back then - thus providing a demand for the pirates to continue pirating - that would have been both illegal AND wrong.
Jimmy - You shouldn't download it because it's illegal. Not "out of respect for the company" - that's a moot issue - and implies that other companies are legitimate targets. It's like, ooooh, I don't know... not stealing Sony MP3 players from a shop, "out of respect for the company". Does that automatically make all other companies fair game?
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
No it doesn't. But many people Download things like music and DVDs, so there would be people that wouldn't care about Downloading a game. These people do this without problem, but when it comes to Rockstar Games or GTA, they won't because the game holds a certain sentimental value to these fans. Therefore, saying you won't download it out of respect is a valid statement, in my opinion.Famine
Also, I don't phrases like "Rockstar worked really hard on this" are "dumb", because it's showing respect for the producers of the certain game, not just Rockstar Games. It doesn't incite that other game developers don't work hard.
- 2,348
- murphykieran
R32GTST/M
Well, it wouldn't matter if it was on CD or hard disk when it comes to viruses or lost data or what have you. Rockstar, like any other firm producing computer stuff, doesn't keep a single copy of anything. Everything has backups and the backups have backups which are probably made every night so it wouldn't matter if a hard drive broke or a virus got on a computer. A CD is just mainly a plastic disc anyway, it can be broken or stolen just as easily as a hard drive.
Mass producing CDs is nothing like copying or burning disks on your PC. It's not like they have to read a copy off a hard drive or another disc to produce each copy. A master disk is used to create a stamp that machines use to stamp the data onto blank discs. Once the stamps are made, it makes no difference whether the original data was on a CD or hard drive, so the speed at which disks are made has nothing to do with whether or not CDs or hard drives were used to store the data.
CD Manufacturing
KM.
- 2,348
- murphykieran
I've no qualms about using copyrighted ROMs or disk images for my Amiga emulator because as you said, the format has been effectively dead for 10 years. No-one is losing any sales if I download games for it. For the same reason, I've no moral qualms about using emulators and ROMs for arcade games and consoles that have been out of production for more than a decade.Famine
edit: You mentioned manual protection. Christ, do you remember having to go through a huge table of figures and codes to get the code that allowed you to get past the loading screen that asked you for a code. They used to print them with shiny dark paper or unreadable colour schemes so you couldn't photocopy them.
KM.
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
KM
Very good points. I'm an idiot for not thinking of the fact that they won't lose any sales.Famine
- 86,659
- Rule 12
- GTP_Famine
KieranMurphy
Oh hell yeah.
I've even got an original of "Zool: Ninja form the Nth Dimension" with its code wheel... Good heavens!
Jimmy - it's still daft, however you cut it. Stealing computer games is illegal. Not stealing from one company because you've got an affinity for them is ridiculous - if you're stealing from the others it automatically implies that you have no respect for them. Similarly, using "they've worked hard on it" as a justification for not stealing (which itself is a laughable concept) automatically implies that those you ARE stealing from haven't, in your opinion, worked hard.
In actual fact, if you have respect for a company, you shouldn't steal from its competitors. Theft results in loss of profits for the competitors, resulting in a loss of turnover, reduction in staff salaries - or just reduction in staff - leading to a drop in quality and eventual withdrawal from the market. Without competition there is no improvement. Imagine how good GTASA would be if the best game it had to go up against was 1988's Trans Am and Rockstar only had to make a viable alternative to that since no-one else was making games.
Anyone who steals software is leading to a deterioration in market quality. Using the justification of "caring" about one company to not steal from them while stealing from others is fundamentally dim.
*In all cases above, I'm using the second-person "you" to refer to the pirates, not "you" you).
- 2,348
- murphykieran
Famine
Mwahaha! Look what I've just taken a photo of (see attachment). It's been sitting on a shelf beside my PC for years now. I don't even know why I kept it, I threw my Amiga 1200 in the skip years ago.
I also have the boxes from Sim City, Archer McLean's Pool and Alien Breed 3D. And I think I have my TechnoSound 2 sampler lying in a drawer somewhere.
Oh I loved my Amiga.
KM.
Attachments
- 2,348
- murphykieran
FamineMy Amiga A1200 is downstairs, hooked up to the good TV, running a two-player game of "The Settlers" (original, I might add)...
You've got a working Amiga 1200? Christ! I'd say they're few and far between these days.
I never associated the Amiga as much with piracy as much as I did my old Amstrad CPC 6128. I used to swap Amiga games with friends at school but it was always legit games that we swapped, but before my Amiga I had an Amstrad CPC and I used to always get loans of games and about 90% of them were pirated games.
Unfortunately the games on the Amstrad CPC were pretty ****e. At least the Amiga had good games. I used to be a hopeless Elite 2: Froniter addict. Lemmings was awesome too. And Worms. The PC version of Worms is crap because you can't create your own levels. There's no excuse for that. On the Amiga you could create levels in Deluxe Paint. I used to love playing with my mates on our crazy made up levels.
KM.
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
Well all in all Famine, I think you're over-reacting. You have some points, but you are over-analysing simple statements made by people who don't really feel like putting a whole lot of meaning into a simple phrase.
And I realise you're not referring to me. I never have or will illegally obtain console games to my knowledge.
And I realise you're not referring to me. I never have or will illegally obtain console games to my knowledge.
- 583
Yeah thanks for that. I just posted what i assumed to be how it was. I know next to nothing about CD manufacturing or mass replication, i was just assuming that thats why they would need a hard copy but, now i know its used as a stamp for the machines that produce the cd's. Cheers KMKieranMurphy
- 2,348
- murphykieran
I think Famine was simply referrring to comments like this:
KM.
The implication is that you care about San Andreas being pirated because you have some sort of affinity for Rockstar Games. It does sort of imply that you care more or you're more concerned about piracy of Rockstar's games and that you're not as worried about other software firms games being copied illegally.
KM.
- 464
- delidingo
Thanks KieranMurphy and R32GTST/M for the "master CD" info. 👍
- 6,546
- matthewjlcoleman
Valid statement KM, and it's half-true as I hold Rockstar Games higher over other companies. I never intended to(nor do I think I did) imply that I don't think other gaming companies don't work hard, etc. But normally, I'm the kind of person that would let it pass and not worry too much on the issue. But the fact that I am a big GTA (and Rockstar Games) fan, I do care about this issue.
If that offends you, then I'm sorry. I'm not changing my views.
If that offends you, then I'm sorry. I'm not changing my views.
- 464
- delidingo
Max Payne and Max Payne 2!! Hell yes!!Jimmy Enslashay
