Stardock's view on piracy and PC gaming

This topic is locked from further discussion.

Avatar image for RK-Mara
RK-Mara

11489

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 7

User Lists: 0

#1 RK-Mara
Member since 2006 • 11489 Posts

Recently there has been a lot of talk about how piracy affects PC gaming. And if you listen to game developers, it apparently is a foregone conclusion - if a high quality PC game doesn't sell as many copies as it should, it must be because of piracy.

Now, I don't like piracy at all. It really bugs me when I see my game up on some torrent site just on the principle of the matter. And piracy certainly does cost sales. But arguing that piracy is the primary factor in lower sales of well made games? I don't think so.

Is it about business or glory?

Most people who know of Stardock in the gaming world think of it as a tiny indie shop. And we certainly are tiny in terms of game development. But in the desktop enhancement market, Stardock owns that market and it's a market with many millions of users. According to CNET, 6 of the top 10 most popular desktop enhancements are developed by Stardock. Our most popular desktop enhancement, WindowBlinds, has almost 14 million downloads just on Download.com. We have over a million registered users.

If you want to talk about piracy, talk about desktop enhancements. The piracy on that is huge. But the question isn't about piracy. It's about sales.

So here is the deal: When you develop for a market, you don't go by the user base. You go by the potential customer base. That's what most software companies do. They base what they want to create on the size of the market they're developing for. But not PC game developers.

PC game developers seem to focus more on the "cool" factor. What game can they make that will get them glory with the game magazines and gaming websites and hard core gamers? These days, it seems like game developers want to be like rock stars more than businessmen. I've never considered myself a real game developer. I'm a gamer who happens to know how to code and also happens to be reasonably good at business.

So when I make a game, I focus on making games that I think will be the most profitable. As a gamer, I like most games. I love Bioshock. I think the Orange Box is one of the best gaming deals ever. I love Company of Heroes and Oblivion was captivating. My two favorite games of all time are Civilization (I, II, III, and IV) and Total Annihilation. And I won't even get into the hours lost in WoW. Heck, I even like The Sims.

So when it comes time to make a game, I don't have a hard time thinking of a game I'd like to play. The hard part is coming up with a game that we can actually make that will be profitable. And that means looking at the market as a business not about trying to be "cool".

Making games for customers versus making games for users

So even though Galactic Civilizations II sold 300,000 copies making 8 digits in revenue on a budget of less than $1 million, it's still largely off the radar. I practically have to agree to mow editors lawns to get coverage. And you should see Jeff Green's (Games for Windows) yard. I still can't find my hedge trimmers.

Another game that has been off the radar until recently was Sins of a Solar Empire. With a small budget, it has already sold about 200,000 copies in the first month of release. It's the highest rated PC game of 2008 and probably the best selling 2008 PC title. Neither of these titles have CD copy protection.

And yet we don't get nearly the attention of other PC games. Lack of marketing on our part? We bang on the doors for coverage as next as the next shop. Lack of advertising? Open up your favorite PC game publication for the past few months and take note of all the 2 page spreads for Sins of a Solar Empire. So we certainly try.

But we still don't get the editorial buzz that some of the big name titles do because our genre isn't considered as "cool" as other genres. Imagine what our sales would be if our games had gotten game magazine covers and just massive editorial coverage like some of the big name games get. I don't want to suggest we get treated poorly by game magazine and web sites (not just because I fear them -- which I do), we got good preview coverage on Sins, just not the same level as one of the "mega" titles would get. Hard core gamers have different tastes in games than the mainstream PC gaming market of game buyers. Remember Roller Coaster Tycoon? Heck, how much buzz does The Sims get in terms of editorial when compared to its popularity. Those things just aren't that cool to the hard core gaming crowd that everything seems geared toward despite the fact that they're not the ones buying most of the games.

I won't even mention some of the big name PC titles that GalCiv and Sins have outsold. There's plenty of PC games that have gotten dedicated covers that haven't sold as well. So why is that?

Our games sell well for three reasons. First, they're good games which is a pre-requisite. But there's lots of great games that don't sell well.

The other two reasons are:

  • Our games work on a very wide variety of hardware configurations.
  • Our games target genres with the largest customer bases per cost to produce for.

We also don't make games targeting the Chinese market

When you make a game for a target market, you have to look at how many people will actually buy your game combined with how much it will cost to make a game for that target market. What good is a large number of users if they're not going to buy your game? And what good is a market where the minimal commitment to make a game for it is $10 million if the target audience isn't likely to pay for the game?

If the target demographic for your game is full of pirates who won't buy your game, then why support them? That's one of the things I have a hard time understanding. It's irrelevant how many people will play your game (if you're in the business of selling games that is). It's only relevant how many people are likely to buy your game.

Stardock doesn't make games targeting the Chinese market. If we spent $10 million on a PC game explicitly for the Chinese market and we lost our shirts, would you really feel that much sympathy for us? Or would you think "Duh."

You need a machine how fast?

Anyone who keeps track of how many PCs the "Gamer PC" vendors sell each year could tell you that it's insane to develop a game explicitly for hard core gamers. Insane. I think people would be shocked to find out how few hard core gamers there really are out there. This data is available. The number of high end graphics cards sold each year isn't a trade secret (in some cases you may have to get an NDA but if you're a partner you can find out). So why are companies making games that require them to sell to 15% of a given market to be profitable? In what other market do companies do that? In other software markets, getting 1% of the target market is considered good. If you need to sell 500,000 of your game to break even and your game requires Pixel Shader 3 to not look like crap or play like crap, do you you really think that there are 50 MILLION PC users with Pixel Shader 3 capable machines who a) play games and b) will actually buy your game if a pirated version is available?

In our case, we make games that target the widest possible audience as long as as we can still deliver the gaming experience we set out to. Anyone who's looked at the graphics in Sins of a Solar Empire would, I think, agree that the graphics are pretty phenomenal (particularly space battles). But could they be even fancier? Sure. But only if we degraded the gaming experience for the largest chunk of people who buy games.

The problem with blaming piracy

I don't want anyone to walk away from this article thinking I am poo-pooing the effect of piracy. I'm not. I definitely feel for game developers who want to make kick ass PC games who see their efforts diminished by a bunch of greedy pirates. I just don't count pirates in the first place. If you're a pirate, you don't get a vote on what gets made -- or you shouldn't if the company in question is trying to make a profit.

The reason why we don't put copy protection on our games isn't because we're nice guys. We do it because the people who actually buy games don't like to mess with it. Our customers make the rules, not the pirates. Pirates don't count. We know our customers could pirate our games if they want but choose to support our efforts. So we return the favor - we make the games they want and deliver them how they want it. This is also known as operating like every other industry outside the PC game industry.

One of the jokes I've seen in the desktop enhancement market is how "ugly" WindowBlinds skins are (though there are plenty of awesome ones too). But the thing is, the people who buy WindowBlinds tend to like a different styIeof skin than the people who would never buy it in the first place. Natural selection, so to speak, over many years has created a number of styIes that seem to be unique to people who actually buy WindowBlinds. That's the problem with piracy. What gets made targets people who buy it, not the people who would never buy it in the first place. When someone complains about "fat borders" on some popular WindowBlinds skin my question is always "Would you buy WindowBlinds even if there was a perfect skin for you?" and the answer is inevitably "Probably not". That's how it works in every market -- the people who buy stuff call the shots. Only in the PC game market are the people who pirate stuff still getting the overwhelming percentage of development resources and editorial support.

When you blame piracy for disappointing sales, you tend to tar the entire market with a broad brush. Piracy isn't evenly distributed in the PC gaming market.

Blaming piracy is easy. But it hides other underlying causes. When Sins popped up as the #1 best selling game at retail a couple weeks ago, a game that has no copy protect whatsoever, that should tell you that piracy is not the primary issue.

In the end, the pirates hurt themselves. PC game developers will either slowly migrate to making games that cater to the people who buy PC games or they'll move to platforms where people are more inclined to buy games.

In the meantime, if you want to make profitable PC games, I'd recommend focusing more effort on satisfying the people willing to spend money on your product and less effort on making what others perceive as hot. But then again, I don't romanticize PC game development. I just want to play cool games and make a profit on games that I work on.

Original article.

Avatar image for Uberbadassmufuh
Uberbadassmufuh

1006

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#2 Uberbadassmufuh
Member since 2004 • 1006 Posts
Yup. I love Stardock and I'm also pretty much their target audience. I'm actually suprised that other more major publishers haven't figured out that making the lives of your paying customers more difficult isn't the way to fend of pirates.
Avatar image for Planeforger
Planeforger

19550

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 0

#3 Planeforger
Member since 2004 • 19550 Posts

That's a great read, but they probably could have also mentioned the way that 'word of mouth' can make games popular (like with Audiosurf, which hasn't really been covered by gaming sites/magazines that I know of, but has sold extremely well).

Still, anti-piracy measures do seem to be totally pointless - they never prevent piracy, and frequently just annoy honest gamers.

Avatar image for dragon_master11
dragon_master11

531

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#4 dragon_master11
Member since 2007 • 531 Posts

I gotta Read all that? :shock:

Avatar image for skrat_01
skrat_01

33767

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#5 skrat_01
Member since 2007 • 33767 Posts
Great read, nice find!
Avatar image for AdrianWerner
AdrianWerner

28441

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 4

User Lists: 0

#6 AdrianWerner
Member since 2003 • 28441 Posts

Stardock is amazing company and one that could never exist on console market

After GC2, DA and now Sins I can safely say they have secured a customer in me for years to come. I will be pre-ordering their fantasy TBS the moment it's avaible on totalgaming.net (not just because I'm such a good guy, I also want to get by hands on the beta :) )

Avatar image for EntwineX
EntwineX

5858

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 16

User Lists: 0

#7 EntwineX
Member since 2005 • 5858 Posts

The reason why we don't put copy protection on our games isn't because we're nice guys. We do it because the people who actually buy games don't like to mess with it. Our customers make the rules, not the pirates.Pirates don't count. We know our customers could pirate our games if they want but choose to support our efforts. So we return the favor - we make the games they want and deliver them how they want it. This is also known as operating like every other industry outside the PC game industry.

Stardock

That's prolly the best paragraph in the article. I've never understood why developers and publishers insist on putting complex copy protection systems in place when they NEVER work, they only hurt the people who actually buy the game. Or in the worst case scare of legimate customers like happened with TQ and propably many many Starforce protected titles.

Only ONE person or group needs to crack a game, after that's it's pretty much download and play for the rest. There has never been a copy protection system that wasn't cracked, and I am willing to bet there never will.

It's like some silly superstition that you need a copy protection or everyone will just pirate your game, imo that belongs in the same category as masturbation will make you blind".

Copy protection will not
- Make pirates suddenly support the game by bying it
- Make legimate customers go "ooh, that's a nice copy protection you got there" *buys game*

It might however
- Give real customers a reason not to buy the game
- Give it a higher visibility among torrent and crack sites

Avatar image for BumFluff122
BumFluff122

14853

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#8 BumFluff122
Member since 2004 • 14853 Posts
I thihnk it's funny that Stardock talks about PC gaming as if they don't care about pirating but they go out of their way to make sure that the only people who use their Windowblinds product is a registered user.
Avatar image for Shazenab
Shazenab

3413

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#9 Shazenab
Member since 2004 • 3413 Posts

The problem with piracy is the confusion developers and publishers casuse. Across the Movie. Music and Video Game industry their is a camp that calls their favourate industry an artform- Not a business.

The problem with that, of course, is that the simplest art from classical music, classical littrature and any number of paintings can be copied and changed (or in the case of music composed) and no lawyers are called in to stop this, because art is an open forum, one that everyone MUSt experinace to further their understanding of the world.

So these people need to make a choice. Are they Artists or are they a business?

Avatar image for Baranga
Baranga

14217

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 4

User Lists: 0

#10 Baranga
Member since 2005 • 14217 Posts

I thihnk it's funny that Stardock talks about PC gaming as if they don't care about pirating but they go out of their way to make sure that the only people who use their Windowblinds product is a registered user.BumFluff122

You must register for an enhanced version and for updates, right?

That's how they do with their games too. You register them with the key and you have acces to all the updates and free expansions.

Avatar image for cobrax25
cobrax25

9649

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#11 cobrax25
Member since 2006 • 9649 Posts

I think every PC developer just needs to move to Steam at this point...Its not perfect, but its safer than almost anything else.

That or just try new methods of getting games out their...like making free, add supported titles. Like what EA and ID are trying to do. Relic is also trying it out, only in China for now...but hey said that if its succesfull, they will try it in the West to.

Avatar image for Planeforger
Planeforger

19550

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 0

#12 Planeforger
Member since 2004 • 19550 Posts

I think every PC developer just needs to move to Steam at this point...Its not perfect, but its safer than almost anything else.

cobrax25

It may not even be 'safer', but it's definitely an easy way to distribute and advertise their games to a huge number of gamers.

Avatar image for cobrax25
cobrax25

9649

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#13 cobrax25
Member since 2006 • 9649 Posts
[QUOTE="cobrax25"]

I think every PC developer just needs to move to Steam at this point...Its not perfect, but its safer than almost anything else.

Planeforger

It may not even be 'safer', but it's definitely an easy way to distribute and advertise their games to a huge number of gamers.

apparently developers make a lot more from it also, since their is no middleman, and they dont actually have to manufacter any materials.

Avatar image for Shazenab
Shazenab

3413

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#14 Shazenab
Member since 2004 • 3413 Posts
[QUOTE="Planeforger"][QUOTE="cobrax25"]

I think every PC developer just needs to move to Steam at this point...Its not perfect, but its safer than almost anything else.

cobrax25

It may not even be 'safer', but it's definitely an easy way to distribute and advertise their games to a huge number of gamers.

apparently developers make a lot more from it also, since their is no middleman, and they dont actually have to manufacter any materials.

Which also boosts creative freedom. Instead of publishers demanding yet another generic fps developers can go off the rails and develop what they like.

Man, we should work for valve.

Avatar image for cobrax25
cobrax25

9649

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#15 cobrax25
Member since 2006 • 9649 Posts
[QUOTE="cobrax25"][QUOTE="Planeforger"][QUOTE="cobrax25"]

I think every PC developer just needs to move to Steam at this point...Its not perfect, but its safer than almost anything else.

Shazenab

It may not even be 'safer', but it's definitely an easy way to distribute and advertise their games to a huge number of gamers.

apparently developers make a lot more from it also, since their is no middleman, and they dont actually have to manufacter any materials.

Which also boosts creative freedom. Instead of publishers demanding yet another generic fps developers can go off the rails and develop what they like.

Man, we should work for valve.

yeah, its really good for Indi developers because it allows them to really get their games noticed....AudioSurf, The Ship, and red Orchestra have all been launched through steam and have all been succesfull.