Hot New Games Victimized by Piracy
Hot New Games Victimized by Piracy
A month before the video game's scheduled release this coming Tuesday, illegal copies of the hot sci-fi action title "Halo 2" were already circulating on the Internet. It's had a lot of company lately.
Half-Life 2 Screenshot
Several highly anticipated games, such as "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" and "Half-Life 2," have fallen victim to copyright theft. Illegal, often incomplete versions have appeared on file-sharing networks, news groups and Web sites.
"You spend three years of your life pouring everything you have into this project, and then somebody gets their hands on the game and gives it away to the world for free," said Brian Jarrard of Microsoft Corp.'s Bungie Studios, maker of "Halo 2." "We made this, and these guys had no right to give it out to the public."
High-profile titles are commonly pirated before they are released, certainly within days after they arrive in stores, said Douglas Lowenstein, president of the Entertainment Software Association.
In the case of "Halo 2," the French-language version appeared on file-sharing networks and news groups in October.
Microsoft said it was still investigating, working with authorities to track down those responsible. It remains unclear how the leak occurred, but it did not affect the game's release date.
That wasn't the case for "Half-Life 2."
Fans were waiting last fall for the imminent arrival of the sequel to the popular "Half-Life" when unplayable source code from the personal computer game was stolen from developer Valve Corp. and circulated over the Internet. The investigation has led to one arrest so far. FBI agent Ray Lauer in Seattle identified the suspect as a male from Germany but had no other details.
A month before the video game's scheduled release this coming Tuesday, illegal copies of the hot sci-fi action title "Halo 2" were already circulating on the Internet. It's had a lot of company lately.
Half-Life 2 Screenshot
Several highly anticipated games, such as "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" and "Half-Life 2," have fallen victim to copyright theft. Illegal, often incomplete versions have appeared on file-sharing networks, news groups and Web sites.
"You spend three years of your life pouring everything you have into this project, and then somebody gets their hands on the game and gives it away to the world for free," said Brian Jarrard of Microsoft Corp.'s Bungie Studios, maker of "Halo 2." "We made this, and these guys had no right to give it out to the public."
High-profile titles are commonly pirated before they are released, certainly within days after they arrive in stores, said Douglas Lowenstein, president of the Entertainment Software Association.
In the case of "Halo 2," the French-language version appeared on file-sharing networks and news groups in October.
Microsoft said it was still investigating, working with authorities to track down those responsible. It remains unclear how the leak occurred, but it did not affect the game's release date.
That wasn't the case for "Half-Life 2."
Fans were waiting last fall for the imminent arrival of the sequel to the popular "Half-Life" when unplayable source code from the personal computer game was stolen from developer Valve Corp. and circulated over the Internet. The investigation has led to one arrest so far. FBI agent Ray Lauer in Seattle identified the suspect as a male from Germany but had no other details.
posted by Utahsaint at 7:29 PM
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