Crysis Warhead Comments by Christian Donlan

"You must be joking, Crysis is never that good in any shape."

Oh no you didn't!

No point starting an argument as to why I think you are so very wrong, but I guess you like Halo 3 more eh? Uh huh?

You must be joking, Crysis is never that good in any shape.

Not played on Delta difficulty and/or on an old PC, then.

Can't wait to buy this game, looks awesome.

...and NO. I don't give a FLYING FUCK about DRM.

Considering most of the people who buy crysis are the tech hungry people who upgrade and format their hard drives regularly each change in hardware is another activation gone, each format another activation gone.

I wish someone could confirm the existence or absence of an install limit. I liked Crysis, but I'm not buying games with that kind of DRM. (I won't pirate them either, because I like my credibility.)

Drm sure works

As of Thursday afternoon, "Spore" had been illegally downloaded on file-sharing networks using BitTorrent peer-to-peer transfer 171,402 times since Sept. 1, according to Big Champagne, a peer-to-peer research firm. That's hardly a record: a popular game often hits those kinds of six-figure piracy numbers, says Big Champagne Chief Executive Eric Garland.

But not usually so quickly. In just the 24-hour period between Wednesday and Thursday, illegal downloaders snagged more than 35,000 copies, and, as of Thursday evening, that rate of downloads was still accelerating. "The numbers are extraordinary," Garland says. "This is a very high level of torrent activity even for an immensely popular game title."

What annoys me about SecuROM is the stealth nature of the install. No where does it tell you the game will install additional third party software. That further makes fundamental changes that can cause issues. To add insult it's a pain in the ass to uninstall. I do not have a problem with devs/publishers trying to protect their game. I do have a problem with the SecuROM and limited install methods of doing it. Especially when I can often by the same game on a console, play it without any such restrictions and sell it on again.

Anyway I don't believe EA have the right to stop you selling on the game, or giving it to someone.

"Holy crap 9/10?

You must be joking, Crysis is never that good in any shape."

No, it really, really was definitely that good. Crysis was one of the highlights of my PC gaming career. It still is a tour de force on how to put together a great FPS, in my opinion anyways.

Significantly better optimised Crysis with more guns, Sgt. "Kickass" Psycho, new weaponry and vehicles and a new sub--plot? Yes please . . . nao

The only thing I hate about it is that it comes out on the same day as SW:TFU, so I will probably implode with indecision as to which one I play first before putting either disc in my machines.

No, it really, really was definitely that good. Crysis was one of the highlights of my PC gaming career.
Must be a very short PC gaming 'career', then.

"Must be a very short PC gaming 'career', then."

Er, how many other fps titles can you think of where you could literally spend 2-3 hours on just one single mission? Crysis was all about playing through the game (well the first half especially) at your own speed and in your own unique way. And if like myself you often chose the stealthy approach as opposed to the ram through it all one, steady mission planning alone could take up a large amount of time prior to actual execution.

And now with Warhead being purely about making choices when and where you are ready, I can see me spending even longer on each mission. Which excites me no end.

ChthonicEcho said... "Must be a very short PC gaming 'career', then."

I hate this kind of comment, it's his opinion you dumb ass! No need to mock someone.

I hate this kind of comment, it's his opinion you dumb ass! No need to mock someone.
It's my duty as a citizen of the Internet, I'm afraid.

Er, how many other fps titles can you think of where you could literally spend 2-3 hours on just one single mission?
I would tire and most likely fail naming all of the first person shooters. I mean, even in Half-Life 2, I can walk around in circles like a retard for 3 hours.

@AphoticCosmos:

I *totally* agree.

I loved the original.. Right up to when it stopped being a free roaming jungle warfare game, and had that space ship section.

Oh.. and the section where you're FORCED to fly that aircraft was REALLY shit - despite having all my options up to the maximum allowed with windows XP, it was like playing a 10 year old game with shit loads of fog blocking the way.. While the character i was controlling the plane with was drunk.

Oh and the final boss had a bug in it which rendered the game uncompletable under some circumstances "lock on with the missile" when mine wouldnt lock on.

..( at advice of gamefaqs) i had to restart the whole level and replay the final boss without saving/loading..

Agree with smelly. It was pretty awesome right up until that aliens part then it all went downhill a bit.

Interest video comparrison here

Disclaimer:
This is just to show what Crysis does well, I'm not bashing on CoD 4. I loved CoD 4 although everything he says about it is true. At the same time you expect CoD to be very scripted and it does what it does very well.

I would tire and most likely fail naming all of the first person shooters. I mean, even in Half-Life 2, I can walk around in circles like a retard for 3 hours.

Well, just goes to show. Crysis isn't a game for people that need hand-helding through a linear level corridor. Not everyone's cup of tea, obviously.

@ Smelly

I personally loved the alien, snow and carrier levels but the VTOL section was definitely mediocre. Thankfully you can literally just pour on the afterburner and just fly through the level if you have the basic controls nailed.

The VTOLs work well in multiplayer where they're expensive, slow and cumbersome but powerful compared to everyone else, but they should've had a Korean hunter killer chopper for that section, or a new type of hunter/killer VTOL. The transport VTOL just didn't work well.

Just don't uninstall more than once.

Yeah, we'll see how much people defend the 3 shots DRM in six months time when they've made all their nice new upgrades and go back to see how much better Warhead runs on their shiny new system.

Oh oh! Better buy a couple of extra copies, suckers.

That's the rub for me, I have no problem whatsoever with developers trying to protect their software. I do sometimes wonder how much it has to do with piracy though, I mean it's a pretty piss poor effort when the pirates get it before paying customer who pre-ordered it several years ago. The 3 installs thing is clearly an attempt to maximise sales, and while that's understandable it's an extremely cockish way to go about it.

Hmm, so this game has the infamous SecuROM DRM eh?

Guess now I know how I'm going to acquire this game.

these people who take DRM as a reason to download/steal it:

Why not buy the game leave it in the wrapper then download it, you have paid for it and get you DRM free version (which makes no difference anyway)

Also the install limited won't affect you and if you ever wish to sell it you should be fine.

its only £14.99 for gods sake!

So you should buy a game your not going to use and give EA your money to fund and support the DRM bullshit?

Im a pirate.. i'm gonna come up with an excuse for being a pirate scumbag to make myself feel better about it..

.. hmm.. what shall i pick.. i know DRM!

and if the game doesnt have DRM.. i'll blame it on the price.. But if the price is cheap (15 quid).. then i'll blame it on the game being too short.. etc etc etc.

Hi, I'm smelly, I'll make wild judgments about people who I know nothing about because I'm a moron who just loves to stick up for large corporations when they're fucking over the consumer!

LIMITED INSTALLS Do you even know how this works? Every hardware change you make will use another activation.
Absolutely crazy for a game like Warhead which will be a major reason for people to upgrade, and, like it's predecessor and Far Cry before it, it'll be a game for bench markers and system builders to come back to again and again to test their new configurations.
...Except it wont, unless you want to phone up that nice phat premium number and justify why you want another activation of the game YOU BOUGHT to an EA phone centre goon.

This is apparently too hard to comprehend for some. No, if you're suspicious of DRM and are wondering what in the holy living fuck they are even thinking with a three install limit, you MUST be a pirate.

Oh EA, let me suckle at your teat, we're not worthy of even playing those excellent games you publish.

Nah, I don't think so. It's not like there's nothing else to play.

hmm i understand about secuROM and all that but ive pre ordered this because:

1. its £15
2. Its got rave reviews
3. It has online functionality (which you cant get with pirated version presumably)
4. I downloaded Crysis and feel a little guilty so want to give some money to crytek!

You about you anti DRM people donate £15 to charity when you download it then?

Paid for game... check
No DRM... check
No Money to EA... check
Might buy a place in heaven... check

Fuck Crytek.
If they want to make things as awkward as possible for the paying customer, they deserve everything they get.

I love the way you assume that anybody cares whether Crytek starve to death or not, as if we've some moral obligation to them despite them punishing the PAYING CUSTOMER and saying they'll never make any more PC exclusives.

I can tell you for a god-damn fact nobody who pirates the game is wringing their hands in a moral quandary over if they'll go to heaven or not, or if Crytek can afford more sportscars this year, and certainly nobody cares if some numbnuts on the internet is calling them thieves.

At the end of the day the ones pirating it are getting the better product, and they're getting it for free.
I bet the name calling and attempts at guilt tripping them is making them feel just TERRIBLE.
Say, how about you go over to Piratebay and show them the error of their ways?

PREACH BROTHER!

How is it a punishment, it installs silently, runs silently, has no effect on your system...

I know when I am playing it on friday I will feel really hard done to with my top quality game for £15...

Oh, the hilarity!
I can see you now, jumping up and down with a little red face. Bless!

First off, people DO care if they like playing their games. Without Crytek, there would be no FarCry, no Crysis, no Warhead, no FarCry2, and no whatever else. If you like playing FPS's, then you WOULD care about not having those games, and not having them as competition for other games.

If they cared, they wouldn't pirate them, so that's just rubbish. A quick visit to any torrent site will prove that beyond any doubt.
I love the way you assume most people care about companies or developers. They don't, they just want product. If Crytek went down we'd buy something else.

Secondly, you DO have a moral obligation. It's called not being a thief and stealing something. People with morals... don't steal. That's what morals are all about.

Who cares about morals if you're getting something for free? People are out for what they can get, it's the way the world works. I'd love to live in your litte sphere where everyone is a morally outstanding, law-abiding citizen. It's not how it works, if people can get something for free with very little effort or comeback, they'll do it. And they do.

I'm sure the heavy pockets of those thousands of people enjoying their free software do a lot to counteract the scowls and wailings of the internet morality police. Yep, those guys must feel really bad...

And lastly, how the fuck is it a PUNISHMENT?!?! When was the last time you ever had any trouble with some copy protection on your computer? Probably never right? Because you just pirate everything. You are just a no good thief you know. You can try to justify it however you want, but you are just scum. There are rapists who rape women and say it's because they wore provocative clothing. Or murderers who kill people and say it was justified revenge. Well you steal and your shitty excuse is no better. You have no morals, and you are too dumb to even think though what you are doing. You just make snappy decisions based on no thought or knowledge or moral compass.

Oh, nice strawman, textbook example! You really are frothing now, it's magnificent.
The problems with SecrureROM are well known and documented. I've never had any problems apart from Starforce which I managed to remove. But it seems in your red-faced rant your reading comprehension has suffered.
Like I say, I don't pirate games, I've a large disposable income and a nice gaming PC. PC games are so cheap it's not even worth the effort downloading them. If people do, that's up to them, let them at it ...but then I'm not sitting on a very high horse getting retarded pretensions about 'moral compasses' like some kind of Catholic schoolboy.

I also love the way you can't see how the downloader isn't getting the better end of the deal. It's fairly simple (so you should be able to understand)
They get the game for FREE.
They have no DRM or activation limits.
The customer has to PAY
They are forced to install all manner of DRM and are tied to activation limits.
The paying customer is effectively getting punished (and treated with the assumption that the actual purchaser is a thief) for buying the game. None of this effects anyone who downloaded it.

It's really not hard. I'm sure this sends your moral compass into a tailspin, but then the denizens of the internet obviously don't share your common ancestry with Peter the Apostle.

'Uhh one option is like... pay for something... and the other option is like... get it for free? Hmm... which one will choose? Uhhh I think I might be better getting it for free. Because then I won't have to pay for it. I think that is best. Okie'. It's amazing people like you can even tie their shoes.

So free stuff isn't good now? Well, that's news to... pretty much everyone!
Stop now before you give yourself an aneurysm. You're just getting embarrassing.

This arguement that DRM is treating paying customers like criminals...

Does this mean everytime I lock my car its because I think everybody is going to try and steal it, treating everybody like a criminal...

In both cases it will stop a lot of people but a true thief will get past it.

DRM does work, no it doesn't stop everybody but it does stop the less educated just copying and giving it there mate or installing it on there PC etc. I do believe no DRM would increase piracy.

Does this mean everytime I lock my car its because I think everybody is going to try and steal it, treating everybody like a criminal...

The analogy doesn't really work. For a start copying is not the same as stealing a car, duplicating isn't depriving the owner of their property, it's depriving the manufacturer/publisher of income.
It's also YOUR car. Ford or whoever don't come along and tell you where you can't drive it or what you can or can't do with it. They don't stop you lending it to a friend or say you can drive it only three days out of seven. Would you have bought the car if that was the case?

The casual copying of games to friends via disc isn't going to sink a company. It's arguably easier to download (and most games are available for DL before streetdate) than to get a copy from a friend nowadays. You don't need to physically go anywhere or do anything and you don't need a CD key. Which is all moot anyway as most DVD copy software can automatically crack any current protection.
The idea that someone with no technical Knowledge will have a copy of Warhead and a PC to run it on in the first place is also quite unrealistic.

DRM will stop very few, if any, people who want to pirate the game; and will likely put off just as many people who would have bought it otherwise, but have chosen not too because they don't like the protection (as you can see in this thread or the Amazon reviews for Spore, which has been subsequently patched due to the anger over the limited activation)

SecureROM and its ilk are unpopular, but most games use it (it's likely on most people's systems by now) and if you want to make a backup or get a NO-CD crack it's still very easy to do so with no technical knowledge.
So what's the point? Purely so EA can say to the moneymen they're making an effort? Because it's sure as hell not stopping thousands of people downloading Spore.

So, it's not stopping piracy or even slowing it down, as the torrent sites will attest. It IS putting plenty people off who would otherwise have purchased a copy (who may now even download it instead) and it's creating bad news for the product amongst the hardcore userbase (exactly the people games like Warhead are targeted at)

So why even put it on? Why not save the money they used licensing the DRM software and instead bundle a figure, or a map, or a fucking mousemat or whatever it takes to make the proper version more desirable?
Devaluing the original copy in the eyes of the consumer by bundling it with something people view with suspicion and generating 'New draconian EA DRM Measure' headlines and forum posts isn't the way to sell your product (regardless of the actual reality of the DRM) especially if your product is aimed at the tech-savy end of the market.

I do think DRM does pirates some good int he sense it has to be cracked so will come from a few groups, which you may trust one or two.

With no DRM everybody will be making ISO's and sharing and it would be harder to find a good virus free version.

Also not everybody is very competent on a computer, you would be amazed how many people have asked me to install a downloaded game because they can't figure it out, in every case I point them to the cheapest place to buy it.

I know there is a lot of people who it will stop, you have to consider that most people on here will be capable of cracking a game, but there is a lot of people not on here who can't.

I'm ending the fourth level of Warhead. The game is better than Crysis in some aspects:

PROS:
-More weapons, earlier acces to them, different kind of explosives, much more ammunition, more tactical choices.
-A lot more enemies and things to blow, more fast pace, much better alien combat patterns, intense gameplay with few pauses, constant action.
-Huge maps with large areas to accomplish the missions in several ways, new vehicles.
-Much better multiplayer, with the "TDM" adition and some sci-fi new maps.
-Best technical department ever, with constant framerrate -no framerrate fall in the frozen areas-, better lightning, but worse poping.
-No need of disc inside in both sp and mp after the installation.
-Great soundtrack and voice actors.
-Good price.

AGAINST:
-Shorter sp campaign and not very cohesive sometimes..
-Worse cinematics, not much concommitances with the Nomad story -graveyard extraction point, assault seaport... -.

I'll take me still a few hours to finish the game but imo is better than Crysis himself.

Oh God F***!! Warhead has SecuRom with functionality a la Bioshock?! And there I was, thinking it was going to be as reasonable as the original Crysis.

Good thing I discovered this before unwrapping the box - time to return it and get my cash back (not that it's much - Warhead's price is dead on right, I'll certainly give it that :).

Jesus, F***. Until DRM becomes reasonable, does not pose a threat to me reselling the game second hand and allows me to install the game as many time as -I- F****** please on any machine meeting the specs, I will keep sending those wrapped boxes back. It's a good deed actually: that way, players who don't give a cr** about install limits will see their purchase eventually becoming a coaster and they'll love it how they are unable to resell it to anyone else.

I believe Fallout 3 has SecuRom. Will it, too, feature this kind of dreck? I hope not - but if it does, maybe I should just get a console version instead...

To whoever thought up the install limit functionality: here are my two middle fingers, you know what's next. I'm normally a quite calm player, but this SH** has to stop.

VMerken:

I can't agree. First, because the limit of installs is melted to temporal restrictions only, which means that after -usually- 8 to 12 months the SecuRom restrictions ENDS.

Second, because that at least gives you the chance to play without the discs in both Warhead and Crysis Wars, which is fine is you are playing a few games at the same time -as me, with Diablo II, WAR, Soulstorm and Quake Wars-. Is good that Warhead, Crysis Wars and Quake Wars don't require the disc inside the system and it prevents constant DVD changes.

Third, SecuROM is a poor excuse to decline the experience of been not playing Warhead: the game is one of the finest fps in the gameplay department developed in the last 10 years, and without a doubt the zenit of all things in the technical department.

Fourth, if you buy the game through Steam probably you can download it as times as you wish, as in the digital downloads in the PS Network Store in PS3 .

Buran: I can't agree. First, because the limit of installs is melted to temporal restrictions only, which means that after -usually- 8 to 12 months the SecuRom restrictions ENDS.

This links to the official Crytek Crysis Warhead F.A.Q.:

http://www.crymod.com/thread.php?threadi...

Kindly direct me to the passage which confirms what you said. Or provide a different, official link. And no, I'm not interested in promises made by the devs, or things that "might" happen.

Edit: oh wait, I found this:

http://www.crymod.com/thread.php?threadi...

Sounds like good news, but after witnessing the Bioshock revoke tool, I'll just wait with the champagne until the mentioned fix is released. Especially since EA's thinking about developing it. However, if it's really good, I'll buy the game, which by then is probably available at a nicely reduced price.

Second, because that at least gives you the chance to play without the discs in both Warhead and Crysis Wars, which is fine is you are playing a few games at the same time -as me, with Diablo II, WAR, Soulstorm and Quake Wars-. Is good that Warhead, Crysis Wars and Quake Wars don't require the disc inside the system and it prevents constant DVD changes.

If you like it, no problem but (a) I can live with disc switching since I do it with care and (b) disc switching is absolutely the least of my worries with this kind of DRM. In fact, I didn't even mention it because the other arguments are far, far more relevant.

Third, SecuROM is a poor excuse to decline the experience of been not playing Warhead: the game is one of the finest fps in the gameplay department developed in the last 10 years, and without a doubt the zenit of all things in the technical department.

I wasn't going to talk a lot about SecuRom, but since you brought it up...

First, I'd like to say that SecuRom has been around - my comments pertain to the new iteration of SecuRom which has the "great" install limits (aka rental) functionality. This functionality began with Bioshock, and now appears to become popular in the dev scene because the people are voting yes with their wallets. That the high-selling games are actually good has nothing to do with it, no, the new SecuRom is preventing Piracy(tm) at last!

One, there is no mention of Securom on the box (I only buy boxed copies and will probably never use STEAM), so you know, something just installed itself on your PC without you knowing it! Hey, trusted computing, right?

Two, SecuRom will run in the background, do stuff you know nothing about, use processing time and is not turned off easily! But hey, your processor can more than handle it, and at least your game is protected. And there is the general consensus that SecuRom luckily is but a harmless rootkit.

Three, it is possible that SecuRom will not allow you to run game discs (of other games) if you are using a DVD-RW drive (plus another drive, I think) or Pirating(tm) tools such as Nero. Because people with DVD-RW drives and/or Nero must be Pirates(tm), you know.

Four, SecuRom will NOT uninstall along with the game and it will just keep monitoring your system! Yes sir, you have to uninstall it manually if you so wish to! A cookie if you can find the full 100% working uninstallation instructions for Crysis Warhead's SecuRom implementation on the internet. Bonus cookie if you honestly think the manual uninstallation procedure is an easy, foolproof, risk-free undertaking.

Edit: wow, a lot has happened since kast year - uninstalling SecuRom was a pain back then! For reference, here is a link to the SecuRom uninstaller, provided by SecuRom itself:

http://www.securom.com/support/SecuROM_U...

Cookies for me I guess :). It does leave a few files on your system behind, but only to keep your game activations intact, of course.

Still think SecuRom's a poor excuse, even though it wasn't used as an excuse in the first place?

And while I'm sure that Crysis Warhead's a great game and technical achievement - actually a game I would love to play considering that I loved Crysis - the fact that (a) I cannot install the game as many times as I want and (b) enjoy it for as long as the DVD is still in working condition, makes it no sale for me (I returned the box to the store today, btw, and got reimbursed). Yes, I'll possibly miss out on something great. No problem, there are other interesting games out there without this type of DRM for the time being.

Fourth, if you buy the game through Steam probably you can download it as times as you wish, as in the digital downloads in the PS Network Store in PS3 .

Yes, and then I'm probably paying AGAIN for the game once the 5 install limit has been breached. But oh wait, I can call a premium number for EA support after which (if they are anything like 2K Games (Bioshock)) they'll probably ask me to mail them a picture of the game dvd, box, serial number, and so on to prove I really, really have a legit copy of the game. And after that, I get to wait a week before customer support has filed the necessary paperwork to give the green light for reactivation. Or the authorisation tool does work great! Yay, that sounds good! Oh, and this type of DRM doesn't kill the second hand market one bit.

Finally, something which is a consequence of this type of DRM and which really pisses me off: it is really the company saying to us, "We don't trust YOU". Yes, Cevat Yerli probably meant what he wrote in the F.A.Q. and he really appreciates our dedication and hearts and souls are poured into their games and whatnot. But then, at some point, other factors begin to play and suddenly, the company can no longer trust that YOU do the right thing. And so they are going to tell YOU what to do and basically sell you a rental at full price. You have to trust them on their word that they will ensure that you can always play the game.

Only: if the company doesn't trust you, why should you trust the company?

I believe that the company has the right to protect their product and deploy security measures. I also believe that when I pay full price for said product, I have the right to a game disc which doesn't become a coaster over time. That the deployed security measures should be fair and not insulting me (see "trust" above). That it should only be normal that SecuRom uninstalls along with the game in a trivial manner.

Until a better solution is developed, I vote with my wallet and refuse to buy games with this kind of heinous DRM. And should the majority votes otherwise, then we will not see the end of it - but that's okay in a democracy - and I'll graciously bow out of PC gaming. Enough to do in real life, anyway :).

Thanks for your reply, Buran, keep enjoying your game and take care.

VMerken: thanx for your explanations, some of them were not kwnowed by me; I don't like and don't use- Steam mainly because the monitoring functions that eveade the user control, so now I must admit that I agree in some degree with your opinions about SecuROM.

Anyway, with or without the restrictive DRM, imo Warhead deserves the money,and since I like a lot the Crytek games and want to suppurt his efforts in the PC fps scene, the act ob buying the game was right to me. I don't want a developer focusing his talented workers in the delpoy of games oriented to the "multi platform" scenary or nerfeing these ones in any way because the technical limitations of consoles and pads.

Buran: thanx for your explanations, some of them were not kwnowed by me; I don't like and don't use- Steam mainly because the monitoring functions that eveade the user control, so now I must admit that I agree in some degree with your opinions about SecuROM.

Well, apparently there's now a SecuRom uninstaller by SecuRom (see my post above), so at least we now have the option to remove the monitoring whenever we want. Quite a relief. But yeah, while you play games, SecuRom and/or STEAM are watching you, not exactly something I like, either.

Anyway, with or without the restrictive DRM, imo Warhead deserves the money,and since I like a lot the Crytek games and want to suppurt his efforts in the PC fps scene, the act ob buying the game was right to me. I don't want a developer focusing his talented workers in the delpoy of games oriented to the "multi platform" scenary or nerfeing these ones in any way because the technical limitations of consoles and pads.

Hey, you did what you believe in, and that's great - I completely respect that. Me, I will gladly support Crytek and other great PC game companies once I can feel like I'm actually buying games again rather than having these Big Brother, rental-like, second hand market killing, unmentioned-on-the-box-and-EULA restrictions built in. If the protection works and is fairly communicated and implemented, then let the buying commence (in my case :).

A must-buy.