[float=left][attach=1][/float]As of last night, The Witcher 2 has gone DRM free! Originally released with Securom, the 1.1 patch removes all DRM that was originally used to help prevent it from being pirated before release. The patch also reportedly increases frame rates up to 30%; whether this due entirely to the DRM removal or other updates is unclear. Also of note is the addition of more mouse and keyboard control options including inverting the mouse and re-mapping directional controls, and the inclusion of the first of the free DLCs to be released.[cutoff]
According to the CD Projekt RED Development Director: "Our goal is to make our fans and customers happy and to reward them for buying our game and DRM schemes does not support our philosophy as they might create obstacles for users of legally bought copies. Our approach to countering piracy is to incorporate superior value in the legal version. This means it has to be superior in every respect: less troublesome to use and install, with full support, and with access to additional content and services. So, we felt keeping the DRM would mainly hurt our legitimate users. This is completely in line with what we said before the release of The Witcher 2. We felt DRM was necessary to prevent the game being pirated and leaked before release. This purpose has been served, so we are pleased to let our users enjoy the full freedom of game usage they deserve."
This is a usage of DRM I can actually get behind and I applaud CD Projekt for their approach and the speedy removal of DRM from the game now that release time has passed. While no developer wants to see their work pirated it's easy to see how DRM does little to punish pirates while legitimate users get stuck with complicated schemes that limit their use and even the performance of what they legally acquired.
It should be noted that patch 1.1 has to be manually downloaded as the auto downloader will not do it for you. Steam should auto patch itself and
GOG.com users should acquire the patch there. Everyone else can get the patch here:
http://en.thewitcher.com/patch/Via
thewitcher.com