Author Topic: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free  (Read 5644 times)

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Offline The Doctor

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The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« on: May 28, 2011, 02:25:29 AM »
[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
« Last Edit: May 28, 2011, 04:55:27 AM by The Doctor »
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Offline phonypapercut

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #1 on: May 28, 2011, 05:44:39 AM »
Bought the GOG version which came DRM free. Still get a noticeable boost in frame rate with the patch, so it looks like DRM wasn't the only factor in that.

Awesome game by the way, everyone should get it.
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Offline Foxdonut

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #2 on: May 28, 2011, 05:54:09 AM »
Bought the GOG version which came DRM free. Still get a noticeable boost in frame rate with the patch, so it looks like DRM wasn't the only factor in that.

Awesome game by the way, everyone should get it.
Hows the combat system in it?

Offline phonypapercut

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #3 on: May 28, 2011, 05:56:25 AM »
Hows the combat system in it?
Targeting is a little iffy. Simple, but otherwise good.

And blisteringly hard until you get your skills ranked up. :D
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Offline Foxdonut

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #4 on: May 28, 2011, 05:58:33 AM »
Targeting is a little iffy. Simple, but otherwise good.

And blisteringly hard until you get your skills ranked up. :D
So is it just clicking or do you actually have to hit keyboard combos with the mouse?

Offline phonypapercut

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #5 on: May 28, 2011, 06:04:53 AM »
So is it just clicking or do you actually have to hit keyboard combos with the mouse?
Sword attacks are all clicking. Unless you're playing on easy you'll need to throw some magic, blocking and dodging in there though. More about timing than key combos.
And if the Wine you drink, the Lip you press,
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Offline Foxdonut

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #6 on: May 28, 2011, 06:06:25 AM »
Sword attacks are all clicking. Unless you're playing on easy you'll need to throw some magic, blocking and dodging in there though. More about timing than key combos.
Ok. That sounds pretty cool. Guess I'll check it out whenever I get some more money.

Offline The Doctor

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #7 on: May 28, 2011, 06:08:54 AM »
I may just have to get a copy of this to review...  I'd make that more definite but funds are not unlimited sadly...  :(
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Offline Savakka1

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #8 on: May 28, 2011, 06:27:13 PM »
I could easily recommend this game from what I have experienced in 3-4 hours so far. I have had minor problems with graphics: For some reason, the game doesn't allow me to run the game in 1280x720 or 1920x1080 without making the game unplayable in progress. It's not gamebreaking, as I can play with other resolutions, but as these two would be the most ideal resolutions for me, it annoys the crap out of me. :D

And the almighty Google doesn't have an answer for this, so I guess I'll have to live with it for now. :D

Offline Foxdonut

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #9 on: May 29, 2011, 01:16:42 AM »
I could easily recommend this game from what I have experienced in 3-4 hours so far. I have had minor problems with graphics: For some reason, the game doesn't allow me to run the game in 1280x720 or 1920x1080 without making the game unplayable in progress. It's not gamebreaking, as I can play with other resolutions, but as these two would be the most ideal resolutions for me, it annoys the crap out of me. :D

And the almighty Google doesn't have an answer for this, so I guess I'll have to live with it for now. :D
1680x1050 is the best res IMO

Offline mikethor007

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Re: The Witcher 2 Goes DRM Free
« Reply #10 on: May 29, 2011, 01:20:17 AM »
I could easily recommend this game from what I have experienced in 3-4 hours so far. I have had minor problems with graphics: For some reason, the game doesn't allow me to run the game in 1280x720 or 1920x1080 without making the game unplayable in progress. It's not gamebreaking, as I can play with other resolutions, but as these two would be the most ideal resolutions for me, it annoys the crap out of me. :D

And the almighty Google doesn't have an answer for this, so I guess I'll have to live with it for now. :D
Bugs. try to update it to 1.1 or the latest. Also, it has performance problems with ATI cards.
1680x1050 is the best res IMO
Not much sense in using anything else than the native resolution for the monitor, unless the situation is dire. It blurs the image a bit. Makes small fonts even harder to read.
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