Single Player Mode Should Stay Private

By Cameron Hills

Source Article:  Face Off: Should single-player games always be playable offline? by Logan Decker and Evan Lahti, January 31, 2013.

                Game companies have discovered the simple method of Digital Rights Management (DRM) by requiring an active internet connection.  Decker and Lahti discuss the issues and benefits, respectively, of this issue.  To my mind, Logan is right.  Look at the name.  Single.  Player.  But, to fully evaluate the issue, let us look at the benefits of this method of DRM, the failures of other DRM schemes, and why single player mode should stay private and off-line.

                Proponents of Online DRM say it has a variety of benefits.  Mr. Lahti points to horrific examples of previous schemes such as SecurROM and the benefits of game data reporting to hasten game fixes and tweaks.  Sebastian Anthony in Why Diablo 3’s always-online DRM is a good thing points to three benefits.  The backup of character data, security from save game hacks ruining the play experience, and monetization of real-money auction house are the benefits of the DRM scheme for Diablo 3.

                Other methods have been tried.  One of the more recent failures was the SecuRom debacle in Far Cry 2.  Other methods have ranged from game CD’s that do not conform to the Redbook standard (unable to read on all CD/DVD players,) words entered from manual pages (lost manuals) and dongles attached to the serial ports on computer.  All of these methods have failed due to either hardware/software incompatibility or the ingenuity of hackers cracking these methods.

                As players, we should demand game companies provide a method that is secure, private, and works when we can’t go online.  The method of linking a manual code to an account, check online once and then play happily from that point worked great.  I’m sure there were security holes, (crack of where the acknowledgement was stored,) but this was secure, minimally invasive and up front to the player.  We still have power outages, service interruptions, and game release rushes to block the use of online DRM.

                So far there has not been a perfect Digital Rights Management scheme.  We should not let that stop developers from working to create a better system.  I want my fix of Diablo 3 even when my power goes out.  You have to love having battery backup on your pc.