If a company doesn't provide a demo for a game is it ok to pirate it?

[chuckman1]

I would say yes but I don't want to get a warning so....
Piracy is the worst thing since the death of Jesus and even if the ONLY way you would possibly buy it (some games you would never buy without a demo honestly) thus making developers more money it's still not okay because it's bad.
Please don't burn me at the stake.

 

[direkiller]

nope.

there are no valid reasons for piracy.

it's always up to you whether or not you think you're comfortable with doing it, but there aren't any excuses that make it "ok".

If you've bought a CD, then your idiot brother comes and breaks it before I get to play it, do I have to buy it again? I've already given my money to the developers.

oddly it isint piracy(copy right infringment) at that point and isn't against the law it falls under fair use. Its not even the gray area of fair use that some youtube videos lie in.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RealNetworks,_Inc._v._DVD_Copy_Control_Association,_Inc.

At some point in the trial the judge stated
"while it may well be fair use for an individual consumer to store a backup copy of a personally owned DVD on that individual's computer, a federal law has nonetheless made it illegal to manufacture or traffic in a device or tool that permits a consumer to make such copies."
(this was for a case for a DVD reader that riped the cd and loaded it on your computer)

anyway it set a prescient for digital media. You can in fact rip,crack,backup a licence you already own

 

[Xangba]

Yeah I'll go ahead and risk the wrath. I don't have much money, so I have to say I agree with try before you buy. It's essentially making your own demo from what I see. The OP isn't saying "can I pirate and keep the game" the question is "can I TRY the game" and to that, why not? And to anyone who doubts that someone would actually go buy it after pirating it, you are way too cynical. Now pirating AND keeping the game, unless it can't be gotten otherwise, no, don't do that. And I never trust reviews or even gameplay videos much, because reviewers hardly think the same way I do, and I don't want to WATCH it, I want to know how it actually feels. Some things look boring to watch but aren't to play, some things can be made to look fun when it isn't, ect. Always support your devs people, but you don't have to blindly accept crap.
P.S. I do not have any pirated games that I did not buy. So denied whoever thinks I go around and pirate everything.

 

[Yopaz]

I wonder if you say yes, do you get banned?

Why is everyone always so lawful good when it comes to piracy? Nothing is ever black and white.
I like to think it's OK to pirate a game if you're just saving up money for it and already decided on the purchase. It's just delaying payment, but the money still goes to the devs and nobody gets hurt.
Aside from you, if the FBI kicks your door in... But that's another story.

Guy two posts before you just got a warning, but that still makes your post present an excellent point.

OT: I can see your concern seeing as I have bought plenty of games that I didn't enjoy, but as I see it pirating a game is a crime, not including demo is stupid, but not a crime. This actuall presents what I like about OnLive, you get to play a game for 1 hour for free, if you like it you can choose to rent it for a day and if you really like what you get out of that day or even the free hour you can buy it. However OnLive haven't come here yet. Still I like the idea.

 

[Ranylyn]

Right, because you'd totally pirate it, try it out, and then delete it from your harddrive so that you could go and buy it legitimately.

Puh-leez.

Absolutely. No reason why not. I know a sizeable number of people who pirate like this. "If they make somthing I like, they've earned my money." One irate I know has gone so far as to buy Recettear FOUR times since he loved it so much.

For example. Pick any game on the market these days. Whether you try a demo or a pirated version, you will pay for it. Why? Because giving the devs your money means a much higher chance of a sequel.

On the flipside, there might be some devs you simply refuse to support. Business choices that pissed you off or whatnot. You should not pirate their games if you have no intent of buying them.

In many cases, you would not delete the pirated version if it meant keeping your data, obviously, but simply having the leigitimate version means you've paid. Especially for digital titles - you can pay without downloading, so why not?

 

[Vegosiux]

It's not "OK" to pirate the game, but it's more understandable/justifiable in that case. Then again, demos never really do much to convince me either way, so I'm likely not the one you should be asking, anyway, huh...

 

[willsham45]

I think it is funny, small companies seam to say yes and the big companies say no!!!...and surprisingly a lot of people on the forums being very negative looks like a lot of people have been conditioned nicely.

I think the best way to demo would be to borrow a friends copy. Maybe even try to request a demo from the company, all in all I think it depends on the game and the company.

Maybe instead of a complaining about there not being a demo you should just be patient and wait for bargin bin prices, sales or cheap second hand games.

 

[Snotnarok]

Legally? No I don't think any lawyer would say you're in the clear.

Morally? If a multibillion/million dollar company can't be bothered to put out a game demo to let you see if you like it or if it'll run on your PC then honestly they should expect you to do so. Because you can't even believe their requirements and minimums half the time.

I've done the 'alternative demoing' method before and I bought every game besides Oblivion, because my friend got it instead and I just watched him play it rather than even playing the game. So after an hour of playing I microwaved the disc, which is always a fun thing to do.

If it wasn't for that sorta thing I'd never have bought Dragon Age ...Twice. Steam sale for ultimate was cheaper than buying the DLC separate, what do you know.

 

[Daffy F]

Don't kid yourself. Once you've pirated it you're not going to 'Try it out' and then buy a full copy. So no, I don't think it's okay. After all, that's what trailers are for.

 

[Something Amyss]

What gets me is we're living in a world with unprecedented access to media regarding games, and people still say that they feel the need to pirate a game so they can "demo" it.

 

[The Random One]

No, but it's OK to give up and decide not to give it another thought, especially if it's a PC game.

LOOK AT MY DERP FACE, GAME COMPANIES, I DON'T KNOW WHAT COMPUTERS MEAN. I sure as hell ain't buying a game that I don't know whether it'll run on my compy 416.

 

[gutterball17]

I'm confused. My original post was flagged with a warning for encouraging piracy. What? How is me saying "Sure, you can." encouraging piracy? That's just a factual reply. I see people in here encouraging piracy and they're not getting in trouble. How am I not surprised...

no. piracy is theft.

In what way?

getting something in a non legal fashion without paying for it sure sounds like stealing to me. whether it's just a copy or the actual item. you are still taking money from the industry. if this grows too large studios will close and people will lose their jobs. if you don't think piracy is theft think about it harder.

 

[Epona]

I wonder if you say yes, do you get banned?

Why is everyone always so lawful good when it comes to piracy? Nothing is ever black and white.
I like to think it's OK to pirate a game if you're just saving up money for it and already decided on the purchase. It's just delaying payment, but the money still goes to the devs and nobody gets hurt.
Aside from you, if the FBI kicks your door in... But that's another story.

A couple of posts above yours a person said yes and got a warning. On this site people will say no to piracy just to keep from getting a warning so you can't really take them seriously. Some of them no doubt are torrenting something as they type it too, I would bet.

So in light of the policies on this site, I choose not to answer the OP's question.

Let me remind you folks that you can't rent a PC game nor can you return it if it happens to be as buggy as say....a Bethesda game.

 

[Cronq]

Love all the self righteous people in here.

Used games are worse than piracy. 1 Used Sale = 1 Lost Sale; unlike piracy which has much lower lost sale ratio. Used games steal not only the game, but money. Yet, all these self-righteous people come in here and claim piracy is evil as they go unload $150 in used games at Gamestop.

You're all hypocrites in my book.

 

[Ympulse]

So I had this come up in a debate with my friend, if a gaming company doesn't provide a demo for a game is it ok to pirate it, to try it out for yourself?

Pirating is okay all of the time.

If you like the game, buy it.

If you dont, dont play it.

Simple, really.

BTW, warning people for speaking their mind is lulzy

 

[Epona]

So I had this come up in a debate with my friend, if a gaming company doesn't provide a demo for a game is it ok to pirate it, to try it out for yourself?

That's like saying "If a car dealer doesn't let me test drive this sedan is it ok to steal it?" Unless there is literally no way to legally obtain a game you have no right to pirate it.

I'm not going to march around with a picket sign saying that pirating is litterally the worst thing for the industry, but unless you absolutly need something and you cannot obtain it through proper channels then you shouldn't steal it.

Where cars are concerned, there are Lemon Laws.

 

[Batou667]

Wanna try it out? Rent it, not pirate.

Are we still talking about your sausage?

 

[LarenzoAOG]

So I had this come up in a debate with my friend, if a gaming company doesn't provide a demo for a game is it ok to pirate it, to try it out for yourself?

That's like saying "If a car dealer doesn't let me test drive this sedan is it ok to steal it?" Unless there is literally no way to legally obtain a game you have no right to pirate it.

I'm not going to march around with a picket sign saying that pirating is litterally the worst thing for the industry, but unless you absolutly need something and you cannot obtain it through proper channels then you shouldn't steal it.

Where cars are concerned, there are Lemon Laws.

I'm sure you got the point, just because you can't try something out before purchasing it doesn't give you a right to steal it.