Modding single player Mass Effect 3 bans you from Origin

[8bitlove2a03]

It's interesting to note that one Scylla Costa, who evidently produced ME3's multiplayer, claimed that the multiplayer guys won't be banning you for single player modding. Then nine days later Thomas Abram comes in and says you will be autobanned when Origin scans your files at startup. Looking at the parts of this thread that aren't filled with bile, Bioware evidently stated that if you had problems importing your face from ME2 you should use a third party application to bring it in, which last I checked counts as modifying the game beyond normal parameters.

Regardless of what people have to say about modding as a right or expectation, I doubt anyone here can say they aren't hoping EA's "you can't criticize us on our forums" rule gets broken by enough people angry about this that they start taking the matter seriously. They may well have gotten a number of users banned because they can't be bothered to fix their game or organise their public responses better.

 

[Gunner 51]

Perhaps there is a better and simpler solution to all this EULA nonsense. Get rid of it entirely. Because let's face it, it's not working out and it's punishing the gamer on top of this.

The EULA is nothing more than an attempt by the publisher to retain control over what is now our property. When money changes hands - you become the owner of something.

If modders want to mod, so be it. I think it is their right to do so, just like I used to do with Doom WADs.

The publishers lose the right to ***** about their so called property when they sold it to retailers who in turn sold it to us. But the sad thing is that there's a lot of people who don't remember the time when modders were not only free, but encouraged by the developers. (Plutonia Experiment and TNT.) Criminalising modders is morally wrong in my books.

Fie and be damned, licensing!

 

[TotalerKrieger]

Well EULAs are enforceable, at least according to several courts.

Other courts have in fact found some EULAs to be invalid as well. Irrelevant as these cases involved actual evidence of a violation.

You are at fault for the same reason even if you don't get caught stealing something said act is still illegal.

I understand that it is against a universal legal code. However, I see a legal violation such as theft as a completely different matter. Theft actually has risks, damages another party and evidence can actually be collected. Breaking an EULA has no risks, causese no damages to anyone else, and no evidence can be collected against me without breaking privacy laws. It is not my position to make this distinction, but they still seem morally distinct in my mind.

The company cannot use your actions, assuming you weren't on origin, as a means to impose future restrictions. However they CAN use the fact that they know people in general do bypass things to justify future restrictions.

That would be an opinion that they hold, not a fact. They could just as likely make any other unproven accusation to justify their actions. I have no control over what they choose to believe, it's not my problem. It also seems unlikely that they would use a hunch to justify further restrictions, particularily when piracy is a far more legitimate scapegoat.

 

[Combustion Kevin]

anybody still up for the "boycot Origin" train?
there's still room!

 

[WickedSkin]

Goddamnit Activision and EAs anti-modding policy's have really gone to far now. Really the whole industry seem to be leaning towards "NO MODDING ALLOWED".

 

[tlgAlaska]

So I would suppose I have two questions, which perhaps someone could answer:

1. Is using a third-party program to import faces "modding"? Because as I recall, the PC version of ME3 had a serious problem with importing character faces from Mass Effect 2, and the suggestion that came back to get around it from EA itself... was to use a third-party program.

2. Is importing a ME3 save file from outside the game "modding"? I happened to have a discussion with a clerk at GameStop, and his suggestion if I wanted to transfer my game from PC to XBox 360 was the use of a "Mass Effect Saves" web site.

In any case, at first glance it seems like an gratuitous, customer-hostile act on EA's part... not that that's exactly new news.

1. No, the workaround that was suggested on the bioware forums isn't modding, because it doesn't tie into the game. It just creates a face code that you can copy+paste into the character editor.

2. No, I don't think so. Importing saves doesn't alter any essential game files and doesn't influence the multiplayer.

 

[smokeyninjas]

Well i'm glad i stood strong & didn't use origin the BS from this company just gets worse & worse

 

[PingoBlack]

Jesus, SK, are you paid by BioWare?

BTW, this is exactly what people have been warning you when we heard of how Origin EULA is written. YOU allowed them to scan all files on your HD, not only memory space like other companies do.

So now instead of just banning modded game from connecting to servers by running memory checksums, they can scan your file system and checksum your whole install, even when you are offline.

But hey, weren't you calling people warning you about that alarmist anti-BioWare crazies? For the record, file system checksumming is not done by Steam or by Blizzard for WoW as two examples. Because those companies never asked to scan our hard drives and they thus cannot checksum files.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Well EULAs are enforceable, at least according to several courts.

No, they're enforcable in certain jurisdictions - specifically the jurisdictions of the courts in question and those where lines of precedent from those same courts are binding.

In a lot of other places EULAs are of very questionable value when they're not presented until after purchase and pretty much useless if there's no mechanism for refund should you not agree with the EULA.


Apropos of nothing much, I find it interesting to note that Origin's ToS includes using macro software as a violation... that should be mildly alarming to SWTOR players and a lot of people with gaming keyboards (as many have macroing software built into the driver package).

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Goddamnit Activision and EAs anti-modding policy's have really gone to far now. Really the whole industry seem to be leaning towards "NO MODDING ALLOWED".

Which is not only a kick in the teeth to PC gamers but also those console gamers who're waiting for the day when open ended modding comes to consoles (if it ever does).

 

[xPixelatedx]

Jesus, SK, are you paid by BioWare?

At this point no one on their side has any justification left for everything that company is doing and saying, so we kind of have to start asking that now, don't we? XD

He might work there or have a family member/friend who does. Game companies are pretty big and they need a lot of staff for a lot of things. But working on the assumption that he is just a fan, then I would just throw him in with the crowd that ate the ending up with a spoon, like the good little consumers they are.

 

[Aprilgold]

By the way, anyone still want to run out the "but... but... Steam is just as bad as Origin!" argument?

I'm just waiting for it.

So... Mods in PC games are frowned upon? Seriously? And where but on the Escapist will you find people standing up and clapping? Seriously, it's like you people HATE gaming.

Sadly, yes. Gaming as a whole has basically been swayed by Publishers and general fandom in order to always side with them. I believe that its just the companies abusing fandom for money and / or protection from bad publicity.

If Deus Ex taught me anything is that a poweful enough news caster can very easily change anything into whatever someone wanted to protect their interests.

 

[getoffmycloud]

Considering that EA wanted mine craft to make it more accessible for mods they are a pretty stupid company.
Everyone hates them that's why their in semi final for worst company (hoping they win but realistically probably BOA)
The'll eventually add a steam workshop kind of thing but that is just ridiculous.
They are just begging people to pirate because the only way to have real fun in the game will now cost you everything on your account.
I loath EA i don't really think anyone properly supports
I bought the game so why the hell can't I enjoy mods.
Jesus bans multi player mods fine but single player is mine.

As much as I agree ban the multiplayer mods not the single player ones how do you go about doing that.

Say I was to mod a god weapon into my game with the intent of only using it for the single player how do EA know i'm not going to use it in the multiplayer?

 

[Karathos]

It's the Starcraft singleplayer controversy all over again. When will people stop popping a vein every time this happens?

This is the kind of shit that spawns the "entitlement" arguments that then get mis-used in other conversations. You're dealt a hand, you play your cards - you gambled, you lost, you got banned. Such a goddamn first-world problem it's just upsetting.

Grab a mirror, folks, and take a long hard look at the person that caused your ban if you received one.

 

[TorqueConverter]

I don't get it. I need a little bit of help here getting this through my thick skull. Modding, of any type, will result in a ban from Origin because you could possibly be cheating in MP, correct?

OK, I get their logic but has this not been an issue in the past with other MP games? I've only played around with modding in MP games, such as Soldat and BF Vietnam and it was cosmetic stuff and it has had no effect on my or anyone else's MP experience. I thought mods to weapon stats and leader board crap was considered hacking, not modding in a MP game?

Why would the game even allow you to go online in MP with modified files involving weapons and other MP centric stuff? Did they not bother to put a system in to check and just decided to drop the ban-hammer on all modding, cosmetic or otherwise MP and single player? If so, that's just lazy Bioware and wreaks of disregard and indifference to your consumers. Funny thing is I already got that tone from them with the day 1 DLC nonsense and their stance on the game ending.

EDIT: If freaking Soldat, a free indie MP only shooter with a player base of a couple hundred can have a anti cheat system in place that is able to distinguish between cosmetic modifications to the game and hacking/cheating, then AAA title backed by big bucks sure as hell can too.

 

[Soviet Steve]

EDIT: If freaking Soldat, a free indie MP only shooter with a player base of a couple hundred can have a anti cheat system in place that is able to distinguish between cosmetic modifications to the game and hacking/cheating, then AAA title backed by big bucks sure as hell can too.

Well you can but why would you want to? It takes a miniscule amount of money and effort, and the world's full of idiots that would pay triple the price EA is asking for half the content simply because it is Mass Effect.

... Oh and "Mwahahahahahaha"

 

[TorqueConverter]

EDIT: If freaking Soldat, a free indie MP only shooter with a player base of a couple hundred can have a anti cheat system in place that is able to distinguish between cosmetic modifications to the game and hacking/cheating, then AAA title backed by big bucks sure as hell can too.

Well you can but why would you want to? It takes a miniscule amount of money and effort, and the world's full of idiots that would pay triple the price EA is asking for half the content simply because it is Mass Effect.

... Oh and "Mwahahahahahaha"

I kinda though game developers are our peers. You know, gamers that have found a away to make a living doing what they love for a community of like minded individuals. For the most part I believe that assessment to still be true but with the influence EA and Activision have, that seems to be changing.

 

[Soviet Steve]

I kinda though game developers are our peers. You know, gamers that have found a away to make a living doing what they love for a community of like minded individuals. For the most part I believe that assessment to still be true but with the influence EA and Activision have, that seems to be changing.

Ehh, I'd say it has more to do with lawyers and businessmen also being in the decision-making process as far as the games are concerned, that and gaming is still finding it footing. It could go either way though as it matures and new blood comes in I don't see these people competing too well on service. Evolution in business takes time, and fucking hell does that suck. >_>