Poll: A situation in which piracy is OK? [Read first]

[Assassinscreed548]

So, I present you with a moral dilemma of sorts. Let's say you're awaiting a game that will be released on major consoles (xbox and ps3) and on the PC. Let's call that game Skyrim. You run to buy the copy of the game for your console of choice, due to wanting a cleaner and perhaps more graphically impressive experience while playing (depending on your computer). However you also want the game on your PC, for all the amazing modding and other benefits. You cannot afford to buy the game for both, and are worried that you will not be able to achieve optimal levels of performance if you do buy it for your pc, leaving you short of (game price here) bucks, quid or zimbabwean dollars. SO here's a dilemma. You go out and buy the game for the console of choice (xbox or ps3) and decide to pirate it for the PC. Is this fair and morally right? You have already bought the game, shouldn't you have the choice to get it for free on the PC also? discuss, please.

 

[Blue_vision]

I'd say that there are plenty of situations in which piracy is ok, this being one of them. You've already paid for a vast majority of the work that the developers did on the game, so I'd say that it's quite morally alright.

 

[Uber Evil]

No, not unless the company lets you. Valve gave a PC copy of Portal 2 to PS3 owners if they bought the game. You should have just bit the bullet and bought it for PC if you wanted to mod it.

 

[Hisshiss]

No, no its not. Regardless of how much you want the variety of the same game for multiple consoles, you should pay the price for the product each and every time you choose to buy it.

Now that's the ethical answer, from a realistic point of view if you were already willing to pirate then its not likely your gonna waste money buying the same game twice, but regardless I still personally don't think its a morally right thing to do.

Theft is theft regardless of intentions or practicality. Alot of people who pirate games do it because they cant comfortably afford to buy them all, which is understandable, but thieves shouldn't try to pretend what they are doing isn't still being a thief.


What I find strange is why people who pirate games are so determined to believe they aren't doing something wrong, I mean I see one of these threads every damn day. Why do you people care if its the right thing to do or not? If you really cared about being "ethical" you wouldn't be stealing in the first place.

 

[JB1528]

No, even in that situation you should wait until you have enough money for both versions. If you bought the console version then you payed for the right to play on the console version NOT on all versions.

The only way I could justify piracy is if you found a really old game and the CD happens to be to scratched up to install, so you just pirate the version of a torrent site and use your CD key to activate it legally.

 

[William MacKay]

well put it this was: you get it on PC and mod it a shitload. lets say that by then end 60% of the files are mods (which you got free), meaning the devs only did 40% of the work but you paid them full retail price (unless you got it in a sale).

 

[hedges1001]

no only allowed if the following is met. 1. not available in your region AT ALL. 2. system is a dead platform (saturn for example) and 3) the game's market price > RRP

 

[psicat]

No its not OK. Piracy is theft, and even if it's the same game it's on a different console so it's a separate product that you never paid for therefore theft. The only time piracy might be considered OK is to replace a game you already own if the CD/DVD was damaged, or maybe a deleted digital copy that you purchased and the online retailer will not let you re-download. Once you own a key or license to a game it's fair to replace the game itself if lost, or hack it with a cracked exe if you wish, but trying to play something on a system without paying for it is in no way right.

 

[DKen2021]

As what everyone is saying, no. Pirating is still pirating, no matter what excuse you trying to get off with. If more companies were like valve and offer you a free version of a game you already bought, then the pirating scene would, hypothetically, be less of an issue. But they don't, so learn to live with it.

 

[barash]

wait what?
no, of course not, buy it for the pc and pirate the console version, we need more pc ales.

This guy got it right, support the PC as a gaming platform first, then worry about morals and ethics later

 

[C95J]

No. The developers are still losing money on that game you have pirated for the PC, regardless on whether you already have it on a console. If you want the game twice, then you buy the game twice. Simple.

 

[Blunderboy]

No. Either get a PC that runs it, or be happy with it on console.
I've ended up buying Oblivion on 360, PS3 and PC. I don't mind because I managed to get it cheap pretty much every time.
If you pirate a game, then all you're doing is encouraging the big companies to take less risk and then you're just speeding up the stagnation of the industry.

If your PC is not up to scratch, then buy it on console, then when you have a PC, get the PC copy on budget.

 

[xcgillx2]

The only way's I pirate are for movies/film's/T.V episodes (like bleach because the english actors suck) because for the amount I want I'd need more room and money. Also for games that I: either I cant get because I've just spent money on a bad game and I don't fall for the same trick twice or games(anything really) that i cant get in my own country like monster hunter for the xbox 360 because i cant get anywhere to send it to the U.K so it's their own faults really.

 

[nyysjan]

Pirating a game is only ok if you can't buy the game (note, this is not that you can't afford it, but that nobody is selling it).

For instance, you can buy baldur's gate or Deus Ex, they might be old, but you can still find them being sold, so no pirating, however, nintendo, super nintendo and ps1 games not on psn and some ps2 games (i can't find Wild Arms 3 anywhere), not being made, not being sold, pirate away (but either delete or buy if they come on sale somewhere).

Really wish game companies would release more compilations of old game series with minor updates to make them playable on current operating systems (and put every ps1 game, ever, on psn for 10? each, same for ps2 games, maybe for 20?).

 

[drummond13]

No, no its not. Regardless of how much you want the variety of the same game for multiple consoles, you should pay the price for the product each and every time you choose to buy it.

Now that's the ethical answer, from a realistic point of view if you were already willing to pirate then its not likely your gonna waste money buying the same game twice, but regardless I still personally don't think its a morally right thing to do.

Theft is theft regardless of intentions or practicality. Alot of people who pirate games do it because they cant comfortably afford to buy them all, which is understandable, but thieves shouldn't try to pretend what they are doing isn't still being a thief.


What I find strange is why people who pirate games are so determined to believe they aren't doing something wrong, I mean I see one of these threads every damn day. Why do you people care if its the right thing to do or not? If you really cared about being "ethical" you wouldn't be stealing in the first place.

Because most pirates don't see it as unethical. If they saw it as unethical, most of them wouldn't do it. And yes, theft is theft, but piracy ISN'T theft. Whether it's immoral or not is up to your personal values but there's a reason it has a different name.

 

[Roamin11]

Why don't you just get a better PC that can optimize the game's graphics and get the mods too? Problem solved!

 

[BRex21]

wait what?
no, of course not, buy it for the pc and pirate the console version, we need more pc ales.

THIS a million times this!
What you would be doing is paying them for something and then using it. Its stupid to have to buy things cross platform like that, you pay them sixty whatever dollars to play their game and you should be able to play it however you want.
BUT!
If you pirate a PC version its just one more reason for them to say... no more PC gaming for you!

 

[orangeban]

No.

Call me a sheep, but breaking the law is not okay. Protesting against laws is okay, but breaking them is not.

 

[orangeban]

wait what?
no, of course not, buy it for the pc and pirate the console version, we need more pc ales.

THIS a million times this!
What you would be doing is paying them for something and then using it. Its stupid to have to buy things cross platform like that, you pay them sixty whatever dollars to play their game and you should be able to play it however you want.
BUT!
If you pirate a PC version its just one more reason for them to say... no more PC gaming for you!

Surely pirating the console version is the least "right" of all cases. Buying it for PC most (if not all) of the money goes to the developer/publishers but for consoles some goes to the console owners. If you buy console then the two get their money for the game but if you pirate console one losese out.