Posted on Friday, September 12 2008 @ 2:20 CEST by Thomas De Maesschalck
Chris Cory, producer of Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3,
unveiled the game's anti-piracy plans. The good news is that you don't need to play with the disc in your computer but the pesky news is that you only get up to five activations. If for some reasons you need to install the game for a sixth time on one of your computers you'll not be able to play online, unless you get a new activation from EA's Customer Service who will grant these on a "case-by-case" basis.
I know this can be somewhat of a polarizing topic, and I thought it would be best to open the lines of communication with some facts:
- We will authenticate your game online when you install and launch it the first time.
- We will never re-authenticate an installation online after the first launch. In other words, no reaching out to a central server post-install to see if you’re “allowed” to play.
- You will be able to install and play on up to five computers.
- This system means you don't have to play with the disc in your computer. Personally, I think this is a huge improvement over our previous copy protection requirements, which have always required a disk to play.
- Life happens. I know it’s unlikely, but for those unlucky few who install the game and have their machines nuked (virus, OS reinstall, major hardware upgrade, etc.) five times, EA Customer Service will be on hand to supply any additional authorizations that are warranted. This will be done on a case-by-case basis by contacting customer support.
-You can, of course, play offline without impediment or penalty.
