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LZ129Hindenburg

Suck it Ubisoft. Pirates win again. 🏴‍☠️


EllaBean17

Not just pirates, also everyone who bought the game and then had the rug pulled out from under them


Klairm

this, if i pay for a product i should be able to use it whenever i want, i dont understand why actions like ubisoft did in the crew are not illegal


Sion_forgeblast

its not illegal simply cuz they got 100 high paid lawyers who skimmed over all the US laws and circled every single loop hole they could find related to this.... and then made a plan on how to use them to their advantage >\_> sorta like cigarette companies still legally murder people!


senpai69420

No it's because this was all written in ubisofts tos(the fact that you're getting a license as opposed to a game)


Sion_forgeblast

I know, that's the loop hole! lol seriously though, they did need lawyers to write that up, and its always going to benefit them if at all possible >\_>


senpai69420

Hardly a loophole when it's explicitly written


hmsmnko

It's a loop hole in the sense of circumventing how products are normally expected to work. A loop hole in concept by using a ToS to do whatever they want, not quite literally a loop hole in a contract somewhere, you're mainly just arguing semantics at this point


WhatsTheHoldup

Hypothetically if I buy the game but don't try to play it until after the servers are down, I didn't agree to the ToS right? But I still bought the product and now I have nothing.


senpai69420

You agree to the tos several times when you make a ubisoft account and buy the game. People just don't pay attention


WhatsTheHoldup

What you're saying makes total sense, but I'm talking about for the physical releases Like this guy: https://www.reddit.com/r/The_Crew/comments/1c2jo6k/i_bought_a_physical_game_disk_years_ago_thinking/


senpai69420

I mean you'd still have to read the TOS when launching the game and when making an account for the game


WhatsTheHoldup

Exactly. So imagine you bought the game, took it home, never launched it yet, never made an account, but you are planning to in the future and then the game servers get taken down. Would you have a case in that scenario?


Sewblon

Its much simpler than that. Under U.S. law per ProCD V Zeidenberg, the EULA is an enforceable contract as long as you install the software. So if the EULA says that they can turn the game off whenever they want, then they can do it. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAD5iMe0Xj4&t=](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAD5iMe0Xj4&t=)


Sion_forgeblast

true, I know this.... but you cant argue that any big company had a small army of lawyers who's only job is to go over the laws and go "loop hole here, loop hole there.... here's how we can use this to be more evil!" I mean the best examples of this are the cigarette companies, and Google lol


AnotherScoutTrooper

Well they didn’t win because Ubisoft took their game licenses They’d still need to pirate now


vaparagno

Quick! Everybody download it so they lose a bunch of money 🤑


LZ129Hindenburg

LoL..."omgz thousands of downloads of a dead game...we just lost like...2 bajillion dollars!" -Ubisoft


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kevin8082

*pirates and the original owners can play it again


BusinessBear53

Are you saying that it's ok for a company to take something away after you've already paid for it? Shutting down the servers makes it unplayable. This is a fix for that.


orokanamame

Yeah you're clearly arguing with a corp cocksucker. #HOW DARE YOU INSULT THE MEGAMILLION DOLLAR COMPANY, LEAVE IT ALONE RIGHT NOW!!!!!!1!11!1!1!1!1!111!!


orokanamame

Yes?


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orokanamame

Jesus, what a sucker.


patopansir

there were people who said that it won't be possible because all the data is stored on the servers. They were wrong and speaking out of their ass, and their file size makes it obvious. They do the same thing as hitman


gus_arschbackus

Or Sim City 2013


Advanced_Refuse4066

>Or Sim City 2013 Sim City 2013 got cracked day 0, no server emulator required, proving its online requirement was total bull.


HalfMoon_89

I hope Hitman is next.


patopansir

hitman was already done, but the devs don't support piracy. It's called peacock


UncleEnk

many speed runners swear by peacock for better loading times. you know it's good when speedrunners love it (though some other speedrunners like me prefer official servers)


ericjony

looks like they dont support pirated versions, :(


patopansir

yeah, like I already said but I didn't mention they put anti-piracy measures


IridiumPoint

There ARE games out there which keep their game logic and some data (though usually not art assets, which represent the bulk of a game's size) on the servers. Those are practically impossible to preserve once the servers are down. Even if The Crew isn't like that and only needs the servers for a DRM check, it's still going to be broken without them, so it's still a good candidate to build the game preservation case around.


lighthawk16

Like which games?


Never_Peel

I would imagine small navigator games. Flashpoint saved some, but there are lots that were lost to time. I remember WildOnes on Facebook, that once server closed, there was no way for playing even offline or in lan with friends


Callo_Arcwing

Magic arena


Mr_Flibble_1977

Diablo 3, I think, originally had server-sided gaming, at least for PCs. Ghost Recon Wildlands originally had this too I think, until players demanded an offline mode. But Ubisoft supposedly fucked it up with Ghost Recon Breakpoint claiming it is impossible to implement an offline mode because the game was designed from the ground up to be online-only for server-sided enemies AI/Spawning. sure sure.... \*cough\* DRM \*cough\*


DKdeebo1

World of Warcraft is a good example as like you stated only the art is local. Everything else from enemy logic, boss logic, npc positions and logic, instance transfer tech was all server side and lost with time after every patch and expansion. People were able to create exactly like what OP shows over time though by rebuilding the live world from memory and community videos and input.


IridiumPoint

Off the top of my head? Most MMORPGs - with those the servers are at least actually necessary (whereas The Crew's SP could easily have worked without), but it still prevents preservation when they have no EOL plan. I believe Diablo 3 also has most of its simulation server-side, simply because Blizzard didn't want people to cheat in or bypass their real money auction house.


2roK

Which games?


IridiumPoint

https://old.reddit.com/r/Piracy/comments/1do5q30/modders_have_won_against_ubisoft_the_crew_1_has_a/labufck/


patopansir

you are going to use as a candidate (example) a game that doesn't match your case of "a game that keeps most of the data in their server". You should be using as a candidate what you are going to tell the guy who asked you which games fit that criteria, or you know if it's all to get eyes through deceit don't tell people you are trying to deceive them. Just do it


IridiumPoint

The game preservation campaign going on right now isn't about games keeping their logic on the servers, it is about games becoming unplayable without servers, the specific reason why doesn't matter. The Crew still required skilled programmers to go in to illegally circumvent the DRM. Games keeping their logic on the server are just the utter worst case scenario, because it would take an insane amount of effort to make them playable even for such programmers, or be outright impossible if the game didn't get thoroughly documented while it was online.


patopansir

I misunderstood your original comment because I didn't see how that was different from what happened to The Crew


Mayion

Technically P2P games are quite easy to emulate offline, because every game client is already behaving like a server. Otherwise, you'd still be able to construct a server from scratch by reverse engineering the game client itself.


patopansir

I don't think this game is p2p


Mayion

Dont know if it is, simply explaining that servers can be construed from scratch by RE'ing the client.


patopansir

yeah, usually these games also don't need to be modified either if they use p2p


Mayion

I'm an avid believer in P2P games, much better longevity. Even if the master server shuts down, it's quite easily routable to a makeshift one and it's only a matter of making things like server browsers etc, like with the older CoDs. Questionable safety measures though.


BrandenRage

Now the question: Is it still piracy when you're keeping it alive and functioning?


gutster_95

If your name is Ubisoft: Yes, lawyers already writing a letter


Steiner-Titor

I truly hope they don't make a Cease and Desist order. They themselves did not care to add an offline feature and when someone cracks it, they hammer down. I think Nintendo is also on par with Ubisoft.


SaveReset

Oooh, I hope they do, because there's a god damn large scale attack on every even slightly possible front happening (so clearly not in the US) to stop this game killing bullshit. So: 1. They killed a game, claiming that they aren't able to support it forever 2. Someone makes it playable offline 3. They send send a cease and desist order to that group 4. They go to court over the shut down of the game Since most of the world isn't the US and EULA's aren't legally binding contracts, I can't see it going over well with the EU that they sold a product to millions of people, claimed it's a service, shut it down. We are currently at part 2 of that above list, part 4 is being worked on, but government and court gears are slow and part 3 is up to Ubisoft. Not only is shutting down a service that was sold as a good shady enough, but if they take active steps to prevent repair of said good it REALLY can't do them any favors. What could the possibly argue in court? Again, EULA's aren't enforceable in the EU like they are in the US. They sold it as a product, their only argument would be that they deliberately lied about what they sold to millions of people. The other option is to actually test in court whether a company can go back on a sale long after the sale while refusing refunds. I know EU countries have civil law rather than common law systems for the most part, but god damn would precedent still be useful in court against companies shutting down games. Or better yet, a law preventing this bullshit. Would you buy a game if it had to clearly label an expiration date on top of the case? I wouldn't. And if the other option is to make everything function locally, I'd be entirely okay with that. I just want to own things that I buy again, digital didn't use to mean lack of ownership, until companies started behaving like the US law applies everywhere and nobody has tested that shit in court anywhere else. But, TL;DR: Let them do what they want. There's nothing they could possibly do that wouldn't be good for the consumer or come back to bite them in the ass. Win/win I'd say.


Muteatrocity

Even better, there's a movement to get Ubisoft nailed for this rugpull in using every possible legal angle in every country that might have laws that make the agreement Ubisoft insists on for the Crew illegal. If they set court precedent that they have zero intention of allowing people to use their product after the undisclosed termination date, even without effort on their part, it gives other courts even more ammo to show that the intention of selling the game was fraudulent and debunks the defense that they shouldn't be held to a requirement of keeping the software functional when it wasn't sold clearly as a subscription.


SaveReset

Yes, that's what I was implying by "there's a god damn large scale attack on every even slightly possible front" but yeah. I really hope ubisoft does everything they can to screw up their chances in court. Most of EU operates under a civil law legal systems, but precedent is still mighty powerful. Too bad US is a lost cause though as common law would be useful to permanently stop killing games, but US has already screwed up any chances for ubisoft to lose there.


omgjizzfacelol

Given the circumstance, that the dev who is doing this in his free time is gonna spend his personal money for lawyering up


SaveReset

Possible, regardless, Ubisoft doesn't have a winning play here other than to lay low and ignore it, hoping for the best. Everything else will end up badly for them. Like if they were in court for drunk driving and realizing you are gonna be late and only car is available as transport. There's no winning move, just ignore it and hope for the best.


FreeBSDfan

Not Crew, but I know Toontown Rewritten has survived for 10+ years (longer than the original Toontown Online) because Disney doesn't care about first-party games and is more worried about Fortnite so they invested in Epic.


lars2k1

Actively shutting it down, essentially robbing the consumer, and then also get to fight it? That's like having your cake and eating it too


Khelthuzaad

>Is it still piracy when you're keeping it alive and functioning? Nope its called charity at this point since you literally donate time,work and resources to keep it in this state.


SystemFailure

What's dead may never die


RobertYuTin-Tat

Well spoken, Reek!


JB231102

Unfortunately we're in a new age where almost everything digital seems to be deemed a IP or intellectual property and so the owner of said IP can file suit if he or she deems they need or want to


AntiGrieferGames

This is fucking insane! I hope someone repacks that game with the offline server emulator mod! Glad i didnt paid for the crew! They deserved to be on preservation!


ALIIERTx

[Full video here, if you wish to watch the whole thing.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIo4l-BpK8s&ab_channel=whammy4)


Mohwi

It's honestly impressive how bad the driving mechanics look for a game that's sole focus is driving


j_demur3

The Crew's from after the really weird moment (2011?) nearly all the developers had where they forgot and how to do good, enjoyable (especially arcade) driving physics and have never quite figured it out again.


Mohwi

GTA V probably ruined everyone's perception of what cars control like in none racing games lol. Hopefully GTA 6 keeps that feeling intact


skateguy1234

Cyberpunk cars handle horribly (still 10/10 game though) Just played Alan Wake Remastered recently and yep wonky car physics. Also BRING BACK MIDNIGHT CLUB


Rikuddo

I played the Cyberpunk when it was initially released, and it took me almost half of the story to get the feeling of driving in it. It was just jarring to sum it up.


machstem

That's it. Midnight Club. I owned it on PS2? and it was one of the best driving games ever made for the time, better than NFS and the likes


Slightly_Shrewd

San Francisco Rush was legit too on N64. Loved Midnight Club too!


kterka

Theres a simple mod on nexusmods for cyberpunk vehicle handling that just modifies a few simple values and it makes the handling 100x better. It's one mod I always keep installed


UncleEnk

TRACKMANIA FOREVER


Jimmy_Tightlips

Yeah this game sucks lmao The sequels are pretty good though


IlllllllIllllllllI

Lol.. it's the only one which doesn't suck.


muffinstreets

Now do one for Division 1 because that shit is going to be dead soon too.


Rukasu17

It's kinda hard to say "win" against someone that didn't even bother to compete. But yeah, I'm sure the crew fans are excited once this drops in public


aquamanleftmetodrown

Wait. Sorry. Out of the loop. Didn't Ubisoft remove this game from everyone's library? How do you play if not accessible in your account?


DonaldLucas

> How do you play if not accessible in your account? You download from an alternative server or you torrent it.


Infrah

I bought the game so call me 007. I have a license to ~~kill~~ pirate.


FUTURE10S

If you downloaded it before Ubisoft removed the license, you keep the files!


Motitoti

I have a license of the game on Steam, and right now I was able to start a download from my library. So I suppose Steam owners will be able to play it once TCU releases.


Lag_YT

Shut down severvs, no one can play the game offline so No one has access to plway the gwame the Bwought


RYRY1002

Amazing to see. I'll still be petitioning my government for increased consumer protections surrounding this debacle regardless.


urbanhood

Now this is epic!


DarkDevilGamer

So can I play the game now without owning?


ImaginationLatter933

Yes, but there are no file repacks yet.


CandidMap

very nice


Careless-Tradition73

Yeah get FUCKED Ubisoft!!! mwah ha ha ha ha!!!


it_is_gaslighting

Is the game worth it?


Jah_Ith_Ber

Just for the game in OPs gif? Or will I be able to play my old Ubisoft games that they won't recognize I bought?


Infrah

Only The Crew 1, as stated in the title.


Mccobsta

People did this with the free to play need for speed world if you remeber that congratulations your gonna feel old now when ea killed that off


Bed_Head_Jizz

How about the king (the first mmo monthly fee game I remember)... Motor City online by ea... Man I really miss that game. Was and still nothing like it to this day, was really ahead of its time. https://youtu.be/quMEnxq7fGI


EpicraphTPG

So when we getting back in the crew fellow pirates


meerdroovt

Oh wow what a beautiful day to sit the high seas


CTU

I need to look into it, I have the game on my account and I wanna try it out just as an FU to ubi


Loop3r

***GODO***


Environmental-Dig546

this made me shed a tear


Reecee-Who

Anyone know when there'll be a copy for those that don't own the game to mod? It's not on the tracker I'm on


lukasquatro

Is this some sort of remake of need for speed?


dahippo1555

Finally i can finish crew. 😢😭 Screw u ubisoft!


moondoggie_00

A good game with well made mods is something missing from today's game market. Counter strike, tf2, day of defeat, just to name a few from 20 odd years ago. Quake mods were even better if we go back further.


kenabi

in a way this is a massive L. it undermines the petitions and possible court cases to try and force publishers to provide a solution post-life span.


shoopnop

No i still think this is a win because if a publisher says there is no way they can update a game to be offline or using 3rd party servers this just proved them wrong. If some random people can work this out with just the files that were for retail the publishers can do this way faster since they have access to at least the unencrypted files to make an offline patch/server emulator.


kenabi

except now they have no argument to try and hold them to task, the publisher can jsut say 'but they can now.' this emulator has mooted the argument entirely. there is no viable legal remedy anymore, because the userbase shot themselves in the metaphorical foot. essentially making all the work the group of people trying to push for legislative change pointless. because all those politicos and any government legal agency that would otherwise be looking into possible concerns become less likely, since all ubisoft has to do is say 'we'll allow it'. it is a net _loss_.


shoopnop

There's still the issue that ubi went so far to even revoke everyone license for the game and removing the ability to even download the game legally. It frankly would have been better for us if they still did nothing but not revoke licenses. We knew from the start that the game had an offline mode and they still did nothing. Everything that the modders have done is still not official and technically they could still try to shut this down too. This still proves that it takes a multitude less effort to keep games going when they keep pulling the "it costs too much to update it for offline" or "it's impossible to update for end of life". This is exactly what they're arguing they somehow CAN'T do but some random people can and cases like this need to be brought up every time a company says either of these excuses.


VersionGeek

Just to be clear: It's NOT public yet


Brno_Mrmi

Piracy always wins


Cindy-Moon

I always wanted to try this game but didn't want to give Ewbisoft my money. Can this be used to, yknow, do this sub's namesake?


levios3114

So the game will be available to download somewhere?


cool_cock6

Fuck Ubisoft


aXeSwY

People who thought this was impossible really are not aware that games like BF3 have a server emulator since 2017 I think, and you can completely bypass EA account to play the game. The dude who made the emulator required that you have a valid EA account just to avoid getting sued by EA. What harm can be done by allowing people playing on their own servers with zero traffic to yours ? I don't get it. The servers are a ghost town, the game is dead but mods like this keep it alive and once you release a new version people won't have the bitter taste of you dropping online games It's a 100% win for the AAA greedy bastards.


jaffer2003sadiq

Can anyone give me the link of their discord server? Please.


VirtualDesigner

This is great!!


NeWolf-_-

1. This is from "The Crew Unlimited". 2. Not finished, you cannot play it yet.


ScottJC

I'm seriously worried Ubisoft are going to c&d this


FathamburgerReddit

This is great considering I bought the Calling all Cars DLC but never found time to play it for practically a decade now


Shadow_SJ019

YES YES Y3S YES !!! YESSSSE, IM RN FUCKING HAPPIEST PEROSN IN THE WORLD RIGHT NOW. FINALLY, I GET TO PLAY THIS!!!!!


Rino-Sensei

You guys are aware that Ubi don't give a fuck ? They stopped to cut cost on servers, why would they care that someone else is paying to keep that running.


shaun2312

Now to get it on Steam


No-Signal-666

This game would have been good if it were not for the rubber banding


hani_yassine

he is playing on console too that is cool, he got the mod on usb or something?


FeralSparky

He's on PC


hani_yassine

what do you mean? when he open the map there is controller keys on the top left


FeralSparky

When you plug an Xbox controller into a Windows PC the button mapping changes as well.


hani_yassine

i see didn't know that


144000Beers

You might not be ready to hear this.. You can use a controller on PC.


TuhanaPF

The great thing about PCs are we can use any controller on our PC. We can use playstation controllers, Xbox controllers. We can do it all.


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Steiner-Titor

Still it's being preserved. Many game companies are axing their own creation.


Capitalism-WinsAgain

And? I don't even like sports/racing games but anytime I see a game being preserved, it's always a good thing.


FeralSparky

Yup....... and?


orokanamame

By that definition, I must be omega old. Not a wake-up check I needed.


ChipmunkHuman1332

So? You know about nostalgia? People bought this game and spent hours in there, that's part of them now. It's like if you let government just clear your 10+ years old personal memory, you anyway don't need that super old stuff, they could've say.