Players “hate” Denuvo. and this perception will not change in the short term. Controversial DRM (digital rights restriction) software has become the industry standard in anti-piracy applications, but beyond that, running it usually causes serious performance, if not stability, penalties that effectively end the game. Not to mention that the use of this technology does not mean lower costs for distributors who are not wrong, have an impact on the final price of the games.

The problem for “legal” users is summed up in one sentence and is unsustainable: You pay a lot for the game and it turns out that it works worse than its pirated copy which offers you a better experience, stability and performance. And it’s free…

Denuvo and its image washing campaigns

We put Denuvo (in case there is anyone who doesn’t know) ​​and express our opinion that, like most players, it is very negative, because the company’s product manager Andreas Ullmann leads a great public relations campaign and rehabilitate its image He offers interviews with important portals, where he realizes that it is difficult for a company like his to endear himself to the community.

“I think it’s very difficult for the players”says Ullmann Rock Paper Shotgun. “I’m a player myself, so I know what I’m talking about. “I think it’s very hard to see, as a gamer, what immediate benefit it means to me that a certain game developer or publisher uses our anti-piracy services.”emphasizes the manager.

This gap, along with the fact that Denuvo “it just works” and “Pirates can’t play games” who uses it, Ullmann says, are two of the main contributors to its negative reputation, he claims. The CEO says that if the distributors make money, it will have a (positive) impact on the players. “Again, there’s no immediate benefit to me as a player. But if you look further, the more successful a game is, the longer it will take to receive an update. The more additional content that comes to the game, the more likely it is that there will be another iteration of the game. That’s basically the benefits we offer to the average player.”.

The arguments can be easily refuted by what we have said above. All Denuvo games get hacked eventually (it takes more or less), but the damage to users who don’t pirate and pay religiously (and at a high price) It is direct and from the first moment. And the prices are more expensive because you have to pay Denuvo unnecessarily.

A major part of Denuvo’s new PR campaign is the Discord channel where players can contact the company and chat with those in charge. We don’t know who came up with the idea, but moderating groups of players who hate DRM is impossible and The criticism was so fierce. that administrators regularly close and open discussions day after day.

It would be better if the wasted money spent on implementing Denuvo was used to reduce the final price of the games or launch them with better optimization, which is a big problem in the times we live in. And some editors seem to think so. It was announced last week Dragon Age: The Veilguard won’t have DRM because “we trust you”. If even a company like EA decides to campaign about anti-Denuvo public relationsis that players (who pay and don’t pirate) are lucky. Digital restrictions the further the better.