BioShock PC Patch sends 2K Games' Servers down in Flames

[Dr.Finger]

Sick of BioShock news? Tough, because we've got at least one more for you.

The PC version of BioShock requires a patch that must be downloaded from 2K Games' servers to activate the game. But, according to Gamespot (http://www.gamespot.com/news/6177330.html?part=rss&tag=gs_news&subj=6177330), the servers are so inundated with traffic that gamers cannot connect to the servers and grab the patch, which is required to play.

As of now both the 2K Games (http://www.2kgames.com/) website and the official Cult of Rapture (http://www.2kgames.com/cultofrapture/) site are up, but some connection problems persist.

[camberiu]

Bye bye PC gaming.

[Lunar Blue]

Could someone please explain why are they making people go through this shit? Un-fucking-believable.

[noxa]

/me has been happily playing on his 360 with no issues

[lockwoodx]

Bioshock fails at life. Greed turned a great game into rubble and infamus for crappy launches. I hope irrational games makes enough money to get away from 2k games asap before their own rep goes down the toilet with them.

[dotbomb]

I was shocked that I had to download 1.8gb more to play after I preloaded via steam but I thought it was just isolated to steam purchases. Pretty unbelievable.

[rein]

I blame Sony. :)

[zorper]

I freely admit that the PC is the superior gaming platform, and that my 360 has a 30% failure rate. But this is the exact reason I dropped out of PC gaming 6 years ago.

My sympathy to the guys that legally tried to support Irrational and are now getting burned for it.

[Blade]

I installed Tuesday, no biggie.

[Morangie]

I just installed the game first time with no problems. Which is why this post is a very short one. :)

[BabyJesus]

I can't play for another reason, my 360 is dead. Got my shiny new copy right here. The box looks nice I must say.. Flipping Microsoft.

[lockwoodx]

I want to support them legally. I've bought thief 1-3, system shock 2... lookingglass games are incredible....but this insane blunder by 2K makes me want to pirate the world because of thier arrogance.

[Wyrm]

On the one hand, it's hard these days to make a profit off of PC gaming if you don't have some pretty badass copy protection. On the other hand, you make waves for people that buy your game legally, and you could potentially lose customers because of how difficult it can be to get a game working past all the bullshit.

It's easy to see why PC gaming has declined, and the above is just a small part of what is wrong with the platform. On the other hand, I'm definitely picking Bioshock up for PC, because I paid way too much for this rig, and I need something to make it shine. I just haven't figured out if I want to go through Steam, or buy a retail copy.

Steam sounds good, I don't really want to have to go to the fucking game store.

[lockwoodx]

On the one hand, it's hard these days to make a profit off of PC gaming if you don't have some pretty badass copy protection. On the other hand, you make waves for people that buy your game legally, and you could potentially lose customers because of how difficult it can be to get a game working past all the bullshit.

It's easy to see why PC gaming has declined, and the above is just a small part of what is wrong with the platform. On the other hand, I'm definitely picking Bioshock up for PC, because I paid way too much for this rig, and I need something to make it shine. I just haven't figured out if I want to go through Steam, or buy a retail copy.

Steam sounds good, I don't really want to have to go to the fucking game store.


Out of every 10 pirates there are 100 people willing to purchase a game because they support the developers like me. Not in Bioshock's case tho.

[ÜberJumper]

Bioshock's a hell of a lot of fun.

I went "WTF" last night when I searched a corpse and found "empty shell casing", "glue" and "rubber tubing". I was like "WTF is this shit for?" Then I found the create your own equipment station and went "oh fuck yes".

Not only that, I gots me a research camera (think Dead Rising), but it actually gives me bonuses a tonics when I take a picture of an enemy.

[NotJeff]

Spoilers.

Spoiler tags spoiler tags spoiler tags.

[JCtheMC]

All this is making me a little apprehensive; i think I'll hold off buying this game until they have a public patch available and none of this online activation bullshite is necessary. I'd like to be able to play my game after 2k and Securom go out of business (and they will, eventually).

[Heretic Machine]

Spoiler tags spoiler tags spoiler tags.

Meh, all of that is in the manual... It seems like some people are starting to call spoilers on everything that isn't the title.

[Verocity]

I picked this up last night. I walked into the local Gamestop and asked for it and they said they were sold out. I was like damn and then thought oh yea, it was released for the 360 too. I said, "Oh, I was referring to the PC version. I assume you thought I was asking about the 360 version." Yup, he sure did. He pulled out a collector's edition that had the big daddy figurine saying someone returned it because they thought it was for a 360. I happily bought it, installed it, it patched in about 30 seconds and I was up and running.

Incredible game I have to say and it looks gorgeous!

[Serapth]

You have no idea how smug all this shit is making GrinR!

[MasterKwan]

I have a feeling this isn't a "Patch" so much as most of the program files to run the game. I suspect what's on the DVD is mostly art assets and the installer.

[roboninja]

You have no idea how smug all this shit is making GrinR!

Or Random getting his rocks off by belittling everyone's pains with copy protection.
They should get together and have a party :)

[Ravana]

I was shocked that I had to download 1.8gb more to play...Sweet lord in heaven, tell me that isn't the size of the mandatory patch. I'm on dial-up, I may as well just cancel my order.

[Vampyre]

I bought Bioshock and Age Of Pirates On tuesday.. and here Bioshock sits on my desk.. I'm not sure if I want to isntall or not... I dont' ike this "lock into the hardware, phone home activation" hoop I have I have to jump threw....

[jacktion]

For being such an incredible game, Irrational is sure botching this launch. I haven't heard this many problems with a game since I don't know when.
Too bad. The game looked good but all this bad press is probably going to hurt them. I for one, am holding off until they work out all these problems.

[BrainDrain]

/me has been happily playing on his 360 with no issues

Agreed. That's one reason I pretty much stopped playing PC games years ago.

[Crimson]

Sweet lord in heaven, tell me that isn't the size of the mandatory patch. I'm on dial-up, I may as well just cancel my order.

I don't know why he had to download another 1.8g on Steam. I bought retail game, the activation took about 15 seconds, and I was in the game. No problems (as of yet). I've heard some people gettings a corrupt download off of steam, but that doesn't seem to be isolated to just this game. I had a problem with the Might and Magic FPS when that came out and my download had some bad files for some reason.

[Wyrm]

Out of every 10 pirates there are 100 people willing to purchase a game because they support the developers like me. Not in Bioshock's case tho.

I think the ratio is worse than people think. Piracy is a HUGE reason that PC gaming is in decline. Why the hell would you buy a game if you could get it for free?

Of course, I buy games like Bioshock because we need to send a message to the industry. This is the kind of game we want to play, and if it doesn't sell well, they won't make more games like it.

Oh, and I'm downloading it off Steam now... Hopefully, it won't actually take 8 hours like it estimated, but I think I can wait just a little longer to play a game that literally has me shivering with excitement.

Edit - Also wanted to point out that people were willing to choke down the copy protection (Steam) that came with Half Life 2, and it caused a huge number of problems for a lot of people (including me). From what I've read, Bioshock's copy protection isn't really that bad. Steam had to decrypt every single file before allowing you to play, and if you installed from the disk on the first day, you couldn't even create an account because there were so many people hammering the servers.

There needs to be some universal system that a) is easy to use, and b) is easy to implement and support so that shit like this doesn't happen every time a big name title comes out on PC.

[dotbomb]

Sweet lord in heaven, tell me that isn't the size of the mandatory patch. I'm on dial-up, I may as well just cancel my order.

Actually I think I screwed up my numbers. I had 20% more to download when I activated my copy via steam and I think the original download was 1.8gb.

[Voodoo]

I have a feeling this isn't a "Patch" so much as most of the program files to run the game. I suspect what's on the DVD is mostly art assets and the installer.

And your are correct! If you look in your BioShock directory, you'll see the BioShock executable has a date & time showing when it was downloaded. There are a few other files too... Just do a search for *.* and then sort by date, you'll see them...

[Ridlin]

Five hours last night and I finally got the patch.

This is SO my last PC game.

[ÜberJumper]

I don't think the people who pirate games have the money to purchase them anyway. I do believe that companies have a right to try and make sure that people can't enjoy their product without the people who made it being compensated, which is why I don't begrudge 2K games for having attempted piracy protection. I'm thinking companies need to go back to using hardware dongles or something similar. Perhaps an integrated dongle for all games with the games for windows logo on them or something. Make PC's like a console, requiring the Disc in the drive.

I pay for my games because I believe in paying for the product that other people are producing. Luckily I work in an IT field where the people using my company's software can't pirate it, so my company's revenue stream is assured. I'd be pissed if I found out I was supporting people who didn't pay for their product.

[KingGorilla]

This is a really good game, I am happy I got it off of Steam. I am done buying 2K games until they clean up their act.

[Smoof]

I don't think the people who pirate games have the money to purchase them anyway. I do believe that companies have a right to try and make sure that people can't enjoy their product without the people who made it being compensated, which is why I don't begrudge 2K games for having attempted piracy protection. I'm thinking companies need to go back to using hardware dongles or something similar. Perhaps an integrated dongle for all games with the games for windows logo on them or something. Make PC's like a console, requiring the Disc in the drive.

I pay for my games because I believe in paying for the product that other people are producing. Luckily I work in an IT field where the people using my company's software can't pirate it, so my company's revenue stream is assured. I'd be pissed if I found out I was supporting people who didn't pay for their product.

I know a few guys who are making a shitload of cash and they pirate EVERYTHING. I work for an hourly wage and I purchase all my games.

I don't think it's a money issue...

[KingGorilla]

Most of the time it is genuine theft. And there are two things that keep people from stealing, morality and the chance of getting caught. You know that if you swipe a pack of gum from the candy aisle that you probably will not be caught, but you do not do it because stealing is wrong, you know it. In fact, the odds of you being caught, let alone arrested or prosecuted, for most crimes is about 1/10 times. 90 percent success for most crimes, even murder.

Pirates know that they will probably get away with it.

We acknowledge that stores must deter theft. We accept security cameras and guards, RFID or magnetic strips, we put up with the occasional bag and receipt check. But if a store goes too far, I have actually had a security guard tail me while I shopped(no joke). Do you put up with it or do you frequent another store? Ubisoft, Midway, and their developing partners found out, the hard way, what happens when you take copy protection too far.

[Wyrm]

Most of the time it is genuine theft. And there are two things that keep people from stealing, morality and the chance of getting caught. You know that if you swipe a pack of gum from the candy aisle that you probably will not be caught, but you do not do it because stealing is wrong, you know it. In fact, the odds of you being caught, let alone arrested or prosecuted, for most crimes is about 1/10 times. 90 percent success for most crimes, even murder.

Pirates know that they will probably get away with it.

We acknowledge that stores must deter theft. We accept security cameras and guards, RFID or magnetic strips, we put up with the occasional bag and receipt check. But if a store goes too far, I have actually had a security guard tail me while I shopped(no joke). Do you put up with it or do you frequent another store? Ubisoft, Midway, and their developing partners found out, the hard way, what happens when you take copy protection too far.

I agree completely. We accept a certain degree of it because we know that there are lots of people out there that ARE assholes, and will steal. But, there is a point when it goes too far. Do I think Irrational (or whatever the fuck) went too far in this case? Probably not. They need to protect their investment, just as badly as they need us to buy it. They aren't a dumb company, and I'm sure they weighed the risks of not using CP before going with this choice.

I will say that it is upsetting to go and buy the game in the store and then have to deal with another security measure. In fact, for the longest time, my stand has always been that if companies want to do it right, you do it like Blizzard. If you make a good game, people will buy it regardless, and if you make it so that they can't play online without a cd-key, people that pirate it will probably buy it as well.

The point being, if you make a good game, people will usually buy it. Of course, this is not always the case (System Shock 2 comes to mind), and 2k is merely trying to protect their investment in the game. Not a serious offense in my mind.

Now, when the security measures in place hinder the player from getting to the game, that's when there is a problem. That should never happen, for any reason. It's unacceptable to pay 50 bucks for something, and then not be able to use it because the company who created it couldn't be bothered to test the system properly before it debuted.

I have a policy of always telling the people at WalMart to fuck off when they ask to look at my receipt, because I pay for my god damned groceries with the money I make, and I'll be damned if some asshole is going to question that shit. Not a lot of people know this, but they aren't even legally allowed to do that, so if you don't want to waste time, just tell them NO.

[Chainblast]

I read a comment some place suggesting 2k should have had the retail copies go through Steam if they wanted to have this kind of copy protection. Either way who really suffers as a result of these efforts? Not the pirates, that's for sure. They'll just find a way around it like always whle legitimate gamers put up with BS.

[Smoof]

But if a store goes too far, I have actually had a security guard tail me while I shopped(no joke).

I actually try to get them to follow me, so I can fuck with them and waste their time. I work in the Loss Prevention "Profession" (one week left after this weekend! Finally get to quit that place! Woo!), so I know the tricks and what they look for in people. Plus, a lot of the guys that do it are so full of themselves as to actually think they're similar or "almost cops" (had this said to me by another guy. I tried not to laugh). I just think it's funny to fuck with them.

But I digress: Publishers should waste less money on copy protection stuff. Maybe a simple cd key is all, so if you buy it legit, you can play online. As we've all been over many times before, elaborate systems don't stop pirates. Starforce was even broken, even if it was a pain in the ass to get through. But, copy protection will always stop legitmate customers from buying games, case in point: to this day I refuse to buy and play Chaos Theory, because of Starforce. I really, REALLY want to play it, but I wont, because of that malware.

[51|RandoM]

Or Random getting his rocks off by belittling everyone's pains with copy protection.
They should get together and have a party :)

You didn't have any problems with copy protection. ;)

I'm not belittling their pains, I'm reducing the mountains they're creating back into their original form: molehills.

People like to rant and rave about copy protection but they don't seem to be able to do so with any intelligence. They don't know why it is there. They don't know why it works. They don't know how it works. Then, on top of that pile of ignorance they assume that the industry is dumb enough to keep spending money on something that they feel is obviously not working.

Ultimately they belittle themselves by opening their collective mouth and spouting the same idiocy that has been debunked any number of times before.

[Tabasco]

Other than the absolutely ridiculous gig I had to download to activate the game on steam, I have had no problems. The game is totally amazing. Don't let the poor launch steer you away from what is easily one of the best games to come out in years.

[straximus]

On the one hand, it's hard these days to make a profit off of PC gaming if you don't have some pretty badass copy protection.

I think Stardock showed otherwise with Galactic Civilizations 2. It's success (despite being an indie game AND having no copy protection what-so-ever) prompted some StarForce asshole to post a link to a torrent of it on their forums.

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3148721

[Voodoo]

Perfect examples of how PC Gaming should be produced and distributed is Company of Heroes & Dawn of War.

[ÜberJumper]

Voodoo:

How so? With Nothing but a CD Key for Online play and not even a disc check built in (CoH didn't have a disc check out of the box, DoW's was removed in a patch)? You realize that the vast majority of people never play online and thus the CD Key never comes into play?

I'm actually in favour of a CD Key and requiring a disc in the drive OR a CD-Key, AND online activation.

I'm told that CoH shipping without requiring the disc in the drive is actually a mistake

[Gedd]

I hate DRM as much as the next guy, but through Steam I had no problems.

Tuesday night I came home from work, launched Steam, let it do it's thing and about 15-20 minutes later it had unlocked, download it's remaining content post-preload (~500mb) and then fired right up.

Works for me.

[Ajguy]

This is why I will forever and always buy a game on Steam if it is available. My PC is souped up enough to buy Bioshock so it wasn't an option, but I totally would have had it prepaid and preloaded.

[Voodoo]

Voodoo:

How so? With Nothing but a CD Key for Online play and not even a disc check built in (CoH didn't have a disc check out of the box, DoW's was removed in a patch)? You realize that the vast majority of people never play online and thus the CD Key never comes into play?

I'm actually in favour of a CD Key and requiring a disc in the drive OR a CD-Key, AND online activation.

I'm told that CoH shipping without requiring the disc in the drive is actually a mistake

This is the crux with modern PC Gaming. The problem with copy protection is that, yes, it can be bypassed. A perfect pseudo-example of the crux we face is similar with MP3 music. DRM protected music can not be played on all music players while that which is not protected is free to be played anywhere and this essentially punishes those that purchased the DRM protected music.

In regards to PC games... How does one protect a game from being casually copied? I'm not one to answer this BUT I can say that in the current state of PC gaming, the current answers are not providing a good solution. If anything, it is driving move people away from PC Gaming and to consoles... PC Game publishers are so intent on fighting pirates that the protection scheme itself hurts the platform. This while at the time same those that copy the game without regard to credit towards the developer/publishing house hurt the platform a great deal as well...

Wish I had an absolute answer but unfortunately I don't really see a decent solution beyond CDKey & Online Registration/Activation. This has its limits to as it requires a backend server to exist no matter when you may try to play the game... Unless there is eventually a patched/installer released that bypasses it... I guess that takes us right back to piracy again doesn't it...

Frankly, it is going to eventually come down to a personal morality choice. Do you as a purchaser choose to buy the product or not. DRM, in this media or any other, doesn't seem to be the answer.

[NeuroMan42]

Stunning game... been loving every minute, but this is a "Console Port" mess when it comes to PC version issues. Originally when first mentioned it WAS going to be PC Exclusive. I really wished this would have NEVER been developed for a console, as it is obvious that this has been ported. :)

As for the DRM issue... worked fine for me and I never got ANY patch from 2K. I did have widescreen issues, EAX issues, Mouse issues, etc. :P

[ÜberJumper]

I disagree NeuroMan42, I don't get the feeling that it was a console port at all. Most of the PC controls seem PC centric, I've not had an impression, that one often gets with games like Lost Planet for example, that the game was even available on Console.

What are you seeing, specifically, that gives you the impression it has been "ported"?

[Steve_Erhardt]

For whatever it is or isn't worth, I got home Tuesday night, installed it on my #1 PC, and was off to Rapture with zero trouble.

[Rich1524]

I really wished this would have NEVER been developed for a console, as it is obvious that this has been ported. :)


Examples?

Thnx.

[Kid Moxie]

Oh, how acutely aware of this I am! Luckily, at least, the servers were up as of 6:30 AM PST and I managed to finish my install.

Ugh, never include a mandatory patch as part of the install process!

[Disgustipated]

So basically the PC version is still better than the 360 one. Gotcha.

[Nicodemus]

Sounds like the first days of Steam.

PC gaming isn't dead; it's just experiencing growing pains. Or maybe it's a teenager, and it's parents are trying to keep it from hanging out with the wrong crowd. Sometimes they get too overprotected and Starforce happens. Or maybe they need PC gaming to phone in before it goes out for the night, but the phones are busy.

This analogy rules.

[NeoSuplex]

And so continues Microsoft's dark campaign to convert PC Gamers into 360 Owners...
"You'll bunny hop like a frat boy and like it, Bitch!" - Gates

[Smoof]

And so continues Microsoft's dark campaign to convert PC Gamers into 360 Owners...
"You'll bunny hop like a frat boy and like it, Bitch!" - Gates

I wish we had a lolface, because if we did, I'd just put one here in place of this text. Especially for the black ;)

[BlackPete]

Sounds like the first days of Steam.

PC gaming isn't dead; it's just experiencing growing pains. Or maybe it's a teenager, and it's parents are trying to keep it from hanging out with the wrong crowd. Sometimes they get too overprotected and Starforce happens. Or maybe they need PC gaming to phone in before it goes out for the night, but the phones are busy.

This analogy rules.

Growing pains? The PC industry? Surely you jest... it's pretty much the oldest industry in video game history.

Unless that was sarcasm and my sarcasometer needs calibrating.

[Speed_D]

I think the ratio is worse than people think. Piracy is a HUGE reason that PC gaming is in decline. Why the hell would you buy a game if you could get it for free?
Give me a break.

Nothing against the developers because it's the publishers that are the copy protection fiends. But here's a hint:

Games were rampantly pirated in the 80s and they still sold. Slowly copy protection ramped up. They were still pirated, and legit buyers still bought them. Then CDs came out. Copy protection disappeared for a few years (think: around Warcraft II days).

PC games still got pirated.
PC games still sold copies.

And now we're full circle with the insane copy protection again. Guess what folks: piracy didn't kill PC games in the 80s, and it's not killing them now. Publishers would sure like you to think that, though.

PC games are getting killed by:

- $500 video cards that can heat your home
- Walmart forcing DVD-size boxes down everyone's throat (and subsequently reducing shelf space for PC games)
- EBGames / Gamestop fully embracing the "resell people's crap to them at a huge markup" business model. Interestingly this works for console games because they don't have copy protection / online activation. Anyhow it translates into more lost shelf space for PC games.
- PC game publishers refuse to cooperate to protect against price declines, whereas console titles stay at $59 for ages.

All those things translate into more sales and more profit for console titles. Blame piracy all you want, but if they fixed those other issues, the PC game market would be fine (and in fact does quite well in the so-called "casual" market where the issues I listed aren't a problem).

[Shadowstorm]

DRM sucks.

[MacD]

Speed_D is spot on.

One more thing: copyprotection only hurts the legal buyers of the product, never the pirates. Pirates actually get a better product!

And an upshot of this is: copyprotection costs money, thus increases the price of a game.

Removing ineffectual (and this can be pretty much proven!) copyprotection should thus result in a better, more hasslefree and cheaper game for legitemate buyers, whilst it changes NOTHING for the pirates. Got that: no CP means two plusses for legitemate buyers and zero change for pirates.

The only thing CP is good at preventing is the so called "casual piracy"...which is something I personally think is a myth. Anyone who would casually copy his legitemate version of a game for a friend can get a pirated version to give to his friend.

Me, I buy games. I want more Grim Fandango's, Homeworlds, Psychonauts etc etc etc being made, and the only way to get that done is to vote with your wallet. But I have pirated games which I had already bought, because the CP was such a hassle. CP has caused even me to be a 'pirate' and to discover the channels through which I can do that. CP (unlike canabis) is a gateway drug!

[Mephistopheles]

And so continues Microsoft's dark campaign to convert PC Gamers into 360 Owners...
"You'll bunny hop like a frat boy and like it, Bitch!" - Gates

SecuROM is, not surprisingly, a Sony product. Quite magnanimous of them to help out a competitor wouldn't you say?

Bill should have bunny-hopped (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpCMJ2xlLfo).

[hainrs]

Could someone please explain why are they making people go through this shit? Un-fucking-believable.

It's called piracy and low life scumbags who pirate games. Get rid of them and you don't have to put up with these little inconveniences. Anyone who thinks PC games are officially "bye bye" now are morons. The PC Bioshock is infinitely superior to the 360 version.

Note to pirates: You are scum and deserve to die a thousand deaths. Short of death, you should be banned from playing games via the legal system, and I hope a law i passed one day that makes this a reality. I hate pirates, and I hope they all get their PCs seized and gaming right revoked. The gaming world would be a better place if those cocksuckers were takenout.

[BlackPete]

It's called piracy and low life scumbags who pirate games. Get rid of them and you don't have to put up with these little inconveniences. Anyone who thinks PC games are officially "bye bye" now are morons. The PC Bioshock is infinitely superior to the 360 version.

Note to pirates: You are scum and deserve to die a thousand deaths. Short of death, you should be banned from playing games via the legal system, and I hope a law i passed one day that makes this a reality. I hate pirates, and I hope they all get their PCs seized and gaming right revoked. The gaming world would be a better place if those cocksuckers were takenout.

You're turning blue. Better breathe, man.

[Rich1524]

Bought it and installed it an hour ago with no probs whatsoever. On Vista, no less.

Actually, there was one problem. I had to re-enter the key code four times before I realized I had to type the dashes.

Thanks Ken and crew for such a great game.

[Stormwatcher]

The game is fucking awesome and plays really, really well on a pc.

Congrats to Irrational and blame 2k for the silly authentication hurdles.

[rainbowblack]

and here i am piting the sony crowd

[BlackPete]

and here i am piting the sony crowd

Well... you still are considering that secuROM is Sony-owned :D

[camberiu]

On the one hand, it's hard these days to make a profit off of PC gaming if you don't have some pretty badass copy protection.

Have you ever heard of Galactic Civilizations?

[Voodoo]

Have you ever heard of Galactic Civilizations?
Company of Heros & Dawn of War & UT 2004 too...