3 ms·

Then don't buy it. Right now, I can't afford to buy a classic '60s gibson guitar. That doesn't give me the license to go out and steal one, -because I want one

Then don't buy it. Right now, I can't afford to buy a classic '60s gibson guitar. That doesn't give me the license to go out and steal one, -because I want one-. If modern AAA games are too much at $80, then don't buy them. There are significantly cheaper alternatives on PC, as well as the possibility of waiting for deals or buying used. High prices don't justify pirating.

retrac 5y ago
A better analogy would be making yourself an exact duplicate of a Gibson guitar, at home with a 3D printer. I'm not sure that should be illegal, at least if you take the trademark off it.
- andrewzah 5y ago
  Yeah, it wasn't a very good analogy. It's hard to compare duplication like this to real world things like theft. Regardless, merely desiring something is not a justification to pirate things.
  - f6v 5y ago
    > Regardless, merely desiring something is not a justification to pirate things. People also use sci-hub do avoid paying to publishers. Where do you draw a line?
PufPufPuf 5y ago
It the people truly can't afford the games (and wouldn't buy them at all if they didn't have the option to pirate), is there really any harm from their piracy? Steam has it mostly figured out, though. Look at SteamDB at international prices and you'll discover that prices in Brazil or Russia are often a fraction of the US/EU price. Turns out selling the game for dirt cheap makes more money than not selling it.
- andrewzah 5y ago
  "It the people truly can't afford the games (and wouldn't buy them at all if they didn't have the option to pirate), is there really any harm from their piracy?" I would say it's still unethical and wrong, regardless if we can't point to a specific entity being hurt. It is entitlement to want something for free when one can't afford it. There are -so- many games nowadays, and many of them are not even close to $60. And as mentioned, steam is generally aware of regional currency discrepancies. And I would argue accepting or condoning pro-piracy attitudes is harmful in the long run versus accepting that one can't just take things that one wants, and paying for things when able.
  - f6v 5y ago
    > And I would argue accepting or condoning pro-piracy attitudes is harmful in the long run versus accepting that one can't just take things that one wants, and paying for things when able. Top AAA makers also get incredibly high profits while underpaying their employees. And the prices on their games go up simply because they can.
zamadatix 5y ago
If you steal a '60s gibson guitar because you can't afford it the world is out 1 gibson's guitar worth of value. If you pirate a piece of software you couldn't afford the world is out nothing and you're up whatever value it can create for you. Pirating software you can afford is a different equation (still not as bad as the theft of a physical item) but not what is being discussed.

retrac 5y ago

A better analogy would be making yourself an exact duplicate of a Gibson guitar, at home with a 3D printer. I'm not sure that should be illegal, at least if you take the trademark off it.

andrewzah 5y ago
Yeah, it wasn't a very good analogy. It's hard to compare duplication like this to real world things like theft. Regardless, merely desiring something is not a justification to pirate things.
- f6v 5y ago
  > Regardless, merely desiring something is not a justification to pirate things. People also use sci-hub do avoid paying to publishers. Where do you draw a line?

PufPufPuf 5y ago

It the people truly can't afford the games (and wouldn't buy them at all if they didn't have the option to pirate), is there really any harm from their piracy? Steam has it mostly figured out, though. Look at SteamDB at international prices and you'll discover that prices in Brazil or Russia are often a fraction of the US/EU price. Turns out selling the game for dirt cheap makes more money than not selling it.

andrewzah 5y ago
"It the people truly can't afford the games (and wouldn't buy them at all if they didn't have the option to pirate), is there really any harm from their piracy?" I would say it's still unethical and wrong, regardless if we can't point to a specific entity being hurt. It is entitlement to want something for free when one can't afford it. There are -so- many games nowadays, and many of them are not even close to $60. And as mentioned, steam is generally aware of regional currency discrepancies. And I would argue accepting or condoning pro-piracy attitudes is harmful in the long run versus accepting that one can't just take things that one wants, and paying for things when able.
- f6v 5y ago
  > And I would argue accepting or condoning pro-piracy attitudes is harmful in the long run versus accepting that one can't just take things that one wants, and paying for things when able. Top AAA makers also get incredibly high profits while underpaying their employees. And the prices on their games go up simply because they can.

zamadatix 5y ago

If you steal a '60s gibson guitar because you can't afford it the world is out 1 gibson's guitar worth of value. If you pirate a piece of software you couldn't afford the world is out nothing and you're up whatever value it can create for you. Pirating software you can afford is a different equation (still not as bad as the theft of a physical item) but not what is being discussed.