Adaptive Game Bundles: Sapphire Select
by Derek Wilson on June 8, 2005 5:33 AM EST- Posted in
- Software
Final Words
As we have said, our biggest complaint was the time that it took to install the games (especially in the current state with no status indicator). Though there is not much that can be done about the time that it takes, work is still being done on the UI.The final game list that we have for now is as follows:
Brothers In Arms
The Chronicles of Riddick
Prince Of Persia Warrior Within
Tony Hawk Underground 2
Swat 4
Silent Hunter III
Ground Control II
Tribes Vengeance
Robots
Richard Burns Rally
Evil Genius
As time goes on, older titles will be replaced with newer ones, but this is what we should see in the first few boxes.
We feel that only an hour of play may be a bit on the short side, but it is enough to give the user a taste of what the game will be like. As this technology is tacked onto a game rather than built into it, we won't be seeing features that allow the completion of an objective as the end of the trial as was the case with shareware.
One of the issues that Sapphire talked about was the use of mods or patches with Trymedia's ActiveMARK (the software that makes this all possible). Sapphire has said that all the developers of all the games that they will include have signed on to support them with ActiveMARK friendly content. Patching the game with a standard update would essentially break the install, but if developers live up to their word, ActiveMARK users should have no issue updating their software at the same time as those who bought retail boxes. In fact, Sapphire has said that their DVDs will include the latest updates at the time of packaging.
Of course, security is of the utmost concern. Sapphire wouldn't be going forward with this unless they thought they had a safe bet in ActiveMARK. The hacker community hasn't hit a stumbling block yet. Generally, when it comes to encoding and protection schemes, the question is not "if..." but "when...". Generally, any type of encryption can be broken: it's just a matter of time. We will be interested to see how the community responds to this technology.
If all goes well for Sapphire, it is very likely that other vendors will quickly adopt Trymedia's solution. We see this (or similar) technology being included in all major graphics card vendors bundles in the not so distant future.
On the plus side, we don't need a CD or DVD in the drive, there's no swapping disks to install anything, users have the ability to choose the games that they like after a free trial period, and Sapphire is offering the rest of the games at a "significant" discount over retail (we aren't sure of the percentage, but Sapphire has said that all titles will be sold at very attractive prices).
The negatives include the time that it takes to install a game, the clunky interface (which should get better), and (currently) a lack of any extraordinarily compelling titles. Sapphire has been talking with Ubisoft, so we could see some interesting additions in the future.
Overall, this is a very useful idea that will continue to get better as it matures.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
24 Comments
View All Comments
stmok - Monday, June 13, 2005 - link
I tend to agree that this seems more like a pointless exercise in being different.Everytime I purchase a video card, I delibrately pick a brand that does NOT have a software game bundle. (Brands like PixelView)
All I need is the video card and the accessories/cables (TV-OUT, etc)...I don't use the included drivers on CD anyway.
Better yet, just sell me the card and accessories. Companies save money, and we don't need to pay for crap that we don't want in the first place.
bigboxes - Thursday, June 9, 2005 - link
#17Bullseye! Who needs to purchase a video card based on what software is bundled with it? Just give me the cheapest price and let me choose the games on my own. You will pay something extra for that "free" game.
stnicralisk - Thursday, June 9, 2005 - link
This is a nice technology. I hope they use it for more than games. I want to choose what kind of other video related software I recieve too. I dont need ANOTHER copy of WinDVD give me something else instead.Avalon - Wednesday, June 8, 2005 - link
It would be great if you could opt to activate none of your free games to receive a small rebate towards the price you paid for your video card. That way those of us that don't care for any bundled games can get what they want, cheaper.aka1nas - Wednesday, June 8, 2005 - link
The biggest issue that I have with this system is that you can't use standard updates or mods. You have to hope that the developers will continue to support this version of their game seperately.gbohn - Wednesday, June 8, 2005 - link
#11 said "#9 You can simply backup your game, is that so hard?"Well,
A) Not everyone creates backups, and
B) It's not clear what needs to be backed up. Some 'activation' systems hide the thing that needs to be backed up on a 'secret' part of the drive that a normal backup won't get to.
Some 'activation' systems (say Windows) marry the software to your hardware. So, for all we know, a restore to a new system might not even work...
Such are the possible joys of 'Digital Rights Management'.
(Imagine if all your software was like that. Imagine the fun of having every piece of software you have needing to be re-activated (possibly needing to speak to someone in person for each) when you upgrade your system.)
yacoub - Wednesday, June 8, 2005 - link
As long as there's an option to have NO bundle and get the hardware cheaper, I don't care what they do. I rarely want any software with a video card purchase. I'm generally buying a videocard because I already HAVE something that isn't running well on my current videocard.flatblastard - Wednesday, June 8, 2005 - link
I'm gonna have to agree with #8 on this one: "Worthless", is exactly how I would describe this. What I mean is that vid cards don't need to come bundled with "free" games and let's face it, their not "free", but rather the price is included in the purchase of the card. These companies would be doing us a greater service by including only what we need and nothing more. Of course, too much competition is what brings about these bundles and k00l product packaging."Hey, look at our product. It's better than the competiton, just look at all the free games we give you!"
pzkfwg - Wednesday, June 8, 2005 - link
First thing I thought when reading the article was as #9 and #10: what about intalling, uninstalling, reinstalling, etc.#11: If you have a new system, backup/image is not a solution, you need to reinstall.
Xenoterranos - Wednesday, June 8, 2005 - link
I's say this is a step in the right direction. Imagine a subscription based system that let you play any of the games you wanted, provided it was on a one game per month basis or something. I'd say this is as close to renting PC video games as we're ever going to get. - Hey my first post - long time listener, first time caller!