Morning's Wrath was released totaly open without any usage restrictions; this is probably not a bad idea for a first title, because it encourages use, however going forward, we would like to be rewarded for the work we do.
Solving Piracy
Hahaha, never going to happen (until all software usage is required to be used through positive internet authentication), but you can slow it down a bit, especially for the bottom of the pyramid.
The Pyramid?
The Pyramid.
Above is an illustration of how I view piracy; the idea is to insure that the general populous cannot easily give away your software. Since meda copying has always been simple (except for a slight lull when cds first emerged), it is always the first course of action for any would be weekend pirate.
With Morning's Wrath, anyone could simply duplicate a cd or burn the data to a cd, or zip and transmit the data over the internet.
A bit of deterence
The above is a very open, hastle-free system, there is nothing standing in your way from playing the game, anywhere anytime. This is unfortinetly the good and the bad of it.
So for our next project we are proposing a system of usage control (not copy protection). Here is what I am proposing.
The first thing you should note is that it Requires that an internet connection be present when you start the game. This connection is used to 'ask' the server if it is okay for you to play the game. A system of Key and Machine is used, so that we know whenever you run the game on another system. If large quantities of 'usage' changes are detected we can delete the key, and you will be required to provide proof of purchase via email (likely username and password for the shopping card, and or CC information) so we can vend you a new key. So in the interest of no hastle you would do well to keep your key to yourself otherwise it is going to cause you a headache in the long run.
It is likely this system will see a Large-Scale field test before we actually use it, it will probably be done using GDNet voulenteers, this way we can identify and iron-out any bugs, before we unleash it on paying customers.
This system might be implemented sooner rather than later, because if people can steal your games what good is creating and selling them? =)
I wish people (especially indie game developers) would spend more time making games that people want to play, than coming up with ideas to keep people from playing.
And, in reality, as an indie developer, you want your game to get around. So what if it's pirated? You won't be losing $10,000 on a game due to piracy. And in the long run, will your game even be big enough to want to get pirated and/or cracked?
Personally I think the search for tough piracy protection is a stupid idea. It will always get cracked. Just keep the minority from playing it (cd key when installing and cd check when playing) and that will be enough. Anything more and you're just asking to get cracked. It will happen anyway, so why waste time on it?
You're an indie developer. Leave that to the big guys who *do* have time to do that stuff.