NOV. 20, 2010 • Fearing that its upcoming single-player RPG Witcher 2 will be a major piracy target, Polish publisher CD Projekt is signing on with legal firms in larger markets. Users whose accounts can be identified with an illegal download of the game will receive a letter demanding payment of a fine, or risk legal action. CD Projekt says the fine amount will be more than the retail price of the game, but hasn’t said how much.
Impact: Given the choice of annoying DRM, and annoying legal notices, CD Projekt has made an intriguing choice. Time will tell, but if these fines are not too much more than the regular MSRP, then this strategy may may lead the way to be a realistic dampener on piracy for games without an online component.
