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![]() February 12th, 2022 ![]() The Weird, Wonderful Ways Developers Have Tried To Stop People Pirating Their Games It's a losing battle, so you might as well have fun with it. Andy Kelly PC gamers hate DRM, and rightly so. It might give publishers peace of mind, but anti-piracy software like the notorious Denuvo, if poorly implemented, can negatively impact the performance of games. It can also mean you're forced to pointlessly play singleplayer games online, and in some cases, servers being shut down can render older games completely unplayable. In the '80s and '90s, DRM didn't exist in the form it does now—but other types of copy protection did. The difference back then was that developers implemented creative, interactive anti-piracy measures that fed into the fiction of the game. It was way more obtrusive than modern DRM, and kinda annoying, but if it has to be there, it might as well be fun. In Star Trek: 25th Anniversary, a 1992 adventure game by Interplay, players had to consult the physical game manual (remember those?) before warping to a new star system. None of the systems were named, meaning you had to reference a map in the manual—otherwise you'd be attacked by enemy ships. Overly elaborate, but it made you feel like a proper navigator. The original Prince of Persia from 1989, developed by Broderbund, was more mischievous. Players who reached level 2 would be presented with three bottles, one of which had to be drunk to proceed. You had to cross-reference them with a chart in the manual to select the right bottle. Pick the wrong one three times and the Prince would be poisoned and suddenly die. In horny adventure game Leisure Suit Larry 3, also released in 1989 by Sierra, the manual came in the form of a tacky brochure for its tropical setting—the vaguely Hawaiian island of Nontoonyt. When players reached the casino, a bouncer would ask for a ticket number that could only be found in the manual. Get it wrong and it's an instant game over when you get thrown out. And let's not forget Konami's 1998 classic Metal Gear Solid, which featured an infamous example of packaging-based copy protection. To progress in the story you need to tune into a certain radio frequency, which a character says is 'on the back of the CD case.' A lot of players thought this meant the unrelated disc in their inventory, rather than the actual CD case the game came in. Other games, upon detecting an unauthorised copy, took the opportunity to screw with the pirates. In Michael Jackson: The Experience, a DS game by Ubisoft from 2010, the sound of vuvuzelas would play over the music, drowning it out. In the same year, Remedy's Alan Wake slapped a conspicuous eyepatch with a grinning skull and crossbones on its titular protagonist. In 2008's Grand Theft Auto 4, players who pirated Rockstar's game would find it impossible to play because Niko was constantly drunk, staggering while walking and losing control of cars when driving. DICE's Mirror's Edge, also from 2008, would suddenly slow players down just before jumps that required a run-up, which is a brilliantly devious way to deter pirates. But my favourite example is EarthBound, Nintendo's cult sci-fi RPG from 1994. If you were playing a hacked copy, you'd notice the rate of random battles increasing massively, making it near unplayable. However, if you somehow persevered and made it to the final boss, the game would crash mid-fight and just straight-up delete your save. It's so brutal. I love it. DRM is boring now: a piece of software that runs quietly in the background, occasionally stealing frames from you if it's a particularly egregious example. So it's good to remember when devs would take the opportunity to enjoy themselves implementing it—even if their absurd manual-based methods were getting in the way of you just playing the damn game. https://www.thegamer.com/the-weird-w...g-their-games/ ![]() Is Pirating Movies Still a Security Clearance Concern? Katie Keller Some of you didn’t live in the 90’s and illegally download movies, and it shows. While HBO and other streaming apps makes it pretty impossible to want to download the newest releases these days, one security clearance applicant among clearance forums was worried about the flicks they downloaded and if the incidents were reportable on the SF-86: When I was 17, I pirated a bunch of stuff. If there was a question on the SF-86 that said “Have you pirated stuff” I would answer ‘Yes” as I have every intention of telling the truth on this form. But my question is if pirating falls into the question “In the last seven (7) years have you introduced, removed, or used hardware, software, or media in connection with any information technology system without authorization, when specifically prohibited by rules, procedures, guidelines, or regulations or attempted any of the above?” Every post on this subject just gives advice like “just tell the truth.” But whether or not to tell the truth is not my question. I will tell the truth. I am just trying to figure out what exactly the hell an “Information Technology System” is, and if this question is equivalent to “have you illegally downloaded movies”? Like our YouTuber illegally taking music or content for educational purposes, many people are worried when they come to this section on the SF-86. Before answering yes or no, the original poster re: YouTube downloading needed to check the YouTube video licensing AND their employer (school) policy. But, this pirate was downloading media to a personal computer, so they weren’t necessarily violating a larger entity’s policy. You want to tell the truth, but you also don’t want to divulge information that is not necessary to divulge. The technical answer is no, this question does NOT specifically apply to pirating “stuff.” The purpose of this section on the SF-86 is in regard to IT or information systems internally with your company or an agency. Background investigators will ask if the security clearance applicant has committed an undetected crime during the reference interview. Think Snowden crimes or other similar circumstances within national security. Unfortunately, “tell the truth” is the best advice, but if this is the only thing you are worried about in your background, it’s small potatoes. Much about the clearance process resembles the Pirate’s Code: “more what you’d call guidelines than actual rules.” This case-by-case system is meant to consider the whole person, increase process security, and allow the lowest-risk/highest-need candidates to complete the process. However, it also creates a lot of questions for applicants. For this reason, ClearanceJobs maintains ClearanceJobsBlog.com – a forum where clearance seekers can ask the cleared community for advice on their specific security concerns. Ask CJ explores questions posed on the ClearanceJobs Blog forum, emails received, and comments from this site. https://news.clearancejobs.com/2022/...rance-concern/ ![]() Original ‘Fight Club’ Ending Restored in China After Censorship Backlash In a rare censorship reversal, Chinese streamer Tencent Video has undone its mangled cuts to the conclusion of David Fincher's 1999 cult classic. Patrick Brzeski David Fincher’s 1999 cult classic Fight Club has been restored to its original state in China — almost. After widespread online backlash to clumsy censorship of the film’s ending, Chinese streaming service Tencent Video backtracked in recent days and restored most of the cuts it had made. Crucially, Fight Club’s complete ending is now viewable in full in China. Fincher’s original film, which stars Brad Pitt, Edward Norton and Helena Bonham Carter, ends with the narrator (Norton) killing off his imaginary alter ego, Tyler Durden (Pitt), and then watching as buildings explode across a city skyline, suggesting that his anarchist crusade to take down consumerist society has begun. A key tenet of China’s usual film censorship system is that criminals must always be punished for their crimes onscreen and societal harmony restored — especially in local Chinese movies. So, before the 20th Century Fox film began airing in the country, Tencent dramatically altered Fight Club’s ending. The climactic scene was excised and replaced with a blank screen showing the message: “The police rapidly figured out the whole plan and arrested all criminals, successfully preventing the bomb from exploding. After the trial, Tyler was sent to a lunatic asylum receiving psychological treatment.” News of the cuts went viral around the world and sparked much debate and embarrassment on Chinese social media about local censorship practices. Some commentators pointed out that the new ending rendered the film nonsensical, given that Pitt’s character was actually just a delusion of the movie’s narrator. Chuck Palahniuk, author of the original novel on which Fincher’s film was based, joined the fray with the surprising observation that China’s ending was actually truer to the original vision of his book. But it would appear that the backlash has been deemed more troublesome than the fictional film’s ending, as Tencent has now restored 11 of the 12 minutes it originally cut from the 137-minute movie. The minute still missing is mostly comprised of brief nude sex scenes between Pitt’s and Bonham Carter’s characters. A spokesperson at Tencent didn’t respond to a request for comment. Reversals of censorship actions are extremely rare within China’s entertainment industry — but cuts to Hollywood movies are not. After 20th Century Fox’s Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody won multiple Oscars in the 2018, it was granted a theatrical release in China — but only after all mentions of Freddie Mercury’s homosexuality were cut from the film. The movie earned $14 million in China, but human rights groups were vocally critical of Fox for letting Beijing screen the straightwashed version. Last year, WarnerMedia’s much anticipated Friends reunion had several scenes cut from its Chinese online release, including a cameo featuring Lady Gaga. The pop star is persona non grata in China due to a brief meeting she had with the Dalai Lama in 2016. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/mo...sh-1235087894/ ![]() 'Spider-Man: No Way Home' could have hit $2 Billion at the Global Box Office if it were Released in China Sarah Whitten • The Chinese box office has been increasingly important for Hollywood films in recent decades, especially those released under the Marvel Cinematic Universe banner. • However, policy changes within the Chinese government, coupled with accelerated growth of its own domestic box office, has led China to be more selective about which Western films are shown within the country. • "Spider-Man: No Way Home" has not received a release date in China, losing out on potentially hundreds of millions of dollars in ticket sales. Since its release in December, "Spider-Man: No Way Home" continues to top box office expectations. The film is the only Hollywood release since 2019 to top $1 billion at the global box office, and with $748.9 million at the domestic box office it is the fourth-highest grossing film of all time in the U.S. and Canada, just behind "Avatar," which has generated $760.5 million, according to Comscore data. The feat comes as no other domestic release managed to surpass $250 million in ticket sales during their 2021 theatrical runs. However, it is "No Way Home's" global box office haul that has experts buzzing. With $1.77 billion, the Sony-Disney co-production has become the sixth-highest grossing film of all time, just behind "Titanic" (1997), which stands at $1.84 billion. And it reached that figure without a China release. The Chinese box office has been increasingly important for Hollywood films, especially those released under the Marvel Cinematic Universe banner. However, policy changes within the Chinese government, coupled with the accelerated growth of its own domestic box office, has led China to be more selective about which Western films are shown within the country. The top four global releases, "Avatar" (2009), "Avengers: Endgame" (2019), "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" (2015) and "Avengers: Infinity War" (2018), all topped $2 billion worldwide and had significant contributions from the Chinese box office. In fact, without ticket sales from China, "The Force Awakens" and "Avengers: Infinity War" would still be below $2 billion. "Spider-Man's massive global success is one for the ages, but even it isn't without a few asterisks," said Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com. "The lack of a release in China has no doubt resulted in at least several hundred million dollars left on the table." The China effect Since 2012′s "The Avengers," China has been the second-highest grossing box office for all Marvel movies, just behind the U.S. and Canada. Ticket sales in the region typically account for between 10% and 20% of these film's total grosses. 2017's "Spider-Man: Homecoming" generated around 13.3% of its total box office from China, about $117 million, and 2019's "Spider-Man: Far From Home" saw 18.25% of its global haul, or $204.9 million, from the region, according to Comscore data. With "Spider-Man: No Way Home" bringing together generations of Spider-Man characters, it acts more like an Avengers-style team-up movie like "Captain America: Civil War," "Avengers: Infinity War" or "Avengers: Endgame," which means its total percentage could have been on the higher end of the spectrum, ranging from 18% to 22%. Even a conservative 10% of total ticket sales would have given the latest Spider-Man film a $170 million boost. At 20%, "Spider-Man: No Way Home" would have generated around $340 million in sales from China, exceeding the $2 billion mark. "The ultimate final tally certainly would be higher, perhaps over $2 billion, with China's contribution," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. Over the weekend, "No Way Home" tallied another $25 million in ticket sales, but with diminishing returns in the coming weeks as well as a digital release of the film in the home market expected by the end of February, box office analysts do not expect the film to reach the $2 billion milestone. After all, markets in which the film was not released have likely taken to pirating the film online and will have little incentive to see it in theaters once a higher-quality digital copy is made available. "Many argue that 'Spider-Man: No Way Home's' global success shows that Hollywood doesn't have to rely on the China market," said Jun Fang, a visiting assistant professor of sociology at Colby College. "This is naive and out of touch because not all Hollywood movies can be as successful as Spider-Man, and not all studios can afford to lose the Chinese film market entirely as Disney did with its Marvel movies in 2021." Marvel shut out Since 2019's "Spider-Man: Far From Home," no Marvel movie has been released in China. Disney's first MCU release during the pandemic, "Black Widow," coincided with a blackout period in China. In July, the country leaves theaters open for local productions and boxes out foreign films. This year, the scheduling for non-Chinese films was further impacted by the 100th anniversary of the ruling Communist Party's founding. The occasion has resulted in a months-long period of censorship across all media. However, Marvel's "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" and "Eternals" were shutout of the country for other reasons. China has strict rules on content and suppresses anything that it believes violates its core socialist values or detracts from its nationalistic image. The country recently expanded its crackdown on its own entertainment industry, telling broadcasters to ban artists with "incorrect political positions" and effeminate styles from shows in an attempt to cultivate a more "patriotic atmosphere." For "Shang-Chi," it's the source material on which the film is based that likely led to the film not being allowed to play in Chinese theaters. The original comics have been considered racist and filled with reductive stereotypes. While Marvel head Kevin Feige went out of his way to quell any concerns about portrayals in the upcoming film, it wasn't enough to get it a release date in the country. Marvel's "Eternals," on the other hand, was rebuffed because of director Chloe Zhao, who became a persona non grata in China after past remarks she made about the country surfaced online. The backlash led to her name and her achievements being wiped from much of the Chinese web. "These all happened in the broad context of China's domestic political events and growing nationalism, and the U.S.-China geopolitical tensions, on top of the ongoing pandemic," Fang said. "In short, the ban on Marvel movies was the consequence of a series of organizational, political, and ideological mishaps that fueled one another." What's happening in China In recent years, Hollywood's access to the Chinese market has deteriorated significantly. In addition to quotas on how many Western films can be admitted into China's theaters, the country has established barriers to entry that can censor films entirely or limit how long before a release a film can be marketed. China's already tight restrictions were further exacerbated in 2018 when the regulation of the country's film and television industry was moved to be under the control of the Communist Party's propaganda department, a decision that gave the party further control of China's media and entertainment. Tensions between Washington and Beijing soared to new heights under the Trump administration, triggered, in part, by a slew of trade restrictions and economic sanctions. President Joe Biden has largely kept his predecessor's policies toward China and recently called for a "diplomatic boycott" of the Beijing Winter Olympics, citing ongoing human rights abuses in Xinjiang. "The government can't just cut off Hollywood entirely because audiences still want to watch the movies," Fang said. "The party has to balance between what it wants and what the audience wants." China's box office was bolstered in 2021 by a string of domestic "main melody" films like the Korean War epic "The Battle of Lake Changjin," which tallied around $900 million in sales during its run in theaters, which makes it the highest-grossing film of all time in China. Main melody films are propagandistic stories that celebrate the glory of China and its leaders. Since 2018, these films have become more successful. In 2021, the genre accounted for four out of the top 10 films released in China. "As Hollywood is losing its foot in China, U.S. studios need to figure out how to make movies that will resonate with Chinese audiences if they still hope to reap benefits from the China market," Fang said. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/07/spid...a-release.html ![]() Cinema Screening Of New Jackass Movie Just Doesn’t Feel As Authentic As A Burned CD-R On VLC Clancy Overell After 12-year hiatus, the fourth instalment in the Jackass movie franchise has nabbed the number 1 spot in the US box office. That is, despite the fact that this blast from the past is relying solely on ticket sales, as the peer-to-peer pirating of yesteryear is no longer available to a majority of today’s youth. This means that for the first time ever, the kids of today are watching the Jackass stunts either in a cinema – or through an official streaming service. As opposed to a desktop computer, off a burned CD that was sold to them at school by an aspiring weed dealer. The long-awaited ‘Jackass Forever’ earned $23.5 million in ticket sales in its first weekend in theatres, according to studio estimates on Sunday. Film buffs and studio executives were unsure if the docu-comedy would maintain the same cultural capital as it did in the MTV era, but it seems even the TikTok generation of today are still just as keen as their parents were to see grown men gored by bulls and get wedgied. But the new film not only exceeded the initially modest expectations, it has also knocked off the the big budget competitors that were expected to outperform it. Namely the sci-fi epic “Moonfall” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home. “ Jackass Forever ” brings back Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius and Wee Man for another round of pranks, stunts and injuries and has become the best-reviewed in the series, a stellar effort for a bunch of ageing skaters who are much closer to 50 than you would imagine. However, local Betoota Heights Gen-Xer Brad Carlton (39) says as funny as the film was, it just doesn’t feel the same. “It’s not because I’m too old” says Brad, defensively. “And it’s not because I spent the whole film wondering if these old men were going to break a hip on impact” “It’s still just as funny as it was when I was smoking bongs in the garage of my mate’s dad’s divorce pad” Brad says the main difference between the spritely smartass Jackass films and Jackass Forever, is the fact that he had to watch it in an air-conditioned cinema. “I watched the last three films were either on either VLC media player, or straight off the Limewire preview tab” he said. “It’s just not the same watching these guys when you know that the film hasn’t been peddled through the family computers of millions of teenagers” https://www.betootaadvocate.com/worl...d-cd-r-on-vlc/ ![]() After Bridi Pleads Guilty To Blu Ray Pirating He Is Sentenced to 22 Months, Removal to UK Matthew Russell Lee George Bridi was charged with illegally distributed movies and television shows on the Internet. On November 18, 2021 U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Richard M. Berman held a change of plea proceeding. Inner City Press covered it. Unlike most criminal cases in the SDNY, here the prosecutors had put out a press release announcing "the guilty plea of GEORGE BRIDI, a citizen of the United Kingdom, for his role in the Sparks Group, an international piracy group that BRIDI pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As he admitted in court today, George Bridi participated in an international video piracy ring that illegally distributed worldwide on the Internet nearly every movie released by major production studios, as well as television shows. Bridi circumvented copyright protections on DVDs and Blu-Ray discs to illegally share movies online, but he and his crew could not evade law enforcement scrutiny, and Bridi now awaits sentencing for his crime.” Sentencing was set for January 20, 2022 at noon. The case of course was filed in January 2020. And the sentencing, when it happened, was on February 7, 2022. Inner City Press covered it. Judge Berman said he would impose a sentence of 22 months. Bridi's lawyer asked that it be reduced to 20 months, because he might spend two or more extra months being deported to the UK. The AUSA said that delay would be unlikely, and Judge Berman said he's already factored it in. His focus, he said, was general deterrence. Twenty two months was the sentence. It is US v. Bridi, 20-cr-18 (Berman) http://www.innercitypress.com/sdny59...icp020722.html Until next week, - js. ![]() Current Week In Review ![]() Recent WiRs - February 5th, January 29th, January 22nd, January 15th Jack Spratts' Week In Review is published every Friday. Submit letters, articles, press releases, comments, questions etc. in plain text English to jackspratts (at) lycos (dot) com. Submission deadlines are Thursdays @ 1400 UTC. Please include contact info. The right to publish all remarks is reserved. "The First Amendment rests on the assumption that the widest possible dissemination of information from diverse and antagonistic sources is essential to the welfare of the public." - Hugo Black
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