History CopyProtection / ElectronicArts

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC). Also, as with some games on Steam but taken up to eleven, A lot of its titles are shipped with secondary DRM (usually a version [=SafeDisc=] or [=SecuROM=] that checks with a server on the internet in lieu of a physical medium), including its On The House range, which are retro games they gave out for free to begin with.

* The ''VideoGame/SimCity'' copy protection sheet actually ''could'' be copied, if you had a copy machine that could be adjusted properly...or if you spent all afternoon at your friend's place doing it by hand. Once color photocopiers became prevalent, the scheme fell flat on its face.

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC). Also, as with some games on Steam but taken UpToEleven, A lot of its titles are shipped with secondary DRM (usually a version [=SafeDisc=] or [=SecuROM=] that checks with a server on the internet in lieu of a physical medium), including its On The House range, which are retro games they gave out for free to begin with.

* ''VideoGame/CrysisWarhead'' replaces all the bullets in pirated copies with live chickens. You can keep playing, but the chickens do no damage and no one can die.

** EA tried the same thing with ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianTwilight''. While it didn't bring up as much bad press as in Ubisoft's case, there were some people complaining about it nonetheless, ''[[http://games.slashdot.org/story/10/03/26/0653202/EA-Editor-Criticizes-Command-amp-Conquer-4-DRM and that included one of EA's own employees]]''.

* ''VideoGame/SimCity2013''. While it was never said if the game's "always online" requirement was due to copy protection, it seems very likely, given that hackers have found that the game works perfectly fine offline -- you simply can't save your city or interact with others'. In fact, the game actually allows players to play for twenty minutes offline if they get disconnected because there is a variable disconnect timer that forces the game to quit when it elapses.[[note]]All this despite [[WordOfGod official claims that]] [[LyingCreator it would not be possible to play the game offline without "a significant amount of engineering work"]][[/note]] In any case, many players could not play the game when it came out due to -- again -- server overload. This time, Amazon.com temporarily stopped selling the game, a patch was released that actually cut out several features in an attempt to relieve server pressure, and EA actually told websites to ''stop advertising the game''. The InternetBackdraft from angry gamers was so intense that the head developer stepped down and EA ''eventually began working on a local-side server so the game can be played offline''. [[note]]They also revealed that the server side was written in Java- which experienced programmers will tell you is a horrible bloated language that should not be used for something as demanding as game servers. The local side server that was eventually released was written in the less demanding C++. [[/note]]. Additionally, the user is validated against Origin every time the game is launched to ensure that the game belongs to a valid Origin user who have paid up for the game.

* Maxis' ''VideoGame/TheSims 3'' was leaked online several weeks early, giving many players a sneak peek at the game's functionality. EA caught wind of this pretty quickly, and said that the leaked version was missing half the game's content and was glitched to hell, and instead of hunting down every single person who downloaded the game and preventing them from accessing the game altogether, settled on telling them they were running an unauthorized version and pleading them to buy the full version to get extra content.
** Thanks to the [=SecuROM=] situation, EA decided to scale back this games' copy protection to the traditional CD check and serial number that the earlier games used.
* ''VideoGame/TheSims4'' [[http://kotaku.com/anyone-who-pirates-the-sims-4-is-in-for-a-surprise-1630684015 makes everything]] [[{{Pixellation}} pixelated]]. No, they did not downgrade the graphics in tribute to ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}''. Aside from that, it also has Origin validation. The pixellation occurs if the game determines that it has been cracked to bypass Origin validation. It has since been bypassed in newer versions.
** Although, this pixellation "bug" will only activate if a Sim goes naked, so it can be [[AvertedTrope averted]] if you avoid showering/bathing your Sim. [[PottyEmergency Don't put cheats,]] [[PottyFailure and the needs of your Sim will take their toll.]]

** ''Command and Conquer: The First Decade'' is a collection of all of the games in the series as far as ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals Generals]]'', along with all the appropriate expansion packs. While not nearly as bad as most of the examples here, the package took the rather silly step of using a separate CD key for every game, meaning that installing all of them requires about ten minutes of typing in a dozen or so codes for the same product[[labelnote:*]]It should be noted that this is pretty typical for "packaged" games, as they're intended to be released as quick cash-ins on an existing franchise or to generate hype for a new game in a long-running series. Recoding the copy-protection for the entire package of games would take time to code and to verify, and could introduce new problems to a game that was already running smoothly, so it's rarely worth the effort[[/labelnote]]. However, it's so finnicky that some games (Generals and Renegade) break their installers after one time.

* ''VideoGame/TheSims4'' [[http://kotaku.com/anyone-who-pirates-the-sims-4-is-in-for-a-surprise-1630684015 makes everything]] [[{{Pixellation}} pixelated]]. No, they did not downgrade the graphics in tribute to ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}''. Aside from that, it also has Origin validation. The pixellation occurs if the game determines that it has been cracked to bypass Origin validation.

* There was much controversy that surrounded the release of the PC version of the first ''[[VideoGame/MassEffect1 Mass Effect]]''. The player is only allowed three activations on a single computer until they have to buy another copy. You don't get back an activation, and changing your hardware settings takes one up. There was also going to be a validation process that checked up on you every 10 days (or else the game wouldn't run), but this was nixed after immense backlash from players. The [[VideoGame/MassEffect2 sequel]] just uses a disc check and doesn't require online authentication, though obviously the DLC does[[note]]If you have the game illegally, you can't get the DLC, because in order to activate the DLC you have to "check in" online, which will detect that your version is illegal. ''Mass Effect 3'' does something similar, and also integrates the online multiplayer into the single-player game, where the multiplayer portion obviously will not work if the copy is illegal[[/note]].

** Some gamers even went so far as to buy the game, then download the pirated version in order to not have to deal with the copy protection.
* ''Videogame/StrikeCommander'' came with instructions to copy the disks and put them in the cupboard in case something happens to your originals.

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC). Also, as with some games on Steam but taken UpToEleven, A lot of it's titles are still shipped with secondary DRM (usually a version [=SafeDisc=] or [=SecuROM=] that checks with a server on the internet in lieu of a physical medium), including its On The House range, which are retro games they gave out for free to begin with.

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC). Also, as with some games on Steam but taken UpToEleven, A lot of it's titles are still shipped with secondary DRM (usually a version [=SafeDisc=] that checks with a server on the internet in lieu of a physical medium), including its On The House range, which are retro games they gave out for free to begin with.

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC). Also, as with Steam taken UpToEleven, A lot of it's titles are still shipped with secondary DRM (usually a version SafeDisc that checks with a server on the internet), including its On The House range, which are retro games they gave out for free to begin with.

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC). Also, as with Steam taken UpToEleven, A lot of it's titles are still shipped with secondary DRM (usually a network version of SafeDisc), including its On The House range, which are retro games they gave out for free to begin with.

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Worst of all, it requires a fee ($5 at the door, then $5 a month/$30 a year). Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC). All of its titles are hit with DRM, including its On The House range, which are retro games they gave out for free to begin with.

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Worst of all, it requires a fee ($5 at the door, then $5 a month/$30 a year). Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC).

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC).

** ''Command and Conquer: The First Decade'' is a collection of all of the games in the series as far as ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals Generals]]'', along with all the appropriate expansion packs. While not nearly as bad as most of the examples here, the package took the rather silly step of using a separate CD key for every game, meaning that installing all of them requires about ten minutes of typing in a dozen or so codes for the same product[[labelnote:*]]It should be noted that this is pretty typical for "packaged" games, as they're intended to be released as quick cash-ins on an existing franchise or to generate hype for a new game in a long-running series. Recoding the copy-protection for the entire package of games would take time to code and to verify, and could introduce new problems to a game that was already running smoothly, so it's rarely worth the effort[[/labelnote]].

[=EA=] has ''fiercely'' defended its intellectual properties since the early days of gaming. How they combatted piracy varied though the years...

* ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert2'' had a particularly creative version. A pirated copy of the game would load up completely normally, and the actual gameplay itself would also operate normally...for about three minutes, until all of your units and buildings would simultaneously explode using the nuclear weapon animation, causing you to lose. It was pretty funny. The same is true for ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals'', where your stuff would explode about 30 seconds into the game.
** ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert3'' used DRM and counted your game installations. Also, for the first time of the history of ''Command And Conquer'', two players couldn't even play in LAN mode with the same license (while before, the game using two [=CDs=] allowed it). ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberiumWars Tiberium Wars]]'' also didnt allow the player to participate in LAN mode with the same serial key.
** EA tried the same thing with ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianTwilight''. While it didn't bring up as much bad press as it was in Ubisoft's case, there were some people complaining about it nonetheless, ''[[http://games.slashdot.org/story/10/03/26/0653202/EA-Editor-Criticizes-Command-amp-Conquer-4-DRM and that included one of EA's own employees]]''.
** ''Command and Conquer: The First Decade'' was a collection of all of the games in the series as far as ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals Generals]]'', along with all the appropriate expansion packs. While not nearly as bad as most of the examples here the package took the rather silly step of using a separate CD key for every game, meaning that installing all of them required about ten minutes of typing in a dozen or so codes for the same product[[labelnote:*]]It should be noted that this is pretty typical for "packaged" games, as they're intended to be released as quick cash-ins on an existing franchise or to generate hype for a new game in a long-running series. Recoding the copy-protection for the entire package of games would take time to code, time to verify, and could introduce new problems to a game that was already running smoothly, and is rarely worth the effort[[/labelnote]].
* ''Earl Weaver Baseball'' was an pioneering strategy-based sports game, and also provided an early example of CopyProtection. At or near the beginning of the game, the player was asked the salary of a certain position in a certain year. The player had to rely on a code wheel (included with the software and manual) to find the correct answer. The player got three chances to give the correct answer before getting ejected from the game.
* There was much controversy that surrounded the release of the PC version of the first ''[[VideoGame/MassEffect1 Mass Effect]]''. The player was only allowed three activations on a single computer until they had to buy another copy. You don't get back an activation, and changing your hardware settings takes one up. There was also going to be a validation process that checked up on you every 10 days (or else the game wouldn't run), but this was canned after immense backlash from players. The [[VideoGame/MassEffect2 sequel]] just uses a disc check, and doesn't require online authentication, though obviously the DLC does[[note]]If you have the game illegally, you can't get the DLC, because in order to activate the DLC, you have to "check in" online, which will detect that your version is illegal. ''Mass Effect 3'' does something similar, and also integrates the online multiplayer into the single-player game, where the multiplayer portion obviously will not work if the copy is illegal[[/note]].
* The PC version of ''VideoGame/MirrorsEdge'' had copy protection in the form of a trigger that tripped in the game's third stage. When the player runs toward the first jump in the stage, the character model of Faith slows down to a snail's pace, rendering it impossible to jump the requisite gap to continue the level. A patch was later made to address this.

* ''VideoGame/SimCity2013''. While it wasn't said if the game's "always online" requirement was due to copy protection, it seems very likely, given that hackers have found that the game works perfectly fine offline -- you simply can't save your city or interact with others'. In fact, the game actually allows players to play for twenty minutes offline if they get disconnected because there is a variable disconnect timer that forces the game to quit when it elapses.[[note]]All this despite [[WordOfGod official claims that]] [[LyingCreator it would not be possible to play the game offline without "a significant amount of engineering work"]][[/note]] In any case, many players could not play the game when it came out due to -- again -- server overload. This time, Amazon.com temporarily stopped selling the game, a patch was released that actually cut out several features in an attempt to relieve sever pressure, and EA actually told websites to ''stop advertising the game''. The InternetBackdraft from angry gamers was so intense that the head developer stepped down and EA ''eventually began working on a local-side server so the game can be played offline''. [[note]]They also revealed that the server side was written in Java- which experienced programmers will tell you is a horrible bloated language that should not be used for something as demanding as game servers. The local side server that was eventually released was written in the less demanding C++. [[/note]]. Additionally, the user is validated against Origin every time the game is launched to ensure that the game belongs to a valid Origin user who have paid up for the game.

* ''VideoGame/{{Spore}}'', which used [=SecuROM=], was cracked a good 4-5 days '''before''' release. Its copy protection required that the computer running it be in constant contact with the internet to verify the game's authenticity. So, if you're disconnected for whatever reason...

* ''Videogame/StrikeCommander'' came with instructions to copy the disks and put them in the cupboard in case something happened to your originals.
* The original ''Strike Fleet'' naval tactical command simulation was published by EA and required players to provide data from the manual regarding a selection of the various listed ships on startup, such as the displacement of an ''Oliver Hazard Perry''-class frigate (for the record, 4,100 imperial tons). Failure to provide the correct piece of information would result in textual castigation and an immediate quit-to-DOS.
* The diskette version of ''VideoGame/SystemShock'' stored more data on disk number one then normal copying tools would allow it to hold; attempting a basic clone would fail.
* The ''VideoGame/WingCommander'' series required, for the first game (and its [[ExpansionPack Expansion Packs]]), information included in the {{feelies}} or manual to start playing the game. When the games were reworked for the ''Kilrathi Saga'' collection, the check was eliminated.

* EA's ultimatum in CopyProtection is '''Origin''', their gaming client and competing take at [[Creator/ValveSoftware Valve]]'s Steam. Games can be purchased in-client, and a growing number of games will authenticate themselves using Origin's mechanism instead of through their own proprietary login screen or copy protection routine. Origin allows one to purchase games and [=DLCs=] from within the client itself, and offers a lot of functionality that are similar to Steam. However, it is lacking in games due to the fact that EA only sells games they publish on it. Also, it's still somewhat crude on several aspects (ie no backup and restore, and still unable to run multiple instances of Origin logged into the same account. And oh, still no Linux client. Steam has already gone as far as having [=iOS=] and Android clients where you can purchase games from your phone and have it download onto your PC).

* ''{{Spore}}'', which used [=SecuROM=], was cracked a good 4-5 days '''before''' release. Its copy protection required that the computer running it be in constant contact with the internet to verify the game's authenticity. So, if you're disconnected for whatever reason...

* The ''VideoGame/WingCommander'' series required, for the first game (and its ExpansionPacks), information included in the {{feelies}} or manual to start playing the game. When the games were reworked for the ''Kilrathi Saga'' collection, the check was eliminated.

* The ''VideoGame/WingCommander'' series required, for the first few games, information included in the {{feelies}} or manual to start playing the game. When they were reworked for the ''Kilrathi Saga'' collection, the check was eliminated.

** Although, this pixellation "bug" will only activate if a Sim goes naked, so it can be [[AvertedTrope averted]] if you avoid showering/bathing your Sim. [[PottyEmergency don't put cheats,]] [[PottyFailure and the needs of your Sim will take their toll.]]

* The diskette version of ''SystemShock'' stored more data on disk number one then normal copying tools would allow it to hold; attempting a basic clone would fail.