Game Dev Tycoon is a brand new sim and management game that allows you to build and manage your own virtual game development studio; developing virtual games and releasing them to a virtual market. Developer Greenheart Games released the game this week, but did something interesting as well; released a cracked version of its own game to the internet…with a little catch.
Those who’ve been playing the cracked and pirated version of the game have been finding that after a few hours of play, their virtual game development studio starts bleeding virtual money – to virtual piracy.
In that version of the game, the harder they work, the more their new faux games get pirated, until eventually they’re faced with bankruptcy. Best of all is the delicious irony to be found in the game’s support forums and on Steam.
Hahaha.” …can I research DRM or something…” Here’s another gem:
“Why are there so many people that pirate? It ruins me!” All that because they pirated an $8 game. It’s a brilliant move by the developers and you have to appreciate the irony.
The biggest bit of irony though? Game Dev Tycoon is itself a blatant rip-off of Kairosoft’s excellent Game Dev Story, which is available for iOS and Android.
Last Updated: April 30, 2013
Admiral Chief Erwin
April 30, 2013 at 09:56
PIRATE-ception
Sir Rants-a-Lot Llew
April 30, 2013 at 09:57
Lol
Sir Rants-a-Lot Llew
April 30, 2013 at 09:58
Clever
Admiral Chief Erwin
April 30, 2013 at 09:58
This….
is……
BRILLIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANT!!!!!!!!!
Trapped.
ONE MILLION UPVOTES!!!
Skyblue
May 2, 2013 at 08:32
Agreed
OnlineFPSmurderSIMmakeOVG:(
April 30, 2013 at 09:59
🙁
umar bastra
April 30, 2013 at 10:00
Yo Dawg, I heard you like pirating games
So I released a pirate game that get’s pirated by pirates playing a pirate version of the game you made in a pirate version of the game you downloaded
Trevor Davies
April 30, 2013 at 10:09
You can be guaranteed that somewhere, someone is complaining about how unfair it is his pirated game was ruined by this.
Sargon
April 30, 2013 at 10:23
Smartest way to get someone to actually go out and buy the game. Really. Really. Really. Good. It’s also refreshing to see “out-of-the-box” thinking in the way in which developers are starting to attempt to approach piracy. Clearly DRM isn’t the only option. Putting in game mechanics like this must also be really satisfying for the devs as well. Imagine seeing your forums littered with these people complaining? It would instantly make my day better. 🙂
Brady miaau
April 30, 2013 at 10:25
but only 216 people (according to http://www.theregister.co.uk) bought this game and 3000 pirated it.
Perhaps the message is being lost because the game is not that good?
Unavengedavo
April 30, 2013 at 10:37
Well the 3000 that pirated it probably deleted it because they thought it was kak. The other 216 are most likely enjoying the game…
Anon A Mouse
April 30, 2013 at 10:34
So you make the same amount or even less if your game is 9 – 10, than what you do when you have an average game. Now I finally realize why devs gives us incomplete games that needs day one patches and dlc.
Exalted Overlord Geoffrey Tim
April 30, 2013 at 10:39
I recommend giving Kairo’s Game Dev Story a bash. it’s cheap on iOS and Android, and insanely, stupidly addictive.
DieJason
April 30, 2013 at 14:41
Just got a new phone that doesn’t look like it was assaulted by 5 hammers, downloading Game Dev Story Lite (demo) now.
Hermann Schwindt
April 30, 2013 at 12:15
Lol, oh the irony from those posts.