Piracy sucks. While there are arguments that suggest that piracy isn’t akin to theft, the net effect is the same; people getting stuff they didn’t pay for, and ultimately have no right to use. One way to combat this is to saddle games (and other media) with DRM. But there’s a better way to stop people from illegally sourcing your product: make it something people want to own.
One way that game publishers do this is through often beautiful and ostentatious Collector’s Editions stuffed with physical memorabilia. The other – the method that CD Projekt RED’s used – is to make something awesome that people want to pay for.
The Witcher 3 developer CD Projekt RED is a consumer darling, and for good reason. They’ve not only made one of this generation’s finest and most expansive games, but they’ve supported it with an almost unparalleled reverence for the game and its fans.
Speaking at infoShare 2016 (transcribed by Kotaku), CDPR co-founder Marcin Iwinski detailed how the company fought piracy with a product worth owning.
“We released [The Witcher 3] without any copy protection. So, on day one, you could download the game from GOG, and give it to a friend (enemy as well)…and still we sold near to 10 million units across all 3 platforms. But the piracy factor was irrelevant, because we cannot force people to buy things. We can only convince them to do it. We totally believe in the carrot, not in the stick…I’ve seen many times, comments [that say] ‘Hey, I couldn’t afford the game when it was full price, but these guys are so fair, and they were never against us. They were always trying to do good, add a lot of value, give free DLC, give free content, that I bought the game from them when it was mid-price.’
…[In] lower income countries, people just cannot afford a 50 dollar game. So maybe our price-point offering in a certain country wasn’t right. For example, we have lower prices in Russia. And there is many cases like that.
We don’t like when people steal our product, but we are not going to chase them and put them in prison. But we’ll think hard what to make to convince them. And uh, convince them in a very positive way, so that they’ll buy the product next time, they’ll be happy with our game, and they’ll tell their friends not to pirate it.
And funnily enough, the more we proceed this way, the more we see them again on forums and Reddit and whatnot, we see that there is a guy saying ‘hey where can I download Witcher 3: Wild Hunt from?’ And then there is 10 people bashing them, ‘Oh you fucko, do not download the game. These guys are fair, they’re the only fair guys in the industry. You should go and buy it.’
And so, I’m not sure if this guy will buy it or find this link, but still, it’s a very positive attitude and it’s excellent word of mouth.”
And it’s a philosophy that’s certainly worked. In the same talk, Iwiniski confirmed that The Witcher 3 has now sold over 10 million copies.
Last Updated: July 19, 2016
Alien Emperor Trevor
July 19, 2016 at 09:42
I spent more on this one game & its expansions than I have on all the other games I’ve bought over the last 2/3 years combined. Worth every penny.
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 09:45
Agreed, will double dip into the GOTY edition a few years from now.
Original Heretic
July 19, 2016 at 10:48
Waiting for the GOTY version. Want all the DLC before I hop into again. And then I’m going to go from the start again.
Alien Emperor Trevor
July 19, 2016 at 11:07
One day, I might just start again – from the very first game.
Original Heretic
July 19, 2016 at 11:20
I’d jam W1 again in a heartbeat. But I thought that W2 wasn’t nearly as good as the first and third. Too restrictive.
Matthew Holliday
July 19, 2016 at 11:32
W2 felt like playing with a wooden mannequin, looked amazing, but I lasted an hour and never touched it again.
geel slang
July 19, 2016 at 13:23
Easily the best game this generation, nothing comes even close.
Admiral Chief - Check
July 19, 2016 at 09:43
Easily in my top 5 games played in my entire existence.
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 09:44
But then you’ve only played like 10 games 😛
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 09:48
10 games? When did he buy 4 more games?
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 09:48
HAH!
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 09:52
Maybe he counts every Warframe update as a new game? 😛
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 09:53
Stahp! You’re killing me! XD
Admiral Chief - Check
July 19, 2016 at 09:55
Funny you should mention that, the latest update changed a shitload, so it actually IS a new game
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 10:10
Well technically the Evolve update made it like another game. Too bad it is another crap game. 😛
Admiral Chief - Check
July 19, 2016 at 10:19
Janee, total kak that one, I even tried a bit, was utterly, utterly meh-ed out by it within an hour
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 10:20
Took me 30 mins to switch back to Overwatch.
Admiral Chief - Check
July 19, 2016 at 10:20
Yeah tonight I’m reclaiming the space on my SSD
Admiral Chief - Check
July 19, 2016 at 09:53
Heh “buy” lolz
miaau
July 19, 2016 at 13:48
I would agree there, much fun to be had.
Human Revolution also in there. Civ series, by hours, though has to be number 1 for me.. Or Master of Orion 2.
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 09:44
I don’t advocate piracy but after seeing the new DLC for Battlefront and Capcom selling Pro Tour DLC for SFV after claiming all DLC would be free I wouldn’t even be mad if people pirated their games
Greylingad[He Charges!]
July 19, 2016 at 10:05
This^
Original Heretic
July 19, 2016 at 09:47
I love these guys at CD Projekt.
The first Witcher game turned me onto reading the source novels, something I was so grateful for. And the best thing was, they did it justice.
I have yet to see another game, based on a series of awesome books, that honored the books properly.
Witcher for the win!!
Alien Emperor Trevor
July 19, 2016 at 09:49
I also grabbed the books after playing the first game, they’re awesome. 😀
Original Heretic
July 19, 2016 at 09:51
I’d never even heard of Sapkowski before then. Now he’s one of my favourites.
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 09:51
Even though it had no source material Mass Effect made me buy all the books and comics and the movie after the fact.
miaau
July 19, 2016 at 13:47
Betrayal at Krondor, circa 1992. Feist “wrote” the game, then wrote a book afterwards. I loved that games, it was awesome. In the foreword of the book Feist says how hard it was to “write” a game, but the writers did it and Feist approved it and nudged it along.
Pity, tried to play the game last year, cannot. It is just too old.
sequel, Return to Krondor, was a bit meh.
Original Heretic
July 19, 2016 at 13:54
I’m a huge Feist fan, truly. I own every book he’s written, from Magician, all the way through to Magician’s End. You can even throw Faerie Tale in there.
But Krondor: The Betrayal is a baaaad book. As fun as the game was to play, the book came afterward and it was a terrible adaptation of it. It felt so contrived most of the time.
miaau
July 19, 2016 at 14:42
Yip, the book is not great, but the game is bloody awesome.
I just now, starting just before my 3 week holiday (31 May), read every single Feist book from Talon of the Silver Hawk, through to Magicians End. E-book special, I know own all but the very last as both physical and e-book.
THEN I read Betrayal, Tear of Gods and Return. Yes, they are not good books, but I still, in my own way, enjoyed them.
Original Heretic
July 19, 2016 at 14:51
The Krondor books got better, I’ll give them that. But they were still better than those standalones that Feist co-write with those other authors. It was only Honored Enemy that I thought was worth the read. Murder in La Mut and Jimmy the Hand were terrible.
Sounds like you also enjoy a good read, so here’s my recommendation for a damn good series: The Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks. If you haven’t yet read it, seriously, check it out. And then after that, his current series, The Lightbringer. 3 books out already, book 4 coming later this year. I am salivating for it.
Voorshwa Oy
July 19, 2016 at 19:15
Love people like you. I’m terrible at finding good books and content. Someone like yourself gives me hope I’m not missing absolutely everything. Thanks for the suggestions.
V
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 09:47
Too bad their customer service was beyond terrible and GoG galaxy is worse than Uplay. The game itself was not bad but I had massive sandbox burnout so I could not be bothered to finish it.
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 09:49
Me as well almost, but I pushed through. Spent too much time on Gwent and Question mark locations. Still not a fan of the game’s combat.
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 09:50
I never was since 1. However Story always trumps gameplay for me.
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 09:54
You must hate the Souls games then?
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 10:09
Actually only ever played the first and yes … not my type of game.
Greylingad[He Charges!]
July 19, 2016 at 10:11
Funny thing that, I need to play Bloodborne at some point again, the souls games are of play-breakforsixmonths-play nature, otherwise my TV/playstation/controller will end up being broken or burnt…
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 10:12
My first proper R2k gaming KB got destroyed by RE5. My co-op buddies mouse was destroyed at the same time. Also we did not talk to each other for about a month afterwards.
Greylingad[He Charges!]
July 19, 2016 at 10:16
Yup! That’s the reason I haven’t played any of the RE games in years…
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 10:19
Yeah.
#QTEmustfall
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 10:34
LOL!
Original Heretic
July 19, 2016 at 09:55
Usually, I would agree. And then I played Alone in the Dark, one of the first games I ever got for my Xbox360. The controls were HORRENDOUS! But the story was cool.
Zoe Hawkins
July 19, 2016 at 09:55
i’m playing it now on PS4 and enjoying it, but only playing for a couple hours at a time and then on to other things. trying to keep my open world burnout to a minimum….
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 10:00
Started Mad Max last night after finishing Batman, might need to play a few indies in between
miaau
July 19, 2016 at 13:45
Open World burnout. It is a real and present danger.
Wise.
Original Heretic
July 19, 2016 at 09:57
So many question marks. They were awesome, until I got to Skellige. And then, all I could think was…
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 09:57
LOL!
Alien Emperor Trevor
July 19, 2016 at 10:11
Those Skellige question marks can get in the sea. Except they’re already all there.
Matthew Holliday
July 19, 2016 at 11:25
no such thing as “too much gwent”
it gave the world colour and that colour is what made up for the average combat mechanics.
Hammersteyn_hates_Raid0
July 19, 2016 at 11:47
hehe there can be too much if you never end up finishing the game
Matthew Holliday
July 19, 2016 at 11:26
galaxy is pretty average yeah, managing DLC through it is a righteous pain.
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 11:33
DLC is the least of my problems. 9 Times out of 10 they have server issues and the core game does not even want to update. This is one of the main complaints on their forums to witch there is yet to be a reply or even an acknowledgement. Steam has terrible customer supoprt but at the very least the app itself works pretty damn well. Origin could do with some major fixes but their customer support is one of the best if not the best in the industry. Uplay works when it wants too and is fairly stupid to use. Have not used their support as I hate them. Gog Galaxy has 0 customer support and a terrible app.
TL;DR If you want Witcher buy it on Steam.
Matthew Holliday
July 19, 2016 at 11:39
never had any issues like that with galaxy, even Origin was pretty stable when I was using it last. must just be lucky i guess.
origin even has some decent sales going on, which is always a plus. its grown on me.
Uplay is annoying AF though.
if anything, i resented being forced to remember another login… for essentially, 2 games, farcry and AC.
and the fact that if you bought a ubi game on steam, it redirected you to uplay when you try launching…
Kromas GG
July 19, 2016 at 13:34
You were really lucky with Galaxy as just getting ton the forums shows how bad the app really is. Origin works but it is extremely bare bones (no backup feature no bandwidth management and most of my saves are too big for their cloud save system).
I have to agree with your Uplay assesment.
VampyreSquirrel
July 19, 2016 at 10:07
I bought the game, fetched files from Alessandro (when I got Fallout files) aaaand I’ve played TW3 for about… an hour?
That said, I’ll play it, just don’t have the lus to play anything atm.
Admiral Chief - Check
July 19, 2016 at 10:20
O______O
VampyreSquirrel
July 19, 2016 at 11:04
¯_(?)_/¯
BacchusZA
July 19, 2016 at 10:14
I must admit to getting the first Witcher game on a, uuuhhhh, “extended trial version” basis, and quite enjoyed it, even if I didn’t finish it. Based on that though, I *did* buy the 2nd one, the special edition even, and the third, and then went back later & bought a copy of the first one, just by way of saying “thanks guys, good game, my apologies for not buying it originally”.
I have found though, that as I’ve gotten older, and my income has gone up, I play fewer and fewer games, so I don’t feel any need to look for the “extended trial versions” anymore. The games I want to play, I buy – and I’ll pay a lot for them even, ~$130 for Star Citizen, & £150 for Elite Dangerous. The rest of them I just don’t bother with anymore.
Matthew Hughes
July 19, 2016 at 11:09
I bought the first 2 games at about $5 each, so I made a point to buy this at full price (preordered as soon as I could) Besides… I wanted that map and all the nice stuff the physical, standard version came with.
Mossel
July 19, 2016 at 11:10
Fuck me I still have the map! Completely forgot about it! Guess its time to place it somewhere.
Darren Peach
July 19, 2016 at 11:23
A model for commercial and critical success without isolating your fans.
konfab
July 19, 2016 at 14:35
This is basically the philosophy behind the way that Steam works.
MetalQuintessence
July 21, 2016 at 02:15
Piracy is almost non-existent these days. I don’t know why media still uses it for clickbait.
And it’s arguable about all the “losses” companies like to report from piracy, when in reality in the open market you aren’t guaranteed anything and it’s what you can actually sell. If you make a good game you’ll get profit, if you make a bad game you won’t.
If you think that’s just bs you can go check some statistics. Sad fact is even when the game is utter shit it can be turned into commercial success with proper marketing and promotion.
Other than that it’s really debatable on what is piracy and not, when you take into acount cases like with NOLF 2 being done everything possible not to get a re-release like System Shock got from GoG, practically leaves you no chance other than to “pirate”.
Not gonna even start on the whole “copyright” and scratched disks debate. You aren’t actually allowed to make a virtual copy of your CD, but then again if our cd got scratched then tough luck – you’ll have to buy another “copy” even tho you already purchased your copy. Now with digital download it isn’t much of an issue, but still when it comes to older games that aren’t in stock anymore… and are fiercely refused a re-release what other options do you have.
So let me not agree that piracy is an utter evil.
Further more it has been legalized and employed by some countries in the past like the good ol’ British Empire. Privateers anyone? ^_^