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From: rsfinn@athena.mit.edu (Russell S. Finn)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Pirates!  by MicroProse (not a review, a complaint, please read)
Message-ID: <1990Jan6.234856.9692@athena.mit.edu>
Date: 6 Jan 90 23:48:56 GMT
References: <84978@linus.UUCP> <1031@pmafire.UUCP> <1990Jan5.055220.4463@athena.mit.edu> <1041@pmafire.UUCP>
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Reply-To: rsfinn@athena.mit.edu (Russell S. Finn)
Organization: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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In article <1041@pmafire.UUCP> geoff@pmafire.UUCP (Geoff Allen) writes:
>I believe he said that he had to insert the master disk every time he
>restored from a save.  This was terribly annoying.  He felt like he was
>going to wear out the master disk in no time (and Copy II wasn't able to
>make a backup copy -- MicroProse will sell master disk backups for $10,
>I understand, but that's more than he's willing to pay).

Pirates! isn't really set up for frequent "restoring from a save", the
way you would in a traditional adventure game (save position -- open
the door -- get nuked by the dragon -- restore position -- don't open
the door).  You have to actually start to quit the game; then, when it
asks you if you want to start another game, say "yes".  At this point,
you're back at the first screen, and you can start up from a saved
position.  If, however, you actually exit the game and restart it, you
do have to reinsert the master disk (as you would anytime you launch
the game).

>Also the fact that the game hits the player with a double whammy was
>annoying.  Not just key disk copy protection, not just look-it-up-in-
>the-manual copy protection.  One or the other, he could live with, but
>both was just too much for him to tolerate. 

(Would you believe I did a game at MicroProse with *three* forms of
copy-protection?)  MicroProse's aggressive copy-protection policy
comes from having been burned badly in the lower end markets
(specifically the Atari eight-bit machines), and not being ready to
believe that similar practices won't take place in the PC or Macintosh
markets.  On the other hand, if they learn about sales being lost as a
result...  I may forward them a copy of this thread.

>I'll send him a copy of this (he's not on the net) and see if he has any
>more comments for you.

I'm looking forward to seeing them.  Let me point out (before I get
roasted) that I'm trying to explain MicroProse's policy (as I
understand it), not necessarily defend it.

-- Russ