So, Just How Bad Is PC Game Piracy?

We posted the other day regarding some assumptions that PC game piracy could be as high as 85%, but that is one number that will be disputed now, and for some time to come. In an attempt to gather some more reasonable numbers, Rock, Paper, Shotgun’s Kieron Gillen hit up Mininova.org to see just how many pirated PC games were being swapped.

The overall numbers are rather staggering. The #1 game being downloaded right now is Assassin’s Creed, which in itself is odd since half of the game is broken (warez version only). Call of Duty 4, the game mentioned in our posting the other day, is in the third position. According to Kieron’s math, if download numbers kept up since that games launch, then close to a million people would have downloaded it… illegally.

Torrents are a hard thing to grab statistics from because so many factors can come into play, but even when the most moderate estimates are taken into consideration, the numbers are still staggering. On one hand, it’s with numbers like these that I can understand why developers employ tools like Punk Buster with their application. On the other, these numbers are HIGH, so what good is Punk Buster doing? Except to annoy legal customers?

We mentioned that some code of Assassin’s Creed has been leaked before, but it’s worth stressing this is only a preview build. The game crashes upon reaching Jerusalem, which has lead to some hilarious hacker whining, immortalised here. Even when this is known, it hasn’t stopped people downloading the bloody thing. Lost making an appearance is expected, but Dark Messiah showing up is a genuine surprise – in terms of most leechers on a single client, it’s highest.

Source: Rock, Paper, Shotgun