Why do people "pirate" DS/DSi games?

[glossywhite]

Hi there. One area of software "piracy" (stupid phrase btw) that bothers me more than most, is the ripping off of Nintendo DS/DSi games. It just seems utterly pointless, considering the games range from £12 to about £25, which is an absolute bargain for the many weeks/months/years of enjoyment to be had from them. I can understand it with DVDs; you watch the film once, maybe twice max, and then it becomes a redundant plastic disc.

I am bemused by those people who are more than willing to shell out the £60-200 for a DSx console, but then refuse to invest their money in a decent and utterly brilliant software title such as "New Super Mario Bros" or similair, for such a measly sum as is asked.

Another point is this; those dorks who do so, will often not be able to download firmware updates for the console, as it could prevent their "R4", or whatever variant, from working. Also, in years to come, when the console becomes collectable (and it surely will, given enough years), then where will be the collection of used and/or boxed games, to sell to Nintendo addicts? You're telling me that someone is gonna pay you for an R4 full of downloaded ROM copies? lol

It seems utterly stupid, is all - especially when the games are SO good, and SO cheap... but evidently not as cheap as those who refuse to buy them.

 

[roadbloc]

Why do people pirate music? At .59p a track on iTunes and other online services, it seems utterly pointless.

 

[glossywhite]

Why do people pirate music? At .59p a track on iTunes and other online services, it seems utterly pointless.

Yes, but that's not a physical, tangible product. A digital purchase won't become a collector's item, cannot be lent, and cannot be sold on eBay, and a subject that has been done to death, so Im not going there.

 

[robbieduncan]

Yes, but that's not a physical, tangible product... and a subject that has been done to death, so Im not going there.

OK, but CD albums are and people still pirated them. The simple answer is because they think they can get away with it and have loose enough morals not to be worried about the theft aspect.

 

[roadbloc]

OK, but CD albums are and people still pirated them. The simple answer is because they can get away with it and couldn't care less.

Fix'd.

 

[S.B.G]

People pirate media so that they don't have to pay for it. I think that is the fundamental reason for it.

 

[glossywhite]

People pirate media so that they don't have to pay for it. I think that is the fundamental reason for it.

Really? Surely not?

The point I am making is that these people are short-sighted, as their investment in the "piracy" device will be short-term, whereas buying the actual games will mean the enjoyment they have can be lent, passed on as a gift to the next inheritor of said media to enjoy, and so on, and so on. The game media, packaging & manuals will also retain value all down the line, and also (possibly) become collector's items, which often multiply the initial invesment by many times.

This is what I am getting at. I am not comparing it to other forms of digital "piracy", so please don't confuse the points being made, with loose(ish) comparisons.

 

[Tomorrow]

Is it even possible to pirate a cartridge?

I mean, I'm sure it's possible, but is it even feasible?

 

[balamw]

Is it even possible to pirate a cartridge?

I mean, I'm sure it's possible, but is it even feasible?

Just like CDs, DS pirates download only the contents of the cartridge in a digital form which is then "run" using an emulation cartridge of some sort like the aforementioned R4.

B

 

[Tomorrow]

Just like CDs, DS pirates download only the contents of the cartridge in a digital form which is then "run" using an emulation cartridge of some sort like the aforementioned R4.

B

So are people burning the ROM onto a blank cartridge or something? The software has to get into the handheld somehow. Maybe there's another means of getting it into there besides the cartridge slot.

 

[roadbloc]

So are people burning the ROM onto a blank cartridge or something?

Hit the nail on the head.

 

[0098386]

I used to copy friends games when I couldn't afford them, and as a kid it's either a £2 CD (as they were once upon a time) or a £30 boxed copy.
Now I have a job and I'm earning more than £5 a week, yeah, I'd rather invest in the game and company who developed it so we get more of the same in the future.

Since it took a couple of years for hackers to break the DSi's security I imagine 3DS hacking will be tighter than that.

But I agree. There is something really good about owning a piece of software. My (and teh girlfriends) copy of Pokemon Black and White ship tomorrow and they'll be signed on Friday by members of the dev team. Same with my various collectors editions... there's just a real quality to them. As I think the OP said - an investment. I'd take that over a quickly downloaded torrent any day of the week.

 

[glossywhite]

I used to copy friends games when I couldn't afford them, and as a kid it's either a £2 CD (as they were once upon a time) or a £30 boxed copy.
Now I have a job and I'm earning more than £5 a week, yeah, I'd rather invest in the game and company who developed it so we get more of the same in the future.

Since it took a couple of years for hackers to break the DSi's security I imagine 3DS hacking will be tighter than that.

But I agree. There is something really good about owning a piece of software. My (and teh girlfriends) copy of Pokemon Black and White ship tomorrow and they'll be signed on Friday by members of the dev team. Same with my various collectors editions... there's just a real quality to them. As I think the OP said - an investment. I'd take that over a quickly downloaded torrent any day of the week.

Bazinga!

 

[wordoflife]

Most of the time people pirate things not because they have no money to pay for it, but rather because they know they can.

 

[r1ch4rd]

Of course, due to the mass produced nature of the DS and its games, it is very unlikely that they will become a collectors item unless they have something special about them (signatures etc.). This won't be the case for the vast majority of games. I don't want to promote piracy, but I don't think it is true to say that buying games will be an investment.

I just took a look for a SNES on eBay - you can get one for around £36. Not much compared to it's £200 retail price in the 80's. You only really see prices shoot up when something is a flop and so quite rare. You can't say that about the DS.

I can accept the reasoning behind supporting a company so that they can put out new games, but I don't buy the financial side of it (not for the average Joe anyway).

 

[Abstract]

Is it even possible to pirate a cartridge?

I mean, I'm sure it's possible, but is it even feasible?

I had a "game copier" for my NES and SNES. The games were put on floppy disks. It's even more feasible today.

 

[Tomorrow]

Hit the nail on the head.

I've never seen blank cartridges before.

I had a "game copier" for my NES and SNES. The games were put on floppy disks. It's even more feasible today.

I guess I don't understand how you get an NES or SNES to read a floppy disk.

 

[CorvusCamenarum]

I've never seen blank cartridges before.



I guess I don't understand how you get an NES or SNES to read a floppy disk.

Back in the days when emulators were everywhere, you could similarly find tons of ROM sites out there that would let you download games from just about any console.

 

[0098386]

I just took a look for a SNES on eBay - you can get one for around £36. Not much compared to it's £200 retail price in the 80's. You only really see prices shoot up when something is a flop and so quite rare. You can't say that about the DS.

Depends who is involved, what condition the item is in, etc.

In 2000 (or so) Capcom released 2 new Zelda games for the Gameboy. In 2006 I bought the pair, boxed (but not sealed) off a local guy for £25 with his copy of Pokemon Gold thrown in. Even back then they were going for £25 each. I saw one recently go for £75.

Of course the bulk of games out there won't have that similar appreciation level. But thankfully my gaming tastes match those highly valued games .

I guess it's similar to audio and videophiles.

 

[Hydrocity]

I believe you can buy these 'games' that you can plug into your computer and import roms. then u can just play it off of that

 

[Abstract]

I guess I don't understand how you get an NES or SNES to read a floppy disk.

I had the red and white original "Asian" NES, which used cartridges that you'd load from the top. They used smaller cartidges, were more reliable, and had better controllers. A game copying machine plugged into the game cartidge port, and had a built-in floppy disk drive. On top of the game copier, there was a slot for your game cartidge. By plugging the game into the game copier, the game could be copied to any blank floppy disk in minutes.

Also, the NES could also accept the American NES cartridges via an adapter. I don't think it worked the other way around, though.

I literally had 200 games, many of which I rented and copied.

 

[mrat93]

For those wondering, R4 cards, Acekard (sp?) etc are the cartridges that go into the DS. The cartridge has a microSD card slot. You load the ROMs on there and put it into the cartridge.

I know this because I do it. I actually do the whole "try before you buy" thing. If I pay $35 for a game that's absolute crap, I will feel like absolute crap. After selling the game, I'd be out around $15. However, downloading the game, playing it once, and never playing it again is faster, easier, and less costly.

I do the same thing with apps. If an app looks good and it's 99 cents, I'll get it. It's just a dollar. However, if an app is $10 or more, I'll definitely try it before I buy it. At this moment, I have about 150 apps on my iPhone, all registered to my account.

 

[Signal-11]

I've never seen blank cartridges before.

The R4 and devices of its type are DS sized cartridges that have a slot for flash media, usually microSD. You write ROMs to the microSD card, then insert the card into the R4. Typical games are somewhere between 64 and 128MB.

When I used to travel a lot, sometimes I wouldn't see home for almost a year at a time, (once didn't see home for 18 months) so this was a convenient way to carry my entire DS game library with me.

I did a similar thing for my PSP games. I used to carry about 4-5 of the latest games on my MSPD and had ISOs and CSOs of all my games on my MBP.

 

[Tomorrow]

Back in the days when emulators were everywhere, you could similarly find tons of ROM sites out there that would let you download games from just about any console.

I remember finding ROMs, I just don't remember any way to take the digital file from my computer and insert it into a machine that only accepted cartridges.

I had the red and white original "Asian" NES, which used cartridges that you'd load from the top. They used smaller cartidges, were more reliable, and had better controllers. A game copying machine plugged into the game cartidge port, and had a built-in floppy disk drive. On top of the game copier, there was a slot for your game cartidge. By plugging the game into the game copier, the game could be copied to any blank floppy disk in minutes.

Also, the NES could also accept the American NES cartridges via an adapter. I don't think it worked the other way around, though.

I literally had 200 games, many of which I rented and copied.

The R4 and devices of its type are DS sized cartridges that have a slot for flash media, usually microSD. You write ROMs to the microSD card, then insert the card into the R4. Typical games are somewhere between 64 and 128MB.

I learn something every day, I swear I do.

 

[glossywhite]

Back in the days when emulators were everywhere, you could similarly find tons of ROM sites out there that would let you download games from just about any console.

Uhm... "back in the days..."? Open your eyes, open a new tab, goto Google and type in "index of snes":

http://www.watters.ws/rpms/roms/snes/

Sheesh, I often wonder if people walk around in a total daze, oblivious to the very internet they spend half their lives on!

Of course, due to the mass produced nature of the DS and its games, it is very unlikely that they will become a collectors item unless they have something special about them (signatures etc.). This won't be the case for the vast majority of games. I don't want to promote piracy, but I don't think it is true to say that buying games will be an investment.

I just took a look for a SNES on eBay - you can get one for around £36. Not much compared to it's £200 retail price in the 80's. You only really see prices shoot up when something is a flop and so quite rare. You can't say that about the DS.

I can accept the reasoning behind supporting a company so that they can put out new games, but I don't buy the financial side of it (not for the average Joe anyway).

1980s? SNES? wake up & pay attention in class!

Your interpretation of the word "investment" could maybe benefit from the broadening of your mind, outside the rather dull (and obvious) financial scope. Think of an investment outside the monetary meaning.

Honestly!