There is a good discussion going on about various protection schemes so let see if we, as gamers can come up with a scheme that we would all approve of./

Here is my idea:

The base game is free, think of something like Dragon Age where you get the starter areas for free. Now then DLC is the way the game is expanded. You are free to purchase the areas you want for the game and skip those you do not want. The DLC is done through an account with the game maker and is limited to twon computers for install. The computers can be IDed by an algorithm based on hardware and software installed. We allow 2 computers for a laptop or second gaming machine in the house.  Any attempts to install on a different PC will require a call in and proof of ID such as Credit Card used to buy the DLC to over ride the security.

This means the whole idea of pirating for trila dies since a good start of the game is free for general consumption. The MEAT of the game requires payment and is secured.

The internet connection is not required for play so you do not have to hassel with it once you have made your purchases and installs. This can go a step farther for games with online play. If the game shows on more than the two machines allowed the game account is cancelled right then. Thus discouraging people from buying and then giving the game away to others.

Not a perfect system but workable I think. Anyone have any ideas for a system that would work?

Games are heading this way, its a fact..... streaming.

Yes they are , and not only multiplayer games , single player games too . Yes you will need an internet connection to play games in a few years , but this will become a standard and people will get used to it .

So far, its only the beginning . But its the reality . You will buy a game ,then you will install it but only a part of the game will be on your computer , the rest will be streamed from secured server that you will access with a special account which cannot be used in two computers at the same time , so as long as people try to figure out what is missing in the game and try to rebuild it on their own at home, company will make more money selling more games and this system will probably save the PC games and even encourage company that almost , or completely stopped doing them because of the piracy.

OnLive.com is a good example of game streaming if you want to have a look.

I don't like wholly digital games. Part of the reason I buy cds/dvds for games is because I like to revisit games that I've enjoyed in the past, usually once I've forgotten exactly what the storyline was (I play RPGs almost exclusively). When games are wholly digital, my ability to reinstall said games is entirely in the hands of the publisher; does the publisher support long-term downloads 5 or 10 years from the time the game is sold?; will the publisher even be in business in 5 or 10 years? This problem still exists even if the game requires an online activation after new installs; will that company still be in business to confirm activation?

With MMOs, I'm willing to live with the certainty that the games will eventually shut down and I'll be unable to play them anymore, but, MMOs are epics that tell their stories over years and years and years, growing and (hopefully) improving as they go. Single-player games are short stories, some wouldn't even qualify as short poems. I want to go back to them again and again, which is why I'm willing to pay $40, $50, or $60 for them. Any form of copy protection a publisher uses will have to facilitate this somehow, or I'll stick with consoles until consoles move away from tangible software as well. I guess I'm old school like that. Regrettably, at least for me, it means I'm not really a driving market force.

I'm uncertain what the solution is here. I'd be happy to pay box price for a piece of software I was interested in if it had no copy protection at all. My first thought has never been "Someone must've cracked this, so I can get it for free." My first thought has always been, "That looks like fun, I think I'll see if I can find a deal on it at Fry's or Amazon."

As far as prohibiting used sales goes, I'm afraid I have no idea what the economic impact of those might be on a company. Most of the time when I buy a used game, though, I do it because I simply don't have enough interest in it to pay the new price for it. I pre-order anything I find captivating. That wouldn't change if used sales were prevented, it'd just mean I'd never play the game at all. That's fine for me, as I wouldn't know what I was missing, but the company would also be losing positive word-of-mouth if the game turned out to be a nice surprise. The only way around this, that I see,  is for a company to just keep lowering the new box price as the game ages until it hits the same price as used games otherwise would've been at.  I'm willing to wait for prices to drop, essentially skipping the "new adopter tax," but  preventing me from buying used games isn't going to get me to buy the new game at a higher price, especially if that game is riddled with DRMs.