"This fails the needs of citizens in favor of a weak sauce argument from the industry, and it's really disappointing"
A three-year fight to help support game preservation has come to a sad end today. The US copyright office has denied a request for a DMCA exemption that would allow libraries to remotely share digital access to preserved video games.
“For the past three years, the Video Game History Foundation has been supporting with the Software Preservation Network (SPN) on a petition to allow libraries and archives to remotely share digital access to out-of-print video games in their collections,” VGHF explains in its statement. “Under the current anti-circumvention rules in Section 1201 of the DMCA, libraries and archives are unable to break copy protection on games in order to make them remotely accessible to researchers.”
Essentially, this exemption would open up the possibility of a digital library where historians and researchers could ‘check out’ digital games that run through emulators. The VGHF argues that around 87% of all video games released in the US before 2010 are now out of print, and the only legal way to access those games now is through the occasionally exorbitant prices and often failing hardware that defines the retro gaming market.
They’re right though. Those archived games would definitely be played… For fun. The problem is that even though the graphics aren’t as good, a lot of older games were fun and had great replayability. Eventually, there will be such a big historical catalog of games that people will be able to enjoy just legacy games without ever buying new ones.
The solution is simple: have some non-profit org manage the historical catalog, sell the old games super cheap, and send that way whoever holds the rights can still get profits off the old games. They could even give you different download options like game-only, or game in a VM that is guaranteed to actually be able to run the game.
Problem with their logic is that, as stated in the article, goods such as preserved books are already used for recreation. Your idea that a catalogue of old media would prevent consumption of new media is provably false by example. People read old books and it doesn’t stop them from reading new ones. Can you imagine saying this exact same thing about music? People’s tastes change over time and they like new things- old things don’t stop us from consuming the new things. All the copyright lobbyists are doing is preventing the public from enjoying old games that can no longer be played because the hardware is dated or there are no viable copies left.
That’s what I’ve been doing. Been collecting various PS1-4 games on top of GameCube, Wii, and Switch games over the past year to rip and save digital copies for myself. Then I play them on emulators.
I have roughly a few hundred so far and plan to expand it further.
I have a NAS with two 8 TB drives in RAID to back them up and it’s already over 50% full. I want to start collecting OG Xbox and 360 games in the near future, but I need to get jailbroken consoles for them.
Sure, but it’s a start. It’s certainly better than trying to keep them on my laptop. And I do hope to add more forms of data backup/storage as time goes on. It’s taken several hours ripping all those games and I’d hate to lose them all.
I also have an external 4 TB SSD that I keep most of the games on (excluding the PS4 games because they simply take up too much space).
Probably the easiest way to do an off-site backup for low-double digit terabytes is an external drive in a bank safety deposit box. Remember your home could burn down fall over and sink into a swamp and no amount of parity drives within the home would keep that data safe.
Original Xbox modding is fun as hell. You need to track down a 300GB PATA/IDE hard drive, then load the sucker up with ROMS. The modded OS comes with a built in FTP server so its pretty effortless to load up it with ROMs. Last I tried (like 10 years ago) Xbox reliably played roms from SNES and older, and could less than reliably but still successfully play N64 and PS1 games. I was even able to change CDs on FF7.
Man I want to mod an Xbox now. If I remember right, you need a copy of mech assault…
When they kill the games, they no longer make money on them. So playing without paying is not a lost sale, even if the player is corrupt enough to enjoy playing. So there’s no problem yeah?
They can dick about as much as they want, piracy will make sure to preserve the things they want gone. The reason they don’t want older games to be preserved is that new generations, whilst playing them, may come to realize that you don’t need gacha mechanics, stupid fomo, micro transactions, 6 different currencies, 3 different shop menus, 2 battlepasses and so forth to have a good game.
Someone’s got to do something about these fucking chicken shit publishers. I think it’s time for the industry to move on without them. Everything can be self published now. We have the technology.
Music publishers have been obsolete for two decades but they’re still around. Don’t need to provide a service when you have enough money to write the laws.
Publishers are absolutely terrified “preserved books would be used for recreational purposes,” major book burnings ordered by federal court to be carried out in every state…
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the plastic cases dont need preserving, just the data.
They’re right though. Those archived games would definitely be played… For fun. The problem is that even though the graphics aren’t as good, a lot of older games were fun and had great replayability. Eventually, there will be such a big historical catalog of games that people will be able to enjoy just legacy games without ever buying new ones.
The solution is simple: have some non-profit org manage the historical catalog, sell the old games super cheap, and send that way whoever holds the rights can still get profits off the old games. They could even give you different download options like game-only, or game in a VM that is guaranteed to actually be able to run the game.
Problem with their logic is that, as stated in the article, goods such as preserved books are already used for recreation. Your idea that a catalogue of old media would prevent consumption of new media is provably false by example. People read old books and it doesn’t stop them from reading new ones. Can you imagine saying this exact same thing about music? People’s tastes change over time and they like new things- old things don’t stop us from consuming the new things. All the copyright lobbyists are doing is preventing the public from enjoying old games that can no longer be played because the hardware is dated or there are no viable copies left.
Well, time to finally make my own collection to play
That’s what I’ve been doing. Been collecting various PS1-4 games on top of GameCube, Wii, and Switch games over the past year to rip and save digital copies for myself. Then I play them on emulators.
I have roughly a few hundred so far and plan to expand it further.
I have a NAS with two 8 TB drives in RAID to back them up and it’s already over 50% full. I want to start collecting OG Xbox and 360 games in the near future, but I need to get jailbroken consoles for them.
Obligatory “RAID is not a backup”
Sure, but it’s a start. It’s certainly better than trying to keep them on my laptop. And I do hope to add more forms of data backup/storage as time goes on. It’s taken several hours ripping all those games and I’d hate to lose them all.
I also have an external 4 TB SSD that I keep most of the games on (excluding the PS4 games because they simply take up too much space).
Make a torrent, best backup.
Probably the easiest way to do an off-site backup for low-double digit terabytes is an external drive in a bank safety deposit box. Remember your home could burn down fall over and sink into a swamp and no amount of parity drives within the home would keep that data safe.
I used to have a RAID6 (could lose two drives) without a backup, then some power surge killed 5 of the 12 disks. Trust me, you do want a backup.
Especially RAID 0.
That would be funny if someone thought RAID 0 was a backup solution, ahaha
Original Xbox modding is fun as hell. You need to track down a 300GB PATA/IDE hard drive, then load the sucker up with ROMS. The modded OS comes with a built in FTP server so its pretty effortless to load up it with ROMs. Last I tried (like 10 years ago) Xbox reliably played roms from SNES and older, and could less than reliably but still successfully play N64 and PS1 games. I was even able to change CDs on FF7.
Man I want to mod an Xbox now. If I remember right, you need a copy of mech assault…
Well that’s fucking stupid.
… but not surprising.
Corruption from potato supreme all the way down and back up to Orange Hitler
You haven’t sold this game in 30 years - why do you fucking care you drooling troglodite?
When they kill the games, they no longer make money on them. So playing without paying is not a lost sale, even if the player is corrupt enough to enjoy playing. So there’s no problem yeah?
Why play old fun games, when you could subscribe to the latest bland live service FOMO skinner box masquerading as a game?
I don’t know where this industry is headed but it isn’t to a good place.
This reeks of selling games on a “pay per new game save” kind of move. If “replay” is a threat, how long until they move to eliminate that?
Guess I’ll have to start hoarding games now
Well isn’t it just convenient that I don’t give a damn what the US copyright office thinks?
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I guess people rent movies and books because they hate them!
God forbid we… checks notes preserve games so we can play them?
They can dick about as much as they want, piracy will make sure to preserve the things they want gone. The reason they don’t want older games to be preserved is that new generations, whilst playing them, may come to realize that you don’t need gacha mechanics, stupid fomo, micro transactions, 6 different currencies, 3 different shop menus, 2 battlepasses and so forth to have a good game.
Imagine Beethoven refusing to release his catalog of works because people might stop listening to newer music. Gg capitalism.
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“Capitalism creates innovation” - one of the best jokes out there
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Agreed
I specifically need to not have those things. Those are the things that I’m going to games in order to avoid.
Someone’s got to do something about these fucking chicken shit publishers. I think it’s time for the industry to move on without them. Everything can be self published now. We have the technology.
Music publishers have been obsolete for two decades but they’re still around. Don’t need to provide a service when you have enough money to write the laws.
How dare people use games for recreation! Why would they not think about the shareholders!
Publishers are absolutely terrified “preserved books would be used for recreational purposes,” major book burnings ordered by federal court to be carried out in every state…
The book industry will be doing this with digital copies if they haven’t already.
🏴☠️