entropia

Farcry 2 uses a CD-key, like just about every other game. It’s a simple process - each copy has a unique identifier, which must be typed in before the game will work - but Farcry 2 botches the process so unbelievably. It took me about 8 tries to enter my key.

It doesn’t tell you where the key is. Sometimes keys are on the back of the packaging. Sometimes they’re on the inside of the case. Sometimes they’re on the back of the manual. It’s a minor inconvenience to have to look all over, especially when it’s so easy to avoid with an explanation.

It calls the key a “serial”. After a few tries, I wasn’t even sure I was entering the right key, because the program never used the words “CD key”.

It doesn’t make the difference between “O” and “0″ obvious. My key had an “O” - or maybe it’s a “0″, I still can’t tell.

It makes you enter the dashes. This is a common, but terrible, usability mistake. It shows up everywhere, from credit-card numbers to phone numbers, and now CD keys. Some programs use separate text boxes for each piece of the number or key. Better programs just ignore the dashes. The best programs insert, and remove, the dashes automatically.

It’s case-sensitive. I’ve never heard of a key being case-sensitive. It makes no sense, especially because all the letters are upper-case.

It doesn’t tell you if you’re missing a character. The key is 23 characters with dashes, and 19 without. If there were some indication of whether all the key I entered was long enough, I would be able to figure out that I’m just missing the dashes.

Altogether, I tried to activate about 8 times. With a “O” and with a “0″, with dashes and without, and with lower-case and upper-case letters. The only thing Farcry 2 got right was that I didn’t have to type in the whole key every time.

Why doesn’t the ESRB just put DRM information on the box? So right under “Rated E 10+ for Animated Blood, Comic Mischief, and Fantasy Violence” you’d have something like “CD-key”, “Must be online to install”, “Installation limit: 5 machines”, and “SecuROM”. There are really only a handful of different types of DRM, so just a dozen or so labels would cover it all. And if the game turns out to have more restrictions than what’s on the box, it gets taken off the shelves and repackaged.

Retailers would have to be trained to help the customer understand it all, just like with the ESRB ratings. I think most people who buy and play games are aware of the ESRB ratings, and people are aware of DRM on music, so it’s not too much to ask to also know that game DRM is on the box.

This way, it’s up to the consumers. If games with SecuROM and installation limits continue to sell, I think it shows that DRM isn’t as bad as some people say. But the real test comes from comparing PC game sales to console sales. You can’t compare the absolute numbers of course, but if there’s a drop in sales compared to the console, maybe the DRM is the cause and really does need to go. It’s all about raising consumer awareness.