Dragon age OSX as playabale as Windows?

[txa1265]

Morality is a standard based on followers. One group's terrorist is another group's freedom fighters. My definition of pirating is obtaining a game without paying for it. I am against pirating. If you purchased a game and are getting it to run on your system, I don't see a moral problem with that. Same as using a NoCd patch to get your game to run without the DVD. The distributer might say that is against the user-agreement they forced on you after you purchased it, but so what. They would be unreasonable IMO.

I basically agree ... but where I have a problem is when others add value in porting a game to another system.

In other words, if I bought Final Fantasy in 1987 for the NES, am I somehow OK hacking my PSP and iPod Touch and downloading the hacked versions of the game for those platforms and playing them? I say no, as there has been *significant* value adds.

But where we are with Dragon Age is much more subtle ... and honestly since the PC version of DA is solid robust and the Mac version is unsupported abandonware I see no particular issue with those getting reasonable value from their investment on the platform.

 

[aki]

Wow this thread sounded a tad flamey at one point but now it's all cool and intellectual sweet

In other words, if I bought Final Fantasy in 1987 for the NES, am I somehow OK hacking my PSP and iPod Touch and downloading the hacked versions of the game for those platforms and playing them? I say no, as there has been *significant* value adds.

But where we are with Dragon Age is much more subtle ... and honestly since the PC version of DA is solid robust and the Mac version is unsupported abandonware I see no particular issue with those getting reasonable value from their investment on the platform.

Very good points. One of the tests in the American "fair use" law is whether the purported "fair use" in some way detracts from future potential income the copyright holder might derive from the work. With "fan ports" of classics to modern platforms (when there are official ports available or are likely at some point to be; as distinct (I personally would argue anyway) from when works are truly are "abandoned") there is certainly an argument on the basis of revenue lost.

With DAO for Mac, I think you could make a reeeeeeasonable case that in fact the reverse is true; that in fact, should the fanbase find methods to install new DLC on the mac version, this will increase sales of DLC.

And let's face it, many big software companies are prepared to allow a certain amount of fan modding and general messing about with their properties which is not strictly in accord with terms of the EULA/copyright. They allow it because they figure in the end it promotes sales of their product (gets the word out; builds loyalty; all that stuff), and so on balance they are ahead.

It is a difficult area though. The law says one thing, but a phenomenal segment of the population believes and acts differently - that's never good.

And the whole fan port thing - I don't know, I can't help but feel something would be lost if we had never had MAME (arcade emulation), for example. So many arcade classics that people (like myself) would never have been able to see otherwise. Makes me think of all those "orphaned" recordings from like the 1920s or whatever it is, that no one has rights to reproduce but no one actually owns to sell - so they disappear from human memory. Can't tell me that's a good thing.

Ok ok I'll shut up now sorry