View Single Post in: Making Headlines - A mini-story contest
Inventor
#103
22nd Mar 2015 at 5:34 AM
22nd Mar 2015 at 5:34 AM
Prompt 1: Athlete Gossip/Scandal (Scandal)
Prompt 2: Pirates (Software piracy)
Word count: 760 words (article and scoreboard combined)
Games used: TS4.
I'll be making the bonus tomorrow if I get the time. UPDATE: No bonus for me this round.
The Darkdusk Legacy has ended. Read the whole thing!
The Nightmagic Legacy has ended. Read the whole thing!
Last of Her Kind has ended thanks to a dead computer.
Prompt 2: Pirates (Software piracy)
Word count: 760 words (article and scoreboard combined)
Games used: TS4.
Local Gamer Suspended
WILLOW CREEK. Famous Willow Creek pro gamer Alexander Stanton, known on the Sim Gaming League circuit as AttackGoose, has been caught with a pirated copy of Bygg Games’ Hillock II. According to piracy investigator Jordan Marcum, the digital rights management system on Bygg Games’ Hillock II servers alerted piracy investigators that someone in the house might be using a pirated copy of the game. Further investigation confirmed that Stanton was in possession of the pirated game. Stanton, who was at the top of the Sim Gaming League leaderboard before this incident, has been suspended from the Sim Gaming League circuit for the remainder of the season, and is ineligible to compete for the championship and the one hundred thousand Simoleons that come with it. In addition, Xenopatria Technologies, Stanton’s main sponsor, has cut all ties with Stanton, and his team, CGY Gaming, has cut ties with him. According to a Xenopatria representative, “Xenopatria does not and will not sponsor any competitor that uses illegal means to get ahead.” Xenopatria is now sponsoring Jeremy Hallon, known on the SGL circuit as DarthTurtle, and formerly second on the leaderboards behind Stanton. Now that Stanton has been suspended, Hallon is at the top of the leaderboards.
When asked why he pirated Hillock II, Stanton replied, “I already owned a copy of the game, but the Crudware DRM was making it hard to play the game that I paid for. So, I downloaded a pirated copy with Crudware removed. I didn’t realize that it would cost me my spot on the team, my sponsorship, or my chance at the championship.” Crudware, a software program that stores a hardware profile upon installing a Crudware-protected game and does not let the game run, assuming it has been pirated, if the hardware does not match the profile, is the market leader in digital rights management technology. However, for professional gamers like Stanton who frequently upgrade the hardware on their computers, Crudware makes it impossible for the game to run without calling Bygg’s customer support to change the hardware profile, even though the game was not pirated. Hillock II uses both Crudware and Serverware, a digital rights management package that checks the game’s serial number against a database on the game manufacturer’s servers to determine whether the game is authentic or pirated.
When The Willow Creek Times asked CGY Gaming for their opinions on the matter, a CGY Gaming representative responded, “AttackGoose has been cut from the team due to accusations of piracy. CGY Gaming does not, never has, and never will condone piracy of any kind, whether it be by our players or our fans, and whether the software in question is legitimately available or not. It is unfortunate that, without AttackGoose, we will most likely be unable to compete in the championship, but he did not live up to CGY Gaming’s code of honor.”
The Willow Creek Times asked Crud Software, Inc., the makers of Crudware, about Stanton’s claims. A Crud Software representative responded, “Our software does not have a one hundred percent true negative rate; there is no software that has a one hundred percent true negative rate! We do, however, try to minimize errors made by our software. It is unfortunate that our software erroneously detected Stanton’s legitimate copy of Hillock II as a pirated version, but he could have called Bygg Games and had his copy’s Crudware record reset to his upgraded hardware configuration. That would have been the proper thing to do. Instead, he decided to bypass our software by downloading a pirated version of Hillock II, despite the illegality of doing so.”
When asked what Bygg Games had to say about this incident, a company representative said, “We take all incidents of piracy very seriously, especially when a Sim Gaming League professional is involved. Alexander Stanton’s Bygg Games account has been banned, and he is no longer welcome to play in any tournaments sponsored by Bygg Games.” Stanton confirmed that he has been banned from Bygg Games’ servers and games. As Bygg Games publishes most of the games played in the Sim Gaming League circuit, and Stanton is permanently banned from Bygg Games’ games, it is unknown if Stanton will ever be able to return to professional gaming following his suspension.
The Willow Creek Times will be following up on Stanton, his suspension, and his career in professional gaming.
WILLOW CREEK. Famous Willow Creek pro gamer Alexander Stanton, known on the Sim Gaming League circuit as AttackGoose, has been caught with a pirated copy of Bygg Games’ Hillock II. According to piracy investigator Jordan Marcum, the digital rights management system on Bygg Games’ Hillock II servers alerted piracy investigators that someone in the house might be using a pirated copy of the game. Further investigation confirmed that Stanton was in possession of the pirated game. Stanton, who was at the top of the Sim Gaming League leaderboard before this incident, has been suspended from the Sim Gaming League circuit for the remainder of the season, and is ineligible to compete for the championship and the one hundred thousand Simoleons that come with it. In addition, Xenopatria Technologies, Stanton’s main sponsor, has cut all ties with Stanton, and his team, CGY Gaming, has cut ties with him. According to a Xenopatria representative, “Xenopatria does not and will not sponsor any competitor that uses illegal means to get ahead.” Xenopatria is now sponsoring Jeremy Hallon, known on the SGL circuit as DarthTurtle, and formerly second on the leaderboards behind Stanton. Now that Stanton has been suspended, Hallon is at the top of the leaderboards.
When asked why he pirated Hillock II, Stanton replied, “I already owned a copy of the game, but the Crudware DRM was making it hard to play the game that I paid for. So, I downloaded a pirated copy with Crudware removed. I didn’t realize that it would cost me my spot on the team, my sponsorship, or my chance at the championship.” Crudware, a software program that stores a hardware profile upon installing a Crudware-protected game and does not let the game run, assuming it has been pirated, if the hardware does not match the profile, is the market leader in digital rights management technology. However, for professional gamers like Stanton who frequently upgrade the hardware on their computers, Crudware makes it impossible for the game to run without calling Bygg’s customer support to change the hardware profile, even though the game was not pirated. Hillock II uses both Crudware and Serverware, a digital rights management package that checks the game’s serial number against a database on the game manufacturer’s servers to determine whether the game is authentic or pirated.
When The Willow Creek Times asked CGY Gaming for their opinions on the matter, a CGY Gaming representative responded, “AttackGoose has been cut from the team due to accusations of piracy. CGY Gaming does not, never has, and never will condone piracy of any kind, whether it be by our players or our fans, and whether the software in question is legitimately available or not. It is unfortunate that, without AttackGoose, we will most likely be unable to compete in the championship, but he did not live up to CGY Gaming’s code of honor.”
The Willow Creek Times asked Crud Software, Inc., the makers of Crudware, about Stanton’s claims. A Crud Software representative responded, “Our software does not have a one hundred percent true negative rate; there is no software that has a one hundred percent true negative rate! We do, however, try to minimize errors made by our software. It is unfortunate that our software erroneously detected Stanton’s legitimate copy of Hillock II as a pirated version, but he could have called Bygg Games and had his copy’s Crudware record reset to his upgraded hardware configuration. That would have been the proper thing to do. Instead, he decided to bypass our software by downloading a pirated version of Hillock II, despite the illegality of doing so.”
When asked what Bygg Games had to say about this incident, a company representative said, “We take all incidents of piracy very seriously, especially when a Sim Gaming League professional is involved. Alexander Stanton’s Bygg Games account has been banned, and he is no longer welcome to play in any tournaments sponsored by Bygg Games.” Stanton confirmed that he has been banned from Bygg Games’ servers and games. As Bygg Games publishes most of the games played in the Sim Gaming League circuit, and Stanton is permanently banned from Bygg Games’ games, it is unknown if Stanton will ever be able to return to professional gaming following his suspension.
The Willow Creek Times will be following up on Stanton, his suspension, and his career in professional gaming.
SCOREBOARD
FOOTBALL: The Willow Creek Hellcats defeated the Oasis Springs Mirages 14-0.
BASKETBALL: The Strangetown Aliens defeated the Veronaville Bards 75-43.
SOCCER: SimNation defeated Skaia 1-0.
PRO GAMING: DarthTurtle defeated Sammson 3-0.
FOOTBALL: The Willow Creek Hellcats defeated the Oasis Springs Mirages 14-0.
BASKETBALL: The Strangetown Aliens defeated the Veronaville Bards 75-43.
SOCCER: SimNation defeated Skaia 1-0.
PRO GAMING: DarthTurtle defeated Sammson 3-0.
I'll be making the bonus tomorrow if I get the time. UPDATE: No bonus for me this round.
The Darkdusk Legacy has ended. Read the whole thing!
The Nightmagic Legacy has ended. Read the whole thing!
Last of Her Kind has ended thanks to a dead computer.