Hey guys, I'm wondering what your thoughts are on this:

http://torrentfreak.com/game-devs-want-warez-pirates-to-switch-sides-120228/

"Last week, Syndicate, the latest game from Starbreeze studios, was released to the public by publisher EA. The game was immediately made available on the Internet but the swarthy pirates examining the files on the disc were met with an interesting item. In a direct message to those cracking their copy protection, Starbreeze included a cool job offer via a traditional pirate-formatted text file."

I'm really glad to see a company trying to recruit some of these people. The internet underground does have considerable talent. When I hear about some of these hackers getting arrested, I can't but feel that talent is being wasted. I think that companies should be trying to appeal to these people more to see if they are willing to switch sides.

Of course, not every hacker is interested in going legit but it is nice to see someone making the offer.

That's...classy. Really.

Uh... So long as it isn't a set-up like the one used to lure the guy who stole the Half-life 2 source code in 2003...

"In the 1990′s (and as can be seen from the video embedded below, 50 secs in), an individual known as SS Captain roamed the cracktro high seas with a group called Katharsis.

Two decades on he’s better known as Marcin Iwinski, CEO of CD Projekt"

Well, that was nice of them.

I had no idea CD Projekt's CEO was an elite hacker/cracker/warez/pirater dude. That is very interesting.

The seeming hypocrisy that a few decades reveals is interesting. I'm sure we all are different now than we were 20 years ago. Our values change.

I like to think of DRM-free as pro-customer, not pro-pirating. But it seems to me that at least half of the people that shout "DRM-free" are really just asking for easy-to-pirate games.

Once upon a time, hacking was not seen as a bad thing. What people forget thanks to the fear mongering is that hackers have actually brought our technology to the level it is at today. It is not just about breaking into systems, it is also about learning too and coming up with new ways to improve technology.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-computer-hacking.htm
"Many hackers are true technology buffs who enjoy learning more about how computers work and consider computer hacking an “art” form. They often enjoy programming and have expert-level skills in one particular program. For these individuals, computer hacking is a real life application of their problem-solving skills. It’s a chance to demonstrate their abilities, not an opportunity to harm others. "

DRM-free games are no easier or harder to pirate than games with DRM. Cracked versions of any recent game can be found online with practically zero effort, so to a pirate all games are DRM-free already.

I now feel encouraged to buy Syndicate ... hmmm

Pirates aren't the "enemy". They have never been. If you would remove every gamer and designer who once played quake I on a pirated copy, you would lose some of the best designers.

And this:

"In the 1990′s (and as can be seen from the video embedded below, 50 secs in), an individual known as SS Captain roamed the cracktro high seas with a group called Katharsis.

Two decades on he’s better known as Marcin Iwinski, CEO of CD Projekt."

Makes their TW 2 legal fuck up even worse.

This is why I'm very concerned about this witch-hunt for hackers. I fear that we are retarding technological development by discouraging people from studying the source code and technology in general. The hacking community has a lot of creativity you can see this in the linux community.

The rom hacking community, well check out what these pokefanatics are up to in this forum:
http://www.pokecommunity.com/forumdisplay.php?f=184
What these people do is take modify the original source code of the pokemon games and distribute a patch which creates a new game to enjoy. Of course it is up to you to acquire the ROMS to the game themselves, but they are not doing this to simply steal Nintendo's IP, they are doing this because they like the original game so much that they want to play around in Ninendo's world and create their own story out of love. Maybe love is a strong work, but they are certainly passionate about Pokemon otherwise they wouldn't be doing this.

This is what I mean by going after hackers is going to start suppressing technological development. The best way to learn the tech is experiment with it, and to discourage this is hypocrisy.

That is why I think it is a good move for Starbreeze to hire them and get their talent on board instead of locking them up.

edit: If nintendo was smart they would try to get Coolboyman on board, he is one of the best hackers in the Pokecommunity forum.