14 DAY TRIAL // Since Manhunt 2 is finally out, it can't be plagued by piracy issues any more, although we know it as the title that suffered the most from its Internet leak. It's one thing when your blockbuster game gets ripped open and made available for free illegal download a day before its official launch and a totally different issue when it surfaces online a couple of months before being launched officially. A few days ago, Silent Hill Origins could be seen online, reminding us all of a nasty issue that had an impact on Konami at the Games Convention 2007.
Back then, the producer had planned to show the world the Origins demo at its booth, but some Konami employee managed to "borrow" the demo and upload it on torrent sites. This time, the company's been more cautious and the illegal downloaders could play the game a day after it was launched. Now, we're dealing again with the Arch-know piracy and leaking issues, this time plaguing two major franchises: DBZ and WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW.
It turns out that Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 and WWE Smackdown! vs. RAW 2008 weren't able to fight piracy and they were made available online, a couple of days before their official release. I wonder if all major companies (besides Nintendo) have quit fighting piracy, because it just doesn't seem to stop. All of you uploaders and hackers should think for a moment that what you're doing has an important effect in the long run and then we see companies like Atari going bankrupt, although they're the producers of titles pertaining to the DBZ series of the famous "The Witcher" hit.
Think about Sony's billion dollar-worth and PS3-related losses and take into account that they rely on the PS2 and PSP to generate profits. If you take that away from them and make games available illegally and free, what's left? Analysts have already claimed that Sony will quit the gaming industry sooner or later and piracy will be one of the reasons for this radical decision, when it happens.
*Note: Softpedia doesn't support modding, hacking or playing pirate games.