EA is telling gamers not to worry, but they are going to force all users of Command and Conquer 4 to be online, at all times, if you want to play the game, even in single player mode.
As of right now, you need to be online all the time to play C&C 4. This is primarily due to our “player progression” feature so everything can be tracked. C&C 4 is not an MMO in the sense of World of Warcraft, but conceptually it has similar principles for being online all the time. While some may be taken aback by this, we’ve been testing this feature internally with all of our world-wide markets. We wanted to make sure it wouldn’t take away any significant market or territory from playing the game. We have not found or seen any results that have made us think otherwise. You won’t need a fast connection, in fact, you could be on age-old dial-up, and have the same single player experience as everyone else. Online all the time won’t cause lag for single-player. We’ve also heavily worked on the online infrastructure such that people with slower connections will not lag other players with faster connections in Multiplayer.
So, first I have to pay for the game. Then I have to pay for an internet connection. There will probably also end up being some sort of subscription as well. To top that all off, if I have a dial up account, I can’t use the telephone while I’m playing in single player mode because I have to be connected to play the game.
I play most of my games while traveling, where internet connections aren’t available. I also play all my games as a single player. I also hate having my information tracked. There is no need to for any of this to happen, but EA insists on it.
Many ISPs are also limiting bandwidth. How much are you going to be required to use while in single player mode? If it’s a lot, many players will walk away from the game and never buy it.
EA also hasn’t said what will happen when someone’s internet connection goes out. If your internet is out for two weeks, then you won’t be playing any C&C 4. EA hasn’t learned from the Spore DRM issues. They’re only making things worse and losing customers while they continue to screw with their games.
EA is not selling Command and Conquer 4. They are merely renting it to you. You will pay $60 to “purchase” the game and, whenever they decide to pull the plug, you haven’t got a game to play anymore. What’s going to happen then? I know what I would do; go right to the pirates because they’ll sort out a way for me to still play the game. Of course, in real life, I’ll never buy this game. You’ve lost me as a customer because you’ve taken away the ability for me to play it how I want, when I want.
