Gaming collection and durability of discs

V

Vegeta

Executive Member
Joined
Oct 17, 2007
Messages
8,386
Reaction score
238
Hi Guys
I have a modest gaming collection I've spent thousands on games and they sit proudly on my shelve. I also have a steam account with a couple of good games. Now this is what i want to know, with steam my games are there forever and I can re-download them as I please which is great. But with my physical disc collection I want to know what happens if one of my discs become unreadable(scratch or age) or lost how can i possibly get a new disc? I know megarom is the local distributor will they replace scratched discs if the complete original disc, booklets and everything is produced?

Reason i'm asking is if there's no way that i can get a new disc if an old one is damaged and i have to go buy another copy I would rather only use steam from now on which will guarantee i never loose a game due to physical damage.
 
Vegeta said:
Hi Guys
I have a modest gaming collection I've spent thousands on games and they sit proudly on my shelve. I also have a steam account with a couple of good games. Now this is what i want to know, with steam my games are there forever and I can re-download them as I please which is great. But with my physical disc collection I want to know what happens if one of my discs become unreadable(scratch or age) or lost how can i possibly get a new disc? I know megarom is the local distributor will they replace scratched discs if the complete original disc, booklets and everything is produced?

Reason i'm asking is if there's no way that i can get a new disc if an old one is damaged and i have to go buy another copy I would rather only use steam from now on which will guarantee i never loose a game due to physical damage.
Click to expand...

Same problem here. I wish steam would allow you to activate the games that are available on there.
I have a few games that i know i can get on steam yet the retail disk CD key does nothing.
 
unskinnybob said:
Why worry? Torrent is here.
Click to expand...
I know but its so silly i've paid for it! In some cases i even still have the slips because i keep them inside the case. But then i have to pirate and i'll also loose online play etc
Luckily none of my discs have damaged but still it might happen
 
Long as you have the originals you can use ISOs freely

Whether those be your own-made ISOs or downloaded,just don't apply the crack-patches

I've had one of my originals explode in the optical drive,downloaded and rewrote it,if they need a proof of purchase I have the shattered pieces in the box
 
Last edited:
PsyWulf said:
Long as you have the originals you can use ISOs freely
Click to expand...
huh? Sorry but I don't understand what you mean by that? So you're saying I can download an ISO image but how does that make it original again? Do i insert the scratched original disc at some point or something? But how will it read it? Sorry please explain exactly what u mean
 
PsyWulf said:
Long as you have the originals you can use ISOs freely

Whether those be your own-made ISOs or downloaded,just don't apply the crack-patches
Click to expand...

Most game ISO's wont run without the original disk anyway, its pointless.
 
Well the stuff I play uses mostly activation DRM rather than disk-verification

Disk verification can be bypassed using emulators and shrinked-down game ISOs with the right plugins if you really had to. Cracks are just the lazy-man's bypass
 
HavocXphere said:
You need RMPS emulation to make it work without a crack. ;)
Click to expand...
But lets forget about cracks and piracy. I want a new legal disc, will Megarom be able to give that to me their loyal customer who has given them thousands in profit?

Because I paid for a license that entitles me to enjoy the intellectual property right, not for a round platic disc?

btw these are pc games if that matters. Am i not entitled to a copy forever legally didn't i pay for a right to use?
 
Last edited:
It's up to the Manufacturer - not the Distributor whether they will give you a new disk or not.

Usually they require a postage fee and the original disk as well as a purchase invoice and the non-working disk,at which point a new disk is sent
 
Vegeta said:
I want a new legal disc
Click to expand...
Yeah thats not gonna happen. You best bet would be to buy a disc off junk mail & use your own cd key. Technically it might be possible to get it replaced, but it will be more hassle than its worth.

Use RMPS emulation & keep the discs in your cupboard to avoid wear & tear. If one goes bad anyway then do the junk mail thing.
 
Sad affair really... So what you're saying is that i have no "right to use" once the disc is gone or damaged
The only option is to "unlawfully use"
 
IP law regarding games and DRM is a sticky and hotly debated topic and also a stickler for why DRM as a whole should be removed. It only hampers the honest users
 
Vegeta said:
Sad affair really... So what you're saying is that i have no "right to use" once the disc is gone or damaged
The only option is to "unlawfully use"
Click to expand...

"Fair use" means you may copy as long as the original disk is available - though DRM sometimes hampers that. One of the reasons I prefer online activation to a disk-based DRM scheme like Safedisk
 
PsyWulf said:
IP law regarding games and DRM is a sticky and hotly debated topic and also a stickler for why DRM as a whole should be removed. It only hampers the honest users
Click to expand...
Yes finally i see what all the fuss is about. Pirates are gonna pirate and they can pirate as much as they like. I've paid but i'm limited to the wear and tear of plastic now thats insane!
 
I remember breaking one of my Doom 3 CD's trying to take it out of the box - it just cracked from the centre into a nice 3cm long crack. Luckily I was able to get a copy of the disc (an ISO) that worked with an emulator. Of course I usually download a no-cd/dvd crack anyway so that I don't have to keep the disc in the drive if required. I guess that is +1 to steam for the few steam based games that I do have (although I was recently replaying Diablo II and Batman Arkham Asylum and both require the disc in the drive to play...still need to crack these I guess).

As PsyWulf said...the DRM just makes it more difficult for legit users to enjoy their legally purchased software.
 
Vegeta said:
Yes finally i see what all the fuss is about. Pirates are gonna pirate and they can pirate as much as they like. I've paid but i'm limited to the wear and tear of plastic now thats insane!
Click to expand...

Yup and good luck getting a replacement from the manufacturer, I tried once and the postage they were asking was almost more expensive then the game itself. This was many years back, I never tried again.

I agree about steam, with steam and GOG I never have to worry about losing, breaking etc. Many times I am able to get the games cheaper there anyway and luckily I dont pay for steam bandwidth.
 
Last edited:
Vegeta said:
Yes finally i see what all the fuss is about. Pirates are gonna pirate and they can pirate as much as they like. I've paid but i'm limited to the wear and tear of plastic now thats insane!
Click to expand...

Stop buying games on CD/DVD? Wine about it or stop doing it - those are your options.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X