StarForce Destroy Your PC? Collect $1000

This is just silly. They know that this can't be proven as far as IDE devices are concerned.

Question to starforce. Can you prove it **doesn't** cause problems? So I buy the product, then complain, it's my fault. Yeah, that sounds logical :\

Additionaly. Calling gamers/customers, who complain, beginner-level hackers can't be good for customer relastions. The fact that they are offering this contest is asking you to hack your machine.

Besides. I don't think I'd want go to Moscow anyway.

My Penis is large and erect.

This just makes me feel like abandoning PC games altogether. Code on my PC and play on a console. Never thought I'll feel like this one day.
:(

I dunno, mang.

It's really a sting operation. They have KGB secret police officers there ready to silence anyone who does have proof.

My guess is most of the problems are coming from people making images of the disc and using some sort of image mounter to play the game, which is obviously also a common technique that warezers use. However, if there are so many people, who actually have a legit copy, that are too lazy to put a disc in their drive and rather have the contents of that disc as DATA on their computer, then why not use an online distrobution model similar to, or better than steam to deliver such DATA instead? No discs involved for those who don't want to reach over and put one into their drive, no need to rip discs for image mounting, no need for bullshit.

How about instead of making ridiculous challenges, they learn to program their damn CP in a way that let's you play your own games without passing by TS? (specially if you have a Plextor drive). How about not installing drivers without my permissions?. How about, in general, if you stop making us, your customers, suffer for nothing, since Starforce can be beaten by the latest Daemon Tools?.

You know...my CD-burner recently stopped working. Maybe Starforce is the reason why.

OMG is this what caused my DVD burner to start fucking up?!? I bought Space Rangers 2: Dominators (which is a really excellent) game a few months ago. That's pretty much the same time that I was never able to burn another CD or DVD with the drive in my laptop.

I've wiped my system totally clean, but it's still fux0red. Bastards!

$1000 dollares?


LOL, wow we are REALLY confident here.

So which is worse, SecuROM or StarForce?

Also, fuck _demos_ of games that use StarForce up the ass. That shit is lame.

Most the news sites are misrepresenting the challenge. Which I'm sure is SFs hope- this is a simple mis-information PR camaign, and I'm sure there will be thousands that are duped.

If you actualy read the article (and looking at the comments here you can tell that neither Shacknews, nor most of the people posting here have), they're looking for Hardware problems, not software. It's got nothing to with cracks or bypassing or anything else.

If you can get it to mess up your drives Physicaly, as in move the drive to another PC and it still won't work... then they pay out. Maybe there have been complaints of physical damage, somewhere, sometime, but I've never read one.

i've always wondered how many people who claim to have problems with starforce are messing with the prog or otherwise trying to get around the copy protection? i've got 2 starforce protected games (splinter cell chaos theory and X3) and i've never had any problems. then again i keep the disc in my drive when i want to play them instead of cracking them like any other game i own.

i'm willing to bet that the bulk of complaints against starforce come from the warez community because someone finally created protection that really works. then again i haven't tried burning a disc in a while either....

I don't get it, wth is wrong with starforce? I own two games that use it, SC:CT , and toca racer. Both work perfectly fine, and i've never had a problem. Besides, it's something that needs to be done for fagots who warez, PC gaming is going downhill because of them so I only see this type of protection as good, not evil.

Umm why does this remind of the free boat contest the police in Springfield pulled on ole Snake and Homer?

I installed a game with starforce and the next time I tried to write a disc my DVDR went whirring REAALLLLLLY loudly. Had to abort my burn process cus it sounded like something was about to blow up.

Then my computer started crashing at night and made huge clicking noises in the HD that woke me up... also lost a couple gigs of data and reformated just in case.. seems to be fixed now.

Coincidence? Either way, that's the last time I use anything with Starforce in it.

$2300.00 is the cost of a roundtrip ticket to Moscow alone.

Do they have a list of all titles they've ever been involved with, and any publisher they are going to be involved with?

That would make this contest a snap - no one would enter, because no one would buy the games that use this horseshit.

Remember that Russian spammer that got shot in the face? That was awesome [hint russians, hint].

I wonder how vista will handle this, as its supposedly much more secure and just wont let applications install system drivers by the backdoor like this shit does.

I think starforce has cabbaged my plextor DVD R/W, as it will only read or play DVD's now and hangs the system if it gets a whiff of a CD. My other CD drive can be very flakey now too, and crashes if iTunes tries to rip a track off a disc :/

how do I know if Starforce has been installed on my computer? I don't see it in the add/remove programs.

Is trying to remove it when all hell breaks loose?

This has got to be the most retarded news thing by a company I think I've ever seen.

Wow a whole 1000 dollars for going to Moscow. Morons.

hrmm, well I just acquired Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory and Prince Of Persia: Warrior Within for the PC (buddy getting SLI graphics rig, got them twice with each graphics card, lol)

Both are starforce games...

Both, thus far, have remained uninstalled...

wonder if there's a way to 'sandbox' the starforce driver... pass shit to it running inside VPC or something, lol

Anyone here already in Moscow, how about heading on over and take a stab at it?

Hmmm.. Imagine Half Life 3 with starforce

I will avoid StarFarce at all cost. They will proclaim victory since no one will take them up on the offer. And I bet they have Russian Mafia on the payroll for "persuasive" dissuasion.

What's the best site for info on StarFarce-protected games, which should be avoided like the Bubonic Plague?

You have to break a working system, prove that it will break every configuration of a working system (which is *not* the complaint), spend 2-3 days, and pay for a round trip ticket to Moscow. If they rig the contest and fail you, which they already have by their rules description, they will shame you and gloat.

How about a contest to prove it causes random lockups and reboots?

You know what I would love? Is someone finds a really stupidly simple method like the magic marker around the edge and just mails them the CD. would be awesome... "Pay me my $1001.75, bitches!"

So I guess the question is...who will prove it first? heh

Yeah my copy of Trackmania: Sunrise has starforce protection on it if i remember rightly. And its completely mangled my CDRW

How about this...we stop adding extra programs to my fucking games to protect them, and I'll start buying those games.

Until then, anything with Starforce is just going to get ignored by me...which sucks, because I'd like to play Hammer and Sickle.

Maybe Starforce stops piracy to an extent, but I've got a feeling it sure as hell isn't increasing the sales of the games it comes with.

This is the e-mail I sent them.. humorous to me...


"Yeah, so I'm not entering your ridiculous contest because the fact that you'd fly all the way to Moscow (old dictator stomping grounds) to figure out if it indeed did fuck up my PC and then have the possibility of you covering travel cost with that measely $1000. If you are so confident in your software perhaps a $50,000 or $100,000 reward is appropriate. Let's face it, your software discreetly installs unwanted and oftentimes, conflicting software on people's computers without them having much knowledge of it happening. This is wrong and confusing for them. I'm on point so I know that your software can and should be avoided for the use of much more useful cd copy protection software. Find a way to protect cd's without loophole-ridden and shoddy software. Have a Merry Fucking Christmas, without all your communism-like propaganda saying that your software is flawless and doesn't cause conflicts, I will be enjoying mine just fine playing backups of my games which are protected by Safedisc, Securom, and other efficient protection systems.

-HST"

Yes I sign all my letters that are anonymous Hunter S Thompson.. let the good doc live on!

Term #5:

If you fail to reproduce the mentioned above terms, you will be acknowledged the loser and StarForce will mention your full name on www.star-force.com in the list of Losers of the Contest and any expenses shall not be compensated.

Jesus Christ, this is the dumbest thing I've heard in months. Somebody shut StarFuckers, Inc. down, please.

"must exist and be reproduced in any other configuration"? Doh? This basically eliminates any real problem people would face with the product.

people should go to their office and leave poo hidden somewhere in their office. lets see how they like that!

this is funny

Wow. Total assholes.

If this is any indication of personalities behind the development of Starforce, the possibility that it could damage my PC doesn't seem that far of a stretch. I mean, Jesus, does it sound like these guys give a damn about your property? Just look at Term 5 of the argeement. This whole idea really gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling. I'm glad Starforce cares. Really.

1000 is pretty small for having to take 2 days to fly to russia, give a presentation to a room of sceptical and possibly angry strangers and then trust them to fly you back. Some how I'd guess you'd be flying 4th class on air moscow too.

Spend money out of pocket to travel to Russia?!? Not exactly my idea of a vacation, even if the payoff is $1,000 (a joke, amirite?).