[Quarto]

They didn't want people to distribute it because they released it commercially as part of WCP Gold. i thought that was obvious.

Death's Head: Oh, yes. It was worth it. Keep in mind that I have never seen even a single copy of WCP Gold.

No Regret: Yes. Of course, so many mags did it that Origin gave up (at first, I think they actually did send letters to the mags).

 

[marcml]

Quatro: Sorry, I don't buy that. WCP Gold was just a re-issue of WCP with some extra missions added on (SO). Once you give something out free - especially on the web - it's out of your hands. Origin must have known that. However, my question was "Why not continue to make it free?" I would think that they only stand to gain by continuing to offer it free. And they have done this before: SO missions for WC1 & 2 that were part of the Kilrathi Saga. Again, I know it is their choice to make, I just see a greater gain for them to leave it as Freeware.

 

[Quarto]

Marcml: <Sigh> It's Quarto. Not Quatro. Please

.
If they continued to distribute it for free, then only the most fannish fans would buy WCP Gold. Remember, Origin does nonetheless want to make money

.
As for the "out of your hands" comment, well, why not release all games for free? After all, no matter what you do, people will make pirate copies, non?
What exactly is it that they gain by releasing SO for free? Reputation as a benevolent gaming company? Or perhaps reputation as a company whose products can be distributed for free?
Finally, the SM & SO missions for KSaga. These most certainly were _not_ free - you had to buy KSaga first. The reason why they were distributed, BTW, is for the sake of completeness. People who bought the KSaga were expecting to get the complete first three games. It is not good to disappoint one's customers, so Origin quickly converted the additional missions as well. Keep in mind that those additional missions are not freebies of any kind - they do not work standalone, and you can't use them with the original WC 1 and 2. Well... You can, if you put enough work into it (yes, I tried

), but even then they don't work properly.

 

[Quarto]

Kalkrath: This is just theory

, of course, since it's not quite legal

. Ok, the main problem is that the add-ons refuse to install without a copy of KSaga. That means that you can't get at some of the files. Other than that, you just have to replace the briefing files, mission files, et al with the ones from the right add on. However, note that the add-ons used different exe's, which of course won't work here. That means that any features which didn't exist in the original game (new ships in WC 1, special Morningstar features in WC 2) will refuse to work. That, BTW, makes SO 2 unfinishable, since your Morningstar cannot perform a jump.
Anyway, that's about all I can say. I experimented a lot with this just to see if it would work, but it certainly does get messy. Go ahead and give it a try, but do not forget to back up your files. You'll need those back-ups sooner than later

.

 

[Quarto]

As I recall, a lot of the WC 1 files were inaccessible unless you had the KSaga installed (not the CD, just the games on the hard drive). Because of this, SM 1 was totally impossible, and SM 2... Well, it sorta worked, but why bother? You'd be using the original WC exe file, and that would mean that none of the new ships would appear, and the Dralthi Mk. II would still be Mk. I. And you couldna fly it, either.
Anyway, it was much better with WC 2, which was more "modular" in design.

 

[Grimloc]

Marcml: I know someone who bought this same package with BR, D2k, and WC. What is your Zone Name?

------------------
"We're going to the same freakin' jail cell anyway."

 

[klaus]

That package is(was) available internationally. I personally saw it on sale here where I live.

And adding to that, Prophecy Gold was NEVER sold where I live.

------------------
"This matter winds itself ever in new riddles.", Faramir - The Lord of The Rings



[This message has been edited by klaus (edited January 22, 2000).]

 

[Quarto]

WCP Gold wouldna have been available where I was at the time either. Which is why I went through the trouble of downloading SO with my less-than-1kb/s-and-bloody-unstable connection, while the episodes were still being released

.

 

[klaus]

I downloaded it also. And the cost was $25 bucks, reflected on my phone bill.


------------------
"This matter winds itself ever in new riddles.", Faramir - The Lord of The Rings

 

[marcml]

Quarto: So what is your opinion on Sierra's giving away several older commercial games (Betrayal At Krondor, Red Baron(?) et al)? In my case I received WCP as part of a package (Blade Runner & Dune 2000). Since I have played all previous WC games, I would like to play the SO missions to keep up with the story line. It seems as though my only option is to purchase WCPG to get said missions. However, WCP is an old game (by today's standards) and most reviewers advised against buying WCPG simply to get the added SO missions.

"Why not release all games for free?" I would think that the answer is obvious. Commercially released games are usually not pre-distributed as free. WCP was never offered as a free game - I'm sure Origin can and would come down hard on someone that put the game online - no warning needed. However, since they offered it for free at one time, it would be difficult to prosecute anyone for posting SO since they could always respond with "Well I didn't know" until warned. The SO missions probably exist on dozens of web sites and that number is probably growing rapidly.

 

[ChrisReid]

Growing rapidly?

Irrelevant anyhow. We know the situation here. The episodes wont be distributed here till such date Origin makes an announcement they're free to distribute once again..

 

[Quarto]

Marcml: My opinion? Sierra can do whatever it wants. Sure, I'd love it if Origin released some of its older games as freeware. But that decisions remains theirs, and what Sierra does has nothing to do with it. And if you consider WCPG so old that it's not worth getting, then don't get it. But remember that SO came out _before_ WCPG. That means, according to you, that it's even less worth getting. Incidentally, KSaga's a year or two older, and yet people are willing to pay $300 for it. How's that for an old game?

"Why not release all the games for free" - Don't you understand sarcasm when you see it? And yet, my point remains valid. You're saying that Origin should release SO for free because they can't stop it. Well, I'm saying that every day, every minute, somebody out there is probably making pirate copies of WCP, U9, and whatever other games Origin releases. They can't stop that either. By your thinking, that means they should release them for free.

 

[marcml]

Yes I saw your sarcasm - I was responding to an inane comment. Obviously you didn't read my last post. The difference between WCP and SO is SO was once free, WCP was never free. I'm not saying that SO should be free because everyone pirates software. I'm saying that it since it was once free, it should remain free. Origin gains nothing by squirreling it away to the dust shelves. And of course it is Origin's decision, but this is a chat forum isn't it <grin>? Anyway, I guess this thing has been beaten to death.

 

[Quarto]

Oh, this thing has been beaten to the death a few hundred posts ago

.
There is any number of programs out there that you can get for free at first, and later have to pay for. They're called Betas. So, why don't you just consider SO a Beta version of WCPG and leave it at that?
Oh, and by squirreling it away to the dust shelves, Origin gets to sell more WCPG. Thus, it gets more money

.
At any rate, let's leave it at that.