LAN play copy protection question

[Paradoxish]

I wasn't sure which forum to post this in, so hopefully this is okay here. I bought Black Shark a few days ago and I'm loving it, but I want to install it on my laptop as well. I understand how activations work and that's no big deal, but I'm curious if it's possible to use two activations off the same serial number for LAN play. I want to convince a couple of friends to buy the game and the quickest way I can think of to do it is play a LAN game or two with my laptop. I'd just try it myself, but unfortunately my laptop is gone for warranty service at the moment. :(

[GreenGriffon]

I was sort of wondering the same thing, and may try that out later tonight.

 

If that doesn't work, I happen to be one of the many impatient people who bought the Russian version, followed by the English one a few weeks later. I figured I could just install the Russian version on my second desktop for my buddy. It would be a shame for that license to go to waste.

 

Hopefully the two versions can communicate with one another in multiplayer.

[GGTharos]

Yes, you can play in this manner.

[Paradoxish]

Good to know. Thanks. :)

[Shein]

How? I was kicked off when I attempted this...

[Parias]

I'd like to know this too - doesn't it force you to log in to the online master server (requiring you use an account linked to the serial key, of which you can only have one system logged into at a time) even if you're doing LAN play - or has this now changed?

[nomdeplume]

The copy protection system has changed since Black Shark 1 was released... note the dates on the posts earlier in this thread!

 

You'll need a separate purchased copy (i.e. serial number) for each simultaneously-running copy of the sim. So, you can install it on more than one system (up to your activation limit), but you can only play it on one system at a time.

[Parias]

Oh, derp - I didn't even notice this thread had been resurrected from 2009, my bad. Yes, the protection method has changed since Black Shark 1 - with the first release you could indeed play over LAN without being forced to check in with the online master server first - I guess BS2 now uses the same system A10 does so LAN play with one copy isn't possible.

[EtherealN]

Correct.

[spikenet]

FWIW Dont know why you cant allow at least 2 logins with the same key. I occasionally liked to LAN with my son just for a laugh and a bit of fun but now cant do this. He isnt really interested enough to justify another purchase and I think you kill some future customers by being so harsh, especially when we have obviously spent the money on supporting the product/s.

[InsaniD]

FWIW Dont know why you cant allow at least 2 logins with the same key. I occasionally liked to LAN with my son just for a laugh and a bit of fun but now cant do this. He isnt really interested enough to justify another purchase and I think you kill some future customers by being so harsh, especially when we have obviously spent the money on supporting the product/s.

 

Judging by the response I received by criticizing DCS BS DRM, I doubt Eagle Dynamics cares. One of the Moderators told me that it wasn't the time or place to criticize their DRM and that it won't help anything. Just FYI.

[EtherealN]

ED cares.

 

But as you were apparently told: there's a time and a place, and the subject has a tendency to derail in a bad manner. ED knows what people want, and ED is not out to screw you over. ED just has to work with reality, and blanket-allowing double use has some pretty serious implications that I'm sure you can understand - the obvious one being that word-of-mouth sales can suffer considerably since people will just give their key to their friend, who will then continue to use that forever. ;)

 

Seriously though, it's all been debated already, and as I mentioned this has a tendency to make people say things that are less than constructive, so let's please just chill on the topic. It's not exactly a weird thing that a personal license is for personal use. :)

[ARM505]

Another question regarding this: Logically then (based on the above), LAN play is then simply NOT possible while offline, even with two different serials? Or does the software check that the serials are different, and allow a connection in that case? Noob questions, just thought I'd ask before carting my pc off to some LAN in a shed somewhere. Funny, whenever the words 'master server' appear, things become more complicated, not simpler...

[159th_Viper]

Another question regarding this: Logically then (based on the above), LAN play is then simply NOT possible while offline, even with two different serials?

 

Correct.

 

As stated on the main website:

 

AN INTERNET CONNECTION IS REQUIRED FOR MULTIPLAYER INCLUDING LAN PLAY