Most Pirated Game of the Year Goes to...

[MC]

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 2!

Among the many year-end stories file sharing site Torrent Freak tabulated the most pirated games of 2009. Using data from public BitTorrent tracker reports they calculated the total number of times each game had been downloaded. It comes as little surprise to see Modern Warfare 2 take the ignominious top spot with a whopping 4.1 million PC copies downloaded and another 970,000 for the Xbox 360.

That figure indicates potentially staggering growth in PC piracy during 2009. Last year Spore, a game that had been much maligned for its security features, claimed the top at only 1.7 million downloads. Besides Modern Warfare 2 more than doubling up on that figure, all five of the most downloaded games of 2009 (the other four being the Sims 3, Prototype, Need for Speed Shift, and Street Figher 4) eclipsed that mark. Video games do show significantly less traffic than the movie industry, though. Star Trek clocked in as the most pirated film of 2009 at almost 11 million downloads, barely edging out Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen at 10.6 million.

The full figures from Torrent Freak follow:

PC Games Downloaded on BitTorrent in 2009

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 -- 4,100,000
2. The Sims 3 -- 3,200,000
3. Prototype -- 2,350,000
4. Need for Speed Shift -- 2,100,000
5. Street Fighter 4 -- 1,850,000​

Xbox 360 Games Downloaded on BitTorrent in 2009

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 -- 970,000
2. Street Figther 4 -- 840,000
3. Prototype -- 810,000
4. Dirt 2 -- 790,000
5. UFC 2009 Undisputed -- 720,000​

Wii Games Downloaded on BitTorrent in 2009

1. New Super Mario Bros. -- 1,150,000
2. Punch-Out! -- 950,000
3. Wii Sports Resort -- 920,000
4. The House of the Dead: Overkill -- 860,000
5. Mario Power Tennis -- 830,000​

Source: http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/61765

 

[Akation]

Lol at New Super Mario Bros. Wii

 

[kam!]

"Wii beats XBOX360!!!"
...at piracy rates



Edit: Well on a serious note
I'd be really interested how many pirated games were bought in the end (you know, someone dls it and then decides to buy it because it's actually good or smth) or how many are actually lost sales.
Most of the time such figures are used to justify draconian DRM measures.

 

[Majin_You]

I don't, personally, care one way or another if a pirate is "trying the game" and purchases it afterward. Piracy is piracy, and circumventing the law to "try" the game falls into that.

I'm sure many of those numbers are caused by restarted/reattempted downloads and/or were due to people who probably couldn't figure out what to do with their illegal copy of the game once they got it, so it's likely not entirely accurate in that regard.

Still, it's disappointing to see numbers that high.

 

[Chakra-X]

I feel bad when I see those number D:. I've pirated before, and I like to try to convince myself that it was justified or that it wasn't a big deal. Then I play the game and it's great, and I feel bad that the developers are not getting my money just because I am cheating my way out of payment. For example, to import a certain Japanese game is around $50-$60, which I find ridiculous. Since it as available on the internet for 1)free and 2) relatively instantly, it is hard to not take that up. Had it been in store for $20, I would have most definitely bought it.

Piracy might not be stealing, but when it comes to video games, that's money you are withholding from the developers :/. I can see why this is becoming a large problem, and if it gets to the point where is extremely inconvenient and tiresome to pirate games, yeah that's gonna suck, but it's not like I can say "Hey! Let me play the game you've spent months working on for free!"

 

[Pain]

MW2 shafted PC gamers. PC gamers shafted right back.

Good show.

Legally, piracy is a black and white issue. Morally, there is most certainly some grey area.

 

[Tenzo]

As you said money are an issue. Not all people have it.
Sure if you like a game very much and you want to have legal support for it (multiplayer, updates) i'm all for buying. It's also true that some people that have the means to buy games choose not to.

 

[KYnetiK]

Consumers (and business) will always find the best produce they can for the lowest cost, and take advantage of it. If it is free and accessible, people will go for it, especially when the chances are they are much poorer than their peers. Its just human nature. The law is black and white, but reality has shades of grey and a whole spectrum of colour. Thats why theres crime in the first place.

Games, like the music industry, as well as film and TV, are there to make the publishers a profit, not the developers.

 

[Deathshot]

Sorry, But I have done my share of Piracy, but I gave up with it... I mean I still do a bit with music.... But to me games are something else.

 

[Majin_You]

MW2 shafted PC gamers. PC gamers shafted right back.

Good show.

Legally, piracy is a black and white issue. Morally, there is most certainly some grey area.

Morally? A video game is a luxury, ffs. There's no more morality attached to them than there is seeing a movie or purchasing a premium vehicle. I could understand if there were some sort of bread loaf piracy going on because grain producers were hiking prices so ridiculously high that even people on a hand-to-mouth budget couldn't afford it, but it's not as though video games are necessary and carry the same kind of moral weight as feeding yourself. Sorry, but you're going to have to try harder than that.

What's more, game prices drop - a lot - over time. The way I see it, people pirate the games, in a number of cases, because they are unwilling to pay the launch price. What's wrong with waiting? I didn't think Assassin's Creed was worth the $50 or so it was sold for when it first hit the PC, but I got it the following year for a fraction of the cost. When and if that doesn't happen, I pass on the game until my financial situation changes, if that happens at all. If that doesn't happen, I move on. Is that wrong?

Also, I'm getting so sick of the "This game is definitely not as good as it should have been! **** (insert publisher name), I'm pirating this to stick it to 'em!" line of reasoning. The sense of entitlement that gamers are adopting is getting absolutely ridiculous and, quite frankly, seems to be a dead end. Where are the sweeping changes that developers and publishers are making because of your "heroic" acts?

However, I digress; we've been down this road before, and I'm pretty sure we had to agree to disagree.

 

[Pain]

Maj, I love you. If anyone was going to bite I figured it might be you, but you're making an awful lot of assumptions into what I said.

Morally? A video game is a luxury, ffs. There's no more morality attached to them than there is seeing a movie or purchasing a premium vehicle. I could understand if there were some sort of bread loaf piracy going on because grain producers were hiking prices so ridiculously high that even people on a hand-to-mouth budget couldn't afford it, but it's not as though video games are necessary and carry the same kind of moral weight as feeding yourself. Sorry, but you're going to have to try harder than that.

Indeed, they are a luxury, and indeed, feeding yourself is a much greater priority. I don't believe I made a contrary claim to either of those. Just because it's not a matter of life and death doesn't mean morality can't be involved. I can't really try any harder on an argument I didn't make, my friend.

What's more, game prices drop - a lot - over time. The way I see it, people pirate the games, in a number of cases, because they are unwilling to pay the launch price. What's wrong with waiting? I didn't think Assassin's Creed was worth the $50 or so it was sold for when it first hit the PC, but I got it the following year for a fraction of the cost. When and if that doesn't happen, I pass on the game until my financial situation changes, if that happens at all. If that doesn't happen, I move on. Is that wrong?

Nope. Nothing wrong with that.

Also, I'm getting so sick of the \\\\\"This game is definitely not as good as it should have been! **** (insert publisher name), I'm pirating this to stick it to 'em!\\\\\" line of reasoning. The sense of entitlement that gamers are adopting is getting absolutely ridiculous and, quite frankly, seems to be a dead end. Where are the sweeping changes that developers and publishers are making because of your \\\\\"heroic\\\\\" acts?

I'm certainly not going to defend all of piracy with the claim that all the developers deserved it. As well, I can tell you that this entitlement issue that seems to be continually pushed on gamers with legitimate complaints, pirates or not, is largely undeserved. I'm not going to get into my personal complaints about any particular game here, I've probably done enough of that in the L4D2 thread.

As for the sweeping changes you spoke of, I've never made that claim and I don't believe those involved in piracy as a whole are trying to accomplish that goal.

Another interesting tidbit, while MW2 was the most pirated game of 2009, it was also one of, if not the top selling game to date.

However, I digress; we've been down this road before, and I'm pretty sure we had to agree to disagree.

<3

 

[Majin_You]

Maj, I love you. If anyone was going to bite I figured it might be you, but you're making an awful lot of assumptions into what I said.

Indeed, they are a luxury, and indeed, feeding yourself is a much greater priority. I don't believe I made a contrary claim to either of those. Just because it's not a matter of life and death doesn't mean morality can't be involved. I can't really try any harder on an argument I didn't make, my friend.

And let me counter by saying that, while I quoted your post, my intention was not to suggest that these are claims you are making (it's a bad habit of mine to say "you" or "your" with the intended meaning of "one might" or "one's actions", etc. I apologize for the confusion). I quoted your post to launch off my initial statement that I don't think there's a lot of moral ambiguity involved in piracy. For the most part, I do, firmly, believe that it's just greed, pure and simple.

And that, indeed, does lead to the sense of entitlement. Gamers can have legitimate complaints, yes. I agree that not every game is made up to standard with previous titles from the same developer, but that does NOT, in my eyes, condone what is, in the end, stealing the rights to use/play the game instead of purchasing those rights. Is it a bad business move to release a comparatively inferior product and expect people to pay full price for it? Yes. Is that justification to "steal" your copy of the game? Absolutely not.

I have seen the claims I mentioned made before, not necessarily by you. Unfortunately, they do include the sentiment that piracy will force a developer or publisher to change how they do things, even if that seems incredibly misguided to you or me.

Again, I wasn't singling you out beyond the point where I stated that I don't think there is (or should be) a complicated, moral backdrop to game piracy. I'm sorry if I came across otherwise.

 

[Spunky]

MW2 shafted PC gamers. PC gamers shafted right back.

Good show.

This.

 

[TehMuffinMan]

i dunno, i feel that kind of mentality could very well cause developers to follow the trend of shunning PC gaming entirely in favour of the more profitable platforms, which is what worries me.

 

[Pain]

i dunno, i feel that kind of mentality could very well cause developers to follow the trend of shunning PC gaming entirely in favour of the more profitable platforms, which is what worries me.

Honestly, saying nothing about piracy, I would prefer developers stay on consoles rather than doing lazy ports, or trying to treat the PC market as if it were a console one, (essentially what MW2 did.)

Ideally, I would love to see games made for one platform, and one platform alone. It would increase the value of each console since there would be more exclusives, as well as improve the quality of the games.

 

[TehMuffinMan]

if PC gaming fell out of favour, it'd have much more of an impact that just giving pc gamers a kick up the arse. I tend to find the vast majority of game developers usually start on the ladder by modding PC games, if at least to pique there interest in the sector.

With that in mind, is it unreasonable to think there could be a "Brain Drain" on development studios as the influx of developers starts to dry up? i'd imagine it'd have an impact on indie gaming at the bare minimum, which is usually the main pool that developers take there employees from.

In a nutshell, it'd more than likely be a vicious circle that'd eventually bite console gamers on the arse again as the studios start to dry up in imagination. Personally, i'm rather bored of remakes :S

As for the porting issue, i'd prefer it if they would actually give a monkies about how they port there work and do a proper job. its happened a few times before!

 

[grOOvy]

if PC gaming fell out of favour, it'd have much more of an impact that just giving pc gamers a kick up the arse. I tend to find the vast majority of game developers usually start on the ladder by modding PC games, if at least to pique there interest in the sector.

With that in mind, is it unreasonable to think there could be a \\\\"Brain Drain\\\\" on development studios as the influx of developers starts to dry up? i'd imagine it'd have an impact on indie gaming at the bare minimum, which is usually the main pool that developers take there employees from.

In a nutshell, it'd more than likely be a vicious circle that'd eventually bite console gamers on the arse again as the studios start to dry up in imagination. Personally, i'm rather bored of remakes :S

As for the porting issue, i'd prefer it if they would actually give a monkies about how they port there work and do a proper job. its happened a few times before!

I don't think PC gaming is ever going to die, especially considering genres like MMO, RTS and competitive (e-sport level) FPS. Community generated content, mods and customizations are a lot more popular for PC titles. Take Dragon Age Origins for example: while a lot of people would prefer to sit on a sofa and play the game with a wireless remote on their HDTV via a console, there are a fair few who would prefer having greater control over the camera (and other elements that make RPGs and RTSs more fun on a PC). In addition to this, people who own the PC version will have access to fan-made modifications and content packages.

Having said that, I haven't pirated a game for years (ever since I got into games dev myself). I do feel that game piracy is in a state of decline, though, due to the influx of cheap digital distribution through mediums like Steam (as well as some interesting beta products like OnLive). For instance:

Case 1: GTA4 for $4.99 through the Steam holiday sale / you own the game and it's bound to your account so that you can download it on any PC plus get updates automatically / publishers don't get to keep all the money - it goes to the devs who worked hard on the game.

Case 2: Downloading the same game through some torrent site / getting duped a few times on fake releases / downloading tens of gigs of data based on variables (seeds and peers; other people sharing as opposed to reliable dedicated servers) / extracting and installing in several steps / using a dodgy third party app to generate a working serial / searching for updates manually and re-cracking the updated executable.

... seems like a no-brainer to me (and for most other people too, hopefully). I still buy retail boxes for my favourite games, but I think cheap hassle-free digital distribution is a step in the right direction in the fight against piracy. Give people cheaper and easier options, and many are likely to come back to the good side.

 

[Synth]

You could see companies going by this list to realize what people prefer in their games.

"If it was worth stealing... "