Take Two: Difference between revisions

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==Relevant incidents==

2K Games - exclusivity contracts (stub)

===''GTA 4'' content removal===

Much like with EA, 2K has also purchased exclusivity contracts with sports [https://www.operationsports.com/the-nba-and-2k-have-agreed-to-a-huge-new-license-deal-what-does-it-mean/ leagues], thus also restricting options for consumers. (Maybe mention pga or wwe?)

2k - personal data breaches (stub)

[https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/rockstar-owner-take-twos-hacking-woes-continue-as-2k-confirm-attack-on-their-support-service ref a] [https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2k-confirms-user-data-stolen-and-placed-on-sale-after-recent-security-breach ref b]

2k - faulty game launcher (stub)

[https://www.pcgamer.com/2ks-quality-of-life-change-for-bioshock-is-that-linux-users-cant-play-it-anymore/ Ref]

2k - shuttered studios (stub)

[[wikipedia:2K_(company)|Wikipedia page ref]](note: use as springboard, find dedicated sources for history of buyouts and shuttering)

General - Microtransactions (MTX) and lootboxes (stub)

[https://screenrant.com/nba-2k-take-two-microtransactions-lawsuit-sports/ Ref] | should cover all 3 major companies owned by T2, ref covers 2k. Zynga's pioneering of predatory mtx needs to be covered (see cityville and Farmville games.) Rockstar, shark cards in GTAO? No clue how we could shoehorn this one.

Rockstar - GTA The Definitive Trilogy (maybe delete?)

Should require discussion, reluctant to cover since owners of existing legacy trilogy GTAs retained access to their games during the primary launch period, despite initial delisting of OG titles. The trilogy's release was however horrendous, and required several months of redevelopment just to get close to a playable state for those who did purchase the remake.

===''Rockstar - GTA 4'' content removal===

Licensing for some songs in ''GTA 4'' have run out, and updates to the game have been removing content after purchase.<ref>https://support.rockstargames.com/articles/360001005308/Music-Updates-in-Grand-Theft-Auto-IV-The-Lost-and-Damned-and-The-Ballad-of-Gay-Tony</ref> A list of removed songs can be found here<ref>https://gtaforums.com/topic/908139-iv-song-removal-due-to-licenses-expiring/</ref> and here.<ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/8f4crm/the_update_for_gta_4_removes_songs_from_the/</ref> Players who purchased a physical disk copy can enjoy the full soundtrack but cannot update without losing content.

===''GTA 5'' move to kernel-level anti-cheat on PC after purchase===

===''Rockstar - GTA 5'' move to kernel-level anti-cheat on PC after purchase===

''GTA 5'' was released in 2013. On September 17, 2024 (11 years after release), Rockstar implemented a controversial update that included a more invasive and dangerous kernel-mode anti-cheat by BattlEye.<ref>https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/271590/view/6356356787200715684?l=english</ref>

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</blockquote>Because of the inherent privacy and security risks associated with kernel-mode anti-cheat, increasingly players and developers are demanding more transparency in the usage of kernel-mode software included in games. In response, Valve added a new transparency requirement for developers and publishers to disclose the use of more invasive kernel-mode anti-cheat solutions:<ref>https://steamcommunity.com/groups/steamworks/announcements/detail/4547038620960934857</ref><blockquote>We've heard from more and more developers recently that they're looking for the right way to share anti-cheat information about their game with players. At the same time, players have been requesting more transparency around the anti-cheat services used in games, as well as the existence of any additional software that will be installed within the game.</blockquote><blockquote>Going forward, when you submit a new game to Steam, '''if your game installs a client side, kernel mode anti-cheat, you will need to fill out this new field'''. We will be going through old games and contacting partners with games that fall into this category.

If your game contains a client or server based anti-cheat that is not kernel based, submitting the field is optional but we generally think that any game that makes use of anti-cheat technology would benefit from letting players know.</blockquote><blockquote>'''Specifying Kernel-level Integration''' - Select this to let players know that your anti-cheat integration installs or modifies files at the OS kernel level for any modes of your game. This is automatically selected or disabled for the relevant common anti-cheat services in the drop-down menu.</blockquote>~~Kernal~~ mode anti-cheat solutions carry inherently more risks to the player, as the anti-cheat installs drivers with elevated permissions and sometimes contains vulnerabilities<ref>https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/22/h/ransomware-actor-abuses-genshin-impact-anti-cheat-driver-to-kill-antivirus.html</ref> that can leave the user machine and data at risk, far beyond the risks when the software is isolated to user-mode permissions. Even Rockstar's own instructions suggest adding an exception to anti-virus, only increasing risk to players.<blockquote>While BattlEye is compatible with most antivirus software, you may run into issues if your antivirus does not recognize BattlEye. To avoid any potential problems, make sure to add BattlEye to your antivirus’ exception list.</blockquote>

If your game contains a client or server based anti-cheat that is not kernel based, submitting the field is optional but we generally think that any game that makes use of anti-cheat technology would benefit from letting players know.</blockquote><blockquote>'''Specifying Kernel-level Integration''' - Select this to let players know that your anti-cheat integration installs or modifies files at the OS kernel level for any modes of your game. This is automatically selected or disabled for the relevant common anti-cheat services in the drop-down menu.</blockquote>Kernel mode anti-cheat solutions carry inherently more risks to the player, as the anti-cheat installs drivers with elevated permissions and sometimes contains vulnerabilities<ref>https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/22/h/ransomware-actor-abuses-genshin-impact-anti-cheat-driver-to-kill-antivirus.html</ref> that can leave the user machine and data at risk, far beyond the risks when the software is isolated to user-mode permissions. Even Rockstar's own instructions suggest adding an exception to anti-virus, only increasing risk to players.<blockquote>While BattlEye is compatible with most antivirus software, you may run into issues if your antivirus does not recognize BattlEye. To avoid any potential problems, make sure to add BattlEye to your antivirus’ exception list.</blockquote>

==References==

@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 ==Relevant incidents==
+K Games - exclusivity contracts (stub)
-===''GTA 4'' content removal===
+Much like with EA, 2K has also purchased exclusivity contracts with sports [https://www.operationsports.com/the-nba-and-2k-have-agreed-to-a-huge-new-license-deal-what-does-it-mean/ leagues], thus also restricting options for consumers. (Maybe mention pga or wwe?)
+k - personal data breaches (stub)
+[https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/rockstar-owner-take-twos-hacking-woes-continue-as-2k-confirm-attack-on-their-support-service ref a] [https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2k-confirms-user-data-stolen-and-placed-on-sale-after-recent-security-breach ref b]
+k - faulty game launcher (stub)
+[https://www.pcgamer.com/2ks-quality-of-life-change-for-bioshock-is-that-linux-users-cant-play-it-anymore/ Ref]
+k - shuttered studios (stub)
+[[wikipedia:2K_(company)|Wikipedia page ref]](note: use as springboard, find dedicated sources for history of buyouts and shuttering)
+General - Microtransactions (MTX) and lootboxes (stub)
+[https://screenrant.com/nba-2k-take-two-microtransactions-lawsuit-sports/ Ref] | should cover all 3 major companies owned by T2, ref covers 2k. Zynga's pioneering of predatory mtx needs to be covered (see cityville and Farmville games.) Rockstar, shark cards in GTAO? No clue how we could shoehorn this one.
+Rockstar - GTA The Definitive Trilogy (maybe delete?)
+Should require discussion, reluctant to cover since owners of existing legacy trilogy GTAs retained access to their games during the primary launch period, despite initial delisting of OG titles. The trilogy's release was however horrendous, and required several months of redevelopment just to get close to a playable state for those who did purchase the remake.
+===''Rockstar - GTA 4'' content removal===
 Licensing for some songs in ''GTA 4'' have run out, and updates to the game have been removing content after purchase.<ref>https://support.rockstargames.com/articles/360001005308/Music-Updates-in-Grand-Theft-Auto-IV-The-Lost-and-Damned-and-The-Ballad-of-Gay-Tony</ref> A list of removed songs can be found here<ref>https://gtaforums.com/topic/908139-iv-song-removal-due-to-licenses-expiring/</ref> and here.<ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/8f4crm/the_update_for_gta_4_removes_songs_from_the/</ref> Players who purchased a physical disk copy can enjoy the full soundtrack but cannot update without losing content.
-===''GTA 5'' move to kernel-level anti-cheat on PC after purchase===
+===''Rockstar - GTA 5'' move to kernel-level anti-cheat on PC after purchase===
 ''GTA 5'' was released in 2013. On September 17, 2024 (11 years after release), Rockstar implemented a controversial update that included a more invasive and dangerous kernel-mode anti-cheat by BattlEye.<ref>https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/271590/view/6356356787200715684?l=english</ref>
@@ Line 33: / Line 56: @@
 </blockquote>Because of the inherent privacy and security risks associated with kernel-mode anti-cheat, increasingly players and developers are demanding more transparency in the usage of kernel-mode software included in games. In response, Valve added a new transparency requirement for developers and publishers to disclose the use of more invasive kernel-mode anti-cheat solutions:<ref>https://steamcommunity.com/groups/steamworks/announcements/detail/4547038620960934857</ref><blockquote>We've heard from more and more developers recently that they're looking for the right way to share anti-cheat information about their game with players. At the same time, players have been requesting more transparency around the anti-cheat services used in games, as well as the existence of any additional software that will be installed within the game.</blockquote><blockquote>Going forward, when you submit a new game to Steam, '''if your game installs a client side, kernel mode anti-cheat, you will need to fill out this new field'''. We will be going through old games and contacting partners with games that fall into this category.
-If your game contains a client or server based anti-cheat that is not kernel based, submitting the field is optional but we generally think that any game that makes use of anti-cheat technology would benefit from letting players know.</blockquote><blockquote>'''Specifying Kernel-level Integration''' - Select this to let players know that your anti-cheat integration installs or modifies files at the OS kernel level for any modes of your game. This is automatically selected or disabled for the relevant common anti-cheat services in the drop-down menu.</blockquote>Kernal mode anti-cheat solutions carry inherently more risks to the player, as the anti-cheat installs drivers with elevated permissions and sometimes contains vulnerabilities<ref>https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/22/h/ransomware-actor-abuses-genshin-impact-anti-cheat-driver-to-kill-antivirus.html</ref> that can leave the user machine and data at risk, far beyond the risks when the software is isolated to user-mode permissions. Even Rockstar's own instructions suggest adding an exception to anti-virus, only increasing risk to players.<blockquote>While BattlEye is compatible with most antivirus software, you may run into issues if your antivirus does not recognize BattlEye. To avoid any potential problems, make sure to add BattlEye to your antivirus’ exception list.</blockquote>
+If your game contains a client or server based anti-cheat that is not kernel based, submitting the field is optional but we generally think that any game that makes use of anti-cheat technology would benefit from letting players know.</blockquote><blockquote>'''Specifying Kernel-level Integration''' - Select this to let players know that your anti-cheat integration installs or modifies files at the OS kernel level for any modes of your game. This is automatically selected or disabled for the relevant common anti-cheat services in the drop-down menu.</blockquote>Kernel mode anti-cheat solutions carry inherently more risks to the player, as the anti-cheat installs drivers with elevated permissions and sometimes contains vulnerabilities<ref>https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/22/h/ransomware-actor-abuses-genshin-impact-anti-cheat-driver-to-kill-antivirus.html</ref> that can leave the user machine and data at risk, far beyond the risks when the software is isolated to user-mode permissions. Even Rockstar's own instructions suggest adding an exception to anti-virus, only increasing risk to players.<blockquote>While BattlEye is compatible with most antivirus software, you may run into issues if your antivirus does not recognize BattlEye. To avoid any potential problems, make sure to add BattlEye to your antivirus’ exception list.</blockquote>
 ==References==