[360] Prey

[leaffan]

That's one thing I never understood about PC gaming, or maybe it's just services like Steam. How can you run out of something that is digital?!?

The makers of the game have only so many cd keys they can generate. Keys are still used in pc gaming because games can still be pirated if they didn't have some sort of key encyption in place. Although this doesn't stop everything. Thats a whole other subject.

For most games once you download and install a game it activates that key and ties it to your steam account. I can't just write down my key and give it away later since its tied to my steam account and when it comes to digital downloads its not like I have to give a friend my cd so he can go and play it since there is no cd to give away.

 

[Twigg4075]

The makers of the game have only so many cd keys they can generate. Keys are still used in pc gaming because games can still be pirated if they didn't have some sort of key encyption in place. Although this doesn't stop everything. Thats a whole other subject.

For most games once you download and install a game it activates that key and ties it to your steam account. I can't just write down my key and give it away later since its tied to my steam account and when it comes to digital downloads its not like I have to give a friend my cd so he can go and play it since there is no cd to give away.

I understand that but because the game is being distributed digitally there is no reason that the publisher shouldn't be able to create a near infinite amount of keys.

 

[leaffan]

I understand that but because the game is being distributed digitally there is no reason that the publisher shouldn't be able to create a near infinite amount of keys.

You can't create an infinite amount of keys. The actual amount of keys you can create is a lot smaller then you think would be possible.

 

[Twigg4075]

You can't create an infinite amount of keys. The actual amount of keys you can create is a lot smaller then you think would be possible.

Weird. That's like saying MS can only print a limited amount of points card codes or game codes. It's never happened.

 

[leaffan]

Weird. That's like saying MS can only print a limited amount of points card codes or game codes. It's never happened.

There's 25 characters that have to be put in which consist of any of the 26 letters in the alphabet....

Thats a lot of keys and even then probably only half of them are ever used since you don't want a key with all the same letters and such.