@frauenfelder (Mark Frauenfelder) posted a new topic, subject "What if Steam had been around in 1988?". It read:

   Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/09/04/what-if-steam-was-around-in-19.html  
      
    …

Then @anon75430791 said

    Man. I remember the incredible promise of the rainbow Quantum Link graphic, and marveling at the possibilities _if only my father would hook up the modem and subscribe_.
    
    A few years ago, I discovered that there's a Quantum Link cloned service you can connect to via C64 emulator, so I did.
    
    It was just OK.

To which @Church (ChurchHatesTucker) replied

    Try 1980.
    
    It folded in '83, so I guess you could imagine an '88 version for some reason.

After which, @AnthonyI (Anthony is vaccinated! ) added

    Early DRM would be a simple quiz over the instruction book that came in the box with the game: "What is the first word on page 23, second paragraph? "

@Scott_Lindsey (Scott_Lindsey) replied

    Forgot the embed I think…

After which, @Blaze_Curry (Blaze Curry) added

    Oh man, I remember those; god help you now if lostdocs doesn't have a scan of the old manual.

@Boundegar (Boundegar) replied

    Nobody in 1988 was cool enough to recognize the phrase “grand theft auto?” Hasn't that been lawspeak since… well… the auto? Before that, they probably had “grand theft horse.”

So @Blaze_Curry (Blaze Curry) replied

    And they probably cut the ‘e' off the end to be cool, too.

So @the_borderer (The Borderer) replied

    AnthonyI:
    
    > Early DRM would be a simple quiz over the instruction book that came in the box with the game
    
    If you were lucky.
    
    en.wikipedia.org
    
    ### Lenslok
    
    Lenslok is a copy protection mechanism found in some computer games and other software on the 8-bit Atari computers, Commodore 64, Sinclair ZX Spectrum, Sinclair QL, MSX and Amstrad CPC. The most well-known game to use it was Elite for the ZX Spectrum. Lenslok was released in 1985 as a plastic lens in a foldaway frame. The Lenslok device was essentially a row of prisms arranged vertically in a plastic holder. Before the game started, a two-letter code was displayed on the screen, but it was corr...

To which @ugh (ugh) replied

    I wouldn't mind playing that Phillip Glass game

So @OhhJim replied

    I had a game that included a circular slide rule-type thingy where the game asked a question and you had to line up several concentric circles to get the answer. It was cute, but a pain.

After which, @Jerry_Vandesic (Jerry Vandesic) added

    ugh:
    
    > I wouldn't mind playing that Phillip Glass game
    
    Me Too Me Too Me Too Me Too Me Too Me Too Me Too  
    Me Toooooooooooooooooo  
    Me Too Me Too Me Too Me Too Me Too Me Too Me Too  
    Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee To

To which @Jorpho (Jorpho) replied

    Yes, the term is:  
    en.wikipedia.org
    
    ### Code wheel
    
    A code wheel is a type of copy protection used on older computer games, often those published in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It evolved from the original "manual protection" system in which the program would require the user to enter a specific word from the manual before the game would start up or continue beyond a certain point. This system was popular because it allowed the actual media to be backed up and replaced freely while retaining security, but with the increased availability of p...
    
    Perhaps one of the more famous examples is Monkey Island's “Dial-a-Pirate”, because how can you forget a name like that?

To which @OhhJim replied

    Interesting, thanks. It was a baseball game, fwiw.

After which, @Professor59 (Eric Wagner) added

    If Steam had the power over gaming in 1988 that it has today, I'm not sure video games would still be a thing by now.

After which, @StoneyMahoney added

    The dial-a-pirate copy protection thing didn't work very well, I had a single piece of paper with the data copied and re-tabulated into a form that could be read much quicker. Better than Jet Set Willy's supremely annoying tiny code chart that was sooooo easy to misread, then you got another go, then you had to reload the game from scratch - which meant rewinding the audio cassette and waiting another three minutes.
    
    It seems nothing has changed in the world of DRM.

Then @frauenfelder (Mark Frauenfelder) said

    This topic was automatically closed after 5 days. New replies are no longer allowed.


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