Risen 2: Dark Waters to Utilize Steamworks

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Written by BuckGB on July 26th, 2011

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Hello Risen Fans,

I'd like to give you an update on copy protection for Risen 2. We know that this topic is important for you which is why we want to be as transparent as possible. As mentioned before on several occasions, we regularly evaluate copy protection systems on the market for our product portfolio. In our role as publisher for entertainment software, a set of basic requirements has to be met by the technology we deploy:

Security: The copy protection scheme in question has to be very secure for the customer as well as the publisher.
Compatibility: The technology has to be compatible with all hardware components out there.
Comfort: The protection has to add value to the player aside to its protective behaviour.
Support: The technology has to provide us the means to help customers if the product is not behaving in the expected manner.
Reliability: The scheme has to be proven stable over multiple years and many products.

We diligently reviewed many solutions in the last couple of years and in the case of Risen 2 we decided to use the Steam-Plattform from Valve on a worldwide basis.The reasons we decided to go with Steam are:

Steam offers an automated update system which allows all customers to play the latest version of Risen 2 since all patches will be delivered automatically to their PC. Steam has been running stable on millions of PCs out there, so it provides the reliability we need. The digital copy of Risen 2 will also not require two different copy protections on Steam (compared to Risen 1).

Risen 2 will be playable without a DVD in the drive if the product has been added to a Steam account (Steam accounts are free) and will be available for download on other PCs if you're on the move and still want to play Risen 2. The Steam account itself has been further fortified by the optional Steam Guard system which adds another layer of security. Steam also offers a big array of community features: chats, game groups, achievements and the player can even upload up to 1000 screenshots to share his/her experience in the world of Risen 2. All those features convinced us that Steam offers the right package of features, reliability and security for us.

Naturally we also wanted to keep the restrictions, which are part of any copy protection, as unobtrusive as possible. You will only be required to be online once to link your game to your Steam account and afterwards you will be able to play offline and without DVD in the drive. You will also be able to install Risen 2 from your Steam account on as many systems you like.

best rgds,
doberlec

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