Here's the email I sent to Ross Scott from Accursed Farms.
Hello Ross,
Hope you're doing well.
My name is Ahmed Anssaien, and I'm an IT specialist from Morocco. Let me tell you about a very recent gaming-related story before I get into more details about the main subject: Yesterday, while I was at the dentist's reception, I found myself having to wait a whole hour because I was 10 minutes late for my appointment, so I decided to just sit there and do nothing but stare out the window, but in the last few minutes, I pulled out my Android phone (Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S) running LineageOS (deGoogled), and decided to play me some OG Angry Birds (with a NetSwitch Magisk module that blocks Internet access to it.) Thing is, the game stutters a bit, that's why I didn't feel like playing it until it was time for my dentist to adjust my braces. The next day, while I was trying to fall asleep, I thought to myself, “How about I find a PlayStation emulator for Android, copy Crash Team Racing to my phone, and connect my PS5 controller via Bluetooth the next time I get stuck waiting a whole damn hour at the dentist's reception?” So I got out of bed, and started working on that; it only took me a couple of minutes to get DuckStation (already have the Windows version), and setting up the PS5 controller with automatic mapping was a breeze. I already have a cool phone stand, so I won't be “killed” by boredom on my next dentist appointment 27 days from now. All this to say, I can't help but be grateful for the fact that I can play a PS1 game from 1999 (played it when I was 8 back in 2002 on a modchipped PS1; didn't even know a lick of English or piracy or anything like that back then) on a phone that was released in 2020 using a PS5 controller. So believe me when I say, appreciating your major contribution to preserving games is an understatement.
Anyway, back to the PirateSoftware debacle. Here's why I think he misunderstood everything that SKG stood for:
– I think he watched your ‘”Games as a service” is fraud.' first, and your tone probably didn't sit well with him (kind of like the “politicians like easy wins” statement where he felt the need to get on his high horse, and act like game preservation should be the “right” thing instead of the “easy” thing.) For some people, using sarcasm to make a point, no matter how valid and logical, can make certain people not accept it at all, perhaps out of spite or just being a contrarian. It's kind of like if I start cussing while making a good point, and the person in front of me is religious or doesn't like cursing in general, they might miss the whole point, and call me rude or something like that. The last time something like that happened, my Level-Two Fiverr account got suspended, but I consider stuff like that a badge of honor, seriously.– What's crazy is that even your ‘”Games as a service” is fraud.” video from 6 years ago makes the same robust points that Thor overlooked like, “It's up to the publishers to decide how the purchased/owned copy of the game should remain in a functional state.” And yet he kept insisting on saying that SKG wants publishers to support the game forever. It boggles the mind how he keeps twisting your words, man. What's even crazier (in a good way) is that it feels like the way you explain things is like a cure for my self-diagnosed ADHD.
– If I were personally unreasonable (think of the spawn of Linus Torvalds and Karl Marx), I would say, all games should be completely open-source, both the client, and the server, and publishers shouldn't be allowed to use any sort of analytics software to harvest user data or any sort of backdoor that could brick the game. Maybe then I could be seen as an idealist.
– Ironically, even the guy that pushed the copyright laws admitted how much of a failure the whole thing was (note that the Senate refused, and he had to go behind their back on the international level to get them to pass the ridiculous bill), so when a publisher refers to them as “long-standing”, that's like the definition of delusional; it reminds me of how proud Concord devs were before the game flopped into oblivion. And like Asmongold said and I paraphrase, “Even Concord should be preserved, so that future generations can learn what NOT to do when it comes to making good games.”
– Also, saying that “if games as a service have to be treated as goods, it will hurt creativity of developers and restrain them.” has the same vibe as, “If billionaires get taxed based on their wealth, then they'll just stop creating jobs, and they'll move to a different country where their innovation won't be stifled.” Especially since all the counter-arguments revolve around profit/greed with consumers being less of an afterthought.
– One thing's for certain though: Thor is really the epitome of the Dunning–Kruger effect. He's also living proof that credentials don't mean jack when basic reading comprehension is thrown out the window.
Once again, thank you, Ross!
Best regards,
Ahmed