Denuvo claims to be the most effective DRM system bundled with games (though it has been cracked over the years) and it works better than others because it integrates closely with the game's code and the hardware it's running on. Once on a computer, the computer becomes an internet-of-things device under the control of an elaborate software framework that can see everything you do while hiding what it does from you. One benefit to gamers is the top-of-class anti-cheat system. But the cons are considerable, not least a performance hit which someone from the company testily admitted to as part of a PR effort aimed at rehabilitating its image.
PS: Do you deny that Denuvo negatively affects performance in all cases?
Andreas Ullmann: No, and I think that's also something that we've stated in our FAQ on Discord. There are valid cases, especially when we are talking about the one that comes up on a regular basis: Tekken 7. That was also confirmed by by the technical producer back in the day on Twitter.
Thing is, I think it's important to understand how our solution works.
This is funny, too:
Andreas Ullmann: There was a recent study about the financial impact of our protection. That study said our solution saves our customers around 20% of – or an additional 20% of revenue – if they're using our solution.
RPS: The study you mention showed that having Denuvo software improves revenues at launch, but also showed that a certain point after release – I think it was around three months – it evens out. Do you think publishers should have a policy of eventually removing Denuvo and making that clear to players in their marketing?
Andreas Ullmann: That's the only point of the study where I'm not totally agreeing.
So it front-loads sales numbers with gamers in the venn diagram of "will pay", "but would rather pirate" and "day 1 acquisition"—but it evens out in three months. The financial benefit evaporates by the end of the quarter. It sounds like it's all about optimizing curves and "box office" marketing cycles at the largest publishers. If you don't have that type of meeting in your office, there seems to be no point.
Previously:
• The video game industry's best-of-class DRM is routinely cracked in less than 24 hours
• New, 'unbreakable' Denuvo DRM cracked two days before its first commercial deployment
• Capcom adds DRM to old games, causing new problems for customers
