Piracy has been an issue for video game developers and publishers for decades as, unsurprisingly, consumers finding ways to play their products for free can have devastating effects on finances. Consequently, many games over the years have implemented anti-piracy measures to immediately prevent pirates from accessing any of the content.
However, some companies have decided to go a different route and punish their game's thieves by subtly changing key mechanics to break the game, deleting save files after hours of progress, or even finding ways to publicly shame them. The approach may concede some content to illegal downloaders, but some developers deem it a necessary sacrifice to make those stealing their product feel frustration or embarrassment through methods that are often utterly bizarre.
6 Crysis Warhead
Crysis Warhead was released in September 2008 as a standalone expansion to 2007's iconic first-person shooter Crysis.
One of the most important aspects of any first-person shooter game for developers to get right is the balancing of weapons and firepower. Guns can't be too realistic as it would make the game unenjoyable, but players also don't want the enemies to be bullet sponges. Crysis Warhead throws this delicate balance out of the window for those that pirated the game, as instead of having their guns loaded with bullets, Warhead pirates will be armed with guns loaded with... chickens.
These chickens do no damage; they just push enemies around a bit and probably leave them a bit perplexed as to what on earth is happening.
5 Game Dev Tycoon
Sometimes the best way to teach someone a lesson is to make them feel how the people they wronged feel. The team behind Game Dev Tycoon - a business simulation and management game that lets players run their own video game development company - did exactly this by implementing piracy in their game.
Those who pirated the game would ironically find themselves constantly going out of business due to piracy, following the message: "Boss, it seems that while many players play our new game, they steal it by downloading a cracked version rather than buying it legally. If players don't buy the games they like, we will sooner or later go bankrupt."
Funnily enough, a handful of people went onto internet forums to complain that piracy was stopping them from making any progress, only to leave red-faced after being told what was happening.
4 Serious Sam 3: BFE
From one first-person shooter to another, Serious Sam 3: BFE was originally released in November 2011 and continued the series' tradition of offering ridiculously over-the-top action.
Due to the game's tendency to throw enemies at players with supernatural size or speed, Serious Sam 3's anti-piracy measure of an invincible Arachnoid that endlessly chases the player may not initially seem out of place. The unstoppable Arachnoid is completely game-breaking though, so sooner or later, players will inevitably look online and realize that they've been caught out.
3 Mirror's Edge
When the first gameplay trailer for Mirror's Edge was released, many people were blown away by the fluid movement, immersive perspective, and unique visuals bursting with color, leading some to believe that the game would be a revolutionary release. Mirror's Edge didn't turn out to be the masterpiece that many had hoped for, but it was still a great game with thoroughly enjoyable free running mechanics.
However, those who pirated Mirror's Edge weren't able to enjoy the game's flowing movement as the protagonist, Faith, would drastically slow down when approaching an obstacle, making it impossible to jump over any gaps.
2 SkullGirls Encore
Skullgirls Encore is a 2D fighting game that was developed by Lab Zero Games and first released in August 2013.
Instead of outright stopping people who illegally downloaded their game from accessing any of the content, the developers opted to keep everything the same, barring a small notice that would pop up and say, "What is the square root of a fish? Now I'm sad."
The bizarre message was designed to be intentionally misleading so that those who pirated the game would post about it online. One instance of this question being asked prompted Lab Zero Games' Twitter page to respond, "Oh that? It means you should probably buy the game instead of pirate it. o:)”
1 EarthBound
EarthBound is a classic role-playing game that was developed by Ape Inc. and HAL Laboratory and first released in Japan back in 1994 before releasing in North America the following year.
The game's developers decided that they weren't going to go easy on people who pirated their game, so they ensured that illegal downloaders were forced to face far more enemies than in the regular release. That's not all, though, as those who persisted through the game despite the increase of enemies would have their game crash during the final boss fight, and when they booted the game back up, they would find that their save file had been deleted.