Activation

[tmskel]

Hi. New to the forum, but have been sailing since vs 7. I have to say that this helped greatly in my further career as a Master Mariner and eventually as a company VP of ship operations I bought the NG Version in 2021. 8.10.2021 at 15.20 UTC+2 to be precise. I had to recently change my computer components as the SSD i had been using died. I decided to change other components as well and when i finally got the computer working i decided to hone my skills. When i tried to activate the game i got this message "Your registration was was made more than two years ago, therefore the update cannot be made for free."

So is this a bug or an actual feature of the activation? I could understand this if the software purchase/download page would mention that what i`m buying is a 2 year subscription, but alas, no such wording to be found. I would rather not spend ~40€ twice if i have a reasonable cause to think it is a 1 time purchase. For me the 40€ is not so bad. But when i think back to the once 10 year old me that would have been devastated to found my beloved game being out of service due to some frankly stupid reason to make the game not to allow activation if you have to change the drives in your computer

Any ideas?

[Sailorjohn]

That is not a bug.
It seems reasonable to me that the creator of the simulation who continues to update and upgrade it, deserves rewards for his time and effort. I knew from the outset that after 2 years, if you changed your pc, hard drive, or other major component, you'd have to repurchase. I've had these sims for over 20 years, and repurchased often. Sim creators have to earn a living too.

[MokMok]

That is not a bug.
It seems reasonable to me that the creator of the simulation who continues to update and upgrade it, deserves rewards for his time and effort. I knew from the outset that after 2 years, if you changed your pc, hard drive, or other major component, you'd have to repurchase. I've had these sims for over 20 years, and repurchased often. Sim creators have to earn a living too.

Is repurchasing after significant changes of your PC hardware also necessary in Steam versions of VSNG?

[Sailorjohn]

I don't use Steam, so can't answer this. I imagine the terms are up to Steam to decide. Any Steam users care to help here?

[christianH]

I use both versions, Steam and non-Steam. The problem does not exist with the Steam version. The copy protection is regulated there via your Steam account.

[Blue710]

I use both versions, Steam and non-Steam. The problem does not exist with the Steam version. The copy protection is regulated there via your Steam account.

So the activation Is more related to DRM then anything else. You still need a code for the web site version. While I do support the Idea that the dev needs to make a living, I don´t find that paying full price again Is the right way to go, specially when the game Is not bug free/stable. There are other ways to generate Income for the game which could make for a better business model.

I also see no benefits, aside from a 2-3€ difference for buying the web site version, even more so when you have the 2 year/3 times activation restrains versus the Steam version which Is free of such handicaps.

Personally I bought the web version sometime ago (+2 years), and now regret It but IIRC their was no Steam version yet. Would have been nice that those who bought the web version would also get a Steam key, specially those who bought It with the original price without the price drop.

Some companies also give you a Steam key when you buy from their site, just a thought...

Blue