Video Game Piracy: A Welcome
Solution?
Four to five years running, we look into what piracy has done in the Philippines.

Let's face it, over the span of 4 to 6 years, piracy has become rampant here in the Philippines. Starting from the more affordable 200 peso PS CD's to its present low rates of P35 per disc. In other parts of the globe, piracy has been cut to bare minimum and almost non-existent perhaps so why is it here piracy is even endorsed and can be seen almost anywhere.

We ask ourselves Filipinos what do we see in piracy?  Aside from their availability (arriving earlier than original games), the price factor is indeed a big deal.  May sense nga naman, why buy the real thing when there's something just like it and cheaper pa.

Being a former piracy fan myself, it really was hard letting go.  But in the end, values got the better of me.  I found out how much it affected game companies, in order for them to continue bringing us quality games.  They need our money for funding.  At our present rate, if we continue buying pirated CD's it will ultimately end in more closed companies (like SNK America) and being a true game fan, I really don't want that to happen.  So it's up to you gamers, is this just a fad or is it really game over.

Rocky Opina,  GameOPS

NOTE:
This article was written before there was pirated Dreamcast and PlayStation 2 CD's.