HIVE

I too would prefer it if we did not need those archives, I would gladly have an official alternative. But. We. Do Not. Yet. And who knows if we will even ever get it?
The Hive's stance on this is clear. It's essential for this community to be able to run older versions of the game, especially when Blizzard released an unfinished game. As long as it's not actual piracy, it's fine. If the threads contain cd keys, please report the post and share a screenshot of you showing the cd key in the folder. We will make sure they are then removed. But as long as an own cd key is required, it is currently accepted.

(cont'd)

"this issue is shared by many people who dared to first update and then stopped updating at any point."
In the Battle.net app, there is a feature for the installed Blizzard games to never update without prior user consent. Also, the wise man reads the comments online before updating or not. That is what I did myself after StarCraft required DX11. Basically, I waited for two hotfixes, waited for more comments an then I did the update. All went smoothly, no pb on the horizon for me.

"You can be unhappy with the current situation, we all are. There is no perfect solution right now, that is the sad fact."
I am unhappy for everybody on planet Earth for the poor state of the game since v1.28.0. But it does not mean we are doomed.

So, "tough luck" for anyone who did it the wrong way? I was also cautious and made my backups, but you are just showing everyone the middle finger with that. Especially since the Battle.net app does not let you play a game without updating it normally. Just fyi.
And no, we are not doomed - because we have those archives that you want to see removed.

At this point it would be better to open a thread where replies can be read and replied to logically instead of this cluster of profile posts.

(still climbing up the ladder of comments)

@deepstrasz: so you are back in the discussion?
Relaaaaaax, I am joking. All your constructive comments are welcomed, as always
;D

No need to feel any guilt imho, and I am the one who is trying to awaken the giant who is asleep.

With the links to my previous posts and comments, I am pointing out that things have been going on in my mind lately. The availability of these legacy versions has been an eye opener for me, forcing me to reconsider the launch of Reforged from a totally new perspective.

(cont'd)


I think gaming web sites (and especially some Youtubers/influencers with no ethics, nor any clue about what journalism is), have not done their job of informing gamers properly. Everybody deserves a fair treatment. even Blizzard.

I agree with you that remaining silent will not make things happen. What is still happening may not be the things a modding community needs.

Anybody who had a previous version legally downloaded from Blizzard is free to keep it. Nobody is forced to upgrade, especially when there might be EULA issues, or higher hardware requirements changes. Where on Earth have you read that one HAD to upgrade to anything, in order to remain on the safe side of the law?

(cont'd)

Regarding no official announcement about these legacy versions, I am guessing Blizzard does not want to lose face, because of the loudmouths who will write such headlines as "Blizzard is backing off". Personally, I see it as a positive thing, as these legacy versions fill a gap for all the players.

As an example, I have been using SC 1.16.1 along with SC:A and I am very happy with this setup. I can even downgrade 1.16.1 to some previous versions, for mods and replays compatibility. Truly, those legacy versions are a godsend. And more may come, if this is all shown in a *positive* light. Forget the haters deepstrasz, they are not worth it anymore imho.

My posts (and links) are not random. You should read them again. honestly.

Just make a thread already. Without @UsernameHere I have no idea who you're talking to really.

Nah this is the perfect medium for this stuff. Let's post everything in this thread :P. @loktar, while I agree with you, I don't feel like HIVE should be affiliated with GameCopyWorld. Besides, we will be one of the mirrors soon enough.

(it is the morning and I am still climbing up the ladder of comments from yesterday)

@Shar Dundred: I am aware that the Hive is not Blizzard. But I also remember that both have affiliations, and that NDAs have been signed.

THW has written permission by Blizzard to host original Blizzard content. Now, does anybody here have such written permission to redistribute (or link to) that which is not supposed to be redistributed outside of Blizzard's own servers, without their written permission?

(cont'd)

As a disgression and an eye opener, you might be unaware that oldunreal is officially in charge of the development of UT99.
https://www.oldunreal.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1569587267
Yep, Epic finally gave their blessing for a fan community to officially resume the development and maintenance of a 1999 game. It took *years* and *years* of effort to build such a trust, for this to finally become possible. Of course, the oldunreal community proved to be worthy of said trust. Now, could such a feat be achieved with WC3 (any version) and THW? Honestly I think not, because some have imho proven to be unreliable individuals who do not care about Blizzard's IP rights.

(cont'd)

Kam is Associate Producer at Blizzard Entertainment. He is the interface between Blizzard and THW. Hive members who are also Blizzard employees have lost their blue color on THW at some point.


You say "We would all want more official versions but they are not there." I answer they are not all there yet.

"Who knows how long it will be until that changes - or even if at all."
v1.27a has been there for everybody to freely download without a Battle.net account at least since the release of v1.32.0. The question is, where was everybody when that happened? We are late at the party, and this is a one in a lifetime opportunity for several other such versions to pop up. And we are mostly all looking elsewhere.

(cont'd)

"I am using a legit 1.29.2 version since I kept a backup but it also means that neither 1.27 nor Reforged users can play my content. Should I be unable to share my content until Activision fixes its issues? "
Yeah, I remember your reservations towards the updated EULA. You willingly chose to not update your legally installed copy, because you have always been in control, you are responsible and *you* were the one on THW to raise awareness about those changes.

As of this writing, you are able to share your content legally with whoever has either the game or the PTR installed. Should you want your content to be *legally* available on the same version you are using, then it is high time to take action, because the fight had to be fought many months (years?) ago. Again, we are late and we have all been looking elsewhere in the hopes of... well, the 1.32 version that is what it is.

(New ladder! The Owner comes first)

Hi Ralle, I appreciate the smile, thanks. I agree it is the right place to discuss this. A thread would have brought too much extra worldwide polemical exposure. A private conversation would have been too restrictive and nobody except a very few individuals (up to 20) could have been invited and informed. Now, on a Profile anybody can read and join, things can be discussed in the open, plus it might also be seen as hopefully good edutainment too, hehe....

For the record, I can take *any* criticism and I am *willing* to answer to any reaction here from anybody. I am 50 and I am a big boy. The main problem is, it takes time to read and *think* and then write a proper answer. especially a long one in English. Thank you all for your patience and understanding.

(cont'd)

I agree GCW gives a bad image of THW in the process. As for Loktar's thread, it *has* legal issues that should be addressed asap.

To give just *one* example: on the 'Game Installer' page for RoC 1.27a we have two links. The one pointing to the official digital Downloader fetched from the official Blizzard site is *100% good*. But for the one pointing to a third-party site, I am now officially asking to read the written authorization / approval Loktar got from Blizzard to redistribute/link to Blizzard's IP of the full 1.27a digital download version of RoC outside of Blizzard's official servers.

(cont'd)

Unauthorized mirrors are a real issue for a very good reason: each download from Blizzard's official servers (or his authorized third-party sites) is monitored and *counts*, to decide for the service to be still supported and possibly expanded in the future.

As a practical example: suppose there are 1,000 downloads of RoC digital in a year. One download only was with the official downloader, while the 999 others were from a third-party unauthorized (and therefore illegal) mirror site. At the end of the year, do you think those official download service will continue to exist the next year? Do you think they will even consider expanding it to other versions at all?

(cont'd)

Being an official mirror site 100% approved by Blizzard (as you seem to have hinted) with material provided by Blizzard itself, could solve many (all?) of the issues I have raised recently. Because every download will count, and it will hopefully encourage Blizzard to develop the service and the affiliation with THW further, as long as we do not behave like retards.

(climbing up the ladder of comments)

loktar, the fact you have no interest in arguing about the legality of some of your actions on THW, does not mean that others may not be interested by said subject. So better be part of the conversation imho.

In case you still do not want to, I have a Mantra for you to repeat ad libitum. It should help you (and maybe a few others as well):

What is mine, is mine.
What is yours, is yours.
What is mine, is not yours.
What is yours, is not mine.

Come on, write a thread instead of this bs. This is bordering to lunacy. It serves literally no purpose to have this discussion on someone's profile wall.

@loktar lol same...