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Ubisoft denies Silent Hunter 5 DRM cracked on first day

New anti-piracy system is working, insists publisher; torrent sites are hosting incomplete game

Ubisoft has denied that its new anti-piracy measures have been cracked for Silent Hunter 5 on the day the game was released, saying that versions currently being hosted on torrent sites are incomplete.

According to a report published earlier today by Eurogamer, submarine simulator Silent Hunter 5: Battle of the Atlantic, and the day one patch that fixed many fundamental bugs, were immediately hacked, with the game appearing on torrent sites and Usenet. Sites were also hosting versions of Assassin's Creed II.

In the case of Silent Hunter 5, the anti-piracy system was apparently circumvented by replacing an executable file with a patched replacement – similar to most PC hacks. The piracy group responsible said that, in addition, the user turning off their internet connection or not using Ubisoft's game loader was enough to get the game running DRM-free.

However, Ubisoft denies its systems have been circumvented, saying in a statement, "You have probably seen rumours on the web that Assassin's Creed II and Silent Hunter 5 have been cracked.

"Please know that this rumour is false and while a pirated version may seem to be complete at start up, any gamer who downloads and plays a cracked version will find that their version is not complete."

Forum users seem to disagree though, with some today saying they are playing a pirated version of Silent Hunter 5 without an internet connection and by saving offline.

Ubisoft's new DRM system relies on gamers having a constant internet connection in order to be authenticated on the company's servers to play. If their connection drops out, they can lose progress made in the game up until that point.

Since its announcement, the PC community has largely been opposed to the new restrictions it imposes on them. However, Ubisoft has said there are upshots to the system – such as being able to run games without a disc and play on any number of PCs, and store save files remotely – and point out that most people are always connected to the internet anyway.

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Kath Brice

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