There's one main way I bypass all of those problems. I wait about a week after the game is released, and if there's something really wrong with it (like crashes or a faulty menu), then it'll show up on Digg, and I won't buy it. If there's nothing of the sort, but there's something really anti-consumer (price tag, or restrictions), then I'll wait for it to be cracked then pirate it. I'm not giving my money to a corporation of wankers, that's for sure.

If it turns out the game is perfectly playable, and there's nothing throttling you (to 'protect against piracy', usually), then I'll pay full price for it. I just don't like paying for something anti-consumer.

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