What do you know about ways to protect the game from pirates?

Question

Game development

Hello. We are making a game (on PC) and now the question arose how to protect it from pirates as much as possible?
The only option that so far found it to do so:
The plot will be divided into chapters. The client downloads the chapter from the database (what map it is, where what is placed and how, conditions for passing it) -> the player passes it (at this time the autosave works) -> the client reports to the server that he has passed the chapter -> the server checks on reliability (whether the main condition of passage is met) -> if everything is correct, then it gives the next chapter
-> if not, then you need to think about what is happening
And what options do you have? Unity3D engine if it matters

Answer 1

Hmm... a single player game that requires internet access? Here I am compelled to appeal to Ubisoft's experience. Some of the parts of Assassin's Creed (if I'm not mistaken the second one) required a permanent connection to the ubisoft servers.
The protection was bypassed in a month (they simply made their own "server"), but those who bought the "Bombilo" license took a long time, because a short break in the Internet led to bad consequences and they eventually removed this protection.

Answer 2

Make some kind of server functionality that the game requires.
But in general, making such a successful game that someone needs to pirate it is much more difficult, I would not think about protection for now without good reason, there are much more important problems there.

Answer 3

Micro-updates - this is what the defenders of Crysis 3 did (they came out almost every day)
A bunch of free addons - this is what they did in The Witcher 3 (something comes out every week or two)
An impenetrable level - this was done in some game I don’t remember, it was impossible to fill up the boss there if a pirate
Ability for users to create addons - This is how almost all Elder Scrolls games have done this

Answer 4

DRM is not needed. And (nothing personal) - judging by the question, you definitely do not need it. From whom are you going to "protect" your product?

Answer 5

Do not copy and reconcile. Shit will cost you more than "lost profits". The only justified protection is not to be allowed on the official multiplayer servers. You can even make the game itself free, and multiplayer - paid.

Answer 6

I think Jimmy Wales, the founder of the wiki, knows one such way )

Answer 7

Forget about protection. Those who want to buy will buy, those who do not want will not buy. CDProject did not put any protection on the witcher at all.

Answer 8

In vain you underestimate third-party DRM - the cost is understandable there, so you can calculate the effectiveness. Multiplayer also needs protection from cheats and bots.