Denuvo sues prolific cracker for bypassing DRM in 26 games

According to a filing in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, voices38 has bypassed DRM restrictions, allowing for the creation of pirated versions of copyrighted works. The list of affected games includes major titles such as Black Myth: Wukong, Resident Evil Requiem, and Doom: The Dark Ages.

This is not a traditional copyright infringement claim regarding the games themselves, as Denuvo does not own the copyrights to the titles in question. Instead, the company is invoking US law that prohibits bypassing digital locks or distributing tools and instructions to overcome such protections. Denuvo is seeking damages and an injunction against the removal of anti-tamper software from any past, present, or future video games.

Denuvo's primary challenge is that the real identity of voices38 remains unknown. The company has identified a Discord ID, a Reddit account, and several Steam profiles believed to belong to the cracker. The legal action may serve as a way to request subpoenas for Valve, Reddit, and Discord to uncover the user's actual identity.

So far, voices38 appears unbothered by the legal action, stating on Reddit: "All is fine. Everything will continue as normal." Beyond piracy, Denuvo remains a controversial topic in the community due to concerns regarding its potential impact on game performance and the risks to game preservation caused by required online checks.