Obviously no kid is a criminal because of pirated games. When I was a kid, you bought C64, Amiga* -- and later, DOS -- games at shops, and every game was pirated. This was the norm in third world countries. I didn't even know there was anything out of the ordinary. I don't think I owned a single legit C64 game. As for my first legal PC games, which a relative from abroad bought for me: I didn't really make the connection; to me they were "boxed games" because they came with a fancy box and a manual.
I don't feel the need to "repay" anyone about this, or feel any guilt. Of course, a real C64 boxed game is probably a collector's item today, and I'd like to own an original of the games I loved as a kid.
* though nobody I knew owned an Amiga. I marveled at the color graphics on display at the pirated games shop, and wondered who owned one!
Obviously no kid is a criminal because of pirated games. When I was a kid, you bought C64, Amiga* -- and later, DOS -- games at shops, and every game was pirated. This was the norm in third world countries. I didn't even know there was anything out of the ordinary. I don't think I owned a single legit C64 game. As for my first legal PC games, which a relative from abroad bought for me: I didn't really make the connection; to me they were "boxed games" because they came with a fancy box and a manual.
I don't feel the need to "repay" anyone about this, or feel any guilt. Of course, a real C64 boxed game is probably a collector's item today, and I'd like to own an original of the games I loved as a kid.
* though nobody I knew owned an Amiga. I marveled at the color graphics on display at the pirated games shop, and wondered who owned one!