Comment It's already being done. (Score 2, Informative) 200
Game demos with feature erosion have been around for a long time in the form of developers gimping pirated versions of games or making them uncompletable/unplayable/play-hostile.
For example, in Batman: Arkham Asylum, some pirated versions would have Batman's Gliding move disabled. In Grand Theft Auto IV, pirated versions would have gravity suddenly go berserk, and with the Penny Arcade On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness game, pirated versions would be rendered uncompletable by a glitch.
Since some people "try/demo" games using the pirated versions, you could say that what Sony is trying to patent has already been done.
For example, in Batman: Arkham Asylum, some pirated versions would have Batman's Gliding move disabled. In Grand Theft Auto IV, pirated versions would have gravity suddenly go berserk, and with the Penny Arcade On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness game, pirated versions would be rendered uncompletable by a glitch.
Since some people "try/demo" games using the pirated versions, you could say that what Sony is trying to patent has already been done.
