Denuvo
Contents8
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| Basic information | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2014-09-26 |
| Legal Structure | Subsidiary |
| Industry | Video games, Digital-rights management, Software |
| Also known as | |
| Official website | https://irdeto.com/denuvo/ |
Denuvo Software Solutions GmbH is an Austrian company that develops the digital-rights management (DRM) and anti-tamper software Denuvo Anti-Tamper (DAT) and the anti-cheat system Denuvo Anti-Cheat (DAC) for video games. The goal of DAT is to make cracking a game as difficult as possible, in order to protect a game’s launch window.[1]
Consumer-impact summary
Overview of concerns that arise from the conduct towards users of the product (if applicable):
- User Freedom
- User Privacy
- Business Model
- Market Control
Add your text below this box. Once this section is complete, delete this box by clicking on it and pressing backspace.
Incidents
This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the Denuvo category.
High resource usage
Despite Denuvo's denials,[2] its software has been documented to consume a lot of computer resources,[3] notably documented for Tekken 7[4] and Sonic Mania Plus,[5] both games where slowdown is extremely detrimental to players, especially in competitive settings.[6] This slowdown often encourages users to prefer a crack of the game as soon as a crack releases, as seen by early cracks significantly harming sales.[7] As a result of the high system usage, consumers with run lower-end hardware are often unable to even launch these games without running cracked versions, especially when the game's publisher has under-optimized it.[8]
Developers have also blamed Denuvo for negatively impacting performance.[9] Many of them have stopped using DAT in their games,[10] with others utilizing it during the launch period but removing it from their games after some time has passed.[11] Controversies surrounding performance issues has resulted in Denuvo’s brand image being severely tarnished, with them being unable to even host a Discordsever properly due to the amount of harassment and trolling they faced.[12]
Machine Activation Limits
Many games that implement DAT's protections also come with machine activation limits, usually 5 activations per 24-hour period.[13] By imposing arbitrary limits on activations, buyers that have legally acquired the game are unable to play it on all their devices.
There are also accounts of users being locked out of access to their games by simply changing the version of Proton multiple times to get the game working/running correctly.[14][15]
Games with DAT require an always on internet connection
Games using DAT require an always online internet connection to play. DAT pings Denuvo's authentication servers to validate the legitimacy of the game.[citation needed]
On October 2016, The following games during were unavailable due to Denuvo's authentication servers going offline for a couple days causing games to display an error on start up: Batman Arkham Knight, Mad Max and Shadow of War.[1]
On 07 November 2021, Guardians of the Galaxy, Football Manager 2022, Planet Zoo, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Tomb Raider trilogy, Wolfenstein Youngblood, Mortal Kombat 11, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2, Persona 4 Golden, Demon Slayer, among others became completely unplayable due to the Domain Codefusion expiring and not being renewed.[2]
On 02 May 2024, Persona 5 Royal was affected after Denuvo's authentication servers became unavailable. [3]
Products
- Denuvo Anti-Tamper
- Denuvo Anti-Cheat
See also
Link to relevant theme articles or companies with similar incidents.
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References
- ↑ Orland, Kyle (6 Feb 2018). "Denuvo: Our cracked RE7 protection is still better than nothing [Updated]". ArsTechnica. Archived from the original on 16 Feb 2026. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Lemon, Marshall (4 Sep 2018). "Two Point Hospital no longer uses Denuvo DRM". VG247. Archived from the original on 9 Jul 2025. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Machkovech, Sam (26 Dec 2018). "Evidence continues to mount about how bad Denuvo is for PC gaming performance". ArsTechnica. Archived from the original on 13 Nov 2025. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Vazquez, Suriel (14 Apr 2018). "DRM Software Causing Performance Issues In PC Version Of Tekken 7, Says Producer". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 21 May 2018. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Leri, Michael (20 Jul 2018). "Sonic Mania Plus DRM Protection Slowing Down Legitimate Copies". Game Revolution. Archived from the original on 6 Feb 2026. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ "Does modern DRM really hurt gaming performance?". Mega Games. 10 Nov 2017. Archived from the original on 14 Nov 2025. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Tyson, Mark (13 Oct 2024). "Publishers face 20% game revenue reduction if Denuvo DRM is cracked quickly, according to new study". Tom's Hardware. Archived from the original on 19 Oct 2025. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Bayley, Dominic (24 Sep 2024). "Are modern PC games badly optimized or is it just time to upgrade?". PCWorld. Archived from the original on 16 Jan 2026. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Parsons, Don (14 Apr 2018). "Tekken Director Says Denuvo Behind Recent Performance Issues On PC". Tech Raptor. Archived from the original on 26 Oct 2025. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Ariyasinghe, Pulasthi (15 Oct 2024). "BioWare confirms Dragon Age: The Veilguard won't have Denuvo or any third-party DRM". Neowin. Archived from the original on 4 Feb 2026. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Craig, Danny (11 Apr 2023). "Square Enix and Capcom remove Denuvo DRM from multiple games". Hitmarker. Archived from the original on 8 Jul 2025. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ Allen, Joseph (17 Oct 2024). "New Denuvo Discord Temporarily Suspended After Deluge of Hate Messages". Tech Raptor. Archived from the original on 28 Jan 2026. Retrieved 5 Apr 2025.
- ↑ gamegpu (2025-03-14). "Assassin's Creed Shadows: Denuvo DRM protection and 5 activations per day limit". gamegpu.com. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Dawe, Liam (2025-05-15). "Denuvo will lock you out of games on Linux, SteamOS, Steam Deck if you keep changing Proton versions". GamingOnLinux. Archived from the original on 2026-04-05. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
- ↑ minornine (2024-01-17). "Any way around 24 hour Denuvo activation limit when switching between Proton versions? :: Resident Evil 4 General Discussions". Steam Community. Archived from the original on 2026-04-05. Retrieved 2026-04-03.