Final Fantasy XV Windows Edition Uses Denuvo

Plenty of gamers are excited for the long-awaited release of Final Fantasy XV Windows Edition. However, the Steam page was recently updated with some sobering information that might turn off some potential buyers: the game uses the Denuvo Anti-tamper program.

Denuvo has a bit of a bad rep among gamers. While the program is purported to protect game files from tampering and piracy, plenty of users report the program does more harm than good. Not only does Denuvo prevent gamers from playing games if they can’t perform the necessary digital handshake every twenty-four hours, some claim the program negatively impacts game performance. Furthermore, several games that use Denuvo, including Far Cry Primal and NieR: Automata, openly state in their EULAs, “certain files of [Denuvo] may remain even after the Product Software is uninstalled from your computer.” The mere presence of Denuvo is enough to convince some gamers to boycott a game, or at the very least avoid the PC version.

Even though Square-Enix has decided to use Denuvo in Final Fantasy XV Windows Edition, recent events have demonstrated the software isn’t very effective. Back in February, the Italian hacking group CPY announced it cracked the Denuvo program that came with Assassin’s Creed Origins. Resident Evil 7‘s Denuvo was cracked after five days, and games such as South Park: The Fractured but Whole, Total War: Warhammer 2, and Middle Earth: Shadow of War were all cracked in less than a day. Many publishers seem to be abandoning the program. DOOM, Mass Effect: Andromeda, and Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition are only a few examples of games that used to utilize Denuvo but have since been updated with Denuvo-free versions.

Only time will tell if the news of Denuvo’s presence in Final Fantasy XV Windows Edition causes enough fan-backlash to convince Square Enix to remove the program.