In the mid-90s the coolest thing to buy for a PC, besides theincredibly expensive Intel Pentium, was aCD-ROM drive. With their capacity of 640 MiB (three times the storage of PC HDD at the time), CDs allowed enthusiasts to step into
a world of multimedia, made of high-resolution 640×480 256 colors palette-indexed photos[1], VOC soundtracks, and play withVideo For Windowsbutter-smooth 12 fps 240×179 videos[2][3]lasting up to several seconds.
For video game developers, the CD-ROM was an odd beast. The capacity far exceeded the quantity of assets they were able to produce. A few titles, like 7th Guest (1993) or Phantasmagoria (1995)
introduced Full Motion Video (in a world where only part of the screen could be animated). Some added high
quality music. My most memorable take on the matter was from id Software’s lead developer, John Carmack.
The concept was implemented. The CD was announced[4]on July 3, 1996 and released on August 30th[5]. The hacker group GNOMON releasedQuakecrk.ziponly 39 days later[6]. The archive containedQCRACK.EXE, a tool allowing to decrypt every single game on the CD-ROM.
Thanks to usenet archives ofrec.games.computer.quake.misc, we have detailed discussions[7]of how it worked. A gamer could go to any of the hundreds of CompUSA/Computer City stores and buy the CD for $9.95.
The phone number is still active today. However you don’t reach the unlock center since CompUSA went out of business. The Superstore chain closed between 2007 and 2008. Instead of an unlock operator we get an automated message to sell us elderly stuff.
Upon contacting the operator, users were to also communicate a “SOURCE CODE”. It played no part in generating the Unlock code. It may have been a way for the distributors to claim a transaction fee. Browsing eBay, I found many with names indicative of past/present retailers.12-BSTBYBestBuy,24-CCITYComputer City,22-CUSACompUSA, 88, 11-1111,38-EBElectronic Boutique,44-FTRSPFry’s Electronics,34-EGGHEgghead Software, and56-MCTRMedia Play/ Musicland.
The CD-ROM also features anID STUFFsection, allowing to browse the catalogue of id games and unlock any of them. Several versions ofDOOMare there, along withHEXEN, andHERETIC.
Once the unlock process was started, the GUI generated aCODE NUMBER(which I call CHALLENGE) that was to be communicated to a Service Agent over the phone. Upon paying the fees, anUNLOCK CODE NUMBER(which I call SERIAL) would be received. Checksums on both numbers mitigated issues related to this primitive landline mode of communication.
To avoid replay attacks, the CHALLENGE changes every time the program is run and rotates every 5 min while the GUI is active.
The screen even had the signature provocative tone of the early days of id Software (“those who are too cheap”). Note that there was also a warning that users should back up the game once unlocked. Since theCHALLENGEincluded some randomness, there was no way to reuse aSERIAL.
At first sight, the process looked solid. Users had to call an unlock service to obtain a password. And only with that password could the final unlock be completed. So what went wrong?
The tool powering the lock/unlock was provided by TestDrive Corp’s (archivedwww.testdrive.com). The idea was to give players a way to “try-before-you-buy” and allow them to immediately purchase the full version of a program.