William Volckmann, a staff member of the American research institute Institute for Private Capital, attempted to determine how piracy affects game revenue. To achieve this, he analyzed 86 games with Denuvo protection released on Steam between September 2014 and December 2022.
Skull and Bones
Volckmann concluded that the damage largely depends on how quickly hackers bypass Denuvo.
According to the researcher's calculations, a game that is cracked during its release week ultimately earns about 20% less than if Denuvo had remained intact. If the protection is bypassed six weeks after release, the potential loss to the game is 5%. If cracked 12 weeks post-release, the impact becomes nearly zero.
The potential damage size depending on the week a game was cracked
Volckmann suggested that developers could remove Denuvo from their games after 12 weeks. This removal would no longer impact revenues, and players who oppose anti-piracy measures would likely pay more attention to the title.