https://www.pcgamesn.com/assassins-c...ins-denuvo-cpu
Assassin's Creed Origins' second layer of anti-piracy protection activates every time you move
Update, November 1: Performance issues in Assassin's Creed Origins might be caused by two layers of anti-piracy protection, one of which is activated every time you move your character.
Ubisoft are using two forms of DRM software on Assassin’s Creed Origins. As well as Denuvo’s anti-tamper technology, Assassin’s Creed Origins is being protected by VMProtect, a second line of defense that seems to be causing significant performance issues.
Denuvo has been struggling to protect launch windows recently, as new strategies from groups of pirates have allowed them to cir vent the protection entirely, producing Denuvo-sanctioned keys to ‘trick’ the software into accepting counterfeit versions of the game. In order to help protect the game, it seems as though Ubisoft have added a second layer of protection - VMProtect was dropped by Denuvo earlier this year, but can be found in the Origins game files.
Anti-Tamper technology is unpopular as many users claim it slows down performance while offering minimal results in terms of protection. According to this Twitter thread and a couple of Reddit threads, however, the addition of a second form of protection is slowing the game down even further, causing significant performance issues on some machines. This is widely blamed on the fact that VMProtect is being called in every time the character moves, impacting performance every second.
Original story, October 30: Despite its use in a wide array of triple-A PC les, the use of Denuvo Anti-Tamper software has remained a controversial topic. Initially far more effective than other forms of anti-piracy tech, it suffered from the start as various reports circulated regarding Denuvo’s effect on PC performance. Now similar reports suggest things have gotten especially bad with the latest Denuvo-protected game.
One crack group is suggesting that Assassin’s Creed Origins’ CPU usage has been increased by nearly 40%, as reported by DSOGaming. The group suggests that Ubisoft’s implementation of VMProtect over top of Denuvo is the reason for the abnormally high processor usage.
Our own performance report found Origins to be a very demanding game, but unfortunately it’s impossible to tell how much of that is due to the game itself and how much is due to its protection tech. Even cracked software continues to run Denuvo encryption in the background, making it impossible to tell how much performance issues are related to that software or to the game itself.
Take this report cautiously, particularly as it comes from a crack group, but even the suggestion of these issues is worrying. It’s become clear that Denuvo is no longer nearly so effective in combating piracy as it once was. Ubisoft’s past les have typically included Denuvo even long after it had been initially cracked, so it’s unlikely to see a change in policy here.