It seems the Ukrainian developer of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. franchise is following UbiSoft's lead when it comes to combating PC game piracy (and making gamers' lives that little bit more frustrating). GSC Game World studio head Sergey Grigorovich has revealed his team plans on implementing a fairly extreme form of digital rights management (DRM) for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, which forces players to download the game in small installments as they progress through the story.

The news comes via a recent interview, which quoted Grigorovich as saying the measures were a way of combating piracy:

"Protection from piracy? Part of the content will be located on the server and downloaded as the game progresses. Permanent internet access is required. Text information, code and quests will be loaded through that connection. Software piracy is an issue for us, we try to fight it, but within reason."

"If people can not afford a licensed version, it is to our advantage if they download a pirated copy, and then want to buy a license. In Ukraine, there are different products that people love so much that they buy a license in principle. We want to create just such a product."

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 is yet to have an official release date.