Denuvo DRM reportedly fully cracked open, 2K apparently fights back with online checks

The ongoing fight between crackers and DRM has reached a truly massive moment, as reportedly Denuvo DRM has been fully broken open in all games.

Denuvo DRM is generally pretty hated. Not just because of the limits it places on systems, but because of many reported performance issues that could be as a result of its inclusion in various games. In the past, Denuvo DRM was a pretty strong choice for publishers as it was difficult to crack open so pirates were always playing a long game of catch-up but it seems that's no longer the case. Enabling publishers to feel like they're protecting their initial sales revenue.

I haven't really kept up with the Denuvo fight, mostly because it doesn't usually affect me directly (and I'm generally very busy). I try to steer away from games with Denuvo too, since it's a really big nuisance for Linux / SteamOS gaming and can easily lock you out of playing games.

According to a thread on Reddit "There are no uncracked/unbypassed non-VR denuvo exclusive games as of April 26th 2026", although some require a special hypervisor bypass which is just a bit more involved, but doesn't exactly sound difficult to do. Tom's Hardware (pay-walled) have a breakdown on what that is all about that's worth a read.

To fight back, publisher 2K Games have apparently put in a new form of DRM into multiple games with a forced online check every 14 days. From what has been said this is in NBA 2K25, NBA 2K26 and Marvel's Midnight Suns. Something that once again punishes legitimate players.

Online checks even for single-player are a real nuisance, but it seems that it's here to stay and we may even see more of it if the likes of Denuvo can't keep up with the pirates now.

We've reached out to both Denuvo and 2K to confirm any details, will update if either respond.