The Dream Of DRM-Free Steam PC Games Is Fading Away - Kotaku

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An unfastened  laptop shows the Steam storefront, with assorted  games similar  The Witcher 3 listed for sale.

Photo: Casimiro PT (Shutterstock)

Good Old Games, oregon GOG, the digital-rights-management-free PC gaming marketplace and level from CD Projekt, has officially ended a work that already didn’t consciousness terribly agelong for this world. What erstwhile seemed similar a promising mode to dilatory import portions of your Steam room to GOG, wherever they could beryllium successful an infinitely archivable format, has present yet evaporated.

GOG launched successful 2008 arsenic an alternate to different integer gaming storefronts connected PC, focusing connected making older, hard-to-find games purchasable. The cherry connected top? All of these games would beryllium disposable without immoderate integer rights absorption bundle to restrict what you bash with your .exe copies. Unlike Steam, GOG games are overmuch easier to backmost up and re-install connected aggregate computers, each without ever needing to get tangled up successful immoderate benignant of online relationship authorization. In 2012, the work expanded from older PC-gaming gems to modern titles, keeping the DRM-free argumentation successful place.

In 2016, GOG announced “Connect,” a work that fto you link your Steam room to redeem prime titles you already owned arsenic DRM-free copies connected GOG, with said games lone eligible for redemption successful a constricted model of time. Those who’ve checked GOG.com/Connect successful caller years, however, person recovered thing but integer tumbleweeds. And now, successful January of 2023, said nexus and work present conscionable directs to GOG’s homepage, officially signaling the extremity of this erstwhile precise promising program.

GOG.com/Connect ever had an aerial of “this is excessively bully to beryllium true.” A work that gives you an other transcript of a crippled you already own, with nary restrictions arsenic to however you tin backup, install, re-install, sell, oregon stock it? How even?

But portion the work was active, it wasn’t conscionable a large mode to migrate to a caller platform, but alternatively a useful mode to archive your Steam library. Though Steam is simply a beauteous accessible and reliable level that often gives you entree to games you’ve purchased but person since been pulled disconnected the storefront (2007’s Prey is 1 specified example), DRM is inactive wide utilized connected the Valve storefront and trying to usage the work without a reliable net transportation tin easy render a crippled unplayable, arsenic galore a traveling Steam Deck idiosyncratic has discovered. GOG Connect was erstwhile a promising solution to this issue. But, the thought of being capable to immoderate time determination a important magnitude of your room into thing archivable, without spending a dime, was conscionable excessively bully to beryllium true.

Like many, I utilized this work a just spot erstwhile it launched. I’d support the nexus bookmarked to sojourn erstwhile a week. But arsenic disposable games began to adust up, it drifted from memory. I inactive play the crippled of “should I get this connected Steam oregon GOG?” each clip thing I privation comes up connected some services. The committedness of GOG Connect erstwhile made that question irrelevant.

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