Warning, date of conference it’s most likely Wednesday 22nd in the evening. Information about this soon on GOG.com (don’t panic after reading information posted there:). Please remember that it’s an online conference, organized for the first time:) We practically closed our conference calendar and official info will be sent on monday, tuesday
There's no way to edit the subject line of a thread once it's been posted, right? Otherwise I'd change it to reflect this recent discovery of it possibly being a stunt.
'Tis a tragic time for us all. GOG.com was the best place for old games, hands down. With a superior web page and an awesome policy and great intentions, i can't emphasize enough how much this hurts. I will cry myself to sleep for a whole... month... probably.
It's too bad Steam doesn't pick up on a lot of these titles. They have some old stuff, but nothing like GoG and certainly not curated in a way that they'll actually fucking work on modern machines. (There are countless games on Steam that are still sold even though they won't run on anything even relatively recent as well as games that are just flat out broken and never fixed). There's no reason they couldn't incorporate a serious oldies collection of great breadth and depth, like GoG.
If this really is a stunt, then it's a poor one. I don't know if I buy that they weren't making enough money because they seemed to be clearly successful and they must have a very small bottom line to meet and stay in the black. I also don't know if the claim that it's a stunt makes sense -- why would they post in forums about it? That's idiotic. More, where are the links to those "financial forums"? Not to mention, if this is a stunt and they launch a "client" . . . meh. Why do I want a GoG client? Now I'm supposed to run a GoG client, Steam client, Impulse client, and whatever it is EA has for their download services, and Direct2Drive's client? Ridiculous. Enough, already.
" It's too bad Steam doesn't pick up on a lot of these titles. They have some old stuff, but nothing like GoG and certainly not curated in a way that they'll actually fucking work on modern machines. (There are countless games on Steam that are still sold even though they won't run on anything even relatively recent as well as games that are just flat out broken and never fixed). There's no reason they couldn't incorporate a serious oldies collection of great breadth and depth, like GoG. If this really is a stunt, then it's a poor one. I don't know if I buy that they weren't making enough money because they seemed to be clearly successful and they must have a very small bottom line to meet and stay in the black. I also don't know if the claim that it's a stunt makes sense -- why would they post in forums about it? That's idiotic. More, where are the links to those "financial forums"? Not to mention, if this is a stunt and they launch a "client" . . . meh. Why do I want a GoG client? Now I'm supposed to run a GoG client, Steam client, Impulse client, and whatever it is EA has for their download services, and Direct2Drive's client? Ridiculous. Enough, already. "
I dunno, a client for downloading so I don't have to just use the browser sounds cool enough
" You all might want to read that message again it clearly never says they are shutting down, its saying their website(service) is evolving and changing. So really they werent lying to you, you just misunderstood what they were saying. Though i dont blame you, it is worded very strangely. "
Well, they did close the whole page, no forum access or any way to download the games you have purchased, which combined with the message on their front page and the last two posts on the GOGcom twitter account would be very hard to interpret as anything other than that they are closing the site down.
A lot of stuff points in the direction that you're right, that it's just a marketing stunt, but if that is true it's one of the most poorly planned ones ever.
At least they are apparently not closing for good, but it feels like I just went through an April Fool's joke that actually worked because I wasn't expecting it. I'm not sure how I feel about that, but if GOG is getting serious by coming out of beta then I'm happy about that part at least.
Clearly nobody for the last 2 pages read the thread or even the original post.
It may not be shutting down, it seems likely it's a dumb marketing stunt.
They have already told people not to jump to conclusions (see update at bottom of article), some investor has just bought a huge block of shares in their parent company according to the GAF thread.
err, I just re-read the message on their front page, and they do indeed say clearly that they are shutting down the service, so no - if it's a marketing stunt they clearly failed in conveying that it's just a major change they are doing, not shutting down the site.
Quote:
This doesn't mean the idea behind GOG.com is gone forever. We're closing down the service and putting this era behind us as new challenges await.
I have a hard time seeing how that sentence leaves any room for other interpretations.
According to NeoGAF, it may seem like someone is taking over the venture, with an EGM scheduled soon and, presumably, a press release on fucking Wednesday.
Hurry up goddammit, I need to know before I'll be able to sleep!
err, I just re-read the message on their front page, and they do indeed say clearly that they are shutting down the service, so no - if it's a marketing stunt they clearly failed in conveying that it's just a major change they are doing, not shutting down the site.
Quote:
This doesn't mean the idea behind GOG.com is gone forever. We're closing down the service and putting this era behind us as new challenges await.
"
They also explicitly say that GOG.com is not gone forever. There is speculation that the service they are closing is the open beta that the site has been in for two years in preparation for a final version. That might not be the case though, it's all speculation.
Of course I'm not defending their actions, it's pretty dumb to try this kind of thing on.
" It's too bad Steam doesn't pick up on a lot of these titles. They have some old stuff, but nothing like GoG and certainly not curated in a way that they'll actually fucking work on modern machines. (There are countless games on Steam that are still sold even though they won't run on anything even relatively recent as well as games that are just flat out broken and never fixed). There's no reason they couldn't incorporate a serious oldies collection of great breadth and depth, like GoG. If this really is a stunt, then it's a poor one. I don't know if I buy that they weren't making enough money because they seemed to be clearly successful and they must have a very small bottom line to meet and stay in the black. I also don't know if the claim that it's a stunt makes sense -- why would they post in forums about it? That's idiotic. More, where are the links to those "financial forums"? Not to mention, if this is a stunt and they launch a "client" . . . meh. Why do I want a GoG client? Now I'm supposed to run a GoG client, Steam client, Impulse client, and whatever it is EA has for their download services, and Direct2Drive's client? Ridiculous. Enough, already. "
I dunno, a client for downloading so I don't have to just use the browser sounds cool enough "
Really? Is using a web browser and right clicking on a game to download it that difficult? We need to eat up system resources and install software to facilitate this simple task?
They also explicitly say that GOG.com is not gone forever. There is speculation that the service they are closing is the open beta that the site has been in for two years in preparation for a final version. That might not be the case though, it's all speculation. Of course I'm not defending their actions, it's pretty dumb to try this kind of thing on. "
They say that the "idea behind GOG.com is not gone forever", but clearly say that they are shutting down the service [gog.com]. Yes, I also have started believing that it's just a stunt, as it seems a lot of evidence points that way, but the way they worded that "farewell note" on the front page is very hard to interpret in any other way than that GOG.com is gone.
They also explicitly say that GOG.com is not gone forever. There is speculation that the service they are closing is the open beta that the site has been in for two years in preparation for a final version. That might not be the case though, it's all speculation. Of course I'm not defending their actions, it's pretty dumb to try this kind of thing on. "
They say that the "idea behind GOG.com is not gone forever", but clearly say that they are shutting down the service [gog.com]. Yes, I also have started believing that it's just a stunt, as it seems a lot of evidence points that way, but the way they worded that "farewell note" on the front page is very hard to interpret in any other way than that GOG.com is gone. "
They don't actually say that they are shutting down the service. What they say is "GOG.com simply cannot remain in its current form.". They never explicitly say anything about the service ending or anything like that. The sentence about how it "cannot remain in its current form" is all they say. While it clearly implies that GOG is shutting it doors, and anyone reading it would think that was the case, it's worded in such a way that they don't actually say it is, which only furthers the speculation that this is just a publicity stunt. If they were really closing, surely they would directly say it?
EDIT: I've just re-read the statement, and seen that they do say "We're closing down the service". Now I feel dumb. Ignore this post. I'm an idiot for not reading it properly.
They also explicitly say that GOG.com is not gone forever. There is speculation that the service they are closing is the open beta that the site has been in for two years in preparation for a final version. That might not be the case though, it's all speculation. Of course I'm not defending their actions, it's pretty dumb to try this kind of thing on. "
They say that the "idea behind GOG.com is not gone forever", but clearly say that they are shutting down the service [gog.com]. Yes, I also have started believing that it's just a stunt, as it seems a lot of evidence points that way, but the way they worded that "farewell note" on the front page is very hard to interpret in any other way than that GOG.com is gone. "
Mmm. They don't say they're closing it down permanently, but I am worried what form it'll take when it returns apparently around Wednesday. From their Twitter they're suggesting no-DRM was difficult, and there's all this crap from some dude in GAF about an anonymous investor who just bought a massive block of their parent company. Douchebag keeps linking to bullshit polish banking forums with hardly any explanation though so he could be pulling shit from an ass.
If this was a PR stunt then it was a terrible one and whoever came up with it should be fired. With digital distribution the biggest fear is that one day someone will just shut down their services without any warning and screw you over. It's for this reason that I always buy physical copies when I can. I got a Steam account because I trust Valve, but it took me a while to trust Gog enough to start paying for products there.
By removing their own site they are playing into the biggest fear that customer's have about their service; that it could be gone at the drop of a hat. Even if this is a stunt and the site is back, they've pushed to the front of everyone's mind's the worst fears that they have about digital distribution.
@MattyFTM: "Closing down" the service in its current form (as its present state is unsatisfactory) or forever? It still seems to be an ambiguous statement. Directly after the closing line they say it's not the end of the idea of GOG, so I think your reading is still valid and not dumb at all. And although the statements that it's just a marketing stunt have yet to be verified by a print source beyond forum posters and potentially dubious news links, they give some hope.
A marketing stunt? Really? What the hell. I was ready to be sympathetic too. However, if this ends with them saying: "We have made an agreement with EA to distribute all their old stuff like Ultima and Dungeon Keeper" then I might be able to forgive them.
" Not all that surprising really, it was always going to have limited appeal. In a market where PC games are practically given away after 12-18 months, it's hard to justify charging much, if anything, for 10 or 15 year old games. It's sad that the service will no longer be available, but I can't imagine it will be a massive blow for CD Projekt or anything like that. "
Yeah, how can you charge like ~$5 for 10+ years old games? As a business you just can't survive selling ancient games because of the competition from new games. I think websites that offer free downloads to abandoned/ancient games are the way to go for these old games.
Why buy Duke3d or Rise of the Triad or Blood for like $6 ? 3dRealms made their money back then when it was being sold for $50 . You're going to pay now GoG $6 for what? the right? kiss my ass. The business of GOG is a black hole. People give money for the ancient games and the people associated with the games get paid? no. It's over. Many of the original companies have died or been bought up with the original people going somewhere else. Paying for such content means what? you support more of the ancient content? GET REAL.
Like I said it's a black hole business, where middle men (not the creators of the content) can get a chance to reap some funds off the past works. It's a big bull shit scam. The best way I think to support these ancient games is to just get them for FREE and play them; use these forums to talk about good moments and discuss how to integrate the great ideas of the past into new games... etc, etc. That's how I think you can show homage and respect for ancient games.
When you introduce money into the equation of ancient games, people with no connection to the creation of the content must get paid; and they don't deserve it.
Yeah, sounds like they're trying to launch some kind of updated Steam-esque service now. I guess it could only be a good thing for me, as I've never even heard of them until now, and I'd gladly welcome a place that lets me buy old games.
Assuming they're actually shutting down, I feel bad now for never buying anything from them despite liking the concept of the site a lot. If it's a marketing stunt, I think I will continue to not buy from them, only I won't feel bad about it.
" Yeah, sounds like they're trying to launch some kind of updated Steam-esque service now. I guess it could only be a good thing for me, as I've never even heard of them until now, and I'd gladly welcome a place that lets me buy old games. "
If that's the plan, I would have preferred them getting annexed by Steam instead, if a middleware client would be required to download and play the games, I'd prefer having them on a service that is less likely to just suddenly close down. Which what happened today on GOG shows could very well happen with their service. if it would only be a better featured version of the GOG Downloader I guess I'd use it, but I'd still be more wary of purchasing games from them after this.
If they could just allow the service to stay up for another 24 hours I'd go and download the half dozen games I wanted but never got around to buying. I thought they were doing well too... :(
Also, if this is a stunt to announce the site going live for real I will be real pissed. What a shitty way to get some attention.
" @LordCrom: This is why DRM-free > DRM. I've archived everything I've got from GOG.com, whereas everything from Steam has no lasting value whatsoever. "
" @LordCrom: This is why DRM-free > DRM. I've archived everything I've got from GOG.com, whereas everything from Steam has no lasting value whatsoever. "
" @LordCrom: This is why DRM-free > DRM. I've archived everything I've got from GOG.com, whereas everything from Steam has no lasting value whatsoever. "
lol silly rabbit, do you actually think steam would be like hey we are shutting down, fuck you all. no they'd likely release update keys that disabled the drm on all the games you'd ever purchased. drm is the only way pc developers will make money in the long run, because simply put you'll get alot of detractors but piracy is rampent on the PC.
@WilliamRLBaker: From interviews with Gabe Newell that I've seen, I received the impression that they probably would do this, but a company screwing its customers over has never happened? I think Steam is in many ways an excellent service mind you, but that doesn't mean I trust Valve. I trust myself to do a better job of looking after what I've bought. And I'm referring primarily to older PC games in any case, where the DRM protection means shit for the long-term health of the industry.
" @LordCrom: This is why DRM-free > DRM. I've archived everything I've got from GOG.com, whereas everything from Steam has no lasting value whatsoever. "
lol silly rabbit, do you actually think steam would be like hey we are shutting down, fuck you all. no they'd likely release update keys that disabled the drm on all the games you'd ever purchased. drm is the only way pc developers will make money in the long run, because simply put you'll get alot of detractors but piracy is rampent on the PC. "
Yes, because DRM totally prevents rampant piracy. That's why you can't find any of those DRM infested games anywhere on any torrent site readily available. Oh wait...
Also, Valve have absolutely zero obligation towards you should they go down. There are no guarantees whatsoever. You should read the SSA on Steam.
" @LordCrom: This is why DRM-free > DRM. I've archived everything I've got from GOG.com, whereas everything from Steam has no lasting value whatsoever. "
lol silly rabbit, do you actually think steam would be like hey we are shutting down, fuck you all. no they'd likely release update keys that disabled the drm on all the games you'd ever purchased. drm is the only way pc developers will make money in the long run, because simply put you'll get alot of detractors but piracy is rampent on the PC. "
Yes, because DRM totally prevents rampant piracy. That's why you can't find any of those DRM infested games anywhere on any torrent site readily available. Oh wait... Also, Valve have absolutely zero obligation towards you should they go down. There are no guarantees whatsoever. You should read the SSA on Steam. "
Hey, you can't find the DRM infested versions of them on those internets!
I am firmly in the "this is the worst marketing stunt in history" camp. Everything they had posted up until now had pointed to them doing much, much better than they expected.
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