Author Topic: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect  (Read 3676 times)

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Offline Mongoose

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GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Take a look.  Basically GOG.com struck a deal with some of their publishers so that, if you already own certain games on Steam, you can link your account there with your GOG account and get a free copy of the game on their service too.  There's a list of over 20 titles at the moment, and apparently more will be cycled in and out over time.  They're also having a sale on some of the titles involved; I picked up Saints Row 3 and UT 2004 on the cheap myself.  Only downside is that my link request "may take days to complete" because apparently everyone is hammering their servers.  :p

 

Offline karajorma

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Is the agreement reciprocal? Cause otherwise why would people buy games on GOG instead of Steam?
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Offline qwadtep

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Is the agreement reciprocal? Cause otherwise why would people buy games on GOG instead of Steam?
Because they prefer GOG's DRM-free distribution model?

 

Offline MP-Ryan

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
I love how companies announce major initiatives like this to everyone, and don't expect the inevitable server load and resulting crash.

Guess I'll try again in a few days.  Good grief.
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Offline Mongoose

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Is the agreement reciprocal? Cause otherwise why would people buy games on GOG instead of Steam?
No it's not, though individual publishers are always free to grant Steam keys for people who buy their games elsewhere (see the Humble Store for one), so maybe at some point down the road they'll be able to incorporate that into GOG's site as well.  But regardless I think it's a smart move for GOG.  By allowing people to transfer over the titles they already own on Steam, you get an easy in for new potential customers, some of whom will likely stick around and check out the DRM-free ecosystem.  Hell, that's the exact same reason Valve is so free and easy with extra Steam keys to publishers; they know that a big chunk of the people who take advantage of them will wind up forking over their wallets in a future holiday sale.  Lord knows there have been a few titles I've wound up re-buying on GOG after already having them on Steam as a show of support, so it'll be nice to take advantage of this.

 

Offline 0rph3u5

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Is the agreement reciprocal? Cause otherwise why would people buy games on GOG instead of Steam?

Because GoG prices are in USD, while Steam is in your local currency, which can mean a hidden discount on GoG purchases if you know your exchange rates.
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Offline Klaustrophobia

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
If I find the same title on Steam and GoG for reasonably close to the same price, I'm going to choose the DRM-free one from the company that treats its customers WAY better.
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Offline Det. Bullock

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Old games on GOG.com usually work, on steam it's pretty much a crapshoot, Jedi Knight has been without music for over a year before they fixed it (they tell me they finally did during last 4th May Star Wars sale if I remember correctly) but on GOG.com the music has been there since day one.
Similar story with Quake, no music on Steam while GOG.com had it since launch.
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Offline AdmiralRalwood

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Old games on GOG.com usually work, on steam it's pretty much a crapshoot, Jedi Knight has been without music for over a year before they fixed it (they tell me they finally did during last 4th May Star Wars sale if I remember correctly) but on GOG.com the music has been there since day one.
Similar story with Quake, no music on Steam while GOG.com had it since launch.
And let's not forget FreeSpace 2, which still (AFAIK) doesn't work out-of-the-box on Steam.
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Offline karajorma

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
If I find the same title on Steam and GoG for reasonably close to the same price, I'm going to choose the DRM-free one from the company that treats its customers WAY better.

I've already chosen to simply not do Steam anyway for exactly the same reason.
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Offline Kszyhu

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
It's kinda hard to avoid Steam, though, as many games sold in retail require Steam account to work. I'm still kinda annoyed after I have bought boxed edition of Pillars of Eternity, misleading myself by thinking 'DRM free' monicker extended not only to a version given to Kickstarter backers, but also to retail version. Nope, Steam account required.

 
Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Because i used a shared GOG Account with a friend, this is no option for myself, as long you can connect only one Steam account... instead of GOG, we do not share our Steam accounts. Not only because you can not play two different games on the same time. With GOG you can even play the same game simultaneously.

But nice option, nevertheless.
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Offline deathspeed

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
It's kinda hard to avoid Steam, though, as many games sold in retail require Steam account to work. I'm still kinda annoyed after I have bought boxed edition of Pillars of Eternity, misleading myself by thinking 'DRM free' monicker extended not only to a version given to Kickstarter backers, but also to retail version. Nope, Steam account required.

I have made my peace with Steam now, but I was pissed in 2005 when I found out I needed to use Steam to activate my boxed copy of Half Life 2.
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Offline Klaustrophobia

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
I got my steam account along with my boxed FEAR 2.  I'm not happy about it, but worse things have happened.  I found out about summer sales MUCH sooner than I otherwise would have, and I've probably benefited more than lost on games I haven't played on those. 
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Offline Det. Bullock

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
It's kinda hard to avoid Steam, though, as many games sold in retail require Steam account to work. I'm still kinda annoyed after I have bought boxed edition of Pillars of Eternity, misleading myself by thinking 'DRM free' monicker extended not only to a version given to Kickstarter backers, but also to retail version. Nope, Steam account required.

I have made my peace with Steam now, but I was pissed in 2005 when I found out I needed to use Steam to activate my boxed copy of Half Life 2.
Me too, we didn't have ADSL connections on my island at the time.
But when we got them Steam was a blessing, games that I couldn't even find in the big city were just a few clicks away and often costed much less (yeah, brick and mortar stores here tended to inflate prices a lot), and then came GOG.com with all those games I wasn't able to even find when I was a teenager.
Say what you will about the death of phisical media, for me digital delivery is a blessing.
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Offline deathspeed

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Quote
Say what you will about the death of phisical media, for me digital delivery is a blessing.

I used to always prefer a physical CD to a download, just because i wanted something tangible for my money.  But I think the last disc i bought from a store was Battlefield: Bad Company 2.  My first major download was BF3, but after that pretty much everything I have came through Steam, GOG, and Origin, and many of those came from Humble Bundles.  I still prefer GOG's DRM-free distribution, which allows me to copy to a physical disc if the urge ever hits.
« Last Edit: June 05, 2016, 09:22:59 pm by deathspeed »
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Offline Mongoose

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Strangely, I'm all for digital distribution for games, yet I'm firmly against it when it comes to other forms of media.  (*glances warily at massive piles of anime DVDs/BDs scattered around room*)  I think the main reason is that there really isn't a comparable option to Steam or GOG for movies/TV and videos, which is of course squarely due to corporate bull**** from said media producers.  Yes, in (limited) cases you can get DRM-free options, but not in the same high quality/lossless format that a physical disk would lend you, and not nearly with the same level of convenience.  I mean imagine a world where the Steam release of a modern game was limited to 720p without anti-aliasing, and that's basically digital video content for you.

 

Offline Firesteel

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Strangely, I'm all for digital distribution for games, yet I'm firmly against it when it comes to other forms of media.  (*glances warily at massive piles of anime DVDs/BDs scattered around room*)  I think the main reason is that there really isn't a comparable option to Steam or GOG for movies/TV and videos, which is of course squarely due to corporate bull**** from said media producers.  Yes, in (limited) cases you can get DRM-free options, but not in the same high quality/lossless format that a physical disk would lend you, and not nearly with the same level of convenience.  I mean imagine a world where the Steam release of a modern game was limited to 720p without anti-aliasing, and that's basically digital video content for you.

I heartily agree. I'll keep buying disc copies of other media until I can download them in a quality nearly equivalent to disks and are not bound by retailer specific players or other things. Ironically we all swallow Steam basically being what it is because they're one of a handful and at least have some option of being DRM free.

I'm glad GoG is doing this, though won't help me much as I've already rebought games there that I own on Steam for the customer service and lack of DRM.
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Offline Mongoose

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Looks like the original batch of games expires tomorrow, but there were a few more games added, including one I didn't even know I already owned on Steam (Door Kickers).

  

Offline NGTM-1R

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Re: GOG.com introduces GOG Connect
Looks like the original batch of games expires tomorrow, but there were a few more games added, including one I didn't even know I already owned on Steam (Door Kickers).

I actually really like Door Kickers, although its restrictive campaign mode is...not to my taste.
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