Please support Game Informer. Print magazine subscriptions are less than $2 per issue
UPDATE: GOG.com Responds To Site Shut Down
UPDATE: GOG.com has responded to the abrupt news this weekend that the site was closed down with a statement about any game you've bought as well as the future of the service. A new post on their site reads:
First of all, we apologize everyone for the whole situation and closing GOG.com. We do understand the timing for taking down the site caused confusion and many users didn't manage to download all their games. Unfortunately we had to close the service due to business and technical reasons. At the same time we guarantee that every user who bought any game on GOG.com will be able to download all their games with bonus materials, DRM-free and as many times as they need starting this Thursday. The official statement from GOG.com's management concerning the ongoing events is planned on Wednesday.
ORIGINAL STORY: Good Old Games sold gamers old PC games (like titles from the Fallout series, above), optimized for new operating systems and with bonuses like soundtracks, avatars, full customer support, and other goodies – all with the blessing of the original publishers and DRM free so they were yours to keep forever. Why couldn't this great idea last?
Visitors to the site are now greeted with the sad statement:
We have recently had to give serious thought to whether we could really keep GOG.com the way it is. We've debated on it for quite some time and, unfortunately, we've decided that GOG.com simply cannot remain in its current form. We're very grateful for all support we've received from all of you in the past two years. Working on GOG.com was a great adventure for all of us and an unforgettable journey to the past, through the long and wonderful history of PC gaming. 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.
GOG.com had over 200 games available and deals with leading publishers like Ubisoft, Activision, and Atari to publish selected works from these publishers' back catalogs. Nevertheless, one of GOG.com's twitter posts suggests that working with companies like this and dealing for the rights of the games had taken its toll, and perhaps things weren't set in stone. "Sometimes it's really hard being DRM-free... hard to keep things the way they are and keep management and publishers happy :( Thanks for the support everyone. Hopefully everything works out for the best!"
We guess there is some hope in the phrase: "This doesn't mean the idea behind GOG.com is gone forever." Hopefully we'll see the crew at GOG.com and the idea live on in some other form soon.
via EvilAvatar
I’d like to ask you to support Game Informer’s continued coverage of games with a subscription. For less than two dollars per issue, we mail you a full year of 10 print magazines, each with cover stories and preview features filled with exclusive details about the most exciting upcoming games. We profile and interview game creators. We look back on the rich history of gaming, and we celebrate what’s next.
Here on the website, we offer much of our content for free, including game reviews, daily news, videos, event coverage, and more – all with minimal ads.
We do so with a small editorial team, alongside contributing paid writers from around the world – over 65 individuals from 9 countries around the world, just in the last couple of years.
It’s not possible without support.
In a time when game makers and games coverage have faced hard struggles and layoffs, the future of this 30+ year magazine and community is at risk. Our new standalone magazine subscription is the number one way you can keep us alive – and we believe you’ll get a pretty fantastic gaming magazine in your mailbox every few weeks for your trouble.
Thank you.
