Thoughts on Gog's "Preservation Program"?

[Scorpion]

(Makes Games Live Forever

"GOG commits its own resources to maintain classic titles playable, now and in the future. We are launching the program with 100 games and will add more in the next few months.

We are launching the GOG Preservation Program, an official stamp on classic games improved by GOG. If a game is part of the Preservation Program, it means that we commit our own resources to maintaining its compatibility with modern and future systems. It also means that the GOG version of this game is the best anywhere. For a game to join the GOG Preservation Program, we run it through extensive quality testing and often apply custom improvements to ensure compatibility and quality-of-life improvements.

We are launching the program with 100 games. Over the next few months, we will continue to add more.

What can you expect from games in the GOG Preservation Program?
When you buy a game from the Program, you can

Expect it to work on current and future popular PC configurations,
Be sure that this version is the best and most complete available anywhere, including compatibility, manuals, and other bonus content, but also DLCs and even features that are missing in other editions,
Access GOG’s Tech Support if you encounter technical issues with running the game,
As with all titles in our catalog, always keep access to their offline installers, granting you the power to safeguard them how you want.
GOG is the only platform to commit its own resources to make sure the games you buy remain playable.)

...

Before GOG changed into something else, post entering the stockmarket and axing old official&unofficial policies (like the fair pricing system)... GOG had always been considered a synonym to Good Old Games, plus both itself advertized and its customers/fans expected, that one thing.

Down the road, they (almost) silently axed it (no longer a main priority for them the oldies, that is). Until very recently, that they resurfaced that one (supposed extra care and special treatment of old games).

I want to trust in them again, but problem is, they are downright lying. I don't know if they repurposed funds or personnel towards making old games compatible with modern systems themselves or not, or if they actually even bother doing that one thing that they claim to... Games such as:

1) Vampire Bloodlines: Gog never touched it and instead, they merely slap the unofficial patch, which is something like a mod; they did not even bother offering the legit vanilla game with 1.2 official patch like Steam does, much less calibrate it properly.

2) The Suffering; Prison is Hell: Game is full of crashes and sound issues. Gog support recommends an unofficial patch installation (again), which doesn't work though and it is downright unplayable, on modern systems.

WHAT is gog exactly doing, through that program, that they recently CLAIM they re-introduced?

[Moogal™]

Resident Evil 1-3 was a major hit for me. The best launch they ever did. I gladly bought it. Also, i got some sountracks there i really like. Otherwise, i 99% buy on Steam, still.

[Uncle Sam]

引用自 Scorpion：

(Makes Games Live Forever

"GOG commits its own resources to maintain classic titles playable, now and in the future. We are launching the program with 100 games and will add more in the next few months.

We are launching the GOG Preservation Program, an official stamp on classic games improved by GOG. If a game is part of the Preservation Program, it means that we commit our own resources to maintaining its compatibility with modern and future systems. It also means that the GOG version of this game is the best anywhere. For a game to join the GOG Preservation Program, we run it through extensive quality testing and often apply custom improvements to ensure compatibility and quality-of-life improvements.

We are launching the program with 100 games. Over the next few months, we will continue to add more.

What can you expect from games in the GOG Preservation Program?
When you buy a game from the Program, you can

Expect it to work on current and future popular PC configurations,
Be sure that this version is the best and most complete available anywhere, including compatibility, manuals, and other bonus content, but also DLCs and even features that are missing in other editions,
Access GOG’s Tech Support if you encounter technical issues with running the game,
As with all titles in our catalog, always keep access to their offline installers, granting you the power to safeguard them how you want.
GOG is the only platform to commit its own resources to make sure the games you buy remain playable.)

...

Before GOG changed into something else, post entering the stockmarket and axing old official&unofficial policies (like the fair pricing system)... GOG had always been considered a synonym to Good Old Games, plus both itself advertized and its customers/fans expected, that one thing.

Down the road, they (almost) silently axed it (no longer a main priority for them the oldies, that is). Until very recently, that they resurfaced that one (supposed extra care and special treatment of old games).

I want to trust in them again, but problem is, they are downright lying. I don't know if they repurposed funds or personnel towards making old games compatible with modern systems themselves or not, or if they actually even bother doing that one thing that they claim to... Games such as:

1) Vampire Bloodlines: Gog never touched it and instead, they merely slap the unofficial patch, which is something like a mod; they did not even bother offering the legit vanilla game with 1.2 official patch like Steam does, much less calibrate it properly.

2) The Suffering; Prison is Hell: Game is full of crashes and sound issues. Gog support recommends an unofficial patch installation (again), which doesn't work though and it is downright unplayable, on modern systems.

WHAT is gog exactly doing, through that program, that they recently CLAIM they re-introduced?

An honestly good idea on paper, albeit complicated to implement in an efficient manner

Still in general maybe GoG, Valve, Epic, EA, Nintendo, Micro$oft, $ony, etc. could work together in regards to game preservation, someday in the future.

[Scorpion]

To be perfectly honest, i was more interested in what people think, concerning their (gog's) elaborate deceit. And baptizing the re-introduction of an old, self-abolished system, as a "new" and "gamer-friendly" one. Most importantly, on games such as the ones i mentioned as an example, that GOG never even touched them, let alone "made them compatible for modern systems".

But anyway...

[Yoni the Hero]

at the end of the day emulation always reigns supreme

[Mavrah]

引用自 Uncle Sam：

Still in general maybe GoG, Valve, Epic, EA, Nintendo, Micro$oft, $ony, etc. could work together in regards to game preservation, someday in the future.

It's a good idea, but a lot of those corporations despise us, their customers.
They're also not likely going to invest heavily into making old games that they might be able to sell for $10 viable competition to the latest $140 crap-ware that requires a $5000 graphics card.
If the fans already made unofficial patches and fixes, GOG may as well use them. They should be giving credit where it is due, though.

[Ulfrinn]

Well, I'm not exactly sure how GOG intends to do this. Most old games can be played on modern hardware, for now, using compatibility mods. But as existing APIs become outdated and no longer used, compatibility methods have to be updated in order to remain compatible. On Linux, we have DXVK which can take older implementations of directdraw, and reroute them to Vulkan, and similar tools exist to use OpenGL as a translation layer. But OpenGL and Vulkan may not be around forever either.

For now, this works. But to truly preserve a game, rewriting those APIs to make use of the raw CPU power of modern hardware may have better long term compatibility.

[Ulfrinn]

引用自 Moogal™：

Resident Evil 1-3 was a major hit for me. The best launch they ever did. I gladly bought it. Also, i got some sountracks there i really like. Otherwise, i 99% buy on Steam, still.

I almost forgot those have actually been made available to regular people, finally. The REBirth patch on the Japanese Mediakite/Sourcenext versions is what people were using until then. And I believe these might even be the versions the GOG releases are based upon too.

[smokerob79]

you bash GOG for doing things steaming pile would not.....oh the irony.....its funny that the GOG version of fallout 3 is still the best option

[ZZZZZ]

I dont rly care about classic titles

[GlaceonChireiden]

That's a cool thing to do but I'd still rather have everything on one launcher, so there's no incentive to just not buy them on steam and mod them with optimization patches that have been around for much longer.

Only games I can think of that GoG has that steam doesn't that would be cool to have is Rayman 2 and 3

[Ulfrinn]

引用自 JustSomeLego：

That's a cool thing to do but I'd still rather have everything on one launcher, so there's no incentive to just not buy them on steam and mod them with optimization patches that have been around for much longer.

Only games I can think of that GoG has that steam doesn't that would be cool to have is Rayman 2 and 3

You don't need to buy a game on Steam to have it in your library/launcher. I will often get games from GOG when there's a deal, and use the Steam launcher that lets me apply Proton (since I'm on Linux).

[GlaceonChireiden]

引用自 Ulfrinn：

引用自 JustSomeLego：

That's a cool thing to do but I'd still rather have everything on one launcher, so there's no incentive to just not buy them on steam and mod them with optimization patches that have been around for much longer.

Only games I can think of that GoG has that steam doesn't that would be cool to have is Rayman 2 and 3

You don't need to buy a game on Steam to have it in your library/launcher. I will often get games from GOG when there's a deal, and use the Steam launcher that lets me apply Proton (since I'm on Linux).

I know you can manually add games, but I like seeing the progress stuff like hours played and achievements unlocked. Points shop/discussions, whatever.
Also I don't think those outside games actually appear on your profile/"now playing" notif stuff anyways.

I like the small stuff steam has alongside its games, basically. Not just the game itself.

[Sir Dookface McFerretballs]

I'm all for anything that allows me to actually OWN the things I BUY.

[Scorpion]

引用自 smokerob79：

you bash GOG for doing things steaming pile would not.....oh the irony.....its funny that the GOG version of fallout 3 is still the best option

First, i don't bash anyone. Am just examining their contradictions, corporate wordplay and serving old, self-abolished service as a new one... Without actually bothering to implement it. And inquiring on other gamers' knowledge of the matter (or rather, absence of it), plus possible experience on certain games that were supposed to be "uplifted" but ultimately weren't!

Also, i don't remember raising an issue concerning fallout 3, but whatever.

引用自 Sir Dookface McFerretballs：

I'm all for anything that allows me to actually OWN the things I BUY. :SafeForWork:

Games like Stardew valley, require client for online multiplayer (not lan/co-op), that one "totally optional galaxy" one, for instance. But you "own" it?

But other than that, what is your opinion on the matter i (try to) discuss? And a bonus question; you thing that service is the exact same one, as it used to be?

[Alliesaurus]

GoG has a much better selection of Amiga games imo, and the built in emulator used to run them are great.