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GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

gog.com

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Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#491

Post by WorldMaker »

Macha wrote: post #439
codethief wrote: post #335

Never heard of gog.com before (not much of a gamer anymore these days) but it looks really cool! I wonder, though, how exactly do they handle the copyright and licensing topic? Do they negotiate terms separately with every copyright holder? Do they get access to the source code in order to preserve the games and make them fully offline-compatible?

> Do they negotiate terms separately with every copyright holder? Yes > Do they get access to the source code in order to preserve the games and make them fully offline-compatible? Sometimes, sometimes their role is just packaging the game with a dosbox config too, or a developer provided drm free build

Some games get packaged with other emulators beyond dosbox as well. GOG includes and configures ScummVM for some applicable games, for instance.

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#492

Post by pdntspa »

solatic wrote: post #364
georgeecollins wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OK, but the model that Valve pioneered is the model that supports 90% of all commercial PC games made today, a higher percentage if you cut out MMOs and free to play games, which you certainly don't own. I love GoG and I have worked closely with a lot of people there on projects they are great. This announcement seems like good news. No one has to sell games on Steam. No one has to use a model where they "rent licens…

> They don't because too many people pirate games to make that a viable business Game piracy is fundamentally un-safe for players, since games are fundamentally executable code, where setup usually requires admin permissions, and pirate distributors are financially incentivized to add malware to turn the game system into part of someone's botnet. The only "safe" way to pirate is to do it on a dedicated machine, on a…

How silly that you assume pirates are always doing it for financial gain, as opposed to cred or the lulz

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#493

Post by mordae »

jeroenhd wrote: post #290
its-summertime wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is only 1 Steam client for Linux, and there will only ever be one client, and that client has had basic issues (context menus being a completely new window that steals focus, comes to mind instantly) that have been unresolved year after year. For GOG, there are plenty of clients for Linux [1][2][3][4], And they are open source, I can go and talk to the people making these clients directly, I can give feedback,…

It took me seven tries across two years to get Cyberpunk 2077 playing on Linux using either raw install files with or without Lutris/Bottles, GOG Galaxy in a wine env, or whatever Heroic Launcher offers. I'm glad it mostly works now, but i would've been better off buying it from Valve. The effort Valve put into making games Just Work is unparalleled. The minor UI issues (like context menus getting rendered in place a…

With Lutris it just worked.

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#494

Post by mikkupikku »

embedding-shape wrote: post #477
throwaway6977 wrote: post #474

Earlier quoted context omitted.

GN is a well established, popular and independent consumer hardware reviewer that has only a few peers on par with them in the space. Hardly some "random tech influencer".

Yeah, Paris Hilton and others are also established and popular, hardly makes them a source of authority. If you publish clickbait on YouTube to add fuel to drama, you're unfortunately digging your own hole and it shouldn't come as a surprise others consider you "random influencers who peddle drama".

I wouldn't listen to Paris Hilton talk about computer hardware, and I wouldn't listen to Gamer Nexus talk about who has the hottest hair in Hollywood. Flip those around though, and that's different.

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#495

Post by embedding-shape »

mikkupikku wrote: post #494
embedding-shape wrote: post #477

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, Paris Hilton and others are also established and popular, hardly makes them a source of authority. If you publish clickbait on YouTube to add fuel to drama, you're unfortunately digging your own hole and it shouldn't come as a surprise others consider you "random influencers who peddle drama".

I wouldn't listen to Paris Hilton talk about computer hardware, and I wouldn't listen to Gamer Nexus talk about who has the hottest hair in Hollywood. Flip those around though, and that's different.

I gave it a 20 minutes try, since it seems not just one person is convinced this Gamer Nexus isn't just another influencer. They seem knowledgeable about hardware, I give you that. But then when they start going into markets, economies and geopolitics, that's when I start roll my eyes, and continuing listening to that is like taking hardware advice from Paris Hilton.

Again, don't let influencers give you the idea that just because they happen to know topic X well, they suddenly know all the areas and subjects that are slightly related to those areas well too.

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#496

Post by mikkupikku »

Aurornis wrote: post #470
ninth_ant wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They don't because too many people pirate games to make that a viable business. This is an opinion, stated as if it’s fact. There are many factors contributing to the ongoing success of steam. Ease of access, a strong network effect, word of mouth from satisfied customers, a strong ecosystem of tools and a modding platform, willingness to work across many platforms and a variety of vendors including competitors, an…

I’ve followed a couple indie game developers over the years who started with lofty ideas about selling DRM free games. As soon as they add an online component of any type (e.g. a leaderboard for ranks or high scores) they’re blown away by the number of connections coming in because the number of people playing the game is so much higher than they would have expected from sales alone. If you’re the kind of person who…

I've got gamer friends who live in countries / situations where ten dollars is an exorbitant amount of money. Buying a new release at 60+ just isn't a realistic option for most of the population.

So what should they do? Go back and change where they were born? Abstain from participating in modern culture? Or reach out and take the thing which is free?

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#497

Post by hnuser123456 »

embedding-shape wrote: post #486
CYR1X wrote: post #483

Earlier quoted context omitted.

GN very much loves to fuel the fire lol. He usually does it by being More Correct Than You.

Yeah, that's kind of insufferable, and especially not something I'd like to receive dragged out over an hour. I prefer "More Correct Than You" HN comments over that, so I can read them in 30 seconds instead.

But the situation is still getting worse, and he has influenced customer service policy at many of those places for the better. We don't all have to watch him but he's good to have.

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#498

Post by weezing »

walletdrainer wrote: post #175
stavros wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can pirate games easily, but I buy them on Steam because it's more convenient. If it's too expensive for me, I just never play it (or wait for a deal). I can't be bothered dealing with the installers and the potential viruses and the hassle.

I’m fabulously wealthy and still mostly pirate things just because I can’t be bothered dealing with online credit card payments. Half the time I try to sign up for any of these services I get blocked for fraud because I’m in one country, my billing address in another and my bank in a third. Oh, and when something does work, it only works for a while until they lock the whole account with a bunch of paid content on it…

Which services exactly do that? Because Steam or GOG for sure don't.

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#499

Post by EA-3167 »

embedding-shape wrote: post #495
mikkupikku wrote: post #494

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wouldn't listen to Paris Hilton talk about computer hardware, and I wouldn't listen to Gamer Nexus talk about who has the hottest hair in Hollywood. Flip those around though, and that's different.

I gave it a 20 minutes try, since it seems not just one person is convinced this Gamer Nexus isn't just another influencer. They seem knowledgeable about hardware, I give you that. But then when they start going into markets, economies and geopolitics, that's when I start roll my eyes, and continuing listening to that is like taking hardware advice from Paris Hilton. Again, don't let influencers give you the idea tha…

Gell-Mann Amnesia is a shockingly hard thing to fight against I’m afraid.

Re: GOG is getting acquired by its original co-founder

#500

Post by dundarious »

izacus wrote: post #473
dundarious wrote: post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just installed a GOG Windows game in Heroic, and the Settings state "This game does not support Cloud Saves" even though my account has cloud saves clearly visible for that same game on the GOG website. Given I'm using Heroic from AUR on a supported OS, and installed with default settings, I consider this cloud save support to be less than stellar, but that's a separate matter, I'm not trying to turn this thread in…

And yet somehow you outright opened it with a direct falsehood.

Yeah I was wrong and admitted it and explained the genesis and nuances of it. "And yet somehow"... why say "somehow" as if it's a mystery now? "outright opened" is a very poor construction as well. "direct" in "direct falsehood" is not doing much there either. Please work a little harder at your scolding and condescension, the quality is somewhat low. Better yet, engage thoughtfully and charitably instead.
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