Wednesday, August 22nd 2018
GOG Launches FCK DRM Initiative: Informing Gamers, Fighting DRM
GOG as a platform has been the pioneer in delivering DRM-free games to people all around the world. The basic idea is that ownership in DRM-infused games really isn't; it's more of a time bomb contract that gamers make with a third party that may or may not fulfill their end of the bargain (or may very well end support for a game, disable DRM verification servers in for single player games, and all of that).
As part of its effort to fight against DRM's entrenchment in the industry, and part of GOG's reasoning that the way to garner loyalty is not achieved by not trusting consumers from the get go, GOG launched their FCK DRM initiative, via a blog post on their news section, pointing to their new, information laden website. GOG says that "We strongly believe that if you buy a game, it should be yours, and you can play it the way it's convenient for you, and not how others want you to use it", and that the goal of this initiative is to "educate people and ignite a discussion about DRM".
Sources:
GOG News Page, FCK DRM Page, via Tom's Hardware
As part of its effort to fight against DRM's entrenchment in the industry, and part of GOG's reasoning that the way to garner loyalty is not achieved by not trusting consumers from the get go, GOG launched their FCK DRM initiative, via a blog post on their news section, pointing to their new, information laden website. GOG says that "We strongly believe that if you buy a game, it should be yours, and you can play it the way it's convenient for you, and not how others want you to use it", and that the goal of this initiative is to "educate people and ignite a discussion about DRM".
What is DRM?
Digital Rights Management, DRM, is a really broad term for tech that controls how, and when, digital content can be used - like your games, music, video, or books.
Games with DRM include a layer of software or code on top of what's needed to just play the game. Nowadays DRM will send your information to an online server, it could run checks to see if you touched any files, or outright refuse access unless you're logged in somewhere.
In other words, DRM is there to question what you're doing every step of the way.
Why should you care about DRM?
Because there is a killswitch built into your games. Sure, DRM might not affect you right now, but corporations hold the key and they'll only let you in as long as you can repeatedly prove ownership. As long as you're connected to the internet. As long as their DRM works without fault. As long they're still around.
So should the burden of proof be on you? Do you place your trust in someone who doesn't trust you?
30 Comments on GOG Launches FCK DRM Initiative: Informing Gamers, Fighting DRM
I think it was a reddit post where i read it where a poster was asking for help but everyone just jumped him all at once, telling him he should of bought the game when in fact he did have the game but get couldnt play it because of DRM...
Unfortunately I've only bought a couple of old games from GoG, because that's all I was interested in. It's hard to support them without content and that's the key. None of the premium games companies will publish on GoG, specifically because of the lack of DRM.
As it was, the games I bought were Unreal Tournament and Unreal Tournament 2004, which I already had on Steam and bought specifically to support GoG.
Hell, my GOG Library is now bigger than Steam!
I have to confess that the auto updates are a bit of a killer feature on Steam for me too. I've got hundreds of games on there and it would be impossible to keep them all updated manually, so I sorta grudgingly accept the Steam style account based DRM. It runs pretty smoothly too and installing games on another PC is a piece of cake, too.
#leasuresuitlarry!
That said, I'm so invested in Steam's library that I've sort of reached the point of no return. And GOG's "transfer" program they just released doesn't qualify for a single title. So all I have pretty much have is the Witcher series and.... Defender of the Crown (old Amiga nostalgia).
Anyway, GOG will be around as long as their own games enough money. The lack of all the AAA games is probably hurting them, but nowadays they do have a bunch of upper end stuff available.
Not gonna lie, I am sticking to Steam, convenience and all, plus I really dislike multiple sites/launchers for games. Though all Witcher's plus some old stuff is on GOG for me.
I've been "pretty much" purchasing exclusively from GOG for about the last year and a half. I still make the odd purchase from Steam now and then, but my GOG account is steadily catching up. I think it's probably about 200 games vs 100 games at this point. Origin and Ubisoft I essentially let die on the vine years ago, but like Twitch(42 free titles since April!)....I'll take any freebies they're handing out and stack them for later down the road.
What I really enjoy about installing my GOG titles on linux is that I don't need to use a client period. They don't even have one! :). I do everything right from the website using my Waterfox browser.
I've also set up an account on GOG's forums...same name/pic.
Best,
Liquid Cool