We've championed Good Old Games aka GOG.com since its inception as the go-to site for digital versions of PC classics, many old, but some more recent titles too. Updated and tested for compatibility, offering extras, cheap prices, and on and on...it was a no-brainer if you were a true PC gamer. So it's with a very heavy heart we inform you the service has shut down, the website featuring the following message:
The news comes just after signing Triumph Studios and their excellent Age of Wonders series last week (at least two more installments were planned for release), not long after hiring a new PR staff member, and following a couple of posts via GOG's Twitter page on Friday which read as follows:
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!
From this we can gather the DRM-free approach has proven too big of an obstacle for GOG to remain profitable, and they'll reform somehow in the future. From what we could tell, at least a couple of huge deals were about to come through, so it's likely the company was counting on these to stay afloat -- the publishers then, may have backed out at the last minute.
We've contacted GOG for comment, and plan to conduct a full interview with them as soon as possible.
Update: GOG's PR man Tom Ohle has responded, saying, "As the message on the site says, this doesn't mean GOG is gone. We'll have more to share in the coming days. No need to jump to conclusions :)"
Rumors are floating about this is actually a cleverly worded (and cruel) PR stunt for announcing the site going out of beta, which was due anytime now. Others say GOG has been or will be bought by another company which may or may not alter the site's principles.
Update: GOG has left a second message on its website, clarifying some matters. See it below.
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. If you want to receive further information about GOG.com, please send an email to update_media@gog.com if you're a media representative or to update_users@gog.com if you're a user without a GOG account.
Especially in the case of property which has changed hands a million times since inception (most of their catalogue), such a model is vital.