In a move that's both hilarious and also quite important, GOG have launched a new website named 'FCK DRM' to help people understand what DRM is and how it can be harmful.
I'm sure most of you know by know how much of a nuisance DRM can be, it's in games, movies and more and the purpose is supposed to be to deter piracy. However, a fair amount of the time it does end up hurting people purchasing games from legitimate sources.
DRM-free approach in games has been at the heart of GOG.COM from day one. 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.
The landscape has changed since 2008, and today many people don’t realize what DRM even means. And still the DRM issue in games remains – you’re never sure when and why you can be blocked from accessing them. And it’s not only games that are affected, but your favourite books, music, movies and apps as well.
To use the perfect example: When EA released SimCity in 2013, even for the single-player part of the game you were forced to be online. I remember the outrage, why did people have to sit in a queue to play a game they've paid for in single-player or even offline? It's completely idiotic and so I do applaud any decent effort to ensure people know about DRM and why it can be a real crappy thing.
It's an important issue, you don't want to suddenly lose access to games you've paid for before servers go offline or the developer decides to vanish. There's so many examples of why sticking DRM into games is a bad thing, it also never really stops piracy as people always end up finding away around it.
Visit the FCKDRM site for more.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Seriously though, I think it is kinda dumb. Instead of improving its own quality GOG thinks it is OK to piss on others.
They preaching about DRM-free while at the same time forcing Galaxy towards everyone's throats.
Quoting: Alm888They preaching about DRM-free while at the same time forcing Galaxy towards everyone's throats.
I fail to see what your point here is.
Quoting: Alm888And my obligatory (so no one could say I am biased towards GOG and against Steam) "And what it has to do with Gaming on Linux?".There are many games that can't be run on Linux because of DRM. For example: Warhammer 40k: Eternal Crusade stopped working in wine after they added DRM.
Quoting: Alm888They preaching about DRM-free while at the same time forcing Galaxy towards everyone's throats.Galaxy isn't DRM, you don't need it to play GOG games.
I support this movement. The DRM is always breached after some time by pirates. And the warez version is often better than the original, because you don't need DRM software installed (often causing issue with game).
Last edited by Zlopez on 22 August 2018 at 10:53 am UTC
TheRiddick Aug 22, 2018
A good example is Simplify3D printer software, only lets you register 2 operating systems (not computers, but OS's), and often forgets registered OS's, then when you try to relink it via their website you hit a brick wall limit of how many times that's allowed. Answer to the problem, PIRATE IT!
Anyway that is 3d printer software, but similar issues happen with games. (or worse)
Last edited by TheRiddick on 22 August 2018 at 10:52 am UTC
Quoting: Alm888And my obligatory (so no one could say I am biased towards GOG and against Steam) "And what it has to do with Gaming on Linux?".
Seriously though, I think it is kinda dumb. Instead of improving its own quality GOG thinks it is OK to piss on others.
They preaching about DRM-free while at the same time forcing Galaxy towards everyone's throats.
Well, to present you a very relevant example (and I'm surprised Liam hasn't mentioned it in his examples of how harmful DRM can be), it's impossible to use Proton/Wine on games with anti-tamper DRM technology like Denuvo, unless the publisher does the work themselves, which they rarely do. So it affects gaming on Linux by preventing the use of emulators and compatibility layers on games that don't have a native version. There have been multiple instances of games where Denuvo was the biggest obstacle to making a Wine script, DOOM for instance worked perfectly in alpha before Denuvo was added, and worked perfectly after it was removed.
Also, DRM-freedom generally aligns with the free open source ideals of Linux, so people who care enough about freedom to use Linux will tend to care enough about DRMs to not want them on their games.
Finally, Galaxy might be heavily marketed by GOG, but they don't force it down our throats. They would have trouble doing so anyways, as Galaxy isn't even available on Linux, and they always offer a Galaxy-free version of their games on Windows. It's a game client, not a DRM, it is and will always stay entirely optional, and that's the point.
TheRiddick Aug 22, 2018
Quoting: PatolaWhat I want is for GOG to stop forcing Galaxy to anyone. If they absolutely must have a client, they can have it "itch.io-style".Quoting: Alm888They preaching about DRM-free while at the same time forcing Galaxy towards everyone's throats.GOG is not forcing GOG Galaxy towards linux(sic) gamers... And I guess lots of us want that.
What they are doing right now is forcing their own closed-source DRM "Galaxy API" onto developers and gamers alike.
Quoting: ZlopezGalaxy isn't DRM, you don't need it to play GOG games.You need it to play GWENT and some multiplayer-oriented games. And GOG is forcing Galaxy for Windows installers (bundling it with installers, hiding "classic" AKA "galaxy-free" installers from customers behind unimaginable amount of obstructions on the web site). Naturally, due to Galaxy absence on Linux it is not apparent for us, but Windows™ using GOG's customers are less than happy about the situation.
Quoting: ZlopezI support this movement. The DRM is always breached after some time by pirates. And the warez version is often better than the original, because you don't need DRM software installed (often causing issue with game).I couldn't agree more! DRM is pure evil and in no way I'm giving my money to pro-DRM companies. But with recent developments it is really not GOG's right to begin bitching around. Not the right place, not the right time.
TheRiddick Aug 22, 2018
In saying that I do want a native version of GOG Galaxy so I can keep some of my games up to date (getting sick of constantly re-downloading them due to major patch changes).
Arehandoro Aug 22, 2018
qptain Nemo Aug 22, 2018
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