JoWood Week-Long Special Promo: Up to 75% off!

But not as far as GOG is concerned, hence why they recommend we download JoWood's games before they may be removed and why they state "You buy it, you keep it". From that I assume that their terms with the publisher is something akin to "everyone who buys a game is free to install and play it as long as they have their copy available, even if we need to remove it from the store/shelf".

You don't own any of the boxed games you have, you simply hold a license to use them. Same with GOG, you are given a license to use a game you purchased here. GOG is simply a virtual shop that sells games and the license isn't revoked when they stop distributing particular product. Apart from that, some of the games are licensed to you by their original publisher (eg. Ubisoft).

You can back-up your games on your hard drive, pen drive or even a remote server, provided you are the only person that has an access to the file.

There are a couple more reasons for digital distribution:

1) Environmental/Storage

DVDs, boxes and printed manual both use up natual ressources and take space.

If you can make things as virtual as possible, you help the planet.

Also, it means you don't have to store as much crap, which means more space in your home (for many people, storage is becoming a significant issue, virtual move for intellectual merchandise makes sense).

2) Prices

Using the usual distribution format, you need:

a) Manufacture the DVD, box and manual (material)

b) Ship them to their desired destination (gaz)

c) Store them close to the buyer (some intermediate seller that will have significant operational costs)

This makes a significant overhead cost, which for really cheap products may be bigger than the intellectual value of the product itself!

3) DRM-free

This is is a fallacy.

Technically, they could have DRM-free hard copies. They'd just need to remove the copy-protection from the DVDs.

Also, you can have non DRM-free virtual copies (ie, Steam).

So, I think there are 3 components to what GOG is offering:

a) Virtual Distribution (self-explanatory)

b) DRM-free Distribution (self-explanatory)

c) Persistent Access to Official Version

Point (c) should not be dismissed as it is significant in many ways, one being disaster protection, another being potential to reach the point where hard copie backup becomes unnecessary (not yet realized, but the potential is there) and perhaps most significantly of all, future portability of the purchased game as the official version is kept (hopefully) up-to-date.

Oh, I fully agree. I should have clarified that for me an on-demand aspect of digital distribution is the main point.

As for JoWood, there is not much that GOG (or any other digital distributor for that matter) can do if the new owner of their catalogue cancels the distribution agreement. If it does happen they will have to stop selling JoWood's games and perhaps remove them from servers.

I start to strongly think about this, but now my internet connection has only 512 kbps upload..... Yes, but contrary to the online distribution, the license is attached to the compact disc. And as long as it's not one time licence (like in EA games when you have to register them) you may sell the disc and the box because you are the OWNER of the disc and the box, not the data on it. You can pass this license furher as long as it's not attached to the single person specified by name.

Last hours before the promo ends so Grab those cheap games while you can people!

:)

Do any of these games 'require' a multiplayer key?

Spellforce, but the multiplayer is dead since the network was shut down.

OK thanks.

I waited and waited, but ultimately decided to get Spellforce today because I always wanted to try that game and this is a quite decent price. :)

Doesn't Painkiller require one too?

This promo ends today?

Yes, and in only FIFTEEN MINUTES...(Little Nicky refs FTW.)

Well it's over, hopefully everyone got what they wanted

Today we have an upcoming special one day promo!

Grabbed all these the other day, was my first purchase from gog! Even through I've been signed up sine it started lol. Some really good games in this pak

better late than never I suppose :)

In all fairness I couldn't use my card :( But my bank now switched to visa so it's all go lol

nice to hear that :p

well there is another one day promo today so stay tuned for that :)

Late post, but I've spent $11.16 for JoWood. I hope they don't disappear, and would be nice having more of their games here, like the Gothic and Painkiller series.