Posted July 26, 2015
high rated
Hey, everybody! This thread is meant to provide an updated link to the database of DRM-free Steam games. The old thread was getting pretty outdated, so everyone thought it would be a good idea to update it a little bit. The list of games can be found here:
http://steam.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_DRM-free_games
WHAT IS DRM?
DRM stands for Digital Rights Management, and is commonly seen as the system or systems that require extra steps to be able to run software like games, Adobe products, Windows itself, etc. Current DRM schemes usually involve validating files online, and they were created in order to prevent -- or at least to slow down -- piracy, but I think we're all aware that that doesn't work. In the end, DRM does nothing but restrict and confine paying customers. GOG's anti-DRM policy is why it has become such a beloved website, but there are some companies that just won't budge away from Steam. That's why we've worked so hard to keep this list updated.
STEAM IS NOT DRM!
A common (and understandable) misconception is that the Steam client itself is DRM, but this isn't true. Valve gives developers and publishers several DRM options which they can implement if they so choose, but choices are exactly that; absolutely nothing is required. Whether a Steam game has any restrictions or not is up to the individual companies, and keeping track of the ones that are DRM-free -- some having even been confirmed as such by the developers themselves -- is why we have this list.
WHY KEEP THIS LIST?
I don't know about you, but I still play the NES and DOS games with which I grew up. There will be times when services like Steam will not be available, or they could even shut down completely. This list exists to make sure we know which Steam games will NEVER be a problem to run in the future, at least not because of DRM in the games themselves. Essentially, we want to keep track of the Steam games over which the paying customer has complete, unrestricted control.
ABOUT THESE GAMES
Every game listed here can be run without the Steam client even being installed anymore after the game is downloaded. In these cases, Steam is used as the method of distribution and nothing else; the games are essentially portable programs once they're on your hard drive. These particular games have no restrictions whatsoever, and can be copied/pasted to any number of machines or external drives and played without any network connections present.
HOW TO TEST STEAM GAMES FOR DRM
Checking Steam games for DRM is a simple process: Just rename your main Steam program file and try to run a game. If the game runs, then it's DRM-free, and it does not require Steam at all. If it doesn't run, then it's dependent upon Steam or some other third-party DRM. An even better way of testing would be to copy the game folder to a totally different machine, but I understand that this may be difficult for a lot of people. In my experience, renaming the main Steam program file should suffice. Keep in mind, however, that renaming the main Steam program file will ONLY work to check for Steam DRM, and third-party restrictions may be missed; moving the game to an entirely different system really is the best way to check, if possible.
If you discover a DRM-free Steam game that isn't on this list, please leave a comment with the game title and the operating system on which it was tested. We'll all love you forever!
http://steam.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_DRM-free_games
WHAT IS DRM?
DRM stands for Digital Rights Management, and is commonly seen as the system or systems that require extra steps to be able to run software like games, Adobe products, Windows itself, etc. Current DRM schemes usually involve validating files online, and they were created in order to prevent -- or at least to slow down -- piracy, but I think we're all aware that that doesn't work. In the end, DRM does nothing but restrict and confine paying customers. GOG's anti-DRM policy is why it has become such a beloved website, but there are some companies that just won't budge away from Steam. That's why we've worked so hard to keep this list updated.
STEAM IS NOT DRM!
A common (and understandable) misconception is that the Steam client itself is DRM, but this isn't true. Valve gives developers and publishers several DRM options which they can implement if they so choose, but choices are exactly that; absolutely nothing is required. Whether a Steam game has any restrictions or not is up to the individual companies, and keeping track of the ones that are DRM-free -- some having even been confirmed as such by the developers themselves -- is why we have this list.
WHY KEEP THIS LIST?
I don't know about you, but I still play the NES and DOS games with which I grew up. There will be times when services like Steam will not be available, or they could even shut down completely. This list exists to make sure we know which Steam games will NEVER be a problem to run in the future, at least not because of DRM in the games themselves. Essentially, we want to keep track of the Steam games over which the paying customer has complete, unrestricted control.
ABOUT THESE GAMES
Every game listed here can be run without the Steam client even being installed anymore after the game is downloaded. In these cases, Steam is used as the method of distribution and nothing else; the games are essentially portable programs once they're on your hard drive. These particular games have no restrictions whatsoever, and can be copied/pasted to any number of machines or external drives and played without any network connections present.
HOW TO TEST STEAM GAMES FOR DRM
Checking Steam games for DRM is a simple process: Just rename your main Steam program file and try to run a game. If the game runs, then it's DRM-free, and it does not require Steam at all. If it doesn't run, then it's dependent upon Steam or some other third-party DRM. An even better way of testing would be to copy the game folder to a totally different machine, but I understand that this may be difficult for a lot of people. In my experience, renaming the main Steam program file should suffice. Keep in mind, however, that renaming the main Steam program file will ONLY work to check for Steam DRM, and third-party restrictions may be missed; moving the game to an entirely different system really is the best way to check, if possible.
If you discover a DRM-free Steam game that isn't on this list, please leave a comment with the game title and the operating system on which it was tested. We'll all love you forever!
Post edited July 27, 2015 by pedrovay2003