I don't know whether it still works; Bulletstorm was listed on the Origin redemption FAQ (which now doesn't list what games are supported) and it's still available through the Origin store.

EA product keys sometimes need to be activated through the alternate pages (EA Activation / Product Activation) rather than entering them in the client directly, so this might be one of those cases.

Borderlands on Origin also seems to lack the GFWL ZDPP activation as well, as far as I can tell from googling. So in effect they already fixed the GFWL shut down issue, because the rest of the game works fine with an offline profile.

Bulletstorm is back and GFWL is apparently still required to play it. The plot thickens...

Like I said before, they might have removed the activation at first launch of the game, but left everything else as-is. The game would still be 100% playable singleplayer with an offline profile.

If they did, they sure as hell haven't warned anyone about it, because:

a) The online disclaimer still mentions online authentication.
b) Co-op is still mentioned as one of the game's features.

Perhaps one of the game's Steam owners might want to enlighten us?

For 'a' I think all EA games have the same disclaimers and shit. That was a big deal when they came to GOG, everyone was freaking about the EULAs talking about online authentication and advertising and the like. For 'b' maybe they won't remove it until GFWL actually shuts down? It still works today, as far as I know.

In any case yeah, it would be nice if someone with a Steam copy would let us know if it still tried to authenticate during install. I'm pretty darn certain the Origin version doesn't.

I'm sorry, I just glanced through the thread and didn't see it, but is there going to be any chance soon that I'll be able to play Mortal Kombat Kollection without all this annoyance?
I got it gleefully when it showed up in the Humble Bundle, and was hugely disappointed and disheartened when I saw GFWL, and then people telling me "Oh, you should have gotten Komplete instead".

Well, without anyone chiming in to confirm, anything is possible. Who knows, they might have even removed the CEG for all I know. Currently, we're in the dark.
Assuming you desire online play, yes, there are going to be problems. But, if you don't care about online play, read on:

"Note: A full installation of GFWL is not required, only a few components are necessary for the games on this list. Despite a full installation of GFWL is not worse than a "partial" one. An example of an partial installation of GFWL for Mortal Kombat can be found here. Also, Steam will install GFWL at first launch of the game, so if a "partial" installation is wished, do not launch the game in Steam to finalise the installation. "
Source

Edit: Image.

Thanks for the info. Yeah, I had no intention of playing online. Still a bit miffed about having to go through 2 layers of DRM, but better than nothing.

I wonder if GFWL will really shut down in a months time since there have been no word about it for some time. But I'm currently playing through some of my games that use it just in case they become unplayable next month. So I can say that my version of Bulletstorm is still using GFWL and so does Fable III (and Dark Souls).

But I guess we will see what happens.

There has never been an official statement about this apart from the hastily-reworded update for Age of Empires Online (which only said it would be "discontinued", whatever that means); DRM authentication might remain operational for a while even if other online services are discontinued since that would mean games could still be played locally as usual (with the possible exception of Bulletstorm which does not support local profiles).

That's what I've been finding most bizarre about all this glee surrounding the supposed "shut-down" of GFWL. Even after several companies have confirmed that GFWL will continue to be supported in the foreseeable future (Namco, Capcom, Codemasters), people are still insistent that GFWL's end is nigh.

Then again, it's no different from much of the rhetoric I see coming from the bulk of the gaming community - if reality doesn't conform to their distorted view of things, then fuck reality.

Whether it closes in 1st July or not, there is definitely something going on with all these games' removals (like from Sega) and the exchange of GFWL for Steam.

I don't disagree that people can distort facts to conform to desired realities, but I don't think that is remotely fair in this case.

The only reality gamers have on the issue is silence from MS, and a slew of games getting GFWL removed. If there wasn't something serious going on then companies (like Capcom) wouldn't be spending coin on removing it, and MS could easily dispel any concerns but haven't.

Your plastering over people's concerns as if there isn't any merit in them, when most every outward piece of evidence is exactly what one would expect to see if the original, rather credible source was true.

If you were told it was a duck, it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, and it is refusing to tell you if it is or is not a duck, then don't blame people for concluding it's a freaking duck. There is nothing bizarre or delusional about that conclusion. It's actually the logical, sound minded conclusion to make. It may not be accurate, but it is sound minded.

It's the same as multiplayer servers shutting down really. If the company wants to continue online features they will move things over to Steam or whatever else eventually. If they don't, they won't.