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Freedom of choice. Optional client. Cross-play. Coming soon to all gamers!

Earlier today (or was it yesterday for you?), during the [url=http://www.gog.com/news/cd_projekt_red_gogcom_summer_conference]CD Projekt RED and GOG.com’s Summer Conference we dropped the news about our next big step forward! GOG.com has always been home to more and more of the the best games in history (for Windows and Mac), both classic and new. Differing in shapes, flavors, and sizes they had one thing in common: they were mostly single-player, and our focus was mainly on the experience of a singular gamer. If that's your thing, nothing really will change. You can always enjoy your favorite games 100% DRM-free on GOG.com, with no need to activate your game online or remain connected to play your single-player title. Just like GOG.com has always been about.. But what if you want to play with your friends?

Today we are excited to announce GOG Galaxy, a truly gamer-friendly, 100% DRM-free online gaming platform that will finally provide the GOG.com community with the easy option to play together online. GOG Galaxy will allow you to share your achievements, stay in touch with your pals and get the updates for your games automatically. We've developed this technology to improve your GOG.com experience. We think GOG Galaxy really deserves your attention and we hope many of you will give it a try! But, here's the great thing: it is totally optional, so it's all up to you! If you do not want to play online, or use our optional client to access these features, then no worries, you will always be able to play the single-player mode 100% DRM-free, and download manually the latest updated version of your favorite title from our website. Now, for one more feature we call cross-play. We always believed in an open world for gamers, with no obligation to be tied to a specific platform or client; and this is why GOG Galaxy will allow gamers to play with their buddies who use Steam, without any need to use any 3rd party client or account, nothing, nada. We’re taking care of connecting GOG.com and Steam players, so just sit back, relax and give it a try.

See the outtake from the CD Projekt RED & GOG.com Summer Conference

Talking of which, we are proud to announce the soon-to-come launch of the beta phase for The Witcher Adventure Game, a faithful adaptation of the board game of the same title. It allows up to 4 players to play together, whether they use Steam or GOG.com. Cross-play at its finest! If you wanna get the chance to try it out, please visit and sign up to get in the queue for your beta access key. You can also simply take advantage of our amazing [url=http://www.gog.com/tw3]pre-order offer for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, which includes 2 beta access keys for he Witcher Aventure Game, delivered to you as soon as we start handing them out to public.

We believe GOG Galaxy has the power to provide the best of both worlds. Playing the single player mode of your favorite game, 100% DRM-free, while still having the OPTION to use our soon-to-come client for an enhanced experience (auto-patching, achievements, and much more) or play online with other GOG.com (and Steam) players if you so wish.

There will be more GOG Galaxy titles coming up this year, so stay tuned for more news and get the word around!
Post edited June 06, 2014 by G-Doc
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Diversion: They said they wanted ALL mp to be handled through Galaxy. That can only be interpreted one way until they come out and clarify.
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JMich: Quote please. The one I recall said
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Destro: while we aim for the Client to support all the GOG games
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JMich: which is different from requiring Galaxy.
Let me also point out [url=http://www.gog.com/forum/general/introducing_gog_galaxy/post260/]few [url=http://www.gog.com/forum/general/introducing_gog_galaxy/post336/]from [url=http://www.gog.com/forum/general/introducing_gog_galaxy/post366/]here.
"We have some ideas on the older games but we're still working on getting everything sorted :) I personally hope we can have Galaxy facilitate the multiplayer options on older games so that you can just click and play them just like in the old days" I don't know if it's edited but it contained an "all" before "the multiplayer" the first time I read it.

I notice that they keep saying that singleplayer will be DRM-free as always but give no guarantees about multiplayer. If they intend to keep direct IP and LAN (once again in games that supported it in their original form) then why not say so and once and for all clarify the issue and put the fears to rest?
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Diversion: "We have some ideas on the older games but we're still working on getting everything sorted :) I personally hope we can have Galaxy facilitate the multiplayer options on older games so that you can just click and play them just like in the old days" I don't know if it's edited but it contained an "all" before "the multiplayer" the first time I read it.
Post 333?. Non-edited. See attached screenshot.

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Diversion: I notice that they keep saying that singleplayer will be DRM-free as always but give no guarantees about multiplayer. If they intend to keep direct IP and LAN (once again in games that supported it in their original form) then why not say so and once and for all clarify the issue and put the fears to rest?
Unsure why they don't say so. Best option of saying it would be something like
"we will be updating the installers to have Galaxy functions while remaining standalone i.e. you can run them just as you used to before Galaxy :)"
Oh, wait, they did say that.
Attachments:
capture.png (39 Kb)
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Diversion: "We have some ideas on the older games but we're still working on getting everything sorted :) I personally hope we can have Galaxy facilitate the multiplayer options on older games so that you can just click and play them just like in the old days" I don't know if it's edited but it contained an "all" before "the multiplayer" the first time I read it.
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JMich: Post 333?. Non-edited. See attached screenshot.

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Diversion: I notice that they keep saying that singleplayer will be DRM-free as always but give no guarantees about multiplayer. If they intend to keep direct IP and LAN (once again in games that supported it in their original form) then why not say so and once and for all clarify the issue and put the fears to rest?
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JMich: Unsure why they don't say so. Best option of saying it would be something like
"we will be updating the installers to have Galaxy functions while remaining standalone i.e. you can run them just as you used to before Galaxy :)"
Oh, wait, they did say that.
No that would not be best because the talk about DRM-free singleplayer muddies the issue. Best would be for example

"Older games that had direct IP and LAN capability will not be altered and retain this capability now and in the future. Those of them that can be adapted for Galaxy will be but funtionality already in place will NOT be removed."
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Diversion: No that would not be best because the talk about DRM-free singleplayer muddies the issue. Best would be for example

"Older games that had direct IP and LAN capability will not be altered and retain this capability now and in the future. Those of them that can be adapted for Galaxy will be but funtionality already in place will NOT be removed."
So, something like [url=http://www.gog.com/forum/general/introducing_gog_galaxy/post18]said? That your GOG.com experience wouldn't change, and if you don't want to use GOG Galaxy, you don't need to?
This is really exciting, I'm looking forward to trying it out. The auto updating feature sounds great, I have so many GOG games that need to be updated and I can't be bothered.
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Diversion: No that would not be best because the talk about DRM-free singleplayer muddies the issue. Best would be for example

"Older games that had direct IP and LAN capability will not be altered and retain this capability now and in the future. Those of them that can be adapted for Galaxy will be but funtionality already in place will NOT be removed."
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JMich: So, something like [url=http://www.gog.com/forum/general/introducing_gog_galaxy/post18]said? That your GOG.com experience wouldn't change, and if you don't want to use GOG Galaxy, you don't need to?
The wording is ambiguous

":...you will always be able to play the single-player mode 100% DRM-free, and download manually the latest updated version of your favorite title from our website..."

implying that it is only singleplayer that will be gueranteed to be DRM-free. Nowhere does it differentiate between current catalogue and possible future golden oldies that they might aquire the rights to which have inherent IP/LAN capability and newer games that did not have this and required a matchmaking service and/or a dedicated server to begin with. It is not those I worry about.
Post edited June 10, 2014 by Diversion
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JMich: So, something like [url=http://www.gog.com/forum/general/introducing_gog_galaxy/post18]said? That your GOG.com experience wouldn't change, and if you don't want to use GOG Galaxy, you don't need to?
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Diversion: The wording is ambiguous

":...you will always be able to play the single-player mode 100% DRM-free, and download manually the latest updated version of your favorite title from our website..."

implying that it is only singleplayer that will be gueranteed to be DRM-free. Nowhere does it differentiate between current catalogue and possible future golden oldies that they might aquire the rights to which have inherent IP/LAN capability and newer games that did not have this and required a matchmaking service and/or a dedicated server to begin with. It is not those I worry about.
I think your being a bit too paranoid.
Lets just wait and see how it plays out, no point on worrying too much because that will only give you grey hair.
Im pretty sure the userbase will tell gog if they go in the wrong direction once its out and people actually can test it over some time.
For now though we need to wait for the programmers to work.
I think the only way to make GOG Galaxy games DRM-free is to use an open API for the games to co communicate with the client. Then a server software would have to be released so that everyone could host his own GOG Galaxy (even on LANs). This way all features of the games could be used independent of GOG or even the internet. Well I don't know if for example achievement on a self hosted platform are very useful but I think that every feature of the games should remain independent of any network. In this case GOG Galaxy actually could be labeled as optional.

I don't think that this is actually realistic but who knows.
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Destro: - while we aim for the Client to support all the GOG games, cross-play feature will be for now available only with some multiplayer games that are Galaxy powered, not with every game that exists on GOG. In case of The Witcher Adventure Game, we have a GOG + Steam cross-play. At this point I cannot say when we’ll support more platforms, but I can promise that there are other games in our pipeline that we’re working on.
There are a number of games in the catalogue right now that are single-player only which were multi-player capable in the games' original release and/or on other distribution platforms, such as Full Spectrum Warrior for example. If I only care about single player for such games I don't concern myself too much about it, but there are a number of games which I was really excited to get at first such as Full Spectrum Warrior series which my enthusiasm waned when I found out it was single-player only so I decided to not buy. If Galaxy will re-breathe multiplayer capability back into the Full Spectrum Warrior games (either LAN play only, and/or online capability whether or not it is compatible with older copies of the game purchased elsewhere or boxed), I will totally be buying those games and any others I've panned over due to lack of functional multiplayer and I know others that are interested as well.

I know GOG probably can't answer this explicitly at the moment as there are probably a number of technical and legal unknowns with regards to individual titles, so my comment is more just feedback than a question per se. Over time if games work out this way though, more of them will get sold I'm sure. I just hope any game updates that add Galaxy support and bring back multiplayer from games stripped of it either at the source code level or just non-functional but present multiplayer code will get official update notifications and some kind of big deal notification to let everyone know they gained support for multiplayer/Galaxy and aren't just silent "minor" updates that pass by stealthily. Make some noise about it for sure! :)
I wonder if it would be at all possible to for GOG to have DOSBox games with multiplayer using Galaxy as matchmaking or something. I know DOSBox can emulate a modem so multiplayer is possible with some dos games on GOG. Sounds a bit far-fetched though.
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Crosmando: I wonder if it would be at all possible to for GOG to have DOSBox games with multiplayer using Galaxy as matchmaking or something. I know DOSBox can emulate a modem so multiplayer is possible with some dos games on GOG. Sounds a bit far-fetched though.
In recent years I've managed to get some old DOS and Windows 95/98 era games to play over the Internet which either did not have TCP/IP multiplayer support, the network multiplayer was no longer functional, or only had null modem multiplayer support - to work over the Internet using an RS232 over TCP/IP shim software. One game we got working was Diablo 1, although we later got it to work on its own over TCP/IP as well. If Galaxy added support for multiplayer via any modes that either do not work currently in a game or via ways that were never there to begin with such as doing null modem emulation over TCP/IP, that would be friggen awesome and remove the hassles of someone trying to hack it up themselves.
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Crosmando: I wonder if it would be at all possible to for GOG to have DOSBox games with multiplayer using Galaxy as matchmaking or something. I know DOSBox can emulate a modem so multiplayer is possible with some dos games on GOG. Sounds a bit far-fetched though.
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skeletonbow: In recent years I've managed to get some old DOS and Windows 95/98 era games to play over the Internet which either did not have TCP/IP multiplayer support, the network multiplayer was no longer functional, or only had null modem multiplayer support - to work over the Internet using an RS232 over TCP/IP shim software. One game we got working was Diablo 1, although we later got it to work on its own over TCP/IP as well. If Galaxy added support for multiplayer via any modes that either do not work currently in a game or via ways that were never there to begin with such as doing null modem emulation over TCP/IP, that would be friggen awesome and remove the hassles of someone trying to hack it up themselves.
can't see that happening at all. unless they could do one thing which would work for a veritable ton of games from one era. otherwise, it seems like a lot of effort to get multiplayer on games that wouldn't sell big or encourage very big communities. I think the client is mainly focused purely on new releases.
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skeletonbow: In recent years I've managed to get some old DOS and Windows 95/98 era games to play over the Internet which either did not have TCP/IP multiplayer support, the network multiplayer was no longer functional, or only had null modem multiplayer support - to work over the Internet using an RS232 over TCP/IP shim software. One game we got working was Diablo 1, although we later got it to work on its own over TCP/IP as well. If Galaxy added support for multiplayer via any modes that either do not work currently in a game or via ways that were never there to begin with such as doing null modem emulation over TCP/IP, that would be friggen awesome and remove the hassles of someone trying to hack it up themselves.
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johnnygoging: can't see that happening at all. unless they could do one thing which would work for a veritable ton of games from one era. otherwise, it seems like a lot of effort to get multiplayer on games that wouldn't sell big or encourage very big communities. I think the client is mainly focused purely on new releases.
Well, if they could do it it could be a massive selling point. "Remember that game you played when you were 14 on your dad's IBM, well now you can come and play it multiplayer"
is this platform going to allow games that are not on GOG/steam to be placed into the platform, even suggested on a wishlist to be on gog.

There is this game called Myth you see made in 1998 and the community has been waiting and surviving on its own servers with its own tournaments ect for 12+ years for someone to save it as there is no official legit way to obtain a copy other than from ebay or illegal means.

Anyway was looking to see if this Gog Platform could be some sort of helpful key to the survival of one of the greatest communities that I have been a part of for some time, we need fresh players and a lot of us are with families ect even some people been introducing their kids to this game to play. The wishlist on GoG just doesn't cut through all the other games even though the community has put efforts to push the vote count up its just not enough as a lot of players have left.

So without getting off topic, my question is will there be wishlist and all the other features on the website on this platform alongside being able to put executable games not on gog to be played from the platform like steam allows.
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Diversion: The wording is ambiguous
Thus why I keep linking you to replies that were posted after the OP here. Replies that are not about SP.
You say that the wording in the opening post is ambiguous, then ignore any subsequent blue posts. See posts 213 and 260 by Judas, as well as post 447 by Destro. Here, have a link with all the blue posts in this thread.
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johnnygoging: can't see that happening at all. unless they could do one thing which would work for a veritable ton of games from one era. otherwise, it seems like a lot of effort to get multiplayer on games that wouldn't sell big or encourage very big communities. I think the client is mainly focused purely on new releases.
DOSBox should be easy to use Galaxy. Have an extra .conf file that redirects all DOSBox network attempts to Galaxy (127.0.0.1:60664) then have Galaxy do the matchmaking. Not to mention that such a fix could easily be implemented on all DOSBox games.

That does require the Galaxy client to properly parse such network packets of course.
Post edited June 10, 2014 by JMich