Lingxin: The initial post and title has sparked my curiousity. But it feels rather meaningless if there is no actual official statement from GOG to the claims made.

Are there at least some people here who complained and asked the support team of GOG what is the idea of causing the issue?

Mori_Yuki: This is why I think arbitration by Ombudsman or consumer legal rights groups is the best thing to do in this case. Maybe GOG will have a change of heart or maybe they are asked or ordered to decouple all games from their client, so we finally get to enjoy the full content, items and whatever else we paid for. The best possible outcome and in a sense something both GOG and we are going to benefit from.

Gersen: Honestly if you purchased Hitman, was disappointed because it's not what was advertised, asked for a refund and Gog refused you the refund, then yes here contacting a customer rights could help... at least to get your refund.

But in the current case it is very unlikely it will go anywhere. Especially as there is a 30 day refund, no question asked, policy.

Swissy88: Wow, thank you for this contribution, obviously the OP is incapable of having doubt or any critical thinking and needs you to chime in that it might not happen.

Mori_Yuki: If it was just about refunding then, yes, but there is more to it than that. As I have written, this is about locked/gated content, which not only applies to Hitman but a majority of games in GOG's catalogue. I do think that this is something consumer rights groups can step in and do something about. GOG is a shop, they advertise and sell their games a) DRM-free, b) They offer offline installers, c) We can't enjoy the full content unless we use their client. Same difference only that in this case there's no need for a client which would only have added insult to injury. And as I said I will try because it doesn't cost anything and the worst they can say is that indeed they can't do anything for us.

Lingxin: The initial post and title has sparked my curiousity. But it feels rather meaningless if there is no actual official statement from GOG to the claims made.

Are there at least some people here who complained and asked the support team of GOG what is the idea of causing the issue?

Otherwise it sounds more like an issue with the publisher than with GOG, having provided software which comes without DRM just to work properly with internet connection.

It reminds me of all those freemium games on mobile app stores where you get one episode free but the rest needs to be bought. The app is indeed free, no doubt with that statement in that constellation. But it does not sit right with the expectations.

So who actually submitted complaints towards the support team and got official replies which can be discussed or even brought to a broader audience?

If GOG is really about screwing their customers with underhanded methods, I am sure they will lose validity as a gaming platform as often stated in other occassions. But you must not make false claims unless it is clear who is responsible for the issue. Same questions when you wonder if a game is broken because of the developers, the publishers, or the provider.

samuraigaiden: Do you seriously believe they didn't consider this backlash when accepting to publish a game with always online DRM for single-player progression in a this website?

Any reaction other than balls to the wall outrage is going to send them the message that it's OK to sell games where only a slice of the single-player game is DRM-free while the bulk of the experience is behind DRM.

If there isn't a huge push back right now, other devs and publishers will want to keep some form of DRM in their GOG releases.

samuraigaiden: No it's not. Every time people say 'vote with your wallet' you know it's a lost cause. I'm not giving up that easily on GOG.

I will make their life miserable just as much as they are making mine by abandoning their core principles.

Johnathanamz: Look at Tim Sweeney he won hist Apple vs. Epic lawsuit only thing was Apple blacklisted Fortnite from all Apple devices for five years and that is it, but the judge agreed with most of Tim Sweeny's things.

Mori_Yuki: I don't think there is going to be a class action but there is another way. For customers inside the EU and U.K., they could turn to the Internet Ombudsman, where I do see chance that GOG could be held liable for false advertisement or misleading advertisement.

Technically speaking and relative to Hitman, it isn't even a lie: DRM FREE. No activation or online connection required to play. You are able to play the whole game offline and you are able to finish it.

That you aren't going to enjoy it very much, because the important parts are locked and you'd need to have an IOI account and active online connection at all times in order to unlock items, weapons, starting points - the major part of it basically, is what's important.

Pretty much the same as locking multiplayer and single player online content, necessitating GOG customers to install and use a client to be able to enjoy all content they paid for. This is the same thing because GOG is selling games and their client should be optional at all times not mandated. Offline installers are available and there's no need for Galaxy for both offline or online gaming or accessing certain content.

I mention this because if GOG customers were to turn to their countries Ombudsman maybe this can also be taken care of. This would be a major step in the right direction, which otherwise will not happen, because GOG management has other ideas: Forcing Galaxy 2.0, selling games with gated content, an item only available via Galaxy, everything GOG should not stand for.

Who knows what's going to come of it? Contacting your Ombudsman doesn't cost anything as opposed to maybe a lawsuit. It can't get any worse that it already is so it's worth a try.