this post was submitted on 14 Feb 2025
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True of everyone other than GoG on that front, if we're being honest.
Even GoG says straight up that they are only selling you a licence. The fact that they allow you to download installers for games, updates and dlc is heads and tails above everyone else, but if they close shop and you forget to download the installers, you're in the same boat as if you'd got those games on steam or epic.
Luckily that boat can also be steered to the high seas.
I mean, sure, but I'd argue that is a totally separate boat. The boat we're talking about is the "paying money to not own something, even if you get a download that can potentially be stored indefinitely" boat, not the "maybe pay for an internet connection unless your neighbour didn't password protect their WiFi, and don't pay for anything that all comes as downloads that can be potentially stored indefinitely" boat....
And physical discs.
Today a physical disc is merely a resellable license key.
Which is great, don't get me wrong. I hate it a bit, that we stopped using discs on PC.
That's a bit more of a myth than a lot of people realise. There's the decreasing access to physical media already but pair that with the fact that some discs have nothing more than a serial key on them to unlock access to a downloaded copy of your "purchase"
Can I sell/trade it to somebody else so they can play it?
Yes: I own it.
No: I don't own it.
Already we're seeing utter nonsense of games being removed in the generation they were launched on, meaning games like Forza Horizon titles can't even be purchased unless you have a disc.
I'm happy to agree with you there but I'd add the extra stipulation to you simple yes/no
If I get home from purchasing the physical edition of the game and my internet has happened to go off, can I still play it?
Yes: I own it.
No: I've been sold an almost useless key.
There's a handful of games I've seen like that. The Spyro Remastered Trilogy for example contained just the first game. The rest had to be downloaded.
And while my Cyberpunk disc contains a full hand as far as I can tell, the expansion is just a code and has to be downloaded.
For Cyberpunk, I can say the disc for the PC version was the soundtrack. The game still had to be redeemed on GoG and downloaded in its entirety. A silverlining that I at least got something in the box but certainly a weird side-step.
I was also aware of what was really on the disc prior to release otherwise I'd've called it a con. I can't remember how I knew about that though.