Vote for GOG to add Linux versions of games they sell

Vote for GOG to add Linux versions of games they sell

GOG, a digital distributor of computer games, had a makeover recently and one of the features this makeover introduced was a community wishlist where users get to submit suggestions for either games or website features and vote on these suggestions. One such suggestion submitted by a user called JudasIscariot was to add Linux versions of games that GOG already sold for Windows to their catalog i.e. games like Heroes of Might and Magic 3, Unreal Tournament 2004, and Neverwinter Nights. With Linux getting more support and attention thanks to the likes of Kickstarter, the Humble Bundle, and Desura, I hope to see GOG join the push for getting more games on Linux soon.

Originally posted by JudasIscariot:

If a game has a Linux version and it is made and supported by the developer please allow the option to download the Linux version if at all possible.

This entry in the GOG Community Wishlist was always to be found around the top but recently made it from fifth place to second place in a matter of a few days, collecting over 2,000 votes in total. This shows that there are gamers using Linux and that they are ravenous for support. It is only a matter of time before our votes reach the folks at GOG and they go through the simple task of adding Linux versions of the games they already sell for Windows.

Your vote counts and is just a click away!

Good news, guys! This request has now accumulated over 3,500 votes! Some lesser good news is that I finally received some minor feedback regarding games for Linux on GOG and the stance right now is that it would be too much work according to their marketing guy. I wonder what it is that makes Desura so different from GOG that the former can sell Linux versions and the latter cannot. This request also got some more attention from Gaming on Linux, which is of course good news!

Originally posted by GOG:

Come watch CD Projekt RED and GOG.com Special Event

CD Projekt RED and GOG.com Special Event: 18 October 2012 at 18:00 GMT

New Games, New OSes, Cyberpunk® Announcements, and Something Special for Witcher 2 Modders--and more!--will all be announced at this live webcast Special Event.

The developers of The Witcher franchise CD Projekt RED studio and GOG.com the DRM-free, digital distribution platform will host a Special Event on the 18th of October at 18:00 (GMT). The whole event will be streamed online on facebook.com/thewitcher or www.gog.com.

During the conference the developer studio will announce the official name of their futuristic new IP, based on the classic pen & paper RPG Cyberpunk®. More exclusive details about the project will be shown.

Not only console and PC users should tune in for the conference. Mac Computer users should be prepared for a bunch of thrilling announcements including more information about the upcoming release of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings for OS X.

Speaking of new operating systems, GOG.com will also be announcing that it is bringing the best PC games from throughout history to a new operating system. That’s not all of the news that GOG.com has planned for the Special Event, however: they will also be showcasing several new releases as well as giving gamers a unique chance to get some of the greatest classic games ever made for a literally unbeatable price.

Remember – the live stream from the CD Projekt RED and GOG.com Special Event starts October 18th, 18:00 (GMT). See you then!

Source.

So Mac OS support is definitely coming it seems, but what's this? There's a another new operating system GOG is planning to support? Judging from the thread, the new operating system will likely be Windows 8, but many are still hoping that it will actually be Linux. GOG is known to support Windows, so supporting a new version of Windows wouldn't really be that big in terms of news, but then again, stating official support is necessary too I suppose. Still, Linux is moving up in the gaming world judging from all the Humble Bundles, Kickstarters, general indie attention, along with Valve and Steam support, while Windows 8 is getting a lot of flak. With GOG taking on more and more indie games, are they realizing that they are losing some sales due to people buying games from sources that offer games for all three major platforms?

Originally posted by PC Gamer:

GOG on Windows 8, Mac gaming, and Linux support

PCG: You’ve just released a new catalog of Mac games on GOG. You and Valve are sort of moving into that space together, and Valve with Linux, too. Is any of that a response to the reception of Windows 8?

Trevor Longino: [Laughs] Well, there are things I can’t say about Windows 8 or else someone will drag me out back behind the Microsoft building and shoot me. But I will say, based on what I know, I know what people’s concerns are about Windows 8. And there are some very serious ones as far as releasing new games.

But from GOG’s point of view, Windows 8 gaming isn’t quite as scary as it is for other game outlets. But we mentioned at our conference that we’re working on Windows 8 support. The majority of games that work on Windows 7—I’m saying like 90% here—work on Windows 8. But we’re based on the release candidate build that was publicly available. And one, we don’t know what’s going to change in the final build—hopefully not much—and two, we don’t know what they might change in say, Service Pack 1. It may be they get really big pushback from the community. Not just developers that are concerned, but users who are saying, “I’m not gonna upgrade, this looks like rubbish.” So they may walk back some changes, in which case what we’ve been testing on might not be what ends up being the OS that you have available.

So, we have a plan in place for Windows 8. We will support it with the majority of our titles, I don’t doubt. But I will say that moving over to Mac gaming isn’t because we anticipate seeing more gamers thinking, “Hey, you know, this Windows 8 isn’t worth it, let me go see about Mac gaming.”

PCG: And Linux?

TL: Linux gaming is also something we’d love to do, but we haven’t made any announcements about it yet. We’ve been looking at it.

I’ve been making public statements for a while that there are technical hurdles. Steam’s approach is to say, “Here’s our distro, we support this distro. Have another distro? Sorry.” That’s not how GOG does things, we’re more free-range gaming. So we’re looking at how to deliver the GOG experience on— we can’t say every computer, because you can of course hook up an E Ink display with 2-color CGA as your monitor, use Lynx as your web browser, and run some weird Debian distro that you’ve custom modded to do just what you want and then say, “How come I can’t play your games?”

PCG: I’d love to play Fallout 2 on an E Ink display.

TL: Yeah, something like that? No, we won’t support it, obviously. But we want to try to get it where the majority of gamers, if they’re on Linux, will be able to get a game and expect it works. We haven’t found a solution, yet. We know there’s a big demand for it, just like we know everyone wants System Shock with 25 thousand votes. It’s tough, because the rights with System Shock are just a mess. Likewise, we know people want Linux games. And people are saying “You could just distribute the TAR and we’ll figure it out.” Sure, we could just distribute the DOS executables and just let the Windows users figure it out, but that’s not how we do business. So making that experience on Linux is a challenge and one that we’re trying to address.

The source.

I love how he justifies not supporting Linux in one way by saying he wouldn't support Windows that way either, despite the two being fundamentally different.