No the one you mention was a genuine rootkit, I was talking about peoples calling Securom a rootkit because RootkitRevealer was detecting something done by Securom as being "something that rootkit might do", if I remember correctly it was using some special character in a registry key to prevent it from being displayed when using regedit.

In itself it's a harmless hack, the key is not visible with basic tools like regedit but it can still be view and deleted by other means, but it's the sort of tricks that real rootkits uses to hide their presence hence why RootkitRevealer detected it as a potential threat.

Agreed. Of course I was talking about the area after Linko who imo did a great job.

Even if you don’t like to hear it, it still is true. Or can you tell me how I can start Gwent without the optional drm-free client software called Galaxy?
And no, just because this game is from CDPR or GOG, that makes no exception.

Not simple. The thread title is "GOG Galaxy Required in Certain Games".

GWENT, albeit not Thronebreaker (which is a separate game), requires Galaxy.

How does pointing out that Thronebreaker exists, take away from the fact that GWENT requires Galaxy??

Just to note, before it gets too far, the thread title is a bit misleading. It refers to Galaxy Components are required in Offline installers. Specifically the required galaxy.dll and other files which are galaxy, but also now required by the games to be able to be run. I am not discussing Gwent - a purely online game which can never be considered drm or galaxy free, but all the others, most of which never had nor required any galaxy components but now do, such as Dungeon Keeper.

I will see if I can get the thread title changed to avoid confusion.

Sorry for branching off further. Your topic is more interesting anyway; whereas "is Galaxy DRM" has been hashed out endlessly. Galaxy components now being apparently essential, when they weren't before, is worth highlighting for sure. Have you had any luck contacting Support on this issue?

Yes, put in a ticket sometime back. Their standpoint is that they cannot provide the offline installers without these components. Which is odd as they are spending time and resource going back to old games and actively adding it in, plus rebuilding the exe’s to require this.
Now i don’t expect those files are doing much unless you have galaxy installed, but it’s beyond me why they feel the need to go back and alter installers for games with no updates for years. I assume it’s a blanket policy of galaxy should be at the forefront of everything, we wouldn’t want some numpty accidentally downloading an offline installer and it not recording their “achievements”.
So yes, they learnt with the first release of galaxy, drip by drip, sneak bits in here and there, get it as near as possible to being required, perhaps even one day release an activated version when it’s too late (just hypothesis there). They have certainly pushed the term “DRM free” as close as possible.

That is exactly what I find irritating. Galaxy is optional for everything except multiplayer, Gwent and more exceptions will follow, but still it is optional. Since many seem to be ok with optional equaling obligatory, it‘s just me having a problem with newspeak.

Relevant article about GTA IV missing from store.

Rockstar issued a statement to US Gamer saying the delisting issue stems from “Microsoft no longer supporting Games For Windows Live” and “it is no longer possible to generate the additional keys needed to continue selling the current version of the game.”

So adding Galaxy specific files to offline "DRM free" versions might bring issues in the future. Imagine that GOG brings Galaxy 3.0 and developers will no longer be able/interested making changes because of whatever the new trendy online platformy thing GOG comes up with. Keep throwing these silly things to online games, but don't litter offline installers that are meant to remain functional regardless of what the seller is doing or whether it exists at all anymore.

There is a slight difference there (other than games for windows dead being total crap), games here should still function if the store stops. It’s if the galaxy files themselves no longer get supported by OS or something like that, so less likely.
But I do agree, putting requirements into things which do not need it is just asking for problems down the line. If a game is written with a necessary library then sure that is a dependancy, retrofitting games with “additional features” like cloud saves and “achievements” is not an improvement, it’s a downgrade.

It's ONE game....you seem to act like that means GOG is going to require galaxy for all games just because their silly card game uses it.

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That comes down to personal tastes, I think. ;)

Wait a minute though...the standard in order for a media source to be featured on GOG's sister site FCKDRM.com is "100% DRM-free." So even if we say GOG's store is 99.9% DRM-free with GWENT being the lone exception, that still wouldn't be enough to meet that bar. But anyway.

There's an interesting side-discussion to be had about what features are "essential" versus "additional." Many people these days would argue achievements are essential even though I would say they are additional. Where Galaxy comes in is that components for "additional" (however we construe this) features are needed to run the game.

Bottomline itt seems more and more games are requiring Galaxy components (which on their own I do not qualify as "DRM" in the way of requiring logging in,phoning home, etc... though I would say they are an extra, unnecessary step that has a similar effect on long-term game preservation...like DRM does).


I think nightcrawler meant in terms of game preservation. Generally speaking, the less "extra components" in games, the greater the chance they will end up being preservable or at least without major issue. This doesn't just apply to Galaxy but to other proprietary components too. As an example of a different game, Telepath Tactics, which iirc is the game according to a review that installs an Adobe program.

What I meant is that that 1 game is likely not an indication that GOG is going to go full DRM or even majority DRM, like some seem to think.

If I may be blunt: As achievements(to me) are silly fluff(even id I do partake in them sometimes) and not part of the original game in most cases, I don't care as much if everyone cannot access them via offline installers.

Also, achievements(gog ones) to me are like a premium one gets if one uses galaxy, not a thing everyone is given....yeah it sucks for some(I mean this genuinely), but that's how it is.

Not really....most games will work unless one's OS suddenly doesn't support them anymore(which might be a long time away), and even if that happened GOG would likely remove/update them if need be or some "enterprising individual" would strip them out or figure out a workaround.

(Also there are "y'argh matey" versions of many games in the possession of many which can also help in preserving said games, if need be and there are no other copies available)

Maybe you're right, but that post bit seemed to come off as "these extras make a game worse/lesser period"....but eh, we won't know unless he replies.

As for game preservation: Sadly some things likely won't be preservable forever.....tech improves/changes and stuff is lost over time(albeit in smaller amounts now re: media/software due to preservation efforts/etc). The positive, though, is new things are often "born" which somewhat make up for that loss as the winds of time erode what came before.....and often we are able to save at least some of the things from our past.

they just add extra layers of requirements.

Edit. Not going to change direction of thread!!