The Federation of German Consumer Organizations (VZBV) tried this.

VALVe's lawyers got the case dismissed by convincing the Judge that Computer games might not be software and not covered by this clause. The case will have to be retried once another case to clear the nature of computer games can be identified.

i have the feeling that the immediate family has better things to worry about then a bunch of video games whena family member dies

just a hunch there

I have no friend with the slightest interest in video gaming. My books, movies, comics, will hopefully get pillaged, but i doubt that even my boxed games will get as much as a glance.

More interestingly, despite the money spent on them, i don't truly value them. Maybe i see them as soul-less and impersonal. I would probably entirely overlook them if i was to make a testament.

But i cannot be sure if it's due to my perception of them, or to the lack of enthousiastic gamers around me. Both may even be related. If these games were precious to someone i might see them differently. But as such, i see my game library as some dull byproduct of my living, akin to paperwork/bills folders. It's not something i'm used to see as worth sharing.

My understanding is this, there are two separate things:

1. The GOG service (your GOG account, and whatever services that contains): most probably you don't have a legal way to pass that to someone else. It is a service, and it is not customary to be able to sell or pass a service to another person. That person is supposed to register to the service themselves. Just like you couldn't pass your Netflix, Spotify or gym membership subscription to your brother (unless the service provider, like the gym, agreed on that).

However, I am unsure if it makes any difference in practise, if you just give your username and password to your brother or whatever, and he starts using his own credit card to purchase more games. I'd be surprised that GOG would actively try to prevent your brother from accessing the service as you... and how would they know for sure anyway? Heck maybe I am actually dead and this is my brother writing this!

2. The games themselves, it might be legal (in most countries anyway) to pass the game licenses to another person, so you could give e.g. all your GOG game installers to that person on a USB hard drive. He might not be able to redownload them from GOG or get support from them from GOG (the GOG service), but they could legally install and play the games you have downloaded for him beforehand.

To me it depends if there is anyone near to me who'd care about the games. Then it would have some value to them, and yes I might pass them somehow to them.

If no one cares about obtaining the games I am possessing, then yes they are irrelevant after my death. Just like any books. movies etc. I may have acquired during my life; if no one wants them, then I guess they all go to the trashbin.

When our mother died, we did go through all the stuff that was in the house, whether someone wanted it or whether it would go to trashbin. I recall e.g. taking quite many plates, spoons, forks, mugs, even a couple of good towels and blankets etc. into my possession, just because I happened to have a need for more. It was not like those stuff were in her testament, we just decided ourselves together with my siblings who takes what, if anyone does. I don't know if my brother kept some track of that, considering he is a lawyer. Maybe he did but I wouldn't know about that.

Interestingly, for the vast book collection that mostly our father had amassed... I think most of them were thrown to trashbin. I don't think most of them had that much monetary value anyway as my father would rather collect "data books" than some ultra-rare first book from Gutenberg or the unknown first play of Shakespeare or whatever. I think he (we) had e,g. three or four full sets of encyclopedias, but who needs those in this day and age of Google?

For stuff that had higher monetary value, those were discussed separately. For instance a brother of mine got a piano because he has kids who actually know how to play it.

Interesting view, as I don't really see e.g. my books or DVD movies or CD music collection, having any more "soul" or personal value, than my games. I don't see the difference. They all had and have some value to me, and I'm sure there are people in the world who'd be happy to receive them after my death.

Me too, I'd probably pass them to any interested party (if any) unofficially without writing anything to a testament. Testament is reserved for stuff that has substancial monetary value, and/or I feel there might be arguments who could possess them (ie. many interested parties). My GOG games, music CDs, the Robocop Trilogy DVD box or some Remo books are probably not such objects.

I can relate to that if it's about physical objects in the house, but I don't attach sentimental value to a digital copy of a game. There might be memories attached to the game itself, but it hardly matters whether the copy you're playing comes from the harddisk of a loved one or from somewhere else.

Same goes for the CD collection, movies and books. but at some point they'll go through the house and start divvying things up.

"Wasn't uncle Phil an avid gamer?"
>"Yes, over the years he amassed well over £100'000 worth of games"
"Wow, that's worth more than the contents of his house, Tell you what, I'll have the games you have the furniture"
>"done"
"Done"
>"You have been"
"What?"
>"Done, you have been! you can't access those games. They're on Steam, you can't access them"
"But,but.... look here's his password list!"
>"Won't help, VALVe got access to the Births and deaths register in 2021, his account has already been closed"
"Uncle Phil always hated you!"
>"Yeah, and he though you were an idiot, guess he's right"

In the 14+ years Steam has been running a not insignificant number of those gamers have died.

Chance of death at 30 in the USA is 0.000373%. Thats 1 in 226'096
https://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/table4c6.html

125'000'000 Accounts on Steam
Abusing maths in a way that would make most politicians proud.
125'000'000 / 226'096 = 552 dead accounts this year... though I expect that figure to be higher given the internation nature of Steam.

Of course it didn't start with that 125mil accounts. IIRC By its 3rd year it had 15mil. So thats 50.

As a quick guestimate about 7'000 of dead accounts so far. Steam spy says 10 games average per account, say $10 per game. Each account is worth $100, though I'm guessing that the majority are worth a lot more.

VALVe currently has $700'000, probably a hell of a lot more of dead peoples assets with held from next of kin.

But the government care.

They're assets. They have value, or should have.

In that case, I'd avise the heirs to quickly delete all evidence of the library, so the government doesn't get ideas about taxing them for it. :P

Going to have the files transferred to a thumb drive and then buried with me.

Link?

https://dejure.org/gesetze/UrhG/69a.html

For me this sounds like a case for the criminal justice system. As this judge handled beyond his competency.
As the above link shows, the German law does not make any distinction what kind of programs do exist. Hence I would really like to see what they wrote.

I wonder will my GOG DRM free games catalog transfer to hell/paradise/other dimension after my physical body transition during decaying or most preferably incineration process. Does anybody know if it covered by GOG already?

Yes it will, but MP is a bitch. Jesus cheats at Mortal Kombat.

http://www.internationallawoffice.com/Newsletters/IT-Internet/Germany/Osborne-Clarke/Court-rules-Valve-may-prohibit-Steam-account-transfers

I spent a long time trying to get hard details but failed.

From what I understand, a Nintendo case was referenced. Personally it reeks of legal manoeuvring. As I said the case was dismissed, neither plaintiff of defendant "won". VALVe has got themselves a few more years breathing room while connected cases are concluded and the VZBV raise enough fund to try again.
And Sensible Soccer.
Every time you kick for the goal ....... Jesus Saves.