I have a solution.

Ha, checked that out on imdb, and came across this (if your interpretation of the topic is the same its funny):
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093780/board/nest/110413271?ref_=tt_bd_1

Not a hardcore remake, but... well... Hardcore.

Strange, I remember most people agreeing with GOG and taking the opportunity to again state what a stain Steam was on the gaming community.

Wasn't the original PC release for Grandia II riddled with bugs? I'm pretty sure I've seen more than a few threads online dedicated to the subject, and -- while it's not perfect -- I think that the remastered edition of Grandia II may crash less if compared to the old PC port.

Call me crazy, but I prefer a stable release to a perfectly emulated (albeit buggy) copy of the same game.

I've played through the old version three times and it only had one game breaking bug right at the beginning but it was easily avoidable. The few bugs in the fighting cinematics were patched by the community a long time ago but weren't so serious anyway.

What do you mean by emulated in this case?
I'm talking about the native PC port, not some emulator and the DC-version (which is supposedly the best one btw).

Ah, thanks for the info! Even so, can I ask why you'd prefer the old version of Grandia II? I mean, the visuals are a bit different (especially the font), but not much else has changed... right?

Btw, when I was suggesting the PC port was emulated I was simply referring to the fact that Grandia II would (most likely) require extensive workarounds to improve its compatibility on modern machines. It's not "emulation" in the technical sense, but "emulation" in regards to preserving the original experience of the game (quirks and all).

I like wallpapers. I have quite the little collection from the ones that looked great to me - I'm still using a lovely one (since January?) that came with the Avernum 2 remake. Other than that though I don't care much about extra 'goodies'. Also, I never thought of manuals as extras but a must where older games are concerned.

I'm using Linux as main OS and WinXP as secondary OS (seldomly, but sometimes for old games I don't have WINE configurations for yet) and old but fantastic Saitek gamepads with six action buttons on the right side.
The new port does only support new Windows versions and X-Box gamepads, so I simply can't play it and I won't become Bill Gates bitch.

It's much worse than that, GOG is going to be merged with Origin (or some other such hyperbolic speculation).
http://www.dsogaming.com/news/rumor-cd-projekt-red-to-sign-a-publishing-deal-or-be-bought-by-electronic-arts/

That ... sounds ridiculous

But probably deserves it's own thread. I have to say, I'd have to laugh at the irony of the 'bastion of DRM-Free' being bought up by EA.... lol

Ok, fair enough. I can certainly understand how using a legacy OS to run older Windows games can be preferable to some and is dependent on the game's classic release.

As for your controller woes, I can certainly relate since I use a generic USB gamepad to play most PC games. Therefore I know firsthand just how obtuse the remastered version of Grandia II can be since it relies solely on Xbox 360 gamepads for support. It's not ideal, but I use joy2key as a temporary solution.

Listen, I can understand you being disappointed with this. And it's actually a good idea to discuss things like this in the forums. But to say that gog.com has lost one of its principles because of this, well, excuse me, but I feel that's beyond overreacting. And obviously others do to, that's probably why you get these downvotes.

A lot of people here love gog.com, and while we're not blind to its shortcomings, we like to protect it, because we feel the alternatives are much worse.

Most customers and publishers want deep sales. I, for one, agree with what iWi said long ago in one of the first twitch live : deep sales only hurt the whole business (in the sense it radically change how games are made and/or played).