Matewis: Weapon/progression unlocks tied to a server? Yeah, no thanks. So what happens 10 years down the line when these servers are possibly no longer active?
In this case I would feel no guilt about going on the high seas. Apparently it is possible to go that route, and use a 100% save so that you don't have to unlock anything.
That's actually an interesting proposal, good point...
So if GOG simply offered a 100% save game in the extras that would allow anyone to play with all unlockables, entrances etc., would that suffice to people? That's all you need, one save game file? Do you even need a "high seas" version for that, can't you use that save game file with the legit game as well?
What will be missing from the game with such a save game, ie. what player content is still inaccessible offline?
Gersen: Everything is possible technically, the real question is is it realistic.
The "problem" with Hitman is, as mentioned before, the new games are not just sequel but also update of the previous ones, as in Hitman 2 can have all the content of Hitman 1, Hitman 3 can have all the content of Hitman 2 & 3.
So there is no real reason or motivation for IOI to do any work anymore on Hitman 1, for them Hitman 3 is the current "version" of all the Hitman games.
That's why it would probably have been a much better idea for Gog to wait for Hitman 3 exclusivity period to end and release directly Hitman 3 with the legacy packs.
I think Matewis presented a great point: how about just adding a 100% save game file to the game's extras, which would unlock all those unlockables (weapons, entrances, costumes etc.), so that people can play with them, offline?
I was under the impression that the game downloads those "unlockables" as you unlock them with progression... but apparently not. They are already there in the local game assets, just oddly restricted to checking for them online?
EDIT: Now I am unsure if that "online game progression" is saved online to their servers, or into a local save file, just checking something from the servers... How do the servers identify which game has progressed how far, ie. which save file belongs to which copy of the game? I thought there is no online account to login into...