Even your browser sees the new ridiculous prices and refuses to go any further :P

Eh depends on the game I'd say as many still can compete decently even the AAA games with a low enough price point when looking at them like AA or A even as indie games in some cases when comparing to modern games and how the modern ones are.. For example I am unsure what Overlord + Raising Hell was but the price point for it and its content mixed with hits look is a good game still to this day for what it is and I often see it as a game that completes easily with A games or the like of this day Two worlds and its sequel can see it basically as a equal to indies in thier genre today and with a good base print piont and the like.. Sure they aren't that old but using them as a example of how one should view older games in context to modern games in ways

Who knows... might be wave the Queen's Gambit caused and chess has valued higher :)

I like chess (I am not good at all, but). I played the MSDOS battle chess sometime in the 90s and its animations really blew my mind... and still they do! Same as Prince of Persia: considering the programing and tech limitations (HDD space, video memory, resolution, cpu speed, speaker!/sound cards, laplink cable!, hardware standards!...) they were true achievements I've seen counted times in my life. To keep it short: Let me tag both games as progress.

Fast Forward to 2017 when I took GOG seriously: I vaguely remember searching for it because during this decades have played another chess vgames and to me the place/podium of BC is on the past: Pure nostalgia, history/teaching, use/adapt/challenge on limited hardware.

Under those circumstances, I would shell out happily the 10 bucks for BC (that specific one: I tried the others out of their periods and really did not impress me, sorry!) in recognition of:
-The progress provided to the computer industry (programming, vgames, hardware) and its legacy!
-The work during this decades to make it run
-Its a real finished & quality product: No BS of DLCs/IgnoredBugs/EarlyAccess/OnlineScams... Yes: its weak point is the resolution & its engine been crushed by the current ones but...
-Chess is a game you can play endlessly and don't age!: the rules are the same, the mechanics stand
-Chess is strategy in its more beautiful form :) and there is a point in every player development where graphics/shape of the pieces/board does not matter at all: what matters is how challenging/entertaining is your opponent!

By the way, I would also happily pay a high price tag for a Chess Master running on Win7-8-10 if GOG brings it alive again: Its tutorials are superb! ... Haven't found any other vchess game as complete as CM

Same here. It's probably related to much of the store being broken right now: Can't get to a game's page...

Interplay is all about galaxy-brained moves these days. I am partly surprised that they took so long to do it and only for Battle Chess, but not their other bundles.

While it is grating to raise prices from what they were, I would say each of these games can easily provide more than $10 of enjoyment. It's like I have said elsewhere on these forums. To have great releases with DRM-free offline installers is a bargain for what we are getting. I realize prices may vary in different regions so it may be harder to agree with this, but I think the general principle stands. By contrast there are a ton of free games out there which are vehicles for microtransactions, $60 releases which will end up costing double or triple that by the time all the DLC and milking is through, etc and those are usually loaded to the hilt with DRM.

I see many arguments, but I'm going to go for, "It's chess, you can literally play it free in your browser" and say the separation and uptick in prices is a bit galling.

Indeed, maybe they are targeting now to an specific audience (collectors, old people) or just taking a chance. Surprisingly to me, now that they are separated and more expensive, I consider the BC more seriously... lol
Anyway, I really wish to the Battle Chess games the best luck because I think they deserve it, and if one of this days I fall in the scenarios I gave, I'll certainly will run to buy it
I'll see you then BC :)

Regardless of the reasoning, I personally don't think those who enjoy DRM free should be forced to pay an overly high premium(in this case a 5 fold increase) for the "privilege" of DRM free. Not only is it wrong to do so, imo, but it's unfair on those with limited income as well.

That aside, all this does is make some like myself want to buy such games elsewhere and make DRM free backups(if need be) after the fact.

It reminds me of media where filling stations in the middle of nowhere will charge sky high prices because they're the only game in town.

Anyhoo, I now wonder: were the sales for said games perhaps so poor they amped up the prices to make a bit more money for those titles? If so, i've got some news for them....it (shock of all shocks) probably won't work very well.

Some follow up. Those game pages finally opened here...

Someone -forgot- to customize every description... the 3 games say:

"Includes the original Battle Chess, Battle Chess II: Chinese Chess and Battle Chess 4000"

A clear Copy & Paste exhausting effort... Screenshots attached

Someone should probably send that to GOG......as in some places(the EU, etc) that might be seen as deceptive/false advertising(even if it is accidental).

Or free to download, included in some linux distros...

https://www.gnu.org/software/chess/

Chess, like anything else in this world, is like fine wine:
You wouldn't want to spill it on your couch, and it can give you a headache if consumed too much.

Oh and it destroys your teeth in the long run, totally! Unless you consume some cheese with it which neutralizes the acids in your mouth.