I love it when gog releases newer games that I already own on Steam and the likes. This way I can expand my offline-installer-library and get more and more independent from these DRM-shithouses.

And of course I like it to pay less for them, but is it really necessary to discount them that high? I payed less then 10€ for DXHR and DXMD plus all of it's DLC... I mean, gog could have also gifted them to me. Is there anyone left who buys that games when the Initial discount is over?

Besides that, there's sale after sale after sale... I'm just worried about gog's health. If I could be sure that a game that really interest me will be available on gog sooner or later, I would happily wait and even pay a reasonable price when the time has come.

Possibly because the games have already been available elsewhere for a long time, so they need an incentive for customers to rebuy them or buy them here and not at another store where there could be a sale soon. All-new games take longer to get the super-discounts.

Also, people are getting used to buying only when something is on sale, so in practice publishers set a higher base price and the discounted price is what they would expect to get in the first place.

Games like Deus Ex 3 have been on Steam for many years and have been in $5 sales many, many times. Even Manking Divided has been less than $10 many times on Steam already. It's not weird for them to launch with that kind of discount here, IMO.

Partly it's psychological. You're more likely to get impulse buys with a high perceived discount. They've probably run the numbers and seen this maximises profit.

Sale prices are real prices.
People forget there was a whole logistics chain,or is train, in getting games onto a disc and into stores.

The discounts are high because they are not new releases. Rather, they are semi-ancient games. Therefore, to release them on GOG at the full retail price which they had when they were released many years ago, and/or only slightly lower than that price, would be an insult to GOG customers.

So I'm not agreeing with the sentiment of the OP here. Contrary to what the OP is implying, GOG and/or these publishers/devs aren't doing GOG customers any benevolent favors by releasing old games at low prices.

If the devs/publishers really wanted to treat GOG customers well, then they'd release all of these games on day 1 on the exact same day they are released on Steam, instead of waiting years before they decide to let GOG have the games in order to scrape out a few extra dollars of their games that are no longer selling any copies elsewhere because everyone who wants them on DRM-ed platforms has already bought them there years ago.

Any game more than a year old can be picked up for significant discounts and often it's the "physical" (in quotes, given the number of discs that seem to think that a Steam installer + key is sufficient) that have the biggest discounts. Also, anyone interested in a specific game would likely have bought it on release, so sales serve to attract the more ambivalent.

As for buying after the discount - someone who "needs" a specific game "now" (e.g. as a gift for someone else, or to replace a lost physical copy) probably wouldn't have the luxury of waiting for the next sale.Most new games only get limited discount sales (e.g. 15-20%) during their first year with popular games maybe not seeing a major discount for two years (Neverwinter Nights 2 springs to mind here).

In terms of timing, I suspect the major publishers see GOG's DRM-free status as a bigger obstacle to early release - conversely I wouldn't touch any DRMed product with the proverbial bargepole. So the best way to help GOG out is to avoid purchasing DRMed content and make it clear to publishers that DRM-free is the only way they'll get your cash. :)

Everyone who wants the game here right away, has the means to buy it, and didn't take advantage of a discount in time?

I wouldn't question sale prices that seem GREAT. The saying is --

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth."

I just fear they won't realize anything. Too many PC-gamers give a damn about DRM. To make things worse, they freak out when a game isn't available on their favourite DRM-platform. Some of them also think that Valve is the savior of pc-gaming...

Because GOG abolished old policies of theirs, like Fair Price and Wallet funds boni.

Given that many people round these parts are both old timers (patient much) and unbiased, or more precisely, VOTE WITH THEIR WALLETS...

It's only natural to talk cash, here. You 're offering an enticing deal? I 'll probably consider it. You no longer play fair and you lowered standards? Then, lower prices accodringly too and i 'll just bite; maybe!

It's just that simple. Logistics had always been highly irrelevant mostly, anyway. When everything setting apart GOG from Steam has already been revoked, other than DRM-Free installers of course, then the need arises to compete on equal grounds. Steam = cheap, no?

People willingly and gladly, paid higher for the same game here, because there were other policies and perks in effect, exclusive to GOG store + community. With those gone, the only layer of indecisiveness -and a really thin/fragile one at that- summarizes itself into: "HOW MUCH?"

Which begs the question, what part of the horse should you be looking at?

The "fifth leg", apparently.

Sales is a fidgly thing

check-out first month steam chart numbers for xcom chimera ( 10 euro's ) and gears tactics ( 70 euro's )

xcom sold thrice as much as gears but gears is the definitive sales value winner so far

now i don't know 'bout production costs and how much gears or xcom would need to go into the true profit range but it is far telling