A recent post by some dev actually implies GOG asks for an above industry average share.

30% seems to be mentioned a lot for Steam, although I'm sure it varies. Overall buying straight from the dev should always be better, unless you're talking very low price DLC or something like that, in which case it's better for the dev since they don't pay transaction fees for every small purchase in those cases so it's easier for them to have cheap DLC available. (saw one mentioned it for some recent game but forgot which, Warlock maybe?)
Edit: Actually, think it was Game of Dwarves.

It would not surprise me as GOG probably has to put more effort in each title (the older ones anyway) to improve compatibility.

I have wondered about the cost on some other download services. When you buy a game on GOG they provide a download for the game. On other sites you buy a game and get a Steam code. Much less overhead that way so I could see them having a better deal for publishers.

True, although I'd imagine it'd depend on the title, and I'm not sure that one applied but I don't remember enough what type of game it was. I think I remember the reply being about why it wasn't on GOG as opposed to ... , which would imply it's out there on other retailers which should mean it's ready to go without much extra effort from GOG.

However, I could be misremembering that.

I think GOG might require a higher % cut because of two factors

1) They don't deal as much in new games and deal more in older titles. These already sell for much less so GOG as a company doesn't get to ride the new release sales wave when a game comes out as often. So chances are they have to compensate for that with a higher base % cost coming out of the lower end titles that make up the majority of their range.

2) GOG isn't just a distribution platform. They also extensively tests and mod games to function with modern OS systems which means ongoing (if limited) tech support for the title. So I suspect that service too drives up their % cut over companies that just act as a distribution platform.


I was sad too - I'm just overjoyed that Torchlight 2 came along just in time :)

MichaelFurlong, as far as DRM goes, Steam is pretty lightweight. They're not the bringers of the PC gaming apocalypse, as some people like to preach. And you can play offline, as others have already pointed out. But if you don't want to risk it, why not wait for a bundle that gives you DRM-free games AND Steam keys? This way, even if the offline mode gives you trouble, you won't lose anything, except the couple of minutes it took you to register.

Edit: er... I just noticed my avatar... I'm not a Valve fangirl, I swear!

hm. if that's an issue, then I hear Humble Store is the DD who takes the smallest cut.

This is my post of the year.

First off if you feel No GOG No Buy that is fine as people do that for Steam and its considered fine. THQ though won't do the games DRM Free because for the most part, this is a move to mainly get the company cash.

The games they included in the bundle have lots of DLC or expansions on Steam, so they are hoping that will correspond to people buying stuff in the upcoming winter sale to get them more money. They are in bad financial shape, and if they can generate some revenue in the bank it will look good to potential buyers for the company.

Also I kind of doubt they have the spare resources at the moment to make proper DRM free versions of the games, much less cross platform versions.

What makes Steam even more interesting then is that it also covers storing, patching and all the other infrastructure stuff. Which can be a huge money saver. Currently Steam is the best option for game developers. Pretty much up until you reach AAA publisher levels.

For the best effect, buy from the devs or the Humble Store and use the Steam keys for actually playing. It has been confirmed that those keys don't cost the devs anything. Therefore it might be interesting to ask the devs if they provide Steamkeys, even if it isn't stated on their page. IIRC, Wadyet games gives you a Steam keys, if requested.
Not to mention that several use Steamworks for MP....

Well I'd be willing to pay the full price for a DRM free release here or at another distributor, but I won't give one red cent to anything attached to Steam. I'd imagine that I'm not alone and that the company could make some decent profits if they obliged.

If more producers of AAA games would realize there is a market out there that would pay for DRM free releases that would be great. However most seem too stubborn to realize steam or any other DRM won't prevent people from pirating their games anyways.

I'm fine buying from here or Desura and paying a bit more as the games are DRM free. I admit I usually wait for sales, so the difference is usually a couple dollars at most, which I'm fine paying.

i use steam its alright. pretty much, i go for the cheaper deal. but if its all the same, i'd rather buy from GOG becuase you actually own your games. with steam, you're only able to use them as long as steam feels you can.

If you can get past the fucking ugly 2004, emo interface Steam mostly will stay out of your way in 99.9% of cases. There's always that one person who gets screwed, but if you limit your use to Steam keys you get from bundles you won't have much invested there.

Steam on its own is fine. When games that I am eagerly awaiting announce that they are Steamworks games without 3rd party DRM on top of it I always get a huge sense of relief. Steam works really well for me, they provide a lot of value added for gamers and Valve in general is a very customer friendly company.

But there are certain kinds of DRM that I actively avoid. Namely anything with activation or install limits, constant online DRM, Origin and GFWL. GFWL I avoid partly due to my extremely bad experience when installing Gears Of War PC, partly due to them not supporting my country(a mutual boycott if you will) and partly due to a hard 15 install limits on some games that MS support have said they will NOT ever provide more activations for.

Constant online DRM is way too invasive and with my internet connection being as unstable as it is completely unworkable in practice. Installation and activation limits are also highly problematic, it basically amounts to games expiring after a while and also is prone to cause various problems. Origin is problematic in its own ways. Of course there is countless other kinds of DRM out there and many should be avoided for their own reasons , while others may be fine. But I won't give unproven DRM solutions the benefit of the doubt.


GOG/DRM-free and Steamworks only(with no 3rd party DRM added on top of it) are the best ways to go IMHO.