Hi,

this is not really a problem, rather a question. How does GOG handle updates of frequently updated games?

All GOG games I own are old titles that for obvious reasons are not updated anymore. The sole exception for this rule is The Witcher 2 and my experiences with updates for this game are CA-TA-STRO-PHIC! Downloading of updates on my very fast connection took forever, had to install like 20 consecutive updates, each of them manually (activating the update app, searching for updates, running its installation, acknowledging its completion etc). I'm not going to buy another game that would update like W2!

I'm thinking about buying Banished. It's a game that direly needs updates and I expect them to be coming one after another. From what I've read about the game, there is even a rather big chance that it won't start at all on my system on this stage of development. People are reporting massive problems. I'm considering two options: GOG and Steam. Steam is a much more comfy place for my personal gaming in general, but GOG offers much better price.

The question is: can I expect smooth updates for the game?

Any update will be offered as either a patch installer or as new full installer. The patch will upgrade the last full installation to the current patch level. Given the size of Banished (~100MB), it shouldn't be any real issue to update even if you have to go for a new full install. That said, it depends on the developer and how much the updates change the files of the game.

In short, The Witcher 2 is a pain mostly because of how large the game is. (It might be the largest game on GOG, actually.) Banished should be a lot easier and faster to patch. I don't have the game yet but I'd imagine you'd simply have to download a patch, install it and launch the game. I've seen plenty of other games use that method. The GOG Downloader should even inform you of game updates.

When a game in your library is updated, the toolbar will show a notification when you're logged in. Then in your shelf you can see which game has new updates/content. Typically updates are in the form of smaller patch files, but sometimes the game's developer will just reupload a new installer. It varies, but there are no automatic updates - it's up to the user to download and update the game files when he/she gets the notification.

To find out what's updated among the GOG catalog, follow this thread:

http://www.gog.com/forum/general/the_what_did_just_update_thread

and also subscribe to the GOG tumblr:

http://gogcom.tumblr.com/