Overview
GOG, the popular digital distributor of video games on PC, has announced their Preservation Programme, designed to safeguard and modernize over 100 iconic titles. This initiative aligns with GOG’s commitment to preserving gaming history.
Details
- Titles Featured: Over 100 classic games including Heroes of Might & Magic III, Diablo + Hellfire, Fallout: New Vegas, and System Shock II will be included in the programme.
- Modernization: The preserved titles have undergone updates, optimizations, and technical support to ensure smooth performance on modern systems such as Windows 10 and 11.
- Access: Games are accessible DRM-free with additional features like downloadable content, manuals, and ongoing technical support.
Impact
The Preservation Programme is a significant step towards protecting these timeless classics for future generations. It aims to preserve games facing the risks of technological obsolescence while making them more accessible to contemporary gamers.
According to GOG’s managing director Maciej Golębiewski, the foundation of GOG lies in preserving classic games, and this program is an extension of that commitment.
Conclusion
GOG’s Preservation Programme represents a vital effort to maintain gaming history by addressing the challenges posed by technological progress.
Do you think this move from GOG will inspire other companies to do more for game preservation?
Theme Hospital (thumbnail) was dope. I used to rent the PS1 port from my local video store, but never came across it for PC. Used to love Bullfrog Entertainment back in the day and played the absolute hell out of Dungeon Keeper. Theme Hospital wasn’t nearly as good, but there was something super chill about designing waiting rooms and deciding where to put the vending machines. For whatever reason, the waiting rooms were always my favorite part.
Shame we never got a proper Dungeon Keeper 3. War For the Overworld is a worthy successor, and getting Richard Ridings ('ELLO, PEPPA!) back to narrate was a boss move, but I don’t care for the new creature designs that almost (but don’t quite) emulate Bullfrog’s creatures. Just doesn’t feel right without a few fat bile demons dragging themselves around your corridors.
Its just a rebrand of what they already did with bringing back old games the publishers didnt support anymore and updating them for current platforms isnt it?
Yeah, I’ve been confused about this. They are basically branding the games they don’t own but are supporting out of pocket, if I understand correctly.
So no, they don’t own Resident Evil 1, 2 and 3, but they did the work to make them run on modern PCs, so they are now flagging them as part of their preservation program. I don’t think it goes beyond that, but it’s useful to have a flag for them, I suppose. It may make it easier to sell the idea to publishers or whatever.
From one side, it does seem like they’re selling something old as new, but from the other, it seems they’re retooling the adaptation process. And as people seem to slowly but surely pressure companies into going back to making quality products, perhaps it’s GOG’s way of saying they’re in this bandwagon of quality shift too.
They have list of titles in the program here:
https://www.gog.com/en/gog-preservation-program
Change logs are on each title’s page.
That’s really helpful information. Thank you, Kelly.
