Game distributor GOG makes strong argument for extensive game conservation, emphasizing its importance for future generations and the preservation of digital heritage.
Chatting About the Battlefield Between Business and Preservation in Gaming
Are video game preservation and the video game industry at odds? Well, it depends who you ask! According to organizations like the Entertainment Software Association, they're locked in a heated struggle. They argue that making older games widely available through digital libraries would harm the commercial interests of IP holders, who they claim are the key players in the preservation game.
But Marcin Paczynski, senior business development manager at GOG, disagrees. At the 2025 our websites Conference, he explained that preservation is becoming a vital foundation for the CD Projekt-owned storefront. In November 2024, the company unveiled the GOG Preservation Platform, an initiative to ensure games sold through the platform will be compatible with PCs for years to come.
This Preservation Platform isn't just a fancy label on the storefront. GOG engineers are putting in the hard work behind the scenes, solving compatibility bugs on every game run through the program by using a custom DirectX wrapper. This innovative solution allows a game released for MS-DOS to work flawlessly on future versions of Windows, eliminating the need for clunky updates and fixing issues on the spot.
GOG isn't just doing this for the love of preserving electronic history - there's money involved too. Developing and maintaining that wrapper takes investment, with 15 years of development already put into its functionality. It was only last year that deploying it on a large scale became commercially feasible, thanks to recent advancements in tooling and solid earnings through GOG.
Paczynski believes that commercial ventures targeting preservation aren't just good business for GOG and publishers with back catalogues - they're essential to ensuring classic video games remain playable for the public.
"Compatibility is Getting Worse"
The Preservation Program came to life after some unexpected realizations from the GOG team. They initially assumed that the majority of games sold on GOG were compatible with current machines, but they were mistaken. Only thirty percent were fully up-to-date. Players were buying classic games and not reporting compatibility errors, assuming everything was fine.
They also wrongly believed that the public and publishers on the platform were aware that GOG was maintaining around 4,000 of the 11,000 games on the marketplace. They conducted market research and found that the public had no idea about their tireless efforts. Everyone thought the games they worked on were being maintained by the original developers. "That was like a bucket of cold water!" Paczynski admitted with a groan. "That's one of the reasons we're addressing with this."
Now, when players ask, "Why should I buy a game on GOG and not on Steam?," he wants there to be a clear answer. Steam is ideal for purchasing new games, while GOG shines for "back catalogue" games. "There's no way in heaven that Steam will spend resources on fixing other people's games," he asserted.
Publishers have also come around to this idea since GOG doesn't charge extra for this maintenance. It's covered by the storefront fees taken from every game purchase, making it a cost-effective solution for publishers without any additional budgeting required. "We're a bit bonkers that way," Paczynski confessed.
GOG's DRM-free business model is what prompted this preservation project. As DRM inevitably becomes obsolete, only DRM-free games can be truly preserved. Sometimes publishers strip away DRM long after a game's launch, but if a publisher goes out of business, there's no one left to do the preservation work.
The widespread adoption of DRM in the 2000s has put a ticking clock on the gaming industry, according to Paczynski. He cited the inconsistencies among different versions of games listed on the Preservation Program compared to those available on Steam and other platforms as evidence. Developers and players can view the change logs GOG publishes, showing all the updates made to improve compatibility. If a game is available on both Steam and GOG, the version owners get on Steam won't have the compatibility enhancements provided by the DirectX wrapper.
Challenges in Commercial Preservation
Paczynski is optimistic about the progress made in preserving games on GOG. The company is using a "dream list" to gather player input on what they want added to the program, and more publishers are stepping up to have their games included. Back catalogues are crucial for generating revenue between game releases, and GOG is paving the way for more diverse sales.
But not every publisher is thrilled about this. GOG's Game Preservation launched with promises to fully preserve the classic Warcraft games, but Microsoft-owned Blizzard Entertainment delisted Warcraft: Orcs and Humans and Warcraft 2 from GOG just weeks later. These games will still be accessible for players who already own them, thanks to the DirectX wrapper, but future buyers will need to visit Battle.net. "It wasn't an easy day... when we heard that," Paczynski sighed gently. "But this isn't new for GOG. Games are delisted for various reasons. We have no control over that... because it's our partner's decision and responsibility."
GOG also has to tread carefully when acquiring older games and putting them up for sale. In some cases, licenses to those games still belong to someone, even if the developer or publisher has closed shop years ago. This means that GOG has needed to fend off legal battles from law firms looking for clients who may not be aware they even own the rights to these games. Tracking down these rights and getting all the contracts signed can be time-consuming and expensive.
On a more positive note, GOG is working on solutions for preserving classic mods. Similar initiatives have been attempted by Steam, but not all developers include support for Steam Workshop, meaning players hoping to play classic mods like Long War for XCOM: Enemy Unknown will need to go through a complicated process of installing different files.
Despite all these complexities, Paczynski is focused on the mission of preservation. "It's a continuous effort, but because it's connected to business, we can actually make it happen," he concluded.
[1] "The Importance of Video Game Preservation," The Digital Preservation Coalition, [accessed 2025-05-03]
[5] "The Legal Landscape for Video Game Preservation," Emory Law Digital Commons, [accessed 2025-05-03]
- In the realm of technology and business, the GOG Preservation Platform, a commercial venture aimed at ensuring classic video games remain playable for future generations, has set a new standard for retail in the gaming industry.
- The banking sector is observing the gaming industry's paradigm shift towards preservation, as financial investments are now being channeled into maintaining and enhancing the compatibility of classic games,apping technology and retail to rekindle the passion for retro gadgets.
- As GOG successfully navigates the intricacies of preserving video games, the finance industry takes notice, recognizing that this isn't merely a bid for prestige or a means to boost sales – preservation has become a vital foundation for long-term business interests in the evolving world of digital entertainment.
