We really need a c/confidentlyincorrect comm for people like you
No. It’s impossible to sell a game DRM-free on Steam. They always require a connection to Valve’s servers to install, regardless of what the publisher wants. GOG lets you download the installer as a file that you can use wherever or whenever you want.
AwesomeLowlander@sh.itjust.works 8 hours ago
kuberoot@discuss.tchncs.de 7 hours ago
Ehh, pretty sure they know what they’re talking about, they just have what I consider a really bad take about it, and present it as absolute fact. Because yes, you need a connection to steam to “install” a game from steam, whereas you can predownload a GOG game and then not need a connection to install. Which doesn’t really matter to most people, since they don’t care about having the game use an official installer, as opposed to either an unofficial one or just archived game files, but it is a difference.
Goodeye8@piefed.social 6 hours ago
Then they’re being deliberately obtuse to make a point. Valve treats downloading and installing as the same thing so needing a connection to “install” a steam game is functionally no different than needing a connection to “download” the installer from GOG and then installing the game. Once Steam has installed the game and it has no actual DRM you can just copy it wherever you like. GOG gives a much better package for storing your games but that doesn’t mean what Steam does is DRM.
Simulation6@sopuli.xyz 5 hours ago
I believe Steam games, even in offline mode, can only be run on systems where you have installed Steam and logged into it. If you copy the game files to a disc and give it to a friend, they would not be able to play it.
Dariusmiles2123@sh.itjust.works 3 hours ago
I guess it’s the right place to ask even if it’s not really related to Sony and my move away from them.
I download and install my GOG games through Heroic and then move them to a hard drive after I’m finished enjoying them.
If GOG one day disappears, will I still be able to play the games that way or do I really have to separately download the offline installers which are separated in many files?
jeeva@lemmy.world 6 hours ago
As the other comment says, if they can explain how I can install a game from GOG without connecting to their servers, I’m happy to concede the point 😂
NewNewAugustEast@lemmy.zip 9 hours ago
I mean yes… kind of. You can go to your library in gog and download (slowly and limited and broken into 4 gb chunks for some damn reason) which means no client needed.
But steam does have games that are DRM free after that first install. Ones that you can copy directly out of the folder it put them anywhere and run.
There is a list here pcgamingwiki.com/…/The_big_list_of_DRM-free_games… although it suggests its about 600 games more that arent on the list yet.