GOG is incorporating regional pricing for 3 upcoming titles.

[ReptilePZ]

If they wouldn't implement regional prices then you wouldn't be able to buy those 3 games at all. This way you will be able to at least buy them DRM-free.

Regional pricing on GOG don't do any harm to you - you don't have to buy those game anyway and lack of regional prices do a harm to people like me, that don't care about regional prices, but want DRM-free games. Without regional prices I wouldn't be able to buy them.

I wish things worked that way, I really do. Unfortunately, now they're allowing regional prices with a free game as a compensation. Later, regional prices won't be on 3 games, it will be on most games and they won't be giving away free titles because it's standard now. After some time, they might decide to do away with extra goodies in games, they're not essential, right? And that big publisher they want to make a deal with doesn't want to provide those. Let's just compensate people with free games. Then that becomes normal... Next is DRM. Just this one game, right, just so they can get these guys on board.

Won't be the first time something like that has happened, that's for sure.

 

[Luxorek]

You're going back in circles, Luxorek... I hate it when discussions always end up like that.

Just stating my view on the matter, Reptile. You are still free to discuss the impact this will have on GOG future and its credibility, and so on. This whole discussion is just us stating our opinions and arguing which one of them is more right or wrong. I will echo Costin's words - I would rather have new games on GOG DRM-free, than no new games there and Steam being the only option left.

Hell... if one day they decide to go against their most important principle and include new games with DRM, then I will be there speaking up against it. But regional pricing ? At this point I really don't care, I've been paying much more for my games for YEARS on Steam. I do not see how GOG could go against that if they want to publish big new games. It was either that or no deal for them, and this time they wanted to be in the game.

To quote my favourite Wire character. "It's all in the game".

 

[ReptilePZ]

Just stating my view on the matter, Reptile. You are still free to discuss the impact this will have on GOG future and its credibility, and so on. This whole discussion is just us stating our opinions and arguing which one of them is more right or wrong. I will echo Costin's words - I would rather have new games on GOG DRM-free, than no new games there and Steam being the only option left.

Hell... if one day they decide to go against their most important principle and include new games with DRM, then I will be there speaking up against it. But regional pricing ? At this point I really don't care, I've been paying much more for my games for YEARS on Steam. I do not see how GOG could go against that if they want to publish big new games. It was either that or no deal for them, and this time they wanted to be in the game.

To quote my favourite Wire character. "It's all in the game".

I don't mind you stating your view on the matter, I just see no point in doing it 3 times, without adding any new points to the discussion.

The Steam argument is not a very good one, since another thing Steam has been doing for years is selling DRM games with no free goodies. According to your logic, gog would be doing the right thing if they go for that as well.

It's funny that you chose that quote, since EA Sports uses almost exactly the same line.

I don't know whether I should laugh or cry...

Oh wow, they've made the video private. If anyone needed any more convincing that they don't think they're doing the right thing.

 

[Garrison72]

The core value bullet points are no longer on the bottom of their home page as well. They 'announced' this in completely the wrong way, no question. It's really unlike them to try and sneak stuff under the radar, I can't imagine what they were thinking. It should have been along the lines of, "We've made some big changes and we need to keep you guys informed"

 

[gregski]

 

[dragonbird]

The core value bullet points are no longer on the bottom of their home page as well. They 'announced' this in completely the wrong way, no question. It's really unlike them to try and sneak stuff under the radar, I can't imagine what they were thinking. It should have been along the lines of, "We've made some big changes and we need to keep you guys informed"

Yup, the retcon was pretty bad.

I think they'd have got a different reaction if they'd gone with "Look, we're going to have to change our policy. THIS is why, and THIS is how we're going to make it OK." Phrasing it as good news just added insult to injury. Bringing up TW2 as an example of what happened in the past just reminds people that, a couple of years ago, they were willing to go to court to try to protect their core values. Mentioning UK, EU and Australia just sends a strong message that this is about gouging and not fair prices for poor countries. It's almost as though they went out of their way to make sure everyone assumes the worst.

And trying to destroy the evidence of last week's core values was really not cool.

 

[Cs__sz__r]

Didn't Steam just disable cross regional gifting? Coincidence?

 

[gregski]

One would think that the market does not lack experienced PR people. They definitely need someone who knows what he's doing.

 

[Sardukhar]

Ah, the Internet. Where everything is examined and judged in near-real time. Unlike THE DAYS OF YESTERYORE, where entities business, corporate and private could actually screw up or even improve in a more lenient timeframe.

We are a snap-judgement culture, I fear. Perhaps we always were, but before we were forced to wait a bit.

My mother used to say, "Only fools and children judge a job when it's half-done. Which are you?" Wait, she still says that.

Give it a few days, see what they end up choosing to do long-term.

 

[Blothulfur]

Utterly agree Gregski, bloody clumsy PR. Dudes should hire Dragonbird.

Edit: Then again i'm ratted.

 

[ReptilePZ]

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

Ah, I didn't notice this thread. I posted another point here: http://forums.cdprojektred.com/threads/16530-Curse-You-GOG!?p=1250396&viewfull=1#post1250396

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

Is it about some of their games having different prices for different regions? I guess as long as their games remain DRM-free I don't really care. If I agree with the price I will buy the game even though people in some region can get it cheaper. Given differences in incomes, and that what for me is a pocket change for people in a lot of other countries is a monthly income, it is actually pretty good.

I can agree that there might be a point to address the differences of incomes. The problem is, it goes against the principles of the Internet (regional segmentation) and in most cases it's not about incomes. Publishers just set the price to be for example 10, whether US dollars, or UK pounds or whatever. This doesn't address the average income in each country most of the time, it's just a rip off for those who have higher rated currency.

 

[Aver]

As I said, I would rather have more DRM-free games, even with regional pricing, than less DRM-free games and... nothing?

Didn't Steam just disable cross regional gifting? Coincidence?

Actually there are more coincidences. Few days/weeks ago both Humble Store and Green Man Gaming stopped offering flat prices. Now they are have regional pricing like everyone else.

Publishers just set the price to be 10, whether US dollars, or UK pounds or whatever. This doesn't address the average income in each country most of the time, it's just a rip off for those who have higher rated currency.

Actually it's not true in case of UK pounds. They do that only with Euro.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

1. One world one price
2. DRM free
3. I can't remember the third. Not sure if it has to do with goodies or classic games or what.

3 is customer love. Costin found it here: https://youtube.com/watch?v=YsH1Fbkz5hk&t=1m50s

@Aver: That was just an example. The point is, the price isn't based on any income estimation.

 

[Aver]

3 is customer love. Costin found it here: https://youtube.com/watch?v=YsH1Fbkz5hk&t=1m50s

@Aver: That was just an example. The point is, the price isn't based on any income estimation.

Well, it's better to use examples that are true.

I would also like to point out that it's extremely easy to avoid regional pricing and I have been doing this for very long time. I just don't do that on Steam to not risk loosing my library.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

It's easy if it's not widespread. But it looks like more and more distributors are falling prey to this idea. GOG and HB included. If all of them use it, you'll have no options to avoid it, unless you'll start obfuscating your location.

 

[Aver]

unless you'll start obfuscating your location

That's what I'm talking about. It's extremely easy. On some stores you don't even need software. Just basic proxy. On Amazon US you don't even need proxy. You just have to give them US adress. Amazon even gave me refund after they charged me twice by mistake and they didn't ask any questions why my credit card is registered in Poland.

 

[Cs__sz__r]

Huh, sounds like it's not a coincidence. Do Uplay and Origin have one flat rate?

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

Well, VPNs are around for a long time, but what I don't like is that these services will start enforcing location verification now. It all smells bad.