The Importance of GOG in an Ever-Changing Digital World

There are tons of websites where you can buy video games online, and gamers are familiar with the big ones like Steam. One of the most important is GOG, formerly known as Good Old Games, which has been around since 2008. The site is important, not because it’s a great place to buy inexpensive copies of great games; rather, it’s GOG’s devotion to video game preservation that distinguishes it from the rest of the pack. If you’ve read my articles on ComicBook in the past, you know how I feel about the importance of video game preservation, and in an ever-changing digital world, GOG’s work in this area is vital.

The site arose due to several factors, including the fall of Communism and the rise of CD Projekt, now best known for The Witcher franchise. To combat pirated software, CD Projekt was formed in Poland and reverse-engineered games with proper licensing to appeal to the local market. The company’s success led to further game development and the establishment of Good Old Games in 2008. The goal was to continue bringing legitimate games to modern systems by subverting pirated software, and GOG has been working hard at that endeavor ever since. The result has been a substantial payoff in the preservation of many classic video games.

GOG Is All About Saving Classic Games

The GOG Preservation Program is how the company keeps old games alive: it selects specific games to develop for release on modern PCs. This is no easy or inexpensive task, as GOG operates through fully legal channels, which require considerable time and effort. As of writing, the program has preserved 281 games, with an average rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars, and has made 1,519 improvements. The program’s mission “ensures classic games remain playable on modern systems, even after their developers stopped supporting them. By maintaining these iconic titles, GOG helps you protect and relive the memories that shaped you, DRM-free and with dedicated tech support.”

Taking an old game and bringing it to PCs isn’t as simple as it may sound. There are many technical and legal hurdles to overcome, including obsolete hardware, lost source code, expired licenses, and other issues. The GOG Preservation Program encourages user support through a patronage program and Dreamlist to help fund and identify games targeted for preservation. One example on the site is the original Resident Evil on the PlayStation. The game launched in 1996, but there was no official digital distribution between 2000 and 2023. In 2024, GOG revived the survival horror classic by re-releasing Resident Evil 1, 2, & 3 on its platform.

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GOG didn’t merely make the Resident Evil trilogy playable on Windows 10 & 11; the games were enhanced with expanded rendering options, improved AMD GPU performance, hot-plug controller support, and cloud saves and rendering. Since launching the Preservation Program, GOG’s Dreamlist has amassed more than 20,000 titles targeted for preservation. That’s a lot of games, requiring a great deal of work (not to mention time and money) to preserve for modern systems. Despite the Herculean effort ahead of GOG and its employees, they’re pushing forward, releasing games like Alpha Protocol, Breath of Fire IV, Dino Crisis, and many others as time passes.

GOG Saves Games for Future Generations

Video game preservation is important for several reasons, but as gamers, it’s paramount to ensure the survival of the games that have shaped our lives. Like any other form of art, games need to be preserved, and GOG understands that. If you’re interested in becoming a contributing member of GOG’s Preservation Program, you can check it out here. If you’re interested in supporting it by buying some great, classic games that have been preserved, you can find them all on GOG’s site here. There are hundreds of great games to check out, and they cost far less than they did when they were released, so check out GOG’s catalog and dive back into your childhood while supporting a fantastic program!

What game do you want GOG to preserve next? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!