To the elation of the modern gamer, GOG is opening its DRM-free gaming platform, GOG Galaxy, to beta testing. GOG is known for its litany of classic games and is looking to challenge industry heavyweight Steam by offering community-based gaming, while boasting no DRM on offlined games.
Galaxy is looking to bring people together with features like in-game chat, friend lists, and cross-platform multiplayer on a number of games, allowing you to even cross swords/lightsabers with your hard-headed Steam buddies.
All of these added features, including auto-updating are completely optional. Galaxy even offers the ability to reverse an update that broke your game. "Making it optional is the best motivation for us to make it better," says VP of online technologies, Piotr Karwowski. Galaxy also offers the capability to keep a local (DRM-free, mind you) version of your game as a backup.
GOG's current library houses a collection of over 1,000 games, with expansion on the horizon. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, set to release on May 19th, will be the first step in bumping up the number of blockbuster titles on GOG. Karwowski says, "We're getting ready to release and fully support even more AAA titles in the future."
GOG Galaxy could be Steam's biggest rival, and it's open to beta testing for Mac and PC users here.
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