I thought a dedicated GOG News post might be a nice change-of-pace. I’m not sure how much I can find or cover here, that hasn’t already been shared in any case…but I do love GOG, and I feel they get a little less publicity or cover than the obvious alternative of Steam…so here we go :)

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GOG’s Gaming News:

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Authenticator:

GOG (finally) announced that you can now use authenticator apps to keep your GOG account secure. Prior to this their account security was maintained with a log-on code being sent to your email, but now you can use an app of your choice to increase the security.

Authenticator apps are inherently more secure (depending on the app you choose!)

When its enabled, and you log in to GOG, after entering your password, the site asks for a verification code as well.

• The authenticator app (like Bitwarden Authenticator for example) generates a time based one time password (known as a TOTP) - usually a 6-digit code that changes every 30 seconds or so

• You enter that code to complete the login!

GOG stated themselves:

To provide you with better security for your accounts, we’ve introduced a new 2FA (Time-based One-Time Password) login method for your accounts. You can use it with popular authentication apps of your choice, like Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator, or others.

Aside from not loving Google and MS being their examples (although I can see why they are used – the most popular are just so for a reason), this is only good news.

You can read all about the reception of this news on their forum post here with this link – and marvel at how some people can be annoyed and try argue that email is safer or that you can’t these apps (like this comment I spotted):

There are no companies I trust. Trust doesn’t come for free. I only trust people, and only those who have earned it.

And…now go and do this, because it is safer for your account and lovely GOG DRM-free library :)

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GOG’s Hammer:

GOG is celebrating Warhammer Skulls 2025 with major discounts and a key update to its (rather amazing) Preservation Program. Five classic Warhammer games are now preserved and exclusive to GOG:

• Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate

• Final Liberation: Warhammer Epic 40,000

• Warhammer 40,000: Rites of War (also, to note, this one is free to claim and keep forever from GOG right now! Follow the link!)

• Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat

*Warhammer 40,000: Fire Warrior

In addition, Sanctus Reach and Armageddon are now GOG exclusives, after being delisted elsewhere!

More Warhammer titles are also coming soon to the platform, including:

• Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader – Lex Imperialis

• Warhammer 40,000: Dark Heresy

• Dawn of War – Definitive Edition

• Space Marine – Master Crafted Edition

This campaign on GOG right now celebrates Warhammer’s impact across genres and media, and makes you take note of the importance of preserving its legacy.

As GOG themselves said:

Warhammer is a universe so vast it spills across genres and generations – from grimdark sci-fi to high fantasy, from tabletop to tactics, from single-player campaigns to skirmish-scale gems. It has shaped player identities, inspired modders, spawned books, art, animation, and unparalleled lore. It’s not just a franchise. It’s a world that gives meaning. And it deserves to be preserved.

You can watch GOG’s own announcement on YouTube with this link - detailing everything in a far more fun than my bare-facts-typed-out-manner here!

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Space Marine: Master Craft:

The upcoming remaster to 2011’s Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine is not so far off, arriving on June 11th, and is a welcome change I think. I’ve tried a few times to play and enjoy it (you might have even claimed it for free in December last year, alongside The Outer Worlds and Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Ed.), but it does feel its old age.

I’ll straight up copy the announcement because there’s no reason for me to prattle on with nonsense when the announcement is the news:

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine returns. Enhanced for a new generation! Enjoy quality of life & graphical improvements that take the Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine experience to the next level.

Improvements:

Higher fidelity & improved textures 4k Resolution Improved character models Modernised control scheme + interface overhaul Remastered audio Step into the armor of a relentless Space Marine and use a combination of lethal weaponry to crush overwhelming Ork forces. Immerse yourself in an intense and brutally violent world based on the richest science fantasy ever created. In Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine you are captain Titus, a Space Marine of the Ultramarines chapter and a seasoned veteran of countless battles. A millions-strong Ork horde has invaded an Imperial forge world, one of the planet-sized factories where the war machines for humanity’s never-ending battle for survival are created. Losing this planet is not an option, but a darker and far more evil threat is lurking large in the shadows of this world. With an Imperial liberation fleet en-route, the Ultramarines are sent in to hold key locations until reinforcements arrive. Captain Titus and a squad of Ultramarine veterans use bolters and chainswords to take the fight to the enemies of mankind.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine – Master Crafted Edition includes the original Space Marine game & all DLC:

• Chaos Unleashed Map Pack • Dreadnought Assault DLC • Iron Hand Veteran Chapter Pack DLC • Death Guard Champion Chapter Pack DLC • Golden Relic Bolter • Golden Relic Chainsword • Power Sword • Blood Angels Veteran Armour Set • Salamanders Veteran Armour Set • Alpha Legion Champion Armour Set • Legion of the Damned Armour Set • Emperor’s Elite Pack • Traitor Legions Pack

STORM INTO BATTLE Step fearlessly into the heart of combat as an unstoppable Space Marine. Never hide, never cower, just purge all that stand in your way.

UNLEASH VISIBLE VIOLENT DEATH Using an innovative combat system, switch seamlessly from high-caliber ranged weapons to devastating close-combat strikes. Taking out an enemy has never been so satisfying.

EXPERIENCE THE GRIM DARKNESS OF WARHAMMER 40,000 Jump into a rich universe of awe-inspiring landscapes, deadly enemies, immense battles and ruthless annihilation.

TAKE THE BATTLE ONLINE Form your own Space Marine squad or Chaos Space Marine warband and face off in 8 vs 8 online matches. Gain experience and unlock new weapons and armor to customize the devastator, assault, and tactical marine classes. Supports Cross-Play functionality

The link for the trailer on YouTube is here

And…lastly, it is also going to be on Game Pass – day one!!!

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Preservation Program?

I just read this and noticed that you mentioned the GOG Preservation Program…what is it?!

I’m so glad you asked!

If you’re not aware, as a part of their 16th anniversary GOG expanded their mission with a new ‘Preservation Program’.

The program aims to keep classic PC games, which includes games like System Shock 2, Diablo, and Myst, compatible with modern operating systems like Windows 10 and 11.

GOG commits its own resources to update and maintain these games, even if the original developers are no longer involved. Their initiative (which has a lovely icon I’ll attach below) includes bug fixes and quality-tested builds, going beyond basic compatibility. This effort highlights the importance of preserving gaming history, especially since 87% of games made before 2010 are now considered inaccessible, according to the Video Game History Foundation. GOG continues to offer these games DRM-free, with dedicated tech support!!!

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Lino – Library Manager:

I did cover what Lino is a couple of News Posts ago, but we’re close to when the dev has been promising their initial release to be – the end of this month, a few days from this being posted (another dev of a another project tells me it is two days time from writing this!. Though I doubt this date will happen (maybe I’ll be surprsied!), it’s nice to see the dev is close to it.

But what is Lino, for us who never saw your initial post?!

Lino is a fan-made, custom-built game launcher created by an individual developer to better suit their personal needs than existing options like Playnite or GOG Galaxy. It’s designed to offer a clean, customizable UI and features not typically found in mainstream launchers, including:

• Cloud storage awareness (showing whether a game is stored locally or offloaded to the cloud)
• Portable mode and syncable database for use across devices (e.g., PC and handheld)
• Game tracking and stats overview
• Built-in cloud save backups
• Integrated screenshot viewer
• Emulator support
• Native “How Long to Beat” integration

Initially prototyped in PowerShell, the launcher is now built using Electron and React. The developer plans to release a free version with core features and a paid version with full functionality, including custom themes, as a one-time purchase without DRM (ew)

Where can I find more on it? You can follow this link to their Discord!

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GOG’s Forum:

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, do not forget that GOG host their own discussion forum!!!

They have topics for everything, including game-specific forums, all the way to general discussions.

I think in a world where we’re used to the instant gratification of social media, we forget that places like forums can be a better space to chat. After all, Lemmy is based on the principles of forums!

My fav of the entire forum is (I know I am a broken record) the Unofficial DVD Covers for GOG.COM games thread

It does exactly what it says it will, and is a collection of community made physical covers for people’s games! The art, artistry, design and passion in there just makes me so damned happy, and every time I am on here I go straight to etsy to find a seller who offers UV Printing services and have the cunning plan to get one done on a steelbook cover for myself.

Here’s a few of the latest page, just because I love sharing these:

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White Logos:

This one’s a bit strange, but I’ve come across it so many times that it must be a thing? Just a week or two back I saw someone on a few places offering money for custom game icons with white, centered text.

Maybe if he’d seen the following which was made entirely for GOG Galaxy 2.0, he wouldn’t have had to pay for the effort:

I’ve been slowly working my way through my library creating more cohesive tile images and this is what I’ve done so far (Google Drive). I’m still making my way through so plenty more will be added. If you have any requests, let me know. I’ve also included a template should anyone wish to do their own! Cheers.

I’ve taken a few examples to share here, just in case you’re curious:

So, if you’re using, well, not just GOG Galaxy (because honestly who would?!) but any game collection front end, and you’re a fan of uniform white font? This one’s for you!

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Heroic Games Launcher:

HGL has released 2.17.0 – Franky build. In their own words (if you didn’t already know): Heroic is a Free and Open Source Epic, GOG and Amazon Prime Games launcher for Linux, Windows and macOS. Also available on the SteamDeck!

The new build has been shared, and is ready for updating on your Steam Deck, or…wherever you game (since it works everywhere!)

A new Heroic release is out and it contains several new and amazing features, new designs and a lot of fixes!

• New GamePage Design
• [macOS] Add Button to automate Windows Steam installation
• Adds a setting to download Proton versions directly to the Steam compatibility folder
• It is now possible to select an image file on the sideload dialog
• Update electron to latest version v36.2.1
• Fixes Issues with Epic Login and Checkout
• Several fixes for UMU, DXVK and GPTK
• Fixes HowLongToBeat not working anymore
• Update Legendary and added a EpicGamesLauncher.exe to fix issues with Rockstar games
• Fixed an issue with RemotePlay not working with Steam
• Several refactors and improvements

Just a couple of screenshots here:

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The Game That Caught My Eye:

I know, I’m not unique in this discovery, but I saw that JDM: Japanese Drift Master has released on GOG (and…I guess everywhere else, too) and while it looks amazing, it definitely needs some work. It’s been on my wishlist for so long now, and one I’ve actually been excited for.

I’ve a pretty big love for driving/racing games. My top three of recent times has been:

• Drive: Rally
• Art of Rally
• Old School Rally (sadly no GOG release yet!)

…so I guess you can tell I love rally racing.

ANYWAY

JDM: Japanese Drift Master - the GOG page is here in this link - has released:

• Works on Linux

• Music is incredible - music is a huge part of racing games for me, and one of my fav parts of Forza and even GTA V (I just spent my time driving and enjoying the modded world), and they nailed it

• The manga art style they use in it is fun, and not something you see elsewhere, it’s not specifically doing much, but it is a nice touch

• Definitely needs patches, there’s some room to grow here and it feels pretty unfinished. It’s like an Early Access game without actually being an Early Access game.

This is the like to their YouTube video of a trailer for the game, so you can see it in motion

I’d maybe recommend it on steep sale, or I’d strongly recommend it after a LOT of patches and content has been fixed. For now if you just like stylish racer which you can feel a pretty drive experience in, then go for it, but for performance and content? Not yet for me. I’ll go back to Art of Rally for now!

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Prime/Free:

Don’t forget if you have an Amazon Prime account, you can use the Prime Gaming benefits of free GOG, Epic Games and Amazon (also Xbox, this month!) titles for free, to keep forever.

And if you don’t have a subscription (well done!) you can just sign up for a free trial, then cancel it and keep the titles regardless. Unethical perhaps, but effective.

While we’ve had a ton of games already this month, this last week’s (one or two days ago) included:

• Mail Time (GOG)

• FATE (GOG)

• Thief 2: The Metal Age (GOG)

• Everdream Valley (Amazon)

• Chessarama (Epic Games)

• The Lost Ashford Ring (Legacy Games Code - in fact if you want this, leave a comment and I’ll give it to you, I’ve never redeemed a Legacy title!)

…and next week (claimable from the 29th of May) are the following titles:

• Samurai Bringer (Amazon)

• Trinity Fusion ( Amazon I LOVE THIS GAME!)

• Masterplan Tycoon (Amazon)

• Liberté (Epic Games)

You can read the full list of claimable games for the whole month here via Medium, and also see more on the service etc

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Quickfire GOG release:

Just some dot-points so you can see what games have been released in the last week or so, and what is coming soon:

• Vambrace: Dungeon Monarch (with extras)
• JDM: Japanese Drive Master
• dotAGE Extended Ed. (with DLC and OST)
• The Siege and Sandbox
• Kathy Rain 2: Soothsayer (with extras)
• Knights in Tight Spaces (with extras)
• Kulebra and the Souls of Limbo (with soundtrack)

…and coming soon:

• Songs of Conquest - Roots

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What I use to Play:

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As ever, when I write something GOG-specific, I get people asking what I use (and sometimes why) to play GOG games, on desktop and more commonly on my Steam Deck.

I recommend two methods, because I use both, but trust me…I know there’s a ton of options available for us.

I use Heroic Games Launcher for my desktop PC, and on my Steam Deck.

It plays Epic, GOG and Amazon games (and there are plans coming in the future for EA via Maxima)

https://heroicgameslauncher.com/

I also use Junk Store, which has support (currently) for Epic Games for free, and GOG with an add-on which is a one-time payment to the devs. Junk Store is very close to a new version however, where far more than just these two are supported, all from Game Mode with minimum effort.

https://github.com/ebenbruyns/junkstore

The vast bulk of my gaming library is on GOG. I’m recently appreciating Steam though, and I’m going to start looking at more games on there, I have pitifully few - though I have been enjoying an old game called Enslaved: Odyssey of the West on there.

Aside from a couple of issues (I downloaded higher texture video files from Nexus for example because the default is woefully old and poor) it’s really fun!

Its such a beautiful game, and written/designed in part by Alex Garland (who wrote my most fav novel in the world - The Beach!)

I’d definitely recommend it:

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That’s That!

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This one’s a very small news post, I’ve got a lot on my plate, but next time will be more wide-ranging and all encompassing where I can share all kinds of gaming news. I do hope some may enjoy these few items regardless this time, though!