GOG’s announcement that it is being acquired by its original co-founder feels less like a business headline and more like a quiet narrative twist in the long, strange story of PC gaming. In an industry dominated by scale, consolidation, and increasingly restrictive ecosystems, this move stands out precisely because it goes in the opposite direction. Instead of being absorbed into something larger, GOG is returning to something smaller, more personal, and arguably more principled.
The platform began life in 2008 as Good Old Games, a name that wore its purpose proudly. At a time when digital distribution was still earning trust and DRM was tightening its grip on PC gaming, GOG carved out an identity around preservation and ownership. The idea was simple but radical: classic PC games deserved to survive, deserved to work on modern machines, and deserved to be owned outright by the people who bought them. No always-online checks, no hidden strings, no expiration dates. Over time, that philosophy expanded beyond retro titles to include indie releases and modern games, but the core promise never changed. Buy a game on GOG, and it is yours.
For years, GOG operated as part of CD Projekt Group, the same company behind The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077. That relationship gave GOG credibility, infrastructure, and stability, but it also placed the storefront inside a publicly traded company with very different priorities. CD Projekt needed predictable growth, clear financial performance, and focus on blockbuster development. GOG, by contrast, was a platform defined by ideals that do not always scale cleanly. Preserving old games, maintaining DRM-free policies, and competing in a marketplace dominated by Steam and other giants was never going to be the most efficient path to profit.
The decision to sell GOG back to Michał Kiciński, one of CD Projekt’s original founders and one of the people who helped create GOG in the first place, reflects that tension. According to GOG’s own announcement, the acquisition is designed to give the platform full independence while preserving its founding values, including its commitment to DRM-free distribution and player ownership . Rather than shutting GOG down or reshaping it into something more commercially aggressive, CD Projekt chose to let it stand on its own, guided by someone who understands why it exists at all.
What makes this moment resonate with so many players is how rare it is. Digital platforms almost never return to founder control after years under a corporate umbrella. More often, they are streamlined, rebranded, or quietly phased out. GOG’s reacquisition feels like a refusal to accept that inevitability. It suggests that there is still room in the PC ecosystem for a storefront that prioritizes long-term access over short-term leverage.
For users, the immediate reassurance matters. GOG has stated clearly that nothing fundamental is changing. Games will remain DRM-free. Offline installers will continue to be available. GOG Galaxy remains optional rather than mandatory, and existing libraries are unaffected . CD Projekt titles will also continue to release on GOG through a separate distribution agreement, ensuring that the split does not sever the relationship entirely. These details may sound technical, but for long-time GOG users they represent trust. Once lost, trust is almost impossible to rebuild, and GOG appears keenly aware of that.
The broader significance lies in what independence allows GOG to attempt next. Freed from the need to justify itself within a larger corporate structure, the platform can focus more deeply on its role as a preservationist. In recent years, GOG has increasingly positioned itself as a guardian of gaming history, rescuing titles that are legally tangled, technically broken, or simply forgotten. These projects are rarely glamorous, and they rarely generate headlines, but they matter immensely to the medium. Games disappear more easily than films or books, and without active effort, entire eras of interactive history can be lost.
There are real risks ahead. Independence means GOG must carry its own financial weight in a fiercely competitive market. DRM-free distribution still makes many publishers uneasy, and convincing them to release games without protective measures remains a challenge. Infrastructure costs do not shrink simply because a platform is beloved, and nostalgia alone cannot pay server bills. Yet the alternative would have been worse: a slow erosion of values, or the quiet disappearance of one of the last major DRM-free storefronts.
In that sense, this acquisition is not about growth or domination. It is about continuity. It is about preserving a space in the PC gaming landscape where ownership is not a marketing slogan but a practical reality. At a time when more games require constant connectivity and more purchases feel like temporary licenses rather than permanent collections, GOG’s return to founder ownership feels almost defiant.
The story of GOG coming full circle will not be decided overnight. Its success will depend on careful leadership, community support, and a willingness to remain stubborn in the face of industry trends. But for now, the message is clear: GOG still believes in what it set out to do nearly two decades ago, and it is willing to stand on its own to keep doing it.
Reference
GOG.com – GOG Is Getting Acquired by Its Original Co-Founder
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