Is it possible to get a GOG key instead of a Steam key?

Nova_Pyxis

As mentioned in the FAQ, if you buy NWN directly on Beamdog.com, you can request a Steam key from support@beamdog.com. What I would like to know is, if I buy the deluxe version directly on Beamdog, can you then request a GOG key instead of a Steam key when it is available on GOG?

JuliusBorisov

Thanks for your suggestion. It's not possible.

Carlos_Santana

JuliusBorisov said:

Thanks for your suggestion. It's not possible.

Sad that it isn't possible. Would be one more incentive for me to buy the game (besides of persistent worlds), though.

Actarus

I too will wait for the GOG version, as I don't support Steam.

Staran

I want a wily wonka key instead of a steam key

VivienneL

I thought the availability on GOG meant we would get keys similar to Steam...Oh well...

voidofopinion

Staran said:

I want a wily wonka key instead of a steam key

That we can do. Your umpa lumpa deluxe edition is waiting for you at the end of this short tour!

https://youtu.be/XB401RfGMlM

necxelos

Why exactly isn't this possible? Why would You favor Steam over GOG, while You know very well that players hate Steam and love GOG? There is GOG version released after all so what's the deal here?

dTd

What players hate Steam? I like both companies, but I gave my money to Beamdog since they're the actual developers.

ShadowM

I do not think this a BD issue. My guess is that GOG did not want to give out a free key with a BD purchase of NWN EE and steam was fine with it. It a money issue, if they give a free game away that they could get money for if you bought it straight off steam or GOG. Like dTd I like both companies and have purchases from both and bought it from BD because they the actual developers.

necxelos

I'm quite sure both Steam and GOG take their "share" when Key is given there to a game bought outside the store. At least that is the case for other games. So it's more like Beamdog prefers dealing with Steam than GOG, which is NOT for the profit of players, since any form of DRM is by definition a vile business malpractice.

I might aswell ask: why aren't Beamdog games released first and foremost on GOG instead of Steam?

Shia_Luck

@necxelos It's something of a massive exagerration 'that players hate Steam and love GOG', no? I get the DRM issue of old, but steam offers a lot more to some players than simply a place to buy games. (acheivements, trading etc). I agree that in an ideal world there would be a choice for everyone.

I am tempted to agree with @ShadowM. Steam wants players to come and get addicted to their platform so a loss leader like this works for their business plan (assuming it costs BD nothing). On BDs side, steam is by far the larger base of potential customers.

One question tho. If you don't want steam, what's wrong with using BD's client? What does having it on GOG give you?

Have fun

necxelos

I know and trust GOG's "ownership of a game" policies through and through. It's a simple matter of trusting a company that has proven over and over again to be the moral peak of the industry.

It's also a matter of principle. DRM issues are not obsolete, in fact they are more important thing now than ever before. And we players should have all the rights on our hands, including rights to choose.

Personally I bought all Beamdog games that I own on GOG and so I will do with NWN EE when I consider it's state to be acceptable.

There is a case to be made though, about Beamdog's responsibility to promote fair business model (like GOG) instead of criminal monopolization and control practices (like Steam, Origin, Uplay or whatever).

Shia_Luck

Not sure about moral peak, but apart from them promoting NWN as including MP when the gamespy client was broken and there were hoops to learn and jump through to conect to anyone, I have no evidence otherwise. I don't have any issue with them. It's just normal business practice and I would say the same about BD utilising steam to promote themselves to a wider audience than GOG could ever provide.

necxelos said:

I know and trust GOG's "ownership of a game" policies through and through. It's a simple matter of trusting a company that has proven over and over again to be the moral peak of the industry.

Personally I bought all Beamdog games that I own on GOG and so I will do with NWN EE when I consider it's state to be acceptable.

There is a case to be made though, about Beamdog's responsibility to promote fair business model (like GOG) instead of criminal monopolization and control practices (like Steam, Origin, Uplay or whatever).

Oh, so it's that you have an issue with the state of the game as is more than any availability of it? The saying dont support steam is a political post rather than a 'I wont buy the game cos you support steam' post? ? Just checking for my own understanding. Each to their own.

Have fun

themazingness

necxelos said:

I know and trust GOG's "ownership of a game" policies through and through. It's a simple matter of trusting a company that has proven over and over again to be the moral peak of the industry.

It's also a matter of principle. DRM issues are not obsolete, in fact they are more important thing now than ever before. And we players should have all the rights on our hands, including rights to choose.

Personally I bought all Beamdog games that I own on GOG and so I will do with NWN EE when I consider it's state to be acceptable.

There is a case to be made though, about Beamdog's responsibility to promote fair business model (like GOG) instead of criminal monopolization and control practices (like Steam, Origin, Uplay or whatever).

I don't think any developer is obligated to avoid popular platforms just because they have DRM or a huge library of games (aka monopolization as you put it). If anything, a company has an obligation to feed themselves and their families, make the intellectual property holder happy, and make the game easily available to their players. I am not a fan of DRM, but Steam is an important place for developers to attract gamers. Boycotting them on principal (as a company) will cost lots of sales. I think it is fantastic that they make the game available, DRM free, using GoG and their own website. That's much better than most developers out there. If you want more games to be DRM free I suggest convincing other gamers to buy directly from developers or from GoG because it is an uphill battle unless people vote with their wallets.

But as for BD offering it on GoG when you buy from them, that would be awesome. But I imagine if that were good for business, GoG and Beamdog would have the same arrangement as Steam and Beamdog.

necxelos

People are mostly sheep and voting with Your wallet is scientifically proven to be nothing more than a myth (at least in big-scale sales, it might work in for example two competing local grocery stores in small town). People need to be told (or suggested) what and where to buy. That's why to counteract megacorp commercials, propaganda and sheer numbers You need to restrict them by giving them handicap (like selling on big stores like Steam AFTER smaller ones instead of before).

Also we're on internet era. There is no such thing as "smaller consumer base on Steam than GOG". If someone have internet to use Steam, he also have internet to use GOG. And niche games aren't really "advertised" by store itself, they are primarily bought because of "good word spread" and good reviews, bloggers, vloggers, etc. or in case of neverwinter it's also the power of D&D brand that draws people in.

And considering that small studios are by default the enemy of megacorps (they deliver fat better products per unit of price, since they aren't controlled by good-for-nothing shareholders) they have obligation to stick with each other and support their own kind (other small studios, niche stores, DRM-free practice, no DLC spamming etc.).

themazingness

@necxelos But I think the fact that we live in the "internet era," as you say, is exactly why players find Steam more desirable and why you find more games there. GoG doesn't really have a lot of the modern games because there are online features GoG doesn't support and Steam does. They're a fantastic platform, but they are also a niche platform. Steam is a platform for the "internet era," full of MMOs, workshop content, videos, chat, etc.

Keep in mind, I just got done having a conversation with a friend about how we would prefer to have it the old way: retail boxed games with big manuals. We don't like the fact that DDO will someday shut down its servers and we won't own the game. I wish every game I play was in my full ownership and had all the features that the internet provides. But we wouldn't have been having that conversation if it were the old way because we wouldn't have met on DDO.

Shia_Luck

necxelos said:

... we're on internet era. There is no such thing as "smaller consumer base on Steam than GOG". If someone have internet to use Steam, he also have internet to use GOG.

And before the internet people had cars, and petrol isn't free, yet they were more willing to travel further to say, large out of town DIY stores than shop at the local hardware store, at least partly because of the range of products carried. Steam carries a wider range of games than GOG and I'd suggest it's preferable to some to have all their games in one place when possible.

All your argument is saying is 'people have a choice' and I think that is well established in capitalist society, so that was just a waste of words.

necxelos said:

People are mostly sheep and voting with Your wallet is scientifically proven to be nothing more than a myth (at least in big-scale sales, it might work in for example two competing local grocery stores in small town). ...

Proof? I can name many examples where voting with your wallet clearly has had an impact. It is how capitalist society works. I'd very much like a link to the scientific paper you talk about. It must have been published in one the peer reviewed science journals to carry the weight you claim.

Have fun