Just weeks after the surprise launch of remasters for Warcraft 1 and 2, it's been confirmed that the originals are going to be delisted from GOG this month, but the storefront is committed to preserving them for those who buy the RTS classics before then.
Last month, digital game storefront GOG unveiled its Game Preservation Program – a new effort to build a collection of "classic games that GOG has improved, with a commitment of our own resources to ensure their compatibility with modern systems and make them as enjoyable to play as possible." With promises of the games in the program being "the best and most complete" versions possible, complete with extra quality-of-life improvements and a commitment to making them work "on current and future popular PC configurations," it's a huge win for game preservation, but apparently it's not totally perfect. Warcraft 1 and 2 are both part of this program, but they won't be available for purchase from December 13.
In a new blog post, GOG describes this as "heartbreaking news," and says, "even with our best efforts and dedication to game preservation, sometimes things don’t go as we'd hoped."
However, while it won't be able to sell the RTS games for much longer, it's updated its Game Preservation Program policy to make an additional promise, both to Warcraft 1 and 2, and any other games included in the program. "Going forward, even if a game is no longer available for sale on GOG, as part of the GOG Preservation Program, it will continue to be maintained and updated by us, ensuring it remains compatible with modern and future systems," it says.
Because of the offline drivers that come with GOG games, delisting them won't make them inaccessible for anyone who's already bought them. The storefront is even making them more affordable for anyone who's yet to grab them, with a $2/£1.50 discount code ('MakeWarcraftLiveForever'), which can be used once per user.
As PC Gamer writes, the two RTS games are also available to buy from Battle.net, and it's not clear if they're also going to be delisted from there. Either way, they differ from the GOG versions, which offer some improvements including "small DOSBox tweaks to improve performance and compatibility" of Warcraft 1, for example. Needless to say, now's the time to add them to your library if you haven't already.
After 14 years, StarCraft 2's "impossible mission" has been beaten by refining the "Archon Toilet" strategy to cram a group of units into a spot where they'll live until the end of time
Warcraft 3: Reforged's 2.0 patch temporarily blocked access to the original RTS, with players who've owned the classic version for decades told that their license isn't valid
