this post was submitted on 09 Mar 2024
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Here's my perspective as a PC player. Even back in the early 2000s, discs were mostly just a form of DRM. When you install the game from a disc, 99% of the time, the installer copies the contents of the disk to your hard drive, then the disk just acts as a key in order to "unlock" your installed copy. No-cd patches just make the game think the disc is inserted when it's not.
Today, the only difference is the delivery method, and it's where things can get a little hazy. Steam is where I own most of my games, and I do like Steam and Valve, and consider them pretty trustworthy in terms of large tech companies. But, even so, because the only way I'm really able to get games from Steam is through their servers, there are situations that are out of my control where a game that was once available to me, no longer is.
This is why I'm starting to prefer GOG. They have a zero DRM policy, and offer offline installers for most of their games. Meaning, if I purchase a game, I download that installer, load it onto a thumb drive, and I effectively have that game forever, no matter what happens to GOG, the developer, the publisher, etc. I have a couple of games that have been lost to time officially, that I can install as easy as the day they came out because I have that offline installer. It's as good as having any CD game.
So, bottom line is, CD, no CD, I really don't care. Give me the installer, and guarantee I don't be locked out of my game because of something I can't control, and I'm happy.