GOG will let you bequeath your game library to someone else as long as you can prove you're actually dead
GOG will let you bequeath your game library to someone else as long as you can prove you're actually dead
Accounts aren't transferable but GOG is willing to make it happen, with a little help from the legal system.
Title of PCGamer's article is misleading, they want a court order to do it. Proof of death is not enough.
"In general, your GOG account and GOG content is not transferable. However, if you can obtain a copy of a court order that specifically entitles someone to your GOG personal account, the digital content attached to it taking into account the EULAs of specific games within it, and that specifically refers to your GOG username or at least email address used to create such an account, we'd do our best to make it happen. We're willing to handle such a situation and preserve your GOG library—but currently we can only do it with the help of the justice system."
They have to do that anyway. Court orders overrule a company's policies in most (all?) legal systems.
The fuck do they mean they will try?
"Oh no there's no way we could possibly break out of these invisible shackles we put on ourselves"
The whole thing is vaguely and noncomittally worded, it promises basically nothing.
Take this bit for example:
taking into account the EULAs of specific games within it
In other words: talk to the individual publishers of each game and get their permission :P At which point GOG's involvement is almost irrelevant, if you have the publisher's consent then they might as well give you a copy.
Isn't this the same with any asset for probate? In the UK, you cannot just hand them a pinky promise IOU. If the person has 4 kids and a wife, who gets the steam library? Courts decide this.
I would assume that court orders and proved wills have different levels of coercion when you present them to someone like GOG? Dunno. Each country probably has its own rules, including fun complexities like whether or not GOG was a party to the process or not.
I’ve actually been “maintaining” my Dad’s GOG account since he died some years ago. Anytime there’s a giveaway I log into both our accounts and download, one for me, one for him. No point to it really, just out of remembrance, though I’ll probably hand it off to one of my kids at some point.
I can't even imagine 100 years from now when gamers are dying every day.
Right now I feel like I can change an account name and email pretty easily and nobody would care. But when that account is 130 years old, someone might start asking questions
100 years? 28% of gamers are in their 30s. 43% are 40 and older. And that's just in the US. Average life expectancy at birth in the US for people who are now in their 30s and 40s is 74-75.
You must be quite young or sheltered if you haven't had a few gamers you knew die already. Not everyone dies of old age.
I think the opposite, if you want to adjust your jumping to judgemental conclusions. I'm old and social. I grew up in a place where nobody gamed or had computers.
Nearly all of the close people in my life did not/do not game. My circle is outdoorsy or go out somewhere people I guess. We have kids and families and precious little free time. I've never had friends come over to game or however that goes. I guess I could seek out people who want to game with me, but if someone has free time at the same time as I do, we'd rather do something else.
Hope this broadens your perspective of people.
It's a lot easier to just share a login...
Sure, but if you ever get locked out I assume support will want to verify your identity and if you can't do that because the owner is dead, they will probably deny you (and maybe even shutdown the account if you can prove the owner is dead) But if you can transfer the account to another person that would be nice.
Do what a cat would do; leave a corpse at their doorstep.
I think the title need a little work...
How can I prove I'm dead?
Someone else can, but the title says I have to.