The First Two Warcraft Games Will Soon Be Delisted
Zug-zug! Blizzard’s recent decision to remaster two of the original Warcraft strategy games means the company will be pulling the unremastered versions from GOG (short for Good Old Games) later this month. You have only 10 days to act – work, work! – if you want to get them. And if you do this, you can be sure that the games will continue to be supported even after they become unavailable for purchase.
In a statement published on X , GOG took the moment as an opportunity to remind gamers of its ” Preservation Program “, which aims to provide players with a “seamless experience and technical support” for included games, even if they are delisted or no longer supported by their original developer . Warcraft I and Warcraft II are now the latest entries in the program’s roster of more than 100 games, which also includes Blizzard’s Diablo .
GOG will continue to update games
“While we will soon no longer be able to offer these games on our store, anyone who purchased them before they were removed will still enjoy the most compatible and high-quality versions guaranteed by the GOG Preservation Program,” GOG said in a statement. This includes updates to help the games run on “current and future systems,” although GOG says it will do everything it can to ensure the game is “as close to the original as possible.”
So don’t expect the store to start releasing conversion mods or anything like that, but if a supported game suddenly stops reading your mouse, then it’s most likely GOG (a subsidiary of CD Projekt, which also owns the studio responsible for the games “The Witcher “) knows about the problem and is working on it.
The GOG Preservation Program launched just last month, making Warcraft I and II the first games to be added to the initial batch of 100 games, as well as the first game to continue to receive support even after being delisted. Other supported games include Myst and Vampire: The Masquerade—Bloodlines , to give you an idea of the type of nerd they’re targeting (that’s me, I’m a nerd).
For now, you can still buy directly from Blizzard.
At the time of writing, Blizzard still offers the original, unremastered versions of Warcraft I and II on its own Battle.net website, as well as in a collection with remastered versions and other Warcraft games. The company has not yet said whether it also plans to exclude original games from its own store.
However, GOG’s commitment to constant updates, as well as the lack of DRM in its store, may make it a more attractive purchase for some gamers. (And until the games are no longer available for purchase, the GOG promo code MakeWarcraftLiveForever will also save $2 off your purchase.)