The Witcher and its sequel will "remain accessible and optimized for modern players" as they're both part of GOG's new Preservation Program, which developer CD Projekt Red hopes will allow Geralt's story to "live forever."
In a post announcing the two games' inclusion in the Preservation Program, which currently includes 102 games, CD Projekt Red says that The Witcher and The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings "represent the roots of our journey," and "with the care and attention of our friends from the GOG Team, they'll continue to captivate new generations of Witcher fans."
The developer continues: "Joining this initiative ensures that these iconic adventures remain accessible and optimized for modern players, standing the test of time as part of gaming history. Here's to preserving the story of the White Wolf – and making it live forever!"
The Witcher and The Witcher 2: Assasins of Kings are officially a part of the GOG Preservation Program! 🐺These titles represent the roots of our journey, they laid the foundation for everything that followed. Now, with the care and attention of our friends from the @GOGcom… pic.twitter.com/t2st26N5PCNovember 23, 2024
GOG launched its Preservation Program earlier this month, which consists of a growing 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." In a news post explaining the initiative, the storefront explains it'll put games joining the program through "extensive quality testing and often apply custom improvements to ensure compatibility and quality-of-life improvements." Users can expect games "to work on current and future popular PC configurations," and generally be "the best and most complete" version you can find with extras like manuals, bonus content, DLC, "and even features that are missing in other editions."
Beyond that, the initiative also keeps one of GOG's best offerings intact – the offline installers that can be safely kept on your PC and can't be suddenly removed from your device. GOG prides itself on being free of digital rights management (DRM), although it's worth noting that, like other storefronts such as Steam, it's ultimately selling licenses to digital games, too. However, it's previously clarified this point, noting that "no matter what happens – whether it's licensing issues, storefronts shutting down, or even a zombie apocalypse cutting off your Internet – you'll still be able to play them thanks to our offline installers."
Regardless, in a world where more and more games are being delisted from digital storefronts and becoming increasingly inaccessible, game preservation is more important than ever, and GOG's efforts to help in this regard are very welcome. The Witcher remake aside, the first two Witcher games aren't going anywhere anytime soon.
