GOG’s new refund policy is really REALLY nice

While Steam and The Epic Games Store may be engaged in an eternal pissing contest, Good Old Games currently sits in the middle of the two as the nicest guy on the digital games distribution block. The site is easily the friendliest of the lot, offering a decent selection of new and old games through DRM free downloads at very very reasonable prices. I’m not even being paid off by them (Not that I’m not open to a bit of corruption mind you wink wink), but when you’ve got a site that gives you games and some nifty extras to go with them, they’re A-OK in my book.

Something else that GoG happens to be doing that will help endear them even more to gamers? A generous new refund policy that is simple, to the point and incredibly fair. Here’s the single line detailing how they’ll handle refunds from now on:

Starting now, you can get a full refund up to 30 days after purchasing a product, even if you downloaded, launched, and played it. That’s it.

That’s…wow that’s neat and there has to be a catch. Kind of! Less of a catch and more of a clause to protect GoG from the kind of digital predators who’ll most likely look at this new refund policy, buy a game, burn through it in a week and ask for a refund once done so that the cycle can continue on and on forever and ever. That’s not going to work, as GoG’s fine print outlined a refusal of refund option for the platform:

We trust that you’re making informed purchasing decisions and will use this updated voluntary Refund Policy only if something doesn’t work as you expected.

This is why there are no limits but instead, we reserve the right to refuse refunds in individual cases.

Please respect all the time and hard work put into making the games you play and remember that refunds are not reviews. If you finished the game and didn’t like it, please consider sharing your opinion instead. Also, please don’t take advantage of our trust by asking for an unreasonable amount of games to be refunded. Don’t be that person. No one likes that person.

Sounds fair to me! In comparison to Valve’s current refund policy based on hours played and a two week time limit, GOG’s is rather nice. It’s a system, much like their DRM-free games, that is based on believing in the goodness inherent in all people. The cynic inside many people may question if this policy is even wise, but I’m optimistic enough to believe that treating your consumers as people and not as a herd of cows waiting to have their bank accounts milked dry, is a smart business decision.

Last Updated: February 27, 2020