GOG Wants to Put PC Games Back on Your Shelf in Physical Form

GOG is looking into selling physical copies of PC games, according to Tom's Hardware. Marcin Paczynski, who handles business development and partnerships at the DRM-free storefront, raised the idea in an interview with GamesRadar+.

Paczynski described a future where a shopper picks a title from their GOG library, requests a boxed edition and has it shipped to their door. He called that setup his ideal outcome, Tom's Hardware reports.

The company has never run this kind of operation before. It would have to hold stock, arrange delivery and handle the other practical problems that come with shipping goods. GOG would also need fresh consent from publishers before it could offer boxed editions for sale.

The PC market dropped discs earlier than any other platform. More recently, Sony and Microsoft drew criticism over unpopular plans to wind down disc production for their consoles. Against that backdrop, GOG sees a chance to push ownership and preservation on PC, building on its Preservation Program, which works to keep older titles running on current machines.

Paczynski has not said what form the physical releases would take. Optical drives are now uncommon on PCs, so CDs, DVDs and Blu-rays look like poor candidates. USB drives or SD cards, perhaps packaged like console cartridges, could suit modern machines better.

Boxed editions could also carry extras that digital buyers never receive, such as stickers, maps or lore booklets. Paczynski suggested physical copies might give players more control over the games they own, and could even help revive a secondhand market where people trade or resell titles.

Nothing is confirmed yet. The idea remains an ambition rather than a product, and GOG has not announced a timeline or named any games that would get a boxed release.