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GOG, the online digital distribution retailer for PC games, will work with Capcom to re-release the original Resident Evil trilogy on PC without digital rights management software.
The first of the three original Resident Evil games is now available on GOG to purchase, with the next two coming at later and as yet unspecified dates. The iconic series of horror games set the bar for the survival horror genre and is one of Capcom’s best-selling video game franchises, so much so that the game production company has been remaking its old classics.
The original Resident Evil trilogy was available on Windows PC beginning 1996 to 1999, but those versions of the game were not compatible with modern PCs. Thus the OG trilogy never made it onto Steam, meaning today’s PC gamers can’t access them easily, and instead are forced to emulate them via ROMs.
“The game that defined the survival horror genre returns – uncut, compatible with modern machines, and scarier than ever,” said GOG’s statement on X.
The game that defined the survival horror genre returns – uncut, compatible with modern machines, and scarier than ever…
Resident Evil is now available on GOG: https://t.co/CQehBj9GqQ
Own a piece of history and play it offline today!@RE_Games @CapcomUSA_ pic.twitter.com/4fwQKM688l
— GOG.COM (@GOGcom) June 26, 2024
What does Resident Evil being DRM-free mean?
GOG has made it a mission to preserve classic PC games from becoming lost media over time, with its next target being the Resident Evil trilogy. As well as introducing quality-of-life improvements and upgraded compatibility for modern PCs and gaming hardware, the re-releases will be DRM-free.
DRM refers to digital rights management, so being DRM-free essentially means that it’s less likely for the games to become inaccessible over time because more people can store it locally. It can be installed as many times on as many different machines as you want, giving greater control to the player, rather than the creator.
What’s more, GOG’s re-release of Resident Evil will be the uncut edition, including more gory scenes of extreme violence than the original version released back in 1996. That will entice long-term fans of the franchise, who largely agree that the blood-and-guts, super-scary version is the preferable version to play.
Featured image: Capcom
