Michal Kiczynski, who acquired Polish digital video game service GOG in late 2025, doesn't aim to compete with the market-dominant Steam store. He wants to improve GOG's usability while preserving its uniqueness.
Michal Kiczynski, who acquired Polish digital video game service GOG in late 2025, doesn't aim to compete with the market-dominant Steam store. He wants to improve GOG's usability while preserving its uniqueness.
"Steam is definitely a Goliath. So for any company to try to compete with Steam is a very uphill battle. We saw Discord launch their store, we saw Epic Games launch their store, and with the lawsuit against Apple, we know how much this fight against Steam has cost them," CEO Maciej Golenbiewski told GamesIndustry.
He said Steam "does a great job" but also has different values than GOG, which focuses on preserving retro games and opposes DRM protection against piracy.
“GOG has its strengths and should really focus on preserving and even strengthening them. There is no need to try to be like others. GOG has its own identity and its own uniqueness, which is very much appreciated by gamers,” says Michal Kiczynski.
However, in his opinion, GOG could make some improvements that Valve's service has.
“Steam wins because of its ease of use. In this regard, I think GOG can achieve a lot without losing its core values and general principle of operation,” says the new owner of GOG.
He assured that GOG does not plan to abandon its principle of no DRM.
"This is not only an ethical value, but also a very pragmatic one. It helps people enjoy games regardless of what happens with the software that the platform provides or what kind of internet connection they have," Kichinsky noted.
Recall that last year, GOG, which previously belonged to the Polish studio CD Project, released a collection of 400 mods for the Ukrainian game STALKER. It is included in the GOG One-click Mod program and is easy to install on PC.
