GOG Adds Square Enix, Hitman & Deus Ex First Releases

Good Old Games has done it again. The digital distributor’s mission of bringing the best, slightly older PC games into the 21st century DRM free has taken another step forward by adding publisher Square Enix to their lineup.

The old namesakes of the publisher, Squaresoft and Enix, don’t have the biggest PC catalog to pick from, but they did buy out one of the most important PC publishers of the ’90s and early ’00s, Eidos. Exemplifying this are the first two releases under this agreement–Deus Ex and Hitman: Codename 47.

Deus Ex won numerous game of the year awards when it was released in 2000, and has aged gracefully. Its mix of shooter, stealth and RPG mechanics still makes for one of the best experiences around. GOG is selling the Game of the Year edition for $9.99, bundled with the game’s soundtrack, manual, reference card and a few other little bonuses.

Hitman: Codename 47 is the PC exclusive launch to the ongoing, and excellent, Hitman series. Also released in 2000, this stealth action game plays surprisingly open for its time, giving multiple ways of fulfilling 47′s contracts. This release includes the manual, reference cards and other bonuses for $5.99.

These first two games released under this agreement have been available elsewhere, but at least in the case of Deus Ex, not DRM free. Some other releases included the much maligned SecuROM DRM, and the Steam version had, well, Steam.

This is also a sign of great things to come, as this means GOG could soon see the old Tomb Raider games, the Legacy of Kain series, Omikron: The Nomad Soul, and if they can somehow miraculously get either of them working properly in an operating system newer than Windows 98, the PC ports of Final Fantasy VII and VIII.

Now if only they can get that LucasArts deal done…