So i have a few games i had wishlisted and they're currently on sale but i do not have a gaming PC setup just yet. though i have most of the parts. Can i buy them now and then download them later from my account onto that PC once it is ready? Do those games stay on my account permanently and i can download them as many times or onto other systems?

yes, to all your questions.

you can download as many times as you want. whenever you want. and install them on any pc you have.

and you can refund any game if they don't work or something, during 30 days after the purchase.


welcome to GOG! ;)

Thanks for the response! This is good to know!

Not a problem. :)

Also, since you're new, you want to check out this:

https://www.gog.com/reclaim

https://www.gog.com/connect

All the best!

What are game keys? Are they from PC games that come in a CD format? Sorry I'm completely new to PC gaming and haven't done any gaming on any platform for nearly a decade lol.

A game key is a serial number consisting of letters and numbers which can be used to activate a game. ... This ensures that you can download and play the game through your account even after you have deinstalled or deleted the game from your pc. Game keys are also known as game codes, activation codes or product codes.

Oh alright, i see. How and where are they obtained? From games that have been purchased through Steam?

Physical copies of games often come (or used to?) with a "key" that is a alphanumerical "password" or proof of purchase of sorts, as means of authenticating the copy as legitimate and not pirated one. Not that they were very effective...

Anyway, GOG offers, unfortunately for only few games, the option to use such a key from a physical copy if you own one to claim a digital copy here as well.

Not necessarily. There are key-stores that sell keys for Steam and/or rather rarely for GOG as well. But I don't advise buying from those stores.

I used to buy keys from greenmangaming.com and humblebundle.com/ never had any problem. But they are only/mostly for Steam. Other key-stores, I don't trust much.

You can also buy physical copies of games, which comes with the key that you can activate.

Where can this key be found from a physical copy? Is it inside or on the box or the CD? One of the games that are currently up for reclamation, STALKER, is on my wishlist at the moment. For the physical copies, where is the key found? On the box or the files on the CD?

Yes inside the physical box of STALKER games you have a cd key use that on the reclaim page and see if it works.
This remembers me on the time when i bought all 3 stalker games back in 2009 since call of pripyat german version came out and it was in a box with all 3 games. Certainly i bought them all and reclaimed them all on gog latter when i found out about it
Edit: actually i see it on the back of the manual of one of stalker games

If it is for STALKER Shadow of Chernobyl which is the one i would start with, is there any way you would be able to share an image of it if that doesn't violate community policies?

What do you mean?
I can't share my own cd key, don't you have a physical box of STALKER shadow of chernobyl?
Inside the physical box there is a manual, at the back of the manual just use that cd key at reclaim your game button.
If you have a physical game of STALKER?
Just look inside the box for any cd keys, in call of pripyat it's below the cd the cd key.

Ah, i just realized i wouldn't be able to use the same CD key that you have since duplicates don't work. I will need to search for the physical game if i can find it in my city.