GOG is ending its Fair Price Package so it can give devs a larger cut

GOG's Fair Price Package programme is coming to an end, the digital distributor announced today. This follows layoffs and reports of financial trouble, and while a statement yesterday framed it as a general restructuring, today's announcement is a lot more candid.

The programme was set up to make up for regional price differences. Some games are more expensive in other regions, but in those cases the price difference was then given out in store credit. On average, GOG gave customers 12 percent back, but it could go as high as 37 percent, it claims. It was able to cover those costs and still turn a profit, until now.

"With an increasing share paid to developers, our cut gets smaller," the announcement reads. "However, we look at it, at the end of the day we are a store and need to make sure we sell games without a loss."

A former employee told Kotaku that the larger revenue share offered to developers by Epic would or was already putting pressure on the store, and the announcement suggests the same. Stopping the Fair Price Package will allow GOG to "offer better conditions to game creators".

The Fair Price Package will end on March 31, but until then you will keep getting the price difference placed in your wallet.

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.