And very often they are without any DRM.
I'm currently buying these versions exclusively now.
Virtually all my recent purchases have been from GOG, though I do sometimes purchase retail copies after having verified that (a) no online activation is needed and (b) if a media check is present, that a no-CD patch from GameCopyWorld is available.
Once you look further afield, there are quite a number of smaller developers offering DRM-free titles - particular kudos for the likes of the
HumbleBundle which covers all the bases - no DRM, downloadable via HTTP or BitTorrent, supports charity and let you choose the price! (while even that
has been pirated, the current version has raised over $2 million in sales).
Indeed I have enough of a games backlog now that I don't really need to worry about the consumer-hostile attitudes of most mainstream publishers. On the other hand, CRPGs are very much an endangered minority so I would like to be able to support a developer producing them.
In some rare cases I received an DRM-less .exe file from developers after I had *politely* asked for removal of DRM. But that was rare.
That approach has some merit, but it does mean having to pay upfront and taking a chance upon the "reasonableness" of the developer - not an easy thing to judge.
