No. SDC is required to download the game.



It includes the latest versions of GC2 and DA, yes.



Most generally, though SDC has them sooner in most cases.



If you do not want to use SDC, your best bet is to order a box to be mailed to you, or purchase the game at retail. If you have retail discs to install from then you shouldn't need to use SDC if you don't want to.

I only wish I knew why it felt the need to run "SDMCP.exe" every time I start my computer.

EDIT: Never mind; I figured out how to disable it within SDC.

-HM

I only feel stupid that I never noticed I could disable that executable within SDC. And let me tell you, it's been bothering me since early last year! I usually spend time looking at all menu options within any program, but that one escaped me.

But yes, as a customer, I second kryo's and Voqar's statements. SDC is a harmless program. And it really came in handy for archiving GalCiv2 and DA onto one DVD, so I could easily transfer it to my laptop.

I used to manually download the updates to GalCiv2, but I soon realized it was easier to simply do it through SDC. You can still download them so you can easily get to them in case Stardock ever goes belly-up (perish the thought), but it's easy just to use SDC to make an archive of the entire game, then put that on a DVD (as I stated in the last paragraph).

-HM

You can still download on another machine, then transfer it to your gaming machine by a burned disc or usb drive.

If you want, you can simply have a box shipped for the added shipping cost ($5 in the US, $10 international); contact sales@stardock.com for that.

The discs in the boxed version also have the benefit of not requiring activation to play (the downloaded version requires activation, and while SDC handles it transparently if you install on a connected machine, it must be done manually if you transfer it to a non-connected machine).

but ...



So which is it? He may transfer the game to his gaming machine but it won't do him any good because it require activation?

Basically, my main worry is that if 1) I buy and install the online version, 2) I uninstall the game and SDC at some later date, and 3) StarDock goes broke, will I still be able to play the game? I would have thought that by making an archive and burning it to a disc, I could later reinstall SDC and then import the archive, but if activation's required, I'm still out of luck?

You can archive a download copy of the game and take it to a non-connected computer just fine, you'll just need to make another trip to a connected machine and back to activate via email. Once activated, the game should remain activated until/unless you reinstall windows.

If you are concerned about activation potentially being an issue for you at any point (now or in the future), the solution is simple: get a retail boxed version (at an actual retail store, or direct). If you've already ordered a download copy in the past, you can generally (if you didn't buy it with TGN tokens) order an activation-free disc for a small fee by contacting sales@stardock.com.

That is what I've been told, yes. Of course if you later patch, you will need to activate then regardless how you installed it to start with. Only the version on the disc itself is activation free.