The difference between TWP and old adventures is, that TWP wasn’t feature complete (due to TT’s extra work, thanks). Without the Arcade the DVD lacks some major content. You’ll probably run into a similar problem with the uncensored version but drawing the line after the Arcade feels nicer.
Of course you can burn your own DVDs (multiple sessions) but due to the label (replaceable), you’ll keep the original. Maybe a customized/labeled USB stick (more expensive) would have done the trick.
/dev/null
The arcade was also like a DLC: Not necessary, but nice to have and you got it for free after the release.
Yes. But it wasn’t part of the Kickstarter. If Ron hadn’t mentioned it, no one would have missed it - like the closed laser chalet or the deleted puzzle chain with the video(-tron). The arcade is just another “in-game-joke”, a bonus and not part of the story.
And this is the big question: Which version should be on the DVD? If we speak about a “collectors item”, it should be the very first release version (because that version should be archived and only a few people have it on their hard drive). You would like to have the version with the arcades. But then we have players who would like to have the very last version of TWP on the DVD with the Ransome DLC. And if the developer delays the box for version XYZ a lot of backers will pitchfork him due to the long waiting time. So as a developer you can’t satisfy all players. Ron had to chose one version and that was the one on the DVD. It is fully playable and contains the whole story and thus the whole game.
I haven’t made that experience. 
I still don’t understand that: Why is the Arcade a major content? It’s completely optional and has nothing to do with the story. Would you have missed it if Ron never mentioned it?
Don’t get me wrong: The arcade is a really, really cool thing. But I can live without it (in the DVD version).
It’s major content because I love Arcades, they relate to the 80s, they’re fun, it was presented so nicely, it’s beefy enough (the riddle chain, the room, playing the Arcades) and TWP also was about fulfillment, doing things right. It would have been very annoying if the Arcades turned out to be the new chainsaw.
This doesn’t seem to work platform independent:
Cannot perform a cyclic copy
0 File(s)
No, the arcade was not meant as DLC.
Ron never said those closed locations and deleted puzzle chains that didn’t make it will be added in a later build.
So why are you mentioning this then?
Also Ransome-DLC was always meant as DLC (they would never want to ruin their rating).
I said it multiple times in this thread:
Nooo, the first public and most likely buggy digital release is not a collectors item, why would anyone want a likely broken version sitting in their shelf?
It’s 2017, computer systems are complex and something will always go wrong (surprisingly there weren’t really serious technical issues with Win/Mac/Linux versions of TWP! Only some game breaking bugs which could be worked around when known).
We are talking about the first physical release. It shouldn’t have a lot to do with the first digital release.
I think I’ve already explained multiple times that such first release will be buggy per se and that collectors would likely prefer a working version on their physical media (even if it’s just for mental reasons).
Otherwise there would be no point in including it at all (e.g. like the last physical release I’ve got from King Art Games which was actually feelies-only so they could ship it at same time as the digital release; EDIT: I’ve mixed it up with Divinity: Original Sin 2).
It’s simple math: The DVD contains 1 game.
The current downloadable version contains 4 games!
Back in the days, companies used to spread patches over BBS, mail order and magazine floppies and later CDs. You just install the release version found in the box, and the patch afterwards. So providing a differential patch on the game’s homepage would make sense in a retro way.
Otherwise, aside from a smaller download size, I see no benefit from just burning the full version from GOG to a DVD and put that in the box instead of a patch CD.
I suppose it’s NUL for Windows users then. And Amiga users would use NIL:
Ay ay ay! I’m really curious about this. Are they bug-related only, or can we expect some new mini-feature?
I think I follow you… So you want Ron to host a BBS that is only accessible by 1200 baud modem for backers to access the latest patches for TWP? Great idea! 
Guys,
I just want to say how easy and fast it was to sign in to GOG, enter my code, and download the game. Guys the actual game!
Not some software you have to install to allow you to download the game in a place you don’t have the slightest idea where it is and even if you finally found it it’s encrypted or protected or splitted or something else. (Like it happened to me just yesterday to download a simple video for a workout series that I bought via digital download!)
On GOG you get the game, the actual game, also updated with most recent upgrades.
So since the developing for the game is almost closed, if you burn now the game to a DVD you are ok for the rest of your life (oh well until you are able to use a computer that reads DVD
Or a blank DVD-RW, with a high-quality label/print on the top side. On which you would be able to store the GOG installer (but then it might not actually last 20 years, not to mention the confusion an empty game disc would cause).
All things considered, I think the way it was done isn’t such a bad deal. A standalone version of the game that is solid and stable, and the possibility to get the latest and greatest version from a place that is likely to stay around for a bit, DRM free and easy to archive at that.
You might have gone the route of D:OS2 instead, which didn’t even include a DVD in their physical collectors edition, but I’m glad you did not. Having a physical representation of the work adds to its perceived value, and makes it more dear to me. It’s a feeling that a fleeting image temporarily displayed in my browser whenever I visit my GOG library will never be able to convey.
I personally think that the DVD in the box is primarily eye-candy. It completes the box as a collector’s item, while downloading the latest version from GOG in order to play the game is very satisfying. Once Ron announces that the final update is up, I’ll burn it on DVD, just for a “guaranteed” future.
I thought about a DVD-RW too but the colours.
The DVD is okay, a compromise most people can life with but it doesn’t click like the best possible solution [more like a E^2=(mc^2)^2 without the relativistic aspect]. The DVD has a historic value but it’s less practical. A customized USB stick on the other side … I favour this over a DVD + floppy disk combo. The Lynx cartridges were relly neat. Switch cartridges are nice too.
I’m aware of the pros digital downloads offer but somehow I enjoy the idea of ‘owning’ games like having a bowl of candies/marbles. It’s compact but there is still diversity. It’s nice looking at and inspiring when revisiting your memories. You can put your hands into the bowl, play with those games between your fingers (it’s tangible) and fish something out: Hey, there is Bomberman. Oh look, Chip’s Challenge. God, I was awesome when I broke Kill Skill’s Highscore.
Maybe it’s something you should do on your own (your top 101 games, dunno how hard it would be to find a nice form, tasty colours and get cool labels done).
[These physical things mostly only last for a limited amount/space/time. You might want to imagine a virtual bowl as well. ‘Susan, I feel retro today.’ or ‘Go wild baby!’ Then making a selection from the preselection and placing that (un)real object (representing an ID) next to your system (or just saying you want this, defining stuff: toothbrush equals Tetris), which takes care of the rest. Maybe the information is this dense (and the games are still simple enough) that a small cube represents all games at the same time. Maybe an AI creates the game you by the atttributes you describe on the fly for you. Maybe the AIs are busy playing games on their own and you’ll have to fall back to your stupid USB sticks. … I enjoy the idea that Ron Gilbert is done with making games for humans. Nickle News: From now on Terrible Toybox is making games for robots, only. And then the positronic crowd ends up being just as picky as humans.]
There is no guarantee a stamped DVD would last 20 years either. Chances are pretty good, but not at 100%. I’ve seen DVDs oxidizing to death due to bad sealing. I’ve also seen DVDs cracking due to bad gluing. Fortunately, those are rare occasions.
But since hard drives become cheaper and bigger all the time, it might be a good idea to start backing up your collection on them.
This may be true but besides *-R and *-RWs I also wouldn’t trust USB sticks or SD cards for long term storage.
Whoops, that was the game I meant when I wrote about KING Art Games. It’s definitely a way to get all the boxes and feelies out on release day without any headaches. They also were very clear about this during the Kickstarter campaign.
You can google this.
Watching a needle carving its way into vinyl (on a cheap record player/bad needle via an electron microscope) can give you an idea of transitoriness.
Of course, don’t trust any media. I would backup important data on multiple media of different kind. And check their condition once in a while.
Which reminds me of a video I’ve recently watched:
I cant’ believe it! 
