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[Iztok Mravlja]

Huh?

Current gen games have mandatory installs that take up the same space.

The only reasons to be opposed to going all digital this gen is being unable to sell used games or internet limitations.

I've seen plenty of other reasons in this thread.

 

[AHA-Lambda]

I don't understand this kind of logic OP. If you like things being digital, good for you! But why would want a perfectly reasonable storage medium that a lot of people love to just go away? Why would you want less options when buying your shit?

just look at apple fans defending the lack of a headphone jack cos wireless

 

[Tygamr]

I'm not sure game discs are going anywhere soon. Maybe they'll be overtaken by digital downloads eventually, but it's going to take a big leap forward in internet speeds, and more affordable high capacity storage drives. While we work towards that, games will just keep getting bigger and bigger.

As for the CD example, it wasn't until last year digital passed CD sales in revenue globally.
http://www.theverge.com/platform/am...igital-physical-music-sales-overtake-globally

 

[lifeexpectancy]

Game disks. The only reason they exist, IMO, is so that GameStop and other retailers can continue to sell hardware for MS and Sony.

Publishers don't like them because of used sales. I don't like them because I like having my entire library in one easy to access spot... On my hard drive.

The only people that really like discs are collectors and people that want to trade in old games for a discount on a new game. In my opinion, this group is small and getting smaller.

When ITunes came out, the CD pretty much died. When will this happen with game discs? I say when, because it will happen at some point.

What say you?

Average decent quality album of 13 tracks on as MP3s: ~90mb
Average decent quality AAA game that releases retail for XB1/PS4: ~40gb (that's 400 times the size of a CD) - I'm guessing here, but I'm probably estimating low side. The joys of uncompressed audio.

Average person's internet speed: complete and utter shit

Time it will take for discs to die due to the above: a long time

Questions?

 

[Conkerkid11]

I've seen plenty of other reasons in this thread.

Such as... ?

 

[Matush]

Is that you Colin Moriarty?

 

[GametimeUK]

Such as... ?

Post number 224.

 

[Rexatality]

It'll be a very long time before game discs goes away. Frankly, I hope it doesn't go away (And I say this as a guy who mostly goes digital for my gaming PC nowadays). Not everyone can afford a good internet connection.

 

[Conkerkid11]

Post number 224.

When will people realise it's not just about "trading in"? The fact my disc purchases are not tied to a single account is the main reason why I love owning a physical copy of a game. With discs you have the option to buy from so many different retailers etc and get to take advantage of store deals / discounts.

I don't want my games spread across a limited number of digital storefronts, I don't want games to become impossible to obtain or changed with patches due to licensing.

Digital games have discounts.

And how is not wanting the game to be tied to a single account not the same as wanting to eventually trade it in? You're you. You're on a single account. Unless you randomly decide you want another account, the account that game's currently tied to is the account you're going to be using. If you're complaining about not being able to let a friend borrow your games or something, you're also complaining about the developers and publishers of these games needing money for their hard work.

And the beef you have with having to manage multiple libraries is a beef you have with PC gaming, and nothing else. You buy a physical copy of a game that needs to be activated on Origin, Steam, Battle.net, Uplay, etc... And that's just the way it is with PC gaming. That's a completely different beast entirely.

It'll be a very long time before game discs goes away. Frankly, I hope it doesn't go away (And I say this as a guy who mostly goes digital for my gaming PC nowadays). Not everyone can afford a good internet connection.

Which is why physical media isn't going the way of the dinosaur until internet is dealt with as our other basic necessary utilities are handled, rather than being run by gangsters.

 

[Djostikk]

I'm not a collector at all, but I like buying discs. Don't mind to to with digital sometime too.

PC now is 99% as publishers like EA don't even include actual discs in boxes, just codes. Also Steam is awesome with its deals and discounts. Consoles on other hand, they don't seem to abandon physical copies, not even after a decade I think

 

[Yagharek]

Huh?

Current gen games have mandatory installs that take up the same space.

The only reasons to be opposed to going all digital this gen is being unable to sell used games or internet limitations.

How long does it take to install a game off a disc vs via download?

50GB on PS4 via disc or via PSN download.

Now repeat for a library of >10 games.

And good luck if your PSN account has been hacked.

 

[GametimeUK]

Digital games have discounts.

And how is not wanting the game to be tied to a single account not the same as wanting to eventually trade it in? You're you. You're on a single account. Unless you randomly decide you want another account, the account that game's currently tied to is the account you're going to be using. If you're complaining about not being able to let a friend borrow your games or something, you're also complaining about the developers and publishers of these games needing money for their hard work.

And the beef you have with having to manage multiple libraries is a beef you have with PC gaming, and nothing else. You buy a physical copy of a game that needs to be activated on Origin, Steam, Battle.net, Uplay, etc... And that's just the way it is with PC gaming. That's a completely different beast entirely.

Not wanting my games to be tied to a single account is not the same as wanting trade ins. If I said I wanted trade ins then I would have said that. I've seen enough "my account has been hacked / banned" horror stories that I don't want any part of dealing with customer services. What's wrong with borrowing games from friends? A borrowed game is not always a sale lost so get over that line of thinking.

Yes, digital games have sales, but the big difference is they are through their platform holders store fronts. Chances are I can find a sale on any game I please right now. Restricting myself to Sony's pricing only? Different story entirely.

 

[LordMuffin]

Of course digital delivery is all about removing the hassle - of having discs laying around, of swapping them in and out etc but I fear for the long term.

I am the first guy who enjoys having an entire collection worth of games stored on the hard drive of my console, as I tend to switch games often during a play session, but when all is said and done and Sony, MS, Nintendo shut down for good... how am I gonna redownload or claim ownership of the copies I paid for?

I'm not even talking about the collection side of the affair, I just want to rest assured that I can access and revisit my favourite games on their original console without resorting to emulating them in the future decade and beyond.

As per the previous generation of consoles, my collection is pretty much 50% digital and the 3DS is the system I fear the most for. With the closed account shit I don't even have to hope for Nintendo's servers to stay online, if the flash memory of my handheld is somehow compromised I can only send it for repairs and hope for the best. This always makes me uncomfortable thinking about.

Finally, all the pain and grieve of digital only is thrown out of the window when a sale goes online and I can indulge in a binge for just a few euros.

 

[MoogleWizard]

CDs didn't stop existing because you stopped buying them... And unlike games, a music album isn't 50GB.

 

[_Ryo_]

NX is gonna use carts,that right there should prove without a doubt that physical media isnt disappearing anytime soon. And why would it? It is what most consumers want and is what most consumers buy. Not to mention physical media has many advantages over digital.

1. You buy the game. It's yours. No revoking your license to play it due to outdated copyrights and licenses or backlash.

2. You can purchase games that have been revoked or removed from online stores.

3. You can trade in, or sale used games in stores or online.

4. Physical media Games are more accessible in terms of storage. For example, I have 41 PS2 games alone, on my self. You're not gonna be able to fit 41 AAA games on your standard XB1 or PS4 at once. You have to remove a game and spend hours downloading the new one you want.If you end up disliking the new game you have to spend hours getting the other back. Yet somehow this is called "convenience" For comparison All I have to do to play is pick up a disc and remove one/place one in the console. That's true convenience.

5.Internet speeds for most people are shit. They can't even watch Netflix without worrying about going over a datacap.

6. Physical media can be shared with or given to other people, anywhere in the world. For example a very nice guy online, who lives states away, gave mea saturn and a game.

7. It has more value and it looks nicer. You can use boxart as art pieces.

8. You can still have digital if you have physical if you have any console before PS4/XB1* in the form of backups.

9. This is a really important one, people buying physical media does NOT remove the choice of buying digitallly! Choices are important. All I see from digital only people is the notion to suit only their desires and to remove choice from consumers, which I find incredibly spiteful, greedy and just plain dumb. Its the epitome of "Fuck you, I've got mine" mentally to only want and get what you desire but remove any other option from others.

10.Microsoft tried to do the all digital thing. They failed. Think about that. And fuck no it was not about messaging or how they revealed it. If I hear that one more time, imma lose it. People UNDERSTOOD the message,the idea, the technicalities. They didn't like it. They didn't WANT it.

So lol," the only people who want physical media are collectors" fuck off with that easily demonstratable, easily disproven, lie. It's not true and iz just bullshit.

 

[lacinius]

As others have mentioned when data caps are no longer an issue, and bandwidth is no longer an issue, then that would certainly help quite a bit. But there is no way I'm purchasing a digital 50GB game when the best that I can do is around 1GB/hour downloading... physical media forever while that's the case.

 

[C4Lukins]

People are still into physical media, and as far as gaming is concerned with consoles, It still seems like the triple A games still sell more physical copies than digital copies.

And even if that was not the case, let's say physical retail copies were reduced to 20% of total sales, it would still make sense to support the format.

Personally I have moved on. The last physical copy I purchased of a game was Assassins Creed 4 with the Xbox One launch, and I have purchased over a hundred games digitally since then.

I think we maybe have at least 5 more years of physical sales, and AAA games will continue to produce physical copies beyond that for the collectors. But yeah I think it is a dying breed.

I think the generation after Scorpio and PS4 Pro will still have physical media, but that may be the last generation.

 

[WrenchNinja]

Reality distortion field in full effect for the OP

 

[RoadHazard]

CDs aren't even close to dead. Less popular, yes, but you can still get everything on CD, there are still stores selling them (although fewer ones dedicated to doing it), etc.

 

[Joni]

Huh?

Current gen games have mandatory installs that take up the same space.

The only reasons to be opposed to going all digital this gen is being unable to sell used games or internet limitations.

Indeed. It still takes less time to install them again then to download them again, so the argument that they can all be kept on the hard drive doesn't make much sense to me.

 

[Jamix012]

People like you annoy me to no end. You can already go fully digital yet complain others aren't forced to, very cool.

Seconded. Get off your high horse and stop acting like only your preferences matter.

 

[shouamabane]

 

[Necron]

As long as file sizes increase, probably never. Some form of physical media will most likely always exist for videogames.

And it's a good thing too. I don't want an all-digital, quasi-monopoly future where these select few companies can dictate the price. I don't get these arguments against retail versions. I'll never stop buying boxed copies of games (if they are available).

 

[Worldshaker]

I love having options. I'm glad those who prefer digital have that convenience, and I love being able to pick up a physical copy of most games still.

I don't get why some people think we need to go digital only going forward. How is having a physical option hurting anyone? If anything make physical copies cost $5 more.

I would've gladly paid $60 for I Am Setsuna if it had a physical release. I'm currently waiting for it to go on sale however since I have enough games in my backlog and I see no real rush to pick it up for full price.

 

[dead souls]

When ISPs stop being so shitty,

So never I guess, which is what I prefer.

 

[Dr. Worm]

 

[messiaen]

That is an incredibly misinformed/antidotal OP. Physical sales still represent the majority of music industry album sales. Digital revenue as a whole only just overtook physical this past year, but you have to factor in streaming, YouTube and the like on top of album sales while looking at digital revenue versus physical sales, which only represent actual album sales.

Think it's bad to want to live in an all digital world. Rights and whatnot become an issue and make buying things much more tedious via digital means versus physical.

Just yesterday, I went to half priced books and found/bought an album with recordings of Arvo Pärt from Austria, had I wanted to get this via digital I'd have to jump through hoops due to licensing nonsense. You also lose the culture of used items which I think is lots of fun.

 

[UrbanRats]

Datacaps and bad internet are a reality in many countries, probably the majority.
Thinking that downloading 50 gigs aint no thing, is having a very narrow view of things.

 

[Neuromancer]

Hopefully not in the foreseeable future. I enjoy getting 20% off all new games at Best Buy and the ability to sell and gift away my games. I also like being able to check games out from my public library or rent them from Red Box.

 

[Brawly Likes to Brawl]

When data caps and bad internet infrastructure are a thing of the past and digital ownership is designed to be more beneficial for the consumer.

 

[fernoca]

Kinda weird seeing stuff like "the only people that like them...", when digital purchases in consoles are still around 20%.

It has grown and will continue to do so, but there's still 80% "that likes them". Is not some niche product made for hardcores and collectors.

And as a note, I'm all for digital and the convenience of having everything on it. Have over 300 games installed across XBO, PS4, Wii U, 3DS and Vita, no discs. Stream all movies and music too.

 

[Dubz]

It's funny how people think it will never ever happen because the file sizes are too large, people love physical media, ISP's suck and have data caps, etc....But on PC people have been in full digital for 10 years or more. Just check this out:

PC trumps mobile, console in booming $61bn digital games market

PC is an undervalued platform. Succinctly speaking, the top 10 PC games earn more than the top 10 mobile games. Contrary to the amount of attention that is generally paid to mobile gaming, total revenues from the PC gaming market is larger ($32 billion) than that of mobile ($25 billion).

 

[Tigress]

When Internet infrastructure is actually viable for a digital only crap shoot. When consumer rights laws catch up.

Just look at PT. That could theoretically happen to any game you buy whereas a physical copy keeps you secure from that.

This so much this. Also... when you stop being at the whim of a company whether you get to keep your games. Sony makes a great example everytime some one's account gets hacked. IF you have digital games with them and this happens you get the choice of not getting the money stolen back or losing all games you bought with Sony if you do a chargeback (or if you are really lucky they might give you some of that money back but from what I've seen they only offer a small amount refund). Sure, other companies may be better about it, but you are still at the whim of how nice they decide they want to be. As Sony has proved they don't have to be that nice if they don't want to (nothing stops them).

With my games that are purchased physically, Sony simply cannot do that to me. If I get a false charge on my credit card buying a game, I can chargeback it and keep all my physical games and still play them.

When digital goes the way of GoG or even if they just stop relying on account verification for DRM (meaning that they can take away your account and you lose all games tied to it) is when I'll trust digital. As of now the game better be super cheap or cheap (as in a good sale) and I really want it and it does not have a physical format before I'll buy it in digital form. Cause with it tied to your account it's more of a rental that they extend the courtesy of letting you play for however long they feel like it.

So, I won't deny physical media going away might happen (companies want it to happen, you are giving them complete control), I really think the people who want this to happen are being very shortsighted. At least until being tied to your account DRM goes away (I don't mind DRM as long as it doesn't give the company power to make me lose access to my game at any whim they have).

 

[120v]

most "casual" gamers i know (as in folk who only buy a handful of games a year) aren't comfortable with digital. games are way more expensive than movies and music and they need to buy from a brick and mortar as a means of insurance.

i don't see this dying out in the next decade. the "buying model" has been burned into people's heads when it comes to buying games. no doubt digital will only rise but not enough to take over anytime soon

 

[grizzelye]

Sony and MS need to basically cut ties with the retailers.

No physical discs, sell hardware from online store only.

That would mean costs will all fall back to MS/Sony.

 

[Shrennin]

Not in the foreseeable future (as in, physical games will exist for quite some time), but I do see digital sales overtaking physical sales reasonably soon. It's already like that on PC.

Microsoft is trying hard for people to make the transition already -- just look at its Play Anywhere initiative. Now, if Microsoft does that with Steam-like sales then digital will definitely be much more palatable.

 

[Jimm]

It took me 5 hours to download 52% of the Forza Horizon 3 demo.

It would be faster for me to get ready, drive to EB games, buy the game day 1, drive home, install it, take the dog for a walk, try it out for an hour or two and then refund it that afternoon under their 7 day return policy.

#ineeddiscs

 

[Inuhanyou]

As long as the benefits of physical media continue to exist OP, i hope they never die. You can keep your always online digital only future to yourself. I am not one to be dependent on my shitty internet just to have access to buying, and playing my games, especially with the file sizes getting bigger and bigger and the connections not getting better and better.

 

[Tigress]

Sony and MS need to basically cut ties with the retailers.

No physical discs, sell hardware from online store only.

That would mean costs will all fall back to MS/Sony.

Read my post into why it is very shortsighted to want this to happen. Until MS and Sony stop making you rely on having an account to use your digital games, you are pretty much asking it to be that Sony and MS hold all the cards. You buy a game and you are at their whim if you get to keep it. Sony has easily shown why that is a bad thing... look at all the stories of people getting hacked, Sony refusing to do shit and pretty much telling them they will lose all their digital games if they have to go to the credit card to protect them. And hell, Sony has a good motivation to not care... they got money from you from the thief or you, who cares, they got money. And you are at their whim if they decide to give it back. And if you try to go to some one else to help you, they get to blackmail you with you lose every game you bought digitally with them if you go that route. Nothing stops them from doing that and they do exactly that! It seems at least once a month we hear of a story like that. I have a friend I play with who they did that with (he lost all his GTA info cause he just decided to take the loss and rebought GTA but lost his GTA account tied to his old PSN account). Sure, MS and Valve have been better, but you are still at the whim of whoever decides how they do CS at the time cause nothing stops them from acting the same way (and hell, don't tell me consumers getting upset, cause that hasn't harmed Sony yet).

And if you are naive enough to think they will lower the cost of games if they don't have to make a physical version: 1. The physical version is not that expensive for them to make, not much savings. 2. Ha! Why would they do that when you don't have a choice anyways?!

 

[Atomski]

But you can still buy CDs.

Lol.. why? Seriously if you want to collect music these days vinyl is the only way to go. CDs are trash.

 

[Dr. Worm]

Read my post into why it is very shortsighted to want this to happen. Until MS and Sony stop making you rely on having an account to use your digital games, you are pretty much asking it to be that Sony and MS hold all the cards.

No one wants it.

This thread isn't asking what you want.

And if you are naive enough to think they will lower the cost of games if they don't have to make a physical version: 1. The physical version is not that expensive for them to make, not much savings. 2. Ha! Why would they do that when you don't have a choice anyways?!

Physical media involves manufacturing, but also shipping and logistics to get the product the retailers. That's the expensive part.

If they keep prices too high for people to want to buy their video games, then they lose that business, probably to PCs or mobile. That's the incentive for them to keep games affordable.

 

[mattiewheels]

It's interesting how when console people talk about digital only, data caps are their big reason for not jumping in. Steam people seem to do ok with caps. Sony seems way more aggressive with their bargain sales lately too, to the point that the cheap games argument starts to go away too. All they need is a refund system in place and I'll probably go all digital.

 

[kraspkibble]

Lol.. why? Seriously if you want to collect music these days vinyl is the only way to go. CDs are trash.

people play vinyl in their car? that's why i still buy CDs. if i could connect my phone and stream spotify i'd do that but until i get a new car i'm buying CDs.

 

[Zambatoh]

I still need disks because it's much quicker to install off of those then it is to reinstall from PSN. I don't even have data caps, but Sony for whatever reason still likes to limit everyone's access to a paltry amount of bandwidth.

 

[Deleted member 752119]

It's interesting how when console people talk about digital only, data caps are their big reason for not jumping in. Steam people seem to do ok with caps. Sony seems way more aggressive with their bargain sales lately too, to the point that the cheap games argument starts to go away too. All they need is a refund system in place and I'll probably go all digital.

People with small data caps probably aren't Steam people for the most part.

I'm full digital now that Comcast bumped the cap up to 1TB.

I'm just sick of physical shit cluttering up my place, hassling with selling games after I'm done with them as I'm not a collector and rested want to replay anything etc.

But a lot of people just can't go full digital as internet sucks so many places still, so that will slow the transition to all/mostly digital games. A lot of people also just don't want to go full digital for a variety of reasons, but I don't think publishers care much about that crowd. They'd probably make a lot more even if losing some of those folks in a future digital only market due to killing off the secondhand market and not producing and shipping physical copies.

 

[horkrux]

But on PC people have been in full digital for 10 years or more.

You know that statement is ridiculous... 'or more' even, yeah right. C'mon, man.. do you somehow want to move the advent of mainstream digital distribution pre-HL2? This shit took years.
And even then I don't know what 'full digital' even means in such a general sense. You can still buy retail versions, so somebody's surely buying them. A lot of somebodys.

 

[Tigress]

No one wants it.

This thread isn't asking what you want.



Physical media involves manufacturing, but also shipping and logistics to get the product the retailers. That's the expensive part.

If they keep prices too high for people to want to buy their video games, then they lose that business, probably to PCs or mobile. That's the incentive for them to keep games affordable.

No, people want it. I have several times seen people wishing that it would happen. The person I replied to seemed to think that Sony and MS should push for it to happen. Even the OP was very much looking like he wanted it to happen. But even if you don't believe those people wanted it, all the time I see people saying, "I can't wait until the digital future and people will move on from these old relics."

And no, your last point doesn't at all keep people from going to PC. If that were true people would already be going to PC cause games on PC are much cheaper. Obviously price of games is not a big factor when choosing console.

 

[Omnii-chan]

My local electronics and departments stores have one or two aisles dedicated to cd's. They still sell.

Likewise, physical games will be around for a while yet and I try to only buy them that way.

Too many bad practices for me to go digital only on consoles;

- no back compatibility (except Scorpio I guess? Remains to be seen)
- same or higher prices than retail, no trade in, no resell value either.
- no decent refund system if a game is broken.

 

[Ramirez]

Hopefully never. The feeling of purchasing a digital game and not liking it is a real kick in the nuts.

 

[jstripes]

Another "I don't need/want thing, so why does anyone?" thread.