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Will you go all-digital with the next consoles?

The average next gen game will be 30-40GB in size.
I don't want to waste 6-12 hours downloading and all that space on the hard drive for a single game.
Still digital downloads will be the way to go for certain titles, also digital games are the best way to ensure backwards compatibility and cross platform support.
The two things will go in parallel for years although eventually it will be all digital.
 
Not all digital, no. I don't really have the bandwidth to download 50Gb games. I might consider it if there are preloads with midnight unlocks but only if there's a substantial discount or something.
 
I bought a few XBLA games and I now consider those mistakes.

As long as consoles still have physical media, if a game is digital-only I simply won't buy it.
Unfortunately that means I miss out on some cool games (Dillon's Rolling Western, Pushmo, Crashmo, Mighty Switch Force, etc) but if I'm having a console, I want my games to be guaranteed to be forever accessable.

The only platform that I'll consider digital on is PC, and that's because Steam and GoG are extremely convenient (and in the event that a game I own somehow becomes inaccessable, there are... ways around that.) but I still prefer physical for PC games if possible.
 
I certainly could if i wanted to but i am one of those old fashioned guys who loves his physical copies of his games. I know they'll one day be obsolete, but i want to hold onto them for as long as possible.
 
Raxus said:
I got Sleeping dogs for like 7 bucks, the Witcher 2 for less than 20.

A ton of games at 5 bucks. Borderlands 2 when it first game out and all the DLC for less than 50. So. This one?
Click to expand...

I doubt Steam style sales will ever happen on console markets. MS has shitty Gold only sales and horribly priced digital retail games well after they release.
 
I'm going to start buying all Nintendo first party titles digitally on Wii-U. Will stay physical for 3DS.

Also, if I pick up a PS3 later down the line, I will most likely go digital there too.
 
Fandangox said:
I am getting mixed signals by Nintendo.

Digital Promotion? 5 back on full priced games? Off Tv play so essentially making your whole digital library accessible without having to turn your tv and change disks.

But then the accounts are tied to the hardware, and the download times are awful.
There's also the 32 GB maximum of space, but at least I can find a cheap HDD in amazon for that.
Click to expand...

Yeah Nintendo policy with accounts is soo retarded... They should have 1 account hat tie all their consoles and it should not be tied to hardware. Seriously they are living in the dark ages!
 
I've done digital with the current systems--PS3, 360, PSP. And while its convenient, I just don't feel like I own the game. I don't mind doing it for smaller titles. But for big 60 dollar games it just doesn't feel right to me.

I have double dipped on games I always want on my systems for convenience, though.
 
I really doubt it except for a few titles i'll know i never want to leave my console (like monster hunter 3 U) as i like to have the ability to sell the game if i'm well and truly done with them, or lend them out to friends.

of course, if that's even going to be possible next gen.
 
My only problem is if digital titles are playable on future machines or not(along with of course cheaper prices).
 
but will it be like android / ios, were our content transfers over? if I already got lots of titles for either machine, I might want to retain the digital library on the new machine?





this is also were, it would make sense for microsoft to open up xbox 360 to windows 8. remember that rumor? if all xbox 360 arcade content was just magically available and playable on your pc - poof! that would be an incentive worth busting your balls over!
 
I doubt it. Unless the consoles become very Steam like in layout and control and allow me to focus on management of my library of content (which TBH both the PS3/360 are weak at) I can't imagine it.

Even then if a game is huge in size then I'll get a disk rather than download it. I don't really have any desire to download 35GB plus games for example - much quicker to either install/stream them.

I'll certainly be at least 65% or more digital though.
 
I already haven't done with my Wii U, and I would dread having to go all-digital. That said, if there was a significant saving to be had by going digital, I would consider it (i.e. 50% cheaper AT LEAST than physical).
 
I gave all digital a try on my PS Vita.

As a result I have mixed feelings about it. It's very convenient, but it's also very apparent that you don't actually own anything, especially when you realize you don't like a game very much and you can't resell it.

Basically it's a matter of price. Between my iOS/Android experience and my Vita experience, I have come to the conclusion that I will NEVER again pay full price for a digital game. Most of the time, if not all the time, you will find physical copies of games for much less than digital (on PSN/XBL). That should not be the case. Digital means you own NOTHING, and have zero ability or rights to resell the game. You also get nothing tangible -- no box, no art, no manual etc. There is no shipping, distribution etc. Digital games should always be priced much lower than physical.

Look at Steam for example. I don't use it, but I'm constantly reading about amazing sales and crazy low prices on Steam. That's how it should be. I'm not expecting Sony or M$ to be like iOS with its $0.99 games, but I'm not going to pay anywhere near full MSRP for digital console games.

If I had to give a price range that would lure me into going digital on next gen consoles, it would be between $5 - $20 for full game downloads. $20 would be the absolute MAXIMUM where I would feel OK buying a game that I never actually get to own. More than that, and I'd rather get a physical copy that I can at least resell someday. I'm sorry if that offends the industry, but we consumers matter too.

Since that is probably NOT going to happen, I really have no immediate plans to even buy a next gen console. I'm very happy with my current gen systems as well as retro systems, and I'll simply milk them until next gen makes sense for me as a customer.
 
It greatly depends on the benefits of doing so. Physically is more easily subject to sales, but then PSN has been good about reducing prices, for the most part.

I may always do fighting games digital from now on, though.
 
If it meant cheaper games that I owned forever regardless of console generation then absolutely!

Don't have to go to the game store? Check. I can get other things done like chores around the apartment while it downloads? Check. No noise from the Blu-Ray drive running? Check. Better loading times or none at all? Check.

Games are cheaper and deals are more frequent like Steam? Check. This is how it should be, however. I remember Warhawk selling for $59.99 retail, and $39.99 off PSN when it released. Considering Sony cuts costs out of production, distribution, and GameStop, Wal-Mart, and Target markups the games should be significantly less in price.

If Sony or Microsoft doesn't do this for next-gen digitally distributed games then I will probably continue buying the physical version because at least its a guarantee that I can play it whenever I want years later if BC isn't in future consoles, or sell it secondhand if both companies don't take steps to eliminate the C2C market.
 
Never. It puts control of my software in the hands of the delivery service holder. Some I have no choice (eShop) so I pick and choose carefully and rarely.
 
No chance.

There are too many questions and problems with digital games.

- No way to resell or buy used
- Priced at MSRP
- Questions of transferring to future consoles
- Storage Space

etc...
 
I've been migrating to digital media for the last 5 years or so (music, books, comics) and these latest consoles (WiiU) and handhelds (PSP go and 3DS) were the last hold outs till now. Being a big PC gamer, I've gotten so use to having all my games available and in one place, the move to go that route with my consoles became very easy. With handhelds, it just makes sense and with a family and little space to call my own, not having to worry about disks and carts is a relief.

The only downside for me (because storage is too cheap to be an issue) is pricing. Outside of Steam, a lot of console digital retail games don't go on sale. Maybe this will change this new generation when all 3 companies are selling retail games day and date digitally, but it stinks if your like me and don't always buy games as soon as they come out. I hope to be proven wrong on that, but in the end I'm not paying no more than when the game first debuted and the convenience of digital is worth the full price to me.
 
awm8604 said:
No chance.

There are too many questions and problems with digital games.

- No way to resell or buy used
- Priced at MSRP
- Questions of transferring to future consoles
- Storage Space

etc...
Click to expand...

Well, one could argue that is caused right now by the dual marketplace. Dev's and Console makers haven't embraced a majorly DD marketplace yet, and one has to remember that Steam didn't become what it is now overnight.

I believe you'd see quite a bit of change if Next Gen focuses on DD as a true alternative and looks to eliminate retail as their primary market.

I think it'd be good for the industry as a whole as well. You'd extend product life considerably.
 
You pretty much have to completely eviscerate the retail package to make me seriously consider going all digital if physical's an option, even on PC I prefer to get CD Projekt Red games physically because they do awesome packaging (plus the keys activated on GOG.com so hey, why not?), and even then you ALSO have to not have draconian DRM and give me sufficent space. The Vita actually did eviscerate physical packaging short of blocking LEs in the US (and there's only one LE I know of, Ragnarok Odyssey), but thanks to the overcharged memory cards that don't even break 32 GB combo'd with games being so big I'd still rather stick with physical, especially as I'm going to need the space for Plus/Digital Exclusives.

Seriously, the more I think about it the situation has to be like Steam combined with how much easier Xbox/Playstation are for offline play: loads of space, non-intrusive DRM, great deals, and most games either not at retail or having barebones packaging. If those conditions aren't all met I'd still go with physical: hell I'd probably go with physical anyway, just look at that FE cart label.
 
Storage shouldn't even be slated as an issue these days. When you can get a 3 TB hdd for $130~, yeah... that'll take you a while to fill up if you're just putting games on it.

I do hope that someday down the road we can get over the whole console wars thing and have a unified digital store. Imagine having one console where you can buy Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo games without the need to have 3 different systems all stacked on top of one another around your tv.

As long as they adopt a model similar to Steam, that'd be fine. Though, there's always the potential of that turning into "we're never going to have sales ever" like it is right now.
 
No, waste of bandwidth. Also why pay $60 for a copy you can't resell or collect?

I'm all digital for PC though, as it's so cheap.
 
Going all-digital works fine on portables due to small download file size.
And it's nice to have access to your gaming library wherever you happen to be.

It also makes sense for PCs due to easy-to-upgrade storage options, Steam and crazy sales and discounts.

Consoles are different.
They're stationary.
There's no incentive to go digital because the consoles aren't moving and you can just keep your collection situated right beside it.
 
UberTag said:
Going all-digital works fine on portables due to small download file size.
And it's nice to have access to your gaming library wherever you happen to be.
Click to expand...
This can work on 3DS, but not Vita. Games are way bigger, you can't get as big of a memory card, and the biggest will cost you $80 at a minimum unless you get lucky for some reason. Plus alone murdered any chance of me buying future retail releases digitally until they drop memory card prices and release bigger ones.
 
Well I'm 100% on my PC, so I wouldn't mind. But there is always a sense of satisfaction when you have a physical collection in front of you, that and I can lend my copies to my cousins when I'm done with a game. Which I think benefits the industry as more people are exposed to your game.
 
No, I'll be sticking to physical copies. Mainly because I can resell the game if don't enjoy it, but also because digital pricing still doesn't feel competitive enough yet.
 
No, I get impatient over having to wait a day and night to download an 8GB game off Steam, no way I could handle it with a sit down, lie back and play device. I still vastly prefer physical content, however Steam and my Vita have expressed me with doubts on the future.

At the moment I do retail pretty much whenever I can, the exception being if I can get a game much cheaper via Playstation+ or an alternate sale.

Books and other media however I've all gone digitally on, all of my game shopping is done via online too, but games themselves I'm not ready to make the swap on.
 
While I'm almost fully digital on PC, I doubt to follow this route on consoles, since there are a few points not very convincing to me:

- consoles digital games cost much more than physical games
- no guaranteed BC, if I own a previous gen game, chances are I've to buy it again (if it's available) to play on new gen consoles if I can't / don't want to use the old consoles

and a few minor points I guess are easier (but not so obvious) to fix:

- bad games management (what do I own?)
- too scarce hdd space
- region locked games
- multiregion DLC is a mess (what if I buy a game not available in my country and the DLC is region locked?)

Actually there're only one a couple of pro points in digital games on consoles: no disk swapping and quicker loading times. Eek.

And I'm lucky I don't resell my games ;)
 
Not a chance:

  • My connection isn't fast enough.
  • It takes away my rights of ownership, and my ability to control the use of the content I own.
  • If MS lock hard drives down and charge ridiculous prices like they did for the 360 then storing more than a few games will be impractical, whereas physical copies would allow me to copy the game to the hard drive whenever needed, without spending a lot of time redownloading them.
  • MS and content providers have done an atrocious job of providing discounts, physical copies can usually be picked up cheaper over time.
  • Digital copies are not typically lower in price despite the lower production/distribution costs, so I see no reason to pay for an inferior product.
  • Physical copies cannot be revoked. Until consumer rights on the matter are sorted out, I will be extremely reluctant to buy digital when a company can hold my content hostage, and revoke my ability to play what I have legitimately purchased for any reason, with no recourse.
 
Depends on the game. If I think I'll likely never resell it, then I'll prob download it. Also nice to have it always available without having to change disks.
 
Eusis said:
This can work on 3DS, but not Vita. Games are way bigger, you can't get as big of a memory card, and the biggest will cost you $80 at a minimum unless you get lucky for some reason. Plus alone murdered any chance of me buying future retail releases digitally until they drop memory card prices and release bigger ones.
Click to expand...

The real sad case is that neither is perfect. Sony has more reliable availability on the titles they put out when it comes to digital and a better account system.

3DS has more reasonable memory card choices but no account system whatsoever. I think they're working on one?

You know what was the best handheld for me?
tumblr_malqx7RpJO1rc6ujbo1_500.jpg

This thing. Easy to carry around, cheap memory card prices(though that was because of how bad it failed), great digital selection of games.

Most portable handheld since the SP.
 
Big games (5GB and above) - Retail
Smaller games - Digital
 
Console: Not a chance in the world, physical only

Handheld: I am starting to enjoy digital there more, since it is convenient to just have all the games right in my system for when I have it with me. Still, the majority of my games are physical, only a few digital

PC: GOG when possible, physical when not
 
I already am all digital on Vita. With the PS3 I started only retail, because it is cool to have the physical copies of the games and stuff. But after I downloaded some games and noticed how convenient it is to have all them already on the console, I stared only digital on it too. Maybe I'll still buy physical copies of games that I really would like to have on my shelf.
 
Manmademan said:
Hell no. Physical media for life. Personal Preference.
Click to expand...

Couldn't have said it better. It's what I grew up with. The same way my dad would rather listen to a record than an MP3.

I'd probably pay around $5 more for a digital game if it came with a nice box/instruction manual. That stuff is still worth it imo.
 
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