EdReedFan20
Member
I would 100% go digital if hard drive space was not an issue and if it could be guaranteed that things do not get delisted and are available for a very, very long time.
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PS, I Love You- Greg Miller's new PlayStation Podcast
- Thread starter EdReedFan20
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I would 100% go digital if hard drive space was not an issue and if it could be guaranteed that things do not get delisted and are available for a very, very long time.
Goose_Se7en
Banned
It still baffles me that in 2016 the PS4 doesn't support game installs on an external HDD.
Undead Fantasy
Member
This but I do think PS5 will offer BC for both digital and retail games.
ST2K
Member
Going all digital won't happen:
- Video and audio, much simpler media, still haven't gone all digital. Why would games?
- Handing over total price control to the first party is so completely short-sighted a move it's difficult to imagine people being okay with it. Steam has competitors and is on a fundamentally open platform. It's not a good comparison.
- The used market is essential for a significant part of gaming consumers. I doubt there will ever be a used digital market.
- As mentioned, there are bandwidth and data cap concerns for developing markets and even primary markets in certain regions.
- And to counter Colin's claim, we still have systems from 30+ years ago that work. And hardware can always be repaired if it breaks. That hardware argument doesn't hold water.
Shifting your focus to digital is something I could totally see happening. But completely going digital? I don't think it will, and if it does, I think it could be potentially crippling to the industry.
- Video and audio, much simpler media, still haven't gone all digital. Why would games?
- Handing over total price control to the first party is so completely short-sighted a move it's difficult to imagine people being okay with it. Steam has competitors and is on a fundamentally open platform. It's not a good comparison.
- The used market is essential for a significant part of gaming consumers. I doubt there will ever be a used digital market.
- As mentioned, there are bandwidth and data cap concerns for developing markets and even primary markets in certain regions.
- And to counter Colin's claim, we still have systems from 30+ years ago that work. And hardware can always be repaired if it breaks. That hardware argument doesn't hold water.
Shifting your focus to digital is something I could totally see happening. But completely going digital? I don't think it will, and if it does, I think it could be potentially crippling to the industry.
It's definitely possible, but there isn't a set expectation for it anymore like there was from PS1 to PS2.
I just can't believe Colin said he actually thinks that PS4's wont work in 10 years. You can easily find a working NES from over 30 years, and a PS4 is going to break in 10 years?
That is the weakest argument for a digital future I have ever seen, because it absolutely is not a thing.
shortsoptional
Member
This is me.
But looking at it from a business standpoint, would Sony/Nintendo/Xbox go all digital and risk losing out on getting money from suckers like me who will buy steelbooks editions or other things? If I was ALL digital, I'd probably stop buying those things. They could sell a code with those things, but steelbooks would be completely obsolete. I think it's easy to overlook but that's money they would be losing.
Mr.Fletcher
Member
I was just shocked they didn't know about the price disparity between retail and digital in the UK.
Buying digital is incredibly expensive over here - you can sometimes buy a couple of retail games for the price of a single game on PSN.
I know it's a US-centric show and both Colin and Greg have probably forgotten more about the industry than I'll ever know, but it just seems weird to discuss such a broad topic without much international knowledge.
Buying digital is incredibly expensive over here - you can sometimes buy a couple of retail games for the price of a single game on PSN.
I know it's a US-centric show and both Colin and Greg have probably forgotten more about the industry than I'll ever know, but it just seems weird to discuss such a broad topic without much international knowledge.
Goose_Se7en
Banned
Yup. I'm a sucker for steelbooks too.
uncleniccius
Member
This is something that is an issue when they discuss it - for the US the arguments aren't so bad, but when games on there store are 50% more than retail at launch for some stuff it is an issue.
I am 100% digital on my consoles/pc and I am fortunate to have good disposable income/finances allowing me to enjoy my hobby to fullest. Uncapped fibre internet with no throttle helps too.
On several occasions listening to the podcast I've heard both hosts being rather flippant about getting codes - "fancy playing that, I'll email and get a code". "got this code a few weeks ago, might try it".... you get the idea.
I'm not actually too sure who they are trying to impress with this rhetoric. This throwaway attitude devalues games and also is a bit of a slap in the face to those who aren't able to buy/play all the games/consoles they fancy. Not impressed.
I would imagine publishers will save more money not having to ship physical copies of their games than they would lose by not being able to do those kind of special editions. And if the music industry is anything to go by, they could still do those special limited editions while otherwise going all or mostly digital.
I have no opinion on the larger discussion though.
That's par for the course for most American media outlets though. It's not worth getting upset about, there are more serious misconceptions people who earn their money talking about games have. Not talking about the Kinda Funny guys there specifically.
D
Deleted member 471617
Unconfirmed Member
Disagree 100% with Colin regards to digital.
Games will NOT be cheaper if there's no more disc based games for one simple reason - there's no other options so you either A) buy the game for $60 or B) don't buy the game at all. Publishers are NOT going to give any consumer a damn thing. Colin's idea that a publisher will lower the price of their games to $50 which would then make other publishers follow suit is a dream and a fantasy. All the publishers will have a behind closed doors agreement with each other to keep all the games at $60 (or increase them).
The publishers don't give the consumers anything now WITH an alternative in disc based games so no way in hell would they give us anything when we have no choice whatsoever. Disc based games will always be cheaper.
Hell, you can go on the PlayStation Store right now and see that an almost two year old game The Evil Within is $60 digitally yet in stores, it's $20. But yeah, the publishers will definitely make games cheaper with no other alternatives. LOL. Good luck with that.
Digital games would have to be $30 for me to commit and even then, my purchases would be less than what they are now. Any trade in value would be non-existent and even if they do give you credit for the license, what would it be? $5? No thanks.
Look at Madden from EA. Can anyone honestly say that the game is so far better since 2004? I can't and that's because without competition, they simply don't give a damn because they know that if you want to play the game, you have no other options and no other choices. All digital would be the same thing.
There's so many other reasons I could post that I could write a book but instead, I'll just add this little tidbit that Colin and Greg don't mention at all in the debate. They both get all the games for FREE. Hell, even Colin asked for a code for that Vita and was given one. If I was getting every single game I wanted for FREE, I would go all digital too since money would be of no concern. But I don't and since im not a collector, there's no reason for me to buy games digitally.
All digital gaming will lower the sales even more than what they are now for games because instead of buying, trading and then buying another game, you're basically stuck with the game. And no, I don't see any of them giving you refunds ala Steam. Hell, they don't give you refunds and ban you if you have your account hacked.
I do believe that gaming will be all digital eventually but in no way, shape or form will any of the publishers including Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo give you any sort of discount or sale. And at launch? $60 please. LOL.
Steam has way more sales and cheaper prices but the games don't sell anywhere near as good as they do on consoles. Not only that but the majority of games are crap and cheap as hell because of that. And they're old games. And buggy as all hell.
In summary, FUCK DIGITAL.
Games will NOT be cheaper if there's no more disc based games for one simple reason - there's no other options so you either A) buy the game for $60 or B) don't buy the game at all. Publishers are NOT going to give any consumer a damn thing. Colin's idea that a publisher will lower the price of their games to $50 which would then make other publishers follow suit is a dream and a fantasy. All the publishers will have a behind closed doors agreement with each other to keep all the games at $60 (or increase them).
The publishers don't give the consumers anything now WITH an alternative in disc based games so no way in hell would they give us anything when we have no choice whatsoever. Disc based games will always be cheaper.
Hell, you can go on the PlayStation Store right now and see that an almost two year old game The Evil Within is $60 digitally yet in stores, it's $20. But yeah, the publishers will definitely make games cheaper with no other alternatives. LOL. Good luck with that.
Digital games would have to be $30 for me to commit and even then, my purchases would be less than what they are now. Any trade in value would be non-existent and even if they do give you credit for the license, what would it be? $5? No thanks.
Look at Madden from EA. Can anyone honestly say that the game is so far better since 2004? I can't and that's because without competition, they simply don't give a damn because they know that if you want to play the game, you have no other options and no other choices. All digital would be the same thing.
There's so many other reasons I could post that I could write a book but instead, I'll just add this little tidbit that Colin and Greg don't mention at all in the debate. They both get all the games for FREE. Hell, even Colin asked for a code for that Vita and was given one. If I was getting every single game I wanted for FREE, I would go all digital too since money would be of no concern. But I don't and since im not a collector, there's no reason for me to buy games digitally.
All digital gaming will lower the sales even more than what they are now for games because instead of buying, trading and then buying another game, you're basically stuck with the game. And no, I don't see any of them giving you refunds ala Steam. Hell, they don't give you refunds and ban you if you have your account hacked.
I do believe that gaming will be all digital eventually but in no way, shape or form will any of the publishers including Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo give you any sort of discount or sale. And at launch? $60 please. LOL.
Steam has way more sales and cheaper prices but the games don't sell anywhere near as good as they do on consoles. Not only that but the majority of games are crap and cheap as hell because of that. And they're old games. And buggy as all hell.
In summary, FUCK DIGITAL.
Trigonometrize.
Member
This is highly illegal though.
Digital sucks. Hard drive space and price is a serious matter to a lot of people. Should digital games be cheaper than physical games? In an ideal world, yes; it would be easier to publish them and people would buy way more digital games. But no, we're basically paying an imaginary convenience fee that lists a digital game's price the same as a physical copy. The worst part is how digital games take FOREVER to decrease in price. It's laughable. I have a lot of digital games in my library on PS4, but I guarantee at least 95% of them are indies or PS+ titles I got either during a sale or just added to my library to have them for potential future use but never actually downloaded them. The point is, if I have the option to go physical for a game at launch, I always do it.
There are even memberships and deals from major marketplaces like Best Buy and Amazon with Prime or Gamer's Club that incentivize you to buy physical by offering points, coupons and 20% off EVERY new game. Why wouldn't I take advantage of that as someone who wants to play most major releases but is on a limited budget? The money you save from 4-6 games alone is enough to basically say you got one of those full priced games for free. The incentives to go digital are just not enough.
Frankly, the positives of staying physical outweigh those of going digital for me. I'm not against an all-digital future, it just doesn't quite make sense to go all-digital now when physical still has advantages.
There are even memberships and deals from major marketplaces like Best Buy and Amazon with Prime or Gamer's Club that incentivize you to buy physical by offering points, coupons and 20% off EVERY new game. Why wouldn't I take advantage of that as someone who wants to play most major releases but is on a limited budget? The money you save from 4-6 games alone is enough to basically say you got one of those full priced games for free. The incentives to go digital are just not enough.
Frankly, the positives of staying physical outweigh those of going digital for me. I'm not against an all-digital future, it just doesn't quite make sense to go all-digital now when physical still has advantages.
I find it really funny that not five minutes before this little digital discussion Colin said "I should email them for a code" for a game that's been out for a few weeks.
I appreciate Colin's insight on some things and how he doesn't mince words, but some of his opinions seem really ignorant.
I appreciate Colin's insight on some things and how he doesn't mince words, but some of his opinions seem really ignorant.
JayBabay
Member
Why don't publishers offer monetary incentives to going digital? Sometimes they have digital pre-order bonuses that differ from the physical bonuses but that's negligible. If they wanted to pass the savings on to the consumers they can make the games cheaper when purchased digitally. I can also afford this hobby to the fullest but I'm also not inclined to pay $60 when I can get it from Best Buy or Amazon for $48, with a case to go along with a library of other titles to display even if it wouldn't put a dent in pocket.
Couple of things to explain to Colin what the UK person was complaining about.
1) When UK/Europe people complain about game prices, they almost never factor in the VAT first. If you do the math right now the exchange is very favorable and if you factor in the VAT, they are actually getting stuff cheaper(the 2TB Xbox one S is about $20 cheaper over there for example). That's a recent trend however, in the past stuff would probably average 10-15% more expensive but they wouldn't take out the VAT first and scream "Hey we're getting ripped off and paying 33% more over here!"
2)The other stupid quirk about the UK is Sony has a policy of "all PSN games regular price is equal to the MSRP(or RRP in Europe)". The problem is, nothing sells for RRP in the UK. Every store sells for less. Of course the answer to that is change the RRP but nobody is willing to do it for who knows what reason.
3)The problem Australia had was their dollar was crap for a long time and games were $100AUS due to the crappy exchange rate then all of a sudden their dollar shot through the roof and got within 10% of parity and nobody adjusted their prices to reflect the exchange rate. I guess every publisher said "They can't easily import from the US like Canadians can so fuck em, lets just keep the prices where they are". Their dollar dropped back down a bit so they are only getting ripped off by about 20% at the moment it seems.
As for the digital distribution future, there's a couple things Sony(and everyone for that matter) should really do to help move that along better.
1) stop selling increased hard drive space at massive profit margins. Sell it at the same profit margin you do the rest of the console: IE near break even not 90% profit. If you want people to download lots of stuff, they need the space to do it.
2) Manage your back catalog pricing better. So much stuff has been the same price on the store for years and hasn't been touched since it went up on the store in the first place. Then you have dumb ass stuff like the Vita version of games being more expensive then the PS3/4 version. Or the originals being more expensive then the HD remaster.
God of war Origins is $10 on PS3 yet the PSP games are $15 each and you can buy the games individually on PS3 for $10 and $15. Jak and Daxter collection for Vita is still at it's full launch price where the PS3 version got a price cut to $20 etc.
If they would do a better job of those two things and governments would get off their ass and write some consumer protections laws so these companies won't be able to continually write more and more anti consumer EULA's that would be great.
1) When UK/Europe people complain about game prices, they almost never factor in the VAT first. If you do the math right now the exchange is very favorable and if you factor in the VAT, they are actually getting stuff cheaper(the 2TB Xbox one S is about $20 cheaper over there for example). That's a recent trend however, in the past stuff would probably average 10-15% more expensive but they wouldn't take out the VAT first and scream "Hey we're getting ripped off and paying 33% more over here!"
2)The other stupid quirk about the UK is Sony has a policy of "all PSN games regular price is equal to the MSRP(or RRP in Europe)". The problem is, nothing sells for RRP in the UK. Every store sells for less. Of course the answer to that is change the RRP but nobody is willing to do it for who knows what reason.
3)The problem Australia had was their dollar was crap for a long time and games were $100AUS due to the crappy exchange rate then all of a sudden their dollar shot through the roof and got within 10% of parity and nobody adjusted their prices to reflect the exchange rate. I guess every publisher said "They can't easily import from the US like Canadians can so fuck em, lets just keep the prices where they are". Their dollar dropped back down a bit so they are only getting ripped off by about 20% at the moment it seems.
As for the digital distribution future, there's a couple things Sony(and everyone for that matter) should really do to help move that along better.
1) stop selling increased hard drive space at massive profit margins. Sell it at the same profit margin you do the rest of the console: IE near break even not 90% profit. If you want people to download lots of stuff, they need the space to do it.
2) Manage your back catalog pricing better. So much stuff has been the same price on the store for years and hasn't been touched since it went up on the store in the first place. Then you have dumb ass stuff like the Vita version of games being more expensive then the PS3/4 version. Or the originals being more expensive then the HD remaster.
God of war Origins is $10 on PS3 yet the PSP games are $15 each and you can buy the games individually on PS3 for $10 and $15. Jak and Daxter collection for Vita is still at it's full launch price where the PS3 version got a price cut to $20 etc.
If they would do a better job of those two things and governments would get off their ass and write some consumer protections laws so these companies won't be able to continually write more and more anti consumer EULA's that would be great.
VanCityGamer
Member
Colin is incredibly ignorant and annoying when it comes to the digital games topic. No point in even conversing with him about it. I'll just keep happily selling my games for 75% of their value when I'm finished with them. And he can keep saying people like me should be thrown in prison with the key tossed away. While he gets his games for free. Whatever.
I love the idea of going digital, but theres still way too much keeping it from a workable solution. Hard drive sizes, Internet Provider issues with speeds/data caps/availability, reliance on a working infrastructure that doesnt collapse with every DDOS attack, publishers not removing those games, etc etc. None of those fears will be alleviated any time soon, and neither is an all digital future.
What I dont get in the "cheaper price" argument is this specifically: we are constantly told by those in similar positions of C&G (and they themselves), that production costs keep going up. Not because of disc copies, but because of larger teams, time spent on development and more bombastic games. This is evident by the growing cost of indie games whether its titles like 7 Days to Die or The Witness. Neither had retail but still cost more than the typical indie title. No retail means nothing in terms of what a game costs, although the argument should be made for manufacturing discs (but ultimately might not change the mind of publishers to reduce cost).
What I dont get in the "cheaper price" argument is this specifically: we are constantly told by those in similar positions of C&G (and they themselves), that production costs keep going up. Not because of disc copies, but because of larger teams, time spent on development and more bombastic games. This is evident by the growing cost of indie games whether its titles like 7 Days to Die or The Witness. Neither had retail but still cost more than the typical indie title. No retail means nothing in terms of what a game costs, although the argument should be made for manufacturing discs (but ultimately might not change the mind of publishers to reduce cost).
ArkhamFantasy
Member
Dont want to make retailers angry.
Lord of Ostia
Member
It's more the issue that the price disparity in the UK highlights: competition. If everything was digital in the UK, the prices would remain high on the digital store front, and because Sony is the sole arbiter of that store front, no other retailer would be able to compete with them as consoles are closed systems. This is inherently bad for the consumer. Steam is competitive because it has multiple other storefronts to compete with on PC (piracy also factors into this somewhat). If consoles remained closed and went all digital, you would be subjected to Sony's pricing and sales strategies only. This would be bad for publishers as well, in terms of advertisement and promotion. Only so many games can be promoted on the Sony store page at one time. Right now, a publisher can partner with a specific retailer, like GameStop, for a particular promotion to generate sales. They can also shop around for these promotions due to retailer competition. A publisher might not be able to afford a promotion with Wal-Mart or Target, for example, but maybe they can with GameStop or Hastings (RIP) or some other smaller retailer. If Sony is the only game in town, you have to play by their rules only, and that means the big players will crowd out the smaller ones even more than they already do. Unless there is significant change in the way the console market operates in regards to digital purchases, digital only will continue to be an extremely bad deal for the consumer, especially in places like Europe, and it's not much more advantageous for the publisher than the status quo depending on which company you are talking about.
I traded Uncharted 4 in at Best Buy for $30 two weeks after buying it for $48. My wife still has her copy so I can play it on either one of our PS4s. That's just one example of the benefits of buying physical.
I'm happy to buy some games digitally, but not all. It's just not good value.
DriftingSpirit
Member
I haven't listened yet but I agree with this. Digital pricing is typically a joke.
VanCityGamer
Member
Totally. I sell the majority of my games on Craigslist when I finish them. I consistently get $45-$50 for each game one month after launch. I simply wouldn't be able to justify buying so many new releases if I did not sell them. How Colin or anyone can deny the significance of that is beyond me. And it's not because I'm cheap or can't afford games. It's because I simply don't feel comfortable shelling out so much money on 5-10 new release games each year.
thekiddfran
Member
I guarantee If Colin didn't get games for free most of the time he would be buying physical because you can trade them in etc. It is a better deal for consumers, simple as that.
He repeatedly said the digital future would be good for consumers. WRONG
With physical you give consumers a CHOICE! To trade in for money or other games or keep them.
He repeatedly said the digital future would be good for consumers. WRONG
With physical you give consumers a CHOICE! To trade in for money or other games or keep them.
GreyOcelot
Member
This is a gross generalization, and even if it were true, could not be reasonably applied to a scenario where ps and Xbox stores were all digital.
I love digital, if it were cheaper on consoles like it is on pc, I absolutely would stop buying physical. I could not care less about having a shelf full of games. Swapping discs is archaic as fuck
Except for the fact that there already is a competing all digital market that is less expensive. Used games cost publishers a significant amount of revenue, if you removed this lack of revenue, margins don't have to be as high on games, therefore driving prices down
But it is good for consumers, the value I get as a PC gamer buying digitally is insane.
Some recent examples of PC games I bought this year:
Doom: $37 (1 month after release)
Mad Max: $21
Ryse: Son of Rome: $6
Elder Scrolls Online: $9
Resident Evil 4 HD: $7
Star Wars Humble Bundle that included like 7 or 8 star wars games: $15 I think?
Console digital pricing isn't anywhere near this obviously, but it cannot be understated how cheap games can get on PC digitally through sales. That's the future that will one day hopefully make it to consoles. And it's a future that can't happen as long as publishers have to worry about pissing off retail sellers. That's the reason digital pricing sucks right now for consoles, you have to phase out the physical retail to enter the digital cheap pricing promised land.
DagnastyEp
Member
At the start of this gen I went 100% digital. I absolutely love it, and don't ever want to go back. The quick access and convenience means that I'm playing and buying more games. I'd also bet I'm spending more time playing, more often switching between several games in a single play session (going from SP game to MP, etc).
While I own an NES (that is hooked up to a tv) and many of the games included in the NES mini, I'm considering getting the Mini, just to have all those games store on one device.
The price issue between digital and physical outside of the US really needs to be address. I'm sure there's international business reasons for this disparity that I don't understand; it just seems to be a much bigger issue on consoles, and not as much of an issue with digital steam purchases vs physical pc games (someone correct me if I'm wrong).
I'd like to argue that point (that it isn't anywhere near PC). PC (steam) sales may still be better, but I think it's getting closer. Console digital pricing on both PSN and XBL has been greatly improving (regarding sales) in the past few years. A similar sale on Doom was also available on both console platforms, and I think Ryse was on a similar discount on XBL. When all 3 platforms had their respective summer sales this year, I was surprised by the overall similarity. I was very please to get Batman AK for $15.
While I own an NES (that is hooked up to a tv) and many of the games included in the NES mini, I'm considering getting the Mini, just to have all those games store on one device.
The price issue between digital and physical outside of the US really needs to be address. I'm sure there's international business reasons for this disparity that I don't understand; it just seems to be a much bigger issue on consoles, and not as much of an issue with digital steam purchases vs physical pc games (someone correct me if I'm wrong).
I'd like to argue that point (that it isn't anywhere near PC). PC (steam) sales may still be better, but I think it's getting closer. Console digital pricing on both PSN and XBL has been greatly improving (regarding sales) in the past few years. A similar sale on Doom was also available on both console platforms, and I think Ryse was on a similar discount on XBL. When all 3 platforms had their respective summer sales this year, I was surprised by the overall similarity. I was very please to get Batman AK for $15.
TetraGenesis
Member
*snaps in agreement*
Dangansona
Member
Can't write a long post at the moment, but I'm thrilled to learn in this week's episode I'll get to here Colin talk more about how we are wrong for liking physical games...
Good points have been made by yall already, but on the subject of privilege let's talk about privilege that we might have that Colin doesn't: not all of us live in San Francisco where you pay an ass load of money for little space shared between multiple people. I have plenty of shelf room to put my physical games.
Someone needs to send this page to Colin to let him get an alternate perspective. I don't know if there's enough of that on the Kinda Funny forums.
Edit: let me say something else, I treasure my video games a hell of a lot more than shitty mobile apps. They are pieces of art and I like collecting art (even if the push for the digital future and micro transactions are lessening the artistic value of games). That's just my opinion.
Edit 2: By the way more people are able to use Steam to download games because Steam is WAY better at downloading games. PSN is still awful at this compared to the competition.
Good points have been made by yall already, but on the subject of privilege let's talk about privilege that we might have that Colin doesn't: not all of us live in San Francisco where you pay an ass load of money for little space shared between multiple people. I have plenty of shelf room to put my physical games.
Someone needs to send this page to Colin to let him get an alternate perspective. I don't know if there's enough of that on the Kinda Funny forums.
Edit: let me say something else, I treasure my video games a hell of a lot more than shitty mobile apps. They are pieces of art and I like collecting art (even if the push for the digital future and micro transactions are lessening the artistic value of games). That's just my opinion.
Edit 2: By the way more people are able to use Steam to download games because Steam is WAY better at downloading games. PSN is still awful at this compared to the competition.
It's hard to disagree with Colin about life-altering poops being 70% "you have to do it", 20% pain and 10% pleasure.
names2hard4you
Member
I have slowly begun to go digital but that is for the most part due to Canada's economy. A videogame in its physical form will cost me $90. On PSN, since I don't have to pay taxes I only spend $70. Game prices have gone up here (while our pay rates haven't but that is a completely different issue) so one can see why it would be much more cost effective to get these games in their digital form.
There is the argument that you could trade, but because I buy less games now because of their price, I find that the ones I buy are games that I legitimately enjoy and don't want to give up on. I have also become less "materialistic" in a sense that seeing a shelf with cases just doesn't give me any joy, so the collecting aspect just isn't there and I appreciate having more free space. It also helps that I have a really great internet that is unlimited and allows me to download anything I want.
This is my case for sort of agreeing with Colin, but I realize that I am not part of the majority. Do I see gaming going more digital in the future? I do, it is already happening in other mediums like music and film/TV. Internet speeds will only improve with time, and it'll be much easier to distribute a digital product than it is a physical one. That being said I don't think the disc will be completely gone any time soon. There will be more emphasis on digital for sure, but BDs will be around for a while.
There is the argument that you could trade, but because I buy less games now because of their price, I find that the ones I buy are games that I legitimately enjoy and don't want to give up on. I have also become less "materialistic" in a sense that seeing a shelf with cases just doesn't give me any joy, so the collecting aspect just isn't there and I appreciate having more free space. It also helps that I have a really great internet that is unlimited and allows me to download anything I want.
This is my case for sort of agreeing with Colin, but I realize that I am not part of the majority. Do I see gaming going more digital in the future? I do, it is already happening in other mediums like music and film/TV. Internet speeds will only improve with time, and it'll be much easier to distribute a digital product than it is a physical one. That being said I don't think the disc will be completely gone any time soon. There will be more emphasis on digital for sure, but BDs will be around for a while.
Undead Fantasy
Member
Yes, it's a very dumb thing to say.
theindieboy
Member
Well i really enjoyed the Episode while i like physical releases steel books and do live in the uk where the digital pricing is stupid and so much more that amazon, i can see it is the future and on Vita it is good and well up for digital games don't know why not on PS4, fyi people saying hard drive space as a reason, er all games install (ps4/xbox1) everything on the hard drive anyway so takes up the same amount of space anyway.
BoBoThunder
Member
He will probably not defend it. He would use that point as a positive for the all-digital future. Trading in games tends to hurt the industry more than help it. and before the fangs come out - I still trade in games. Games that come out yearly (Like NHL or NBA 2K) usually get traded in during August. It just that the developers get nothing when someone buys games not new.
Omnistalgic
Member
Am I missing something here? Or are you guys not actually listening to the same podcast?
They literally said "all things being equal" I thought Greg and Colin's stance was the disdain of a digital future is unwarranted as the pros are tremendous. And if everyone internet is solid, why wouldn't we embrace it? They are talking about the future, not saying people don't have a ton of issues right now.
I don't see what at all is off putting about his stance or what all these aggressive rebuttals are about. Even if he is ignorant on some of the specifics of different regions(I know I am), I agree that digital would bring a great level of comfort and simplicity to the industry. Music and Movies are still not "all" digital, but the I don't see why the games industry shouldn't follow suit.
The only rebuttal I have to Colin is the ps4 not working thing. He could had worded it better but he's generally talking about the natural wear and tear of hardware, and how most people simply aren't gaming on machines 10 years old.
They literally said "all things being equal" I thought Greg and Colin's stance was the disdain of a digital future is unwarranted as the pros are tremendous. And if everyone internet is solid, why wouldn't we embrace it? They are talking about the future, not saying people don't have a ton of issues right now.
I don't see what at all is off putting about his stance or what all these aggressive rebuttals are about. Even if he is ignorant on some of the specifics of different regions(I know I am), I agree that digital would bring a great level of comfort and simplicity to the industry. Music and Movies are still not "all" digital, but the I don't see why the games industry shouldn't follow suit.
The only rebuttal I have to Colin is the ps4 not working thing. He could had worded it better but he's generally talking about the natural wear and tear of hardware, and how most people simply aren't gaming on machines 10 years old.
Mors_Verigo
Banned
The only advantage I see to digital is it reduces clutter and makes traveling with the system easier. I'll always prefer physical media because I don't like having all my eggs in one basket where my account could get hacked and I'd lose access to all my stuff, or a game could be pulled from the PS Store.
I just got a brand new car, and that still comes with a CD player, in 2016, so obviously there's still a market for physical media and no concern to make the transition to digital only media. And Sony would be stupid to not include disc drives in consoles for the next two generations at least, if stop at all. Getting rid of disc drives would only cost you in sales, it's smarter just to keep including them.
Plus I don't have the privilege of getting free games, so if I do buy one that I don't like, it's not a complete loss when I sell it back.
And then there's the entire retail perspective.
I just got a brand new car, and that still comes with a CD player, in 2016, so obviously there's still a market for physical media and no concern to make the transition to digital only media. And Sony would be stupid to not include disc drives in consoles for the next two generations at least, if stop at all. Getting rid of disc drives would only cost you in sales, it's smarter just to keep including them.
Plus I don't have the privilege of getting free games, so if I do buy one that I don't like, it's not a complete loss when I sell it back.
And then there's the entire retail perspective.
I've seen this from time to time, but never seen the actual argument about what is so tremendously good about an all digital future outside of convenience.
Omnistalgic
Member
For one you are downplaying convenience.
1) no trips to the store or waiting on deliveries
2) hundreds or even thousands of games under your account no collection taking up space
3) Steam prices becoming the norm on consoles
4) developers getting more of their money back
5) Likely easing the B/C going forward regardless of hardware because titles are tied to user accounts
Just off the top really, it could potentially help publishers and costs as well.
thekiddfran
Member
Yeah that was an amazing few minutes! I was laughing out loud!
ST2K
Member
1) I don't see how this is so much more convenient. I order a game from Amazon, it's waiting for me when I get home from work on launch day. Alternatively, I swing by a Gamestop on my way home. The convenience there is minimal. Ordinary gamers don't need to play it on midnight of release day.
2) Similarly, ordinary gamers do not have hundreds or thousands of games on their account. This also requires an additional cost of storage space if you actually want them on hand, or you would have to wait a significant time while it downloads after you sift through storage to find what you want to delete to make space for.
3) They already are. Console gamers seem to not notice that Steam sales have dropped in quality due to Steam not having to compete as hard as they once did, making them largely equivalent to the sales we see on PSN. Now imagine if Sony had literally no one to compete with on PS game prices!
4) The pubs/devs that release on physical media already make a ton and make more money with used games liquidating the market for people to purchase their games.
5) I thought this was a pro for digital too, and yet I couldn't play anything from my 360/PS3 library at launch. MS has rolled out limited BC now, which leaves much to be desired but is at least something. Meanwhile, Sony for some reason still hasn't added basic PS1 classic emulator support, let alone PS3 emulation. They seem more interested in renting/selling my PS3 games back to me again through remasters or PS Now than giving me the games I purchased back through BC. It seems absurd to me to assume that both companies will honor this from now on.
Digital-only gaming is so problematic, I don't know why any price-conscious consumer would be on board.
boybrushdRED
Member
Where can I find the upcoming list of PS4, PS3, PS Vita and sometimes PSP software by the Kinda Funny co-founders? I wanna know what came into the mom and grop and digital shops
Unless I'm mistaken, I think they use the Playstation Blog's Store Update.
Here is the tag for the blog's store update posts:
http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/playstation-store-update/