Doctor Hades
Member
I am not sure that Phil Spencer is being entirely truthful because ever since the disastrous unveiling of the Xbox One with its TV! TV! TV! showcase and the 24 hour online verification requirement (which they backtracked on that required a very lengthy day one firmware update to fix it), it seemed to me like Microsoft has been pushing toward being digital only and, of course, they are are always going on about what great value GamePass is as a digital service. Also, there have been many reports of Xbox Series X|S games shipping on discs with just a launcher/installer that then downloads the game! I no longer buy Xbox Series X games on disc, not because I don't want to, but because if it isn't a disc with a 250 MB launcher then it's just a code in a box.
It stands to reason that they want the Xbox to be an all-digital platform because then they would have complete control over games pricing and would do away with second-hand games sales which they obviously do not profit from.
At some point, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft will go all-digital and discs will disappear. That will be a sad day indeed. I am fine with all-digital on PC where I can shop around for cheap third-party keys but on console we will be stuck with their store pricing which means that all three can charge whatever they like. This is why I continue to buy PS5 on discs where I have a physical item, often cheaper than the digital version, a sense of ownership and something I can sell on at a later date. I get none of that with a digital library.
It stands to reason that they want the Xbox to be an all-digital platform because then they would have complete control over games pricing and would do away with second-hand games sales which they obviously do not profit from.
At some point, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft will go all-digital and discs will disappear. That will be a sad day indeed. I am fine with all-digital on PC where I can shop around for cheap third-party keys but on console we will be stuck with their store pricing which means that all three can charge whatever they like. This is why I continue to buy PS5 on discs where I have a physical item, often cheaper than the digital version, a sense of ownership and something I can sell on at a later date. I get none of that with a digital library.
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