Physical Games are still the future of gaming, people! Remember the good old days when you went to your local game store and bought a game. After you completed that game, you decided, “Hey, I want to get a new one.” So you traded that game in for a brand new game or at least $5 credit at your local GameStop. Well, those days are still heavily upon us, and I believe for a very long time. Yes, digital games are rapidly becoming the mainstream, especially with Steam and Xbox Game Pass present. However, not many developers and companies are shying away from the physical games market. Distribution for physical games are still high while having plenty of retailers still selling copies daily. So it doesn’t seem like it is going away soon. For the time being, there are still many benefits to owning physical games today.
Yes, it may be inconvenient at times, especially if you’re changing a disc out to play, and it could break or doesn’t play. However, don’t count out the power of the disc and the wonders it could have in your gaming library. The material is not scarce or lacking if you look at the Xbox or PlayStation department. Both the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 will be supporting disk drives. So why are physical games still around? Well, the explanations are quite reasonable and straightforward.
Sharing Is Caring
Remember when Microsoft had its very controversial E3 back in 2013? Well, the Xbox One was meant to keep the momentum going after the Xbox 360 highly praised reception. Instead, it became a disaster with policies including always online and an audacious borrowing system while being $100 more than the PlayStation 4. It was such a disaster that Sony made a clip on how to borrow games on the PS4. So yeah, wasn’t Microsoft’s finest hour. However, that’s the thing that makes physical games so great—the ability to share games with your friends. You know, sharing is caring. Thus, you and your friends can both save money. Let’s face it, games are expensive, and it helps to have a friend you can trust in borrowing games. Digital doesn’t have this luxury, which is a good reason for why physical games are still around.
The Power Of Resale
Resale apps like Offer Up, Mercari, and eBay are great ways to get money back from physical games.
This may not make a difference to many people who hoard their video games or value their game collection. You know, the ones who make awesome videos on YouTube about how they have every game imaginable. Anyone who is not like that or those who don’t care to own the outdated versions of sports games. The resale is still present. Not only that, but you have more options than you think. Yeah, it is easier to sell to GameStop for about $3 in store credit and a bag of chips, but there are more options. In this day and age, resale apps like Offer Up and Mercari are more prevalent today than before. Think of it as a virtual garage sale. You can easily get your money back or at least part of your money back.
This also works if you are looking to buy new games as well, with most games having a markdown of 15% of its retail value in stores. So yes, the versatility is there for you to make money back after you complete a game. If you buy digital, the likelihood of getting that game at a discount price is scarce. You may have to wait for a sale occur, but if it’s a newer game, you will be out of luck because usually, that doesn’t happen. Another downside to buying digital is the inability to return or trade a game once you buy it. If you find out you don’t like the game, you are stuck in the mud.
Why Are Games Different Than Music Or Movies?
Music and Movies are more accessible than before. Why are games different?
The ’90s and 2000s were a different time back then. Not only the introduction of grunge music and baggy jeans, but rental stores like Blockbuster were the norm back then. You can rent a video game or movie to enjoy at your home, meaning you will have to get off your butt and drive over to the nearest location to check it out. The same goes for music. You could play CDs on your CD Player. Today, thanks to the power of the internet, smartphones, and streaming services, that is a thing of the past. It’s so much more convenient now to buy songs on the Apple Store or streaming movies on Netflix. So why aren’t games the same way? Well, video games lack the versatility of those other media.
What sets apart music and movies from video games is accessibility. The primary method of streaming music is through your phone; it’s the number one source for music apps like Spotify and Tidal. Listening to music is one click away. The same goes for movies; there is no need to download movies when you can stream them easily from your TV or phone. Now video games are different because if you decide to buy a game digitally, you still have to download it onto your hard drive.
However, there are breakthroughs in game streaming, but Google Stadia is not replacing an Xbox or PlayStation anytime soon, and Microsoft’s xCloud, despite unique, is still relatively new. Besides, gaming is much more comfortable played on a TV at home. Also, consider that a phone can rely on the support of LTE or 5G services to still stream movies or music without the need for WiFi.
So Are Physical Games Still The Future Of Gaming?
I wouldn’t say it is the future of gaming because it never really left. Physical games are still prominent in the gaming industry. Nothing to take away from digital games, but if I am trying to decide between the physical or digital next-gen, I am shelling out $100-200 extra for the physical edition because there are many physical game advantages. Besides, you get the best of both worlds with physical and digital games going this route. So why limit yourself? Let’s face it: not everyone will have the luxury of WiFi at their house or crisp high-speed internet.
Also, digital games are at risk of being lost for good if the platform decides to shut down operations. With physical games, you have control over what happens in the future, not the corporation. So you can hold on to those precious PS3 games for the foreseeable future, especially if backwards compatibility is not available in next-gen consoles. Physical games are always here to be played and enjoyed. The ability to share with your friends, multiple resale methods, and physical games’ accessibility are why they will still be around for many years to come.
Do you think physical games will still be around in the future? Leave your comments below.
John d'oh
Heres my experience with digital gaming. Oh wait i dont have any because my old microsoft account got banned or hacked and deleted. I have no clue what happened to it. What i do know is that i lost hundreds of dollars because the DLCs and digital games i bought werent physical. F**k digital gaming. Anyone who says its the future is a moron. I will NEVER buy another DLC unless its included on a disk. And i damn well will never buy a completely digital game. I was looking forward to that diablo ressurected remaster. Too bad its only digital. Lost my money. I really hope this stupidity doesnt become the norm. A very vocal minority insists its the future and i insist they shut the f**k up and stop poisoning the well with their nonsense. I can imagine developers reading comments and believing this BS. Youre shooting yourself in the foot if you go all digital. You will lose millions of sales.
Fa8
you are 100% accurate, if its not physical its BS. The industry is swaying back to physical, just ask Limited Run, Strictly Limited and the numerous other physical game distributors popping up all over the world now. Digital is dead. They’ve screwed one too many people and as they continue to shut down servers and sell us incomplete software as finished product the digital realm will fade as it is currently doing now.
John Doe
“but if I am trying to decide between the physical or digital next-gen, I am shelling out $100-200 extra for the physical edition”
LOL, you ARE NOT the norm. All-digital is coming…get over it. And if you think you’re buying the full game when you buy a disc now, you’re an idiot. That hasn’t been the case for over a decade…longer on PC. What do you think the “mandatory day-1 update” on all your games is for?
John d'oh
im curious why you hate physical games so much. How do physical games effect you? They shouldnt. Youre just downloading codes Theres no shortages for codes. The only people this negatively effects are people who prefer having physical games. Its literally two wolves and a lamb deciding whats for dinner. The two wolves being game developers and people like you who hate physical games for some bizarre unexplainable reason. You must be a troll or a game developer. You act like physical games are a somehow detrimental to you when youre the real detriment. You want to eliminate physical games. Literally no one who plays physical games wants to eliminate you digital doofuses. We just want you to stop lying about it being the future because people actually believe your lies and dont make physical games. Youre a trolly. A troll and a bully.
John d'oh
Its the same talking points over and over with you people. I dont care if the disk doesnt include the full game. I dont pay full price for them anyways. Sell me a fraction of a game i pay a fraction of the price. What i care about is if something happens to my account i dont have to re purchase all my games.
John d'oh
Theres some games that i will pay full price for, but i usually wait one or two weeks to see how well its received. I dont do pre orders or day one purchases anymore. You keep releasing broken games. I know its because theyre complex nowadays but thats another self inflicted injury. I was fine with the cheesy old school graphics of morrowind or doom. I dont want photorealism in all my games. I dont have the storage for that shit. Games are on average 50gb a piece. And i have a basic xbox one with 250gb. What the hell was microsoft thinking. They knew that wasnt enough storage because they released a $100 external hard drive that attaches right to the side of it. Just milk all the money you can from me. Jesus. This industry is in shambles and its all self inflicted. All digital might be the killing blow. Ill stop buying modern games at that point. Shit i already have. I think the most modern game i have is hades. Ive been buying a lot of classic games. Like hitman, max payne, deus ex. Youve lost your magic videogame industry..
John d'oh
I didnt know id have to install all my games on this generatoin. If i knew that and knew the average game was 50gb i would have waited for the series x to come out. I dont plan on buying an xbox one x. Im going to wait a few years until they inevitably release a slightly better one. Hopefully with 2 or 3 terabytes in it. Right now im just buying a bunch of og xbox and 360 games because theyre megabytes to a few gigabytes big. I can pack it with old games. It seems kind of scummy that microsoft would make a console with so little storage. 250gb… Really? Thats 5 games. I have 13. And only 3 are installed. Then i have like 30 og and 360 games. No wonder they did backwards compatibility so well. Thats all i can play. I should have listened to my friend saying get the 500gb. But thats still not enough. If microsoft goes all digital theyll lose a customer. At that point ill just buy a pc, transfer all my games. And start playing there. Then i can also get into emulation and play some interesting PC exclusives. Why use a console if its trying to be an inferior PC? If i could download games off steam maybe id keep playing on it. Let me play some OSRS on my xbox.
John d'oh
Microsoft needs to just go all out with their next console. They need to create a disk drive that has multiple lasers in it to read multiple disks. When you put a disk in it goes through a quick cycle with each laser until it finds the one that reads the disk and locks that one in place. F**k asking for the publishers permission to make a game backwards compatible. I bought it and you broke it for what? Theres so many good games just collecting dust for no good reason. Sometimes its not even the publishers fault because sometimes the publisher doesnt exist anymore. Microsoft should keep digital copies of every single OG and 360 game. Not for you to install. No. Play them like they were played on the original console. Straight off the disk. And saves in your hard drive. But keep a digital version for people with scratched up disks to download. Or if people just prefer the digital version. I bought a used copy of hitman blood money and im 100% sure that disk would not be readable. Its like someone dropped it on the ground and kicked it across the concrete. I bought it off amazon for $1 + $3.99 s&h. But it runs fine because its not reading the disk. I agree that digital games have benefits. I do not agree with an all digital future. Its a waste of storage and is making game devs lazy. Another problem with digital games is instead of the scratches causing my game to freeze it kicks me out of the game every time my internet hiccups. this happens a lot with blood money. Ill be just about to finish a mission and lose connection. It forces you to quit even if you regain your connection. Its annoying at least and a massive waste of money at worst