Is console going digital?

[thehotsung8701A]

There probably very few of us or the old school gamer that want hard copy physical disc and dvd case. I am one of the last of a dying breed. It is the reason why I'm moving to console because PC is all digital now. However I am worry that this might be a mistake. Microsoft seem to not care about physical retail copy anymore. Forza 6 ultimate edition is all digital and I worry about the future of console.

I do care if they go digital, however do you guys think that before the end of both the PS4 and X1 life cycle, that they will still produce physical copy because digital copy would make places like Gamestop, Best Buy, Walmart, Target, K-mart irrelevant. I love to have a collection of game that I never could have had as a kid due to being born in a poor family. I don't want to see console go digital even though their are pro but I think for me the con just simply out-weight it.

There a reason why there still lot of people that prefer physical books to digital books.

What do you guys think? Will physical copy still remain for the duration of both the PS4 and X1 life cycle?

 

[ImpulsE69]

Yes, console is going digital. They haven't stopped physical, but the day is coming.

 

[smackababy]

Yes, console is going digital. They haven't stopped physical, but the day is coming.

I think it will end up like PC, where physical still exists, but only to install the files, not actually play the game.

People cried about Steam like it was the end of the world in 2005. It is 10 years later and we still get people crying about it, despite it having been shown a superior delivery method.

 

[ImpulsE69]

I think for the masses all digital console will have more overall impact than with PC gamers. PC gamers were already used to not being able to return or trade in games (for the most part).

While they've been edging this way for awhile in the console world, it is going to be a rude awakening that your many games are worth pretty much zero once the next gen arrives.

Maybe not though...

 

[purbeast0]

if consoles went all digital, they'd lose about 90% of their customers, so i don't see it coming any time soon.

(yes i completely made that number up, but you're delusional if you think the majority of people download games over purchasing physical discs)

 

[thehotsung8701A]

if consoles went all digital, they'd lose about 90% of their customers, so i don't see it coming any time soon.

(yes i completely made that number up, but you're delusional if you think the majority of people download games over purchasing physical discs)

Thank you. That is the reassurance I need. Game-stop wouldn't exist if console went digital. There is no more market for physical for PC so I hope that is not the case with console, not now and not ever.

 

[ImpulsE69]

Gamestop has nothing to do with whether consoles go digital or not. They have zero say. The corporations WANT all digital because they want to remove rental and 2nd hand market. MS tried like crazy to get that to happen out of the gate with Xbox One. They aren't going to stop yet...and no I don't think console gamers will suddenly stop buying games if they can't get physical. They've already shown that many are already going digital only anyway.

 

[smackababy]

if consoles went all digital, they'd lose about 90% of their customers, so i don't see it coming any time soon.

(yes i completely made that number up, but you're delusional if you think the majority of people download games over purchasing physical discs)

I remember these exact same comments when Steam was released. People were saying HL2 was going to fail and games that didn't have physical copies wouldn't make it and that Valve was killing PC gaming. Yeah... that seemed to work out.

Digital releases are the wave of the future. It is happening.

 

[thehotsung8701A]

I remember these exact same comments when Steam was released. People were saying HL2 was going to fail and games that didn't have physical copies wouldn't make it and that Valve was killing PC gaming. Yeah... that seemed to work out.

Digital releases are the wave of the future. It is happening.

Why did you have to go and smack a baby in the mouth? :'(

 

[cmdrdredd]

if consoles went all digital, they'd lose about 90% of their customers, so i don't see it coming any time soon.

(yes i completely made that number up, but you're delusional if you think the majority of people download games over purchasing physical discs)

Yes I think this is the case as well. Most people walk into a store and browse the game section. They don't always keep up on what's hot and new (unless the store says it's a new release). Take that away and there will be fewer people buying console games. See consoles are not like the PC market so trying to use Steam as an example is kind of odd. People who own and build PCs are more knowledgeable and technical minded by and large. The average person with a console is much more casual and might not be comfortable buying a game from PSN or Xbox Live, especially if it's for a gift or with no way to return it if it's the wrong game. It's just a different demographic of people. This isn't even accounting for the whole internet thing. Data caps threaten digital distribution, streaming, and such.

 

[Anon_lawyer]

Yes I think this is the case as well. Most people walk into a store and browse the game section. They don't always keep up on what's hot and new (unless the store says it's a new release). Take that away and there will be fewer people buying console games. See consoles are not like the PC market so trying to use Steam as an example is kind of odd. People who own and build PCs are more knowledgeable and technical minded by and large. The average person with a console is much more casual and might not be comfortable buying a game from PSN or Xbox Live, especially if it's for a gift or with no way to return it if it's the wrong game. It's just a different demographic of people. This isn't even accounting for the whole internet thing. Data caps threaten digital distribution, streaming, and such.

I don't think that's right. The average person with a console also has a smart phone, and is completely comfortable with the App Store or Google Play model of buying. That's pretty analogous to the online stores for the Xbox and Playstation. Since the new generation consoles launched digital sales have been growing significantly. Anecdotally I know a growing number of people who always buy digital.

What they don't like is how digital sales often have fairly anti-consumer policies, (e.g. no returns, exchanges, resales, etc.) but that stuff is slowly changing. Steam offers refunds now, Origin has for a while. Exchanging a gift of a digital purchase should be easy to implement, but I'm not sure if anyone has. Resale might be tougher, there's money to be made if they can figure it out.

IMO what screwed Microsoft with the Xbox One launch wasn't the policies, that digital purchase system sounded great. What screwed them was that they didn't say at the end "and if you prefer physical media, you can buy that and it'll work the same way it always has." I guess that backlash might be enough to keep an optical drive in the PS5/Xbox 4, but I have to think the share of game sales that are physical is going to decline steadily.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I don't think that's right. The average person with a console also has a smart phone, and is completely comfortable with the App Store or Google Play model of buying. That's pretty analogous to the online stores for the Xbox and Playstation. Since the new generation consoles launched digital sales have been growing significantly. Anecdotally I know a growing number of people who always buy digital.

What they don't like is how digital sales often have fairly anti-consumer policies, (e.g. no returns, exchanges, resales, etc.) but that stuff is slowly changing. Steam offers refunds now, Origin has for a while. Exchanging a gift of a digital purchase should be easy to implement, but I'm not sure if anyone has. Resale might be tougher, there's money to be made if they can figure it out.

IMO what screwed Microsoft with the Xbox One launch wasn't the policies, that digital purchase system sounded great. What screwed them was that they didn't say at the end "and if you prefer physical media, you can buy that and it'll work the same way it always has." I guess that backlash might be enough to keep an optical drive in the PS5/Xbox 4, but I have to think the share of game sales that are physical is going to decline steadily.

A smart phone doesn't have disks you can buy though. Plus the apps and games are usually less than $5, not $60. Again it's a different market entirely.

Then we have rentals. Places like Blockbuster are gone but I know a few people who play maybe 30 games a year but only buy 2 because of gamefly. I know the publishers would like to remove that but I think it could hurt the industry overall because if he couldn't rent a game, they wouldn't own a console.

 

[JeffMD]

I love how people think only one form of media will live, and everything else will die.

There will be both, for the longest time. Downloading 60gb is no easy or quick feat for anyone. It is however possible, so they give such things as an option.

 

[mmntech]

I think digital will continue to complement physical releases for a while yet. At least for the next console generation. Internet infrastructure really hasn't caught up to the point where it's really viable. Especially as games get larger and ISPs get chintzy about data caps.

For example, Bell Canada's most popular package gives you 25mbps download and only a 125GB cap. A single game could blow up to a third of your monthly usage these days. There are a lot of people that don't even have access to that level of service even in wealthy countries. Rural rollout has been painfully slow. A buddy of mine, who lives in the country a couple miles outside the Greater Toronto Area, just got wired broadband access last year.

Improvements are coming but rollout has been very slow, and packages with more (or unlimited) data remain too expensive for most people.

The other problem with digital on console is the lack of competition. As we've seen, games on console digital store fronts rarely go on sale. When they do, the sales usually aren't that great. Older titles will also remain at their full MSRP months, sometimes years after their release. The situation will only get worse once GameStop is out of the picture and console makers have a complete monopoly on the supply chain. It offers little benefit to consumers other than convenience.

Digital works on PC mostly because there's plenty of competing storefronts. That's kept prices low and sales frequent. Steam is the biggest retailer but they certainly do not have a monopoly. Nowhere near it. This is also why the lack of second hand games isn't an issue. With frequent sales, there's just no need for them.

 

[TeknoBug]

If console games going 100% digital, then it is bad news for me and many others due to ISP cap limits. Games are getting larger by the year and caps are getting lower with a bigger pricetag, My last cable ISP I was with since 1997 to 2014 used to be unlimited then they put on a 250GB limit then a few years later 120GB limit and raising costs which prompted me to switch ISP and now I have a 250GB limit and I use half that (last 2 months were ~160GB used) just watching Netflix/CraveTV and using the internet (surfing and downloading updates), I haven't downloaded a game in months. Lots of countries around the world barely even have the luxury cable/DSL speed or even with reasonable rates.

Just like purbeast0 said, going 100% digital will lose a fair chunk of customers, not 90% but fairly high and GameStop/EBgames would go out of business once they can't sell old used games anymore.

Steam is big due to most of those indie and nostalgia titles for $10 or so.

 

[Lil Frier]

if consoles went all digital, they'd lose about 90% of their customers, so i don't see it coming any time soon.

(yes i completely made that number up, but you're delusional if you think the majority of people download games over purchasing physical discs)

I think you're underestimating how many consumers are sheep. They MIGHT lose 25%, with the rest just taking making due with digital. It's not like they'd have a physical alternative to go with anyway.

Personally, I don't want to go digital. Trading in games at Best Buy and making use of its GCU benefits basically paid for 75% of my gaming last year, maybe even more. If they went all-digital, I'd just have to learn to transition with them. I'm not just going to give up gaming over the matter, and I'm not going to switch to all-PC gaming when the games I play the most (particularly Halo) aren't on PC.

I still wouldn't be surprised to see Microsoft turn the Xbox into a Steam Machine-like experience. Lock down the hardware to idiot-proof the matter, then make the Xbox OS go from a multi-OS setup to just being W10 with an Xbox-specific skin on top. Honestly, I think that would make more sense than sticking with special boxes and operating systems. The only issue you'd have then is sorting people in multiplayer by input method (controller vs mouse+keyboard).

 

[KentState]

Yes I think this is the case as well. Most people walk into a store and browse the game section. They don't always keep up on what's hot and new (unless the store says it's a new release). Take that away and there will be fewer people buying console games. See consoles are not like the PC market so trying to use Steam as an example is kind of odd. People who own and build PCs are more knowledgeable and technical minded by and large. The average person with a console is much more casual and might not be comfortable buying a game from PSN or Xbox Live, especially if it's for a gift or with no way to return it if it's the wrong game. It's just a different demographic of people. This isn't even accounting for the whole internet thing. Data caps threaten digital distribution, streaming, and such.

Steam, GMG, Origin and others also heavily discount games even before release. Looking at the PS or Xbox store and you see 6 month old games at full price, while Amazon has them for $19.

Also with growing game sizes and stagnant data caps from the larger ISP's, it will not help the transition. For example, I hit my cap on the 20th of the month. Costs me $10 for every 50GB extra. That's a premium on anything that I would want to download on the console, while I can pick up a disk and not worry.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Steam, GMG, Origin and others also heavily discount games even before release. Looking at the PS or Xbox store and you see 6 month old games at full price, while Amazon has them for $19.

Also with growing game sizes and stagnant data caps from the larger ISP's, it will not help the transition. For example, I hit my cap on the 20th of the month. Costs me $10 for every 50GB extra. That's a premium on anything that I would want to download on the console, while I can pick up a disk and not worry.

Right because Steam competes with other services and distribution methods. PSN and XBL don't have to. The retailers want to move stock so they start pricing games lower as they get older and less popular. There's no incentive for digital distribution channels to do that and when there is no competition, they can set whatever prices they want. I imagine too that collectors editions with statues and art books will factor into physical copies of games staying relevant.

 

[KentState]

Right because Steam competes with other services and distribution methods. PSN and XBL don't have to. The retailers want to move stock so they start pricing games lower as they get older and less popular. There's no incentive for digital distribution channels to do that and when there is no competition, they can set whatever prices they want. I imagine too that collectors editions with statues and art books will factor into physical copies of games staying relevant.

Agree. I guess what I was getting at is that digital for PC gaming is successful because competition still exists. Until that happens, I don't see myself adopting digital 100%.

 

[JeffMD]

A large part of the console market runs on lower speed connections, much of the country is under data caps, and a large part of the console market is also run under second hand games or steep markdowns on old titles. With most of this gone with digital only releases, people would simply not buy the console, looking for alternatives like PC where you can even trade digital games on steam.

Hey wait a minute....

 

[cbrunny]

Yes I think this is the case as well. Most people walk into a store and browse the game section. They don't always keep up on what's hot and new (unless the store says it's a new release). Take that away and there will be fewer people buying console games. See consoles are not like the PC market so trying to use Steam as an example is kind of odd. People who own and build PCs are more knowledgeable and technical minded by and large. The average person with a console is much more casual and might not be comfortable buying a game from PSN or Xbox Live, especially if it's for a gift or with no way to return it if it's the wrong game. It's just a different demographic of people. This isn't even accounting for the whole internet thing. Data caps threaten digital distribution, streaming, and such.

Ignore that the internet exists and is a plethora of shopping opportunity, and reviews, YouTube, social media, digital magazines, etc exist and you're 100% correct.

 

[thehotsung8701A]

I don't think that's right. The average person with a console also has a smart phone, and is completely comfortable with the App Store or Google Play model of buying. That's pretty analogous to the online stores for the Xbox and Playstation. Since the new generation consoles launched digital sales have been growing significantly. Anecdotally I know a growing number of people who always buy digital.

What they don't like is how digital sales often have fairly anti-consumer policies, (e.g. no returns, exchanges, resales, etc.) but that stuff is slowly changing. Steam offers refunds now, Origin has for a while. Exchanging a gift of a digital purchase should be easy to implement, but I'm not sure if anyone has. Resale might be tougher, there's money to be made if they can figure it out.

IMO what screwed Microsoft with the Xbox One launch wasn't the policies, that digital purchase system sounded great. What screwed them was that they didn't say at the end "and if you prefer physical media, you can buy that and it'll work the same way it always has." I guess that backlash might be enough to keep an optical drive in the PS5/Xbox 4, but I have to think the share of game sales that are physical is going to decline steadily.

Steam refund suck. You only get a 2 hours window unless they change it? Having to deal with origin or steam and learn about their refund policy is a hassle.

 

[ImpulsE69]

If console games going 100% digital, then it is bad news for me and many others due to ISP cap limits. Games are getting larger by the year and caps are getting lower with a bigger pricetag, My last cable ISP I was with since 1997 to 2014 used to be unlimited then they put on a 250GB limit then a few years later 120GB limit and raising costs which prompted me to switch ISP and now I have a 250GB limit and I use half that (last 2 months were ~160GB used) just watching Netflix/CraveTV and using the internet (surfing and downloading updates), I haven't downloaded a game in months. Lots of countries around the world barely even have the luxury cable/DSL speed or even with reasonable rates.

Just like purbeast0 said, going 100% digital will lose a fair chunk of customers, not 90% but fairly high and GameStop/EBgames would go out of business once they can't sell old used games anymore.

Steam is big due to most of those indie and nostalgia titles for $10 or so.

This still exists for PC users and it hasn't slowed them down. The fact exists that if a game only exists on digital and people want it, they will buy it digital. They may not like the idea, but it will happen eventually.

On the flip side of that though, I rarely hook my consoles up to the internet...but it's getting to the point where you are forced to do that to get updates before it will even let you do anything...so....there we go.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Ignore that the internet exists and is a plethora of shopping opportunity, and reviews, YouTube, social media, digital magazines, etc exist and you're 100% correct.

Have you interacted with the average video game buyer? I have, both in retail and outside of it. Most people who play games are absolutely clueless about the games they like. They don't follow when there's a beta, don't see a game until the store advertises, haven't watched any videos, don't know about E3, & barely know what games are coming this Fall/Winter. Ask the average person what they think of Fallout 4 (and I'm not talking about people who are on internet forums all the time) and they probably won't know much about it if they knew it was coming at all.

The types of gamers who browse the news sites and check in at forums are the minority of people buying games. Most gamers get their info from their GameInformer subscription or what they see or hear about in the store.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Steam refund suck. You only get a 2 hours window unless they change it? Having to deal with origin or steam and learn about their refund policy is a hassle.

You can tell if the game is bad in the first couple hours. Especially if you are smart enough to know the refund policy exists and can do your own research before the purchase.