Over 70% of all game sales in 2022 were digital downloads

[FireHazard51 | 2,044]

14 minutes ago, Gloves said:

It's not a stupid reason, it's pretty valid. A lot of people care about clutter and reducing peripherals. Once we get into like, even just 2 generations of consoles, suddenly them all having external disc drives becomes a ridiculous mess. 

And yes of course they'd implement some manner of DRM, but you're really underestimating how easy it is to backwards-engineer USB connections specifically. They COULD have some manner of proprietary connection, a la Apple dongles, but then we have a bunch of external drives that ONLY work in that connection for just that console and... well like the people in that thread say - flashbacks to the XBox HD DVD drives. 

You're talking about yet another eventual landfill-filler trash peripheral, and we've all already been there. I'm not saying they won't release an external disc drive ever, but it is a poor option by a number of metrics, and I don't personally think that will be the primary solution to the digital-forward trend in the near future.

I've never said it was a "good idea" just that it WILL be a thing.  I gave one positive aspect of an external drive, ease of replacement.  For the most part the people on that thread are just yelling about how they hate what it will mean.  That digital only will come shortly afterwards.  I think this guy gets it.  External drives are just the last stepping stone to digital only consoles.  Make external drives cost $150 and see the vast majority of console owners skip that purchase.  If there is little market for disc based game sales then publishers won't make them, and less people will buy an external drive.  This is why Sony is going this route.  Whatever they can do to make the market switch to digital only they will do.  

[Brickman | 3,994]

7 hours ago, FireHazard51 said:

If you want to see it really impact a console then look at the PSVR.  The vast majority of games are digital only.  I'm hoping that PSVR2 will try and reverse that trend but if PS5 games in general are going digital then so will PSVR2.

I do think physical games will be a thing because there is profit to be made with physical releases.  More than digital?  Probably not but someone will not skip over making money.  I do expect they will become limited in number of copies made physical and maybe even a bump in cost.  

I mean are we really going to complain if a console has a physical release of 3,000+ games to about 1,000+ games?  I know I could do without shelve ware games being made physical.  I only have issues when great games don't get physical releases because with time those games will be very difficult to get and play.  I recently had an issue with buying digital games on PS3.  I was avoiding purchasing a physical copy due to time and cost (also I own the game on another console) and it was a pain.  Six months prior it would have been impossible had Sony kept to their initial idea of closing the servers down.  So I do appreciate the physical games.  But lets not forget how many games are damn near unplayable based on the version found on the physical copy.

I think physical game collecting will go the way of other media like vinyl and DVD/Blu Ray collectors. 

It will be a niche market but they will be supported because the returns are good and easy to add in. I’d be surprised if a physical option for a console ever really disappears but it definitely will be a niche to collect for imo.

[FireHazard51 | 2,044]

2 minutes ago, Brickman said:

I think physical game collecting will go the way of other media like vinyl and DVD/Blu Ray collectors. 

It will be a niche market but they will be supported because the returns are good and easy to add in. I’d be surprised if a physical option for a console ever really disappears but it definitely will be a niche to collect for imo.

Like vinyl, I'll buy it for the cool artwork but still not actually use it since I'll have a digital version to use instead 

[PekoponTAS | 171]

Joke's on the industry, as I've abandoned it anyway. 2018 was the last year I cared about new releases.

Edited December 29, 2022 by PekoponTAS

[PII | 1,886]

Let's just start over.

[Tabonga | 2,324]

5 minutes ago, PII said:

Let's just start over.

 

 

[PekoponTAS | 171]

We can't start over. Reset buttons don't exist anymore.

[PII | 1,886]

@Tabonga Now fast-forward a little bit..

@PekoponTASThat's a dangerous precedent.  Imagine if other things stopped having reset buttons.

[CodysGameRoom | 2,008]

I look forward to enjoying my physical copy of Tears of the Kingdom when it arrives. I put over 200 hours into Breath of the Wild and consider it an excellent game!

[OptOut | 8,889]

I'm pretty agnostic when it comes to physical vs. digital purchases. I have plenty of 3DS and Switch games downloaded, I also have plenty of 3DS and Switch games physical... There is no real logic to which games I buy physical vs. digital, often it's whether I'm out and about and see the game I want, or whether I'm buying it for my kids, in which case I will usually buy the physical.

BUT, definitely, the games I most want to play, DAY ONE, I will usually download them. I downloaded games like BOTW, Mario Oddessy, Mario 3D world and Metroid DREAD, so I could play them straight away. I am planning on downloading BOTW2 and Metroid Prime 4 day one too.

[Tyree_Cooper | 757]

and the remaining 30% were sales of graded games

[dr.robbie | 78]

I'm curious where the hobby will be in 10-20 years. Personally, I think the whole concept of "owning" a game will be phased out and it will become some combination of digital only, limited-time ownership, and microtransactions. Something similar to a streaming service with premium options / time-limited passes. It really just makes sense for the companies as it's cheaper than physical and the profit for smaller purchases and subscription type services surely outweigh one-and-done purchases. Plus, they get to circumvent retail stores / shipping / release issues. Not to mention that they don't profit at all from second-hand sales from physical copies.

 

I'm definitely in the stubborn category though as I don't enjoy digital only games at all. I was gifted a couple of digital switch games and it just feels empty. I mean, they are on the system and I could play them at any time I guess, but I never even think about them and don't consider them games I own at all. I just see them sometimes when I'm scrolling on the screen and think, oh yeah, they exist...

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

I'm secretly OK with most things moving to digital only at this point, the physical/retail market is becoming so predatory against collecting sorts that I'd rather just remove the option so I don't have to worry about my OCD, just me though.

[MrWunderful | 2,927]

Ill stay with physical for anything tht came on a cart, but digital for all current gen. Switch it depends on how impatient I am. 

[DefaultGen | 5,413]

I'm surprised the consoles haven't just ripped the band aid off already. Physical PC games limped on with physical releases for a few years while people clutched their DVDs, but beyond special limited editions and Walmart slot machine games everyone just buys digital and no one bats an eye anymore. Let people complain and protest for 2 years, then everyone will forget and just play the next Halo or whatever.

[Tanooki | 4,936]

Odds are this 70% is a cozy media and pro-third party game maker headline than actual reality.  (aka: click bait)

I'm sure this includes tens of millions of downloads on formats that only are digital or very largely are (iOS, Android, Steam/GoG/etc-PC, digital only variants of consoles.)

What if you ran a fair comparison of game systems that use physical media and show how many physical copies vs digital copies were purchased within a format?  70% hardly I'm sure.  Yes there's the lazy factor, and those who don't care they don't own it at all either, and these would push a pretty considerable percentage for sure.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,547]

I feel like your average non-hardcore collector or zoomer has no interest in physical games.  

Especially in the current climate where living space is pricey so people are "decluttering"

Just like I don't see anyone I know buying physical music or movies.

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

23 minutes ago, Reed Rothchild said:

I feel like your average non-hardcore collector or zoomer has no interest in physical games.  

Especially in the current climate where living space is pricey so people are "decluttering"

Just like I don't see anyone I know buying physical music or movies.

I don't really feel decluttering is the main driver here, I think it's just that we're becoming wired to everything being instant and easy to use, physical media has benefits but it is less convenient. 

[PekoponTAS | 171]

There are downsides to physical games too. I've now bought THREE copies of Mario and Sonic 2014 Olympics that don't work, and I'm waiting on my fourth one. Though it's not available digitally anyway, so it's a poor example.

The current state of Gamestop makes it pretty clear that physical media is slowing down, but not dead yet. The PSPGo failed due to being ahead of its time, but an all digital console is clearly something Sony wants to do. Internet accessibility holds it back though, as well as people who aren't computer savvy.

I think something that's being overlooked though is that 30% of game sales were physical. For those of you who play Pokemon seriously, you know that the 30% burn chance from scald is something to bank on. I'm also sure that many of you discount shoppers will roll your eyes at a 20% discount, but will start paying attention once it hits 30%.

30% is a big number, so physical games still make quite a lot of money that isn't made digitally. The Christmas shopping season is what many games strive to bank on too, and it's not quite as thrilling to unwrap a download code.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,547]

27 minutes ago, goldenpp72 said:

I don't really feel decluttering is the main driver here, I think it's just that we're becoming wired to everything being instant and easy to use, physical media has benefits but it is less convenient. 

Maybe it's just people around me, but I feel like that's all the rage: making a home that's barren and feels like no one lives there.

[MrWunderful | 2,927]

1 hour ago, Reed Rothchild said:

Maybe it's just people around me, but I feel like that's all the rage: making a home that's barren and feels like no one lives there.

Minimalism looks great on social media. 

[Andy_Bogomil | 815]

Definitely gonna see a skew of opinions on a collecting/gaming site but digital will be the way to go moving forward, especially as we get into more free-to-play games, and games with 'seasons' etc. that get built upon with DLC instead of a new disc/cart. I'm honestly not even sure how consoles outside of the Switch are gonna remain relevant after next gen unless something groundbreaking happens. The Switch tapped into the mobile/quick to play market with the Nintendo brand of games where I think we're starting to see the diminishing return aspect start to creep in with the other home consoles compared to a gaming PC. Even with the Switch, I see more people going digital for various reasons including clutter of carrying around games and the ease of digital DLs.

It doesn't matter much to me these days as I don't play very many games and buy even fewer. I could see myself getting a gaming PC in a few years and never buying a physical game again. I'll keep at it with the Switch and potentially for the next Nintendo console, but I definitely see digital games all but erasing physical gaming media in the next 10 years or so... it's gonna be the Sony/Xbox online shop/streaming. It's pretty tough to find music or movies around anymore. Even places like Best Buy have a tiny shelf with the latest 2 or 3 blockbuster movies and maybe a few CDs.

 

 

 

[Brickman | 3,994]

3 hours ago, Reed Rothchild said:

I feel like your average non-hardcore collector or zoomer has no interest in physical games.  

Especially in the current climate where living space is pricey so people are "decluttering"

Just like I don't see anyone I know buying physical music or movies.

I believe the stats.

I have no kids but a few nephews and their whole Switch library is digital. The concept of having a physical collection doesn’t even register for them growing up in a Netflix and Spotify world.

Also most of the kids here are walking out of eb games with a pop vinyl, not a physical game.

[Tulpa | 3,514]

4 hours ago, goldenpp72 said:

I don't really feel decluttering is the main driver here, I think it's just that we're becoming wired to everything being instant and easy to use, physical media has benefits but it is less convenient. 

Yeah, convenience is the main driving factor.

You buy a physical game which entails going to a store or waiting at least a day for Amazon or whoever to send. You pop it in, and what's the first thing that happens?

You have to download updates.

For the same money, you could just download the whole thing in one go at home.

For most consumers, it's really no contest.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,547]

1 hour ago, Tulpa said:

Yeah, convenience is the main driving factor.

You buy a physical game which entails going to a store or waiting at least a day for Amazon or whoever to send. You pop it in, and what's the first thing that happens?

You have to download updates.

For the same money, you could just download the whole thing in one go at home.

For most consumers, it's really no contest.

Supply, as well.  I was in Target two days ago and the Switch stock was a pretty sorry sight.  Some mother was looking for Smash Ultimate and ended up going with the digital code card thing.