Convenience : For those who play up to 5 games in one gaming session, putting down the DualShock 4, getting off the seat and changing game discs every now and then can be inconvenient. With digital copies, you can always re-download your games whenever you want. This is one of the greatest advantages of buying digital copies of PS4 games, your PlayStation Plus subscription gives you access to crazy discounts.
As good as owning games in digital format looks, there are also disadvantages and this is where owning physical game discs shines. In some cases, you only need to add a little of cash to swap your pre-owned disc for a new game. Less space on HDD : For some of us with just GB of disk space on our consoles, buying physical copies seem to conserve that limited space better.
This is probably the biggest edge buying discs have over getting digital copies of your games from PSN. For some, owning discs is preferably seen as the better option. You have no hope of lending that game to a friend, and if anyone else in the house wants to play your downloaded copy, they have to inconveniently log in as you. Some digital copies also have draconian DRM restrictions. For platforms like PC, this is largely irrelevant seeing as most disc copies have the same restrictions.
Usually, this announcement for a game meets with backlash, like when Diablo III stated that internet connections would be a requirement, even for single player. There has even been debacles like EA releasing copies of the new Sim City game that no one could play for months at a time. My Xbox broke and I waited a solid five years before jumping back into contemporary gaming. As soon as I got all the installs and updates done, I went and downloaded Geometry Wars 2.
It was like I had never left. GTA 4 and Fallout 3, on the other other hand, I had sold a year after my first broke. The games were lying around reminding me of their potential value while wasting space. Which brings me to my next point…. Storing physical games honestly feels like a minor point. The only problem stems from physical games that somehow become lost or damaged. This occurrence is a rarity in my experience, but it does happen. A digital copy is largely not at risk of siappearing unless it is tied to the console like the Wii.
As for hard drive storage, I find this to not really be an issue only because I happen to keep a limited amount of digital files actually downloaded. I have lots of titles on Steam that I got as part of a bundle, but I only downloaded and played the ones I was interested in.
As for access, while I like the tactile sensation of switching cartridges or discs, I also find it neat to press a few buttons on my Xbox to start playing a completely different game. This capability feels very futuristic to me, and it makes me understand why Microsoft wanted to emphasize the media versatility of the Xbone at press conferences.
With physical copies, you get to cruise around in a store and look at their selection. Midnight releases also seem exciting. All in all, I love the purchase experience of buying a game at a local store or on eBay. You know who your money is changing hands to. While these trips never resulted in an impulse sale, the potential did entice me. How much games cost is my major reason for waffling on the digital vs physical debate. For the most part, digital games are too damn expensive.
The lack of resale capability means that the content providers got you by the balls. Games like Minecraft stay the same price for years because no one is around to drive prices down after they get tired of it.
The PC version has actually increased in price several times. Minecraft might be a horrible example because the game is constantly being improved and updated.
It exists in a weird flux. A version of the game from over a year ago is completely unlike what people play now. However, Minecraft for the recently came out on disc. You can update it whenever you like. This odd combo status makes Minecraft an interesting case study: no definitive version of the game exists, yet you can go out and buy a disc of it.
Physical game prices almost always go down, by comparison. Buying and selling physical copies of SNES, NES, N64, and any other old-school games can be a fun, multi-faceted experience, with some great games occasionally turning up dirt cheap.
Nintendo has an iron-tight grip on their digital IP, though, making collecting digital copies of their classics much less budget-friendly than their vintage counterparts. Yet, there are many exceptions. The only trade-off is you do not have the beauty of having an actual cartridge of the game in your house. There is one other glaring exception when it comes to digital prices: sales. After downloading both of the Arkham games, I looked up their prices online, which were only a few bucks cheaper.
I was remiss at not having a case or a manual, but I was also pleased at buying them on a whim at one in the morning. I got to play them right then and there instead of having to wait for some dill-hole to ship them five days later.
Overall, I still prefer physical copies. In contrast to what I might have said a few years ago, I have begun to come around to digital games. It redefines ownership, and not necessarily in a bad way. In the end, I will always buy copies of games that I care about. What does everyone else think? He collects old video games and once lied about owning Ride to Hell: Retribution as a cheap punch line.
The convenience of digital downloads is just to much to pass up on. So many games nowadays requires that you be connected to a server to play, and in order to connect to that server you agree to the companies terms—which they will not hesitate to ban you for violating.
I own a physical copy of Chromehounds for the for all the good it does me since they shut the servers down several years ago.
I think the debate is more often one of a fear of change. If console gamers who have never experienced the joy that is a Steam sale had access to such, I think many pro-disk minds will be swayed away.
I have started to download a lot more games because of the Xbox live free game downloads twice a month which is more than paying for the cost of Xbox live. For years I was a console gamer and obviously during that time I was also entirely a physical game owner.
Rather you own the disc itself. When I first built my pc, I bought a few games physically because I had no intention of buying digitally. But the reality of it was that when I put in the disc, what ended up happening was that they all just gave me a key for steam and a few could be used as a install source.
The nonsteam games were used as keys, you needed the disc in the drive to play, but not because the data was read from the disc, because it had already been unpacked and installed, rather it used it as an authenticator. Back when the Xbox One was announced, one of the hated features was that discs would be basically just installers.
It was a change that showed just how easy it is to negate ownership with physical as it is digitally. Rather, they just own the disc. Said disc can be lost, stolen, damaged as well.
You still own the disc, only the distinction is that you can still lose access to the game even with the disc. And as somebody has mentioned below, this could easily also occur if you needed online access and some account to play anyway. So how does one be secure in their access. Well, the people that go on all of the time about the evil publishers taking away access to digital games, seem more than willing to trust them with physical media.
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