Sony: Gamers Don't Want Digital "Right Now"

[Dr.Awkward]

Don't get me wrong, but I'm pretty sure most people just want something that works immediately and easily as this...

Spoiler

<img src=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/Super_Nintendo_Entertainment_System-USA.png>

 

[Covarr]

I don't like this digital crap, it's very ... dull. I still, all these years later, get a little thrill and excitement picking up the empty box, walking to the counter, paying then making my home to play it.

With digital it's just a matter of purchase, download and play ... there is no sense of grandeur or build up, you could say "what about watching the download meter increase" and to that I say "you know this...

I quite agree. The physical element to it adds a sense of satisfaction that you just can't get from something purely digital. It feels fresher, newer, like you have something you didn't before.

I will always prefer having a physical copy, i like how reliable those are. You can always put your copy into the machine and your good to go, it really feels like you actually own the product. While digital is a lot more shaky, i might be able to play my psn games right now, but only for as long as Sony supports Psn on ps3. It´s very uncertain and not something i´m going to rely on (i once owned Mortal Kombat 2 on psn, but it got removed from the service, so i no longer own it :/), so if i can find a physical copy, i´m going to buy that instead of the digital version.

On the flip side of this, discs get scratched, and cartridge contacts oxidize and erode. It's very nice to know that if I buy a game on Steam, I will still have it in four years, but if I buy a physical game, it could easily get lost or damaged. What's more, if I lose a game cartridge, I lose my saves also. If my computer gets destroyed, I can continue most of my games on another computer right where I left off.

Digital and physical games both have their ups and downs. I frankly don't think physical copies of games will ever completely disappear. Personally, I use both, depending partly on the system and partly on the game.

P.S. Thanks

 

[MrBaskerville]

On the flip side of this, discs get scratched, and cartridge contacts oxidize and erode. It's very nice to know that if I buy a game on Steam, I will still have it in four years, but if I buy a physical game, it could easily get lost or damaged. What's more, if I lose a game cartridge, I lose my saves also. If my computer gets destroyed, I can continue most of my games on another computer right where I left off.

That is true, but it´s not really something i have a problem with. You can´t scratch blu-rays and the only ps1, ps2 and wii games i have, that are scratched are things i´ve buyed used. I´ve never damaged my games and i have defineately never tried to break any of them (unless i meant to). Even my Atari 2600 games are working perfectly and they are probably older than me!

I would buy more psn games though, if i could use them on a ps4. It´s just that i can´t really get myself to pay for something when i know that someday the games will be useless. I´d have to download them and never ever delete them again while i cross my fingers and hope that my ps3 lives on forever. The day it dies, i lose my psn games, which sucks immensely.

 

[Trishbot]

I simply prefer consumer choice

Digital Distribution is a SUPPLEMENT to retail purchases, not a REPLACEMENT.

Or, hell, I'm waiting for gaming to do the friggin' smart thing and do what the movies are starting to do: buy the DVD, get a digital copy of the movie too.

 

[PoolCleaningRobot]

I'm glad to see Sony isn't ready to jump the gun and go full digital until they see a lot of interest in it. When consoles stop offering physical games, I'll probably fully switch to pc. I agree with everyone on this thread, it's just nicer to own physical games. I go digital on Steam to buy older games for cheap, but big new games I always buy physical

 

[Carnagath]

As Jim Sterling said in his latest video, if you want to go full digital, you need to offer consumers more benefits for it. For me, there are 2 key things that need to be offered before I'd accept such a console: 1) Full guarranteed backwards compatibility 2) Lower prices and sales. If you're planning on bricking my entire library once the next-next gen is out, you can fuck right off. Same if you keep selling a 60$ game at 60$ 2 years down the line. Brick and mortar stores adjust their prices constantly, and so should consoles. And those are not things that, even if promised, I will take your word for it and buy the console. Those are things that YOU need to offer FIRST, and then I will consider it.

 

[IronMit]

ermmmm as much as I prefer physical games I would never state that 'gamer's don't want digital'.

I thought the same thing when I bought a PS3 (partially for the blueray drive) and then I never bought a blueray again after the convenience of downloads and streaming.

I recently discovered steam sales and now I have changed my mind. I have a low-mid range laptop and downloading portal 1 for £1.74, and FO:NV for £3.50, and I can play from any PC whenever I want

I would say Gamer's would choose digital given the right circumstances; price, convenience, practicality. MS tried to give us digital whilst witholding most of what makes it great.

We are ready for digital, you lot aren't willing or can't give it to us yet due to how your business is set up. (you need the dedicated gaming highstreet stores functioning).

 

[tdylan]

I keep saying that all they need to do is pass the savings on from digital sales to the consumer, and almost everyone will go digital.

It's cheaper to sell digital. No hard copy of the game, packaging, manuals, no shipping, and no stocking fees or percentage of the sale taken away by the stores.

It's a significant amount of savings per digital copy sold, and currently digital copies sell at full price.

Drop digital copies by $10.....and you will drop the number of people who buy physical copies drastically. That will also solve the whole "used game" problem they are always complaining about.

But oh well, I've said it a million times already.

Jim did a video on why they won't offer digital games at a cheaper price than retail; the short version is that they're too afraid of pissing off the corporate, brick and mortar stores, like gamestop that they will need to continue pushing physical copies of the games until the world is all digital:

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/jimquisition/7444-Xbox-One-and-the-Death-of-Ownership

 

[thepyrethatburns]

*Looks at the PSP Go*

Yeah, I would imagine that you would know, Sony.

 

[Lightknight]

1) Full guarranteed backwards compatibility

How does this change whether you'd go digital or not since the disc would be just as useless on a new machine as a digital only copy would be. The only difference is that I can install my digital PSN/XB games on other systems as long as I've already purchases them on my account whereas the disk can be lost.

That being said, with both the PS4 and XBO moving to x86 architectures, there will never be a viable excuse not to be able to play old games again. The ps3 had a weird proprietary processor that made it actually difficult for developers to make games for it. So it moving to a new architecture was necessary. I'm still not sure about the 360->XBO's new architecture meaning that the games can be played.

But x86 environments to x86 environments? Should be perfect as long as bluray is still supported.

 

[Baresark]

I think him and his cohorts are very confused on digital. The thing is, they don't offer any of the digital advantages when they push digital. Also, cloud gaming is not the same as buying your goods digitally. Both MS and Sony have fucked up in the past with digital because they are incapable of making a balanced offer and leaving both choices open. Both companies have in fact hurt their digital markets by not including both digital and physical media. PSP Go MADE you go digital, it didn't offer you a choice. MS wanted to force people in digital with the XBox One's feature set, and as soon as there was push back they abandoned their excellent plans for digital. PC still has it best because both are offered up. Both mediums are covered on the PC. Both Sony and MS have pushed for digital and then it doesn't work out, and they basically abandon it again for a few years, rather than easing people into it. Sony wanted to push cloud gaming (which is the worst form of digital there is, IMO), and people aren't quick to catch on to an inferior form of gaming. MS should have kept their digital sharing and digital trading to gradually move their customer base over to digital, but they did a complete turn around as soon as they couldn't make your system phone home every 24 hours. Both companies are run by idiots it would seem. So, he has it right. Consumers are not ready to take the word of idiots that something is good for them. That isn't their fault though, because your offerings are all fucked up.

 

[LordMonty]

We still like physical things. Its simple will always be the same. Maybe money(cash form) and down the line games will vanish but thats some time off or maybe never... we'll see.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

Really sony? Look sell your games digitally for £20 cheaper than retail and tons of PS4 customers will love digital.

 

[Keith K]

The digital battle will be won through convenience and attrition. So convenience it up and one by one you'll convert consumers.

 

[luvd1]

People will start to download more when it is in their interest as the consumer, not the seller. Untill companies stop fighting their customers and seeing them as the enermy, the happier everyone will be. It's not rocket science.

 

[Ninmecu]

1) Full guarranteed backwards compatibility

How does this change whether you'd go digital or not since the disc would be just as useless on a new machine as a digital only copy would be. The only difference is that I can install my digital PSN/XB games on other systems as long as I've already purchases them on my account whereas the disk can be lost.

That being said, with both the PS4 and XBO moving to x86 architectures, there will never be a viable excuse not to be able to play old games again. The ps3 had a weird proprietary processor that made it actually difficult for developers to make games for it. So it moving to a new architecture was necessary. I'm still not sure about the 360->XBO's new architecture meaning that the games can be played.

But x86 environments to x86 environmets? Should be perfect as long as bluray is still supported.

I'm stating it here and now(Albeit in the wrong thread.) I guesstimate 5 months, TOPS, before Ps4 Emulator and Xbone Emulator(s) are leaked to the public because of that architectural change.

 

[Lightknight]

Sony can't make upload and download times speed up on the consumer's side. They can do everything right and people will still be put off by having to leave the system on and downloading a 40+GB game for a day or more when a 30minute trip to the store will suffice and would likely be cheaper.

 

[Lightknight]

I'm stating it here and now(Albeit in the wrong thread.) I guesstimate 5 months, TOPS, before Ps4 Emulator and Xbone Emulator(s) are leaked to the public because of that architectural change.

There's a few significant steps that would stand between that. Emulation, for example, takes a significantly greater amount of processing power the machine being emulated. In this case it would be significant enough to be completely useless in even the majority of power machine users. I mean, I've got a great i7 intel, great video cards and 32GB of RAM and I don't have the greatest confidence that I'd be able to emulate their consoles with any ease, let alone be able to trick servers into thinking it's a legitimate member of the console ranks. Add that to significant security updates since the previous gen as well are regular/mandatory firmware updates and the uphill battle is sisyphean both metaphorically and literally.

Then you have things like an additional processor for downloading in the ps4 along with three OSs in the XBO and emulation may never be viable without matching hardware components and an extremely technical emulator. We'll see how long it takes to do that, but it's not going to be easy or cost effect for some time.

Frankly, it'd likely be a lot cheaper and easier just to buy a ps4 or XBO even if one was out today. I'm not even sure emulation of the ps3 would be entirely viable nowadays but the 360 would likely be a lot more possible.

But are you saying they shouldn't have standardized architecture for that reason even though it benefits everyone involved? Gamers, Developers/Publishers, and Sony/Microsoft. Do you genuinely believe that the number of people who could keep up with firmware updates and such is so significant a number as to actually impact sales?

 

[Arkynomicon]

I'm fine with buying physical copies. Thanks to various helpful sites that keeps tracks on prices I have bought a lot of new games at a reasonable price. With digital games I'm restricted to one store on consoles and it's pretty much a waste of time waiting for sales when I could get a cheap physical copy if I'm willing to wait a couple of days anyway.

I'm also not happy about the online prices on Playstation Network either because they convert 1$ to 1? which is just bullshit exchange rates. PSN+ has been pretty good value, though.

 

[Carnagath]

1) Full guarranteed backwards compatibility

How does this change whether you'd go digital or not since the disc would be just as useless on a new machine as a digital only copy would be. The only difference is that I can install my digital PSN/XB games on other systems as long as I've already purchases them on my account whereas the disk can be lost.

That being said, with both the PS4 and XBO moving to x86 architectures, there will never be a viable excuse not to be able to play old games again. The ps3 had a weird proprietary processor that made it actually difficult for developers to make games for it. So it moving to a new architecture was necessary. I'm still not sure about the 360->XBO's new architecture meaning that the games can be played.

But x86 environments to x86 environments? Should be perfect as long as bluray is still supported.

When you require an online connection, and you decide that it's not worth the money to maintain Live support for your previous generation, I don't want to lose access to my games. This is not the case with discs.