[krspkbl]

I simply wouldn't buy games anymore if they were download only. We need to keep physical discs.

[ayyob]

it's a bad idea, did they thought of people who have a slow internet speed like me what are they gonna do ?

[krspkbl]

QUOTE (ayyob @ Tuesday, Aug 14 2012, 08:26)

it's a bad idea, did they thought of people who have a slow internet speed like me what are they gonna do ?

Exactly! On my PS3 the most I get is 1mb. The hardware is so old and sh*tty. I dread downloading game updates never mind a full game itself!

It won't fully take off until the internet gets much faster. Wasn't Max Payne 3 about 30GB on PC? My computer would explode if I tried downloading that!

[cowabunga]

I always said it. The online is the way to control us.

I like to look at my shelf and see all the games in their original boxes.

[Adriaan]

It certainly is worth bringing up given how things are moving. I remember this same question came up for GTAIV, and the possibility of how GTAV's midnight launch will be more easily accessible by download at midnight. Look at Steam, where it allows you to preinstall the majority of the content pre-release, and then have the final activation come street date to avoid long waiting periods.

That said, though, even if the majority of the industry moves toward that, when it comes to blockbuster titles like these you'd always have great demand for a physically packaged good. Look at the return of Vinyl Records where fans buy the vinyl record and cover of a music album.

The other thing that's also important is the used games business. Given your job, @OP, I'm sure you are aware of how big this has become for GameStop. There are some very interesting stats highlighted in this article that makes me think the physical packaged versions of games will remain for some time to come: http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/08/02/wha...your-used-games

...especially the part that says "70 percent of income consumers make from trading games goes straight back into buying brand new games."


So even if GTA VI is delivered digitally six years from now, which would no doubt seem like an attractive option to any publisher, I think it's still very likely that it would still be released as a packaged version. The newer tech from Sony and Microsoft just wouldn't dare strip out optical discs just yet.

Even if you strip out the download issue, and think that most connections would be able to handle streaming services such as OnLive, I just don't think those companies have the physical bandwidth and capacity to carry a GTA launch on its own - and consumers will realize this.


With regards to EA, that's just the nature of their Origin business. They're much more diversified than Rockstar or Take-Two and have a greater variety of titles offered digitally, plus their subscription models and micro transactions. Globally there's just so much more PC gamers and if you think of how nations such as India and Brazil are expanding enormously in internet penetration it ends up being a numbers thing.

Take-Two and Rockstar is different in that they have these major blockbuster IPs that takes six years to make, and is not really just another game you casually download or try out and buy more hats for your avatar.


I know you own a retail store in the biz, so I hope the reaction you have gauged now from these responses from others will make you feel at ease . Think of well the disc version of EFLC and GTAIV Complete did relative to all the download versions. Same goes for physically packaged Undead Nightmare and Red Dead Complete, which still remains very well ranked on Amazon last I checked.

This post has been edited by Adriaan on Tuesday, Aug 14 2012, 08:00

[gtamann123]

I wish games wouldn't be download only but sadly it will probably happen. I like having the solid copy. I never download games because my Hard Drive is only 20gb. The only thing I have downloaded is dawnguard. So if games do become download only then I hope the next gen consoles have huge hard Drives so you aren't limited to only like 5 game at a time.

[lzw3]

QUOTE (Magic_Al @ Tuesday, Aug 14 2012, 12:58)

[...] I don't have a big problem with the idea of GTA being only a download someday [...]

I do. Although I have an Internet connection, many people don't have a PS3 or Xbox 360 Internet connection and that would amass to an enormous loss of cash by R*

[asitsaysinthebook]

I'd miss the maps and posters and booklets. To me, those were the very first thing to read when I had gotten a new game.

[Raynos]

QUOTE (finn4life @ Tuesday, Aug 14 2012, 03:42)

Font Colour opinions? White seems so bland.

It's better than red, thats for sure. Nice and gentle on the eyes, I feel like my eyes were in a 5-star spa resort whilst reading your post.

Anyways, OT. Very true, American companies and american assholes think that since they have high speed 100gb/sec internet, that the rest of the world is on the same level.

Well no, we aren't and there's sweet f*ck all we, as individuals can do about it.

I'd still, always want physical media, it just feel better, having something to hold, cherish, tressure and sell when it becomes rare.
Suikoden 3, you bitch!

[Hy2RoGeN]

imagine someone that wants GTA VI (if it comes out) but he has slow internet and u can only get it online through steam or whatever.. it'd take a whole damn week to get a game that large..

[Raynos]

QUOTE (Hy2RoGeN @ Tuesday, Aug 14 2012, 09:35)

imagine someone that wants GTA VI (if it comes out) but he has slow internet and u can only get it online through steam or whatever.. it'd take a whole damn week to get a game that large..

Imagine when he's finished downloading, some of the files are corrupted, he has to re-download it.

He'll end up breaking into a buisness, so that he can use their high speed fibre connection to finally get his game.

He will then go to jail and the media will say "A game made this poor f*ck break into a store, GTA made him do it!"

That's exactly where we will be if things go digital only.

[AlfredNTheFettuc]

I hope not.
I hardly ever buy games from Steam - getting them in boxes is cheaper and better because my country's worthless currency makes Steam useless for new, full-price games.

[theworldfamous]

depends on how the digital distribution is handled. Every xbox live transaction I've done has felt like a ripoff. If that's the future, count me out.. steam is pretty cool though.

[Afusensi]

I am used to the download concept already. I never buy boxed games anymore. Steam is awesome.
They could have both like they have now (boxed and download), and lower the price of downloads.

[bud23]

Magic_Al, you forget EA´s Moore words; "We will never abandon physical media. As long as the consumer wants to buy something on a disc, we will be there to offer it."

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012...-to-three-years

Attending To Zelnick´s(T2 CEO) words,We should be optimistic;

"Packaged goods isn't going away for our business... because we have huge file sizes,"

"It's pretty hard to interact with huge file sizes where latency issues are meaningful, if you're entirely in the cloud,"

“I think you can see digital distribution growing to be 20, 30, 40 per cent of our business – however I believe our business is going to grow, so I don’t think it actually takes a bite out of retail and I doubt it takes a bite out of consoles,”
"While we're not exactly platform-agnostic... the fact that a middle-sized platform is going to grow is phenomenal news for us. The most important news for us is, how great is our next title."

Zelnick(T2 CEO) on gamasutra;Digital Growth Won't Cannibalize Packaged Biz
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/31035/T...t=Google+Reader

[Jakee.]

I don't think it will be the last, however the Digital Side of things is coming.

One thing you need to remember is,not everyone has the high speed internet connections to download such large quantitys of data, and until they start shipping PlaystationNext and XboxNext with terrabyte+ drives(solid state too,which is hella-expensive) we aren't going nowhere. Games can be anywhere in the gigabytes, the harddrive I have(250gb) is completely full of installed games, I only have a about 7 on there.

I hope this is considered, because fair enough we can get our games straight from a digital download, but that is completely ruling out brick and mortar stores, also stores like zavvi and shopto. Microsoft & Playstation are obviously pushing their next consoles out to be as greedy as possible, but if they don't think about a) the actual space needed and b) not everyone has the speed possible for digital downloads.

I know for me, it takes ~45 minutes to download 1.2gb of data from Xbox Marketplace, that is normally the size of a Demo. So, imagine a 20gb game, im looking at half the day there.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17130367

But I will be really sad to see them go, Rockstar put a lot of effort into the cover art and the contents of their boxes, and seem to be the only developer left who actually put instruction manuals into their games.

[stueycow]

it wont happen as

1. All GTA's have posters a PS3/ Xbox Dose not have a built in printer
2. Lots of people like having a box

[redx165]

QUOTE (stueycow @ Tuesday, Aug 14 2012, 10:24)

it wont happen as 1. All GTA's have posters a PS3/ Xbox Dose not have a built in printer 2. Lots of people like having a box

It's coming and I hope it don't come too soon.

[theworldfamous]

QUOTE (stueycow @ Tuesday, Aug 14 2012, 10:24)

it wont happen as 1. All GTA's have posters a PS3/ Xbox Dose not have a built in printer 2. Lots of people like having a box

somehow that made me laugh...

[Street Mix]

Well they still can make artworks and release them in digital form as an icon on your account, as wallpaper.

Even though I like digital distribution, for games like GTA I prefer having a box.