Physical or Digital?

[Shikinouta]

Not like that you sick ****. Do you prefer to buy your games digitally or physically? Don't think your answer has to be blanketed black or white across all consoles, because it's obviously not.

For instance, I prefer to buy physical for Wii U, since those loving disks come with those lovely rounded edges (plus I got Splatoon for 40 when I bought Super Mario Maker). I have a lot of games on my shelf (like 160ish I think) and the blue Wii U cases look really nice ~. Sucks there's no more instructions.

On the flip side, when it comes to handhelds I generally prefer digital (harking back to the days of yore when I hated having to choose what Gameboy Advanced games to take with me on a family trip). Having a 32 gig micro SD helps a lot too. I do buy physical handheld games when the game in question is too big to download or if I want to play it now, like Xenoblade 3D. Or if it's cheap. Physical games across the board are dirt cheap now.

What do you think? Physical or digital?

 

[Wonder Blue]

For me it's a 50 - 50 thing.
I'm fine with both but there are games that I'd really want a physical package for.

If it's on consoles, physical all day, every day unless I'm too lazy to go to Gamestop or Amazon. Then I just go "ech" and download it.
Handhelds are a different story. I normally go for my top favorite game as a physical copy so i'm not walking around with a 3DS that doesn't have a game cart in it. The rest are digital to make my home screen look a bit more appealing to look at.

 

[Pteropine]

Physical usually I mean I have a few games digitally only BECAUSE I also own them physically (ssb43ds and new leaf)

 

[Ultimate Mayhem]

Ya know, having digital for portable systems like the 3DS is better because of convenience. Rather than having to carry around a 3DS along with some sort of game case, you can just have the 3DS by itself with games stored on an SD card. For a home console like Wii U, it depends. If the console is gonna be in one location for most of the time, you might as well get physical, but if you say, have divorced parents and have to go back and forth, it'd be more convenient to go digital.

 

[Noire]

Physical. I don't have a choice, my Wii U is almost out of space and the rest is reserved for patches and DLC and my 3DS is filled with two very big digital games (Thanks 4GB Micro SD). It's annoying having to order physical games from amazon since I live in the middle of nowhere and it takes a couple of weeks to get here. I do like having them in my shelf though.

 

[Mateiüsthesquidwarrior]

Definitely Physical. For a couple reasons:

First, maybe I'm a little biased because I've always liked "collecting" stuff, but to me it's just cool to actually have a game that I can hold in my hand.

Second, have you ever considered that Nintendo theoretically has the ability to recall anything downloaded digitally on your Wii U? It may be unlikely, but it definitely is possible. With a physical copy, you never have to worry about this.

For me, this goes for all sorts of things, not just video games. For instance, I'd always rather get a CD than purchase an album online, or get an actual DVD rather than just a digital download.

 

[BlackZero]

Physical.

First, if I don't like the game or simply lose interest, I can resell it. Second, I like having a video game collection I can physically look at. Third, I'm just accustomed to having a physical copy. Fourth, if the physical copy and the digital copy are the same price, yet the company doesn't have to pay to make and distribute disks, then the company is being greedy by charging the same price for the same product that has less development and marketing costs attached to it. So, I kinda vote with my wallet against companies charging more when they should technically charge less because they don't have to pay distribution costs. Fifth, it's easier to find physical copies of games at a reduced price sooner whereas digital copies follow a pricing schedule where a certain amount of time has to pass before they drop the price (if they ever do). Why wait for a digital copy to drop from $39.99 when I can go on Amazon and buy a physical copy of the same game for $20?

 

[Shikinouta]

What I don't get is that a large portion of us said that we prefer our games physical, and yet the big 3 insist on shoving digital download codes or pre-installs on their new console bundles. Not to mention digital only releases, which plague the Sony side (RIP Vita blue minicases, we hardly knew you).
Not all of us have Scandinavian internet speeds either; I can barely reach 5mbs on a good day. The thought of having to wait for the 20-24GB download in The Last of Us PS4 bundle frankly terrifies me, and I shudder to think of all the poor kids on Christmas day who, instead of unwrapping their new Wii U and playing Super Mario 3D Land, have to sit there for hours waiting for the download to complete.

And yet, Guilty Gear Xrd was 20 on PSN digitally once upon a time, but I can't find a physical PS3 copy for less than 30. Go figure.

 

[BlackZero]

What I don't get is that a large portion of us said that we prefer our games physical, and yet the big 3 insist on shoving digital download codes or pre-installs on their new console bundles.

It's a business strategy. They don't have to pay the same distribution costs to sell digital copies, meaning they can sell games for the same amount of money and keep more of that money for themselves. It also makes it harder for people to rip game files if games are downloaded to a console hard drive, thus harder to rip and make ROMs/ISOs.

Basically, businesses are protecting their interests while marketing it as a feature for the consumer's benefit. Publishers are notorious for this, and I hope things like Patreon phase them out. Now that digital downloads eliminate a major service publishers provide, and creators have a means of raising money without investors, game publishers only serve as IP gatekeepers and digital rights lobbyists. The sooner companies like EA disappear from gaming, the better off it will be for developers and consumers.

 

[lostleader]

Generally speaking I find digital to be an inferior version of hard copy, mainly because you can't sell it back or touch it properly. I say this because you obviously get more when you buy a hard copy on a regular basis, and I just wish digital copies would reflect this. This is why I tend to buy the majority of any digital games on sale or I know I can't get it hard copy.

Factually, of course, my line of thinking isn't correct and there are a number of things digital games get right, being at one place at all time (very good for handhelds), not having to wait an extra installation time when you buy it (mostly on newer consoles), and honestly sometimes it is the cheaper option (glares at suikoden series)

Course, given the option, ALWAYS PLAY HARD

 

[Flareth]

I grew up with physical copies, so I'm kinda biased here. Sure, digital copies are easier to access, but if I end up disliking the game I bought (and this has happened before), then I'm stuck with it. With no way to get my money back.

Now, I will say that I like having demos available for these types of games, as they're an effective substitute for buying a hard copy & returning it later. Helps that they're free, so it's less of a risk. (Of course, that doesn't eliminate the possibility of enjoying it at first, then losing interest over time.)

The other thing I like about digital is that, well, sometimes I just can't find the game I'm looking for in stores. If it's on the eShop/XBLA/what have ye, then I don't have to wait for a restock or used copy to turn up. That's always nice. (Again, though, if that new game smell wears off...)

 

[PrinceOfKoopas]

Physical, physical, physical.

Especially when now I gotta deal with transferring data from 3DS to New 3DS XL pretty soon. I regret ever getting digital copy of Pokémon X (so much space) and I also regret ever downloading Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze instead of buying it physical.

 

[RedML51]

I feel like I'm getting more with the physical purchase. A case with cool art, a disc with cool art. I like discs. Plus, thinking long-term, having all your games in physical format would be more desirable.

As a matter of fact, I can still say that I've never downloaded a retail game before.

 

[PrinceOfKoopas]

I feel like I'm getting more with the physical purchase. A case with cool art, a disc with cool art. I like discs. Plus, thinking long-term, having all your games in physical format would be more desirable.

As a matter of fact, I can still say that I've never downloaded a retail game before.

I wish they still came with instruction manuals instead of QR codes for the ORAS Special Demo from over a year ago.

 

[RedML51]

I wish they still came with instruction manuals instead of QR codes for the ORAS Special Demo from over a year ago.

Heh, yeah. I do most certainly miss the days of beautiful instruction booklets... maybe they're not so necessary now, but they're awesome. :3

 

[16bitdave]

physical for sure!

 

[97Stephen]

I've been digital all the way since one of my brothers scratched my smash disc and stopped part of the game from working:(.

 

[Cassandra]

It depends on if it's console or handheld. Handheld games take up around 2GB of space or less, which means my 64GB SD card can hold a whole ton of games, which I can keep all in one place. Consoles, on the other hand, have games that can be upwards of 15GB+, and it's not often that the internal memory can support many games (Bayonetta 2 and Smash 4 do not fit on my Wii U, even when I cleaned it out). In that case I would rather just pick up a physical copy.